Are Your Expectations Setting You up for Disappointment?
Adapted from: Amanda Christian
“Waking up to who you are requires letting go of who you imagine yourself to be.”
-Alan Watts
Do you find that you walk into the yoga room and "expect" something from yourself? From your teacher? From a sequence or a pose? How often does a teacher remind you to, "listen to the cues" but you find yourself doing something habitually, instead of HEARING what is happening. Intstead of embracing change in your body and in your patterns. It can be difficult, but change can start anywhere. Why not on your mat? A lot of these expectations, you may find, are self-imposed...
The following are some tips and lessons you can use while making the transition from expectation overload to the lightness of exploration.
Less Expectation, More Exploration And Trust
When expectations rule our lives, we set ourselves up for disappointment. Then guess what? We judge ourselves harshly for it. The most important thing you may learn is to release your expectations about how you think your life should go, and approach life from a place of exploration.
This opens you up to experiencing things that are beyond your wildest dreams.
It’s okay to have goals, but make sure to leave room for something even greater to come along. Maybe the most peaceful and quickest way to achieve something is a way you haven’t thought of yet. Be willing to go with the flow. Explore through life knowing deep down that you are always guided to exactly where you need to be. Plus, doesn’t exploring sound like more fun than expecting?
Look Beyond Your Distractions
A lot of us want external things because of the way we think they will make us feel. We want a skinnier body because we thought it would make us feel happy and loved. I want a successful career because we think we would feel fulfilled. We want a relationship because we think it will relieve our loneliness.
These things can distract us from looking within ourselves for answers. When they fail to do what we want, we feel disappointed and angry. In order to release this cycle of disappointment, we need to release the belief that they will save us.
If you want to experience more love, start giving more love. If you don’t want to feel lonely, then start healing the belief that you are alone. If you want to feel like you’re worth something, start treating yourself like you are worth something, because you most definitely are.
When you heal the beliefs that run wild in your mind, you can still enjoy the externals, but you’re no longer trying to get something from them. You know you’re already fulfilled, happy, and complete, so if your circumstances change, you can maintain your joy.
Relax More, Judge Yourself Less
I’ve learned that the loving voice within, also known as our inner guide, has a bigger plan for us than we have for ourselves. The only thing you need to do in order to follow the path of your inner guidance is listen to it by releasing your judgments about what you think is happening. You don’t have to have everything figured out right now.
Get quiet and listen for guidance about what to do in this moment. Any advice coming from love will be something you can do now. The thought of doing it will make you feel lighter and excited.
Change Your Thoughts
If you are feeling disappointed, it’s because of the thoughts you have about the situation. So if you don’t want to feel disappointed, change your thoughts. Step into your power. Everything happens for you, not to you.
You’ll be amazed at the shifts in perception that occur when you become willing to release fear and see love instead. When you focus on releasing the thoughts about how you imagined your life to be, your most loving, truthful self can come forward and guide you. There is nothing to figure out. Namaste.
A Weekend With Christine Price Clark
There are four equally impactful, but uniquely different workshops you can attend:
Evolution by Involution: Easy. Accessible, Exquisite Journeys Inside
Friday May 24th - 7PM-9:30PM
This workshop is for all levels and no experience is required. This will be an exploration of meditation, mantra, and pranayama that can be easily woven into everyday life. This is a lighter practice, with light asana, in preparation for sitting and meditation.
Notes from the Underworld
Saturday May 25th - 11AM-1:30PM
For the intermediate/advanced student (students must be able to kick up into handstand, unassisted at the wall, as well as perform full backbend (wheel) with straight arms. Students should have no major injuries - This class will be inspired by the darker elements of Hindu mythology. A deep and dynamic practice, unearthing the more rare and often unexplored poses.
Goddess Rising: A Practice for Women
Saturday May 25th - 2:30PM-5:00PM
This is a full spectrum practice for all levels, that will include not only asana, but chanting, meditation, and pranayama. This practice will be guided by the symbolism and stories of Kali, Lakshmi, and Saraswati, and is supported by our fellow sisters, mothers, daughters, divas, and queens.
Embodies Teaching: A Teacher Development Session
Sunday May 26th - 11:00AM-1:30PM
This class will be geared towards class planning and sequencing strategies for classes that are MORE than classes - full-flavoured feasts of heart/mind, and body.
Christine's teaching reflects a deep embrace of the heart and a playful delight for the body. Her classes are an artful blend of strong, rhythmic adana and purposeful creative sequencing.
She is a proud mentor to a growing number of phenomenal teachers and is extremely excited and honoured to be teaching at Wanderlust Whistler 2013. Currently living in Vancouver with her husband and two little girls, she is known throughout the city and beyond as an empowering mentor and teacher's teacher who keeps it relevant, reverent, and real.
If you want to know even more about Christine, you can check her out here.
Sessions are being individually offered for $45 in advance and $50 drop in. You can also purchase all four sessions for $150. You don't want to miss this!
8 Things to Fight for Every Day
Loosely Adapted From www.marcandangel.com...
As always, there is some tough truth in here. Number two sure brings up some stuff for me personally. Living a fully authentic life can be a struggle. But number seven. Oh, number seven. How thankful I am to be lucky enough to have that. My wish for you all. - Brandon Jacobs
Because everything in life worth having is worth fighting for…
1. Personal greatness.
Easy goals don’t exist. A goal is a point of achievement that requires effort and sacrifice. There are no esteemed ventures worth participating in that don’t require some level of effort and struggle.
Decades from now when you’re resting on your deathbed, you will not remember the days that were easy, you will cherish the moments when you rose above your difficulties and conquered goals of magnitude. You will dream of the strength you found within yourself that allowed you to achieve what once seemed impossible. Don’t do what’s easy, do what you're capable of. Astound yourself with your own greatness.
2. Honesty and truth.
Personal transformation and growth can be remarkably rewarding, but only when the process of change is based on honesty and truth. When you’re not being authentic somewhere in your life or with someone in your life, any attempt at transformation eventually leads to anger and frustration. The truth always creeps back up on you; it does not cease to exist when you ignore it. Being fake about any aspect of your existence slowly digs a dark void in your soul. Life will simply not work for you if you don’t show up as YOU. The truth may not be easy to deal with, but it will always set you free in the end.
3. A mind free of envy and jealously.
Envy and jealousy are costly diseases; you simply can’t be yourself within their confines. When you give in to them, the price you pay is steep – a bad mood, an unproductive mind, an inferiority complex, and a chronic migraine headache. Being envious of what someone else has is like drinking poison and waiting for it to somehow improve your situation. Likewise, tearing someone else down in your jealous mind only tears you down in real life. Rather than devastating yourself with contemplations of things you don’t have or don’t want to happen, think for a second about what you do have, what you do want going forward, and what you can do right now to make progress with realities you face.
4. Positive change.
The simple realization that you need to make a change can be a great source of motivation, but in order for this motivation to create positive change, you must apply it toward creating things of value. Don’t fight against what you don’t want; create what you do want. Don’t punish those who have caused you pain; let go and focus on something new that soothes your pain. Don’t focus on what you are running away from; give your attention to the great things you want to create in your life.
