Natalia, Yoga teacher in Chuncheon, Gangwondo
- lilmrskim
- 2017년 3월 15일
- 18분 분량
Today I have asked Natalia, a foreigner living in Korea if she would be so kind and met me for an interview. It was my first time doing an interview for my blog and I must admit I was a little nervous. But thanks to Natalia's aura of calm and peace, I forgot about it after few minutes into the interview.
We've met at a coffee shop inside of the Gangwon national university hospital, where Natalia works her full-time job. She works as a researcher in a field of Functional MRI brain scanning. I was prepared to treat her to a coffee, but a lot of people around me these days are either completely off caffeine or at least trying to cut down on it. So, in the end, I chose to buy a little treat, instead. I went for a Black Barley rice donut set of 4pcs. A little review aside, it was donut- greasy, but two have filled me up for quite a while!
Not bad to kill sweet cravings in maintenance mode on your exercise day! (Black barley rice donut, Tous le jour, 3pcs 280 kcal, 5~9g protein, 11g of sugar, 2.9~19g of fats) Natalia joined me just on time in all her tall, lean beauty. She used to work out in the personal training studio I have worked in, so we knew each other from before and I must say, seeing her after months of her long autumn distance biking retreat, it was nice to talk to her again. Here is what we talked about! I hope you will enjoy the interview just as we did.
How long have you been in Korea? I think now it has been 13 years. It`s been a long time. It has! What made you choose Korea 13 years ago? It wasn't a conscious choice, really. I was offered to get my Ph.D. here by a Korean professor, who was visiting at the college I was studying at that time. He offered to sponsor my masters and Ph.D. I was young, I have never been abroad so I believed it was a great opportunity for me. I came and ... things rolled and I just ended up sticking around until now. Getting my PhD. took me quite some time. After graduating, I had realized how many things I have here to do, how many wonderful things Korea had given to me. I decided to linger here for a little bit longer. 13 years it's a long linger! Yeah, I've got this job at the Gangwon national university whole 6 years ago and it has been amazing. I work as a researcher in the field of Functional MRI, a neuroimaging method where we particularly look at the auditory field of human brain function. We study how people react to different kinds of auditory stimuli. What do you like about Korea the most? Ah...that's a really hard question for me. (thinks deeply) I think whatever you want to do, Korea is the place where you can start that. Korea offers a lot of opportunities. For example, if one wants to start his own business it's easy to do it here. There is quite low corruption happening at that level of public offices compared to, for example, Russia. Even though the local people seem to feel it's really bad, in Russia it’s much worse. Let alone the corruption, bureaucracy it's a huge problem, as well. Everything is easier here. Whatever you decide to do, there is a place to start, maybe not as fancy as you'd like it to be, but there always is a place to start. Also, Korea is very dynamic country. It's been changing really fast, maybe accepting the western culture a little too fast for my likings, but I really like to observe how they try to keep the old traditions and blend them with the new culture. It's really interesting. I like the nature here, I like how they take care of it and how they try hard to be environmentally friendly. I don't know. I just think it's altogether a beautiful country. What do you miss the most about your country? People. (answers without a second of hesitation) I guess it's just people. Or maybe snow, there has always been a lot of snow in my hometown. But mostly people. I have been here for a long time, but still, I feel that people here are ... different. I don't mean bad, I work with many wonderful people, I meet many nice people at the gym or through Yoga. They are easy to get along with, but I feel it's quite hard and rare to connect with them on deeper levels. I have been here for a long time but I don't think I have been able to meet a Korean I could call a real close friend. It's not impossible, of course, just looking at it as a percentage, it is just way easier to find people of the same mindset in Russia or probably some other western country. Still, they are really beautiful people, I have been helped out by random strangers during my travels around Korea, so they are really sweet. What did you find the most challenging the first time you came to live in Korea? Oh...I don't really remember. I tend to forget unpleasant things that happen to me fairly quickly, it's something like a survival instinct, I guess. Getting PhD in Korea is not easy in general. Maybe it depends a lot on what kind of supervisor you get. As a foreigner, I haven't had it so bad, but I saw how hard it was on my local classmates. It's hopefully changed since my times, students seem to be more educated about their rights and more adamant about what they really want to do. I am really grateful for the opportunity of getting a Ph.D. here, nevertheless. And...I don't know, I guess at first the language was a little difficult. I started at the university campus, though, where some students and many of my teachers spoke English. Even all my books were written in English, so I wouldn't call language a big challenge. There were cultural differences, but I got really accustomed to everything as the time went by.
