#selfloveevo: how I became a raw food yogi
Over the past two years I have gone from being a stressed out, unhealthy and quite unhappy office worker living in London, to a globetrotting, raw food eating, happy yogi. And it has been an easygoing journey; based upon taking one or two big leaps, having a regular yoga practice and loving my Self. Before I became part of the evolation extended family I ran my own small business helping companies grow by improving their business systems and sharpening up the way they let people know about what they had to offer. The work was fine, but it was uninspiring and my heart was only ever in a few of the projects I was a part of back then. I was continually taking my skills and helping other people succeed; then I found evolation and became part of something I believed in.
finding yoga
I didn’t have a yoga practice when I started working for Mark and Zefea in 2013. My first hot class was a shock to the system, but I stayed on my feet and had a feeling inside that this was where I was meant to be. I already meditated regularly and the fact that evolation incorporated stillness into their classes, and were planning the launch of Oneworldstill.org when we first spoke, were the main things that made me want to work with them. The other reason was that I knew deep down yoga was a 100% good news story. People who practice regularly feel great, and they want to let those around them know how great they feel. What better place to put my energy than into a company that’s survival and growth was predicated on people feeling good on the inside and on the outside.
finding raw food
After 6 moths of working remotely I went to my first evolation teacher training in Madrid. In between joining evolation, and that first training, I had been exposed to the idea of eating raw. I had eaten that way for five weeks and my body responded so well. I felt clear in my head, my skin brightened and the world seemed to be opening up. Taking that energy and openness into the teacher training environment – even though I felt out of my depth with my beginners practice in comparison to the yogis who had been practicing for years before deciding to be teachers – gave me a kickstart toward taking the yoga even more seriously. I wasn’t part of the course, just there to support the students and learn more about the evolation collective, but I practiced every day for the first time ever and fed off the vibration of the dedicated individuals who had taken time out of their lives to go deeper into themselves and their practice. I was hooked.
going deeper
I spent 2014 traveling from training to training – Costa Rica, Amsterdam, Madrid. I dabbled with raw food again, learning more about why I felt so good when I ate it and what I needed to do to maintain this newer, healthier and happier version of my Self. There were low points – I detoxed heavily when taking a juice fast in October, but by November I was ready to take the teacher training for my Self, and become a hot yoga teacher; 18 months of practice, a lighter body and an expanded mind was my starting point – and Bali was my destination.
Being a part of the training, rather than simply supporting the students, was incredibly different. I had only ever witnessed the magical journey that each trainee goes through. I learned more than I ever had because not only was I paying full attention to the lectures and posture clinics, I was now practicing twice a day most days. My body was learning along with my mind – and in combination I went deeper and deeper into the yoga. A high percentage of the food at the Bali training was raw, and the rest was fulfilling nutritious local fruit and vegetables. The other yogis on the course were beautiful spirits and I made some new friends for life. So, before the end of 2014 I was a qualified yoga teacher and in an expansive happy, and self loving place.
evolving into Self love
Without knowing it, this was the platform I needed to go even further with the raw food. I took my first holiday from working with the collective and went to a 12 day raw food and yoga retreat back in Costa Rica. There, I firmed up my knowledge about eating almost 100% raw and discovered the super foods, ancient herbs and nourishing mushrooms that are able to lift the body’s vibration even higher. I am now a qualified raw chef as well as a yoga teacher – and thinking about ways to take what I now know even further out into the world. Being a part of the evolation collective makes this possible. The work, the people, the connections. Now I know what it means to be a part of something bigger than my Self – one of the invitations for anyone who wants to take our training, join our collective or simply take a class at one of our studios. I feel the love inside me, and I see it in other people on a daily basis.
Malcolm Cannon
Malcolm has been practicing hot yoga for just under two years and has had a steady meditation practice for several years. His day involves spreading the word about the evolation yoga teacher trainings, practicing yoga and eating raw food. Malcolm feels that the philosophy of yoga resonates deeply within him and understands that the physical practice is necessary to compliment his understanding of the unity and truth offered by what he reads in the sutras and experiences in his day to day life. He travels the world with evolation and spends the rest of his time connecting with new people, living in or visiting intentional communities and supporting trainees and graduates in any way he can.