5. A willingness to learn from mistakes.
One mistake does not have to rule your entire life, and it can’t unless you let it. This hour is a brand new hour with no faults in it yet. Think about your mistakes and learn from them, but don’t attempt to carry their weight around with you. It's ALWAYS a heavy load to carry. The road to success is littered with mistakes. Avoiding them is impossible. The thing that will ultimately define your success or failure will not be how many mistakes you make, but how you handle them. The bottom line is that all mistakes die quickly, but you can’t live beyond what you know today if you aren’t willing to make mistakes and forgive yourself for them. Read The Untethered Soul
6. Persistence and patience.
Before you give up, think about how unfortunate it would be if the results you have worked to achieve required just a tiny dose of additional effort. How disheartening would it be if the train you’ve been waiting for arrived five minutes after you walked out of the station? Not only does success require diligent effort, it requires persistence and patience. Rest when you are tired, but don’t quit. You never know what’s just around the corner. It could be everything you’ve been working for, or it might be just another mile marker on your journey.
7. True love.
There is no soul mate out there who will solve all your problems. There is no love at first sight that lasts without work and commitment. But there is someone out there worth fighting for. Not because they’re perfect, but because they’re imperfect in all the ways that are right for you. You compliment each other’s flaws in a way that allows your two spirits to unite and operate more efficiently as one. You will know when you meet this person, when through them you meet the very best in yourself.
8. Goodwill.
There is no greatness or peace of mind where there is betrayal of your own goodwill. Always aim at complete sincerity of your thoughts, words and deeds. If it is wrong, don’t do it. If it is untrue, don’t repeat it. Do what you do because you believe it’s the right thing to do. Do the right thing even when nobody is looking. Be one of the people who make a true difference in the world by leaving it a little better and more wholesome than you found it.
New Pricing and Package Pricing!
As of April 1st, we have changed some of our pricing and options for purchasing classes. We have done this to add more value to you, or amazing practitioners! Please let us know if you have any questions at all!
Session Passes: We are no longer offering a 5 or 50 class pass The 10 Pass will stay the same at $140 NEW - 25 Session Pass for $275
Unlimited Passes: We have eliminated the 1 and 3 month memberships. The auto-renew will now be $79/month no commitment required (a credit card will still be needed on file to purchase this account, and we will charge a cancellation fee of $25 when/if you decide to cancel.) For those of you who prefer to pay up front, we will be offering a 1 year up-front payment of $805 (15% off the monthly price). You can also add the plus package for $255 (also 15% off).
Plus Package (Mat & Towel Service): $25 add on to any package or per month with the auto-renew
Again, please let us know if you do have any questions! Looking forward to seeing you in the studio and on the mat!
7 Reasons You're Not as Successful as You Could Be.
An excerpt from www.marcandangel.com. It's worth the read!
The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack in will. –Vince Lombardi
Feeling down about your forward progress lately? Do you feel like you’re running in place? Need some motivation and tough love to help you reinvigorate your success rate? Well, here you go – seven reasons you’re not the great success story you could be:
1. You do a lot of thinking without acting. Too often we think without acting. We do nothing with our ideas. Everyone who has ever taken a long, hot shower has had many great ideas. I’m sure you can relate. But you will only make a difference in this world if you get out of the shower, dry off and do something with them. The only way to conquer your dreams and doubts is with action. Wondering about them will not get anything done. Avoiding challenges will only make them grow bigger. If you wait until all conditions are perfect, you will spend the rest of your life waiting.
Great achievements are made by starting from exactly where you are right now with exactly what you have right now. Stop wondering and start doing. Once you’ve made a little progress you’ll always know, without a doubt, that you can make even more progress if you try. Read 1,000 Little Things.
2. Your creative mind is completely unfocused. Constraints nurture productive side of the creative mind. At first it might seem as though complete freedom makes all creative ventures more attainable, but this isn’t the truth. Complete freedom makes the possibilities endless, but keeps your efforts scattered and unfocused. Often, self-imposed constraints, or boundaries, force you to think differently about challenges, leading to more practical ideas and innovations. Instead of thinking ‘outside the box’ and looking in every possible direction, get inside onebox – a specific problem that needs a resolution, a smaller space where big changes can be made, etc. – and focus your creative attention on making a difference. Over time, as you test these boundaries by pushing against them, you figure out which ones can be broken and expanded, and which ones need to remain fixed in place.
3. You are focusing too much on fears and defeats. Your problems are really your blessings if you use them to grow stronger. Never quit just because you feel temporarily defeated. You have not been beaten – this is not a competition. Keep working to be the best you can be. It doesn’t matter how slow you go so long as you don’t give up on yourself.
In the long run, it usually isn’t what you have or where you are or what you’ve been through that makes or breaks you; it’s how you think about it all and what you do next. Focus your conscious mind on things you desire, not your fears and defeats. Doing so brings dreams to life. Read Awaken the Giant Within
4. Your expectations are crushing you. Drop the needless expectations. Appreciate what is. It doesn’t matter if your glass is half empty or half full. Just be thankful that you have a glass and that there’s something in it. Choosing to be positive and having an appreciative attitude influences everything you do. The magnitude of your happiness and success will be directly proportional to the magnitude of your thoughts and how you choose to think about things.
Nothing ever works out exactly the way you want it to. Hope for the best, but expect less. Appreciate reality, don’t fight it. Don’t let what you expected to happen blind you from all the goodness happening around. Even if it doesn’t work out at all, it’s still worth it if it made you feel something new, and if it taught you something new.
5. You have become distracted from your core goals. People might tell you it’s impossible, but it’s not. Though the challenges may be great, you can make things happen. The odds may not seem to be in your favor right now, but you can change the odds. When something difficult you want to achieve connects deeply with your purpose, it becomes possible. When you are driven and committed and persistent, you will get yourself there step by step.
So look within yourself and unearth the values and goals that you most earnestly feel a deep connection with. In the end, it’s the things that are genuinely important to you that will power your greatest achievements. Read The 52-Week Life Passion Project
6. You are playing it too safe. Pain is a pesky part of being human but it’s vitally important. It strengthens the mind, heart and body. You can’t grow strong, brave, or successful in this world if you’ve only had good things happen to you within the safe boundaries of your own little comfort bubble. You need real life experiences, and nothing ever becomes real until you experience it firsthand. No matter how long you train yourself to be strong, brave, or proficient at something, you never know if you are or not until something real happens to you. So get real, experience life and let it teach you what you need to know to conquer your wildest dreams.
7. You have been resisting forgiveness. Alexander Pope once said, “To err is human, to forgive, divine.” Nothing could be closer to the truth. Your willingness to forgive yourself and others is the greatest sign of your emotional and spiritual maturity. It’s a process of acceptance and understanding that allows you to let go of a situation that’s over so you can move on with your life. The key is to be thankful for every experience – positive or negative. It’s taking a step back and saying, “Thank you for the lesson.”
Take a moment and imagine if every person (including yourself) who owed you an apology apologized today, and imagine if you accepted these apologies. What a weight lifted. Now imagine if everyone, everywhere did this. How many problems in the world would evaporate?
Namaste.
