Yoga Journal Singapore — April-May 2017

40

april / may 2017

yogajournal.com.sg

Ninja Turtles

MUSTANG &

HOT YOGA

By Copper Crow

ART DIRECTION : ANUJA BAGADE, PHOTOGRAPHY : GARGI MAZUMDAR, MODEL : COP

PER CROW, WARDROBE : PURE APPAREL

My dad was my first real teacher and still serves

as my soul guru. He practiced Hatha yoga, but

was a Bhakti yogi (spiritual warrior) at heart.

He signed me up for my first karate class when

I was four years old, after I nagged him to

move to Chinato become a Shaolinmonk. Dad

retired early due to a heart condition, which

restricted him from working. Since he wasn’t

tied to a job, we ended up traveling a lot, never

spending more than a few years in one place.

I lived everywhere from Alaska to Louisiana on

the west coast of the United States, with Texas

and California being home. Since we moved

so much, I learned to make friends easily, but

never got into team sports.

My passion was always martial arts, and

I’d seek out a school or dojo wherever

we settled. I tried all different styles of

practice from Taekwondo to Karate, but

found my real passion in Kung-Fu and Muay

Thai Kick-boxing. I loved anything and

everything from Ninja Turtles to Bruce Lee,

from Jean-Claude Van Damme to Sho Kosugi.

It wasn’t the aggressive fighting that inspired

my martial arts training, but the peaceful,

controlled movements (kata), the emphasis on

strength and flexibility conditioning, and later

the breathing/ meditation practices. I was a

dedicated to martial arts student all throughout

my youth, from 4 to 16.

Then, at 16, two things happened that

changed the course of my future—my father

passed away, and I got my driver’s license.

The latter also translated into a ’67 Ford

Mustang! Fast forward to age 25, having spent

myremainingyouth in debauchery, I found

myself working in finance—overweight and

unfulfilled.I desperately wanted to get back in

shape. When my friend suggested ‘hot yoga’,

I initially laughed it off, but eventually caved

in after he persisted. It killed me! At one level,

I hated it because it was hot, exhausting and

demoralizing to be a minority in a class full of

fit and flexiblewomen.A regular 2-pack-a-day

smoking habit forced me to take breaks in

the class to catch my breath. At another

level, it was everything I always loved from

my martial arts training—strength, stretch,

focus, concentration—just me, no excuses! It

took me a while to adjust to the heat and get

comfortable being over-weight and shirtless

in a room full of attractive women, but once

I got on the mat, I forgot about everything

and everyone around me. I found myself

methodically following the cadence of the

instructor and balancing my physical, mental

and emotional states. A year later, 20 kgs

lighter, I quit my job and dedicated my

life to the study of yoga and sharing this

amazing practice with others.

In some ways, I believe that I really did die

in that first hot yoga class. The person who

walked out of that room was not the same.

I found purpose, and the will tochange the

course of my life.I resigned from finance

in 2003 and did an in-depth 9-week hot yoga

teacher training in California. In 2004, I followed

my teacher to Bangkok, Seoul and Hong Kong.

I joined Pure Yoga in Hong Kong in 2006, and

moved to Singapore in 2008. Now, after more

than a decade teaching on the mat, I love and

practice all yoga, and teach many different yoga

styles—continuing to dedicate my time and

sweat to sharing the practice that changed my

life. I wish for yoga to be a catalyst that will

change the lives of others. Today, I am a

practitioner, teacher, husband to an amazing

Singaporean yogini, and proud father to a

beautiful little girl. Yoga is my life, but I still

love kick-ass kung-fu movies! Copper with his wife, Andrea Yeo, who alsoteaches at Pure Yoga in Singapore.