Being Well Takes Practice

Why Hailey Langland Practices Yoga to Be Better at Everything

 

It’s not about how much yoga you can do—it’s about how much yoga can do for you. Here’s why Snowboarder and Yogi Hailey Langland practices to feel and be her best.

One look at Hailey Langland’s Instagram account and it’s easy to see: she is doing all the things. She’s a snowboarder competing at the highest levels. She just got into mountain biking. She’s camping. Then paddle boarding. Out hiking. Off travelling (safely). Surfing. Reading. Biking. Dancing. Skateboarding. And snowboarding again. But the thing grounding her Hailey-of-all-trades routine? A casual yoga practice she relies on to relax, chill out, de-stress, and cultivate a perspective wiser than her 21 years.

“I have remember to draw myself back,” she says. “Yoga has so many attributes that are helpful. If I’m getting frustrated, I can breathe it in and breathe it out. Even if it’s just sitting there letting go, letting the thoughts come in and out of my head.”

Hailey credits fellow snowboarders for introducing her to the practice. As a 16-year-old, she grew up watching her older peers absolutely crushing at competitions. “It made me realize, maybe this is something that proves longevity in my sport. I want to snowboard until the day I die, so that’s why I started doing yoga. And for injury—I have been through a lot of those.”

And while yoga is a big part of what helps her feel her best, so does cultivating a do-anything approach to life. “I’m definitely a go-getter,” she says. “I’ve just always been a kid who was doing something. That’s who I’ve become today.” Spontaneity is pretty appealing in a world that’s been on pause—and in a world where wellness advice insists success is rooted in routine. She prefers each day to feel blank, fresh, and filled with time outside. Her yoga essentials are a foldable mat and a water bottle. Instead of gripping tightly to a schedule, she lives in pure possibility and knows how much can be drawn by going back to the mat. It’s a way to keep her mind busy; a gift of relaxation rather than another way to tire herself out; a strength-training alternative to the gym; a way to connect more deeply with friends; the perfect way to end a day of snowboarding; a way to meet people in new places; a way to reconnect with herself; and an avenue for building mental endurance.

“I would have to attribute all the patience I have within me to yoga,” says Hailey. “I used to be caught up in my head about things I thought were really important, but once time goes by, you look back and think, ‘That was nothing. I’m just so happy for that experience. I’m so happy I’m the person I am.’ Those things that happened in the past don’t define who you are. I love to reflect on that.”

"I would have to attribute all the patience I have within me to yoga."

Down the road, yoga may even be the thing that helps her overcome her fear of heights. “It’s something that no one believes because I snowboard and I hit jumps, but I swear it’s totally different” laughs Hailey. “I would love to try and skydive. Not yet. Not this year. But I love putting myself in uncomfortable situations and seeing how it ends up.”

Three more reasons Hailey loves yoga:

“I can turn to it and really reflect. You don’t have to put yourself out there, you don’t have to scream it to the world. It stays between you and yoga.”

“The practice of it is interesting because it’s not something anyone could truly master. No one is going to be the number one at it. You can be your number one, but you’ll never be the number one.”

“Snowboarders are pretty infamous for really tight hip flexors and quads, so yoga is the best way to stretch without getting bored, in my opinion.”

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