Salt Spring Island 2013
Salt Spring Island Retreat 2013
The video and images below were all captured by an amazing attendee of our latest retreat to Salt Spring Island, Sarah Taylor. If this doesn't make you want to come on one of our amazing retreats, we don't know what will! To everyone who came out and made our retreat so special and fun, we send a huge thank-you. To our fabulous hosts, the always lovely Melissa Perret, and the super fun Michelle Chung, who helped organize fun events and outings, while keeping every day fresh with some Yoga we send so much gratitude for taking our students on an amazing retreat.
"Adventure is worthwhile in itself"
- Amelia Earhart
Salt Spring Island was a great getaway from the snow in Edmonton. We enjoyed the best lacto-vegeterian food and explored the farmer's market in Ganges, where I happened to stumble upon plum thai chilli vinegar. The greatest part about the trip was getting to know everyone- sharing many laughs, stories, as well as space for asana practice.
-Vlady Peychoff
Smooth Moves with Cole Williston
Join us Saturday, April 27th from 2:30-5:30 for a Vinyasa/Acro Yoga Experience!
Learn to move smoothly through postures and challenges with guided breath. Within this workshop, you
will develop integral strength for each individual and we will expand your individual practice into
a shared group practice.
Cole Williston has been instructing for seven years, and is home to Edmonton. His training is in Chakra
Yoga and his style of guidance reflects aspects of Iyengar, Hatha, Vinyasa, and Pranayama. Cole is
passionate about building community and creating evolutionary group experiences. He organizes yoga
adventures through his company PLANit Adventure.
To learn more about Cole, you can check out his blog.
Or you can look at his full bio here.
The Yoga Code - With Jackie Dumaine
What is The Yoga Code™? An incredible and thorough description is below.
Yoga is so much more than looking good in a pair of black stretchy pants!
The 10 Sacred Principles of The Yoga Code™ are based on the ancient wisdom found in The Yoga Sutras an ancient yogic text written approximately 2000 years ago by the Indian sage Patanjali. They have absolutely nothing to do with the physical postures.
REPEAT: They have absolutely nothing to do with the physical postures.
In our body-obsessed Western world, we seem to simply focus on the postures, neglecting the true transformative powers of the yoga tradition. The 10 Sacred Principles are known as The Yamas & Niyamas in yoga philosophy and serve as the absolute foundation for the practice of living a yogic lifestyle.
Pantajali believed that before you even step foot on a yoga mat, these principles should by studied, practiced and applied into your daily life. Each principle is not independent of one another but rather weave together to form a beautiful tapestry.
“Even as education in the primary school level is important, since it paves the way for one’s further mental build, the Yamas and Niyamas are the rock-bottom of Yoga.
The tonic of Yamas & Niyamas will provide the power and courage needed to face all obstacles. The Yama-Niyama process constitutes the instructions in yoga psychology, which should give us sufficient warning on the path and make us vigilant pilgrims on the spiritual journey. ~ Sri Swami Krishnananda. What are the 10 Sacred Principles? Here is a brief overview for you in both traditional Sanskrit language and translated into the Western meaning.
1. Ahimsa
Kindness and Compassion
Non-Harming towards all living things. In thoughts, in actions, in words. This must first begin with ourselves in the form of self-love. Practice loving kindess towards yourself first and the energy of those around you becomes more gentle and kind.
2. Satya
Truthfulness
Living in integrity. Speaking your truth and living an authentic life without trying to be something or someone that isn't in alignment with your values. Not lying to yourself or others. Acknowledging that truth is not rigid, it flows and changes just as you do.
3. Asteya
Non-Stealing
Taking only what is yours. In a world addicted to consuming, we often take more than what we require which takes away from others who lack basic needs. It also can lead to a negative effect on our environment. Not stealing opportunities from yourself or others by not living up to your full potential.
4. Brahmacharya
Non-Excess or Moderation
Embracing life’s pleasures without reckless abandon. Seeing the Divine in everything. It allows you to indulge in the pleasures of life but having the awareness to know when you've had "enough". By seeing the Divine in everything we can appreciate what we have and will experience unlimited abundance.
5. Aparigraha
Non-attachment, Non-Greed
Letting go of the need to control thoughts, people, situations and outcomes. When you let go of things/people/circumstances that hold you down, you create space for lightness and unlimited opportunity. In this non-attachment, you are also asked to not define yourself by your possessions. If you attach your identity to your "stuff" who will you be if your "stuff" goes away?
6. Saucha
Purity and Simplicity
In all things: Body, Mind, Spirit & Surroundings. Simplify the way you nourish your body, the way you consume information, the roles and responsibilities you take on, the way you live your life. Declutter your home and create a sacred space. Become friends with silence and stillness to purify the mind and spirit.
7. Santosha
Contentment
Find true joy and happiness with where you are regardless of the external circumstance or challenge. Become fully accountable (and thus empowered) for where you are in your life. Practice gratitude for what you have and embrace each moment exactly the way it is. Stop wishing things were different than what they are.
8. Tapas
Burning Commitment, Self-Discipline
The determination to go on when faced with obstacles and challenges and welcoming the struggles that lead to growth and expansion. Understand that the mind likes to give up before our spirit does. Follow through with responsibilities and keep the commitments and agreements you've made to yourself and to others.
9. Svadhyaya
Self-Study
Observe your actions, your ego and continuously seek out opportunities to learn about your Self. Live in a state of awareness to notice and question all of your decisions and behaviours (both positive and negative). Read spiritual texts to continuously learn and grow while you develop the skill of self-inquiry and self-reflection.
10. Ishvara Pranidhana
Surrender
Acknowledge that there is a Divine force at work and have faith that it will lead you on the right path. Learn to live in the “Flow” of life rather than fight against the current. Surrender isn't about giving up or quitting, it's about the powerful freedom that comes with knowing we are all part of a bigger plan.
To learn more about The Yoga Code™ you can visit Jackie's page here
Compulsive Exercise and Eating Disorders
Very loosely adapted and modified from Barbara Mader:
Controversial topic alert. But a topic that needs to be addressed. PLEASE take the time to read. This may help you, or a loved one. Trust me. This is a topic that is near and dear to my heart. A topic I have seen first hand in many people and areas of my life. Compulsive exercise. Negative body image. Trying to find "the secret." Unhappiness with an unattainable body type.
Did you know that only 2-5% of the world's population has the GENETICS to look like some people do on magazine covers? I realize and understand that many people KNOW or are aware of some of these things, but as we move into summer season (bathing suits, short shorts, etc.) I feel a responsibility to address this potentially sensitive, but very real topic. Within the yoga environment, and any other one for that matter, it is easy to get caught up in thoughts of "weight loss" or body image/body dysmorphia. It's easy to be disappointed with the perceived lack of your progress when it comes to your goals.
In my opinion, the most important goal when it comes to exercise should be how you feel.
How you feel is most important. Inside and out. How you feel, not how you look. Easier said than done. I understand and appreciate that. What I also know is people are beautiful. You are beautiful. There is beauty everywhere, and a number on the scale does not define you or your beauty. Please, please remember this always. Please. You are you and you are beautiful. Please take care of yourself.
"If you can't see anything beautiful about yourself, I strongly urge you to get a better mirror."
