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Samin Nosrat

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Erica Rodefer

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Jessica Berger Gross

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Kristin Shepherd

It doesn’t really matter where you practice, as long as you do. Right? Right. But having practiced yoga everywhere from a church basement to a plush studio to a mountaintop on the outskirts of Katmandu, there’s something to be said for creating a welcoming atmosphere for spiritual practice. The same goes for creating a nurturing and inspiring place for our children to hang out and play and sleep. When Neil and I had Lucien, we were temporarily living in a sublet in Brooklyn. Arranging Lucien’s “nursery” involved setting up a co-sleeper next to our bed. (He ended up sleeping in our bed those first six months, nestled between a yoga bolster on one side and mommy on the other.) Next, we moved to Vancouver and rented a furnished one-bedroom apartment. Neil set up Lucien’s crib in the walk-in closet of our bedroom, and I put some decals on the wall – an airplane, a pink moose. While I loved exploring new places (we were in New York for Neil’s academic leave from Harvard, and moved to Vancouver for his new job at the University of British Columbia), I couldn’t wait to settle down and make a proper nursery for Lucien. The truth was I was completely envious when I walked into my friends’ baby rooms in Boston and Los Angeles. Poor Lucien in his closet!  Of course, he didn’t care or know the difference. At that age he just wanted to be close to his mama and dada.   When Lucien was almost one, on Halloween, we moved into our house – a fixer upper that came filled with character, potential, and a never ending to do list. My first priority was Lucien’s room. We painted the walls with a non-toxic pale green and yellow paint, bought an  IKEA rocking chair   for his nursing corner, and got him some rolling see-through containers for his toys and books.  Since then, I’ve added and subtracted to the room. At  Collage Collage , where I take Lucien for art class, we picked up posters from local artists. Now that Lucien has weaned, the rocking chair is in the living room, and on our summer vacation on Vancouver Island I came across a super cheap stash of vintage children’s chairs, a handmade wooden table, and some old school books and toys that are now my favorite things in his room. Just as I feel at home and at peace in my upstairs yoga corner, Lucien seems content to hang out in his room for hours- playing, singing, reading books, and just generally chilling in his pajamas. Where in your house or apartment do you – and your children – feel most comfortable, most creative, and most inspired?  Jessica Berger Gross is the author of  enLIGHTened:   How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse),  she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Making Room

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One of you wrote a kind note to me recently in which you encouraged me to discover my “inner teacher” during my home practice. This might involve veering off the straight path I’d been on. What a beautiful idea! Originally, my home practice was basically whatever I remembered from class, in much the same order we do our asanas in class. Not much imagination involved. All hell has broken loose, since. This morning I thought, I’ve got to reign this in a bit or I’ll never be able to go back to class. Today’s practice looked like this: I’m in flannel pajamas, which are far more comfortable than my yoga clothes. I sing show tunes during my Sun Salutations. My secret desire (not so secret now, I guess) is to star in Big! Musicals! I picture some Famous! Broadway! Producer! driving down my very quiet street in Northern Ontario and hearing my voice Soaring! out the front windows, singing, Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better, from Annie Get Your Gun. It’s a tough fantasy to maintain given that I am terrified to sing in front of anyone but my dog. I maintain it nonetheless.   I put henna in my hair today for the first time. It’s mucky, it stinks, and the instructions say keep it on for hours, so I do my entire practice with a goopy head. Toward the end of today’s practice, which includes some completely invented dance moves (in case that Producer needs a Dancer!, not just a Fabulous! Singer!), I find myself saying, “Oh, yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah”, with each forward bend and each spinal twist.  How did my practice become so loud? Savasana, at the end of all this, is a quiet relief. Is this my inner teacher at work? I don’t know. I understand that there is no mention of show tunes in The Upanishads, but something in my practice feels freer and more creative these days. Lighter. Do you have inner teachers?  Are they serious? Funny? Creative? Are they dancers? Singers? (Do you want to do a musical together?)    Kristin Shepherd is a chiropractor, actor, speaker, and workshop wonderwoman in North Bay, Ontario.  Join her at kristinshepherd.ca or on Facebook at Dr. Kristin Shepherd.

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Inner Teachers

If you’ve been reading my blog regularly this summer, by now you know I’m more than a little obsessed with taking my son Lucien swimming. Being in the pool with him is a joy. The cool water, the feel of his body intertwined with mine – it’s delicious. For months I’ve been looking forward to the opening of a new neighborhood pool here in Vancouver, part of the deal the city made with its citizens for hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics.   Vancouver already has some amazing city pools, and this new one promised to be the largest and best yet, and just a fifteen minute walk from my house. (Not to mention affordable, as it’s part of the city parks and community center system.)  I crossed my fingers that Lucien would like it and not be overwhelmed by the sprays and jets and water cannons and lazy river, not to mention the 70-person hot tub. To my surprise and delight, Lucien loves the new indoor pool paradise. So here we were in the pool, having a mommy baby pool party. The first time we visited we spent a record breaking (for us) two hours in the water. On this, our second visit, it seemed like we’d be there all day – fine with me. I noticed though that even in moments of mommy-son bliss in the shallowest end of the hot tub (more like a hot tub river) I kept asking Lucien if he wanted to go see the next big thing in the pool – journey down the lazy river or back to the bubbles or waterfall area. But Lucien was perfectly happy just to be. To sit in the shallow end of the hot tub and look at the families playing, chat with me, sing his repertoire of songs, and be one with the warm water lapping over us. Looking at Lucien, I remembered what had drawn me to yoga asana and philosophy back when I was an ever-searching twenty-something. As Ram Dass famously wrote, “Be Here Now.” I didn’t need to explore the rest of the pool, or teach Lucien how to swim that morning, or even go into a deeper section of the hot tub. I just needed to follow my yogi-in-training’s lead and be here now in that hot tub. And so I did. And it was a time-stopping moment of peace and oneness and through-and through-contentment. Until I noticed them. Tiny brown pieces of toddler poop bubbling up from Lucien’s diaper and into the 70-person hot tub river. Yikes! I felt a wash of panic and then shame come over me, but tried my best to stay calm. I gathered Lucien, ran to a lifeguard, and rushed a howling don’t-want-to-ever-get-out-of-the-water-and-certainly-not-to-change-a-dirty-diaper toddler to the change room and shower. I felt horrible for the other patrons of the pool that day. It’s one thing to deal with your own child’s poop, but nobody wants to encounter other children’s poop while relaxing in a hot tub.  Oy. Needless to say, everyone in the hot tub was evacuated with a whistle as an entire section of the pool was closed off, drained, and cleaned. Once he was clean and dry, Lucien was un-phazed by the events of the day. He just figured he had a dirty diaper – not realizing the hot tub had become a HAZMAT scene. On our way home, I heard employees talking about the “emergency.” Triple yikes.   Enlightened Motherhood Lesson of the Day: Be here now and take each situation in stride. Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Be Here Now

We’ve been playing a game  all week. Maybe you’d like to play with us. If you were stranded on a deserted island-it’s a beautiful island, great weather, great food somehow, great books, just no other people-and you could only do one yoga pose for the entire month, what would it be? After much hand wringing and general hoopla, we’ve decided that Savasana is a freebie. You can do all the Savasana you want. And one other pose. Another thing. In this game, you’ll be completely healthy at the end of the month. Flexible, strong, peaceful, and beautiful. So the pose you pick is just about the happiness it’ll give you, not about, “oh, god, if I don’t do the shoulder openers, I’ll look like Hulk Hogan by Friday” (no offense to Hulk). Here’s what we’ve got so far: My sister picks Upward Dog, because it looks so beautiful. My lovely man says The Plow. He’s just gone back to it in class and it’s exciting to be able to do it for the first time in decades. My friend Paul chooses Triangle Pose. I think he’s crazy, but free choice is a part of the game. (He did ask if we were allowed to come out of the pose at all, or whether we have to hold the pose for an entire month. The answer, with rolling eyes, is yes, you can come out of the pose.) I will do Downward Dog. I love everything about it: the inversion, the use of my entire body, easily a month’s worth of interest. And if we play again next month, I’ll pick handstand, because it makes me feel like a goddess. And you? What pose? Why? Hoho! I can hardly wait to hear. Thanks to yoga for being so interesting, and so much fun, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin Shepherd is a chiropractor, actor, speaker, and workshop wonderwoman in North Bay, Ontario.  These games thrill her inordinately.  Join her on Facebook at Dr. Kristin Shepherd, on Twitter at kristinwonders, or at kristinshepherd.ca

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The Game

In the September issue, we published a letter written by the esteemed yoga teacher and Yoga Journal co-founder Judith Hanson Lasater, which expressed her disapproval of advertisements featuring naked women. It’s been a hot topic ever since, and it seems appropriate to offer a few thoughts. First, I greatly respect Judith and her concerns. Over the years, we’ve had conversations about the magazine, the business, the community. More than once, she has called me to share an opinion, in her trademark direct style, and we talked about her September letter before I published it. I appreciate her frankness. I interpreted Judith’s formal note about ads that she feels “exploit the sexuality of young women in order to sell products” to be a message both to the folks at Yoga Journal who make advertising decisions,  (I am responsible for editorial direction only, I have no authority over advertising)–and to the larger community, including the creators of the ads. Clearly Judith’s letter struck a chord, and I’ve read the opinions of many people who agree with her views. Others have written specifically in support of what they see as the artistic beauty of the ToeSox ads ,  in particular, which feature the talented yoga teacher and frequent Yoga Journal contributor Kathryn Budig demonstrating poses in the buff. The diversity of reader opinion isn’t surprising, given the diversity of the yoga community today and the highly subjective nature of the matter at hand. But somewhere in all the heated blog posts about whether nudity equals exploitation and about what Yoga Journal ’s advertising policies should be, I’ve seen a fair bit of frustration and misunderstanding about Yoga Journal’ s role in the community. Over the past 35 years, Yoga Journal has evolved from a nonprofit publication aimed at yoga teachers to a popular magazine read by more than 2 million Americans and supported by national advertising. Perhaps the biggest difference between the magazine Judith founded and the one I edit today is that while Yoga Journal continues to be a source of instruction and insight on yogic practices, it is now also a chronicle of the ever-evolving yoga scene–a scene that didn’t exist 35 years ago and one that some old-time practitioners would, quite frankly, find un-yogic. Yoga Journal doesn’t intend to be a textbook of ancient practices, nor an arbiter of yogic morality. It’s a magazine that introduces people to a world of ideas–sometimes profound, life-changing ideas that they might not otherwise be exposed to. It’s a messy time to be in the business of covering yoga. Some yoga publications that offered a purist’s view of the practice are no longer in print, while “workout yoga” is popular on the newsstand. Yoga Journal remains devoted to bringing a full spectrum of teachings to a wide audience, and it does so while walking the age-old line of art and commerce. Spiritual teachers often say that while monkhood requires practicing austerities, it is actually easier to live in a cave than to practice yoga while living in the world; it’s tough to maintain a quiet mind when deadlines loom, when the kids meltdown, when all kinds of distractions beg for your attention. Yoga Journal lives out in that world–tackling real-life issues of finances, politics (yes, politics in the world of yoga!), and the sometimes-clashing ideals of the yoga community. I’m proud that amid all the chaos, the magazine continues to focus on delivering wise teachings and practical tools for bringing the essence of yoga into our daily lives. We are grateful to have the support of the teaching community, including Judith and the many other dedicated teachers who share the depth of their knowledge through our pages, and the support of our advertisers, which enables us to continue offering world-class instruction, insight, and inspiration for practice. As always, we hope that the magazine we work so hard to bring to you, serves you well. –Kaitlin Quistgaard Editor in Chief , Yoga Journal

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Naked Truths: YJ’s Editor-in-Chief Responds to the Nudity Debate

The other day at the swimming pool I overheard a conversation that made my heart break. A dad, who seemed well intentioned enough, was trying–at all costs –to get his five-year old son into the water. Now, I understand where this father was coming from. As I wrote about in a recent post [link to swim camp post?], I’ve had my own challenges this summer getting Lucien comfortable with swimming pools.  I’ve tried everything from talking to him about his fears, using music and games, and, I have to admit, even the inducement of a trip to Whole Foods with promise of a wheat free muffin after a swim excursion. But this dad, after offering his own food related reward lost what little patience he had left, and told his son, “Just get in the water! Don’t be a baby!” Needless to say, it didn’t work. I saw something similar at bike camp last week. (Bike camp = three and almost three-year-olds practice on their tricycles or balance bikes for an hour a day for one week, taking lots of breaks for coloring and playing helmut hide-and-seek.) Lucien’s camp mate did not want to get on her bike. The first day she was with her nanny, an older woman who seemed nonplussed by the situation and let the girl be. The next day, Mommy came. And Mommy was bound and determined to have her daughter get on that pink tricycle and take it for a spin. She began with positive inducements (how proud Mommy would be) but quickly went downhill, so to speak, from there.  “If you don’t ride your bike,” she said, “Mommy is going to have to leave you here all by yourself.”  The bike camp counselor and I (she happened to be a young yogi and massage therapist) bit our tongues. I felt awful for both children and was reminded of a yoga class I took in a foreign city that shall remain nameless. Fresh off the plane on my first day in said city I hightailed it to a yoga center in the style I study. Instead of finding a home away from home and relief from tight shoulders post flight, I found an instructor who cajoled, prodded, intimidated, and even occasionally raised his voice at his students. I remember in particular one exercise at the rope wall where I couldn’t quite figure out how to arrange myself. (I’ve never been good at math or driving or spatial relations and my big yoga challenge is arranging my props!) This “teacher” made fun of me to the class–I was shamed, horrified, and though I should have left right then and there, I stayed for the two hour session, feeling worse and worse every minute. That evening, I came down with the flu. Enlightened Motherhood Lesson of the Day: Intimidation and name calling never ever ever work. Should I have said something to that father at the pool or the mother at the bike camp? Would there have been a gentle, yogic, way to offer alternatives to threats and name-calling?   Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Don’t Be a Baby: And Other Things Not to Say to Your Child (Or to Your Yoga Students)

America’s red-headed sweet heart has been seduced by the spiritual lures of India. Julia Roberts told Elle that she is “definitely a practicing Hindi” after her time in India filming the upcoming Eat, Pray, Love . USA Today followed up on the cover interview with a story Sunday. According to a 2009 Associated Press story relying on The Times of India newspaper, Roberts’ children have been given Hindu names. It quoted a Hindu priest, Swami Dharam Dev, as saying : “I have named her twins Hazel and Phinnaeus as Laxmi and Ganesh, while Henry will be called Krishna Balram.” No word yet on whether or not Roberts’ practices yoga, since of course being Hindu does not require it. USA Today was also quick to distinguish the difference between practicing yoga and practicing Hindism, but couldn’t resist posting an image of Sarah Palin in Tree Pose as an argument for the “poses don’t have to be spiritual” side. (We couldn’t resist either.)   ” Yet, we have been doing Hindu-Lite for years, sampling of the flavor , images and style of a 6,000-year-old faith but with no actual theology involved. Anywhere you look you can find loose chatter about dharma (a way of living leading to spiritual advancement) and karma ( the “neutral, self-perpetuating law of the inner cosmos,” Hindu monk Sannyasin Arumugaswami, editor of Hinduism Today magazine, said in 2006) . Yoga Journal estimated at that time that nearly a third of folks who try the 5,000-year-old Hindu physical and meditative discipline, say they’re seeking ’spiritual development.’ ” Is yoga spiritual for you, or is it simply a good work out?

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Pretty Woman Converts to Hindu Woman

This is the first of a series of blogs by yoga teachers on tour. Join them as they find inspiration to practice all over the world! Seven years ago a friend invited me to his hometown of Haines in Southeast Alaska. I had never considered visiting Alaska and didn’t give it much consideration; however, he didn’t give up easily and started sending me pictures of the river and mountains that persuaded me to visit  the little borough of Haines (pop. 2,400) for a week.   I fell in love with Haines at first sight and have returned every summer since. The people are friendly and generous and the natural beauty unparalleled. I started teaching a yoga class or two at the local community center that also houses the public radio and theater, and now have expanded into leading a full weekend workshop and evening kirtan. An incredible family (Beth MacCready and Gregg Bigsby) who practice yoga and meditation host me at their unique 15-acre waterfront property where the river meets the ocean. I stay in a yert, pictured above. Eagles fly overhead, seals and whales swim by, an occasional moose or bear wander in, and  snow-capped mountains rise out of water as far as the eye can see. It is here, by the sea in southeast Alaska that I have precious time to recharge my battery that gets worn down from living in an urban environment the rest of the year. My month here is a time for me to remember the practice of slowing down, the importance of rest and the healing power of mother nature. My singing, mediation and asana practice have plenty of space to unfold in this unique natural setting.   I plan my workshop with nature as a theme: trees rooting down to grow up toward the sun.  We practice rooting down into the earth with our feet and drawing energy up from the earth through the spine and out the crown of the head, allowing it to open and expand from the sky. We practiced this in Tadasana and through the standing poses. I gave the students a “home play” assignment to practice this extension as they stand and walk throughout the day.  I invite you to join us in this practice as well! Where do you go to recharge your battery? And what makes you feel connected to nature? Sarana Miller is trained in the Iyengar and Forrest Yoga traditions and is currently studying the Sarah Powers style. A student of Jai Uttal, she teaches yoga and leads kirtan in San Francisco. 

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Moose, Yoga and Alaska!

Remember when Ogden took over at Yoga Journal ? So-Cal yogis with a light sense of humor still have time to  catch the internet sensation series, The Inappropriate Yoga Guy on the big screen tonight! Here’s the details: Tuesday, August 3rd at 5pm Laemmle Sunset 5  8000 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90046 Head over there tonight and check out the five short episodes from when Ogden visited Yoga Journal here .

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Inappropriate Yoga Guy Heads for the Big Screen!

Okay, what is it with triangle pose???? (Those of you who are experts need not read this one. Go back to practicing your one-armed handstands with your legs in full lotus. I adore you, I do. I worship your accomplishments. But today’s thoughts are not for you.) Triangle pose. Pretty basic. Do the triangle thing and reach forward to grab your first toe. For the entire 10 months of my gorgeous, intensive involvement in yoga, this is exactly what happens with my right leg. I reach down, gently grab the first toe of my right foot, and look up to the ceiling. I breathe slowly and evenly. I don’t care if Rob and Cristina (my teachers) count to 29 on this one. Happiness. Not so with my left leg. On my left side, I reach down, all the while thinking, I am so flexible, I am flexibility itself, I am flexibility incarnate and reincarnate. And my hand reaches mid-calf. Not an inch lower. Makes me crazy. I know, I know, patience, kindness, acceptance of what is. Even if what is is a daily reminder of my exaggerated imbalance. All I wish for is balance, I tell myself. So guess what happened this week? For no reason I can think of, my triangle pose has changed! But not the way you think it might. Not the way it happens in fairy tales and romantic comedy yoga videos. Now neither of my hands can reach my toe! I mean it. I just tried it again before sitting here to write. Both sides to mid-calf. Not an inch lower. My thoughts? Be careful what you wish for. I wanted balance. I got it. Is there a pose that drives you crazy? (Okay, if it’s the one-armed handstand with full lotus, you can play, too.) Thanks to the yoga poses that drive us crazy, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin Shepherd is a chiropractor, actor, speaker, and workshop wonderwoman in North Bay, Ontario.  Join her at kristinshepherd.ca or on Facebook at Dr. Kristin Shepherd.

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Poses That Make You Crazy

This summer in my house, nap time is yoga time. The best feeling in the world is listening to my “baby” sleep off his hard morning of play while I settle into my practice upstairs. Then there are the days when he skips his nap.  I go into Lucien’s room, change his diaper and offer him some water, and then it’s back in the crib to try and sleep. I head back upstairs to my yoga corner, feeling exhausted at the prospect of a long, hot afternoon with a tired toddler. I have a few minutes to practice before giving up on the nap completely. It’s one thing to practice yoga when he’s sleeping soundly, but quite another to practice when the monitor is all lit up and red. Here’s a quick sequence* for when you’re tired, and time is short.  It should take you about 30 minutes, long enough for your baby or toddler to have a chance to fall asleep, but short enough so that you can feel refreshed and like you fit in a decent practice–even if a nap is just not happening today. Supta Bahhda Konasana (Take a good five to ten minutes here.) Downward dog Sirsasana  (If headstand is a regular part of your practice–no need for stress today!) Chair Shoulder Stand Ardha Halasana with Chair  (My all time favorite nap-time pose.) Savasana  (Enjoy a long and luxurious rest once your child falls asleep.)    *Sequence inspired by one of my favorite asana books, The Woman’s Book of Yoga and Health by Linda Sparrowe and Patricia Walden    Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Five Poses to Beat the Nap-Time Blues

After moving into my new apartment, the first thing I did, after unpacking, of course, was to place a statue of Ganesh at the entryway. My friend, feng shui master Ariel Towne, says that besides a fountain, the other necessary item near your front door is the little elephant otherwise known as the Remover of Obstacles. When you don’t let negative, sticky energies in, they don’t have a chance to affect you. “Cutting them off at the pass” is a phrase that might apply to what Ganesh is doing there at the front door. Aside from that massive job, Ganesh is also the Lord of Thresholds. Threshold . What a beautiful word. It reminds me of watching wind ripple the wheat fields during my Midwestern childhood. Yet, the concept itself has different meanings, not only describing the doorway itself, but what the doorway represents: a starting point, the beginning of any new journey or transformation. Ganesh is not some magic statue, without which you would have no protection against resistance, doubt, and fear–three of the biggest obstacles of all. It’s the act of placing Ganesh that brings awareness to our own desire to remain free of anything that diminishes or limits our potential to fly. In that sense, he represents that aspect of ourselves that is ready to swing open the door to our next adventure–and ready to step out of our own way long enough to clear the path straight through it. Henry Ford said, “Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off the goal.” You see, we have the power to either turn our experiences and truths into obstructions, weights tethered to any possible rise in self-esteem, greater awareness, and health; or to remove them.  Yogis have fabulous resistance-busting tools. We can get on the mat and practice, opening tight places and dissolving emotional and mental tension. We breathe, switch our thinking, learn to see more clearly and, by deciding to love ourselves a little more, we begin to widen the very doorway into our own hearts. By applying awareness to each situation we encounter, we open a threshold to our core, allowing our deepest wisdom to sweep through, and away, into the world in the form of our most courageous, conscious actions. In my classes, any time I want to clear the threshold, I ask my students to focus on hip opening. I call the hips “the Gateways,” because they can allow, or block, the energy moving from you foundation into your core. If the gateways are closed, the posture is incomplete and with it, the opportunity to gain the full benefits of the asana is lost. Try the following pose any time you feel a little closed yet feel ready to  make the space you need to cross the threshold into that next, most incredible state of being who you really are. Core Pose: Funky Lunge   This posture clears a common tight area–the side leg and outer hips–all the way from the foundation to your center. When you open this gateway, issues like sciatica may recede, since the piriformis muscle at the side of your pelvis often compresses it. As well, you’ll open the IT band, making this a wonderful way to free yourself from over-closure of the gateways of the hip muscles and joints and, quite literally, be able to walk through any threshold more freely. Come into Down Dog. Step your left foot to your right thumb. With this crossed foot placement, you’ll bring the right knee to the mat. Center your hips, and come onto palms or fingertips, on the mat or on blocks, so that your hands are under your shoulders. Begin to roll onto the pinky toe edge of your left foot. As you ground the foot down, and resist it back towards your hip, roll the outer left hip and upper thigh back and down so that it’s not hiking up toward your ribcage. Inhale, lift your lower belly and wave long through your spine. Exhale, and fold at the hip creases as you bend the elbows to your capacity. Play your edge of flexibility as you begin to straighten your front leg until you begin to feel sensation. Breathe and soften there before moving further into your stretch. If you want more of a challenge, try tucking the back toes under and lifting the back knee as in a Low Lunge. Your hands will walk back to remain under the shoulders for support. Breathe here for one minute, taking small spinal waves on the inhalation, and deepening your fold on the exhalation. Return to Dog Pose, and switch sides.    