What is the general perception of Korea in Russia? Russia is in a deep financial crisis now, and Korea stands for the wealthy country with big opportunities to earn good money. Then, of course, we have Samsung, LG... Korean technology is famous all around the world. But honestly, I haven't lived in Russia for such a long time, so I can't really say what people think there now. I guess you don't go home for a visit that often. Why is that? Don't you ever go home for Christmas? My hometown is really far. Well the distance is not that far, but it’s on an island, so I have to take the plane to Russia and then one more of almost the same price to get to the island. That short flight from the continent to the island costs about the same as the long distance flight from here, so it really isn't easy to get there. I have been there a couple of times, though, and my mother visited here a couple of times, as well. And Christmas is not as huge as Christmas in Europe or America in Russia. Even in Korea, I can feel that the Christmas is very important here. They put up all the lights, play Christmas songs, put up the Christmas trees. In Russia Christmas is important if you are a religious person, then you celebrate traditional Russian Christmas on January 7th at the Church. For us, New Year is a big deal. I miss the atmosphere of the New Year in Russia. We sit down around the table, which is always full of food. Dumpling, mayonnaise based salads, tangerines~ Everybody gets drunk and stay up till the dawn~ (makes a short pause) and typically we prepare way too much of food and end up eating it for the rest of the week. (we laugh) We usually get whole 10 days of holidays, starting January 1st. It's actually just 3 days, but it's only a few days before Christmas comes. Also, it's a tradition in Russia, that if the holidays fall on the day of a weekend, they always move it to the weekday.
What a great tradition! It's been put into action a few years ago, yeah. When you came to Korea, have you had any stereotypes about the country or Koreans? No. I literally knew nothing about this country except the four things: they look Asian, they eat rice, they have Samsung and they have great internet. Let's talk more about fitness now! How long have you been teaching Yoga? I think I've started sometime at the beginning of 2008, so it's gonna be 9 years next month. So you only started teaching in Korea, interesting. I know you are very versatile with sports. You climb, you hike, you go for distance bike trips all around Korea...what made you choose yoga in the end? I know what you are thinking. Why in the end did I choose something so boring (she laughs) Well, shame on you. Of course not (I laugh, too) What I mean is, you do so many different kinds of sports, so what was the final push for choosing yoga. It was just by a chance, again. At that time I was playing tennis, hiking, biking... I never really had problems with weight. I had some extra 10 kilograms when I first came to Korea, but it was hardly showing as I am tallish. And then I started running, and lost the weight rather quickly and it never came back. But all of my girlfriends were always on diet, finding new ways how to lose weight and so they started to take yoga classes. At that time I was like: "Yoga? Come on...that's so boring. Just standing around, doing nothing...what kind of fun is that?" I knew nothing about yoga at that time. Yoga seemed to be all about bending and stretching. But I am naturally curious and I don't like to miss chances to learn something new. So I joined them for one class and I fell in love with it instantly that very first time. I started going to the yoga studio whenever I found an open window in my lab work schedule, I did it really vigorously. I loved doing it and I guess I was doing it well because the director of the studio eventually offered me to join their teacher training course. Later on, I've found out that the course is actually pretty expensive and that I was the only one offered to attend it for free. I am really thankful to the owner of that studio for that, because as a full-time student I was living with 200 dollars a month, and she knew it. And she was the one to tell me I can teach, even though I laughed when she told me that at first. After the year of the course, she offered me a job, to teach few classes a month at her studio. It was like a probation period and the money was not so big, but I was really ok with that. I have left that studio, though, when it was time to write my thesis. The studio moved to a different place before I was done, and it just happened so that I didn’t go back. So later on before getting my full-time job I ran around few different schools teaching a lot of classes because I had to survive somehow after leaving the university. Now I have this