Compulsive Exercise and Exercise Anorexia:
Professionals specializing in the treatment of men, women and children with eating disorders re observing a growing trend among their patients, who are increasingly engaging in compulsive exercise Exercise anorexia is recently accounting for 40% of all eating disorders (excessive exercise, with very little to no eating). “Compulsive exercise is obligatory in nature, and it doesn’t have to be a certain type of exercise or be performed for a minimum duration,” explains Jennifer Lombardi, MFT, executive director of Summit Eating Disorders and Outreach Program, a partner program of Eating Recovery Center.
When evaluating if exercise is compulsive in nature, it’s important to look at the intention behind the movement, if there is a sense of urgency or agitation when individuals can’t engage in the exercise behavior, there is likely an issue (please note that this is not the same as feeling like you need yoga. Sometimes you just need to make it to Yogalife and breathe and move and be amongst our community. Just evaluate if it is a compulsion). It’s also important to consider exercise in the larger context of an individual’s eating and body image history; exercise is one of those behaviors that means something different to people struggling with eating disorders due to their temperament and brain chemistry.
Some eating disordered individuals abuse exercise as a compensatory behavior following a bingeing session or to give themselves “permission” to eat.
This can include rewarding yourself with food for exercise, or the "all or nothing view" where even if you "cheat" on one meal, you feel as though the entire day or week is ruined. Others may begin to engage in excessive exercise as what they believe to be a “healthy” part of eating disorders recovery. What these individuals do not realize, is that the frequency and volume of their exercise has taken the place of other eating disordered behaviors as an anxiety management tool and poses significant health complications, including joint injuries, stress fractures, muscle tears, tendonitis, fatigue and dehydration.
Eating Recovery Center encourages families, friends and healthcare professionals to be mindful of five common warning signs of compulsive exercise behaviors, including:
1. Exercising excessively “just because” as opposed to intentional exercise in preparation for a competition or to simply feel good. 2. Refusing to miss a workout, regardless of weather or injury. 3. Exercising takes precedence over all other activities, including work, school and spending time with friends and family. 4. Experiencing a heightened level of anxiety if unable to engage in exercise. 5. Displaying an elevated rigidity and perfectionism with regard to exercise behaviors.
I love practicing yoga and engaging in activity just as much as anyone else. I understand your love for Yogalife, for the practice, art, and expression of your yoga asana. But what I do ask of you, is to evaluate your relationship with yoga and yourself. Numbers on the scale, inches lost, etc. can be just a bonus of activity. When you reach that point and realization, you are able to engage in physical activity because you want to, not because you feel you have to. Join us at Yogalife because you love you and love how yoga makes you feel.
If you are interested in being led in a heart opening and freeing practice, where we release and let go of some of these thoughts and feelings around compulsive exercise, please email info@yogalifestudios.ca or directly to me at brandon@yogalifestudios.ca.
If you are interested in working through some emotions in a completely safe, nonjudgmental space, please let us know, and I will find time to run a workshop to explore, emote, let go, and transform. Thank you for taking the time to read. I understand this is a sensitive topic, but I am trying to create awareness and to offer help. I truly hope this has opened your heart and mind to realize you are not alone. Namaste.
- Brandon R. Jacobs
Massage Therapy FAQ's!
Adapted and written by Brandon Jacobs
“Will the treatment be painful?”
The best answer is that with a good therapist, any discomfort during treatment will be at a level tolerated by the client. We communicate continuously with our clients to ensure they are able to stay relaxed. My philosophy is that when I am giving a therapeutic treatment, the depth of pressure should be challenging, but not acutely painful. This is very important so that post treatment soreness can be kept to a minimum, and progress toward recovery is as smooth as possible.
“How do I find a therapist who can use a lot of pressure?”
This is a frequent concern for clients with a high pain tolerance and chronic pain. It can be difficult to find a massage therapist who is trained well enough to use deep pressure with confidence. Firstly, it's important to ask for what you want when you book your appointment so you can be placed with an appropriate practitioner. Most clinics (ie. Pure Wellness Studio, where I work as a RMT) have therapists who prefer working lighter, and we have therapists who prefer working with deep tissue techniques. Secondly, go with a referral from friends and colleagues! Most of my clientele is referred to me by a friend who is an existing client (many practitioners and staff at Yogalife frequent our clinic)
“How often should I get a massage therapy treatment?”
When a client comes for their first massage, we set them up with a treatment plan that makes sense for their condition. Changing the condition of the muscles and fascia is a process that usually takes a few treatments close together. My typical client will come for a treatment every week or two for three or four treatments. We can make steady progress with frequent visits, and as soon as it makes sense, spread the treatments apart, usually to 3-4 week increments. Most often, my goal is to reduce the tension in the body so the muscles are able to work properly, efficiently, and independently. At this point, our training staff is able to take over the main role and teach clients how to strengthen and balance their bodies. Given the knowledge to keep their bodies strong, our clients need fewer massage therapy treatments to maintain quality of life and performance.
Join Brandon and Lindsey for a Massage & Yoga combination workshop Saturday, April 20th from 1-4pm to learn more about proper treatment and body work along with mindful alignment in your asana practice!
To read more on Brandon, click here.
To read more on Lindsey, click here.
Pain in the Asana - The Most Common Yoga Injuries and How to Avoid Them
An excerpt from Laura Newcomer
While most yoga injuries aren’t severe and go unreported, more serious issues do occur, including strains and sprains, fractures, dislocations, and, in rare cases, bone spurs, sciatic nerve damage, and stroke. But according to yoga experts, injuries can happen any time, in any sport, or even walking down the sidewalk — and scary injuries are rare.
Most yoga injuries develop gradually over years of consistent over-stretching and misalignment.
As with any physical activity, the safest approach to yoga is to learn how to practice the poses correctly and stay in tune with your body to avoid overdoing it.The lowdown on the most common yoga injuries and some specific tips for addressing them:
Wrists: When it comes to the wrists, it’s all about leverage. Placing all of the body’s weight in the wrists when the hands are on the mat can lead to muscle and joint injuries.
Find relief: When in doubt, spread ‘em. In any pose where weight is placed on the hands (such as downward facing dog), distribute the body’s weight through both hands by spreading them wide and pressing through the fingers. In down dog, push the hips back to decrease the angle of the wrists to the floor. In arm balances, such as crow pose, look to see that the elbows are stacked directly over the wrists, Cheng says.
Elbows: Joint pain in the elbows can result from bending them out to the sides in poses like chaturanga. While it may be easier to execute, lowering down with outward-pointing elbows can stress the joint and can also put undue stresses on the wrists.
Tuck and lower: When bending the elbows in a pose (particularly plank or chaturanga), keep the elbows tucked alongside the ribs as you bend them, and make sure the elbows’ creases face forward, Cheng says. If this is difficult (yes, it’s a serious test of triceps strength!), begin with the knees on the floor. Remember, you can always work up to the unmodified version through regular practice.
Shoulders: Beware the shrug. By raising the shoulders up toward the ears (like when moving into upward facing dog), yogis stop using the supporting muscles in the arms, shoulders, and neck. Shrugging also compresses the shoulders, which can cause muscle injuries, Cheng says. Even worse: It’s easy to injure the shoulder girdle or rotator cuff (and even dislocate the joint) by over-extending or over-stretching.
