In Balance: Yoga helps Lumberton's city attorney at work

- by Rose

When Kevin Whiteheart is frustrated at work, he closes his office door at Lumberton City Hall and does a headstand.

After five minutes, Whiteheart regains a sense of clarity. He then goes back to work reviewing city policies, deeds and handling residents' complaints.

"It helps me think and clears my brain," said Whiteheart, the city attorney, who also teaches yoga. "Sometimes I just sit on the floor, cross my legs and meditate." Whiteheart has integrated yoga into his work environment since 1999. He continued the practice when Lumberton hired him in 2004.

"About 70 percent of what we do at City Hall is address problems that come up moment by moment or day by day," Whiteheart said. "And yoga keeps me in the present moment when the telephone and cell phone are ringing, the fax machine is beeping and people are in my office. I can focus on their problems and try to resolve it as fairly and sympathetically as I can."

Whiteheart, 46, teaches yoga two nights a week at Southeastern Lifestyle Center for Fitness and Rehabilitation. He has taught the class for two years.

"I had some anxiety at first," he said. "I was hoping that my instruction would be sufficient and that I would be able to describe to my class where or how I wanted them to move." Whiteheart has tried to talk City Manager Wayne Horne into joining the class. So far, Horne has declined.

Source: http://www.naturalhealthweb.com