wonderful full-time job so I had to cut back on the number of yoga classes. Since 2011 I work exclusively at my friend's studio, which is located in Chuncheon city at Godu intersection, right next to the Rodeo Fashion town. If you could pick, what is your favorite sport? Well I won't say yoga because yoga is not a sport. I love everything that is done outdoors, especially tennis, but I don't get to play as often as I would like to, these days. I am pretty much into weightlifting these past few months. I've realized that you can become really mindful doing it, just like you do in yoga. Your mind and body must stay connected when lifting because otherwise you can easily hurt yourself. Not to mention that when you are not mindful about it, there is no results and it becomes boring over the time. I don't know, I guess I really can't pick up one sport and call it my favorite. I would even go and enjoy a soccer game with friends if they asked me to play together, even though I have no idea how to play and I think it’s a really boring sport to watch on TV. Being a researcher must be pretty much a sedentary life. How do you stay in such a great shape? Give us some tips! Yeah, I am sitting all day... I guess some part of it is genetics? I am lucky, I don't gain weight very easily. Though I know that if I just kept sitting around without moving much and ate as much and whatever I wanted, I would sure gain weight, too. So I try to watch what I eat, I bike, I go to the gym, I generally like to move in any way. But I realize that might be not enough for some people. For them it’s a greater struggle, but that’s life.
How often do you go to the gym? Four times a week. I really enjoyed the TRX suspension training at your gym, I got really awesome results with that, but I feel like I've hit a plateau by now and I want to concentrate more on the weights. So gym is on my schedule four times a week, the minimum of three days, if the work gets in the way. And then I used to go hiking pretty much every weekend. Especially in winter! I don't like heat, so summer is out of a question, in spring and autumn, there are so many other outdoor activities to enjoy other than mountains, but winter is perfect for hiking. I guess biking is still possible too, in winter. Unless is on the mountain. So you are into mountain biking, as well? A little bit, yeah. I started last fall when I joined this club. It was really rough, but very rewarding experience. As you mentioned, there is genetics in it as well but let's talk some food,because everyone knows now that a healthy diet is 80% of success in getting a lean body. So I am lifting for around 3 years now, but I started from a blank page, I knew nothing about fitness or diet. First I started off going to gym twice a week, doing the upper body/lower body split and it was all really random. But as I got better and more into it I started to pay attention to what I'm eating too. I counted calories for a few months, not really for the purpose of losing any weight, more like experimenting and getting to know my body and eating habits a little better. Now I don't count calories anymore because I am rather aware of how much I need by now. I try not to overeat, I try to eat clean and I try to cook instead of going out. I also don't have much of a sweet tooth, lucky me, again. Although I like pastry. So when I have cravings I satisfy them. We live only once! I do have my share of body fat, and as much as I would like it to go, I am not ready to sacrifice all the life pleasures just for the sake of being ripped. I don’t think it’s worth it. I think balance and peace of mind are way more important. If I crave dumplings with mayonnaise, I just have them without remorse and then I go back to my eating habits naturally. I don't punish myself, I don't starve myself in order to make up for anything. You know well what your body and mind need when it comes to food, that's really what healthy eating habits mean. I think it is very much thanks to yoga. Before I started doing yoga, I was smoking, I was drinking, I was living rock'n'roll. Thanks to getting really into yoga I started to grow mindful of how my body feels and what if wants. Drinking stopped being fun. At that period most of my drinking buddies moved out of the city, too, which I guess was another reason for me not to enjoy drinking that much anymore. Also, the less I drank the worse were the mornings after I did, so here we have reason number three for less alcohol in my life. (we laugh) This day I have an occasional beer with friends when they come over for a dinner, and I stopped smoking a few years ago, as well. That'd be real thanks to yoga, because through it I've learned to look at my life on a big scale and I have grown mindful about how my body responds to different things on a small scale, too.