Let go: Be careful not to pull too hard on the shoulders in stretches, and always keep the shoulders held back and down away from the ears.
Ribs: Twists are awesome for releasing tension, but if done improperly they can overextend or bruise the intercostal muscles (the muscles in between the ribs).
Twist, don’t shout: Lengthen upwards through the spine before twisting. Imagine that someone has a string attached to the crown of your head and is very gently pulling you up toward the ceiling. Twist to the point of feeling a stretch but not past it, even if you’re flexible, Cheng says.
Lower back: Lower back pain is the most frequently cited yoga injury, and teachers speculate that it’s likely the result of rounding through the spine in poses like forward folds and down dog. Rounding causes the spine to flex the opposite way that it’s supposed to, Livingston says, which can cause disc problems in addition to that achy feeling post-class.
Soothe the spine: Before bending, imagine lengthening the spine up and away from the hips to avoid rounding. Still struggling to stay on the straight and narrow? Try bending the knees in poses like forward folds and down dog, Livingston says, since the culprit could be tight hamstrings. During seated forward folds, try sitting on a blanket or block to take pressure off the lower back.
Hamstrings: Spend most days sitting in front of the computer, in class, or in the car? Guilty as charged. As a result, many of us have tight hamstrings, so it’s easy to pull or over-stretch them in poses like forward bends, Cheng says.
Hamper pain: Down dog and lunges are great ways to stretch the hamstrings (just remember to go slowly and work at your own pace). If you have any kind of hamstring injury, try laying off poses that extend through the back of the body and legs until the injury heals.
Hips: It’s easy to over-extend the hips’ range of motion in splits, warrior poses and wide-legged forward folds, Cheng says, which might tear the muscles of the inner groin or inner thighs.
Get hip (to proper form): A good rule of thumb is to make sure that the toes are pointed forward in any pose where the hips are squared off in the same direction (think: Warrior I). Imagine there are headlights attached to the front of the hips and that you’re trying to keep the area straight ahead of you illuminated at all times.
Knee: Knee issues can plague even experienced yogis well after class. A common culprit of pain is the cross-legged position, Livingston says. Flexibility carries from the hips first; if the hips are tight in the pose, the knees will be the first place to feel pain or tension.
Prevent the pain: For those regularly bothered by knee pain, avoid sitting in cross-legged position or full lotus for long periods unless the hips are already very flexible, Livingston says. Placing a block or rolled-up blanket under the knees in cross-legged positions can also help reduce strain. Any time the knee is bent in a standing pose (such as warriors I and II), look to see that there’s a vertical line from the bent knee to the heel, Cheng says — this ensures that the body is bearing weight properly.
Neck: Head and shoulder stands can be the worst culprits for neck pain and injury, says yoga teacher Julie Skaarup. Repeatedly and incorrectly placing pressure on the neck in poses such as shoulder stand and headstand can compress the neck and put pressure on the cervical vertebrae, resulting in joint issues and, in some cases, loss of neck flexion.
Prop it up: Have chronic neck or shoulder issues? It might be best to avoid full inversions all together, Cheng says (or attempt them only with close supervision and using props that elevate the neck away from the floor). For those who already practice the pose without props, make sure the shoulder blades are drawn down and back so they’re safely supporting the body. Most importantly, never jerk the head once you’re up in the pose, Skaarup says, because it can destabilize the body, possibly causing a fall. Any other questions? Feel free to ask any one of our incredible instructors!
Turning "Ouch!" into Om - Your Action Plan For a Safe Practice
Adapted from Laura Newcomer:
Proper alignment in poses is key, but it’s not the only factor in a safe yoga practice. To stay blissed out instead of stressed out over injury, follow the basic guidelines below.
Leave the ego outside.
It can be tempting to rush into more advanced poses (how tough can handstands be, right?), but pushing our bodies before they’re ready is a recipe for injury. Yoga is “about finding where you are,” Skaarup says, “not trying to push to a place where your body may never be able to go.”
Warm up.
It’s an important part of any physical activity, and yoga is no exception. Basic stretches (like neck and shoulder rolls and gentle twists) help prepare the body for more challenging poses later on in a sequence And remember to give the mind a chance to warm up to the practice: Take a few breaths to get centered at the beginning of class, or establish a pre-flow ritual (such as chanting some Oms) to get grounded. Any class at Yogalife will involve a warm up and breathing exercises.
Ease in.
No one would expect to run a marathon the first time they lace up their sneakers. Don’t expect to do a headstand or even get the heels to the floor in down dog the first time you hit the mat. Instead, opt for beginner-friendly classes that will develop the foundation for more advanced moves.
Communicate.
Get to know the teacher(s) and be sure to share any pre-existing issues that might require modifications in certain poses. If you don’t know how to modify or use props, ask. And if a pose just isn’t working, don’t be embarrassed to simply… not to it. Instead, focus on the poses that provide benefit and release.
Come out of postures slowly.
This is particularly important if you’ve been holding a certain pose for several minutes. A good rule of thumb is to work out of a pose as gradually as you moved into it.
Use props and modifications.
There’s no shame in not being ready to hold a pose completely on your own. If there’s tightness somewhere in the body, other parts of the body will have to accommodate it — which is why it’s so important not to push the body past what it’s able to do on a given day. Props and modifications allow the body to get a feel for a pose and gradually work up to its full variation without injury.
Never lock your joints.
Hyper-extension (locking) is a sure-fire way to wear out joints and cause injury down the road. Focus on engaging the muscles around the joints to gain stability.
If you do get injured, take care.
If you tweak, pull, or tear something during a yoga flow, don’t be afraid to step out of class early. Care for it like any other sports injury, and seek a professional’s opinion if the pain persists.
Stay for savasana.
It’s easy to head for the door as soon as the instructor calls for savasana (the final resting pose of a yoga flow), but sticking around is good for your health. Savasana allows the body’s nervous system to slow down and brings closure to the practice. Even just two or three minutes can have an effect, Cheng says.
Above all: listen to your body.
At all stages of yoga practice, stay mindful. Really listen to your body so you can be sensitive to any tightness or strain. Just because you did a particular pose one day, doesn’t mean your body will be able to do it the next. “In our yoga practice we are building a relationship with our bodies the same way we build them with other people: by listening."
Most importantly - listen to your body and respect yourself and where you're at in each given day. Your body changes every day, as does your yoga practice, so be mindful to treat your body with respect and grace.
The Art of Napping
Many people have an incredibly busy lifestyle and barely have time for themselves. Here at Yogalife we are just as guilty! Here is a fun and insightful article about taking a break and learning the art of napping. Also remember that napping is much different than savasana, which is conscious relaxation. Enjoy! A leading expert on why a short bout of strategically-planned shut-eye just makes life better — and how to make it happen.- Lashaun Dale, MA, MPH, NSCA, CHEK
Researcher and meditation guide Kelly Howell, known in her field as "The Brain Whisperer," has spent over 30 years studying things like mind expansion technology and brain wave frequencies with neuroscience heavyweights. But Howell's specialty is in meditation and sleep, making her the perfect expert to discuss the long lost art of napping. National creative manager of group fitness Lashaun Dale sat down with the guru to learn why we should all close our eyes for 20 minutes each day and how to make it happen:
We need to stop thinking of napping as a luxury and recognize it as a biological necessity.
