There’s been a lot of chatter about “yoga selfies” on social media lately—that’s “yoga porn” to the naysayers.

As with any polarizing issues, both sides make perfectly valid points.

The #lettheyogibe camp claims that these images are meant to track personal progress and inspire others. But I’ve also heard arguments that they’re driven by ego, and therefore counter-productive to the practice of yoga. That they tempt novice yogis to risk injury. And still others claim they’re a visual embodiment of skinny-white-girl culture, and therefore an instrument of alienation for those who don’t fall into this narrow niche.

One thing we can all agree upon, though: these posers are literally everywhere.

Last summer, hiking near Aspen, I saw a group of giggly twenty-something girls actually waiting in line to nail dancer (it’s always dancer) on a well-placed boulder. Was I annoyed that they were blocking the trail? Yes. But am I worried about the future of yoga? Nah.

Here are three reasons you should probably let it go, too:

1. Social media is a choice. To the people complaining about all the bendy, tawny-limbed white girls flooding their feeds, I say this: don’t you have control over who you follow? It’s your Instagram, love. So if you’re concerned by the lack of diversity, you always have the option to follow somebody else.

Some inspiring ideas:

Photographer @robertsturman snaps truly gorgeous pictures of yogis all over the world, from downtown Manhattan to rural Africa.

@mynameisjessamyn, yoga enthusiast and curvy girl, encourages yogis of all shapes to #effyourbeautystandards and #honoryourcurves. Her form is spot-on, she’s hella funny, and she knows where to find all the cute plus-sized yoga outfits.

And if foxy hipster yogis are your jam, allow me to introduce you to the man-bun-tastic @patrickbeach. Whether you stream his Next Level Core class or just want to enjoy a good ogle, you won’t be disappointed.

2. Every journey matters. I admit to following a handful of the so-called skinny-white-girl Insta-yogis, including @sjanaelise and @yoga_girl. To me, these ladies and others like them embody not so much the practice of yoga, either physical or spiritual—but the glamorous, globe-trotting #yogaeverydamnday life I’d very much like to have. To those who are intimidated by all the glittering landscapes and glowing skin, I feel you! This is not what I look like when I practice yoga, either.

But by the same token, it’s not fair to accuse these women of killing your yoga practice—that’s your trip—nor should you discount anyone for what they look like, ever. Sure, it’s possible that the person calling herself “Chandra Chutney Smith” is just a cute girl from the O.C. who was born strong, skinny and flexible. But it’s also possible that she’s a cancer survivor who’s worked her tight little @ss off for eight years to stick that handstand.

My point is, you don’t know her heart…and every journey matters.

3. The “why” isn’t important. Speaking of the journey—and that’s exactly how I have viewed my own evolving practice over the past two decades—it’s obviously an intensely personal thing, and one that can combine the physical and spiritual in the most life-changing ways. But I think it’s also fair to say that yoga’s physical side is often what first gets people onto their mats.

The why doesn’t matter; the goal might be to “heal back pain,” or “get yoga butt,” and both are equally wonderful reasons to get your yoga on. Yoga’s certainly not judging you. I had a robust physical practice for more than 10 years before I even started to unveil some of the deeper spiritual rewards.

For me, the sweating-and-stretching part of yoga was the “gateway drug” that is teaching me how not just how to align my hips and lengthen my spine—but how to embrace a happier, healthier, more abundant life.

However: While it’s cool that I’m finally peeling it back, this doesn’t make me a “better” yogi than someone taking his or her first vinyasa class at the local gym; I’m simply at a different point in my journey. Yoga is for everyone: skinny girls, fat ladies, old people, wily kids, hairy dudes. Which is my whole point.

Social media, by nature, is an on-the-surface medium. Who we are on Instagram isn’t all of who we are, just as Rachel Brathen is so much more than Yoga Girl. But if, as the very public persona we know as Yoga Girl, she inspires even one person to step onto a mat for the first time, we all win.

Relephant Read:

In Defense Of Yoga Selfies.

Author: Staci Amend

Editor: Emily Bartran

Photo: Used with Permission via Robert Sturman