Where Are All The Hard Yoga Classes?

I read this interesting article today about the lack of difficult/challenging yoga classes out there for advanced practitioners. (Thanks, Eric, for sending it to me.) This was a particularly interesting read for me because I have been frequently frustrated by how hard it is to find a strong and challenging yoga class these days, even [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

I’m Nobody!

When I was in California a few years ago I met one of my old college friends who is now a well known Zen teacher. Recently I had some email correspondence with him and also saw his page on Wikipedia, and his bio on the website of the foundation which he started.
After seeing all that [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Boobalicious: Figuring out mayurasana

The "girls" haven't always gotten in the way. I suppose over time I've figured out ways to adapt and use them as a gauge of where I am and where I should be. For example, marichyasana C and D were impossible. I couldn't figure them out. And then I realized that what I needed to do was create space for the movement. I might have been more flexible then some of the guys around me, but they didn't have anything on their chests that they had to bind in addition to their thighs. So--duh! Boobs have to be out of the way. If I am doing marichi on the right side, they have to both be outside of the right thigh and then--voila! Space! So, I know that I'm not twisting deep enough in a pose if the nips aren't both on the outside of the thigh.

In forward bending you can always go deeper. I don't remember where I heard this but:

Nipples past knees!

So sometimes a pose is impossible unless I you navigate around them. Other times they don't get in the way, but are helpful as a tool to figure out where you are in space. Still other times they make things challenging. Women have a weight on their chests. The bigger your cup size, the heavier the weight. What does this do for the muscles that support that weight? Makes them tighter. Sure I can cheat all I want in deep back bends, but what I really need is to open the upper chest. Not so easy. On some days, you;ll find me adjusting my chest as I drop back.

And now in Mayurasana, where do the girls go? Out to the sides? In the middle? Smash them? Yesterday I just smashed them. It was like trying to balance on water balloons. Not easy. Today I tried to pull them together. But this isn't easy to do while keeping the vinyasa. I asked Guy what he usually does, he just laughed and shrugged. Okay ladies, what's a girl to do?

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

A chip off the old block

YC yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

Are Your Muscles Healthy?

This article in the NY Times addresses an important question that may be of special interest to yogis: What is the relationship between physical fitness and muscle bulk?
The general/popular belief seems to be that bulging muscles are healthy, and that smaller muscles are less healthy. I know some anxious yogis who still lift weights (despite [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

No expectations: lessons learned from India and the New York experience

There is a plaque on the wall which reads "Best place to renew your drivers licence" by New York Press. There is an award for this? What exactly were the criteria? At this point, I'm thinking this MVD "Express" won because it has truly captured the New York experience. 

People are standing in lines, sitting around, leaning against walls, running to counters when they hear their numbers. Everyone seems so know where to be except me. Like any good consumer, I head to the right and behold--the information desk. I get my paperwork, find no pens in the "pens box" and see too much hostility and self imposed isolation from those surrounding me to ask to borrow. So I walk out the doors (but they haven't beat me) no, I go next door to the HSBC and use one of those pens on a chain to complete my forms, and then head back in. Do I need a number? A line? Should I just sit and wait? I decide to stand in a line. Turns out to be the right choice. I finish my book. I thank myself for remembering my ipod. As I crank up the volume I wonder how people survived without them. I look around and fantasize about being in that Stone Temple Pilots video "Everybody Hurts" and singing out loud and we all riot and get the fuck out of the there. We overthrow the system. I smile to myself and swallow that.

Why are we here and what on earth are we doing? We are waiting in lines to get licences to drive. We think we have to. We think we are contributing to order and safety.

Why does this suck? It is hours in and I'm pissed because it says "Express" in the title and it is everything but. What did I expect? A fast food "drive thru" window? When I was in India, I carved a place in my heart for experiencing situations like this. "This is So India!' I'd think. And now I'm realizing that this is so New York. Evil civil servants with bald spots (even the women) and bad skin. Angry citizens in tacky outdated clothing like sweat suits. No pens in the pens box. Broken toilet (I've had to pee the entire time). An old man that looks like MR. Magoo and has a half smoked, unlit cigar stuck to his lip the whole time.

This is my first New York licence and it will have my New York address. I've lived here for 6 years and I am only just started to really be here. And now I am leaving.

Tips on surviving the New York MVD:

1. Bring a pen

2. Bring an ipod

3. Bring water

4. Use the toilet before

5. Eat before

6. Bring a funny read

7. Sudoku

8. Wear comfortable shoes

9. Have no expectations

10. Stay positive

11. A smile goes a long way.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Abre tus ojos

"Too posh to push" "Staycation" Really? Seriously--really?

This is ridiculous. I can't speak for the whole western world, or for the whole world. But for me, a US resident and national, I am sickened and blown away by how fucked up our lives are. It isn't everything, of course, but there is enough of it to warrant a furrow between by brows and widening eyes.