LD: What are the main benefits of napping? KH: Taking an afternoon nap is like pressing the reset button in your brain. In our information overloaded world, we need to power down and reboot consciousness daily. After a nap you’ll experience greater clarity of thought, a more peaceful state of mind, increased resilience, better memory and more creativity.
LD: How long should a nap be? KH: 20 minutes is plenty of time to thoroughly refresh your brain. The short nap is power-packed because you enter stage 2 of the sleep cycle, or Non Rapid Eye Movement (NREM), which is when sleep spindles appear. Sleep spindles are short synchronized bursts of electrical activity that last about one second and can occur 1,000 times per night during NREM sleep. Research shows that people who have more of these spindles, especially people who have more over a frontal area of the brain called the prefrontal cortex, showed the most refreshment in learning capacity after their nap.
LD: The best time for nap? KH: Best time for a nap is between 1:00 and 3:00. Ideally 7 or 8 hours after you wake up in the morning. Taking too long of a nap, or napping too late in the day interferes with your nighttime sleep.
LD: How often should you nap? KH: Every day! Sleep is high quality nutrition for your brain. We need to stop thinking of napping as a luxury and recognize it as a biological necessity.
LD: Powerful. Know of any famous nappers? KH: JFK, Salvador Dali, Leonardo da Vinci, Winston Churchill and Thomas Edison. Many professional athletes nap to improve motor skills, hand eye coordination and reaction speed.
LD: How about the physical benefits? KH: Lack of sleep, literally causes us to crave high fat, high sugar body fuel. A University of Chicago study showed that subjects who were restricted to 6 hours of sleep per night for four nights increased insulin in the bloodstream that mimicked a pre-diabetic state. Insufficient sleep de-regulates the body’s ability to produce hormones that regulate hunger and breakdown carbohydrates.
LD: Any advice to help start a napping habit? KH: If you have trouble quieting down your mind, focus on visual imagery. When the mind stops thinking in words, you drop down to the Alpha and Theta levels of brain waves—just one step away from sleep.
LD: Interesting. Can you explain how brain waves play a role in napping? KH: Brain waves represent the kind of electrical activity that is going on in your brain. We have many frequencies going on simultaneously, but the dominant frequency tells us what state of mind you are in. Gamma waves are the fastest and signify the highest state of focus possible. In Beta you are wide-awake primed to do work that requires your full attention. The Alpha state is a pleasurable and relaxed state of consciousness essential to stress reduction and high levels of creativity. Theta is known as the twilight state, which you normally only experience upon waking, or drifting off to sleep. In the Delta state, you are sound asleep. Delta waves are the slowest of all five-brainwave frequencies.
LD: And that’s why your Brain Sync Power Nap program works so well? KH: Exactly. We all have our own unique signature brainwave activity. It has a distinct rhythm and pattern that has developed over time and through habit. Brain Sync programs help listeners develop new patterns. They're downloadable MP3 files that blend meditation techniques with beat frequencies and music to block out external noise, slow down brain activity and wake you up with beta waves so you feel refreshed and alert instead of groggy when your nap is over.
Now you know more about the extreme power of napping!
Much the same way that napping can help to reset our body and mind, the use of yoga, meditation and acupuncture, can be paramount in rebalancing our internal energies. Join Lindsey and Brandy Buchanan at Yogalife Studios Edmonton North for their upcoming Yin Yang Rebalance workshop that combines yoga and acupuncture into one amazing workshop. For more details click here
Breathing the Exquisite Breath
Brittany
Please join us for an amazing breath journey on Saturday, March 30th from 2:30-4:30.
To learn even more about Brittany, you can click here
Thoughts About Change
“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude”
-Maya Angelou
When people bring up the word “change” in conversation, there are mixed reactions that can either skew a conversation to a dead halt or can enlighten the conversation to an optimal revival. By setting the repeat button on your life to anticipate the same routine, your mind disconnects from your body, thereby depriving yourself to experience the raw moment.
“If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try”
-Seth Godin
Fear and judgement are two of the many demons that can hinder an individual to explore the endless possibilities that can be found in change. Now that the challenge is at its end, it is quite easy to fall into habitual routines. Here are a couple suggestions some of you yogis might want to test out:
Try placing your mat at a different spot in class
Trust yourself to try that pose you’ve always wanted to do
Try a different instructor’s class
Although challenging, change can be a wonderful thing. Turn uncomfortable into comfortable.
Three noteworthy books that explore change:
- The Power of Habit - Charles Duhigg
- The Power of Now - Eckhart Tolle
- Uncertainty - Johnathan Fields
written by:
Vlady Peychoff
10 Things No One Can Steal From You
Yogalife is all about weirdness and uniqueness. We embrace it in each other and every one of you! So embrace it in yourself and celebrate it. It's one of your greatest gifts!
An excerpt from www.marcandangel.com. Of all the things that can be stolen from you – your possessions, your youth, your health, your words, your rights – what no one can ever take from you is…
1.Your uniqueness.
You are unrepeatable. There is a magic about you that is all your own. Having a low opinion of yourself is not humility, it’s self-destruction. Holding your uniqueness in high regard is not egotism, it’s a necessary precondition to happiness and success. You deserve to wear a smile in your heart. Not because of what you have or what you do, but because of who you are Yes, you are changing each day, but you are always amazing just as you are.
2. How you feel about yourself.
It takes a long time to learn how to NOT judge yourself through someone else’s eyes, but once you do the world is yours for the taking. We have all been placed on this earth to discover our own life, and we will never be happy or successful if we try to live someone else’s idea of it. So give up worrying too much about what others think of you. What they think isn’t all that important. What is important is how you feel about yourself. Read Emotional Freedom
3. Your intuition.
If you’re thinking just like everyone else, you aren’t really thinking. Follow your intuition. Do what makes sense to you. Never compare your journey to someone else’s. Everyone has their own struggles, their own challenges, and a different path that they chose to get to where they are. Remember, you don’t need to wait for external circumstances to perfectly align in order to show up for the life you’ve been dreaming of. What you’re looking for is already somewhere inside you.
4. Your passion.
If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is now. Find your passion, whatever it is. Become it, let it become you, and great things will happen FOR you, TO you, and BECAUSE of you. And even if things don’t work out as planned, you’ll still be heading in the right direction. Because nothing you have passion for is ever a waste of time, no matter how it turns out.
5. Your determination.
When life gives you something that makes you feel afraid, that’s when life gives you a chance to grow strong and be brave. Nothing is permanent in this crazy world, not even your mistakes, failures, or troubles. If you keep your eyes open and your feet moving forward, you’ll eventually find what you need.
6. Your attitude.
Something nobody can take away from you is the way you choose to respond to what others say and do to you. The last of your freedoms is to choose your attitude in any given circumstance. Choose to be happy and positive. It is not always easy to find happiness in ourselves, but it is always impossible to find it elsewhere. Regardless of the situation we face, our attitude is our choice. So smile as you walk away and move on from negative people and their actions.
