Yoga Questions for Millennials | YMyHealth

Yoga offers more than just physical exercise—it's a complete wellness toolkit that addresses both body and mind. We spoke with Keturah Daniel, LMT, RYT, a certified yoga instructor and massage therapist and founder of KD Fitness and Bodywork, about how yoga can transform your health, prevent burnout, and create lasting wellness habits.

What led you to pursue yoga instruction after being a massage therapist?

Keturah: I began my wellness journey as a massage therapist, but I wanted to add more to my skill set. I've always been pretty active with fitness—cycling and lifting weights—and I found yoga once a week to be really helpful for stretching things out. But when I started my own yoga practice multiple times a week, it transformed things for me.

Outside of the physical benefits, it was really helpful mentally as well. I decided to get certified as a teacher when I was going through some changes in my career and personal life. I was going through a breakup and needed to really get grounded. I needed to shake some things up in my life, so I went into yoga teacher training and came out a different person. It's been enjoyable ever since.

How do massage therapy and yoga complement each other in your practice?

Keturah: They both bring about more body awareness. A lot of times, we're going through life on autopilot, doing the same activities, so your range of motion is limited to what your daily life is like. When you're getting a massage or in a yoga class, it brings your attention to things—maybe some stiffness you didn't know you had, or maybe you didn't know that you couldn't reach your arms all the way over your head. For me, it's all about body awareness.

What does yoga instructor certification actually involve?

Keturah: It's extensive—a lot more than people realize. There's a ton of reading: anatomy, physiology, theory, and many self-help books. A lot of times, they have you read "The Body Keeps the Score" and other psychological books as well. You're learning about Ayurveda—ancient beliefs and rituals around wellness that can tell you what types of food you should be eating for your body type, or really your soul type.

The minimum is 200 hours of training, but it usually spans several months up to a year if you're doing weekends or shorter sessions. You're also practicing through all the asanas—that's the poses—and learning the skill set of actually building a class. You literally put your life aside, other than maybe work, while you're training. It's a lot, but it's worth it.

How does yoga affect different areas of the body during practice?

Keturah: The breath is very important. We walk through life every day breathing pretty shallow, which isn't great for our health. In yoga, you're really being intentional with your breath—taking that inhale where your belly extends out so you're really filling up, then having that slower, deeper breath out.

This actually brings down your heart rate and calms you down. Inhaling increases your heart rate, and exhaling decreases it. If you notice when you're getting your blood pressure taken and it's high, they tell you to sit back, relax, and take deep breaths. When you're letting them out, that's going to eventually lower your blood pressure through the breath and heart rate. Yoga can just be sitting there, taking those deep breaths, allowing your nervous system to calm down.

What are your favorite types of yoga to practice and teach?

Keturah: I enjoy a heated practice (hot yoga), which is how I trained. I love the fast pace of it. Hot yoga is usually 95 to maybe 103 degrees, so it can be pretty intense. I like it because it feels like you've detoxed. The body is more limber, you can open up a bit more, and it's an experience.

I also love a good Yin class or Restorative yoga—they're slower paced but different. Yin can be a little uncomfortable, but then you learn to release into it and feel better throughout the practice and after. I feel like Yin is one where you'll feel more of a structural change with your body, maybe even as soon as one class, but definitely as a regular practice.

How much yoga should millennials realistically aim for?

Keturah: I like to be realistic. We're all busy. I think 10 minutes a day, three to four days a week. If you can be consistent in just that 10 minutes, add it on to your fitness routine or start your morning with it. It doesn't have to be a whole class at a studio or necessarily online. If you can do that, please do, but if not, do the 10 minutes, whether it's on YouTube or once you've learned enough poses to do them yourself.

How does yoga complement other forms of exercise like running or weightlifting?

Keturah: Yoga is super important when you're doing any other form of fitness. It brings circulation, which I think is huge. It helps prevent injuries with lifting or running by elongating those muscles and giving you the full length of the muscle for weight training. It also helps with running by lengthening the muscles there as well.

Why is yoga particularly important for the millennial generation?

Keturah: I believe yoga is really beneficial for millennials as a way of setting the foundation for fitness for the rest of your life. Certain things are always going to be important—balance, strength—and the need for balance increases as you get older. These are things you can do anywhere without any equipment, so just knowing how to use your body to strengthen from a young age is very important. It's about being able to pour into yourself and building that

Keturah focusing on her breath during her practice while teaching one of her many classes.

How can yoga help with professional and personal burnout?

Keturah: Going back to that 10-minute break—say you're working from home at your laptop. Maybe you work for an hour or two, then step away and go into some yoga poses, whether they're standing or you can even do them while seated. But I like to encourage people to stand up, actually stretch your spine, strengthen your spine, step away, rest, focus on that breathing with no screens, and just take that break—take that mental break.

Can yoga help with hormone regulation and mood fluctuations?

Keturah: Mood, for sure, absolutely. Once again, it's all about taking care of yourself. As women, we are givers, we're nurturers. With or without a family, we tend to just give. Yoga and just pouring into yourself is always going to be a win. So that will always help you with hormones and allow you to rein things back in and regulate your nervous system.

Does yoga increase or decrease energy levels?

Keturah: Yoga has its place in wellness for sure. Yoga is for everybody: kids to all ages, whether you're wheelchair-bound or super active. It has a place in everyone's life. It's truly a universal practice that can meet you wherever you are.

How can people begin practicing with you?

Keturah: I'd love to have people drop in on my Monday morning class—it's only 15 minutes at 8 a.m. Eastern. You can also follow me on Instagram @yogaxtorie . I have a full schedule of in-person classes and online offerings, as well as one-on-one coaching via Zoom.

There are lots of opportunities to work with me and cater to what your needs are, whether it's something energizing and fast-paced or something that's more recovery-focused—almost like post-rehab, where you're not very active but there are key things to get you moving. Across the board, yoga is truly for everyone, and I'd love to meet you where you are.

Want to hear more from Keturah? Check out the YMyHealth podcast!

From Burnout to Balance: How Yoga Transforms Millennial Wellness