I watched "The Business of Being Born" yesterday. Nothing new for a young, idealistic, tree-hugging liberal, but disconcerting all the same. Not just the statistics either. Merely witnessing all those squirmy and slimy babies squirting from vaginas was enough to make me cry. Ah, the miracle of life. My "childhood" friend is having a baby in December. I really should be there. I really want to tell her to see the movie. That may be a bit selfish and "crazy, tree-hugging liberal". How do you not come off as nuts?

And then there is the "staycation". Just saw this clever term being used on one of the morning "news" programs. It is a pleasant way to say that our economy is going quickly down the toilet, we have no money, we work our asses off, and now we can't even afford to utilize our god-given right to drive massive vehicles vast distances across these vast lands to start fires in forests and eat packaged meats on white bread. So what are we supposed to do? Pitch a tent in our backyards. Watch more TV. God forbid--have a conversation? I don't know if I can handle it. My need to consume will surely consume me.

So what will I be up to this fabulous Memorial Weekend? Enjoying some fabulous sales? Giving in to the new trend of a fabulous staycation? I'm working. I'm practicing yoga. I'm trying to keep the momentum going with the whole "getting my life prepared" thing for the move in July. I'm trying to not think about what might or might not happen between me and my significant other and instead enjoy all the time we have together. And I'll probably eat a soy dog in someones backyard.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Stress Test

How do you know you are stressed out? Perhaps this is a funnyny question in that most people that I know would answer with "how do you know when you're not".

For me there were some very clear signs from the last week:

1. Falling over in Tittibhasana C (mental/physical exhaustion).

2. Barely making it up the stairs to my apartment.

3. Losing my monthly unlimited subway card four times in two months.

4. No period.

5. Constipation.

6. Unexplained anger and hostility toward others.

7. Loss of appetite/strong desire to eat.

8. Back pain and tension.

9. Vivid and traumatic dreams.

10. But this is the best one. I had a dream where I was going on this hike through the wild west and I was kidnapped and sold into slavery. I thought it was sex slavery as I waited down in a dingy basement on a dirty old cot. But no. It was yoga teaching slavery. The basement was below a highend yoga studio/spa where I was expected to teach "whatevery the clients ask for dammit". Amazing.

I wasn't supposed to have this week off, but it worked out that way. Boy did I need it. Bowels like clockwork, a visit from Aunt Flo, return of healthy appetite, time to cook yummy meals, release of body tension/pain, dissapearance of dreams, compassion and patience for others, renewed stamina, and a reeestablished joy for my happy little life.

I'm reading this book called "The Cure Within: A History of Mind-Body Medicine" by Anne Harrington. I admit, I'm not reading it cover to cover, but I have landed on some interesting discussions regarding stress such as the relationship between what we call "stress" and exhaustion.

Was I feeling stressed our exhausted or both? Humans have always been exposed to stress, yet some might argue that the demans of modern life are "funnydamentally unnatural". Even, that perhaps what uniquely defines modern man's dilema is the notion that our stress manifests from situations where we are unable to solve them, leaving us feeling frustrated. Or maybe it is that we just have way too much on our plates.

Teaching yoga can be physically and mentally exhausting. "Career" yoga teachers, I've heard them called. Those who teach yoga to pay their rent. I guess that's me. I don't know how it ended up that way and for some reason, I have a hard time admitting it. It just kind of happened. Recently, someone was complaining to me about their job and then said how much funny and breezy it probably was to be a yoga teacher. Hmm. I never really thought of it as a career and perhaps that was why I was taken off guard. But in order for it to be a career, one must either be really lucky and have some high paying gigs, be independently wealthy, or work one's tail off. I'm working my tail off and dreaming about it too.

Okay, so there is that. Then there is New York City. Oh, and isn't public speaking like the biggest fear? Well I do it about three times per day. Then there is this move to India.

In researching "the cumulative effects of stress on individuals over a period of a year or more", researchers Thomas H. Holmes and Richard H. Rahe designed the Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Basically, it is a list of "stressful events" with their stress point value. You add up your points and based on that, you can figure out how stressed you are (and hopefully work to balance your life out). Here is a link to the modern version: SRRS. Interesting changes compared to the 1967 version.

"Change in sleeping habits" lost one point 

"Single person living alone" is added

"Other" is added

"Give appropriate points to yourself" is added

"'Spouse' begins or stops work" instead of "wife"

"Mortgage over 40,000" instead of "10,000"

According to both scales, "if your score is 300 or more, statistically you stand an almost 80% chance of getting sick in the near future. If you score is 150 to 299, the chances are about 50%". At less than 150, about 30%. 

