Cross Country Skiing, the Power of Tradition, Yoga and Antidepressants
Skiing in Helsinki!
I spent most of my 20s traveling around the world. I loved the exhilarating experience of going to new places, trying new foods and meeting all sorts of different people. Whenever I spent more than just a few days in a place (which I did quite often, especially in India, Nepal and Australia) the saying I always tried to observe was: “Do as the locals do”.
It’s been almost 7 years since I moved to Finland. I love it here. The fresh air, the long days of summer, the beautiful colors of autumn, as well as the wide range of possibilities for outdoor fun. Something I heard over and over again, especially at the beginning by my non-Finnish friends both as advice and a warning was that “wait until winter... you’ll find it really hard”, or “the darkness is the worst”, among many others. These made me concerned, especially because I come from a city where the sun shines pretty much year-round with the exception of the short cold season. I didn’t know how my body and mind would react to it.
To be honest, it wasn’t that bad at all. However, this was mostly because I took a full month off every December to go back to Chile (conveniently experiencing the peak of the summer season at the darkest time of the year in Finland) or some exotic destination where I could surf and enjoy the sun with Eva, my wife. Having this privilege, I spent the autumn and beginning of winter looking forward to a great vacation, and the rest of winter I was so recharged that I barely thought about dark/cold. On top of that, my Yoga teaching is deeply fulfilling and meaningful, therefore most of the time I was fine.
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Covid changed everything, though. Traveling was restricted, and not fun at all. Given those circumstances, I decided to spent the last two winters fully here. This is where I came back to the old and wise advice: “Do as the locals do!”.
Tradition (or customs) are totally undervalued nowadays. With so many new trends every day, new gadgets and things that give us instant gratification, plus a whole stream of thinking that looks back at the past with little more than contempt (I am certainly guilty of that in my past), there is little consideration for the things that people have done repeatedly and that has proven to work to deal with specific situations. As the famous line goes: “Tradition is a set of solutions for which we have forgotten the problems”. In this case, to battle these long, dark and cold winters, I thought it wise to learn what many Finns do every winter, and which keeps them fit, active, able to be outdoors and happy. This is of course, cross country skiing (hiihto in Finnish).
Jordan Peterson, a Professor of Psychology, reflecting about Carl Jung, once said that the archetype of the fool is the precursor of the archetype of the savior. This means that in order to find something truly deep and full of meaning, one must be willing to be (and certainly look) like a fool when attempting to learn it. And lord... how true this is when trying to learn cross-country skiing! The set of skills needed to learn it, in the skating style, which I chose, are enough to challenge you full on: strength, endurance, excellent balance, coordination, adaptability and very good fitness.
Purna Yoga has taught me that repetition is the mother of all skill. When doing a pose repeatedly, you integrate it into your body, and you discover new layers each new time you do it. Since I truly believe that, as Sri Aurobindo said, All Life is Yoga, I made the conscious choice of putting myself all in on this by doing two very important things, which are akin to burning the boats before taking the island: First, I spent a good chunk of money in a whole set of skis and all its equipment (not a cheap sport) and secondly, I booked a holiday in Lapland two months after starting my attempts with my wife and 2 dear friends, who are a big inspiration in my life and great cross country skiers. Having the pressure of not wanting to waste my hard earned resources and not wanting to slow down my friends in winter wonderland, I started learning hiihto at the end of January, 2021.
Happy on freshly made tracks! Luosto, Lapland
To say that I was a fool is an understatement. As of now, I have rarely seen foreigners like me give hiihto a fair try more than once, and no wonder... the drill is hard when you are learning it as an adult. I think I spent most of those first few weeks falling on snow rather than actually moving anywhere. I was slowing everyone down. I felt totally insufficient for the first 2 or 3 weeks. Very, very little progress.
Eventually, after endless sessions of “how to” YouTube videos and some compassionate advice given by caring Finns probably feeling pity for this Chilean guy attempting to move on skis, I got my first short moments of actual movement. Then more, and more, and more. At least I wasn’t falling every 5 minutes, and that was progress!
After going to that skiing place every day for a full month, and learning a lot about resilience, repetition, practice and humility, I managed to go to Lapland two months after and not embarrass my Finnish friends... success! And even better than that, I was SO happy! Not only because of the overcoming of difficulties, but because now a whole new world opened up to me. The experience of skiing in pristine forests alone with my thoughts, working my body in powerful way, and having a great time with friends. No wonder why skiers look forward all year to winter!
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It’s been just over a year since I put up my skis for the first time. I have gone a long way. So far, I have skied about 300km just this winter, I went to Lapland for Christmas, and going again in March. But above all, I learned to do as the locals do. With hiihto, they truly have a magical formula to overcome winters. And not only that, it makes it the most beautiful season. Ever. Period. If you add to that the traditions of sauna and winter swimming, I would challenge anyone to find a hiihtäjä (skier) that is not fully equipped to enjoy the winter season to its fullest.
I read social media post the other day that said “Exercise is the most underrated anti-depressant ever”, and how true that is! In a world used to pills for everything, making the choice to work your body in a beautiful way and enjoy the great outdoors may be hard. And yes, it is. However, the reward is plentiful and the victory of conquering a new skill is a true win.
Winter is the best!
I am forever grateful to my Purna Yoga practice, for setting a mental and spiritual foundation that allowed me to experience the new with a sense of awe. To overcome my ego’s hurt whenever I would look stupid on the snow. And to the asana practice, for the strength and flexibility cultivated in order to make it much easier than it would have been. To the breathwork that allows me to have endurance and coordination. This story is a living testimony of the power of Yoga. It is also a story that teaches and reminds me (and hopefully you, too) that trying new things is rejuvenating. That attempting and overcoming is deeply meaningful. And that whatever it is that you try, make sure to enjoy being a fool at it, so that you can taste the sweet flavor of overcoming it, as well as deep empathy to those who are learning. You have also been there.
I’ll see you at the hiihtolatu (skiing tracks) or in the Yoga mat!
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