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Clearing the Threshold

As yogis, we all struggle to keep our practice consistent. We get distracted by life and make excuses to skip one day, then the next, and pretty soon we find ourselves making a lasting indent into the couch–we are too defeated for that one down-ward dog that could turn it all around. It seems like perfectionists catch the worst of this cycle. We like to feel like we are “being good,” “making progress,” and “on track.” Self-proclaimed perfectionist and yogi blogger Daniela Velázquez at TBO.com says “Yoga helps me cope with much of that fretting – until I stop practicing. Then all of the anxiety creeps back and makes me want to crawl in bed instead of working it out on my mat.” And she’s not the only one who struggles with this all-or-nothing mantra in her yoga practice and exercise routine. “‘It makes it hard for people to stay motivated – they have to be perfect in their diet plan and/or exercise plan,’ behavioral psychologist Dean Anderson says. ‘When they inevitably aren’t, they start getting down on themselves. They figure they’re never going to do it,’ says Anderson, who writes for the weight-loss website SparkPeople.com under the pen name Coach Dean. ” Velázquez  says ” Lately, I have learned to let the problem remain what it is and nothing more. Eating a cookie or skipping class is simply that – not an excuse to send myself over the edge. That’s what I have always loved about yoga. Sure, I geek out when I do something I couldn’t before, like my first on-the-wall handstand a few weeks ago. But the emphasis for me has always been on the journey of the practice and the progress I have made to become a happier, more whole person. Once you’re able to do something new (like a handstand), there’s always a slightly more complicated pose to work on (a one-handed handstand). And with more than 1,000 poses in yoga’s repertoire, you won’t ever be able to master them all. And that’s OK. Because each time you practice, you gain a little more wisdom about yourself and the world. It’s about the process of changing, not about each individual event. Perfectionists focus on the outcome, and if they don’t get a perfect outcome their motivation collapses. ” Next time, start with reminding yourself that you are inherently full or whole–lacking in no way. Then press on to practice with willful intention and non-concern for results and see if it feels different. Erin Chalfant is a writer, yoga teacher and the Web Editor at Yoga Journal.

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Yoga for Perfectionists

My vegetable garden is officially off the charts. It’s all thanks to two people: My good friend Lise who inspired me last summer with her backyard garden, and my green-thumbed next door neighbor Ellen who taught me what to do–from getting my garden beds together, to planting, watering, weeding, and harvesting.  I’m hoping it’s not just beginner’s luck–and that Ellen will help me again next year–because Neil and I are getting seriously spoiled by eating out of our backyard. “The farm,” as we have taken to calling the plots, is ripe with peas, kale, broccoli, lettuce, beets, carrots and cucumbers and scallions and zucchini, with the very beginnings of tomatoes and corn peeping through.  The process has amazed me, reminding me both of motherhood (seeing those tiny seeds blossom into full grown plants) and yoga (with a little time and attention every day, and some   patience, you’ll start seeing results). How does your (yoga) garden grow? Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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In Season

As an urban yogi I often day dream about coming to a bustling, messy street square and seeing–instead of garbage and taxi cabs– hundreds of yogis. Wouldn’t that be a sight? Well, Bay Area yogis are in luck because you are all invited to yoga it up in Union Square on August 7. Stephanie Snyder and Darren Main have signed on as volunteers to lead the masses, and just to add a little agave-flavored icing to this holy granola treat; registration fees benefit City of Hope . Here’s the spiel: Yoga for Hope is an event for yoga beginners and experts alike to bring awareness to the benefits of yoga practice for patients with life-threatening illnesses. Join City of Hope’s efforts to expand awareness of the importance of the mind-body-spirit connection is when battling cancer, diabetes or HIV/AIDS. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for Yoga Journal’ s sponsor booth to get a goody bag and magazine. There are also prizes and incentives to raise donations above the registration fee, for more information visit Yoga for Hope. Who says New York yogis get to have all the fun?

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Yoga in Union Square

Last week I took Lucien to swim camp. Now, “swim camp” when you’re two involves getting into the water with your parent or caregiver and practicing the most basic skills like kicking and blowing bubbles into the water. I wasn’t exactly dropping him off for sleep away camp. But, on the first day, my guy was terrified of getting in the water, even though we swim together in one of the public outdoor pools in Vancouver. He refused to go in. Lucien’s fear and resistance reminded me of how I feel when I’m in yoga class and it’s time for backbends, specifically Urdhva Danurasana. Give me a chair backbend or an Ustrasana and I’m happy, but when it comes time for wheel, I have a hard time not heading for a bathroom break. But when, despite my urge to flee, I force myself to stay and work through the tightness in my upper back and shoulders and the voice in my head saying “No! I’m scared. I don’t want to do that pose!” I end up feeling a sense of freedom and elation that only come from breaking through a mental or physical block. Back at the swimming pool, it was seriously touch-and-go for a few minutes (major crying and “No, I am NOT a fish!” on Lucien’s part, and some serious cajoling–um, make that supportive encouragement–on mine).  Eventually we made it into the water. As you can imagine, Lucien loved it once he was in. The water felt great on a hot day, and the songs and games his teacher used to encourage comfort and familiarity with the water worked like a charm.  By Friday morning, the fifth and last class of the “camp” session, Lucien refused to get out of the water! All in all a huge success.   Sometimes, you have to force yourself to stretch. Which pose makes you say “No, I’m scared!”?     Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Swim Camp

The other day, my yoga teacher said something I keep thinking about. “In class,” Louie said, “we practice how to practice. But at home, we practice.” Of all things, this made me think of my date night with Neil this past weekend. On Friday night we went all out–hired a babysitter, made a reservation at a Japanese tapas place by the beach, dressed cute (in a summery dress and sandals for me and a striped button down and jeans for Neil). We had a great time – talking and eating and planning and dreaming – but the bill and the babysitter added up. Then on Saturday, we had a no fuss date night at home. We put Lucien to bed early and I set the table and gathered vegetables (lettuce, kale) from the garden while Neil made black bean veggie burgers and yam fries. We wore shorts and t-shirts and were sweaty from a day out and about in the summertime sun. For dessert, we ate raspberries from the garden. Guess which one was more fun? As important as it is to be out in the world – or in the yoga center – at home with the ones you love is where true practice begins. Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Date Night

It’s my first week in a new town, having moved from NYC to Austin to focus on yoga, travel and all that it entails for me right now. It’s slower here, no doubt, with a local news story lamenting that the new city Metro system doesn’t have enough people riding it! I’ll soon be parking my grateful derriere on one of the new, cushioned seats (with actual airspace between bodies) on my way to a yoga class. I miss New York, but I’m interested to see what health and yogic possibilities lay ahead for me here. In this transitional period, where cardboard moving boxes vie for my attention along with daily responsibilities (as I write this blog, all my books sit next to me in U-Haul containers, awaiting their freedom), I can’t help but feel, well, empty. This is a specific kind of emptiness, not the windswept sensation after an emotional storm, or the primordial suspension of a deep meditation. It’s more like a mixture of mourning and excitement, so evenly matched that it generates the time-standing-still feeling you have while retaining the breath after an inhale, or letting the exhale slide into a silent moment of nothingness before inspiring again. And when I say, “inspiring,” I mean breathing in and getting back to the creation of my life’s work, my dharma.  This is the calm before the flood, when creative elements will sweep me forward. And I have to be ready to both direct the wave and ride it into places I can’t foresee. It is scary, yet wonderful. I wonder if this could be the Middle Path the Buddha spoke of, or the “field” between happiness and sorrow that Rumi wrote about so eloquently. I think of it as The Void, taken from the Runes, the ancient Viking stones etched with symbols used by those seeking clarity. Here’s one definition of The Void from the Book of Runes : The Unknowable represents the path of Karma–the sum total of your actions and their consequences, the lessons that are yours for this lifetime. And yet, this Rune teaches that the very debts of old karma shift and evolve as you shift and evolve. Nothing is predestined. What beckons is the creative power of the unknown. We all hit The Void at one time or another, sometimes multiple times a day. It’s that pause that seems hollow but that is actually pregnant with possibility, full of creative energy, or shakti, waiting for you to decide which action to take next to direct it into form. The Void itself is often what ignites fear: of the unknown, of letting go, of being alone, of moving to that next level of ourselves, and risking failure and public ridicule to do it. Many people never cross The Void, because of what seems an impenetrable closed door of “I can’t, I shouldn’t” or “I’m not enough” blocking the entrance to the bridge across.   Yet when we practice yoga with as much determination off the mat as we do on it, when we get present and focus on what really matters–living completely, passionately, and without regret–we take destiny back into our own hands, the doorway magically opens, and, Void or not … we leap. Here’s a pose that may help you understand how solid the Void actually is, as you begin to see that you’re always where you stand, and from there, you can channel this veritable ocean of energy towards your biggest, brightest goals. Core Pose: Ankle-to-Knee Chair(Eka Pada Galavasana Preparation) This pose leads to taking flight in the arm balance of Eka Pada Galavasana, but for our purposes, we’re going to start where we are. Running too fast into the Void can cause you to miss out on the information coming at you from the core, and from your environment, a conversation that needs your full attention. Come to the front of your mat, feet hip-distance apart. Bend both knees and generate as much lift from your lower belly as from your lower back. Keep your spine long as you ground into your left foot and lift your right knee mindfully into your chest. Don’t rush; rather, make every moment of this pose an opportunity to find balance again. Once you’re stable, cross your right ankle over your left knee. Roll the thigh outward so your right knee lowers, and sit down deeper. Bring your hands to the chest, palms together in anjali mudra, which celebrates your connection to the Divine, or universal energy. Offer your heart forward as the hips move back to anchor you in this new place of balance and freedom. Take 5-10 breaths here, then return to Chair Pose, and fold forward over bent or straight legs for a few moments before repeating the balance on the other side.      

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Filling the Void

Summer is busy. This week, my lovely man did a yoga session on a sheet of plywood covered by a raincoat. He said it was great. I have done handstands in my office, downward dogs on an enormous rock by the lake, and side planks at the public library while waiting for a meeting to begin. I sneak yoga while waiting for my car to be repaired. And I would do it in the park and I would do it in the dark and I would do it on a rock and I would do it on a dock Yesterday I hung in a forward bend at the grocery store while looking at cans of tuna on the bottom shelf. No one said a word. I was there for ages. Where will yoga show up next?  Where is your favorite place to sneak it in to your day? Thanks to yoga for being so delicious that we want to sneak it here and there, we want to sneak it everywhere, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin Shepherd is a chiropractor, actor, speaker, and workshop wonderwoman in North Bay, Ontario.  Join her at kristinshepherd.ca or on Facebook at Dr. Kristin Shepherd.

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Yoga Here and Yoga There

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This morning, I talked with my lovely man about all of your comments on home practice vs. yoga classes. We love both, but he feels pretty strongly about his class last night. He’s been working like a Tasmanian Devil this week and found it beautiful to go to his yin yoga class, during which they are now holding some of their poses for 15 minutes. (Holy moly! Might as well ask me to fly across the Atlantic. Without a plane, I mean.) “What about my face?” he asks. “How could I remember to relax my jaw without prompting?  And my eyes, how do I let those go? Oh, and my throat, I love it when she reminds me to relax my throat. And Savasana is so good when someone else is in charge.” This is the reason I’m going to class at lunch today. There is something wonderful and easy about receiving the practice. Yes, I’m doing the work, and making all the personal choices about how much, how far, how strenuous or not. But, oh, how lovely it is, sometimes, to have my mind settled into each moment of each asana, rather than wondering what I’ll do next, jeez, there’s the dog at the door wanting a walk, woops, that’s my dad on the phone, and all of that. It’s as though, in class, they take me by the hand and just walk me down a path through the woods. I don’t have to choose the path or check my directions or wonder what’s ahead.   Just hold the hand and walk. That sounds good to me today. How about you? Thanks to yoga for being so many things to so many people, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin Shepherd is a chiropractor, actor, speaker, and workshop wonderwoman in North Bay, Ontario.  Join her at kristinshepherd.ca or on Facebook at Dr. Kristin Shepherd.

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Home Practice or Studio?

Although I’m a yogi living in beautiful British Columbia, on stressed out hectic days, it doesn’t take much for me to veer into my frazzled New Yorker mode. But lately, thanks to the (finally) beautiful Vancouver summer weather, the aftereffects of my recent yoga retreat, my reduced work load – no university writing classes this summer to teach, no short turn around freelance assignments – I’m feeling much more mellow than usual.  My to do list no longer feels so pressing or urgent, nor does the laundry pile.  Because our morning day care only runs during the school year, Lucien is home for the summer and I’m in 24/7 mom mode. In some ways it’s easier having him home and on a more flexible schedule with no rush out the door in the morning. We can swim down by the beach or go to the playground or library, all to our hearts’ content. Even the usual challenges of mothering feel easier these days. If Lucien skips his afternoon nap, then we go outside in the sunshine and play.  If my babysitter’s alarm clock fails to go off on the one morning I have a few hours slotted for writing, then Lucien and I hang out on the front stoop for an unexpected unscheduled hour of just being together.  If my husband goes on a four day long weekend trip to Sweden for work, well then I’ll tame my inner cheapskate (or try to) and hire aforementioned beloved babysitter so that I can go to a Saturday afternoon yoga class and a Sunday morning movie, too.  Feeling this way is worth it.  My relaxation is having an effect on all of us.  When I feel calm and centered, Neil’s less stressed (despite his crazy work deadlines), and Lucien seems happier and more easygoing, too.  He sings around the house all day long.  When I’m anxious and overworked  – thinking back to the days when I was frantically juggling teaching, meeting a book deadline and caring for a nursing baby – everyone felt that, too.  My new goal for this coming year is to see if I can be in the “real” world (balancing work and motherhood) but keep an easier, lighter yogi-summery attitude.   Yoga is a gentle reminder to come back to this calm center. Please someone, next winter when it’s cold and rainy and I have a writing deadline to meet and a virus is going around, remind me to take a deep breath and remember this summertime mellow-as-can-be feeling with the kitchen door open and the sunshine coming in. Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Summertime Zen

Before I move to Austin on Monday, I thought it would be a good idea to pop up to Boston to teach a couple of workshops on Saturday. Why? Because I’m a glutton for punishment! No, actually, and perhaps strangely, I’m considering it a mini-vacation. A moving vacation, more specifically, since I get to ride a train and have nearly 8 hours to myself to do with what I wish. That’s about 6.5 hours more than I’ve had in a long time. On the trip so far, I’ve slept, read a magazine, planned classes, written this blog, caught up on emails, and simply stared out the window, enjoying the passing views of the verdant Hudson Valley.  This may sound like a lot, but these were all things I felt like doing, and they’ve brought me heartfelt pleasure. Virginia Woolf once said, “A woman must have money and a room of her own, if she is to write fiction.” I think that sentiment extends to both genders. No matter who you are, in order to create, you need resources. And one integral requirement of creative freedom is space. This doesn’t mean just a physical space, but some kind of spiritual “room”–an expanse within. This is where your spirit can dance with abandon as you gift yourself the chance to decide what to create next, instead of having your next move dictated by the pressures of time, relationships, and responsibility. The funny thing is, we yogis learn that in order to expand, we must first draw inward. We have to contain ourselves, plug our pranic leaks, and stop existing solely in other people’s rooms if we are to truly live in our own. This practice of self-regulating the balance between giving and receiving helps us stay focused not only on sharing with others, but on keeping what we need. In this way, we cultivate moksha , or being free from stress and suffering, but to me, also means having the freedom to access the soul, and from there, to express oneself completely and without regret.   This is often what stepping onto the mat means to me. It’s a magic carpet ride to new adventures as I remember and reveal the most vital parts of myself. No phones ring, no flight times loom, no partners or students need my attention. Sometimes I feel guilty for wanting this time to myself, this room of my own. After all, I love my loved ones and enjoy my job. As a centered-living teacher, I should be able to exist in peace within the chaos and pull of the outer world, right? Well yes, and no. I find that in order to give the quality of attention that my projects and interactions deserve, I simply must take physical, mental, or emotional retreats at regular intervals. Otherwise, I risk burnout. Whether it’s a nap, a walk in the park, a long bath, or a train ride, I’m careful to immerse in the luxury of being totally Self-centered. Then, once I’m ready to re-engage with the world, I have all the more to offer the next time an offering is called for.      All too often, we wait until we are at the end of our ropes, frazzled and spent, before we’ll use those vacation days or get a massage. Sometimes it takes illness or fatigue to force us to pause and get some much needed rest. As practitioners of a conscious path, I invite each of us to do better than that. Let’s look for daily opportunities to invoke freedom: to withdraw, conserve, and nourish our bodies, hearts, and minds. If chances for restoration are lacking in your life, build a room of your own with the tools gathered from your yoga practice: the wisdom to know when to go and when to stop, and the inner strength to create the boundaries needed to literally make peace with–and within–your life. Core Pose: Ustrasana (Camel Pose) with Arm Stretch Here’s an asana that helps me invite moksha into my day by shaking off the constrictions of tension in my body or on some other level. Kneel at the front of your mat with your knees slightly separated. Reach one hand back onto the floor or a block. Exhale fully and firm your belly. As you inhale, press your fingertips into the mat and circle your other arm up and back beside your ear. At the same time, lengthen your tailbone and pull your navel in and up as you lift your hips (a little or a lot, depending on your flexibility) and wave your spine towards a heart-opening backbend. Refrain from dropping your head back; keep the neck curve naturally long and supported. Exhale, return your hips to your heels, and bring the opposite hand behind you to repeat on the other side. Aim for 5-10 repetitions of this pose then fold forward into Child’s Pose for one minute.      

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A Room of One’s Own

I think yoga is a sport, just like the World Cup. Hear me out. Tuesday was one of those days. I love yoga, love my home practice, love class, but there are some days, some weeks, even, when it all goes off the rails.   This is one of those weeks. I’ve been in hotels two weekends in a row, I’ve seen my share of drive-through windows over those weekends, and my hotel practice has been less thorough than my home practice. I’ve been away so much that my dog rolls her eyes when I come home. The result is that my body and spirit are tired, chunky, and unsociable.   It took Olympian determination to get myself to yoga class on Tuesday. It was touch-and-go all morning. I kept thinking, “I can go home for a break, I can eat, I can read, I can get some work done, I can sit here and stare out the window for an hour.” Most of these options looked much more appealing than going to class. (It’s possible some of you never feel this way. I am determined to like you anyway.) By the grace of Whatever, I get changed, get in my car, and drive to the studio. I lie down, and almost immediately I could cry, I am so happy. Class starts. My left hamstrings have shrunk considerably over the weekend, somehow, I have NO balance, my thighs and rear end burst at the inadequate seams of my formerly roomy yoga pants, and still there is no place I’d rather be. This is where the World Cup comes in.   When we go to class on these days, I think our teachers should welcome us at the door with big, glossy medals. “Would you like a medal today?”  “Yes,” I’d say. “Bronze, silver or gold?” “Are you joking? Do you have any idea how far I’ve come today?The French fries and pizza I have overcome, the hotel coffee, the hours in the car, the dog’s face, and lethargy the size of an oil spill? Give me the gold, absolutely. I am the champion of the world today.” There are days when we should all have medals around our necks. Thanks to yoga for making me show up, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin Shepherd is a chiropractor, actor, writer, and workshop wonderwoman in North Bay, Ontario.  Join her at kristinshepherd.ca or on Facebook at Dr. KristinShepherd.

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Champion Yogis

Sting just started out for a summer tour, and, unfortunately, the only buzz we keep hearing is about this mysterious scandalous tantra stuff. Allow Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler, to explain themselves in Yoga Journal ’s exclusive interview . Stephanie Syman, author of The Subtle Body: The Story of Yoga in America , also plans to set the tantric-yoga record straight once and for all in her Wall Street Journal blog: “Traditionally, Tantra refers to a loose and varied collection of practices detailed in the Tantras (Indic texts). Some of its most salient features are secrecy and worship of the female principle. The feature that has most intrigued and shocked observers–both Indian and Western–is that Tantra enjoins the aspirant to either visualize sex or engage in acts of ritual intercourse. The purpose of this conjugation, often depicted as the union of Siva and Shakti, is to reach Samadhi, a blissful state of consciousness devoid of any sense of personal identity. Succeed, and not only do you turn your mind into a “point of awareness,” as Ram Dass once put it, you obtain special powers (siddhis). You could say that we’re all Tantrics now since the most popular form of yoga today, Hatha Yoga, has been a central feature of Tantric practice, and its creators were affiliated with Tantric sects. But as with most cultural imports, our assimilation of Tantra has involved equal parts interpretation and invention. No wonder. Tantric practice is no quick route to sexual gratification. It’s traditionally demanding, complicated, highly formalized, and at times, tedious. And only some types of Tantrics (known as “left-handed”) engage in ritual sex at all. Tantra then presents a paradox: it can involve sex and yet its prerequisites mitigate the pleasure. And while you may enhance sexual performance via Tantric practices, the goal is not to get good at sex, the goal is to alter your consciousness so radically that embodied existence is no longer relevant.” Still curious? Read Todd Jones’ The Truth About Tantra. Erin Chalfant is a writer, yoga teacher and the Web Editor at Yoga Journal.

