A Kilted Yogi: A Day In The Life

Finlay Wilson lives in Dundee, Scotland, and works as a certified Forrest yoga instructor and bodyworker as well as a BBC content creator. He is the founder and principal teacher of Heart Space Yoga & Bodyworks in Dundee and is a widely sought-after international yoga teacher.

Finlay says:
I am very much an early riser, usually out of the house at 6.15am following a paw to the face from Amaloh. We go for our morning walk before he is fed and I get onto my Yoga mat. Each day starts with me assessing what my body needs that day from my Yoga practice. I am more than happy to trade my yoga mat for a bath!

When I’m not teaching, I’m writing and doing admin for the Yoga studio or working through a list for the organic grocery shops. It is quite a lot of juggling! I’m driven by exploring all that I can do. After my surgery, I was left in a bad way physically and mentally. I strive daily to undo the damage and celebrate where I am now. Each day I get to share that with everyone I teach. The best part of this job is observing the breakthroughs of the people that I teach. I have seen people who cannot walk feel things for the first time or begin to feel pain-free in a way they never had before. I have also been alongside students as they battled through cancer and shared beautiful moments with them and their families via the yoga mat. Many in the yoga world say that it is non-judgemental and take pride in leaving tribes that are judgemental. However, I will say that if you break their rules, they will be just as judgemental as anyone else and you won’t get invited to their parties! That is my least favourite part of being a yogi.

I was looking at getting into teaching Geography/Classics before I ended up teaching yoga. I found that I had the energy to teach and my yoga practise went hand in hand with that. Being able to do poses and being able to teach are two different skills. The most useful advice I’ve recieved is: stop struggling. My teacher Ana Forrest is a great role model for me in how she has come through her obstacles. She is the reason that I stick with Forrest Yoga.

I cook every meal that I eat (With the exception of some eggs I get in a place in Dundee that I adore!). Having an organic food shop, I am somewhat spoiled by the food! I also love to cook and bake. I eat a lot of eggs and usually my lunch is a poached egg with spinach and salmon. Delicious! As for snacks, I am so boring, I like celery dipped in anything! I finish work at about 8.30/9pm and after work I walk the pup, cook dinner and unwind from the day. Outside of work I enjoy reading, listening to audiobooks, going to the gym, walking, making videos and doing aerial silks. I do Aerial Silks two times a week and attend the gym 3 times a week.

When I was little I wanted to be an astronaut/explorer. I still think picking up some of the environmental science work that I have done would be great, doing work in conservation or with animals.

I think I follow thousands of people for many different reasons. He may look great at Yoga, might have a good beard, her leggings might be awesome. So many reasons!