Digestion is the cornerstone of our overall health. It affects our energy levels, our ability to absorb nutrients, and our ability to tolerate food. We can look at taking care of our digestive system like we’re taking care of a car. If we don’t put the right fuel in and the engine isn’t running smoothly, a breakdown can happen.
Do you know what my favorite yoga poses are right now? I have two. First, supine heart opener. This entails lying on my back draped from tailbone to neck over a bolster. From here, I usually reach my legs long, feeling the gentle release in my lower back
The style of yoga I practice and teach is called Baptiste yoga, which is ultimately a practice of physical, mental and spiritual awakening that integrates the whole person, on every level. Learning about Baptiste yoga taught me that real health means wholeness on all levels of being and a deep true connection to what is most sacred: the truth within our heart.
When I first encountered the concept of aparigraha, I mistook it for apathy. Aparigraha is the 5th yama in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. The sutra reads: aparigrahasthairye janma kathanta sambodhah (when firmly grounded in non-grasping, the “how and why” of one’s birth is fully illuminated).
One of the beautiful things about a rich yoga practice is the community of yogis who share their favorite lessons, meditations, and quotes. A steady favorite at our studio is A Year of Living Your Yoga: Daily Practices to Shape your Life by Judith Hanson Lasater.
We all know that too much sugar is not a good thing for your overall health and wellbeing, but there’s still that craving for satisfying that sugar tooth, right? Want to make something sugar free for your special Valentine? Maybe that special someone is you!!
The first agreement from The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz is being impeccable with your word. It is the most important one and often the most difficult to honor. Words matter. They carry the energy of what you say.
Brahmacharya deals directly with sexual energy and external desires and invites you to elevate all of your relationships—especially the one with yourself—to the status of the divine. It literally means “moving with Brahma (another word for God).”
Durga is the goddess of courage and strength. We recognize Durga in strong winds, crashing waves, high surf, autumn, bonfires, and mountains. She’s the energetic quality of courage and inner transformation. We embody Durga’s warrior spirit when we choose to act in spite of fear. Show up and be seen with this empowering sequence. I call it Dancing Warrior Asana.
I used to be the quintessential F.O.M.O. (fear of missing out) girl, often going to events and doing things that I really didn’t want to because I didn’t want to be left out or I felt guilty declining. A lot of time was spent at sporting events and parties I would rather have not attended, or giving to organizations I didn’t want to support because I just didn’t know how to say no.
I’ve been playing Echoes of Devotion by Janet Stone & DJ Drez during my power vinyasa yoga classes for about a year now and I am still not tired of Janet Stone’s beautiful, strong, sultry voice. Her chanting instills a deep sense of empowerment and hope.