My number: 395. Or at least it was last week. Good thing I do yoga. And spend a day eating homemade apple pie and watching romantic comedies.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Non-Stealing (Asteya): A Key Component of Yoga’s Code of Morality

by Dada Vedaprajinananda
(this another article in our Yama-Niyama series)
Many years back when I was just beginning the practice of yoga, someone came to me and asked how he could begin yoga. As I was not a teacher at that time, I recommended a popular book with yoga postures. My friend looked at me and in [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Find Tranquility with 50 simple thirty-second methods

It is easier than you think to find happiness and avoid stress in your daily life. That is the message of a blog post on one wellness site that was brought to my attention. I looked at it and sure enough, the methods are good, so here is the link in case you [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Substitute Yoga Teachers

Last week, the teacher who normally teaches my favorite Sunday afternoon 2/3 Vinyasa Flow class was out of town, so the studio brought in a substitute teacher. The sub was well-trained and perfectly qualified to be there, but about fifteen minutes into the class, she said something which kind of riled me. She announced: “If you’re here expecting to get the kind of [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

I've got a ticket to ride

I bought my ticket to Mysore this past week. Another step toward becoming official. It won't really feel real until the apartment gets emptier. Although now that I think that thought--"the apartment gets emptier"--I had the feeling of standing in this apartment when I first moved in. How completely empty it was and how quickly it can be that way again. How real everything feels in this moment, how heavy every object is around the house, and in a few months, it will all just be a memory.

But that is exactly why it has to be now. That is exactly why I have to go and uproot and begin this journey--because this life can very quickly disappear and will.

I once went to a Jivamukti class taught by my friend, Heather. There was a lot of talking at the beginning because it was after all a Jivamukti class. And as resistant as I am to sit and hear someone yap (a small price to pay for some funny and challenging sequencing), Heather always talks sense and gets me to soften up to the experience for what it is. That day in particular, she was talking about death. How every time you exhale you are dying. Absence of air, the end of breathing is death. Every time you exhale, you are jumping off a cliff. Every time you inhale, you are carried right back up to the top only to jump again. A chance to start all over again.

I'm taking the pranayama and philosophy course that my teacher, Guy, is offering. When we hold all the air out and retain, what is that? It is like dying and then floating there just because you can. Retaining the inhales and inhaling in general tends to be much more challenging to me. What is that all about? I've always considered myself a bit of an optimist. I suppose I've also been a bit manic depressant as well. Maybe I'm just like my former boss said-- "Elise, you are a sensation junkie." And she didn't even know the half of it.

Or maybe going to India will only feel real when I'm sitting on the plane watching the city get smaller below me.

If you like horror movies, I just saw "Teeth". Two words: vagina dentata.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Breathe, Meditate, Chant and Workout in Your Yoga Class

Yoga classes are all about breathing since they teach you that breath is life and with the exchange of electrons and energy flow in which air is the foremost nutrient, survival without air would only last a few minutes. The aim of a yoga class is to teach the student that he or she should learn to breathe without thinking and that the breathing is their spirit's voice having a good deal of depth, smoothness, sound as well as reflects the person's mood.

Becoming aware of the breath and breathing helps in staying calm and is the gateway to the spirit. When we are inattentive, the spirit tells us of the state of our body - however, no one is home to notice. When one is attentive, the breathing changes and the conscious mind speaks with the spirit inside the body and this is how healing occurs.

Classes are Taught at an Ashram

The yoga class teaches breathing techniques of yoga which form a vocabulary instrumental in communicating between the mind or brain and the lower limbs and hind-brain autonomic structures. The yoga class would also teach a number of yoga postures, workouts, and chants and the place where it is all taught is called the ashram.

Asanas or yoga postures have been designed so that the body can orient itself to the changing gravity and in order to learn the perfect posture, there is a certain amount of extreme stretching involved, which needs regular practice. Asanas are central to the health of the body.

A yoga class would also teach many different types of yoga workouts that are instrumental in keeping the body fit and is mainly the harmony between mind and body. It is the mind that perceives or diagnoses and guides or heals the body and does not in fact control the body and is not used under any circumstances to force the body but is more of a healing process. There is a great deal of therapeutic effect of the yoga workout which involves the mind and totally inspires breathing, to help the body evolve better.

Also taught at a yoga class is relaxation that is often characterized as being yoga and involves meditation which is a widely disparate technique having the ultimate goal to get the student to relax. Finally, the yoga class may teach chants and the therapeutic value of chanting lies in the resonance of vibrations through the body and especially the nervous system and chanting is a special form of controlling one's breath.
People attend and organize retreats to get in touch with themselves, with nature and with God. Jesuits are famous for their spiritual retreats where they take off for a fixed period of time to shut themselves away from the world and connect with God through prayers and inward retrospection.

What Are Yoga Retreats and What Do They Involve?