7. Your ability to spread love and kindness.
The measure of your life will not be in what you accumulate, but in what you give away. And 99 percent of the time you get what you put in, so give freely. Charity can be in the form of a smile, lending an ear or a helping hand. There are many acts of kindness that don’t cost a cent. Remember, the ultimate goal of all goals is to be happy. If you want to be happy make those around you happy. Read The Happiness Project
8. Your hope.
It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it. The biggest obstacles that stand between a person and what they want in life is the will to try it, and the faith to believe it’s possible. Hope is the little voice inside your head that whispers “maybe” when it seems like the whole world is shouting “impossible!”
9. Your knowledge and life experiences.
Character and wisdom are sculpted over time. They come with loss, lessons, and triumphs. They come after doubts, second guesses, and unknowns. If there was a definitive path to success, everyone would be on it. The seeds of your success are planted in your past failures. Your best stories will come from overcoming your greatest struggles. Your praises will be birthed from your pains. So keep standing, keep learning, and keep living. Read The Road Less Traveled
10. Your choice to move on emotionally.
Don’t let past relationships and old mistakes ruin your future. Don’t let someone or something that didn’t make it in your life continue to hurt you. If you do, you’re still giving a portion of your life to something that no longer exists – it’s like letting your happiness slip into a black hole. Learn the lesson, release the pain, and move on. Scars remind us of where we have been, not where we are headed.
Ayurveda
Ayurveda is a Hindu system of traditional medicine native to India and a form of alternative medicine. It is found primarily as naturopathic and homeopathic medicine and is an ancient medical treatise on the art of healing and prolonging life.
In Sanskrit, ayur means life or living, and veda means knowledge, so Ayurveda has been defined as the "knowledge of living" or the "science of longevity."
Ayurvedic medicine utilizes diet, detoxification and purification techniques, herbal and mineral remedies, yoga, breathing exercises, meditation, and massage therapy as holistic healing methods. Ayurvedic medicine is known to be the oldest surviving healing system. According to the original texts, the goal of Ayurveda is prevention as well as promotion of the body's own capacity for maintenance and balance. Ayurvedic treatment is non-invasive and non-toxic, so it can be used safely as an alternative therapy or along-side conventional therapies. Ayurvedic physicians claim that their methods can also help stress-related, metabolic, and chronic conditions. Ayurveda has been used to treat acne, allergies, asthma, anxiety, arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome, colds, colitis, constipation, depression, diabetes, flu, heart disease, hypertension, immune problems, inflammation, insomnia, nervous disorders, obesity, skin problems, and ulcers.
Ayurvedic physicians seek to discover the roots of a disease before it gets so advanced that more radical treatments are necessary.
Thus, Ayurveda seems to be limited in treating severely advanced conditions, traumatic injuries, acute pain, and conditions and injuries requiring invasive surgery. Ayurvedic techniques have also been used alongside chemotherapy and surgery to assist patients in recovery and healing. So, to understand Ayurvedic treatment, it is necessary to have an idea how the Ayurvedic system views the body. The basic life force in the body is prana, which is also found in the elements and is similar to the Chinese notion of chi. In Ayurveda, there are five basic elements that contain prana: earth, water, fire, air, and ether. These elements interact and are further organized in the human body as three main categories or basic physiological principles in the body that govern all bodily functions known as the doshas.
The three doshas are vata, pitta, and kapha. Each person has a unique blend of the three doshas, known as the person's prakriti, which is why Ayurvedic treatment is always individualized.
In Ayurveda, disease is viewed as a state of imbalance in one or more of a person's doshas, and an Ayurvedic physician strives to adjust and balance them, using a variety of techniques. The vata dosha is associated with air and ether, and in the body promotes movement and lightness. Vata people are generally thin and light physically, dry-skinned, and very energetic and mentally restless. When vata is out of balance, there are often nervous problems, hyperactivity, sleeplessness, lower back pains, and headaches. Pitta is associated with fire and water. In the body, it is responsible for metabolism and digestion. Pitta characteristics are medium-built bodies, fair skin, strong digestion, and good mental concentration. Pitta imbalances show up as anger and aggression and stress-related conditions like gastritis, ulcers, liver problems, and hypertension. The kapha dosha is associated with water and earth. People characterized as kapha are generally large or heavy with more oily complexions. They tend to be slow, calm, and peaceful. Kapha disorders manifest emotionally as greed and possessiveness, and physically as obesity, fatigue, bronchitis, and sinus problems.
Treatment:
Ayurvedic treatment seeks to re-establish balance and harmony in the body's systems. Usually the first method of treatment involves some sort of detoxification and cleansing of the body, in the belief that accumulated toxins must be removed before any other methods of treatment will be effective. After purification, Ayurvedic physicians use herbal and mineral remedies to balance the body as well. Ayurvedic medicine contains a vast knowledge of the use of herbs for specific health problems. Ayurvedic medicine also emphasizes how people live their lives from day to day, believing that proper lifestyles and routines accentuate balance, rest, diet, and prevention.
Ayurveda recommends yoga to build strength and health, and also advises massage therapy and self-massage as ways of increasing circulation and reducing stress. Yogic breathing techniques and meditation are also part of a healthy Ayurvedic regimen, to reduce stress and improve mental energy.
Of all treatments, though, diet is one of the most basic and widely used therapy in the Ayurvedic system. An Ayurvedic diet can be a very well planned and individualized regimen. According to Ayurveda, there are six basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent. Certain tastes and foods can either calm or aggravate a particular dosha. For instance, sweet, sour, and salty decrease vata problems and increase kapha. Sour, salty, and pungent can increase pitta. After an Ayurvedic physician determines a person's dosha profile, they will recommend a specific diet to correct imbalances and increase health.
The Ayurvedic diet emphasizes primarily vegetarian foods of high quality and freshness, tailored to the season and time of day.
Cooling foods are eaten in the summer and heating ones in the winter, always within a person's dosha requirements. In daily routine, the heaviest meal of the day should be lunch, and dinner should eaten well before bedtime, to allow for complete digestion. Also, eating meals in a calm manner with proper chewing and state of mind is important, as is combining foods properly and avoiding overeating.
Whew! That is a lot of information, but now you know a great deal about Ayurveda, it's roots, treatments options, and how it applies to you and your life!
Yoga Journal Conference in SFO
I know it's March, definitely long overdue. But thought I'd share some photos with you guys from when Lindsey and I went to San Francisco (beautiful city!). We took a week off from Edmonton in January to do 5 days of yoga and learning at the Yoga Journal Conference.
We enjoyed some great coffee, lots of food and tons of yoga. Here are just a few photos of what we saw, did and ate!
The Yoga Journal Conference started for us on Thursday, first with the business of yoga. A full day of listening to some cool speakers talk about opening a yoga studio and the best practices.
I snagged this shot from the Yoga Journal Conference Photos. Photo Credit: Double Secret Media.
We took a seminar with Bo Forbes on the very last day (Monday) and learnt about the Lymphatic System.
Our biggest addiction while we were in San Francisco was Blue Bottle Coffee. One of the best cups of coffee ever for less than $3. WHAT???
This was one of their impressive contraptions to brew an 8 hour drip cold coffee. As strong as alcohol.
The city lights up at night. We were staying by the waterfront in the heart of downtown San Francisco. This city is gorgeous!