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Truly Tantric

I’m in Austin, Texas, and last night took a lovely yoga class at Black Swan Yoga. Hillary, the instructor, said something so simple, it was profound. After a difficult Eka Pada Koundinyasana (Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya) variation, which we were attempting during heat and humidity that created a slip-n-slide situation, we returned to a democratic Downward-Facing Dog. As we recovered, Hillary said, “If you were struggling in that last pose, then it’s good it’s over. You don’t have to think about it anymore, because it’s not happening now.” I know that I’ve said and heard countless variations on that theme in yoga classes I’ve taught and attended. Yet something about the straightforwardness with which Hillary spoke made it seem so simple to just let go of the past and along with it, all the weighty entanglements of suffering, guilt, and instant replays. Trying to change the past by keeping it running on a constant mental and emotional loop can end up frittering away your prana , or life force. Likewise, when you jet off into any scenario–imaginary or already played-out– than what is really happening in the here and now, I call it time-traveling.  We time-travel on the mat too, like when you mentally tell off an ex-boyfriend while in Crow Pose or go over your grocery list in Savasana. The danger in always traveling into what has been or what might never be, is that you lose the sensitivity it takes to stay in communication with your core wisdom. That root awareness can only reveal itself when you drop the baggage you’re carrying and turn all your attention toward accessing the tools you have right where you stand. At first when Hillary made that statement, I thought, “Yeah, easy to say, Sister, but try doing it.” Then I remembered one day a few years back. I was standing in the subway, having recently gone through a major breakup, and my heart was hurting. The world seemed colorless and tasteless, and still, everything stung. For no reason at all, I wondered why I was feeling so bad. Was it inevitable? Or was it a choice I was making?  I decided to see if I could put my broken heart on hold, enjoy a day out in the big city, and come back to the processing part later on. In literally one instant, my pain disappeared. Gone, nada , zip. I felt free, light, and happy to be alive and experiencing all that was in front of me. I had a wonderful time before, a little while later, I decided to re-enter the growth process, a sensation that would never again be as cutting or make me feel as helpless as when I thought I had no control over it. I didn’t know that it was possible to allow myself to step into the present so fully as to be immune from the poison of confusion and regret. I’ve employed this skill many times since, and you can, too. It’s as close as a decision, as gentle as an allowing, and as natural as relaxing into being who you want to be, right this minute. Yogis call this process dharana , or concentration. It requires pratyahara , sense withdrawal, another yogic skill of reigning yourself in from obsessively poring over the past or future, and from leaking your chi, or energy. I also call it core power, and when you practice using it to become victorious over the time-traveling mind and tidal heart, you will see more clearly, and without judgment, how you wish to proceed in the only time period that you can do anything about–the one you’re in. Sometimes even teachers need teachers to remind us of this. Here’s a pose variation that can quickly return you to the present; one that gets you grounded plus gives you a taste of all the strength and vitality you hold at center. From there, no matter how life comes at you, you can choose to come right back out at it with compassion, wisdom, and grace. Core Pose: “Core” Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose) Stand with your feet about two fists-width apart. Bend your knees and reach your right fingertips diagonally out away from your right foot, wider than the right shoulder, and press them into the mat. At the same time, press your right foot into the ground strongly. On an exhalation, draw your left knee into your chest using your low belly to draw in and up toward your sternum. Begin to stack your left hip on top of the right and unfurl your left arm to the sky. Inhale as you maintain the tone in your abdominal muscles, and begin to lengthen your bent, left leg out behind you until it is parallel to the floor. Your bottom leg can remain bent or, if your flexibility allows, straighten it. Keep your standing leg firm and foot rooted even as you draw into and express from your center in the pose. Do 3-5 repetitions on this side then bring both feet back down into the starting position. Take a gentle forward fold, clasping opposite elbows. Find your Earth-to-core connection and repeat the pose on the left side.  

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Stop Time-Traveling

As our nation turns to backyards, barbecues, burgers, bright colors and explosions in the sky, it seems appropriate to celebrate independence in a personal way as well. Perhaps with some yoga? Independence. Freedom. Liberation. Moksha. Most cultures take time to celebrate a form of letting go and feeling open and alive to possibility, and it seems the height of summer is the perfect time for this expression. Your pores are open and warmed by the sun, encouraging your body to release, the days are long and, in most places, the weather is inviting.  What do we, in this modern day, need to do to disentangle ourselves from our oppressors?  What are our oppressions anyway, and why do we feel tangled in the first place? Yoga can help answer all of the above. I woke up with Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song” in my head: “Emancipate yourself from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds.” This will be my mantra in practice this weekend. Any obstacle I perceive has been placed there by me, and I can also choose to remove it. My morning yoga practice, of course, will be my revolution. Today I celebrate independence from the mind stuff, vritti .  I will not allow myself to be worried about the extra traffic caused on a Friday before a holiday weekend…or the longer lines at the grocery store, or the wait at the bank or how crowded it will be at the park and the beach. These things are fun and they are choices. I will enjoy my liberation with breath, movement, and maybe a little reggae. How will you liberate yourself this weekend? Check out the accidental yogist if you’re in SoCal and looking for studios that are celebrating their independence. Erin Chalfant is a writer, yoga teacher and the Web Editor at Yoga Journal.

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Independence Day

What’s with the naked theme? I write a blog about loving home practice, and you, some of you, write in that you love naked yoga. I write a blog about favorite poses, and you write in about naked yoga. I write a blog about meditation or chanting or acting, for goodness sake, and some of you (is it the same people? The Naked Yoga Alliance? I don’t know!) write back that you love naked yoga. Billy Connolly, the marvelous Scottish comedian, writes that he loves an ordinary love life with his wife. A meat-and-potatoes kind of lover, he is.  He’s all about comfort. It takes some self-assuredness to admit that. I feel that way about yoga. I love yoga in my flannel pajama bottoms. I start with two t-shirts and peel one off as I warm up. Sometimes I start in socks. This naked thing? I don’t know. It’d be like grocery shopping while naked, or bowling while naked, neither of which is ever going to happen, so don’t feel you should write in about those. Besides, where I live, anyone in a canoe can see me unless I downward dog in the dark.   All right, all right! I’ll try it. I’ll try it in the dark (by the park, for a lark, with a shark. I’m going all Dr. Seuss in my nervousness.). I’ll let you know how it goes. Thanks for the conversation, I think. Kristin Shepherd lives in North Bay, Ontario. She is a chiropractor, workshop facilitator, actor, writer, and parent of two grown children and a perpetually infantile dog.  Check her out, fully clothed, at kristinshepherd.ca or on Facebook at Dr. Kristin Shepherd. 

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Why Naked Yoga?

Yesterday I was a part of the world’s largest yoga class–10,000 yogis all neatly and peacefully arranged on the Great Lawn in Central Park. I was also fortunate enough to be behind the scenes for the two days leading up to the event, and I’d like to give you a peek inside! I was there to be included in a documentary about the day, as well as filming a scene for a TV show, and would be one of the lucky yogis practicing onstage along with my good friend and leader of the park’s practice, Elena Brower. I arrived Monday at the Flavorpill offices to pick up my practice outfit (hello, Addidas and corporate sponsorship!) and be prepped by Ava Taylor, my manager and founder of Yoga Artist’s Management Agency (YAMA). Sascha Lewis, Flavorpill co-founder, was the mastermind behind this event, just like the massive yoga class at the MoMa in January. The office was abuzz with last-minute organization, yogis streaming in an out to get their assistant outfits, and film crews coming to set up their Tuesday with us. I thought the stress of last-minute responsibilities would be crushing. But still, the mood was buoyant, and everyone had a smile on their faces, even and especially Sascha, who was taking a moment in the midst of the melee to make an avocado and almond butter smoothie. I can report that everyone held their centers even when no one was looking. On Tuesday, I got to the Carlyle Hotel, where the yogis who would be on stage, including Duncan Wong, Maya Feinnes, Angela Clark and more, were invited to have our hair and makeup done  (I think Duncan passed on that last offer). It was a moment of Zen in the shampoo chair, then back into the fun, as 20 amazing yoga instructors and personalities shared their perspectives and lives with one another.  We laughed, we learned, and most of all, we gave one another heartfelt support as we walk the path of teaching this healing practice to the world. Our smiles got even wider when we arrived at Central Park (after a full day already of meetings, filming and more organizing) to see the thousands of brightly-colored yogis flooding into the park. I saw so many people I knew from years past, it was like a karmic family reunion!   Dharma Mittra was gracious and wise as I interviewed him for the documentary, telling us that he wasn’t nervous to teach, because he doesn’t look out and see 10,000 people, but rather, one beautiful soul ready to receive his knowledge—and it’s easy to teach to one. Yes, there was a huge thunderstorm that coincided with our first, thunderous OM, and yes, Elena was only able to lead us through one partial Surya Namaskar, making it not only the largest yoga class on record, but perhaps the shortest too, but let me tell you something–it rocked nonetheless. As yogis, we’d been in alignment far before we ever stepped on those mats. I witnessed first hand how from the office to the hotel to the park, people were working together, seeing the good in any setback, and handling it all with grace. I was there as teachers from wildly different belief systems bowed to each other and respected their differences even as they found common ground. And thankfully, I was there as our community at large swept over the Great Lawn in a flood, covering what was a baseball field earlier in the day it with mats and bodies and hearts open and as excited to be there together. The storm couldn’t ruin our yoga–the day was the yoga, and all the days before. The postures were just extra credit. Here’s a pose we did yesterday that you might recognize. When you enter it, remember to let gratitude expand the heart, for all the opportunities, support, and love you do have all around you, and inside. Then after you practice, hold on to that aspect of you that is perfectly capable of being the change you wish to create in yourself, and in your world…whether it’s behind the scenes, or standing up there in the spotlight. Namaste! Core Pose: High Cobra   A teacher friend used to call this “Teenage Cobra” because it’s more grown up than Baby Cobra, but not quite as much as a full Urdhva Mukha Svanasana, or Upward-Facing Dog. From Plank Pose, you’ll lower yourself to the floor slowly, knees up or down. Make sure your elbows are directly over your wrists, and shoulders lifted. Your low belly and front thighs should pull towards the sky as you lower to provide more stability and less dropping out of the posture as you transition. Once there, do an alignment check. Your palms are by the low ribs, preserving the right angle of your arms. Let’s start from the ground up: firm your pointed feet into the earth, carve your tailbone toward the floor, and on an exhale, draw that lower belly in and up the spine as you press into the mat with your palms and begin to rise to your spine’s capacity. Think not of jutting the ribs forward to achieve the open-hearted look of this pose, but rather, as you ground the hands downward, wave upward along the front of your spine as it moves back into the body and up towards your crown. This will generate the movement from your pelvic core, a place of inner power and support that can sustain that open heart from a safe and healthy root. Once your chest opens, you should be ready for your inhale–let it flare your ribs wide in all directions. Roll your shoulders back naturally and take the shoulder blades down the back slightly to support your chest lifting like two helping hands behind the heart.   Your head slides back and up with a natural neck curve, completing the graceful curve of this asana without risking cervical (neck spine) compression. You’re free, open, and available for life in every moment. That’s the yogi way.  

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The Great Rain-out

by Kathryn Budig I was so excited when Elena Brower, Goddess of yoga, invited me to demo at the maha event–Yoga in Central Park–but once I added up my financial sum for taking off, my numbers were looking dangerously high. Dismayed, but happy to stay off of a plane and knowing all is as it should be, I decided to watch the live stream from the genius boys at Yogaglo .  Soon after, thanks to the my home-away-from-home (aka my Facebook page) , I saw that Flavorpill was hosting two simultaneous events. One in Miami and one in Los Angeles with Tara Stiles. I shot Ms. Stiles an email and was RSVPed for some yoga poolside at The Standard hotel–yes, welcome to LA! I began my day at 4:30am; disgruntled to find that my green tea canister was empty. I chugged two glasses of water and took out my angst in the form of a Facebook update. The Om-tastic New Yorker, Cyndi Lee, comically replied, “5:30am? — green tea? — this is when I realize I don’t live in LA. Good luck!” I chuckled to myself thinking of the contrasts between this day in NYC vs. LA. Green tea, albeit healthy, does sounds a bit wimpy next to the vibrato of a black cup of coffee.   Then I thought of the yoga events.   Ten Thousand yogis gathering in the vast and majestic Great Lawn of Central Park, and where is the Los Angeles equivalent? Clearly, amongst scantily clad poolside peeps at a posh West Hollywood hotel. Hey, you’ve got to accept a person or place for exactly who or what it is, and Los Angeles–you certainly are pretty. Everyone was so pretty, in fact, that I wondered if the hotel hired True Blood physique-worthy people to lounge next to their pool to make it look good. Let’s not forget, Tara Stiles –our teacher for the event–is a Ford model. Very apropos. That said, Tara is a good midwestern girl who now resides in New York City with her studio, Strala.  Any midwesterner is a friend of mine, and upon meeting Tara in person, I was very pleased to feel her instant geniune warmth, love and goofiness. A true down-to-earth girl. We strolled gracefully (okay, I lugged my Manduka) past the pool, took off our sunglasses and decided whether we wanted sun or shade.  The group of roughly 30 people placed their mats, applied sun block, and the practice began. Tara led us through a well-rounded hour class with sun salutes, lunges, gentle twists, standing poses and time for inversions, backbends and some good hip loving. The initially too-hot sun felt amazing as we opened our hearts to a refreshing rooftop breeze to balance out the heat.   The facade of this event was tres LA, but the heart of the event was pure yoga. There is nothing more powerful than a group of people uniting to breathe with intention, to soak up the sun and learn how to light up from within. The irony is that the New York version of the solstice celebration of light was rained out. One big OM and a round of salutations was all they squeezed in before the show was shut down due to lightening. My intital reaction was sympathy for how frustrating that must have been. Then I laughed. Here I was, comparing Angeles to New York all day long.   Green tea verses black coffee.  A hip West Hollywood pool verses the vast green of Central Park. Sunglasses verses reading glasses. US magazine verses The New Yorker. Sun verses rain. What have I learned? Balance. We are all connected. Rain or shine, we are all yogis unified, coming together to show the world that yoga has the power to heal and change the world. Anyone can do yoga–in the park, at a pool, or even from a computer at home. All it takes is the will and intention to do so, and let me just say–10,000 yogis–that’s a pretty sight. Kathryn Budig is a Los Angeles yoga teacher and writer. Kathryn is an arm balance rockstar who teaches challenging vinyasa flow classes at Yoga Works.

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SoCal Solstice Celebration

Years ago, a friend named Tracy offered me an acting tip that has become part of every on-and-off-stage day of my life. It also affects my yoga. We were in a play called Good Night Desdemona. I had to travel through time each night by disappearing through an absurdly small garbage can into, well, into the past to meet both Desdemona and Juliet. I climbed towers, faught with swords, was nearly strangled by Desdemona, and iambic pentameter-ed my way through seven enormous monologues that would have humbled Hamlet. It was a monster of a challenge. On more than one night, I cursed myself for getting something wrong–missing lines, breaking my sword (tough to fight convincingly with a sword stump), not projecting my lines from under the pillow Desdemona used to suffocate me, etc. One night, Tracy (Desdemona) heard me whacking myself to smithereens at intermission. “No way,” she said. Gotta stop that. She said we can’t afford to criticize ourselves. It takes us out of our story, out of our best skills, and it ruins our relationship with other actors and our audience. It ruins our relationship with everything to come. Practice instant forgiveness, she says. It’s the best tool there is for an actor. Everything starts again now. This morning, in a seated forward bend, I thought, holy Toledo, my hamstrings are tight. Not enough yoga and too many butter tarts yesterday. (I don’t see the relationship between the two, now, but they felt completely connected this morning.) And right behind it, like a great actor on cue, I thought; instant forgiveness, honey. Everything starts again now. Which saved the show. Thanks to Tracy for the acting lesson, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin practices yoga, theatre, public speaking, writing, and chiropractic in North Bay, Ontario, at kristinshepherd.ca and at Dr. Kristin Shepherd on Facebook.

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Everything Starts Again Now

One of the world’s largest yoga classes proved also to be one of the shortest. An estimated 10,000 people showed up for yoga in Central Park on Tuesday only to find–mid Surya Namaskar–that lightning and rain would cut the solstice celebration short. Legendary yoga teacher Elena Bower lead the mass of yogis. Participants on the scene say even the rain and thunder could not dampen their moods or destroy their inner peace. One of the greatest things about yoga–and New York City–is its ability to unite young and old, and people from all parts of the city proudly waited in long lines for a chance at this great coming together of community in the park. As they waited, they did what yogis often do: yoga. In the end, the day will be remembered as yet another lesson in willful intention with non-concern for results. Aerial image by Geoffrey Goodridge / Michael O’Neill Photos by J oe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan

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The Faces of Yoga in Central Park

Lucien and I made a trip to the naturopath a couple of weeks ago. Being in a doctor’s office for two hours with a two year old was quite a challenge, but it was worth it. (At my urging, Neil went a few days later.) Within days we’d each changed our diet pretty dramatically (no dairy for Lucien, no sugar for Neil, a liquid iron supplement for me, and much more protein for all of us) and added a regimen of pro-biotics, protein smoothies, and the like to our run of the mill multi-vitamins. We felt better almost immediately. In addition to the dietary changes and supplements, the naturopath (Kristen Brown at the Crossroads Center in Vancouver) suggested that one of the reasons we kept getting sick, as I described a couple of weeks ago, might be that we were all doing too much. Neil needed more sleep, she said. And my system seemed depleted from a three year period that included an IVF cycle, a pregnancy and c section, and two plus years of breastfeeding–all while writing a book, teaching classes, and providing most of Lucien’s daytime childcare. Not to mention moving to a new country. (Although props to Canada for making it possible for us to afford to see the naturopath; the visits will be reimbursed by our health insurance at an incredible 80%.) Was my body trying to tell me something?  Have I been doing too much?  Have we all been? On the drive home, I thought of the David Sedaris essay “On the Kookaburra” where he discusses the idea of the four burners. Think of your life as being like a stove top, says one of the people he encounters on a trip to Australia, where each burner represents a key component: family, friends, health, and work. In order to be successful, the theory goes, you need to turn one of the burners off, and in order to be really successful, you can only have two burners on. Trying to do too much means you’ll suffer in all areas.   The word success is an interesting one. To the yogi, success can, of course, mean fulfillment and inner peace, as much as worldly accomplishment. Either way, I think there’s something to this theory and I’m having a hard time deciding which one–or two–of the burners I’m willing to turn off, even temporarily. Do we all need to readjust our stove tops? Do I? And how to go about making the choice of which burners to turn off, even for a time?  Or is it better–more yogic–to keep all the burners on a moderate flame?   Which burners do you have on high?  Which are you willing to shut off?  And does anyone know where I can get a seriously discounted Viking range with six burners, which would solve the problem completely? Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.  

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The Four Burners

New York Yogis are truly the toughest, most dedicated yogis around. Thousands of mats covered the streets in Times Square and shut down the city center in order to salute the sun  and share a concrete-penetrating AUM! Check it out: Images courtesy of Lem Lattimer.

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Solstice Celebration!

I love yoga because of its solitary nature. An early morning coffee, my lovely man and dog still in bed, me shuffling to the living room in pajama pants and a t-shirt. Darkness in winter, green grass and blue lake in front of me in summer. This is good, good, good. The other side of this is that I often have elaborate get-togethers during my practice. This morning was like this. My daughter is in China. I miss her beautiful face. So, during Warrior II, I reach my fingertips forward and back and imagine my arms growing, circling the world until I can hold her face with both hands. In seated forward bends, I think of one of my best friends, Riesa, who lives on the other side of the country. She taught me some of my favorite forward bends ten years ago. I miss her voice today. My mom shows up when I’m trying to open my hips. I suspect we’d both love to be more flexible with each other. And at the end of my practice, when the time comes to offer the fruits of practice to someone who might benefit (we do this in class, sometimes), I send my love and thanks to Nancy, a theater friend who passed away recently. She was still here when I came back to yoga 8 or 9 months ago. I got into the habit of sending her strength and courage and just kept on after she passed away. My hope is she’s out there somewhere, happy to receive the love. Who knew home practice could be such a gathering place? It also makes me wonder who you’re with when you practice.  I’d love to hear. Thanks to yoga for uniting us all, and thanks to you for the conversation. Kristin Shepherd practices yoga, theatre, public speaking, writing, and chiropractic in North Bay, Ontario. Contact her at kristinshepherd.ca and at Dr. Kristin Shepherd on Facebook.