Yoga retreat as the name indicates could be the time period when one detaches themselves from all earthbound problems (job, children, spouse, money, etc) and connects with oneself through yoga. Yoga is equally responsible for mental health and well being as it is for the health of body. Hence, yoga retreats would be a great way to allow the mind to relax and renew itself. Yoga retreats, far from being a religious experience, cover the concepts of the connection between mind, body and soul. Yoga has answers for any type of ailment whether it is mental of physical, and it is during such types of yoga retreats that you find out the depth about this popular ancient Indian exercise regime.

The yoga retreat usually involves groups of 15 to 25 people who come to an ashram (simple shelter - usually attached to a temple, but also used as a loose term of free and charitable shelter organizations) and commit themselves to this trip inwards with the help of specific yoga exercises. The effects of such an exposure can have an extraordinary impact on people; and hence, it is highly commendable that everybody during their life time try to at least once enjoy this experience.

Pre-requisites

The yoga retreat can be organized by anyone, anywhere. There is only one need and pre-requisite that during the retreat, there would be total abstinence from non-vegetarian food and alcohol consumption as this would defile the body and interfere with yoga teachings and practices. Another important pre-requisite is that once the people have entered the ashram and are part of the yoga retreat, the 'students' close the doors to the outside world for whatever time span the retreat is. There would be no cell phones, no TV, no news papers. Only you, yoga and the Providence (or by whatever name you know God).

This is, generally speaking, how the yoga retreat makes the spiritual inroad into your soul, even if it is not a religious retreat. This experience will leave you feeling connected with the rest of the universe, re-charged, and content with life as it is.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Mysore 2007 re-run

http://mysoremusings.blogspot.com/2007/09/miracle-goop-in-all-glory-yesterdays.html

on chywanaprash and what to do the rest of the day in Mysore

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

A Yoga Video Game!?

Wii Fit, a new video game from Nintendo, is really causing a stir. I actually haven’t had a chance to play it yet, but I do know that there is a yoga module, which was reviewed recently by Cyndi Lee, founder of Om Yoga. She doesn’t seem to have very good things to say about Wii [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Mysore 2007 Re-run

http://mysoremusings.blogspot.com/2007/09/no-fearing.html yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Reincarnated Post

an oldie but goodie from Mysore last year.

http://mysoremusings.blogspot.com/2007/09/working-your-edge.html

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Everything I know I learned in Third Grade

I could say that if I were my Third-Grader. Today he visited Chuang Yen Monastery in Carmel, New York, with his class. The CYM has a 35 foot tall Buddha statue, surrounded by 10,000 six-inch smaller statues of the Buddha. Or so he tells me. I do know that the 35 foot tall Buddha statue is the biggest Buddha statue in the Western Hemisphere. And that is just plain cool.

I asked Adam if he knew what a monk is. He told me he saw one at the Monastery. He wasn't sure if it was a man or a woman because of the shaved head and the long robes. I clarified for him. He told me about some ritual that the monk performed involving rice and incense. His teacher told him that each lifetime brings you closer and closer to enlightenment, and that in your last life, you will be a monk. Or a nun, I suppose. Like Pema Chodron, I mean.

I asked him if they learned about the Four Noble Truths. Apparently, they did not. Nevertheless, having known Adam since before he was born, I have always suspected that he has been here on earth many times before. He has always had an aura of calm wisdom about him, even as he waited calmly in his little plastic bassinet beside me as the doctors sewed me up after my c-section.

I asked him if he understood why someone would want it to be their last life on earth. He did not. And yet he did not think it odd, as I do.

I have always wanted to come back again. I still do. I am sure that if I do, I will see my husband, because I am quite certain that this is his first time here, at least as a human. You know, with all the suffering that goes along with being human. He struggles with it. As do we all. But with my husband, the struggling is so very palpable. Sometimes I imagine him as a helpless infant, crying for food, for comfort, for love.

My children are 30 years younger than him, roughly. But when I imagine their souls, I see not infants or even children. I imagine that Brian might have been my own father in another life. I feel quite certain that Adam was my son. And I feel quite certain that my children have an innate understanding of things they are too young to articulate.

I wonder if this is just sentimental crap mixed with the ravings of a yoga lunatic. Or if there might be something to this.

