Grace, Flying yoga teacher, Seoul

This month I've met Grace. We met on Saturday near Sadang station in Seoul. I guess I was living in Chuncheon for too long, because I haven't expected the coffee shop not located on the main street to be so packed! I have been in touch with Grace on Facebook and watched her page Flying yoga with Grace for quite a while and I was really excited to finally be able to meet her face to face. She is always smiling on her photos and gives out this energetic crazy vibe. After meeting her in person, I confirm that she is always smiling and she radiates energy! Even though we met only for about an hour, I found her energy to be rather addictive, so I decided to join her next class. Will be back with a review on that!

So with two hot&grande Americanos, we dove in!

What brought you from Chicago to Korea?

In my junior year at university, I studied as an exchange student at Yonsei University. Even though it was just for one semester, I fell in love with the culture, the food and overall with the whole atmosphere. The semester flew by so I decided that after graduating college, I would have to come back. I guess a big part of it were my roots and my family. But honestly, it's just so much fun to live here.

Have you always worked as a yoga teacher in Korea?

No. I worked as an English teacher for three years and during that time I took up yoga. I fell in love with it and later I wanted to get a certificate. In order to get the certificate I wanted, you would have to be in India for one whole month and as an English teacher you just don't have that much time off, so I quit my job after my contract ended of course and flew to India. After coming back, the plan was to make a living by teaching yoga. English speaking Yoga studios are rare in Korea, so I was working for local studios speaking only in Korean. I really loved it and I felt like I was living my dream. Then I started teaching flying yoga in English, and I started to compare myself, as a teacher, when I'm teaching in Korean and when I'm teaching in English and I realized I can't convey as much as I want to my students when teaching in Korean. They don't know that I'm not being the best I can be, but I do know, and it started to get to me. I didn't like that feeling of not being able to give my best to them, so I quit teaching for Korean studios. Now I am renting a studio for my English classes. It's not easy to make living a from that, though, so recently I took up teaching English again.

I can totally relate. When I work with Korean clients I get often frustrated because it takes longer to get them do the position right way. They are usually very nice and understanding, but it brings negative energy to the lesson and even kind of relentless pressure. What was the hardest about starting living in Korea?

As you know I am Korean American. I still have the culture inside me. The food, the social hierarchy...that being said I guess the hardest part was the language barrier. I wasn't fluent the first time I came, I had to study a little bit. It was kind of hard to go to the bank and deal with problems like with my phone and things like that. After that barrier was gone, I guess it was just the little things like too many people in the subway, ajjumas pushing you and stuff like that.

I know that Korean Americans tend to get mistreated here very often. You've never had experience with that?

I have read a lot about that before coming here. I know that more is expected from us as we are not only Americans but also Koreans. I anticipated that but honestly, I have yet to have been in that situation. And I've lived here for 4 years now.

Good for you, you are the first spared Korean American I know so far. Although I believe it has a lot to do with self-confidence and an open mind. After all, respect always has to come from both sides.

Of course. Yeah.

What do you like about Korea the most? What keeps you here?

I guess the shortest answer right now would be "my boyfriend". But before that, I'm not gonna say I'm staying just for him. I really enjoyed learning the language. It makes me feel more connected to my parents. And also to my extended family in Korea because they speak only Korean. That was the main contributing factor I'd say. And actually I just really like living here. For example, I'd never feel so comfortable living alone in America. To be honest. Like walking around during the night time ... see here, no matter how late it gets there is still so many people and life in the streets. Oh! And there are coffee shops everywhere. I love coffee -we laugh-

Have you come with any stereotypes?

Before coming here I heard a lot about Korean Americans being treated differently from other foreigners. That I'd be expected to speak the language and know the culture. And as I mentioned, I am yet to feel that discrimination. And other than that I guess because I come from a household of pretty traditional Korean parents I was used to a lot. Food, social hierarchy, polite language expectations and so on. So I guess other than the Korean American discrimination, I have arrived without any stereotypes.

Could you recommend how to eat to stay fit in Korea and what to avoid?

