Sleeping for barely 4 hours and waking up early the next morning to attend the CTA’s yoga session is both pretty tiring and exciting. In fact, I haven’t practiced yoga at all until now. So I thought it would be a wonderful and refreshing experience for me to stretch my body and limbs.
Marking the fourth International Yoga day, the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) organised a Yoga session at Tsuglagkhang. When I got inside the courtyard around 6:15 AM, I saw Tibetan yoga aficionados from all walks of life including CTA dignitaries, students and members of the general public getting ready to stretch their mind and bodies.
The almost one-hour yoga asanas at the courtyard of Tsuglagkhang is a part of Thank You India campaign announced by the Kashag. Although I got the opportunity to attend the yoga session, I didn’t get the chance to practice it as I was on assignment to capture some light candid moments. It’s both interesting and humorous to see the natural expressions of the people while they are practicing yoga.
The yoga session was led by Tibetan yoga instructor Tsering Yangzom, a fitness trainer based in Gurgaon, India.
An alumnus of Tibetan Homes Foundation, Mussoorie, she pursued her passion for fitness and sports by enrolling herself in the Lakshmibai National University of Physical Education in Trivandrum, Kerala. She earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education with a specialization in basketball.
After her graduation, she joined yoga teacher training course in Rishikul Yogshala in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand. This helped her further strengthen her yoga knowledge and experience by completing 200 hours of yoga teacher training classes. She has been a personal fitness trainer and yoga instructor since 2013.
Tsering Yangzom has had a long list of people learning wellness and yoga from her. A Tibetan Buddhist by birth and practice, Tsering Yangzom practices both in her personal and professional life, strict discipline in nurturing the body, mind, and soul. She doesn’t believe in quick fixes when it comes to health and emphasises holistic wellness over short-term goals.
She stood second runner-up in JERAI (Jerai Fitness Pvt. Ltd) Classic State tour women physique competition in Delhi in 2016.
Apart from her success, the most inspiring work she is doing is that she often volunteers to teach basic yoga and dance at different NGO centres for orphan or underprivileged kids in Delhi NCR.
She is also keen to share her knowledge and journey as a professional fitness coach to as many young Tibetans as possible through different platforms.
On this same day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi led 50,000 people in Dehradun to mark the fourth International Yoga Day celebrations while many Indian union ministers are participating in similar events across the country.