YC yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

New Healthy Recipe: Chocolate Nutty Spread

This easy recipe by Farah Nazarali offers a healthy, delicious and funnyctional treat using raw cacao. Chocolate is one of the most complex foods known to us on this planet. With over 300 compounds, including zinc, magnesium, essentially fatty acids, and anti-oxidants, it’s no surprise that civilizations past revered chocolate. Chocolate has more anti-oxidants [...] yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

A Tag on Mother’s Day

Apples tagged me for Mother’s Day.
The rules are as simple as this:
(1) Post a photo of you and your mom together (recent or old) and write the words “I heart my mom” across it (or type the text below the photo if you don’t feel like opening your image-editing software). (2) Tag your friends!
I went [...] yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Spring in New York

Has it officially begun? Not sure, but I love it! It is on days like this that walking down the street is a pleasure. The city is so full of people--and so is the shala. It has been positively packed lately. I really like it that way. Having so many possible distractions helps me focus. And when I get to poses like pincha mayurasana, it makes me face my fears of falling over onto someone. (Haven't hit anyone yet, but have scared a few unsuspecting practice neighbors.) The only drawback for me is that it gets very hot and humid. Not unbearably so, but enough to make it more challenging for me to breathe. I have a tendency toward exertional asthma and used to carry an inhaler as a kid. With the high pollen count this year pre-practice and the humidity in practice, I have quite an opportunity to work on my breathing.

I find that, on days like today, it is helpful because I don't feel 100% and am less apt to get competitive with myself. Instead, I just tell myself to breathe and focus on bandha and it all just kind of unfolds on its own. And then I kind of fold into karandavasana! Well, the first part anyway.

In the short time that I've been working karandavasana, I feel like I've learned some big lessons. To come down (for me at least) it is essential that I am able to hollow out my belly first. This is practically impossible on days like today where I cross on my own and then lose my balance and shift too much toward my elbows (like I'm going to fall on my belly). I think Guy took this as a cue that I was ready to come down, so I came down, flexed my belly like crazy, and then muscled back up. I have to have my hips over my head and then inhale. In this position, I am not gripping my belly like death and am able to hollow it out on the exhale and then fold down into the pose. This part is tricky. If (when I hollow and come down) my hips aren't leaning toward my hands and shoulders moving forward, then I crash down on my butt. I am not some bulky guy that can just hover. I have to be able to build architecture that will work. Its coming...

Spent the afternoon with Rachel soaking up sun in Central Park, debating universal health care systems, and giving each other yoga tips. Rachel asked to see karandavasana. Everything is easier on the grass.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Scapular Stabilizers and Shoulder Injury

Although shoulder injuries are often complex, many do happen to be related to one common problem: weak muscles that support the shoulder blades, otherwise known as scapular stabilizers. Dr. Carla Cupido reviews the various muscles that stabilize the scapula, thus preventing shoulder injury. She also offers her perspective on how Yoga and other [...] yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

Junk drawer post

Think so you can learn how to stop thinking. This yoga stuff is funnyny. Between all the thinking about my relationships to people and things and philosophy with Guy and everything I was thinking so much about the sound of white noise that the thinking became white noise and then I wasn't thinking because I was thinking and I crossed my legs by myself in karandavasana--and I held myself there...away from the wall! The thing is, I didn't really notice until after practice.

This is my favorite time of year in New York. It is just so...optimistic. Baby birds try flying prematurely, fall to the pavement, and then get crushed under shoes. One moment you smell blossoms on your way down the sidewalk and the next moment it is hot pee. The weather is beautiful and flesh is exposed for the first time (its a scary white/green/grey color). The catcalling is back and starts out sweet ("god bless you, princess") and sometimes ends up sour ("you got me so hard--come back baby").

And now the dream sequence:

I had this dream last night featuring Sherri Shephard, Oprah Winfrey, and someone else whom I can't recall at 

the moment (let's just say it was Diane Keaton). They were drunk in the basement lounge of a Staples. I was very disappointed with Sherri because Oprah is a bad influence on her. She put on a bunch of weight, and all three of them were behaving ridiculously, their clothes were falling off, just melting

 off them from the drunkenness. Then my Mom showed up and poked Sherri, asking her why she let herself get to this point. And then of course, in come Lucy Liu in Kill Bill and she's threatening to chop heads off if anyone mentions she is part Chinese and American (not just Japanese).

Hey Adam, how's that for a bit of self absorption and inexpensive therapy? :) I think you're right. Sometimes it is hard to see it, but "I don't know how, but some way, it always works out in the end".

PS- Congratulations on solo handstand sans wall! Knew you could do it!

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

An Overview of Yoga Equipment

Many adults who have entered into the world of yoga have realized the benefits of a regular yoga workout. Yoga brings the mind, body and spirit together for maximum health and overall well-being. So why not bring the benefits to our children through teaching yoga techniques to a younger generation? The advantages that adults reap from yoga can bring the same when we teach yoga to our children. Kids can learn body awareness, self-control and coordination - and that is just the beginning!

Yoga teaches kids to manage stress and get a handle on anger. Regular yoga workouts can even result in better health and a stronger immune system for your child. If your child has a difficulty such as ADD, yoga can improve your child's focus and ability to sit still. Yoga can be a funny way to fitness, especially when it encompasses good nutrition in addition to the exercises.