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Union

In 2009, Father’s Day cost individual consumers an average of $90.89, while Mother’s Day spending was $123.89, according to a recent National Geographic article . Even though the wallets open less wide than for mother’s day, psychology lecturer Gilbert Cole says the smiles are likely genuine when millions of fathers across the U.S. open boxes, peel back tissue paper, and admire their new neckties–still somehow the most common gist for the holiday. Her research shows that even though dads get less attention on Father’s Day than moms do on Mother’s Day, fathers are more likely to be satisfied on their holiday. This letting go of expectation and contentment with what is presented makes Dad, even though he’s never set foot in a yoga studio, a yogi in my book.  Your dad may also embody the Brahmavihara’s , which Thich Nhat Han considers a blueprint for true love. After some brief reflection, it’s obvious that my dad has done yoga his entire life. Maitri , Loving Kindness My dad’s second grade teacher said that Larry had never met a stranger. He was instantly friends with whomever crossed his path. While my mother sometimes briefly bemoaned the additional guests, our dinner table was always shared with those in need of a friend. My father was that unwavering, loving friend for anyone he met.  Karuna, Compassion Every winter my father, without fail, would gather up our old (and sometimes favorite) blankets and drive them to shelters. I remember being dragged out of bed early on Earth Day to clean up the St. John’s River, missing out on a mall trip to accompany him to a soup kitchen–and on more than one occasion being late to school because my dad had stopped to save a (turtle, rabbit, squirrel) that was (in the middle of the road, sick or abandoned).   Mudita, Sympathetic Joy Whose father has not beamed with pride at their graduation, teared up at a wedding or gingerly framed their first finger painting? These life events make it easy to share in others’ joy, but what about the father who is proud even when you make the tough decision to drop out of college or take a chance and move across the country or even across the world? Putting his own preferences aside, he is able to share joy in that which brings me happiness, truly, honestly and selflessly. Vpeksha, Spaciousness, “Seeing the big picture” Whether I was going through a dramatic break-up or disappointed with my SAT score, Dad was always there to put it back in perspective. Dads are good at that.  Whether he takes his time to enjoy a great meal or simply enjoys being outdoors, in what ways has your father proven to be a yogi? Which of these sounds most like him and which of these can you work to embody in your life? Erin Chalfant is a writer, yoga teacher and the Web Editor at Yoga Journal. She would like to thank Sianna Sherman and the Kapi Shashi Kula for inspiring this reflection.

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Is your Dad a Yogi?

When I began practicing yoga, I studied at a beautiful, inspiring, and decidedly glamorous yoga center in downtown New York City. The students saluting the sun beside me were often dancers, actresses, and models-including some big name celebrities like Russell Simmons, Woody Harrelson, and Christy Turlington-all very nice, but I couldn’t help but be intimidated.   Celebrities aside, I used to compare myself to the glossy women in my classes. They were skinny; I wasn’t. They wore high heels, designer clothes, and carried expensive handbags; I wore Converse sneakers and thrift store dresses, and ported my stuff around in a $5 Strand Bookstore bag. More important to me, they had their poses down. Handstand? Headstand? Five wheels in a row? No problem. I was struggling to simply follow along. Now I look back with compassion on the 20-something me. I must have looked cute in my bargain finds. And so what if I didn’t have my asana practice down to a science! It’s called being a beginner, right? These days, I don’t compare myself to others very much in the yoga room, but I do have to stop myself from making comparisons when it comes to Lucien and other children his age. It’s a mind game, and no good for anyone to compare where each child is at when it comes to the particulars of developmental stages. Last year at this time, moms and nannies would come up to me in the playground looking really worried. “He’s not walking yet?” they’d exclaim, as an eighteen-month old Lucien crawled up the stairs and down the slide. And my mind would race with all the worries I had about my slow to walk, not yet toddling toddler.  Nowadays, when people on the playground hear him go through his musical repertoire-don’t get me started on how many songs this boy knows by heart-I get questions about his crazy verbal skills. No, I am not drilling him with flashcards, he just happens to love language and all things musical. Of course, secretly, I can’t help but feel something like pride when mothers and nannies are impressed by Lucien’s rendition of “This Land is Your Land” or “Three Little Birds” or “Seasons of Love” but then I realize that’s a false reality.  The minute I let myself buy into the praise, is the minute I have to also buy into the fears. Is Lucien “too” shy and bookish? How are his motor skills as compared to the other kids his age? Should he be racing down the sidewalk on his balance bike rather than slowly investigating it in the backyard? All of a sudden I’m back at my glamorous yoga center, beating myself up for not yet mastering those advanced poses, rather than embracing the beauty of that 20-something me.   One of my early teachers, this one in Cambridge, Massachusetts, liked to tell us to keep our eyes on our own mat, to not compare our practice to anyone else’s. Great yogic advice-and it works just as well on the playground, too. Next time someone on the playground makes a comment about Lucien-whether praise or a concerned worry-I’ll try and smile graciously, and then let the comment go and get back to some quality time with my boy.   Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Monkey Bar Mind

For the rest of my life, when the subject of PopTarts comes up, I’ll either have to tell shifty-eyed lies or I’ll have to tell the truth. I’ll start with the truth right now. I’ve been away all week at a theatre festival.  This means hotel beds, hotel roommates, late nights, and crazy food–meat or soy balls covered in sweet sauces, served on toothpicks that really add up on your plate. More cheese and crackers than you’ve eaten in your life, and the kinds of sweet squares we all serve at weddings, funerals, board meetings–you know these things. Day One. I begin the week like an angel.  An hour of yoga at 5:30 am in the hotel gym.  I grab a corner of the room, squeeze myself between two treadmills and a wall-to-wall mirror, and do my best on a concrete floor covered in stained indoor-outdoor carpet.  It isn’t class, but it’s okay. Day Two. At 5:30 am, I do 45 minutes of yoga, which is pretty great given four hours of sleep and a really puffy face. (Is it the salt?  The meat/soyballs?)  It’s no fun staring at a bloated version of your own face in a mirror the size of Canada.  And all those people thumping on treadmills, jeez.  Not to mention CNN on the TV. Om. Day Three.   At 5:15 am, because my roommate is snoring and I can’t sleep anyway, I do 30 minutes of yoga in the hallway outside my room on the 10th floor of the hotel.  The carpet is thicker here, and I’m not up to the social thing with the weightlifters, the runners, and the mirror. My face is the puffiest yet.  I’ve been eating sauce balls at midnight for three days.  Why don’t I stop eating them?  I have no idea. This was a good morning of yoga.  I prepare for a wee Savasana at the end.  I lie down. Suddenly a man emerges–naked–from the room across the hall to retrieve his newspaper from the floor outside his door.   He yells.  I yell.  Then he screams: “I’m sorry!” and flees back into his room. I am too rattled for Savasana.    Day Four. I don’t do any yoga this morning. Instead, I sit in the hallway at 5am and read bad news from the newspaper outside my door.  I open and eat the first PopTart of my life.  (It was in a goodie bag we were given on arrival.  I laughed at the absurdity of PopTarts then.  I’m not laughing now.)  It is not my finest moment.  Not my finest day. Day Five.  At Home. Here’s the lesson for me: I’m human.  I do well on some days, and some days I forget everything I’ve learned about yoga, decent food, and kindness to myself. I can hardly wait for class tomorrow. What reminds you to get back to your practice? Thanks to PopTarts, naked men, and meat/soyballs, which help me understand, again, how beautiful yoga is. And thanks to you for the conversation.

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PopTart Yoga

I’m in Omaha to teach a workshop, but since I had the weekend free, I decided to drive to Chicago to catch a soccer game, or football as it’s known in the rest of the world. It was the Chicago Fire versus AC Milan, a world-class Italian team. Since I love the game and have never seen a live match, I decided this would be a great place to start.   Football is known as The Beautiful Game for its breathtaking fluidity and graceful skill.   You can see it exemplified by the Brazilian national teams in 1958, 1970, and 1982. A friend, who is also a soccer player, explained that when kids grow up playing football in parks or on the street in countries like Brazil, where some of the most gorgeous playing styles originate, they are free to be creative, take risks, and play with abandon. When organized teams and rules and structured positions get involved, not to mention the financial influence and pressures of playing at the top levels, it gets harder to invoke the more expansive spirit of the game. The essence of joga bonito , or to “play beautifully,” is at risk of being lost.     When it comes to yoga, life, soccer, or anything we do, some structure can be necessary. We align our poses, we pay our bills, and we join teams.   However, focusing only on the outer form of any activity can pull us up into the head, and in that place, it’s easy to forget the heart.   I used to be fixated on lining up my big toe just so, or by making sure there was always a perfect line from my middle finger to my elbow to shoulder in Warrior II. And don’t even get me started on Handstand. Then one day I ran into John Friend at an ashram, and asked him, “If there was only one thing you could teach your students from now on, what would it be?” I thought for sure he would pick some physical alignment point, a loop or spiral that was particularly crucial. He thought about my question for a good long moment, smiled, and said, “I would tell them: Always remember to float in the heart essence of every pose.”   His answer literally took my breath away. Human nature is one of goodness and creative energy, or shakti, as John might point out. As yogis, we not only try to line up with these aspects through the principles of alignment, but we have a responsibility to embody them from the inside out. Instead of creating poses that look good from the outside but feel nothing beyond the muscles, asanas can become a dance from the core, expression organically rippling outward from our inner connection to joy.     At times like this, watching AC Milan’s incredible Brazilian soccer star Ronaldinho sassily back-kick the ball with his heel and laugh, even though there is a lot at stake, I again remind myself of this. Getting stuck in the mind or in rules, responsibilities, or stories can squeeze the life out of real moments like a mental boa constrictor.   Within your own structures, can you let go? Can you allow a deep soul-sighing relaxation to occur and a lightness and passion to arise–and let yourself play The Beautiful Game every day from the heart?   Here’s a pose to help you remember how.   Core Pose: Half Bound Ardha Chandrasana   I call this pose Flying Bow, because it makes the shape of Dhanurasana (Bow Pose) with the top arm and leg, and allows you to feel like you’re floating the pose high above the Earth.   It also lowers the head in surrender to the heart, and cultivates the rooted freedom that is the goal of any yogi.   Stand at the front of your mat and bend your knees. Fold into a gentle forward bend, widen your hands slightly more than shoulder-distance apart, and come onto the fingertips. Power your right foot into the ground as you bring your left knee into your chest. Take hold of your left ankle in your left hand.   Maintain an engaged lower belly and long tailbone as you begin to roll your left shoulder back and lift your bound leg toward the sky as you straighten your standing leg. Try to press the left foot into your hand, and arch into a heart-opening backbend. Remember to ground the standing foot, especially the big toe mound, for counter balance.   Aim for 5-10 breaths here then release into a forward bend with bent knees before doing the pose on the other side.     Note: If this pose isn’t accessible to you with a straight standing leg, try bending the knee, using a strap to hold the lifted foot, or just reaching for the foot as best you can.        

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The Beautiful Game

I was at a meditation retreat last week. Do you know what they’re like? Grainy, leafy food in portions your pet fish couldn’t survive on, no talking, no reading, no car keys, no wallet, no calling home. It isn’t Club Med. Just meditating, dawn ’till after dusk. It can be lonely. But some fantastic things happen.    Here is one very cool thing.  Picture this: 5am, maybe.  (No watches.)  Still dark out, anyway. I come out of my room each morning, slowly and silently, and head toward the meditation hall, dressed in pajamas. As I walk down the hall, every third or fourth door opens, and another person in pajamas comes out, quietly closing a door behind her.  We look like something from a zombie movie, except that some of the zombies have mats under their arms. We walk in bare feet to the hall where we each pick a spot on the floor. We begin our practice. All you can hear is breathing and the soft thuds of feet jumping forward and back. It’s impromptu Mysore.  No one organized or announced it. It goes on for perhaps forty minutes, people drifting in and out of the hall.  All of this happens before we begin meditating for the day. And, holy mackerel, even though we don’t speak, don’t even look at each other for the most part, even though we’re about to begin another grueling day of seated meditation, I am deliriously happy. I don’t want to leave the impression that meditating is awful from start to finish. Other very cool things that happen on these retreats are an empty, quiet head and a sense of peace that will knock you over if you let it.  I love it. Days later I can still feel it. I feel a need to express some thanks to these zombie yogis. They were my family away from home.  We showed up for each other first thing in the morning on days when it mattered. So to these men and women I don’t know, and to the ones I do know but didn’t say a word to: thank you, thank you, thank you.You made meditating a little easier, and you made me fall in love with yoga all over again. Thanks to yoga zombies for making me fall in love with yoga, and thanks to you for the conversation.

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Yoga Zombies

That’s the question I’m asking myself this week, in the quiet space between traveling to California last week and heading to the Midwest this week where I’m teaching Core Strength workshops. I’m blessed to have so many invitations, but it’s easy for me, in my exuberance about what I do, to over commit and give out too much. Then I end up depleted, with emails piling up and other projects lagging behind. Not to mention neglecting my own practice and nourishment. I must have had two hot chocolates a day in Los Angeles as I ran between meetings. It’s great for the soul, but not so much for the body. I’m realizing that there is a fine line between doing something you love, and doing too much of it. On Facebook, there’s an interesting conversation about how challenging it can be when you’re in love to hold your center and not lose yourself. It’s simple to slip into the habit of giving to and receiving from your partner, but not to and from yourself, which is a necessary component of core strength. When I teach yoga, I see students who strive for the next, best pose, but sometimes cross the line from strengthening into aggression, or from a healthy stretch into destabilization. Yoga only became mainstream a few years back, and now that we’ve transformed and become long, lean, and strong, how do we proceed? By doing and stretching more? All of this is the same lesson, actually. There has to be a time in yoga, in love, and in life when enough is enough. When our bodies are strong and our flexibility is in balance. When our hearts are full of love for someone else. And when we’ve broken through our resistance to live from our passion. But then what? Eastern philosophies like Buddhism teach us about the Middle Way, the road of balance. In yoga, we might call this alignment, the place between giving too much and keeping too much. Where we’re relaxed enough, powerful enough, and therefore, ultimately free. In my own practice, which on a good day lasts the other 22.5 hours that I’m not on a mat, I turn to the yogic principle of asteya , which means “nonstealing.” At first glance, it might seem to have little to do with what I’ve shared here, but its alternate meaning is “integrity.” Think of someone who embodies integrity to you. I bet they’re generous with their time and love, and they probably love what they do. In addition, they are uniquely themselves, treat themselves as they would their closest loved one, and don’t allow that inner attention to be drained outwards. Next time you’re in a yoga pose, notice the state of your energy. Are you stealing what you need from yourself by going too far? In relationships, can you maintain your own life, and also not drain too much attention from another person because it feels so good to have them love you? Are you so focused on creating your life’s work that you move out of integrity and stop nourishing your relationships with friends and family? By bringing awareness to the places where steya , or stealing, occurs, we can take actions that move us away from suffering, fatigue. and resentment, and re-tip the scales in favor of the integrity of true center. CORE POSE : Ardha Matsyendrasana  (Half Lord of the Fishes Pose) When I approach this pose, I think of the proverb: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Practice this asana any time you need a reminder to turn inside to empower yourself or to hold center even as you engage in all your many offerings of the heart. Come to sitting and cross your right foot to the outside of your left thigh. To begin the twist, ground your left elbow into the top of your right knee (not your thigh) to create length in your spine. From this place of spinal integrity, begin to revolve your heart center to your right. Let your gaze follow. Make sure that your hips and navel continue to face forward, and only express the pose as much as needed to stay centered in the foundation. Take 5-10 breaths here then release and repeat on the other side.      

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When is Enough Enough?

Photo: Trying to be productive at the University of British Columbia library. I’m sitting in the library on campus with a thermometer in my mouth and a stack of tissues on my desk, feeling entirely unenlightened.   My husband Neil is out of town for work, and I’m sick–can hardly get out of bed sick–for the second time this month, and the sixth or seventh time (at least) since September.   Before having a baby, I’d heard from friends about the dreaded string of colds and flu that a little one can bring home from preschool or daycare.   But Neil and I thought that wouldn’t be us, not with our good eating habits, early to bed early-to-rise schedules, and healthy lifestyles.   Hah!   Lucien goes to a wonderful morning daycare program on campus four mornings a week where his teachers are not only loving and caring, but diligent about washing hands.   Yet no amount of hand washing or hand sanitizing has stopped Lucien from coming home with minor nose drips–which, when we adults get them, turn into raging fevers and coughs and congestion.   Neil had walking pneumonia earlier this year, and I had H1N1 back in the fall, and then the regular flu a couple months ago.   Even a run of the mill fever and sore throat like I have now makes my normal life seem all of a sudden unmanageable–especially with Neil away.   What’s a yogi to do?   I’ve tried vitamins, immune-system building asana sequences, but nothing seems to be enough to fend off the viruses.   What’s strange, too, is that I feel great in between illnesses. Then all of a sudden I feel the tell-tale scratchy throat, sneezes, and the shivers that come with fever.   Sleeping fitfully last night, it was all I could do to make breakfast, pack a lunch, and get Lucien ready for the drive to campus this morning.   Thank goodness our babysitter can come over this afternoon so I can sleep off my fever, b ut I’m determined to figure out how we can get and stay healthy–or at least healthier–from now on.   How do you stay healthy with young children in the house? Ideas and suggestions, please? Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer   (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Sick of Being Sick

Though I sometimes wish I could splurge on the many outfits I put together for my blog and here at Yoga Journal , the reality is that it is not always possible. In these tough economic times I like to be a serious bargain hunter. I challenged myself this week to see what I could come up with on a budget. This entire outfit, shoes, bag, and yoga mat are just a little over $100.00 combined. the details: Funnel-neck Active Zip Jacket   oldnavy.com $15.00 Sports Bra   forever21.com $11.80 Fold-Over Yoga Capris  oldnavy.com   $16.50 Washed Small Cross Body Bag  topshop.com $36.00 Damask Gaiam Yoga Mat   target.com   $19.99 Silver Metallic Gladiator Sandals   oldnavy.com $17.99

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Wish I was Wearing: Bargain Hunters

We’ve talked a lot about helping provide access to yoga for under-served and at-risk youth. But there’s another population equally in need of yoga’s healing and meditative benefits: the elderly. Physically and economically challenged seniors often can’t swing $15 a class–or keep up with the vigorous vinyasa flow. Frank Iszak knows this. The 78-year-old yoga teacher and founder of Silver Age Yoga in San Diego has made it his life’s mission to get grannies and grandpas on the mat. He goes to them (in senior centers, libraries, and churches), keeps it simple, and tailors his classes to help offset some of their common health issues: osteoporosis, arthritis, diabetes, weight gain, and poor circulation. Best of all, his classes are totally free! Iszak, who escaped to the U.S. from forced labor camp in communist Hungary in 1958, lives for seva, tirelessly working to improve the lives of others. “Our basic goal is to make their lives better–for whatever years they have left on planet Earth,” he says of his students. Sangha, too, is an important part of the Silver Age formula: Lonely seniors get a chance to connect physically, mentally, and spiritually with a community focused on feeling better in the world. Want to support Iszak’s work? You can donate to Silver Age, a 501(c) (3) organization , directly. Or, better yet, you can sign up for one of Iszak’s online teacher trainings and get busy bringing yoga to the seniors in your hometown.

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Good Old Yoga

“Hold that for 5 breaths.” If you’re new to yoga, I’d like to give you some great advice: never believe this. It’s not going to be 5 breaths. It’s going to be about 27 breaths. It’ll go like this: The teacher starts out well enough: that’s one breath (then an adjustment to someone’s left hip and some encouraging advice), that’s two (if you just hold your shoulder back a little…ahhhh, that’s good), and that’s three already (I’m at twelve!), that’s four (and if you’d like a challenge, now, if you’d like to go a little deeper, try this) that’s four and a half–and now with a slight smile the teacher somehow manages to count: that’s five. It’s twenty-seven breaths for me. At first, I laughed at this. Then I resented it. Once I said out loud, “That isn’t three, it’s seventeen!” Today I see it a bit differently. Today I understand that it’ll take years, maybe five years for my shoulders to open. Maybe it’ll take seventeen years for my hips to open enough to do a full lotus. It’s more than that. Maybe it’ll take 27,000 breaths for me to relax into a pose without pushing and straining and achieving the whole time. Maybe it’ll take 270,000 breaths to enjoy the time I’ve been given in each pose and beyond: in each relationship, in each mouthful of food, in each hour at work, in whatever I’m learning today. You get the picture. It’s the new math. I wonder what you’re learning in your 27 breaths. I’d love to hear. Thanks to Rob and Cristina for yoga math (Bring it on!), and thanks to you for the conversation.

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New Math

This week I have an appointment with one of the biggest TV networks. I’m slightly excited but mostly just curious. I’m not sure what will happen, only that I’ll sit with a few producers who have never met me in order to explain, in 45 minutes or less, who I am and my idea for a show. Actually, according to Malcolm Gladwell, author of Blink , I will have more like 2 to 4 seconds.   Gladwell’s research shows that people can tell in this short a time whether they like, trust, or are attracted to you, or if they feel a situation is right for them.  These judgments are made based on your appearance and the inner energy that people sense from you, before you’ve even said a word. Yogis have known this for a while. Only we call it prajna , or inner wisdom. Since I can only pick out an outfit that represents me (check, including my lucky nickel necklace), eat well and do my yoga so I’m healthy (check), and go in there prepared and with my best intentions in mind (check), my inner wisdom tells me to surrender the rest and enjoy the moment for what it is. Yet the thing is, this 4-second knowing isn’t always accurate. Sometimes people who dislike each other at first meeting end up becoming lifelong soulmates. Or you can make an assumption about someone and be totally off-base. (I once saw what I thought was a homeless couple in Los Angeles, and then realized it was Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt dressed in the grunge fashion of the day.) There’s a fine line between the instant awareness of truth that comes to us when we live close to our center and the snap judgments born of fear, ego, or confusion that often masquerade as intuition. In life, which can be loud, unpredictable, and filled to the brim with other people’s assumptions, opinions, and perspectives, it’s important for the yogi to meet the world from a place of inner quiet and the kind of understanding that wells up from somewhere deep inside. But to really trust that truth, instead of thinking or rationalizing it to death, you first have to be able to hear it. The yogic art of pratyahara , the fifth limb of  Patanjali’s eightfold path of ashtanga yoga, can help. Pratyahara is the action of drawing your attention back to the core of your being, where all voices are muted except for your innermost one. The life-changing thing I’ve learned through yoga is that it’s much easier to draw inward when you don’t try to resist the outer cacophony of the world at large or even the internal noise generated by your mental and emotional plat du jour . Instead, the yogi learns to exist in two places at once–engaging in relationship with outer stimuli and yet constantly checking in with her core wisdom.  I think of this as a kind of dual drishti –where your gaze and attention simultaneously remain on the world around you and the world within. And until you learn to hear that wisdom, seeking inner guidance will be more like asking a random stranger how to get somewhere rather than creating a road map for yourself–of yourself–that you can use anywhere and at anytime. The following technique can help you develop pratyahara and stay in communication with your inner navigator through all the adventures that lie ahead!   Core Meditation : Dual Drishti Meditation Come into Sukasana (Easy Pose). Root your sitting bones into the Earth and feel a corresponding lift of support through your lower belly and spine. Close your eyes and breathe slowly and evenly through your nose. Bring your awareness first to the sounds and sensations occurring outside of you, in the room and beyond the building. Then notice the sensations on your skin, the thoughts rolling through your mind, and whether your heart is calm or in emotional turmoil. Simply observe all these things as if you were people-watching from a sidewalk café, holding onto no one thing in particular for long. Whatever predominates in your focus, witness it, and then let it pass. Let your breath help you soften any urge to resist or engage any of these sounds or feelings. Even as your attention remains on this first aspect of your experience, bring it to the subtler peaceful space at your center. You can focus on the pit of the belly as a symbolic location for this core, but then let the calm, abiding energy become part of your whole being. As you remain conscious of whatever is going on externally, use its ebb and flow to provide context for what is unwavering deep inside of you. Can you train your attention to be present in these two places at once? When you do, you’ll begin to notice that as you hone your inner gaze, the outer one will soften and broaden, dissolving its power to limit your vision into judgment or reactivity. Breathe and be with this practice for 5 minutes or more.                  

