Just because she’s into yoga doesn’t mean Shari Comstock won’t plant you on your ass.
There’s definitely two sides to her: There’s the intense Brewcity Bruiser known as Romaniac who thinks it’s fun to “ram into people.” And there’s the calm yoga devotee who strives to “live life more fully with more awareness of my body, mind and emotions.”
Seriously?
“They balance me out,” Shari tells me. “The two are very different in nature and I wouldn’t want one without the other.”
Shari’s season just began with the Bruisers, whose next match is on Dec. 6th at the Milwaukee County Sports Complex. She teaches yoga at noon on Wednesdays and Thursdays at Invivo.
She sets a good example for anyone focusing on a specific fitness goal. Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in a day-to-day routine. But you shouldn’t lose sight of the big picture. You gotta balance the yin with the yang.
Shari learned that lesson the hard way. In college, she had mono but ignored all the signs and kept pushing herself. She ended up with a seizure, five days in the hospital and a $10,000 medical bill.
“In the past, I’ve gotten carried away with competition and pushed myself, almost militantly, ignoring warnings from my body,” Shari says. “Yoga has enabled me to be respectful of my body and mind.”
Here’s more wisdom from Shari/Romaniac:
You’re a Bruiser and a yoga instructor. How’s that work?
I have always been an active, athletic person. I love to exercise. I am much more responsible when it comes to exercise and I hurt myself much less frequently. Derby is wonderful exercise and it’s a ton of fun. It’s physically demanding and constantly challenging. Every scrimmage brings forward new opportunities to learn and grow.
(Flickr photo by Mr. Michael D.)
How can yoga help a competitive person?
Yoga is wonderful for competitive people. It will enable them to respect the opposite of giving your all, allowing things to just be. This is very hard for many competitive people because ingrained within them is the notion that everything is gained through effort. Yoga really practices acceptance and release, which is essential to allow the body to heal and rest. The more efficient and honest you become with your body and mind when it requires rest the more energy and strength you will have when you truly need it.
What did your seizure teach you?
It was after this experience that I began to take the messages from my body more seriously. If I felt dizzy or weak, I allow myself to sit and rest as opposed to pushing onward. It sounds simple, however, I know many people just like me.
What do you hope others learn from your yoga classes?
All of my classes are very flow-based, meaning I really like to keep the awareness on the breath and continual breath with movement. Flow enables a meditative state that is very nourishing for the spirit no matter what level. It is a connection to this spirit through breath and movement that I hope people experience.
Training with Tim is arguably Milwaukee’s third most underrated fitness blog. It’s updated semi-daily at 
www.trainingwithtim.com.