We ate really GOOD during our entire stay. This dish was from the Slanted Door. The food there is absolutely delicious! If you're ever in the Bay area, go check them out!
Best sea urchin appetizer at The Slanted Door! Unless you don't like sea urchin. Delicious! I love fresh food!
The Atrium in our hotel. It was massive and very grand.
We made a visit to Alcatraz. It made me want to watch all the Alcatraz movies that were ever made.
The 7 Chakras
The 7 Chakras are the energy centers in our body in which energy flows through.
The concept of chakra features in tantric and yogic traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Chakra are believed to be centers of the body from which a person can collect energy. They are connected to major organs or glands that govern other body parts. According to Tantric tradition, everyone has seven energy centers that serve as junction points between the body and consciousness, or between matter and the mind.
Blocked energy in our 7 Chakras can often lead to illness so it's important to understand what each Chakra represents and what we can do to keep this energy flowing freely.
The word chakra is derived from the Sanskrit word meaning wheel. If we were able to see the chakras (as many psychics, in fact, do) we would observe a wheel of energy continuously revolving or rotating. If the chakras are not balanced, or if the energies are blocked, the basic life force will be slowed down. The individual may feel listless, tired, out of sorts, or depressed. Not only will physical bodily functions be affected, so diseases may manifest, but the thought processes and the mind may also be affected. A negative attitude, fear, doubt, etc. may preoccupy the individual.
A constant balance between the chakras promotes health and a sense of well being.
If the chakras are opened too much, a person could literally short circuit themselves with too much universal energy going through the body. If the chakras are closed, this does not allow for the universal energy to flow through them properly which may also lead to dis-ease.
Here's our quick summary of the 7 Chakras:
1. Root Chakra (Muladhara) - Represents our foundation and feeling of being grounded (associated with Earth, red) Location: Base of spine in tailbone area. Emotional issues: Survival issues such as financial independence, money, and food.
2. Sacral Chakra (Svadhisthana) - Our connection and ability to accept others and new experiences (associated with Water, orange) Location: Lower abdomen, about 2 inches below the navel and 2 inches in. Emotional issues: Sense of abundance, well-being, pleasure, sexuality.
3. Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura) - Our ability to be confident and in-control of our lives (associated with Fire, yellow) Location: Upper abdomen in the stomach area. Emotional issues: Self-worth, self-confidence, self-esteem.
4. Heart Chakra (Anahata) - Our ability to love (associated with Air, green) Location: Center of chest just above heart. Emotional issues: Love, joy, inner peace.
5. Throat Chakra (Visuddha) - Our ability to communicate (associated with Sound, blue) Location: Throat. Emotional issues: Communication, self-expression of feelings, the truth.
6. Third Eye Chakra (Ajna) - Our ability to focus on and see the big picture (associated with Light, indigo) Location: Forehead between the eyes. (Also called the Brow Chakra) Emotional issues: Intuition, imagination, wisdom, ability to think and make decisions.
7. Crown Chakra (Sahasrara) - The highest Chakra represents our ability to be fully connected spiritually (associated with Thought, violet) Location: The very top of the head. Emotional issues: Inner and outer beauty, our connection to spirituality, pure bliss.
It is most definitely worth noting that the odd numbered chakras, 1, 3, 5 are "masculine" in natureand the even chakras 2, 4, 6 are "feminine" by nature. Their pulsation means we have a built in nature yin-yang system that is striving for balance. It also means that usually (but not always) women need to boost their odd chakras and men need to boost their even chakras.
National Day of Unplugging: March 1st-2nd
Adapted from Lois Niven:
This is a challenge. It may not be easy, but it's just one day. If it's not something you can actually do, perhaps it is something to contemplate?
When I was a kid, I read that Larry Hagman, the Dallas actor, did not speak on Sundays. He would write a short note or two to his wife if necessary, but he spent one day every week taking a break from the dialogue of his acting career, which involved a lot of talking – running lines, talk show appearances, etc. At first I thought this behavior rather odd, but over the years I’ve come to appreciate the late Mr. Hagman’s ability to recognize when he needed a timeout from what must have been a hectic, nonstop lifestyle.
Today, you don’t have to be a celebrity to get caught up in nonstop communication. Thanks to technology just about everyone is on the 24/7 treadmill, plugged into at least a few devices and applications: television, Facebook, Twitter, email, texting, smartphones, and video games.
What started as convenient ways to keep in touch wherever we are has mushroomed into a gorilla who’s taken over at the helm. Do any of the following sound familiar?
- You lose track of what you were going to say because you’re reading something on your computer while talking on the phone.
- You and your friends can’t make it through lunch without someone answering her cell phone.
- You’re more concerned with getting a signal to post a photo on Facebook than taking in the view at -- where are we again? Oh yeah, the Grand Canyon.
- You feel the constant need to tweet what you just ate, bought, said, thought.
- You just dropped off your kids at school and realized that you spent the whole drive talking to someone else on the phone.
- You check for work emails right until bedtime just in case they need you.
- The clock suddenly says 2:00 am, so maybe you’ll play just one more game of Grand Theft Auto IV.
I struggle with a few of these issues from time to time, like many others in the world. For me, it's all about knowledge, and I like to know stuff now.
We’ve taken so easily to being plugged in that we don’t even stop to wonder if it’s serving us or ruling us. What’s going on in the real world around us while we constantly look to connect with one of these devices?
Electronic dialogue allows us to speak more, often to the world rather than with the people who are physically present. We also listen less. Moments of quiet and solitude are sought less often, in favor of connecting. This creates an inward-outward imbalance as we increase our communication transactions and lose the ability to just be. Simply deleting the Facebook app from my iPhone (yes, you can) has helped me tremendously.
If the next sentence sounds impossible, it’s a sign that this is something you should consider doing. The National Day of Unplugging -- from sunset Friday, March 1st to sunset Saturday, March 2nd -- is an opportunity for you to turn off all electronic communication gadgets, and instead connect with the people in your neighborhood, play a board game with your child, take a walk in nature, read a book (printed on paper), share a cup of tea with a friend. Or. Just. Do. Nothing (gasp).
Does this make your chest tighten? If so, join the movement, sign the pledge, and hit the “off” switch.
The National Day of Unplugging can be eye-opening, and for many may signal the beginning of a shift back to being in the moment.
If you don’t think you can make it through 24 hours, try 12. Try one. Start where you are and take whatever step you can. Your real life is waiting. Hang up the phone. Let's strive to be truly PRESENT, if only for a full day.
Categories
- Wellness 241
- Zen Habits & Inspiration 100
- Injury Prevention & Health 30
- Classes 1
- Yogalife Classes 7
- Prop Specific 1
- Studio Information 17
- Foundation Friday 25
- Physical Health 3
- Yoga Specific 54
- Curated Playlists 2
- Karma Program 5
- Staff Adventures & Journeys 10
- Anatomy & Information 30
- Community Event 15
- YEG Highlight 8
- Instructor Stories 22
- Yogi of the Month 13
- What's Going On 35
- Yogalife Workshops, Retreats & Trainings 37
- Recipe 10
- Relaxation 1
- Mental Health 2
- Workshops 34
- Registered Classes 4
- Pregnancy & Family 1
- Member Stories 5