It’s not about making time for fitness, but more so understanding how exercise and consistent movement is an integral part of living a mentally, physically and emotionally healthy life. We have an obligation to care for the amana that is our body. Yoga and exercise enhance my work, parenting, teaching and every facet of my life. It makes me better at everything I do and, most importantly, improves my mental health.

Once you recognize the benefits to you outside of appearances and aesthetics, you can easily build it into your schedule as a necessary element, just as you build in meals or sleep.

I’ve had a rocky relationship with fitness in that we have had years together and then we’ll spend years apart. In the last five or six years, however, we’ve been in a very committed and consistent relationship. In recent years, yoga has transformed how I view health and fitness completely. I no longer carry reluctance or frustration around working out. Fitness is an exciting and passionate part of my life and, Insha’Allah, will remain so.

I spent years in the gym – pounding, running, sweating – but all from the external. I was moving from a place of “getting thin” or “looking good.” Yoga fundamentally transformed the way I view fitness. It has allowed me to break free from the chains of looking a certain way to meet society’s expectations of female beauty and, instead, has taught me that fitness starts from within.

Although I engage in other exercises, such as spin and traditional weight lifting, none of these compare to the deep sense of internal equilibrium and external brute strength that yoga provides. Yoga is not the practice of building, but of uncovering. Through it, I’ve learned how to lean into discomfort, both physically on the mat and emotionally off the mat. Yoga has taught me how to be a yes for what I want to create in my body as well as in my life.

It is an entirely holistic practice focused on presence, building an internal foundation of strength that manifests in the body, and being open to possibilities in my body that I may have thought impossible. Many people have the misconception that yoga is about stretching or flexibility, but nothing could be further from reality. It forces me to find my physical and mental edge and, most importantly, has gifted a holistic approach to fitness to my life.

The primary benefits of yoga are unique to each individual practitioner. One gets out of it what one is searching for. For me, it has granted me the gift of presence, possibility and strength. Prior to discovering yoga, I tended to live in the future. I was always planning, organizing and ambitiously establishing what my next move would be.

As most first generation children of immigrants, I am an overachiever and was never satisfied by the status quo. The result of this was that I was never fully present in the now and couldn’t fully enjoy or even experience what was happening right in front of me. Yoga taught me how to fully be present in the now. The practice of being present through breathing, meditation and mindfulness has transformed how I live my life. Most importantly, yoga has shown me that I am the only obstacle to my own possibilities.

A necessary element of du’a is to deeply believe that Allah will grant what we ask for, that it is possible and He is capable of creating and manifesting anything. We often get in our own way and just assume that certain things don’t happen to us. Yoga teaches you how to be open to endless possibilities in your body and in your life. I never imagined I could stand on my head or hold a crow pose, but the very thought that I couldn’t is what was holding me back, not my body. I see and experience that by being open to the possibility that something can happen, making du’a for it, and just moving and getting out of my own way.

Yoga is extremely challenging and, honestly, my teacher training was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever been through both physically and emotionally. There are many different types of yoga, so most people picture restorative or yin yoga when they think yoga. I practice Baptiste power yoga, which calls for one breath with each movement. It’s very fast moving and physically strenuous. It is just as much a strength building exercise as it is cardiovascular, which is why I love it.

I definitely push myself! I’ve always been the type of person who finds motivation from within and have always served as my own biggest competitor. I force myself to get out of my comfort zone, lean into possibility, and MOVE! Yoga is about dropping what you think you know about your own body or even yoga and just moving the body and listening to what the body needs. Once I was able to drop the stories we tend to tell ourselves of “I’m not good enough,” or “this isn’t for me,” or even “I can’t,” I got out of my own way and found new possibilities in my body. The vast open horizon ahead of me motivates me to keep going and keep moving.

I’ve gained presence in my life and, more importantly, in my relationships. As I said earlier, I was always somewhat consumed with what is coming next that I was never able to embrace the now. Yoga has helped me achieve that mindfulness. The most important relationship is the one we have with our Creator and yoga has brought mindfulness to my prayer, my du’a and to getting really present to how Allah (S) converses with us throughout our day, if we are just willing to listen and witness His everlasting attributes manifest around us.