There are so many bakeries in Korea. And their bread is so good! So if you are a bread person, I don't really think it's gonna be easy to keep your hands off it. On the other side, Korea is very good for the vegetables. I love their "banchan" (aka.side dishes). I think if you like Korean food, you are well off because I think eating Korean food is quite a healthy diet. But if you are not a fan of Korean food it would be quite difficult to eat healthy here. Unless maybe...Subway?

So if you don't like Korean food, just home prep?

I guess you would have to. I mean I really like Korean food, even more than American food. But the thing about Korea is, that it is more expensive to cook than eating out in my own personal experience.

What is your favorite Korean food?

Wow, that's a hard question. I really like Bibimbab, Jjigae and soups. And noodles, I love noodles. I grew up eating it, I guess it's the Korean in me.

Have you ever been on any type of a diet?

I have not. I love food too much. And I love to exercise. And honestly, I believe that in moderation you should just eat whatever you want. If you try to hold back from eating what you want I believe it very often leads to overeating later at some point. So no, I haven't been on any special diet and I've never counted calories either. And really, weight is just a number that doesn't count. It's the way you feel that counts. People don't believe me when I tell them how much I weigh because it's on the higher side of what they expect. I think the key is moderation while not holding yourself back from eating what you crave.

I think we all have the experience of being just so hungry all of sudden but had no other choice but just swiftly drop by the convenient store. It's hard to choose something healthy there, what do you recommend as convenience store snack?

I like the Denmark Yoghurts. I usually have one a day or one every two days. I know that people like to buy kimbab there. Or the triangle kimbab. I am a fan of kimbab but I wouldn't buy those from the convenience store if you are looking for something healthy. You don’t know how long it has been just sitting there. It definitely tastes good, I have had it many times before, but I wouldn’t recommend that if you wanted to go the healthy route.

How did you become a yoga teacher?

I was always a fan of exercise. I loved exercising in high school, and going to the gym where I lifted a little bit. But after coming to Korea in 2013 I found out that gyms here were quite expensive and I couldn't really connect with any of them because of the language barrier, so I decided to take up running. I would run an hour or an hour and a half every day after work. Then my ankle started to hurt, so I realized I probably should cut back on running so much. And my friend invited me to try out yoga with her. She lived all the way on the east, I live all the way in the west so we decided to meet in the middle for my first ever yoga classes. I fell in love with it. I didn't know something like flying yoga even existed at first, but the studio offered it so I tried that there for the first time, as well. I just...completely fell in love with it. I'd do like two classes a day if I could, I, of course, would listen to my body though. I wanted to learn how to share yoga with others. How to teach, so I started to look out for certificates I could get. And I found that one in India. And I wanted that one because India is like...THE place for yoga, it's where the roots are. I spent one month in India, got my certificate and you know the rest.

Where is your favorite place to do yoga?

If I am striking a pose or taking pictures, it can be anywhere. But if I am doing the actual flow I prefer to do it in the privacy of my house. I did do my flows outdoors when I was visiting the US, because there is a lot of grass fields in the parks and the air quality is wonderful. But here where is the grass? There are so many people and again, I get unwanted attention of "what is she doing?!" Actually, I would probably be able to get over the stares, if there were empty places with a bunch of grass but where is that? So I guess I prefer to do yoga at home.

How is flying yoga different from the mat yoga?

Well, flying yoga is done with a hammock. The hammock supports approximately 50% of your weight so it decreases the pressure on the joints. So, many people can try the poses they wouldn't be able to do on the mat. Inverted positions on the ground, for example, are very difficult to do and to achieve. But with the help of the hammock getting into an inverted position is very easy. In these inverted suspended positions your spine exists in its full length, it completely decompresses it. When lying on the mat, your spine is just...there. I get many students who after class says they feel like they've grown taller. Other than that, it's just so much fun. When I started flying yoga the one hour sessions seemed like few minutes to me. It's really fun.

Why and to whom would you recommend your yoga classes?

Since flying yoga uses a hammock and we exercise being suspended in the air, there is a weight limit of around 250 pounds (113 kg) because of the physical ability to do the poses inside of the hammock. The hammock itself is built to carry 2000 pounds, so it's safe. But the flow and movements get really hard to do when you are over that weight limit. Other than this, I believe that flying yoga is a great exercise for anyone.

Any age limits?