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Learning to Listen–to Yourself

This week I’m in Los Angeles for meetings with two TV networks to discuss a show idea. We’ll see what comes out of it–could be something or nothing. This is my week of practicing no expectations, and it’s hard not to “what-if” the situation to death, let me tell you! In the midst of preparing my show proposal, I got an email from a Facebook friend, Scott. He asked if I could reach out to someone he knew who had been following my videos online and might need a word of support. I told him it would be my pleasure, and started a sweet and rewarding correspondence with his friend. In gratitude for my help, Scott asked if I needed any graphic design work done–a logo, something for my website, whatever. I realized that my dowdy Word document proposal could use a little makeover to get ready for these meetings. So I asked Scott if he could take a look and add some flair. He not only designed an amazing logo, he added touches all over the proposal, including a front and back cover. Basically, he took my pumpkin and turned it into a chariot, something I never could have done on my own. The amazing thing is, he asked for nothing in return. When I asked what I could do to repay him, he said, “No way. I just know how it is, to want to chase a dream–a destiny–and to be able to get assistance makes the experience even more transforming.” Then he said one of the most noble things I’ve ever heard: “It would go against my beliefs if I was able to help you and did not.” Wow. Double wow.  Of course, this selflessness made me want to give back to him even more strongly. We each have something to give: a skill, assistance, a door that only we can open for another. When we do this without thought of reward, it becomes seva , or selfless service, according to the yogic path. Now, some people believe that if they help one person, they’ll have to help everyone. That’s only true if you’re not willing to set boundaries or are not sensitive to when your help is truly moving someone forward. It’s responsible to say no when doing so would be a drain to you or not a healthy support mechanism for the person. But none of us can do it all alone–and there are times when to refuse help is just plain energetically greedy. This ends up manifesting more lack for everyone involved, and the karmic wheel continues to turn.  The yogi learns to know the difference. If we consciously and freely offer seva at pivotal moments, we not only gain the energy of awareness and freedom in our own lives, we do one better. We help to change the world by letting in more goodness and more light. If we would all remove roadblocks for one other, while still focusing on our own life’s work, think of how much farther and faster we could go. Core Action: What could you do to make a clear road ahead for someone you know?  Core Pose: Malasana Twist This is a fantastic posture that gives you the benefits of a twist, low-back releaser, and hip opener all in one. It will free more energy for you to give–out, or in, as you wish!  Enjoy. Come into Malasana (Garland Pose) with feet wide and toes turned out the same direction as your knees.  Place your right elbow inside the right knee, and revolve your chest to the left as you stretch your left arm into the air. Lengthen through your spine as you breathe to release out your side and back body.  Hold for 5-10 breaths then switch to the other side. End with a forward fold in Malasana. Reach your arms in front of you, resting palms on the floor, and relax for a few breaths in this neutral posture.  

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Paying it Forward

Photo: Blissed out in my favorite restorative.  It’s Lucien’s nap time, 2:30 in the afternoon, and the house is blissfully quiet. I’ve been going all day, in full productivity mode–writing, work emails, laundry, and a few hours of Lucien-care.  What I really want to do now, in this precious hour before afternoon playtime and dinner and bath, is curl up on the couch and watch Oprah. But it’s time to do yoga. (Lucien’s nap time is the only time of day I can consistently fit a home practice in.)  I wish I could say I bound off the couch and into my yoga corner every afternoon, but the truth is that most days I have to drag myself there. More often than not, my practice is a restorative sequence done wearing wool socks.  Some days I rally for standing poses and active back bends. Usually, though, I take a “yoga nap,” as my close friend Kristen Rentz Lewis, fellow mom and author of  YogaNap: Restorative Poses for Deep Relaxation,  calls it.   My absolute favorite restorative pose right now is Ardha Halasana , Supported Half-Plow Pose with a chair.  It’s helped me with everything from headaches to exhaustion, from anxiety to getting over a cold.  The catch is–I can’t get into the pose comfortably without doing several other poses first.  And so, I begin my practice.  Supta Baddha Konasana (Reclining Bound Angle Pose), Ado Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose), a headstand, a shoulder stand with the chair.  My baby monitor is on, and yes, I confess that at first I do check my iPhone in between poses for incoming emails!  But twenty minutes in, I’m always glad to be practicing.  Most days I manage to practice for an hour, and sometimes even more.  And then, if Lucien is still sleeping–fingers crossed–I get on the couch and see what’s on Oprah. Whether you’re a stay-at-home mom with a never ending to-do list, or at the office all day and need every moment at home to take care of your household and connect with your children, give yourself the gift of at least a few restorative poses done at home, in a quiet place, each week. Here are some great resources for developing a restorative home practice: The Woman’s Book of Yoga and Health: A Lifelong Guide to Wellness   (see the chapter on restoratives) by Linda Sparrowe and Patricia Walden Relax and Renew: Restful Yoga for Stressful Times   by Judith Lasater YogaNap: Restorative Poses for Deep Relaxation   by Kristen Rentz What’s your favorite restorative pose?  How do you spend nap time?   –Jessica Berger Gross Jessica Berger Gross is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer   (Skyhorse), she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Yoga Nap

Last night I went to ninja school. OK, that’s not its technical name, but the ancient martial art of ninjitsu is one of the forms I will be studying each week at a dojo in New York City. I’ve been interested in martial arts since I was young, but it took me until now to sign up for a class. What does this have to do with yoga? Well, after 15 years of practicing asana, I wanted to shake things up a bit. Specifically, I am attracted to the experience of beginner’s mind that is foundational in every mindful-movement style. And what better way to do this than to become an actual beginner at something once again?  I can easily bring a sense of the beginner’s perspective in the form of curiosity and openness to even my most repetitive yoga poses. And I learn a lot that way. But it’s not the same as actually beginning a new process.  There’s nothing quite like the feeling of stepping into the complete unknown and confronting the real fear that arises from doing something that you never have before. But as I entered the dojo for my first class, I understood that what I was experiencing wasn’t fear as much as it was excitement. I also recognized that this would be another opportunity to practice saucha , or cleanliness. Now, I took a shower and came into the dojo without perfume, and with nails clipped and hair back as instructed. But the type of cleaning I’m talking about goes deeper than the outer form. By purposefully stepping into a situation where I had no idea what to expect, I was organically cleared of expectation. I didn’t have a historical context to compare this moment to or experience to draw from. So I just listened, and enjoyed the clarity that comes from finding oneself with a washed-clean mind, heart, and history. My yoga practice had actually prepared me well for the movement, alignment, and knowledge of balance I needed to get through the class. I learned to stand more solidly and fall more consciously, partnering with another center of gravity in a dance with my own. But the best part about the experience was knowing that I was capable of being cleaned out on all levels, creating the space to take in a whole new view of the world. If you feel like you’re stagnating, coasting on what you know, or if you are mentally cluttered with perspectives that aren’t serving your growth and fullness of experience, try becoming a beginner. It doesn’t have to be a huge commitment. Sometimes just breaking your routine, hiking along a different path, or listening to another kind of music can spark this saucha of spirit.  The relief from the weight of your experiences will be well worth it. Core Question : What can you do to move outside your comfort zone and try something you never have? Core Pose : Crow Pose I often use Crow as a way to bring students into the unknown, so they can play at their mindful edge and move into beginner’s mind with integrity. These three approaches should get you there, no matter what level you’re at now. Go at your own pace, and don’t rush into anything you’re not ready for. 1) Flying: Plant your hands on the mat, fingers wide. Lift your heels and hips, and squeeze your elbows and knees inward. Round through your back to access core strength then float your heart forward until your elbows stack over your wrists. Keep hugging in and up, and work on flying high. 2) Jumping Back from Crow: If Crow is a breeze, maintain the containment of elbows over wrists, then hop your feet back on an exhalation into Chaturanga Dandasana. Proceed through your vinyasa to Downward-Facing Dog. 3) Jumping Forward into Crow: From Down Dog, walk your feet together and take small hops toward you hands on your exhalations. As your belly pulls in to help you lift up, your knees will widen to touch your upper arms. Over time, you will refine this action to transition into the pose without touching your feet down at all.      

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Cultivating Beginner’s Mind

I know what you’re thinking… harem pants, really? Really! I love them and I know you can pull them off.  I also adore this yoga mat bag-finally a bag large enough to fit my yoga mat, towel, and whatever else I need to pack in there. the details: Carry All Yoga Bag, Prana Seamless Carefree Cami, Be Present Harem Pant, Athleta Inspire Bracelet, Fossil Harmony Yoga Mat, Jade Yoga   eQua Yoga Towel, Manduka   Tree Garden Curtain, Urban Outfitters   –Ali Zeigler

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Wish I was Wearing: Tangerine Threads

Photo: My son Lucien in Pacific Spirit Regional Park, Vancouver, BC After my failed attempt at mommy and baby yoga, which I described in my last post, I didn’t know what to do. I mourned and missed my yoga practice, but didn’t have the energy to try a class again anytime soon, and I couldn’t imagine getting a home practice going, either. What I could do?  Walk.  While walking’s obviously not the same as asana, they both involve moving your body in a kind of meditative way.  Before getting pregnant I’d gone on retreats where we’d practiced walking meditation. So why not try meditative walking? Walking is something I could do with just Lucien and a pair of sneakers.  And maybe my dog Salem would stop gnawing at the rugs in our Brooklyn sublet if she came along. And so Lucien and Salem and I began taking daily three mile walks in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. The first time we went out I honestly didn’t know if I could finish the loop.  Sweat poured down my nursing bra.  The smallest incline felt like Mount Everest.  But I managed to finish. Each day the walk became easier, though I often had to stop and nurse on a freezing cold park bench in the middle of winter.  Some days Lucien cried during the walk. I’d sit with him, or walk and sing to him. Most days, thank goodness, he’d fall asleep.  I’d hold Salem’s leash in one hand, push the stroller with the other, and hold my phone to my ear (oops, not very meditative there) talking to my experienced-mom-of-three friend Katherine, or my just-about-to-have-her-baby friend Kristen. Some days I’d simply be. I may not have been on my mat, but during those sleep-deprived early months of nursing round the clock and learning how to care for a newborn, walking–alongside healthy eating–became my yoga. (By six months, I was ready to slowly start practicing asana again. In my next post, I’ll share that adventure and which poses helped to ease me back.) Lucien and Salem and I still walk together several times a week. Instead of taking nursing breaks, these days I have to stop and give Lucien his fair share of toddler run around time.  Here’s a photo from a walk we took the other day in Vancouver, where we live now. Where are your favorite places to walk with your children?  Jessica Berger Gross is the author of  enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer  (Skyhorse).

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Hitting the Road

Watch the latest news video at video.foxnews.com Yoga and mysticism: Not the kind of thing you see much of on Fox News. But, lo! Andrew Harvey appeared on the “Fair & Balanced” network on May 7 to speak about his new book, Heart Yoga: The Sacred Marriage of Yoga and Mysticism . The great teacher –former professor of religious studies at Oxford, epic spiritual quester, multi-dimensional mystic, and founder of the Institute of Sacred Activism–kept his eyes closed during much of the segment. Maybe this was to maintain inward focus while sharing his vision of helping anyone who practices yoga “taste and feel the divine energies in their bodies.”  Or maybe this was to shut out the cluelessness of his host, religion correspondent Lauren Green, who fumbled with her headset,  and mmm-hmm, right, mmm-hmmed her way through Harvey’s explanation of the chakra system, and bumbled every reference to yoga life (”Most of us in the West are used to a yoga that just helps us to lose weight…is it Brikum? Beerkam?). One wonders what die-hard fans of Newt Gingrich, Karl Rove, Sarah Palin, and Mike Huckabee must have thought of Harvey’s explanation  that all of creation is “a shattering white diamond light that is actually manifesting the whole cosmos” and that the human body itself is “dancing light consciousness.”  Once can only hope that those who tuned into the clip by accident were touched–if only a little–by the profound teachings of a modern master. Tune in by design, and you surely will be. –Hillari Dowdle

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Light on Fox News

Just when you thought there wasn’t any good news flowing forth from Washington…it’s time for Yoga on the Mall ! The event–happening on Saturday, May 15–is basically a ginormous group class led by teachers from participating D.C. studios. Yoga Week  organizers say no experience is necessary; just show up with your mat and some snacks, and join the flow. The practice will be broken into consecutive 20-minute sessions that become progressively more challenging as the day wears on.  Since YOTM starts at 1:00 and ends at 5:00, you can make it your experience a quickie or a real marathon. (And oh yeah, superstar teacher Shiva Rea will be on hand to give you adjustments!) Hopefully the positive energy generated will spill out toward Capitol Hill. Couldn’t we use a little more love in our political environment? –Hillari Dowdle

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Capitol Idea

The other night in class, a student came up and said, “I thought I was coming for a workout and I ended up getting life lessons, too!” Turns out he needed to hear what I was offering in order to understand the way out of a specific struggle he’s been dealing with. Like we say in yoga, when the student is ready… Before we begin our physical poses, I always gather the class for a Karma Talk. This is when I lay out my intentions for the practice and encourage students to set their inner dedication so they can align with it as they move on the mat. My talk that night was about how we all say we want good karma, but we might not realize that the outcome of any situation that is most beneficial to us is also one directly created by us, through the choices we make in each moment. In other words, we don’t just follow our dreams, we make them happen. What we do now, and more specifically, how we do it and from what intention, can either create harmony or discordance with who we really are. Have you ever heard an Om at the beginning of class that sounded like each person chose a different note on purpose, but by the end of class, it’s become united? This happens when we all pay attention not only to the outside but the inside as well; to know ourselves better in that place of sattva , or calm equilibrium. As a teacher, I see so many students straining towards the external look of a pose, going too fast, leaping at the wall in handstand, not breathing mindfully. When our confidence and life’s meaning rests only in the way we look and what others think of us, and our sense of security forever shifts with the things we have (money) or don’t have (money), we have lost sight of one crucial thing: Our core connection. Yogis might call this satya , one’s ultimate truth, or even atman , the soul within us. Other philosophies say it’s hara , a state of living from center, or simply, coming home to oneself. This isn’t accomplished by having one huge, enlightened experience in meditation and then being set for life.  You have to get your hands in the dirt now and do the work it takes to plant those seeds of action so they may come to fruition in their own, often in surprising ways. The beauty of yoga, or the practice of living out loud, is that you don’t have to worry about what kind of flower or tree your seeds will become. If you practice the three steps to transformation–make space, go inside, then take actions that best represent you–then the rest is coming just as it should. How freeing to know we can just spend our time cultivating the courage to dissolve old limiting blocks and stories, listening to the core connection we make with ourselves, and then trusting our inner wisdom enough to follow through with actions that we know are coming from our best self. So, what’s your next core action? Better yet, how will you undertake it with integrity, grace, and without placing the burden of needing to control the outcome on the featherlight power and magic inherent in pure doing for its own sake? Let us know! Core Pose : Siddhasana Side Stretch and Forward Fold Siddhasana pays homage to those who have transcended their external fixations and returned home to a state of calm awareness.  You can make space, listen in, and choose as wisely as a Siddha when you take time to practice from this intention. Come into Siddhasana (Adept’s Pose) with one foot in front of the other. Place your right palm onto the floor to your right, and with a long spine and lifted side waist, reach the left arm over your ear. Bend your right elbow and breathe new space into any constriction you feel around the lungs and chest. If your neck feels uncomfortable, turn your gaze to the floor or right ear to right shoulder and let the head gently drop for a sweet stretch. Take 5 or more breaths, and then switch sides.   After completing both sides, inhale and sit up tall. Exhale and fold forward with palms or forearms on the mat. Take at least one minute here, bringing breath into your back body and releasing past habits and beliefs that block you from accessing your inner wisdom and truth. Then listen to that subtle yet powerful voice within for your next direction.

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Creating Good Karma

New York yogi alert: If you like the idea of helping at-risk city kids get access to the practice, check out the Yoga at School program at the Integral Yoga Institute .  Yoga teacher Erin Wilson works with the kids at James Baldwin High School , an end-of-the-line transfer school for kids from all over the city–kids who’ve had it tough or been in trouble but still want a chance at a brighter future.  “For a lot of these students, violence is a way of life–they’ve been involved in gangs, they have friends and family in prison, they come from tough economic situations,” says Wilson.  “Yoga empowers them to exercise self-control. It teaches them compassion for themselves and for others. It shows them how to deal with the stress of being a teen and to live a life of peace.” See the concept in action Friday, May 7, at the Integral Yoga Institute (227 W. 13th Street; 212-929-0586). Join Wilson for a special Yoga class at 7:30 p.m., followed by a presentation from the student participants. There will be free vegetarian cuisine, music, and a silent auction to benefit the program. It’s a fundraiser–if you want to pay it forward, your donation will be most welcome. (There isn’t a suggested minimum, but Wilson says something in the neighborhood of $25 would be helpful.)  Who knows? Perhaps your participation will lead to a future of perfectly peaceful rides on the D train.

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Benefit the Future

Photo: On the subway in Brooklyn, New York with a 6-week-old Lucien. As I posted the other day, practicing yoga was the furthest thing from my mind when I brought my son Lucien home from the hospital. By six weeks post-partum, though, I really started missing asana. The doctor who’d performed my c-section gave me the OK to exercise, so I gathered up my energy and my son’s overstuffed diaper bag and ventured out to our first mommy and baby yoga class. This was something I’d dreamt about for years. How fun to teach my baby yoga! Too bad Lucien didn’t see it that way.  He cried from the moment we entered the yoga center until we left an hour later. He pooped twice in the first 45 minutes–I spent half the class in the tiny Brooklyn-sized bathroom changing him–and the rest of the time he wailed while I tried to put him down on the mat long enough for me to get in a couple of poses.  I ended up leaving the class in tears and feeling like a complete failure. All the other moms and babies seemed to handle the class fine.  What was wrong with me?  With us?  I felt isolated. I felt like a freak. (And honestly, with twenty-five pounds to lose, I felt fat.)  Would I ever practice again? Would I ever feel like myself?  Would I ever get my favorite jeans back on? Have you tried Mommy and Baby classes?  How do you make it to your mat?

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We Flunked Mommy-Baby Yoga

I’m getting ready to go to Toronto to see my kids. My sister has lightly suggested we go to one of her yoga classes while I’m there. I’m nervous. I’ve been at my home studio for about seven months. It’s all I know. What if Sun Salutations are different in Toronto? What if I’m dying half way through the class, and I have to spend 45 minutes in Child’s Pose? What if my pants won’t stay up and my shirt won’t stay down? (Granted, this happens in every one of my own classes, but it’s different in a room I know.) Argh, it’s like starting all over. Holy Mackerel, the phone rings. It’s my sister: she says she just finished the toughest yoga class of her life. Her hair gel poured into her eyes, she was sweating so hard. A little ominous, perhaps? Ok, slow down, maybe try some yoga. I walk into my home studio and a woman puts her mat down beside me and says, “I’m new, and I’m nervous–is there anything I should know?” I almost cry. In this second I realize I’ve been at this yoga business for a few months, and that feels good. I am absurdly happy to welcome her and to assure her that she’ll be fine. I am a welcome-wagon maniac. I spent the first two months of yoga avoiding eye contact, too worried about my pants, my shirt, and my uncooperative body to let myself relax into things. I am shocked to see it can be done differently. So, this weekend I’ll try to go in this foreign studio as an aspiring yogi: breathing, present, willing to play with others. And I will humbly do Child’s Pose the entire time if I have to. I’ll let you know how it goes. Thanks to yoga for the lesson, and thanks to you for the conversation.

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Home Sweet Yoga

Yesterday I taught in a state of emergency–literally. I’d traveled to Nashville for a weekend of Core Strength workshops at three local studios. My visit coincided with the worst flooding the city has ever seen and a subsequent call for a state of emergency. Unbeknownst to me or any of the students, at one point we were on our mats while a tornado touched down a mere six miles away! Driving to back to my hotel, I saw homes under water up to the rooftops. People have lost so much in such a short amount of time–photos, their favorite chair, mementos from childhood and from their children.  My host here in the city, yoga instructor Rommy Hussey, and I were talking about how hard a teaching that must be. It’s a letting go unlike any most of us will ever have to deal with–on a material level, at least. I invite you to take a moment to send lovingkindness to all the beings in Tennessee and everywhere, who are suffering right now. When I showed up to the studio this morning and a few dedicated yogis joined me, I realized that this really is our practice: to surrender to what is, to breathe, and to move forward, even in the worst of times. To me, this is the essence of Ishvara pranidhana , translated as “devotion to the Lord,” which was Patanjali’s call to soften through the pain, the destruction, the unwanted and the intense. When we drop resistance to reality, and cease the fight against what we don’t want, we are infinitely more able to receive what we do: the healing, the loving, and the broader perspective that brings us all home to center, regardless of the storms and winds of change that come and go outside. CORE POSE: Circling Camel (Ustrasana), variation This pose will help you make more room for breath as it opens your heart center, helping you embrace any situation as a learning experience and reminding you of the inner strength that resides at your core. Kneel at the front of your mat, toes flexed beneath you. Firm your lower belly in and up, and lengthen the tailbone. Bring your left hand onto your hip or left heel if you’re more back-bendy. Reach your right arm up, and inhale as you circle it back and down onto the right hip or heel for a shoulder stretch. Lift the left arm on your next inhalation, and circle it around on the exhalation. Repeat for 3 to 5 rounds, maintaining core support and the length of your spine. End in a full Camel Pose with both hands on the hips or heels, lifting your chest higher from the back of your heart.   For a good counter position, rest in Child’s Pose for 10 breaths, knees together, and wave your hips gently from side to side.