So yoga seems to be one big spiritual journey for you. These days, and I see it especially here in Korea, yoga is widely promoted as a sport. What do you think about that? That's a big question. Yoga in Korea, as well as on the Big West, from what I know about that from various resources, is done very physically. But to answer your question, yoga is a study of mind and a life journey. Originally Asana practice - what is thought of as "yoga" these days - is only a third step out of eight. It was meant to warm up the body so that right after that you can sit and meditate for hours without physical discomfort from sitting. These days this step is popularized because it brings instant physical results and relief, which is not bad at all. But most of the schools these days pay little attention to what should happen after the practice, which is mediation and energy management. But even then, what you learn on the mat - nonviolence, patience, generosity, empathy, awareness and so on - you can extend to the life outside of the mat. If you're honest enough with your practice, it will happen whether you want it or not. So even physical practice starts to change your life. But you have to practice mindfully, and not treat it as just an exercise. But to get there you need to go through the beginning phase which is very much physical. You need to learn to understand the body alignment first in order to hold the poses right without harming yourself, then you need to learn how to listen to your body to recognize what it tells you and adjust the pose accordingly, and then you need to get strong enough to feel comfortable in these poses, because only after that you can really start relaxing into the pose, having a meditating-like state and feeling how the pose interacts not only with your body, but also with your mind. I have tried yoga myself, few times. Always stuck with it around two to three months and then left, because I have found it incredibly challenging to get comfortable and relaxed. I know that for many personal trainers doing yoga is difficult. In many ways, it's opposite to strength exercise. Weights and a gym are very much about whipping your body under absolute control. Whereas yoga, from what I've gathered, requires a lot of letting your body lead you into its natural ways. How long you think it takes on average for a person to get to overcome the physical hardships of it? That's very individual. In my classes, I pay primary attention to the body alignment. Without good body alignment, there is no physical safety and there is no physical comfort. And then there is the spiritual side of yoga, like I just said. But only once you’ve mastered the physical part you are ready to enjoy it mentally. People who come to my classes are usually on very different levels. A person who comes with knowledge of his body alignment and movement, maybe a personal trainer or gymnast like you, they usually tend to catch on a lot faster. But even without prior knowledge or experience, for some it just comes like that (-snaps her fingers-). It can take few weeks, it can take months. If a person comes and he or she has no idea how to lift a kneecap, for example, it can take up to several months. But don't get me wrong, I enjoy teaching people who have no experience because it's very rewarding to watch them progress and become masters of their bodies. As everything, though, it depends a lot on how much of the effort and time a person puts into the practice. But it’s possible for everyone. Do you teach in the Korean language? Yes. I do teach in Korean. My first few classes were a challenge. I knew how to say all those things in Korean but I have never used them in the sequence. But honestly, now after years of practice in Korean, I find it more difficult to teach in English or even Russian. I don't have any foreigners in my class for the time being because they tend to come and go, as they move around a lot, but when there is a foreigner in my class, I work with him in English.
How many people are in your class? On the average it’s around 10 people and it can vary anywhere between 5 and 20. Depends on the day and time, too. Any tips on where to eat out healthy or shop for healthy groceries in Chuncheon? As I said, I am not really picky with food. I don't buy organic food. I find it hard to believe that anything grown in the environment we've created around us can really be 100% organic and clean. Even if you grow something on your balcony, you grow it in the polluted air and probably polluted soil. The rules about labeling products organic are also way too relaxed, in my opinion. There is no information on to what extent the product is really organic. So yeah, I don't do organic. I think it’s just a huge fraud to make people pay more. I shop in NH Mart near my house because they have really fresh vegetables and fruits, and I sometimes find my way to the farmer's markets. There is one behind the Belmond mart, stationary and book store building at the big intersection on your way down from back gate of the university and there is one when you go the other way, the way up from the back gate of the KNU campus. You pass the tunnel and continue going until you reach the intersection where on your right there is Lotte mart. There across the street is the second farmers market I know about. The one near Lotte