Teaching Yoga to Children

Since kids are naturally flexible, yoga is not a hard discipline for them to learn. They naturally love to hang upside down and see the world from a different angle. Balance is something they never seem to tire of trying to achieve. Yoga poses come easily to most kids. There is yoga classes specifically geared towards children, or you can even incorporate your child into your yoga program at home. As you work through the poses with your child, encourage your child to go beyond the exercise and imagine himself as a snake or turtle.

Help him to concentrate on his breathing and visualization as he works to ensure that he is reaping the maximum benefits of mental well-being as well as physical health. If you need additional help in learning how to modify a yoga program for children, there is a multitude of choices available in the form of videos and books. There is even material available for yoga with young children and babies.

Since yoga encompasses many aspects of health, you can incorporate many parts into your yoga program. Deep breathing techniques and meditation can teach your child self-control of his emotions and effective stress management. Good nutrition is an obvious key to good physical health, and can enhance the mental health and "thinking power" of your child as well.

The flexibility that is learned in yoga will aid your child with coordination and balance that will improve performance in many of the activities your child chooses to participate in. Yoga is a great program to begin with children. Give your child the benefits of yoga, and watch the positive results.
Most people don't need much in the way of yoga equipment, with some folks getting by using nothing more than a comfortable pair of sweats and an open floor space in their house or apartment. If you really want to put yourself in the mood for yoga, or just want to look the part, here is some yoga equipment to consider.

Mats

Sticky yoga mats can provide a safe and comfortable non-slip surface to go through your yoga routine upon. Mats made specifically as yoga equipment tend to be thinner than Pilates mats and are usually easily rolled up to place in your gym bag for easy transportation and storage. Most places selling yoga equipment will even offer a variety of mat styles and colors, so you can express yourself in the gear you choose.

Blocks

Yoga blocks and bricks are used by many yogis to modify poses in their workouts whether they want to deepen their stretches, lessen the strain on a particular muscle set when easing into a new pose, or just to attain better body alignment. Most yoga equipment stores will sell different sizes of blocks that can be used in both simple and advanced poses.

Yoga Straps

Another useful piece of yoga equipment is simple nylon strap with a plastic or metal buckle. These are usually light-weight and available in several colors. The yoga strap is used by most people who just can't quite reach a specific goal in a pose yet, such as the Seated Forward Bend or Paschimottanasana where you sit with both legs in front of you and attempt to lay your torso flat over your thighs. If your hamstrings are particularly tight, a yoga strap can be looped around the bottoms of your feet and used to pull your torso gently forward until you feel that distinctive stretch where you need it.

Videos

Yoga workouts on DVD and video are a popular choice among folks shopping for yoga equipment as these videos cater to those that are too busy to attend a regular class, or don't feel the need for a full on teacher anymore. This is less conventionally thought of as yoga equipment, but can set a mood for the home-based yogi that they might be hard-pressed to get otherwise.

Of course, almost any yoga equipment shop is bound to have full on yoga "kits" as well. Such packages will typically include one or two blocks, straps, a mat and possibly a video or flash cards of different poses and can be a wonderful starting point for the yoga enthusiast that doesn't quite know where to begin.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Sleep on it/creating an exit plan

I went to bed last night at 8:45pm. That's early. I looked at the clock and thought about how when I was a teenager, I'd still be getting ready to go out, how this was the beginning of what would be the greatest night of my life--every night. And now I'm covering my head with a pillow, walking from room to room in our railroad apartment in my mind, thinking about what I am going to do with all this stuff. How can I escape? I start in the kitchen on the far end of the apartment.

The plants. I can give them away.

The glass jar drawer. recycle.

The oven mitts. They aren't mine.

The silverware/knife drawer. Here I pause. That's my flatware. That was the flatware from my mom's house growing up. I can store those. Yes. What about the knives? Some of them are mine. I can put them in a stoop sale. No. I pack them too. I already have knives whey do I want to have to buy more knives? (I think of my grandparents) You should only have to buy knives once.

The pot and pan drawer. That's easy. Yard sale. But wait, what about those two pots from college? And the pressure cooker? What about the salad spinner? I love that salad spinner!

Then I get pretty upset. How can you break up with a salad spinner?

I have one foot here and one foot is already gone as I recall how I'll forget. I had this journal I kept when I walked the Camino de Santiago in Spain. I lost it sometime last year. I was really upset, but then was able to let it go. Now I think about how it existed but I don't panic at the fact that I can't hold it. Will I panic over the salad spinner a year from now on a beach in Thailand? Perhaps a little. Will I not be able to leave? No, that's not a problem. I might procrastinate though. Will I not be able to give it away. Maybe. No. I have to keep the "goal" in mind. I shouldn't really store anything. Why? What do I really need to save for later?