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Surrendering to What Is

Hey, it’s already May! That means Memorial Day weekend is coming up, and it’s time to get out your Birks and start looking around for some hippy-dippy fun. One good option: the Lightening in a Bottle Festival at Oak Canyon Ranch in Irvine, California (just south of L.A., y’all). It’s a full-on music festival–featuring more than 50 acts over the course of four groove-infused days. But there’s also plenty of yoga–workshops on AcroYoga, Rasa Yoga, Five Elements Buddhist Yoga, and more (including a workshop called “Yoga in a Bottle: Living Your Creative Destiny”). Factor in movable art installations and a good-karma emphasis on Earth-friendliness, and there are plenty of good reasons to be here now (or get there then, as the case may be).

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Get Your Groove On

Photo caption: New mommy kale, tofu and rice When I got pregnant, I’d been studying yoga for more than a decade. I vowed to have a yogic pregnancy and birth experience. I attended prenatal yoga class faithfully. At nine months pregnant I was doing headstands and chair shoulder stands. I imagined my labor would be like a very intense weekend yoga workshop–really hard, but something I’d get through with breathing and the proper motivation. Afterward I’d leave the hospital with my baby, feeling like myself again in no time, ready to practice yoga at home while my son napped.  Could I have been any more naive? Of course, plenty of women do have wonderful baby-in-the-bathtub births, but my labor lasted for more than 24 hours, included an antibiotic drip from the beginning, and it was so excruciatingly painful that I couldn’t say no to the epidural. At the last minute, I had to have an emergency c-section. Recovering in the hospital, my baby spent 48 hours in the NICU, resulting in major problems with my milk supply.  And one day after returning home with my son Lucien I had to be rushed to the ER because of massive swelling in my legs. When I finally got set up at home I couldn’t feel sensation in my midsection, and my postpartum doula had to practically stage an intervention to get me to stop taking Percocet.  For the first six weeks, every ounce of my energy went to nursing Lucien, recovering from the surgery, and trying to grab some sleep when I could. I didn’t unroll my yoga mat once–and to be honest, given how much pain I was in, and how insanely tired I was, I didn’t really see how I was going to anytime soon. Looking back on it now, the most important step I took during those first few weeks was totally re-conceiving my idea of a yoga practice. Although I’d studied yoga philosophy, asana had always been at the core of my practice. As a new mom, I came to think about practice more broadly, in terms of self-care. Since I was breastfeeding, the most yogic thing I could do for my baby and me was to take several minutes three times a day to eat a healthy meal.  If I couldn’t sleep for more than a couple hours at a time, at least I could get energy from good food.  On mornings when my doula came over, she’d prepare me a protein packed salad with a sliced hard-boiled egg and chick peas. In the evenings, my husband Neil often made me a bowl of sauteed kale, baked tofu, and brown rice.  It wasn’t the same as a downward dog, but it was a start. Are you a new mom hoping to rediscover your yoga practice?  Are you feeling guilty because you haven’t gotten back onto your mat or dusted off your meditation cushion?  Why not start simply, by asking your partner or best friend or mom to make you a special, healthy lunch or dinner? Take a few minutes to eat in peace and quiet, away from your baby.  Definitely don’t nurse while you’re eating! Savor the prana from the food on your plate, and relish the loving way it was prepared for you. Know that with this small step you’re on the (long) road to recovering your yoga practice. Share your favorite new yoga mom meals here!

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The Yoga in Tofu

Yesterday one of my students told me that another teacher called her out in class, saying, “You’re trying too hard.” This puzzled her. She didn’t think she was overdoing it, but then again, maybe the teacher saw something she didn’t. Perhaps she was running over herself and maybe she wasn’t, but it’s an interesting concept. When does striving toward a goal become stressful and when does it create transformation? This is why we say that to practice yoga is to walk the razor’s edge. There’s a fine line between too much sthira (effort) and too much suhka (ease), and the more we come to the mat, the more intimately we get to know it. The balance inherent within these two polarities, the “field,” as Rumi would say, where growth meets freedom, is known as santosha , or contentment, one of the niyamas of the yogic path. Niyama means observance, or something that you do that helps you line up with your inherent equilibrium. But this can mean saying No to something (straining to do a handstand when you’re not ready) as often as it asks you to say Yes. As yogis, we learn the art of knowing when to take action, and, importantly, when not to, in order to achieve a consistent state that is without aggravation or inertia; not moving too fast or lagging behind. So, how can we tell when we’re trying just hard enough in yoga, and in life? After all, neither our dreams nor our handstands are gonna just create themselves. As a teacher, the first thing I look at is your breath. It’s a pretty good gauge to let me know when you go off the rails.  If you can’t breathe slowly and deeply, or you sound more like Darth Vader than a smooth ocean wave, it’s time for Child’s Pose. I’m also checking out your alignment, specifically the foundation and core connection. If you’re in that same handstand, but your back is arching and your elbows are bent and wavering, then you’re not really in a handstand at all. You’re in a misaligned and compressive backbend that the wall is preventing from going into full (and injury-prone) expression. It’s not getting you where you want to go, which is to balance without the wall someday, with firm support from your arms and abdominals. What actually happens when we try too hard is that we simultaneously fall into the mire of inertia. We shoot ourselves in the proverbial foot because by overworking, we actually lock ourselves out of the possibility to access deeper muscles, deeper wisdom, and inner strength. We give ourselves over to ego, the anxious mind, the hyperactive body–anything external that we think can get us “there” faster. And instead of moving forward, we collapse. The first step in dissolving these non-santosha states is to be here–to pay full attention to how you feel. If you’re anxious, or numbed out, you might be trying too hard or not enough.   Once you notice the places in your life where you want control or that cause you to stress out, you can practice releasing a bit to allow the inner you to shine. This is why in class I often say you must back off in order to go farther. Then, when you’ve taken it down a notch, you can take it back up again, only this time, using the strength that serves you, in alignment, to express your most powerful center. This is when santosha arises organically. In the end, my student decided she wasn’t working too hard, but she did promise herself that she’d keep an eye out for when she was.  I’ve seen her take Child’s Pose more often, and I smile when she does, because I know she’s focused on playing the razor’s edge. And that’s the practice. CORE POSE: Core Handstand, what else? This asana is a microcosm for your practice of remaining in santosha. Remember, all the benefits–strong arms, open shoulders, core strength, courage, balance and detoxification–are available to you in every moment when you remain in alignment. Getting up to the wall is an added bonus–not something to rush into. Step 1: Stand a few feet from and facing a wall, and place your hands on the ground in front of you, fingers wide and shoulder-distance apart. Then bend one leg while the foot grounds firmly and directly under the sitting bone. Lift your other leg, maintaining level hips. Press out actively through the lifted heel. Step 2: Take small hops to help push the standing leg off the ground. At the same time, press down through your hands, lift your navel toward the sky, and begin to lengthen your top leg. You don’t want your low back to overarch here and tip the seat and legs behind you, as this will cause you to lose core strength and power.   To reconnect to the lower abdominals, bend the standing leg as it leaves the earth and draw your knee into your chest. Also, exhaling as you hop will firm your core muscles and prevent your spine from compressing or wavering as you lift. Step 3: Once you can hover in the knee-to-chest variation, keep all the stability you’ve created in the arms, torso and pelvis, and lengthen the bent bottom leg to meet the top one! Note: If at any time, your breath gets ragged, or your arms or spine begin to move out of alignment, you’ve crossed the razor’s edge, and it’s time to back off to re-find your balance.      

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Playing the Razor’s Edge

Jessica Berger Gross is one of our newest bloggers. Join her as she embarks on her yogic journey into motherhood: — Who has time for yoga? That’s how I felt when my amazing son Lucien was born two years ago. I went from having a daily meditation and yoga practice to losing both and starting from scratch.  In my new blog Enlightened Motherhood , I’ll chronicle how one mom (part-time writer, part-time college teacher, part-time stay-at-home parent) struggles and attempts — and sometimes  manages — to stay sane and live a yoga-inspired life in the real world of diapers, deadlines, and toddler meltdowns. — Jessica is the author of enLIGHTened: How I Lost 40 Pounds with a Yoga Mat, Fresh Pineapples, and a Beagle Pointer (Skyhorse).  Originally from New York, she lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two-year-old son.

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Introducing Jessica Berger Gross

No question: The Gray Lady has gone ga-ga for yoga. Monday’s New York Times Sunday Styles section features an above-the-fold feature on the “yoga rock star” (not really) Greg Gumucio and his East Village studio, Yoga to the People , which offers classes on a donation-only basis.  These kinds of “dharma yoga” classes have long been an occasional offering at enlightened studios around the country–providing access to those who might not be able to attend class otherwise. The Times’ story, penned by Mary Billard, includes a running list of other New York studios that offer donation-based or reduced-cost yoga, including Strala Yoga , Yoga Vida , and Do Yoga and Pilates . But it overlooks Dharma Yoga Brooklyn , which opened in Park Slope in March.  Every class on that studio’s schedule is donation-based–even the mats and towels are available for whatever fee you care to offer, and a donation-based bookshop is in the works. Dharma Yoga co-founder Lily Cushman (her partner is Jeremy Frindel) has every confidence that donation-based yoga will continue to thrive in the outer boroughs, too–it may even shape the future of American yoga.  As is the case with Yoga to the People, higher class attendance means viable monetary yield even though some students may choose to donate nothing. “When people ask how we’ll make it, we just say we have faith–in ourselves and in our students,” says Cushman. “It’s so nice to spread the teachings and give back to the people.”  What do you think of donation-based yoga? Is dharma yoga available where you live? Is this the yoga wave of the future?

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Dharma Initiative

I’m back from Sedona after shooting my new DVDs, resting up from the wild ride that was last week. And when I say “wild,” I mean it. To be transplanted from the concrete jungle that is Manhattan–where the closest I get to flora are the bouquets sold in front of every deli, and my fauna sightings consist of dogs on leashes and the occasional subway rat–was quite the experience. When I arrived at the location, a plateau in Red Rock State Park overlooking a basin and surrounded by rust-red mountains, it took my breath away. I took a big chance and decided to film the whole thing using a live microphone instead of adding in the sound later from a studio recording. Alas, the wind, sun, and occasional rain didn’t care that we were shooting a yoga video. Viewers will hear and see it all, just as it naturally happened. The light shifts, the dust swirls, and at one point I felt like I was in the middle of a Harry Potter -esque duel of elements. At one point, I was blown right off the mat in a Warrior Two–something you might usually only see on a video outtake. I came to the location thinking everything would be peaceful, leaving us to our Zen creation. Once I’d been there for 5 minutes, however, I knew I’d have to shift my expectations and transform how I would approach the experience. Yoga teaches us that the inability to go with the flow, instead trying mold the outer environment to suit your inner needs, is the greatest cause of suffering. This week I want to return to the idea of aparigraha , or nongrasping, and show you how to use it to your benefit when situations arise that you don’t expect. There are two choices whenever you find yourself in a state of duhkha , or suffering, because something’s not going the way you’d hoped. You can hang onto your expectation in a state of stress and strain, or you can shrug your shoulders, turn towards the new information, and say, simply, How can I turn this to my advantage? The great thing about aparigraha is that if you’re holding on too tightly to one perspective, you’re just as capable of picking up another, more empowering one, and holding it instead. The transition from “this cannot be happening” to “this is my teaching” is a hard at first. But like anything, with practice, it gets easier. Just as every yoga pose that challenges you and feels uncomfortable is another call to learn to move from a state of resisting intensity to using it to serve your ultimate goals. For me, it all comes down to not needing to control everything and thinking I know what needs to happen for me to be content. Instead, when I stepped on that mountain and things started getting crazy, I didn’t. I looked around, took a deep breath, and thought, “Here we are. Now, what are we going to do with it?” I heard from the directors that the footage we shot looks incredible, and that the wind adds to the teaching instead of detracting from it. But I still made sure to mention at the beginning of the video that we were in for quite a ride, and used it as a way to show that I was practicing what I teach. Even if it hadn’t turned out so well, I would have embraced that, taken it inside, and turned it into a learning experience to help me become wiser, stronger, and more prepared for the next time. We can all do this, no matter how easy or challenging the teaching that shows up may be. Remain watchful, open, and resilient. And when the opportunity arises for you to alchemize a disappointment or fear into something wild and free, grab onto it with both hands. Core Pose: Poet’s Pose (also known as a variation of Half Moon Pose, or Ardha Chandrasana, variation) This pose presents a wonderful way to experience the ebbs and flows of balance while striving to remain inwardly centered even when you topple over from the strong winds of change. As you approach it, remember to keep your breathing even and your drishti , or gaze, on the ground beneath you. Stand toward the front of your mat, feet sitting-bone-distance apart. Bend your knees and place the fingertips of both hands a little wider than shoulder distance in front of you. On an exhalation, bring your left knee into your chest and activate your lower abdominals and natural low back curve in and up towards the ribs. Maintain a long tailbone and open heart as you begin to open your left hip to stack over the right. With your core engaged, begin to lengthen your left leg out behind you at hip height, and unfurl your chest and left arm to the sky. Keep looking down as you play with bending your right standing leg and lifting your right fingertips off the floor and into your chest. Contract your topside waist as you press firmly and evenly into the floor with the right foot. Straighten your standing leg in time. Hold for 3-5 breaths. Return to Standing Forward Bend and give a sweet exhale through the mouth, releasing any tension you were holding inside. Repeat on the other side. 
    

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Embrace the Unexpected

this today: Welcome to Yoga Journal’s Wish I Was Wearing Wednesday! Every Wednesday designer and yogini Alexandra Zeigler will share her favorite yoga outfits or eco-friendly streetwear looks. Here’s what Ali has to say about this week’s outfit: Nothing says spring like petal pink. Actually, I’ve never been much of a pink girl, but I’m coming around to it, especially when I’m dying for spring to bloom. Hopefully it will soon be time to bust out our yoga shorts! By the way, how much do you love the 100% organic cosmetic bag by Sukie? It’s so cute I’d use it to stash my wallet, keys, and cell phone on my way to class. Check out their other adorable designs too at the link below. (And check out Ali’s blog for more design and craft inspiration.) the details: Seamless Anjali Cami, Athleta Fusion Short, Athleta Organic Cotton Cosmetic Bag, Sukie Vegan Babylon Flat, Olsen Haus (available at Vickery )  Heart photograph via Blow Bigger Bubbles

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Wish I Was Wearing

This weekend, I’m leading a three-day Core Strength Immersion in New York City. After writing my post about respecting limitations while still seeking transformation, I decided to make a public statement, not only to the 60 students in the room, but all the future yogis who will watch the Immersion (it’s being filmed): Let your poses be imperfect. That’s right; I’ve hit a tipping point in my teaching where I am becoming much more interested in what a student can do to be more honestly themself in a pose, and I care much less how straight they can get their front leg in Triangle. For an instructor who doubles as an anatomy geek, it may seem unusual to hear me say this, yet nothing could be more my style. Symmetry, or perfection as we sometimes think of it (the “perfect” body, relationship, or handstand), is what you get in a office building, with its level surfaces and, straight lines. Balance, on the other hand, is what nature does, and it’s wild and free, yet comes to find its own equilibrium after all. Think of a river, which meanders here and there but ultimately reaches its source.   In your yoga poses, and your life–have you been remaining sensitive to your state of balance, or straining for symmetry? If it’s the latter, this may help give you perspective: There is not one thing in the human body that runs in a straight line. Our bones, blood, and breath all move in a spiral motion. Our nerves, spine, brain, joints, GItract? Not linear either. Yet so often, we strive to attain linear poses that our bodies are not made to reach. We want to be in alignment in a way that’s healthy and balanced, but it’s easy to let symmetry-seeking creep into the process. The end result can be a hardening of the outer body, layering on more and more  tension as we try to grip and force ourselves into pre-conceived geometry. Instead, there is a way of balancing this sthira (strength) with sukha (ease). A way to allow our spinning, waving, spiraling selves to soften enough to find the true edge, dissolve areas of tension, and still move forward into what is our unique optimal alignment. I speak from experience, because I used to be militant about doing every pose “right.” In my quest for the perfect body on and off the mat, I developed an eating disorder as well as a ton of yoga-related repetitive stress injuries. Along the way, I did reach my goal of handstand without the wall. What I did not attain, however, was any sort of happiness or joy. Therefore, in my opinion, I wasn’t practicing yoga at all, but dukha , or suffering. A focus on perfection will always circle back to the big D. Later in life and yoga, I got so sick (literally) of forcing myself into a box, that I began to seek out studios and teachers who advocated mindful, individual adaptation over form. I noticed that most of these teachers were over 40, many of them much older. Their physical asanas were very different than mine, yet the message is so freeing: Take this practice, poses, lessons and all, and make it yours, without apology or regret. Approaching 40 myself, I can tell you that a relaxation occurs after a certain amount of time struggling and failing to reach absolute symmetry. You see it in the attitudes of certain grandparents, and it shows up in the practices of longtime yogis.  The amazing thing is, once I let go of my quest for the unattainable, many of the poses, like the hovering jump-forward that I could never before master, became available to me. Yoga, ultimately is a path of personal transformation, not perfection. Reclaiming this aspect of your practice gets you into direct connection with your core, and asks that you express your truth to the world in the way that’s best for you. When we remember that our growth and spiritual awakening happens only to the extent we can get present, get close to our inner nature, and take actions from integrity–none of which have a thing to do with a false ideal of perfection–life becomes wildly, strangely, perfect after all. Core Pose: CAT/COW VARIATIONS Sometimes, I feel like anything not on the the mat is forbidden territory–or “hot lava,” as we called it in my childhood. Yet venturing outside the rectangle can be just what you need to find pockets of tension, and then move and breathe to release them. Come onto your hands and knees. Take a few arches and curls of the spine, then begin to move creatively as you listen to the cues of your body. Move your head, your arms, and even legs to serve your goals of equalizing support and freedom. Spend a few minutes in this pose, adventuring in your own way!

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A Better Balance

Photo by David Lauridsen for The New York Times Did you see the story about Demi Moore in Sunday’s New York Times Arts & Leisure section? It was a stylish, if perfunctory, update on her career. (She’s back! She’s better than ever! But now she’s playing the mother!) But what drew our eye was this aside, in which writer Jennifer Steinhauer explains a fallow period in Moore’s career, a time in which the actress disappeared from the Hollywood radar to focus solely on family: “It was not that she retired, as was widely reported, she was just resting, a career Savasana.” End of sentence. No long-winded explanation–or short-winded one, for that matter–was offered. This surely is a cultural turning point–we have reached such a level of yoga saturation that Savasana has become a common-usage term, in need of no definition, no parenthetical aside, no translation–even in a mass-market newspaper of record. Will the moment be memorialized by Ben Zimmer in an upcoming On Language column? We can only hope so!

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Corpse Bride

I was leading a Core Strength Vinyasa Yoga practice for a group of yoga teachers the other day, and one of them asked me afterwards why I prefer to cartwheel out of an overzealous handstand rather than drop over into a backbend. Poses that require lumbar movement are a real challenge for me, not because of a lack of flexibility or strength–my lumbar spine has hardly any curve. It’s a bone compression thing, one I won’t be able to change no matter how hard I try. And, believe me, I tried WAY too hard for years. I’m more than slightly competitive by nature, so naturally when I began my yoga practice, I coveted all the stately, arching poses I couldn’t do. From the first Sun Salutation, I rushed past Cobra in favor of Up Dog. To me, Bridge wasn’t a pose, just an impatient pit-stop on my express lane into Wheel. I held a death grip on my ideal pose: Forearm Stand Scorpion … and I wouldn’t let it go, until it became the straw that (literally) almost broke my back. One day, spine be damned, I forced myself past my healthy edge. The result was a herniated disc that pressed right into my sciatic nerve, and for 6 months, I was regressed to prenatal Cobra Pose. One day, while grumbling through the tiniest seed of low Bridge Pose while the rest of the class was in full Wheel, I realized something amazing: This backbend actually felt good!  It was well-supported and my heart was able to expand from the strong root underneath. My newfound awareness of how backing off had actually helped me find the equilibrium I’d sought, opened my eyes to the fact that grasping for external success at the expense of internal balance wasn’t just my tendency in the yoga pose, but also in my life. I looked around me and saw jealousy showing up everywhere. My inability to be confident in my own skin was causing all my relationships–and me–to suffer.   If my partner spoke to someone I thought was better looking than me, I would feel immensely insecure. I had a hard time feeling truly happy for my friend who got a sudden financial windfall because I didn’t have as much. Whether on or off the mat, I wanted more, to be better than everyone, to have nothing left to want or attain before I would be satisfied. Yogis call this parigraha , the yogic term for “grasping at externals,” or being unable to let go of the ego’s desires and access your own inherent satisfaction. It’s one of the biggest causes of dukha , or living in pain. As I progressed in my yoga studies, it became crystal clear that I was wasting a lot of energy looking outside of myself for my center. Getting conscious meant I had to surrender my grasp on the fantasy and step into the reality. I began to let go of my idea of what I “should” be able to do, and started owning who I was and be where I needed to be. The happy result of this practice of owning my truth is that I relaxed at a deep core level, and chronic jealousy disappeared from my life. I can honor my friends and students for their accomplishments, because I’m just as fully at work rocking who I am. When we practice aparigraha , or releasing the death grip on externals as our only source of happiness, we actually create another kind of hold–this time a powerful merging with our own core connection. We unite with our natural wellspring of self-created joy and can truly become a positive part of our community. My body may not backbend beyond a cranky full wheel, but it is made for poses that require core strength like handstand and arm balances. Since we teach what we know, I’ve made this strength into my style. I’m so glad I finally saw that who I was would serve me better than who I wasn’t. I encourage you to do the same, in any aspect of your life where you perceive something (or someone) outside of you as the thing that controls your confidence, empowerment, and peace. The power of yoga, or unity with one’s truth, is that coping and co-dependence dissolve in the light of your self-generated OK-ness. It’s an old cliché, but to do this, you have to decide to believe that you’re enough, just as you are–and then take actions that mirror that view.   In time, this shift from parigraha to aparigraha will become your new truth. Now, when I teach, I make sure to give multiple variations, and encourage the students to find and play their own unique edges. “No matter what your level or ability, your poses are all equally valuable as your personal vehicle of transformation,” I say. And I notice that if I don’t grasp at their practices, or enforce attainment of the more advanced poses, it tames the green-eyed monsters in the room to hear it. Do I still covet the effortless rainbow spines of my fellow yogis? Sometimes. But now I know it doesn’t define me. I listen to my body in any given moment, let my ego take a backseat, and say with an inner smile, “This is my pose … and I’m sticking to it.” Core Question: Where in your yoga practice have you been letting something external define your happiness? How about in your life? What will you do differently to practice aparigraha in these situations? Core Pose: Heart-opening Sukhasana variation into Crossed Boat. This is one of the poses I do to prepare for backbends. It gives all the chest-opening and upper back and core strength needed without diving too far, too fast into the lumbar curve. Come into Sukhasana (Easy Pose). Inhale and stretch the chest and arms up as the shoulders and tailbone lengthen down. Exhale, rock back onto the sitting bones, firm the lower abdominals, and bring fists to the outer hips for a core strength mudra I call Fists of Fire. If possible, lift your knees and/or crossed ankles off the floor. Whatever variation you choose, make sure it’s one where you can maintain the natural curve of your lumber spine. It must draw in as you lift the legs to counteract the movement of the front body. Repeat 5 times.