On a physical level, yoga engages each and every tiny muscle in our bodies. I have been able to physically do things I never thought were possible or just “not for me,” as so many of us tell ourselves. There are poses I would see other yogis doing that now I can do and the empowerment in that cannot be overstated. Even though I exercised in traditional ways before this, I can say with confidence that yoga has gotten me to a physical fitness level that no other exercise has.

Muslim women athletes who wear hijab still seem to draw so much attention. How can we to shape the narrative around covered Muslim women?

I believe that female Muslim athletes in hijab need to continue to be the boss women we are and resist the urge to be or do as others need us. The beauty of hijab is that it says what needs to be said on its own, all we have to do is continue to rise to our higher selves and be willing to make the higher calling at every juncture.

By the very act of engaging physically in athletics or fitness, Muslim women are already transforming the narrative. By practicing yoga in a hot studio at 97 degrees fully clothed and in hijab, I am challenging the narrative of each other student practicing next to me. We need to stop planning to change others’ minds about us and, instead, start living from our true authentic selves. Authenticity is magnetic and inspiring. As Muslim women continue to aspire for greatness in whatever field we choose, including athletics and fitness, our very existence in these fields will push back on false notions of who we are.

Let’s put aside the fact that Melanie has been my ride or die for 10 years, and I would literally do anything if it brought her even an ounce of joy. This has nothing to do with that. Haute Hijab is a pioneer in the world of modest fashion and has pushed the envelope on what it means to be a hijabi in the 21st century. HH single handedly transported us from digging through mounds of fabric at ICNA and ISNA bazaar booths and snagging a coveted scarf from Old Navy and NY&C to luxury, practicality and sheer ingenuity in hijab wearing.

Most importantly, HH is not just a clothing or fashion brand. It uniquely provides a safe and empowering space for the Muslim woman to fully experience self. She no longer has to plunder for make-shift hijabs and feel alone in her hijabi problem-solving, such as the safety pin snagging or the fading of her one black hijab she won’t let go of from tenth grade because she couldn’t possibly find the same one. Through HH, we have all found a community of women like us who share the one true connective tissue of just wanting to feel good in our hijab.

What weren’t the challenges!? As a yogi, my hijab has been a huge issue. I practice hot yoga, so I am sweating profusely for an entire hour in the almost 100 degree studio. Also, yoga often involves me being upside down or, at the very least, pressing the crown of my head to the ground, such as in fish pose.

I have tried tucking in a one piece, but it can get very sticky and hot around my neck. I have also cut jersey hijabs into multiple shapes and sizes to see if I can get the least amount of fabric for the most amount of coverage. I also need a hijab that will stay on my head as I go into any inversion pose, which is quite difficult to do.

The tech-sport cap is a dream! It’s literally what I have been trying to create myself with a few jersey hijabs, a pair of scissors and some hair ties. It keeps my hair in place and is very light-weight. It also will soak up all the sweat from the hot studio and will minimize the grossness of dripping sweat down my neck or sides of my face. Most importantly, it doesn’t move. I feel very confident that I can get into inversions and practically any yoga pose without the fear that my hijab will fall off. Trust me, it’s happened before and is beyond embarrassing and hinders the entire practice!

E. V. E. R. Y. T. H. I. N. G. As a Muslim woman in hijab who is so passionate about physical fitness, I have dreamed of the perfect hijab I can wear and workout in without the frustrations and fuss that I’ve carried for so long. HH has put in the time and effort to truly identify the unique challenges of female Muslim athletes in hijab and has thoughtfully created the solution we’ve all been waiting for. I’m excited that HH is the one brand willing to consistently innovate solutions to the problems hijabi women experience regularly. I’m excited to get in the hot yoga studio with my HH and confidently get into a headstand. :)

Move from your authentic self and challenge the idea that you must be a certain way to control the way others perceive you. As a Muslim woman athlete, we are unique and beautiful and don’t need to be anyone for anyone. We have our example in our beloved Prophet Muhammad (saw), and his example is our guiding post. When you are willing to break the chains of controlling how others perceive you, you will experience a freedom like never before.

Know that you cannot fully be self until you are willing to let go how you land on others – how they receive you, how they judge you or see you. Just. Be. You. As you engage in this process – and believe me it’s a process and journey and is not something with a destination – you will discover your authentic self. You can then strive for excellence in your athletics because it’s within you. You will find motivation to excel within yourself and no longer yearn for external approval.

May you break the chains of societal expectations, cloak yourself in the love of and for Allah (S), and persevere through whatever challenges come your way.