My eyes dart around the bedroom. At all the things. I think about the linen closet and how a tiny fraction of the contents are mine. I feel like I signed a contract with the stuff. I feel like I said "thank you, how generous!" when the things arrived, and now they've buried me alive.

Where is the back door? How can I just slip out? I don't want to deal with any of it, I just want to leave. I look at flights. Can I afford to leave earlier? Is that fair? #$@%!

I've got a light in my chest and belly, anticipation for what's to come and a cold feeling deep in my gut--the feeling of impending doom. And all this is happening with this other "I" smiling, laughing, compassionate, as it watches "myself" scramble around trying to figure it out.

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Yardwork and Air Pollution

With the days getting longer, many homeowners thoughts turn to the work that waits in their yards. Many people associate air pollution with cars, airplanes, energy-producing facilities, and other large fuel consumers. The small engines used in lawn mowers, hedge trimmers, chain saws, and leaf blowers, however, represent a significant source of air pollutants.
Indeed, most [...] yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

Bitch bitch whine whine

Being a mom is a hard job. It's hard whether you work outside the home or not. I've done both. I worked outside the home when my kids were babies - up until Brian was 5 and Adam was 3. I had a full-time job and a full-time nanny. I didn't have to deal with day-care, and I had someone who took care of the home front. She made many, if not most, of the playdates, kept things organized and clean. She gave my kids baths. And by she, I meant, whomever was my nanny at any given time. Not that they were interchangeable because they certainly were not.

I always felt lucky to have both the kids and the career. I felt that one gave me perspective for the other, helped me appreciate whatever it was I was doing at any given time. I managed my time wisely. I was efficient. I made the time for working out at the gym. I made the time for phone calls and maintaining a social life. I made the time to shop for myself and keep myself in fabulous clothing.

I feel lucky now that I don't have to work. I have more time for myself. I could never maintain the yoga practice that I maintain if I were working while mothering. Mothering school-age children/pre-teens is quite different from mothering babies. With the babies, my essential task was to nurture. With the kids, my essential task is to stay organized.

I just spent nearly two hours organizing my family's schedule for the next two months. Baseball practice for each kid once per week, baseball game for each kid once per week. Not always on the same day and certainly not always in the same place. Baseball clinic for Brian once per week (in addition to regular practice and games). Lacrosse practice and games for Adam, sometimes more than twice per week, and almost never on the same day or time, and all the hell over Westchester County. Religious school once per week for each kid. Tennis lessons once per week for Brian. Tae Kwon Do once or twice per week for Adam if there is ever time to squeeze it in. Don't even ask me why there is such an emphasis on sports in my household. It wasn't my choice. It just is the way it is. Then there are birthday parties, choir practices, choir concerts, class trips that I need to remind the moms about (since I am a class mom for Adam's class), pediatrician appointments, orthodontist appointments (twice in June, but usually every six weeks).

In all of that, I need to allot time for gardening; notwithstanding that I have a gardener, there are daily tasks that I need to do myself. For example, until the danger of frost passes here in the great green north, I have to cover my annuals with tarps at night and uncover them in the morning so they can get fresh sunlight. I've been shopping for perennials too, because perennials come and go, and you have to buy them when they're available. Luckily, most of the perennials I've been looking for have already been available, so I am almost done with the task of filling the garden beds, hopefully for a long time to come. Almost, but not quite.

Then there is keeping a social calendar, which I almost cannot bear to do, since most of the time, I am too exhausted to even talk...about anything but yoga.

And I don't have a maid, and except for me, everyone in this household tends to leave the toilet seat up. My younger son is currently grooving on the notion of being dirty. And by dirty I mean disgustingly putridly dirty, as in, taking his socks out of the laundry to wear the again, just because he likes to make them as smelly as he can. Don't even ask me how he managed to go an entire week without changing his underwear, unbeknownst to me. But I figured it out when I did his laundry yesterday. Nothing like seeing that there is not even one pair of underwear in your nine-year-old's laundry to make you feel like a totally inadequate loser of a mother.

My nails are bitten to the quick. I discovered today that I have been given the gift of osteo-arthritis in my fingers (pray, pray, pray that it will remain in my fingers ONLY), or at least in both of my ring fingers, and therefore, it sort of doesn't matter what my nails look like because soon my fingers will be all gnarly and gnarled anyway.

I haven't had my hair cut since last summer.

My husband thinks that every day is like a day at Canyon Ranch for me.

It's not. It's hard. Because no one ever thanks me for anything. And no one even realizes that I'm actually working. And no one would probably notice if I didn't do the work. But I would. And even so, sometimes, I can barely do it. And sometimes I do it badly, like today, for example, when a mom called me to tell me she was rescheduling her son's birthday party from tomorrow to next Saturday, and I realized that I hadn't been aware of the fact that there was supposed to be a birthday party tomorrow in the first place. Just a few minutes ago, I dug out the invitation from my the abyss that is my inbox. Or the abyss that was my inbox, until that little reality check.