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No More Grasping

I’ll admit it: I’m an Ayurveda geek. I think you should be, too. Ayurveda is the healing wisdom of yoga, a profound technology for carrying the balance you’re achieving on the mat out into the rest of your life. And even if you never get into the super-detailed nitty gritty (it is a science after all), even the most cursory of explorations is likely to expand your self-knowledge, and may even lead to an AH-HA! Now’s a good time to delve into Ayurveda, especially if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area: The seventh annual meeting of the National Ayurvedic Medical Association (or NAMA) takes place in San Mateo this week. If you’re nearby, consider nabbing a day pass–there will be yoga (of course), meditation, panel discussions, seminars, and even shopping. And there will be the chance to hear from and hobnob with the greats of American Ayurveda: Robert Svoboda, David Frawley, Vasant Lad, Yogini Shambhavi, Mark Halpern, and David Simon, M.D., among others. Even if you can’t get to the physical space, taking a virtual tour of the conference schedule can give you a good feel for what Ayurveda is, and how it might be useful to you as you work to deepen your practice, heal your body, and expand your spiritual vistas. (At the very least, it will give you plenty of fodder for further Google exploration of the subject.) In many ways, this “science of life” is life–completely relevant to you whether you choose to use it or not. But then, an Ayurveda geek would say that.

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NAMArama

I’m traveling to the Yoga Journal Conference today. Yesterday, I knew I had to pack and gather my workshop materials, but strangely perhaps, instead I went to school!   I have what I like to call Yoga University every Wednesday afternoon. I gather with other teachers at The Breathing Project in Manhattan to sit with Leslie Kaminoff, author of Yoga Anatomy .   For two hours, we learn as he leads us to experience how the wild world of anatomy links together with breath, yoga poses, and the philosophies of our practice.   Even though I had to prepare for this trip to Boston, I couldn’t miss class. Every time I attend, I learn something new–something that totally shifts my perspective on one level and that applies to other areas of my teaching and my life.   For a yoga teacher who relies on new ideas and offerings, this is so precious. Continuing my education helps me keep it fresh each time I appear in a workshop setting.   Yogis might call this shift to a new layer of consciousness vijnanamaya kosha , or wisdom sheath–a new awareness that transforms all other aspects of how you relate to yourself, the world, and Spirit. Oprah would call it an Aha! Moment.   Not only am I a complete anatomy geek, I love finding new parallels between yoga and the body. And these insights completely shift my understanding. Like how the deep front line of muscles running through the body that Tom Myers discovered (his book Anatomy Trains is a must-read), represents a more stable core connection with ourselves.   If we tend to use the outer body instead of sourcing our strength from deep inside, we can actually cause more tension in our poses instead of less. Or how the psoas is actually a sensory organ that can help draw us into a more subtle yet more powerful inner inquiry (thanks, Leslie!), which Patanjali said was a necessary step for transformation.   And, if a student over-grips their poses from the outer body, I’ll bet you $1 million that she also has that same habit of reaching outside of herself before looking inside to her own wisdom, capability, and self-esteem in all her other relationships, too.     Sometimes, shift happens when you least expect it, and when you didn’t know anything needed changing. Today, how can you expand your horizons and spend time broadening your perspective? To do this, seek out someone who knows more about something than you do. Learning from a master in their field, even if it’s not your area of expertise, can give you insights into so many other things.   My favorite? Sitting with much older people who are masters of life experience. Your gurus are everywhere waiting to lead you farther into a more expansive vision of who you are.   Yes, when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. But it’s my firm belief that sometimes for the teacher to appear, the student has to go out, sign up for a class, or otherwise make the effort to find the teacher.   Creating transformation is not a spectator sport.   Lord knows I’ve been out of actual college for a while, but the excitement I have, and the vitality that my weekly Yoga U brings me, is immense. Now, I have to go grab my pens and notebook, and head out for my aha! afternoon.   More next week from the conference!   Core Question : Have you had experiences that caused you to learn more on all levels? How did you find them or did they come to you?   Core Pose : Uttanasana to Tadasana Transition with Exhale   Here’s a whole-body/mind shift you can try during your next practice to help support the low back more effectively as you move through a common transition that can place undue stress on the spine.   When you exhale, your abdominal muscles contract, hugging the abdominal cavity and cushioning the spine from the front. This stops the lumbar curve from over-compressing during the fulcrum of movement from forward bends up to standing, which is when a lot of yoga-related injuries occur. You can avoid this by adding an extra breath into your Sun Salutations or whenever you come up into Mountain Pose.   From Uttanasana, inhale and look forward with a long spine. Now exhale, pull in the low belly, and begin to rise, sweeping the arms out to the sides. When you are three-quarters of the way up, begin an inhalation, filling the pose as you reach Tadasana with your arms extended.   Exhale your palms to your heart or fold forward again to continue your flow.    

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Make the Shift

Yoga on the White House lawn? Yes! For the second year in a row, First Lady Michelle Obama turned the once prim and proper White House Easter Egg Roll (now in its 132 nd year) into a fitness party for kids, with dancing, hula-hooping, tennis, soccer, football–and yoga. Under the flowering trees of the stately White House gardens–downplayed as Mrs. Obama into “our back yard”–families from all over the country rocked their best Tree Poses on Monday.   I even talked the Cat in the Hat into giving it a try with me! In flouncy, floral print Easter dresses and tights, stiff trousers and ties, as well as jeans and shorts, eager Down Doggers lined up on their mats. And yes, all day, there were gentle choruses of “Om” drifting up from the White House Lawn! It was a pretty powerful moment–some 30,000 families, from all 50 states, got a chance to learn about yoga, with a presidential seal of approval. It seems evident that yoga is a perfect match for the First Lady’s Let’s Move! Initiative, which aims to curtail our childhood obesity epidemic by inspiring Americans to live healthy, active lives. Hats off to the organizers and the small crew of yoga teachers who came in from distant states (Ohio, Texas, California, New York, to name a few) to lead 10-minute mini-classes and even conduct “privates” for kids who wanted a taste of yoga as they passed by the White House “Yoga Garden.” I heard more than one parent try to lure their child off to other activities–Easter Egg Roll anyone?!–only to learn that Camel Pose was the priority of the moment. With endless entertainment options– President Obama reading Green Eggs and Ham; teen pop star Justin Beber, the cast of Glee, and Yo Gabba Gabba performing; famous chefs helping kids learn to cook–it’s a wonder anyone had time for yoga. But yoga they did!  

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Posing at the White House

Yoga on wheels. No, not spinning. (So 2005!) Think rollerblades instead. The latest unnecessary but totally fun yoga-exercise mash-up, Mobile Yoga has inline skaters turning all their favorite asanas into balancing poses by performing them on wheels. Think of a floating Fierce Pose, a wind-whipped Warrior III, or a gliding Garudasana and you’ll get the picture. Founder Kris Fondran is an inline skating instructor with a masters in exercise science; she’s also a certified yoga instructor with some serious cred (trained in Satyananda Yoga, she received mantra diksha initiation from Paramahamsa Niranjanananda Saraswati in 2004). You can see the threads of her practice emerge in her instruction, which is as much about breathing and awareness building as it is about getting a great cardio workout. And though her Web site looks totally L.A.–she’s pictured posing against a background of blue skies, beaches, and palm trees–Fondran is based in Cleveland, Ohio. Silly or sublime? Strap on your skates and decide for yourself.

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On a Roll

We just love hearing news about schools introducing kids to yoga. And it seems that Canadian schools really understand the many benefits that yoga practice can offer students and are leading the way in making time on the mat an accepted part of a curriculum. Now, thanks to  Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows Board of Education,  Vancouver’s  school district 41 in is approving yoga  for school credit. Other  Canadian schools  also offer high school credit. We want to know: Do schools in your area offer school credit for yoga? 

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Yoga Earns School Credits

I left Brooklyn and arrived in Vancouver yesterday, to teach a weekend Core Strength Immersion. In five days, I’ll fly to Toronto for the Yoga Conference. I’m not a fan of being away from home for long periods of time, but the smell of freshly cut grass (lawns! How quaint!), the view of the Vancouver mountains, the cherry blossoms,and the fireplace in my hotel room have almost made up for it. No matter where I travel, the students meeting me on the mat all have one thing in common: they’re trying to make a change. Whether it’s learning something new, improving their strength and flexibility, accessing more of their inherent centeredness or a combination of these, no one I’ve met shows up to a yoga intensive with a burning desire to stay exactly the same. After all–shift happens. We’re all in constant state of flux, from our cells and thoughts, to our outer environments and relationships. Your experience is as transient as a hobo on a country railcar. The question is–in what direction do you want that train to roll? If you allow life, and the external opinions, requests, and demands of others take you where it wants to go, you’ll spend a lifetime getting steamrolled from the outside. Enough of that, and your heart will feel as flat as a pancake. If you want to fill your mind, body and spirit with the goodness of inspiration and transformation, you’ve got to do one thing for certain: Get to work. Remember: intention without action is just a beautiful pipe dream. In the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali offers clue about how to change things according to your intentions. It begins with ishvara pranidhana. This word literally means “love of God,” but like so many other concepts in the yoga teachings, it has alternate meanings. Ishvara pranidhana can also mean “to take your highest action.” Have you noticed that in any moment when you’re called to make a choice –Do I go to yoga class or skip it? Should I yell at my partner or take a time out? Should I take the job I hate for more money or the one I love for less?–there is usually one that will serve your highest good, and one that will, well…not so much? When you take action that helps you express who you most want to be in the present, it will keep you on the road toward goals you want to reach later. I’m certain of this, because it’s taken me from a dysfunctional practice and stressful life to inner strength and outer abundance. It will work for you too–but you have to work it. Yoga is not a spectator sport. It asks for your full and unflinching participation. It can be scary, constantly facing down the unknown, but if you can go there–whether by hugging your thighs more in that Crow Pose, taking a deep breath when you want to say something hurtful, or choosing the high road in a situation where your habits and fears conspire to make the low one an attractive option–all your hard work will absolutely pay off. In fact, the beauty of yoga is that it pays its dividends instantly, with a rush of prana, or empowerment, and the personal satisfaction of becoming more of yourself in the moments that you focus, intend…and try. This is the offer of Kriya Yoga, the yoga of action, and it’s something that we can practice both on and off our mats. After some ginger-green tea (instead of my old nemesis: coffee!), I’m off to teach this afternoon with a group of teachers, most of whom I’ve never met. I will take my own advice, and instead of holding back, I’ll fully share from my spirit, which is always a vulnerable process. I’ll let you know what happened in my next post! Namaste, Sadie Core Question: What actions can you take, this week, to start making your intentions a reality? What has held you back before this? Core Pose: Earth to Sky Triangle Here’s a pose I use to teach my students the power of conscious action as they build Trikonasana (Triangle Pose). It can help you access deeper core strength and maintain a safe stretching point by building the posture from the ground up: Step 1: Come into a Utthita Parsvakonasana (Side Angle Pose) and place your bottom fingertips beside the outer foot. (Beginners: Bring your forearm on your knee.) Draw your navel in and up towards your chest as you lengthen the tailbone. Now lift your free arm to the sky. Wrap your top arm around your back in a half bind, and press the hand into your back ribs or palm into the thigh. Roll your top shoulder open, then look down to stretch the neck and shoulder. Step 2: Keep everything you’ve created, but begin to move your front hip crease back and ground into the big toe mound to straighten your leg (Beginners: Place the bottom hand on the thigh, shin, or ankle). If you lose your core connection, bend the knee slightly and play the edge of integration and expression here. Step 3: Unfurl your top, bound arm into full Triangle Pose. Now you’ve removed the obstacles (tight shoulders, compressed hip joints, a stiff neck) to your pose, let the freedom of your energy move through your entire body with each breath.

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You Better Work!

On Saturday, Seane Corn came to teach at my home studio: YogaWorks in SoHo, NYC. I’ve taken one workshop with her before and really enjoyed it. Plus, we see each other around on the conference circuit. So, since she was right in my ‘hood, I decided to enroll in her weekend classes on vinyasa sequencing. When I arrived on my mat, multiple people, some of them my regular students, came up to me with baffled looks on their faces. “Why are you here?” someone said, as if I had nothing left to learn. My answer was the same as it always is at moments like this: “I know what I know. I want to find out what I don’t know yet!” And I learned a lot, or as Seane might say, I remembered more of what I already know in her daylong sessions. I’m proud to show my students that my role as a teacher doesn’t mean that I’ve stopped being a student. Knowledge is fluid and always evolving, just like I am, and my teaching will mature and shift as I do. I refuse to hide my process of studentship for fear that my students will think I’m less of a teacher. I’m confident in my abilities and my unique perspectives on yoga, so I rest in my truth, and let others think what they will. It reminded me to remind you that life gets so much easier when you stop seeking approval from those around you and instead focus on accessing your deepest truth, or satya. If you lose your center the moment someone else has an unfavorable opinion of you, you’ll become everything for everyone, but very little of yourself. When I began teaching yoga, I would change the way I taught based on every student’s critique. In one month, it led me to teach faster, teach slower, talk less, talk more, make it easier, make it harder, and on and on. It was maddening, and my truth was lost in the quest to please everyone. Nowadays, I come into a workshop, speak my truth (which is not the only truth), give them a million percent of what my spirit is directing me to offer, and then I go home. Most people love it, a few think it’s pretty good, and there’s almost always one who can’t stand me.   And you know what? That’s OK. It used to bother me for days if I got negative feedback from someone. But as I teach more, I see that will always be the case, no matter how I change my message. So I stick to my core. Finally, I’ve learned to go into any classroom with one intention: I’m not here to cater…I’m here to teach. In your life, you can spend all your time and energy shape shifting to accommodate everyone’s needs or you can focus on living from your center. This is the exact moment when taking it personally transforms into the practice of giving it personally… …and you need no one’s stamp of approval but your own to do that. Core Question: Have you ever over-compromised your truth to please those around you? What happened when you decided to be fully yourself? Core Pose : Crossed Navasana with Fists of Fire This is one of my signature Core Poses. It’s meant to draw you out of your head and down into your center. Come into a cross-legged position like Sukhasana (Easy Pose). Place one foot in front of the other. Inhale, roll forward as you reach up, and lift the hips a few inches off the mat. Exhale, roll onto your sitting bones, engage the navel and low back in and up as you lift knees and feet higher. Repeat 5 to 10 times, then end in a forward fold from Easy Pose.

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Living Your Truth

On Saturday, Seane Corn came to teach at my home studio: YogaWorks in SoHo, NYC. I’ve taken one workshop with her before and really enjoyed it. Plus, we see each other around on the conference circuit. So, since she was right in my ‘hood, I decided to enroll in her weekend classes on vinyasa sequencing. When I arrived on my mat, multiple people, some of them my regular students, came up to me with baffled looks on their faces. “Why are you here?” someone said, as if I had nothing left to learn. My answer was the same as it always is at moments like this: “I know what I know. I want to find out what I don’t know yet!” And I learned a lot, or as Seane might say, I remembered more of what I already know in her daylong sessions. I’m proud to show my students that my role as a teacher doesn’t mean that I’ve stopped being a student. Knowledge is fluid and always evolving, just like I am, and my teaching will mature and shift as I do. I refuse to hide my process of studentship for fear that my students will think I’m less of a teacher. I’m confident in my abilities and my unique perspectives on yoga, so I rest in my truth, and let others think what they will. It reminded me to remind you that life gets so much easier when you stop seeking approval from those around you and instead focus on accessing your deepest truth, or satya. If you lose your center the moment someone else has an unfavorable opinion of you, you’ll become everything for everyone, but very little of yourself. When I began teaching yoga, I would change the way I taught based on every student’s critique. In one month, it led me to teach faster, teach slower, talk less, talk more, make it easier, make it harder, and on and on. It was maddening, and my truth was lost in the quest to please everyone. Nowadays, I come into a workshop, speak my truth (which is not the only truth), give them a million percent of what my spirit is directing me to offer, and then I go home. Most people love it, a few think it’s pretty good, and there’s almost always one who can’t stand me.   And you know what? That’s OK. It used to bother me for days if I got negative feedback from someone. But as I teach more, I see that will always be the case, no matter how I change my message. So I stick to my core. Finally, I’ve learned to go into any classroom with one intention: I’m not here to cater…I’m here to teach. In your life, you can spend all your time and energy shape shifting to accommodate everyone’s needs or you can focus on living from your center. This is the exact moment when taking it personally transforms into the practice of giving it personally… …and you need no one’s stamp of approval but your own to do that. Core Question: Have you ever over-compromised your truth to please those around you? What happened when you decided to be fully yourself? Core Pose : Crossed Navasana with Fists of Fire This is one of my signature Core Poses. It’s meant to draw you out of your head and down into your center. Come into a cross-legged position like Sukhasana (Easy Pose). Place one foot in front of the other. Inhale, roll forward as you reach up, and lift the hips a few inches off the mat. Exhale, roll onto your sitting bones, engage the navel and low back in and up as you lift knees and feet higher. Repeat 5 to 10 times, then end in a forward fold from Easy Pose.

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Living Your Truth

Actress Chloe Sevigny must really love yoga because she is talking it up all over the place! We aren’t sure what style she practices or where she places her mat. But this winner of a Golden Globe award for best supporting actress in a TV series graces the April cover of Elle UK and talks about her new three-times-a-week yoga practice, which makes her feel “strong” and “limber.” (She also credits yoga with boosting her libido.) In a recent interview with NPR , Sevigny talks about how yoga helps her with her scoliosis so she feels straightened out. Check it out: Our friends at YogaDork found some morsels of the interview here . Which celebrities have you noticed taking up the practice of yoga?

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Chloe Sevigny Loves Yoga

Gov. Robert F. McDonnell signed a

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Historic Legal Decision

California Pacific Medical Center is honoring one of our beloved yoga teachers. CPMC’s Institute for Health & Healing  has selected Matthew Sanford as the recipient of its Pioneer in Integrative Medicine Yoga Journal conference in Boston this April. Congrats, Matthew!

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Congrats to Matt!

I’m reading Malcolm Gladwell’s book, “Outliers” right now, and boy, does that guy ever know how to change a worldview. Each time I finish one of his books, my perception of life shifts. This time around the book reminded me that everything we come into contact with–whether it’s a relationship, a challenging situation, or even a yoga pose–gives us the opportunity to choose how we want to look at it, and how we’d like to use the energy of it (constructively or destructively) to meet our goals. Gladwell calls this the ability to “customize” our surroundings to meet our needs. In this paradigm, we never again have to be the victim of someone’s choices; instead we become the master of our own design. In order to make this leap, especially when an experience is dragging us down–a bad breakup, for example–we must remember one thing: truth is relative. I kept ‘truth” lowercase on purpose, because the little “t” signifies the things we think, do, and see. In yoga, we call Truth with a capital T “Satya.” Satya is our foundational nature, our birthright of light, love, and inner goodness. When we rest in Satya, we are already that which we seek to become. Our happiness begins to exist independent of external circumstances. Everyday issues lose their power to easily dim the brightness inside us. To access the big “T,” we must remember that we exist in a state of inherent equilibrium–our cells, our breath, our bones, and muscles are all naturally built to balance stability with mobility. For example, in our yoga poses we push past our point of equilibrium, then at some point the body is going to “go polar,” toward too much strength (which will create tension), or too much freedom (which can lead to injury). Life is like this, too. Go polar with how you view it (”I can’t attract money…I’m terrible at relationships…there’s too much competition…that will never work…you did this to me…”), and you’ll be stuck in the diminished worldview of the little “t.” Try to remember, as you look around from day to day, to widen your perspective. Do this by remembering that love and opportunity and capability do surround you, no matter how restricted the options may seem in the moment. They’re not. Practice broadening your view of the world and your place in it, by realizing that much of your truth is relative, or changeable, by you, at any time.   Then, change it to something that empowers you and suits you better. You’ll return to your original Satya-state, and polarity will dissolve back into the clarity and ultimate abundance of true center. And that rocks. Core Tip: Today, walk around as the rock star you really are, and see what a difference it makes! Let us know what happens, and how you’ve changed your truth to serve your goals. Inspire us! Core Pose: Breath of Freedom Lunge In your High Lunge, keep your tailbone and side waist long, reach your arms back, palms facing outward, and breathe. Sweep away old, limiting stories, and invite in all the truth that aligns with your greatest Truth. Be you fully for 5 to 10 breaths here.

