Today we’d like to introduce you to Mica Jones.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
When I got the invite to share my story with Voyage Houston, I thought, ‘Why me?’. And then I read VH’s mission and some of the other fascinating stories about everyday people like me out here creating, grinding, dreaming, wanting more for ourselves, and wondering how did we get to where we are.
So, I reminded myself that all stories are worthy. All of us–even those we think are the least of us–have something to share. And then I penned this piece to tell it like how I feel it…
“Still, I Am”
Who I am?
I am.
I am God’s child.
I am a soul in a body, still trying to remember…
I am a loyal wife, a grateful mother, a daughter, a sister, a niece, a beloved auntie, a friend…
I am an advocate for the struggle and #BlackLove…
I am a voter.
A reader, a writer, a poetess, a seeker, a believer, a soul-soother…
I am a teacher, a meditator, a see-er…
I am a yogi, a marathoner, and a walker.
A picture-taker, a storyteller, and a motivator.
I am an entrepreneur and a go-getter…
I am a Black woman in America trying to make sense of it all…
I am a Black woman in America still…trying to remember the way home…
…still,
I am…
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nowadays, one of the bigger challenges in yoga studios is imposter syndrome. Took me forever to work thru this one. Because I began my yoga teaching career in an elite fitness chain, my teaching style was often compared to the white teachers at my gym and I was categorized as “other”, as if I wasn’t teaching the yoga “right”.
What I’ve since learned–after hundreds, maybe thousands of hours on my yoga mat free-flowing–is that yoga is in the heart. And to me, it’s beautiful when it’s different, authentic, loving, and peace-giving. I’ve learned not to pay attention to the opinion of others. To keep creating and teaching from the heart, however the yoga presents itself.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Yoga/Meditation Teacher
I help people discover their inner light. I am currently a yoga and meditation teacher and a former fitness coach. I have a home studio where I do private yoga sessions. I also volunteer to teach yoga to seniors in my community, as I wanna help our seniors, especially in the Black community, to know more about the beautiful healing benefits of yoga. Too many of our seniors think that yoga is religious or somehow demonic. But the truth is—at least for me—yoga is a healing modality that has saved my life.
During Covid, I fell into some intense family situations and ultimately a deep depression. I also suffered from anxiety and abandonment, and rejection issues. I begin to use my time on my yoga mat to work thru a lot of those issues by using the power of my own breath to stay connected to myself and to God.
In this way, yoga helped me to lean into my Christian faith a little bit more. I would search for Bible scriptures to help me deal with what I was going through and feeling. And then I’d get on my mat and “free flow” to release that energy. It was so very therapeutic for me.
Career-wise, I am most proud of co-owning and running a very successful fitness boot camp for 10 years in Abilene, TX, from 2007-2017, called Keep Movin’ Fitness. I was in Abilene because my husband was in the military at the time (US Air Force). Out of work and bored to death, I started this small company with another trainer, who also had a love for fitness and a genuine desire to help people be more fit and live without relying so many on medications. (We had quite a few of our members get off of their blood pressure and diabetes meds after working out with us.)
I poured everything into this dream—energy, effort, money, blood, sweat, and so many tears, most of them happy tears as I got to witness so many beautiful transformations. The mayor of Abilene even gave us a “Key to the City’ day because of the impact our fitness business had on the community. Being a part of this project is my highest career achievement so far. I will always be grateful for this time and the beautiful people I met.
So, through my 30s and most of my 40s, I was a fitness enthusiast. When my husband Roc retired from the military after 26 years of devoted service, we moved back home to Houston. I wanted to continue in the fitness industry and began working at a local luxury fitness club (for whom I still currently work.)
I absolutely loved what I did! But my enthusiasm for all things fitness began to weigh on me. The wear and tear on my body was undeniable—I used to go HARD, but I was getting older. Going HARD cost me. So, I turned to yoga to “stretch” everything out.
What I discovered on the yoga mat changed everything for me. I went in for the stretching, but what I found there was so much more rich and deeper than what I could have ever imagined.
I found healing there. And self-acceptance. And freedom, so much freedom. I found self-love and joy and endurance and forgiveness–of myself and others. I found peace and stillness and openness, kindness and tolerance. Real tolerance. I think a lot of us don’t realize how dogmatic we can be about our beliefs. So much so that we close off feeling for other people. Yoga has helped me feel more.
My most proud moment as a yoga teacher has been when I was teaching yoga at Blackshear Elementary, an elementary school in Houston’s disadvantaged 3rd Ward… Most of those black and brown babies had never been exposed to yoga.
They were curious and receptive to the practice. I remember looking at them one day, feeling…’If I had had this wonderful tool of yoga (breath and body awareness, stillness, movement with breath, mindful eating and mindful walking, etc.), in my early years of life, my life would have been so much more manageable. I wanted to give these young scholars something I never had…something they could use in real life to limit their suffering. When I was with them, I often felt like I was doing God’s work.
So here now, new in my 50s, my new mission is to shine my light and to help others feel free enough to shine theirs too. I wanna be so free in my thoughts, my body, my offerings, my yoga teachings, and everything else so that when others look at me, they feel that they, too, can be free. That, in the end, would be my highest honor.
We’d love to hear what you think about risk-taking.
My views on risk-taking shift from time to time. Early on in my life, I felt like I was more of a risk-taker. Using my intuition—if a situation felt right in my spirit—I would lean all the way in. The first time I took a risk, I married my high school sweetheart.
We were both 19. I was in college at Sam Houston State University on a full scholarship (with strict stipulations that I had to attend a school within the state of Texas to keep it). He was about 2 years into the Air Force, stationed in Altus, Oklahoma. He proposed after my freshman year at Sam Houston. I took a risk—dropped my dream for love (including my full scholarship). Told him I would follow him anywhere—and I did.
Fast forward 32 years and 2 beautiful grown and thriving kids, this risk paid off. I have no regrets. When it comes to taking risks, sometimes things just “feel” right. And when it does, one needs not second-guess herself. She just needs to lean all the way in—with love! The reward is oh so sweet!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: OM_Mica / Keepmovin_Houston
- Facebook: MicaJonesFitness
Image Credits
Mica Jones