I know that if I had a job outside the house, thus creating a need for a nanny, I'd be way less stressed out. Even with working. Even with having a boss. Even with practicing less. But I just can't. I just simply can't.

And that, my friends, is the definition of "neurosis".

YC yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

What the--

"Wait--something is different..." My toothbrush stops mid-tooth, mid-lather, my mouth hangs open. "What the--?" My eyes look around the bathroom, they look into the living room as I rise to my feet. It might have been exactly midnight and I was reclined on the toilet lid with my feet resting on the sink, brushing away at my teeth when I was overcome with this strong feeling that something was different, something changed, something shifted, something huge happened, that someone was thinking of me. It was that kind of feeling you get when you feel like you should call everyone you know to see if they are okay, to turn on the TV to see if the Apocalypse had begun, to cower and hide because God took the roof off your house and is watching you at just this moment. Or maybe that your twin on the other side of the world just found out who you were. It was like that. It was like that part in Donnie Darko at the end where they play "Mad World" and everyone sits up in the middle of the night feeling like something big happened but they don't know what.

Needless to say, I had quite a hard time going to sleep, my mind racing. It seems rare to have these feelings and to be able to sustain them for so long. Usually you have a moment (as described in the film "Reality Bites") where you kind of just stop and realize "whoa--I'm really happy right now" and then it is gone. But this time I felt it and then time stopped and I kept feeling it and I could walk around in it. There has got to be a name for this.

I woke up this morning with a start, feeling like I knew exactly how things would turn out. Feeling like I am really here in this body but also have a foot in the bigger picture. Must of been all that LSD I ate last night. Or was is it the moon chapati?

It is so going to rain today, which absolutely sucks because I got talked into working the donation booth at the first annual "Slacro Yoga Fest", which, of course, is outside. What is Slacro Yoga? Well, the "slac" part is for "slack lining". Did you catch that Yoga Journal article on Jason Magness? Well, he's a mountain climber/yoga practitioner who decided that he should be able to do yoga on a slackline and voila! "Yoga Slackers" were born. The "acro" part of "slacro" is for "acro" yoga. That dynamic partner stuff. So basically, it is a bunch of yoga crazies in the park falling over, trying to raise money for a good cause. And now, they'll do it in the rain.

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He's newly authorized...

...to introduce yoga into the mainstream. Finally!

Finally!!!!

Never again will I have to explain what I mean when I say that I've been working on Gassy Cobra and Angry Hobo Stealing Pie. Who knew Mike Myers was so flexible? Kind of makes me envious the way he can put his legs so far behind his head. Damn.

Seems that what Madonna couldn't do for yoga by doing Pincha Mayurasana during all of her shows and by starring in a movie about an Ashtanga teacher who gets her gay best friend to sleep with her and then proceeds to have his baby (as IF!), Mike Myers is finally doing with The Love Guru, which comes out in theaters later this spring.

And besides, who wouldn't want to learn to play the Sitar from this man?



(here's hoping these posters end up as widely distributed as Dan Smith's...

YC yoga; Yoga Poses; Health and Wellness;

Suck it in!

Today I had a focus--vacuum stomach. I was tired and sore and mentally exhausted but figured that if I could just really focus on that one thing, then I could get through it. Paying attention made me pay attention. You can't rush through a serious stomach vacuum and it might make you need to pee! When I got up to go, I was all fuzzy headed and "blissy".

Jumping was higher and lighter. Everything had just a little more length, just a little more space. But it wore me out. Pincha and karan jump back? Forget it! I knew that my body couldn't take it today (partly because of a moonday coming up). That said, I felt a difference in karandavasana for sure. I felt hollowed out and rounded like a little ball and my legs were noticeably higher on my arms.

Wheels were a trial. Each time I lifted up a rib ached here, a joint there, everything feeling fragile and tender. I stood up and just breathed for a little bit, looking down, thinking how much this was going to hurt. And then I was like, "wait a second--no more thinking! Just breathe, just move." So that's what I did. Some were fast, some were slow. But I can't remember ever grabbing ankles with feet that parallel before...

After the forward bend I was thinking about how I had to really work on lift ups, yadda, yadda, as I lifted up and jumped back without touching my feet to the floor. Really! I wanted to squeal with delight--and of course no one saw. If a tree falls in the forest...

Why is this a revelation? Because although I don't usually touch my feet to the ground when I jump back, I'll usually give it a swing and/or push off from the back of my arms. But today, none of that. Now I can barely make it up the stairs :)

yoga therapy; Self Improvement;

Read Ashtanga!

We've just published the May issue of LivingMysore Magazine!

Check it out: http://www.livingmysorejournal.blogspot.com/

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