Well, I am not gonna recommend yoga to any 100 years old grandmothers. Given that it's not their first time being active with some type of physical activity, it's a great exercise for people, even in their fifties, sixties...anyone, really.

The yoga hammock and blood circulation. As a personal trainer (and a person who have personal experience) when you are overweight it's sometimes very hard to go through a session of spinning without stopping to feel your legs and lower back go numb due to bad blood circulation. When I watch flying yoga, I wonder if the hammock doesn't cut off blood circulation in your legs, especially if you are a bit heavier.

In flying yoga, when feeling numbness in your legs, it is more about not being able to relax in the positions than about being overweight or underweight. A person who is skinny but has never been in an inverted position might feel dizzy while a chubby person who does handstands every day might feel ok. It's not really about the weight here. And when you do the positions with the hammock around your thighs, it even sometimes hurts me. It's about getting used to flying yoga, accepting it and learning how to relax in the hammock. Also, depends on the type of the hammock. But really, it is not about the weight. It just takes some time to get used to it.

Many foreigners living here prefer running to any other way of exercising. It might be the language barrier in the fitness facilities... What do you think about outdoor running in the cities? And as a fitness professional, what do you think about running daily?

I think running daily is fine as long as you are used to it. There are running/walking paths in Gangnam or Yeouido, and they are beautiful. If you don't have access to those, though. Running in the streets can be a little awkward here I think. I ran in the streets myself before and I have been stared at. Like: "Why is she here wearing that?" That's not the attention I believe most of us want when trying to exercise. And here in Korea....well, the air! The air quality is so bad. So running in the city next to the big roads can't be good for anybody. When I was running I didn't really feel the effect of the pollution too bad. But there are people that are way more sensitive and they are gonna feel it.

Now. I've stalked your facebook a little, and I've come number of time across invitations to a place called dance Joa, can you introduce the place to us?

Other than yoga I always loved to dance. I was on the poms team in middle school and I just always enjoyed dancing. In April 2015 one of my friends asked me if I wanted to come to this dance class for foreigners. It's awesome. That friend apparently brought in other friends too and it's so much fun. This academy is kind of different. I mean, I don't know how the other academies operate, but this one offers performances and parties where you can perform for other people. So we get to perform as well, and that's fun.

So it has this after-school curriculum feeling to it?

Kind of, yeah. - we laugh- That class for foreigners is only offered on Sundays and it sometimes overlaps with my flying yoga classes. I haven't' been able to attend as often recently. But it's really awesome. If you go there you get to make a lot of new friends and the teachers are so nice. They just hired new teachers and one of them is a guy who looks just like one of those kpop idols and all the girls say "Oh my god~ He is so cute!"

I saw they teach a lot of kpop dance routines. Is it only that?

No, this studio offers. wacking, krump, pop...I don't even know all the genres. There is so many they offer. But the one offered for foreigners on Sundays is kpop dance. Because foreigners love kpop. - we laugh-

Quite often on the expat pages, I come across foreign girls and women having hard time dealing with their boyfriends, husbands or in-laws comments on their weight or appearance. Any word for these fellow ladies?

That I think has a lot to do with the local culture. Koreans are so obsessed with their appearance. As for the guys, that's just them being Korean. Of course, that's not an excuse but it's in their culture. It's something that needs to be changed, but we must be aware of the fact that the obsession itself is in their culture. There are so many beauty shops and plastic surgery here. It's something they were born into, and we must take that into account. But again I am not saying these guys are correct in saying these things or for judging their appearance. It's a two-way street. We need to understand where are they coming from and they need to understand that it's not ok at all. There is a lot of misunderstandings going around here. Very often I am being told I look tired. In Korea it's kind of a greeting, like our "How are you?" But before realizing that I felt almost offended. It translates in our mind as "Oh, so what you're saying is that I look really bad today?"

Thanks Grace, I think I will visit your class soon! Thank you for the interview and I hope you enjoy your stay here in Korea everyday a little more.

Grace's classes take place in a small studio right next to exit of subway station GUUI, line 2 (few stations after Jamsil station), the classes take place on weekends and you should register for the class with Grace, before you come, to secure your spot. For any more info and contact on Grace, visit her facebook site: FLYING YOGA with Grace !

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