COVER YOGI
Om
24
may/june 2018yogajournal.com.auEAST
Meets West
Tiffany Cruikshank in her own
words on how she started her
yoga journey, her life, loves and
practice.
THE FOUNDER OF YOGA MEDICINE,
Tiffany Cruikshank is an author,
passionate educator and internationally
acclaimed yoga teacher for her unique
ability to fuse the two worlds of Eastern
and Western medicine together and
apply it to the practice of yoga.Can you tell us about the evolution
of your own practice and the yoga
industry since the beginning of your
journey?
The early years of my practice were
wonderful. It was a time in yoga when
there wasn’t a lot of information or
marketing; I just practiced because I felt
better. There weren’t any studios where
I lived. As an athlete, I loved the
physicality of the practice but there was
always something more that kept me
coming back. In my late teens and 20’s, I
became more immersed in Ashtanga
and became intrigued with the physical
poses, testing the limits of my body. I
love handstands and arm balances.
When I started seeing patients at 24, I
would wake up at 4 a.m. and do 3rd
series before leading a Mysore class and
then go off to see patients all day. I loved
the challenge the practice brought; it
really inspired me and gave me a clear
way to direct my energy. I think I was
about 30 when my body fi nally said, “no
more”. I herniated a disc and was
forced to take a good look at my
practice. My specialty with patients has
always been sports medicine and
orthopedics and I was forced to start
incorporating what I use with patients
into my own life. I think I truly believed
at some point that yoga made me
invincible, that if I did 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
series that it would cure all my ailments.
I had just fi nished 4th series when I hurt PHOTO: JENNY JIMENEZ / PHOTOJJ.COM