mart at Seoksadong is called the "dawn market". They open very early in the morning, I believe around 6 am and they stay till 10~11am. Yeah, that's why I don't get to go there as often. It's not so close to me and I have to go there before work if I want to catch them. And as for eating out. I consider eating out in Korean restaurants fairly well balanced and healthy in comparison with eating out in western countries. They do use a lot of seasoning and these days there is the issue of MSG, but before I manage to grow completely into the habit of cooking for myself all the time, I don't hesitate to go out and get kimchee tuna stew, or soft tofu stew. There is always a protein to it, some rice, vegetables... I don't find anything much wrong with that. If you want to eat your native cuisine, do you have some place to go to in Korea? In Seoul, yes. There is place I can go to, but honestly, I don't crave Russian cuisine much. I miss our dumplings, but we sometimes cook them with friends and store them in our freezers for later too. When I am in Seoul, in the Dongdaemun area, there is a Russian street where mostly Russian, Kazakhstan and Uzbek Koreans have their stores. I sometimes order a liver there. Because Koreans don't eat liver and I like it. It's very nutritious and delicious! I also sometimes get the Uzbek dumplings there. They are meant to be done from lamb, but I think they use beef here. They are very greasy but so delicious. Fattening? Definitely, but I get them only once in few months so I enjoy them. I really appreciate delicious food. But luckily I don't tend to overeat or binge on anything. Sometimes I can go on chicken breast with cucumbers for days without even realizing it, And then I can have a burger if I feel like it. I just really listen to what my body tells me. Yeah. I think one really needs to experience the connection of mind and body at some level to get comfortable with the idea that food is actually just a fuel for our body. That enjoying a feast is meant to be an occasional thing. I really enjoy salads, because they are so easy to make. With some kind of meat. I sometimes get really lazy to cook. (she laughs) I've recently also become a member of Costco. I have gone there to get some good quality cheese, actually. I sometimes get there to get some precooked chicken, or Australian beef, reduced fat bacon.... I find the 35 000 won of yearly membership well worth it. If you stick to what you really need and do go impulsive, I believe shopping in Costco can save you a lot of money. Ok Natalia, last question. When it comes to Korean gym. What should we be looking for and possibly get ready to compromise on? Well, I started lifting only after coming to Korea. I haven’t really been to any fancy clubs so I can’t compare. I've visited once a big health club in Russia though, with a lot of yoga, spinning, and whatnot classes included in one day pass. The price was very comparable to prices in Korea. Although Seoul definitely gets more expensive. Very truth, prices are comparable, but I sadly feel like the service and equipment is not. As you mentioned, in western health clubs, the membership price is comparable, but you get the sauna or free G.X pass included in it. Yeah...I don't know. When I started to work out I started in the very cheap local community center gym near the fire station. They have this very old equipment, but what do you really need from a gym? As long as they have the necessary machines and it is clean, what else to look for? I have looked into other gyms as well, and whereas this one is 35 000w per month, the private operated ones, they ask for 70 000 ~ 80 000 while providing you with just slightly newer versions of the same equipment and no different service. I don't understand why I should pay twice more for newer dumbbells on the rack. They weigh the same, you know (we laugh).
Very good point! Yeah so... these days I exercise for the same price at the new KNU campus gym. There’s no sauna or GX passes included, but it’s clean and it has everything I need. I tend to get really busy at work and even if a more expensive gyms did offer additional services, I wouldn't probably have time to enjoy them, anyway. I just want to get in, do my routine and leave. As long as a gym has a squat rack and a set of dumbbells, it works for me.
Thank you for all the information Natalia and I wish you all the best in your research job as well as in you yoga practice. It was great to see you again. I also asked Natalia how should a foreigner new to Korea get hooked up with some hobbies or communities, since she is very active in those. She recommended searching for Korean hobby related clubs (on Korean local search engine NAVER, must be done in the Korean language, though), search on Facebook or Meetup.com for foreign communities or join the Adventure Korea site. *NH Mart, Nonghyup mart, is a brand of market supported by the Korean farmers association created to support local farmers. Only until recent changes (and demands of customers) they have abandoned the rule of selling exclusive products of the local farmers (on Chuncheon's case, farmers of Gangwondo province). Even though they do sell imported products now, they strictly sell only those that are not available from Korean farms at all, or at the moment.
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