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Remembering Truth

Today I awoke to find that I’m sore in every single muscle of my body. I know. I checked them all. Pinkie toe? Check. I undertook a photo shoot yesterday at a studio in SoHo, where my husband works. He took over 500 images of me in every conceivable pose, so that I can use them to create visual sequences for online sources, magazines, and of course, my loyal readers. After all, you deserve high resolution too! I did yoga for 3 1/2 hours straight. It was intense, but I wanted to do it for myself, and for my Tribe, those yogis, past, present and future, who might get a spark from something I teach that lights their inner fire. To continue giving so freely, which means finding more free time, I recently did what some yogis consider to be the unthinkable: I recently signed with a yoga talent agency. Here are a few more reasons: * Way more people want me to come teach at their studios, conferences, or events, than I can handle communicating with by myself and still stay sane, much less focused on my classes. * I want to be free to continue doing what I do best, which is to create and teach my beloved practice, not emailing 20 people a day about booking arrangements. * My life’s purpose is to teach the healing benefits of yoga to as many people as I can, not teach less people because I think being on TV is “unyogic”. *I seem to have the right combination of things that makes me attractive to the national level, and that level requires a skill set of negotiation and organization that is not my strong suit. Don’t even ask me to balance a checkbook! I’m proud of the direction in which my 15 years of study and commitment are taking me. I also love that people pay me to do what I love, so I don’t have to do anything else. Most of all, I adore connecting with so many students. In all of this I want to be represented as accurately and with the same level of integrity as the photos I worked so hard to create this weekend. YAMA , started last year by Ava Taylor, a lifelong yogi, is changing the paradigm of what an agent can be, from greedy to generous, from competitive to conscious. I’m incredibly happy that Ava is there for those of us who want more help, and like their representation to come with a dash of good karma. Some in the community aren’t feeling it, yet this yoga-life-money balance is possible, it’s happening . . . and I hope the yoga world will embrace it more and more as a part of the practice–not separate from it. Sometimes, though, when it comes to making a shift, you can’t wait for everyone around you to ‘get’ it. If you believe in yourself, and you feel called to what is a right action for you, then you will simply have to go first. This is the first step towards leading by example. Core Questions: What do you think about this direction of yogis in the mainstream? Do you think we can hold our ground while dealing with the entertainment world and money, or are we just seeking fame for its own sake? When have you had to lead by example, and what happened? A Core Tip: To get more grounded, try my free Slow Hip and Leg Stretch Flow video for a great root energy release using the earth for support! See it here .

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For Success . . . or Sanity

I’m going to go ahead and admit it: some days I really, really don’t want to teach. I know–I’m always supposed to be a bright, happy yogi who would rather chop off an arm that have to miss a yoga class, let alone miss the opportunity to make someone else’s day brighter through teaching–but, you know what, some days the natural light and love that brought me to yoga teaching in the first place just cannot find a way to shine through. On those days I grumble and complain and wish I didn’t have to teach and then drag my sorry little behind to the yoga studio. And then a funny thing happens. As my students start to walk in I find my mood lifting. I start to teach and I completely forget all of the reasons I really didn’t want to be there in the first place. And by the end, I almost always leave feeling lighter, happier and wondering why I don’t teach a whole lot more often. That, to me, is the power of teaching. Hopefully my students gain a thing or two from a class but I know that I always, always gain so much from them. Now all I have to do is remind myself of that each time I get the teaching grumps.

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For Those Times When You Just Don’t Want to Teach

This is my experience in a nutshell: The Ugandan culture is complex, confusing and contradictory.  Parts of it are endearing, warm and wonderful; others I can’t even begin to wrap my head around.   On this trip, the OTM Uganda Seva Challenge group traveled pretty extensively through the cities and countryside villages, and what grabbed me most is the resounding spirit of a resilient and strong Ugandan people.  I have witnessed extreme poverty, deadly pandemic disease, ungodly sanitation, as well as toxic air and water quality, yet wherever I went, I also noticed an underlying authentic joy, trust and a richness in community that I actually yearn for in my own community at home. That said, there is a very strange dynamic; a juxtaposition of customs and morals.  Some of what I’ve heard and observed that exemplifies this is below.     A local land owner and village community chairman (kind of like a Mayor) called Sam,  told our group about the incredible Central Ugandan customs and rituals to honor the dead.   Ugandans will often exhaust everything they have for funerals, even going without eating,  to honor their dead. There are days and days of sacred pomp and ceremony. As Sam explains the rituals, I am filled with a sense of awe.  I think: ‘Wow, in States its typically a 2 hour viewing, then a couple of songs, a prayer or two, a few kind words and done.” In contrast, I’m told that in Uganda there is stigma and dishonor in being widowed.  A widow is often chased off the land she rightfully inherits, and is forced to surrender everything after her husband dies. Another example. One of our amazing guides and guardians for this trip was an Ugandan man named Joseph.  He is the Country Director for Building Tomorrow, the international NGO  which builds schools for vulnerable children all over sub-Saharan Africa.   As our group was returning from an excursion one night, we noticed that for the most part local shopkeepers leave their goods outside rather than locking them up indoors.  Joseph explains that the goods left out won’t be stolen because there is a community agreement about stealing.  If the thief is caught, community members, not police, go after the perpetrators.  Men caught stealing are beaten, while a female thief is forced to walk down the street naked after community members rip the clothes off her back.  As he told me about the community agreement my first thought was:  “There is no way that anything left unguarded outside a store in LA or New York would be there the next morning, no way!” However, this is the same Uganda where it is common and customary for a woman to be a chased by a man and if she can outrun or outfight him, she wins her freedom, but, if he physically overcomes her, she is raped and forced to become his wife. One more.   The able-bodied men, woman and children of Gayaza Village sing and pray as they haul wheelbarrows, carry bricks on their heads, and build walls for their Building Tomorrow/OTM community school.  Again, I think: “In my town, this is done by a company that has little connection to the actual community. How incredibly cool would it be to have community members working on our local schools.” Yet, although up to 65% of people in communities like Gayaza Village have HIV, men, women and children known to have the disease are often humiliated, shunned and disgraced. Further still, this is the country that has introduced a law so punitive towards homosexuality that some human rights groups say that it would allow authorities to imprison and even kill homosexuals. Yes, this culture is complex, confusing and contradictory.  However, the more that I think about it, I recognize that there is a good probability that statement is true for all cultures. And then I re-member my yoga.  Yoga classes around the world often begin and end with the greeting Namaste’.  For me, namaste has become so much more than a nice word or greeting.  It is a way of being, a foundational way of life that invites me to find God in every moment, person, event or circumstance – even the complex, confusing and contradictory ones.    That’s what the mystics of old did and those of today do.   So that’s what I practice -  right here, right now – even though, I often can’t explain, don’t understand and many times don’t succeed.    However, in every cell of my being I know that in the words of one of my favorite teachers “everything happens exactly the way it is suppose to happen in order for our souls to transform.”  So I just keep doing what I know to do – practice.

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Complex, Confusing and Contradictory by Nikki Myers

“When we are dreaming alone it is only a dream. When we are dreaming with others, it is the beginning of reality.” Dom Helder Camara Only half of Uganda’s children finish primary school. Less than half of those children go on to secondary school, and less than half of those go on to university. I see those statistics and begin to feel hopeless. This week, I saw a rural village in Uganda come together to build a school and I felt nothing but hope. We arrived at the Building Tomorrow work site and were greeted by parents, grandparents, community leaders and, as always, plenty of children who instead of being in school, were showing up to build a school. There were songs, speeches, handshakes, and hugs. Then we all grabbed hoes and we got to work. We spent the next three days side by side in the scorching heat and in the pouring rain. We shared stories, sweat, songs, and laughter and, brick by brick, we built a school that will educate over 400 children each year. These children are not just statistics anymore. They have names and personalities; they have joyful hearts and eager minds…and now, they will have a school. I have never met a child in the U.S. who has built his or her own school. I have decorated my children’s classrooms back home, but I have yet to meet a parent there who has laid the foundation or dug the latrine. As I watched mothers with babies strapped to their backs swinging hoes and young giggling girls balancing bricks on their heads, I knew I was witnessing something more than just a construction site. This was a dream site. This community wasn’t there to build walls with us; they were there to build a dream. A dream that will grow day by day, brick by brick. A dream that will, hopefully, extend beyond those very walls and that small plot of land. A dream that could very well someday change the statistical landscape of Uganda. I feel honored to have lifted a hoe, laid a brick, and shared the dream. We are heading back to the Building Tomorrow work site today. My muscles, physical and emotional, are tired and sore. Like any muscle that has been overworked, my heart is beginning to show signs of fatigue. I wonder how far I can stretch it. I worry that my reach isn’t far enough. I want to hold this pose as long as I can, but I know there are other postures that are just as important. I have children at home who need me too. They have warm beds, clean clothes, plenty of food, and wonderful schools, but they need their mother as much as any of the children here. They are part of the reason I am here. I want them to have dreams, I want them to know they can make a difference, I want them to witness their world up close—even the parts of it that aren’t easy to look at. Our hearts can become weak and lazy if we don’t use them enough. I will keep stretching mine as far as I can while I am here with the children of Uganda. Then I will return home and wrap it around my own children. It takes a village to raise a child. African Proverb Today it took a village to raise a school. I was happy to be a small part of that village. We drove an hour out of Kampala to a rural community where the children either do not attend school or have to walk a great distance each day to do so. We were greeted by a group of perhaps 100 community members. We took turns making bricks, hauling bricks, and laying them down one by one. We worked side by side with children, parents, and grandparents. We watched a wall go up brick by brick, a wall that will one day be part of a school that will serve some 400 children. Today I felt like I was making a difference. I may be just one person, but I am part of a village, a world village.

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Building Tomorrow by Amanda Steurmer

There are hard facts of life here in Uganda. You can find depressing statistics about the incidence of rape, the HIV percentages or the challenge of educating girls.  All have so much effect on what it means to be a women here…but its really not so different at home in North America. Maybe that’s why it was so hard to write this because in all of the women we meet I see my mother and my sister and myself.   There are equally positive statistics to quote about the number of women in government in Uganda and the ways the government is trying to get more girls into post secondary schools and all of the work that the people we meet are doing.   I met with a journalist friend here who is writing about the gay community in Kampala and the proposed new bill. He is looking to write a story on a lesbian who has been raped. I think he was expecting me to be shocked to find out that that is what happens to ‘cure’ lesbianism here. But the rape story has been told over and over and over to us in so many ways that I wasn’t shocked. I just added it to the list of the how’s and the why’s it can be difficult to be a woman. And then we were at a birth. I lack the words to describe the power and the beauty of that experience. This 17 year old girl, who was alone with her sister, who is now a mother has quite a job in front of her.  That baby girl might have the odds against her but I have to be hopeful for her future.   Mothers, sisters, daughters, women get to be all of those. I will get to be all of those. At 32 years old, I did not arrive in Uganda a girl but I feel like I am leaving a woman. I had dinner at a womans house named Bubeera last night.  She lived in a 6′x8′ room with her 10 year old daughter. (her 3 sons hours away with their grandmother). We sat on the floor and ate by lantern light/cell phone flashlight.   She is HIV+.  She is alone and raising her child. She is very very lucky.   Bubeera was chosen out of 600 applicants to be part of Shanti Uganda’s  www.shantiuganda.org <http://www.shantiuganda.org>  income generating group.  They make jewellery out of paper beads which they also make.  This group brought 26 women together chosen for their dire circumstances (to qualify you have to be HIV+, widowed or raising children/grandchildren on your own) and they are taught how to make the jewellery, run a business, and manage money.  They have a self elected leader and full control over all of their profits.  The money they make is used to pay for their homes, send their children/grandchildren to school and to buy better more nutritious food.  Better food improves their health which makes it easier to deal with HIV. So, Bubeera is lucky.   Lucky that she now has some control of her life.  Lucky that she now has some choices.  Her daughter is lucky too…as now she has a chance at going to school. Pardon my over simplification but education is the key to poverty.   They say you educate a woman and you educate a village/nation.  I think you give a girl access to education and you give a girl access to choice.

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Women in Uganda by Davian Den Otter

After visiting the clinic, we spent the next 2 days at the construction site of the new birthing center, the very center each our donors contributed to when they donated to this project! It was very exciting to participate in building the center and to know that these women were going to have a beautiful place to go with plenty of clean water, brand new supplies, proper medicine and a comfortable place to rest while they are in labor and after they give birth. We learned how to make bricks and lay them. It was extremely hard work. They don’t have equipment like we do at home…everything is done the HARD WAY. My most touching moment at this sight was witnessing a 90 year old woman show up to hoe the garden. She didn’t speak any English but she came and sat down next to me, placed her hand in mine, and spoke to me. I learned that she had fallen down and hurt her leg. Her knee was swollen. She walked all the way from her home to the site and back every Wednesday to participate in this project. To put things in perspective, I was tired after working there for 2 hours and we were able to take a bus back to the hotel. This woman walked all the way back to her home with a hurt leg and in the intense heat after she worked all day. I was beside myself. I couldn’t help but to break down in tears. It has taken me 3 full days to move past that moment. Experiences like this challenge you on every level. They bring forward emotions like gratitude, joy, sorrow, grief, hope, shame, guilt, and so so so much love. I was absolutely humbled…and so thankful to have shared that time with her.  One of the most important parts about this trip is the yoga our group leaders Seane and Suzanne so graciously lead all 23 of us through first thing each morning. Many of you are wondering how I can be exposed to such circumstances day after day and be able to handle and process it accordingly. The answer to this question is the yoga practice. Each morning we are led through a series of movements which enable us to open our bodies, minds, and spirits. This is done in such a way that we are able to release our stored tension and bottled up emotions so that we are able to move into our day clear and open to the new experiences in store for us. At the end of most days we reconnect for group processing, which consists of 1-2 hours of sharing our experiences about what we are witnessing. The morning and evening gatherings are designed to help us work through our internal issues so that we can be as effective as possible out in the community. There are a lot of tears but with them an unfathomable amount of support available at all times. On February 13th we went to the New Hope School and Orphanage. I painted flouride on all of the kids teeth and it was adorable how willing they were to accept the treatment. There were about 80 kids at the orphanage, all HIV positive and from ages 7 months into their teens. The money raised for the orphanage went to new mattresses (all of the kids slept in stacked up bunk beds 3 high in one small room), a new water filtration system (because they had no clean water)…as well as a garden to grow food. We brought them tons of activities including paper and crayons, frisbees, books, soccer balls, stickers, jump ropes, etc… they were SO HAPPY and excited. They sang to us and played with us. We read them books, took and printed pictures for all of them, painted a mural on the wall, taught them yoga, and educated them about dental care. $150,000 of our fund raising went into that orphanage…money well spent. The interesting and very moving part about the orphanage was the manner in which the children engaged and disengaged with us. They wanted to be part of our group and the activities which we offered, but they were careful not to get too close to us because they are used to abandonment and the pain associated with it. In addition, they are used to a high turnover in teachers so they really don’t have a constant caretaker in their lives. Anyone who shows up eventually disappears. One child came and held my hand as we were walking through the grass. She looked up at me with hope in her eyes and asked if I was going to come back again. I had to tell her “no”. She looked down at the ground full of sadness. The children had blank stares on their faces when we were packing up to leave. We gave them a short burst of extreme love and happiness, only to have to leave them as they have been left many times before. This was very difficult for me to process. I contemplated whether or not our visit did more harm than good and it reminded me of the saying, “better to have loved and lost then never to have loved at all”. All in all, I decided it was definitely better to have loved them for the short time we had!

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Shanti Uganda/ New Hope and Yoga by Jennifer Silvestri

“Souls don’t have races or sexes or religions. They are beyond artificial divisions.”  Beliefs separate, loving thoughts unite us.  Today started off with intrigue, curiosity, excitement and ended with joy, yet sorrow.  The orphanage was built first with a vision, then came the passion, then it took strength to reach out and New Hope School and Orphanage was born.  The man who started it was Godfrey in 1997.  He started New Hope on his own.  The kids are street kids – some have no mothers, some have no fathers, some have neither.  Most of the children are HIV+.  New Hope provides a safe environment to educate, learn and thrive.  In order to do so it takes visitors like us, OTM, to raise money and support these children so they have clean water, food, shelter, and education.  OTM has helped this year by creating a water filtration system, supplying mattresses, and school supplies.  Upon arrival we were greeted with song in our native language from the children that made my heart dance with joy:   It’s a long, long way from oh Canada to Uganda Passing over mountains and sandy rivers But our God is good who has allowed you to come We are happy to see you today   All day long we were engaged in activities with the children.  We played with frisbees, jump roped, read books, parachute games, and engaged in playful yoga postures.  Leaving the games on our way back to join others, one of the children grabbed my hand.  It made me realize how the children crave any sort of human contact, love, or affection of any kind. During the course of the day many pictures were taken of these beautiful children.  At one point I turned to show the children their picture through my camera lens.  They giggled with excitement at their own reflection.  I realized right then, how much we take for granted – some of these children might have never seen a reflection of themselves before.  We left a mural on their school wall so dreams and the magic will and can continue.  Leaving the school was hard for most of us. A feeling of sadness loomed when asked when will we return? The children of New Hope are thriving for love, support and just a hug. I hope I can go back and give each of them a hug.  I hope that other volunteers continue to build on this wonderful foundation.  It became apparent to me that a sponsorship program is needed at New Hope in order for these children to continue on this positive path of learning and growing, feeling safe and loved.  I am so humbled and honored to be part of these children’s lives.

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New Hope by Carrie Herscovici

I can barely feel my hands.  Today I helped birth a baby girl. I feel a very deep vibration. The image of 5 women holding one as she was going through the process of bringing a life into the world is one that is going to stay with me forever. The following is an excerpt of an email I wrote to my mom…I hope she doesn’t mind but its probably the most real reaction I am going to get down… I helped birth a baby today.  It made me want to talk to you. and when I say I helped birth a baby I mean I saw everything and was holding her leg when the baby came out.  It was the most intense thing ever.  I cried. It was so weird – there was no baby and then there she was all slimy and gross and crying and being manhandled and held upside down by her feet. The mom who was 17 years old and named Myriam was 8 centimeters when we arrived at the birthing center (um, I thought we were just going to be getting a tour) and she was in labour and we helped.  Sarah who is on the trip with us is an actual doula and there was a lady getting a c-section so she went in to help in that room and we (me heather and amanda) worked with our mom.  We held her hands and helped her walk around outside, tried to get her to stretch and squat, drink water. She was scared. Sarah had a wicked bag full of tricks…lotion and oils and stuff that really seemed to help but when it was time, well, right before the time time, she was on the floor and I had her head in my lap and my hands under her shoulders and there were 2 women on either side of her and we were all basically holding her.  She didn’t know us and we didn’t know her but I felt so connected to everyone…and everything.   It wasn’t pretty or easy but then there was a baby…I feel like my soul is vibrating a little. When we left mama was doing okay – she asked for a coke The whole thing made me think of you and I hope that you felt supported and safe when you were going through and that someone was holding your hand.  And that someone gave you a coke afterwards. So, I can’t seem to stop crying.  The reality of giving birth in Africa has many shocking things but I am going to leave this one here…

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There was no baby and then there was a baby by Davian Den Otter

A few weeks ago, the YJ staff got a special treat when MC Yogi and Amanda Giacomini stopped by our offices to teach our daily staff yoga class. We don’t usually practice with music here in the offices–mostly because our yoga room is also our conference room and isn’t really set up with a sound system–so I’m always grateful when we have a teacher come in with her own iPod docking station. Of course, we would expect no less from the infamous, self procraimed yoga “unrapper” . . . who came with a big, shiny boom box in tow. Sure, I was skeptical of the whole yoga hip-hop thing at first, but now, I’ll admit it. I’m a fan. So I was thrilled to see his newest video posted to Huffington Post today. “It’s about being generous with ourselves with our hearts, with our time and with our energy,” he writes. “It affirms the universal principle of attraction. What we give is what we get.” Where do I sign up? MC Yogi – Give Love (Giving4Living Mix) from MC Yogi on Vimeo . So, that’s my yoga video pick of the day. I’d love to see some of your favorites in the comments section below!

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Give Love!

New Hope School is an orpanage for HIV+ children, and it is located in Entebbe, about an hour outside the capital of Kampala. The school itself has nearly zero resources. Right now they only have 1 teacher and few administrators to serve the needs of the 80 children ranging from toddlers to teens. There is one big classroom, that has long group desks, and 1 blackboard that is in very bad condition. I cant imagine that it is easy to write on and to be able to use for lessons, but Im not sure how much that matters as I didn’t see any chalk around anyway. They also have a few small rooms as well, all with dirty cement floors and walls, the biggest is the dormitory that house bunkbeds that are 3 high. I realized quickly that there were not enough beds for each child to have their own, and that many are sleeping 3-4 in one bed. The stench from the dorm was pretty bad, and the reality is that the younger ones wet the bed, and there is no one and no way to clean or sanitize the mattresses. Not to mention none of these kids get regular baths, and when they do rinse, the water is not clean. The bacteria and germs that fester in there no doubt lead to serious illness. Like most HIV+ people whose immune systems can not protect them, it is the secondary diseases that are deadly. Of course nutrition and clean water for drinking are also a huge problem here, but what makes this place so different from the other places we’ve been working is the debilitating lack of love, appropriate touch & affection these children are deprived of.       With a portion of the funds that we raised (clearly OTM knows how to stretch a dollar…right?) we purchased new mattresses for the dorm, we bought a variety of seeds and helped them with the garden so that they will have better nutrition and more sustainability, two water filtration systems so that they can have clean water for drinking & bathing, and school books because education is the only chance these kids have of surviving. Our mission for the day was to present them with these gifts but more so to play with them, to shower them with the love and affection they so desperately want and need, but never do they get.   We brought so many fun activities including jump ropes, 20 some soccer balls, a huge parachute, we did yoga, and danced and read books. We split the kids into small groups and rotated them through so that they each had a chance to play with all of us and to experience all of the activities. While all of that was going on we also painted a beautiful mural on the wall of their “library” (I use that word generously as they dont have many books), applied a fluoride treatment to their teeth, that have never seen a dentist (we also left toothbrushes & toothpaste) and we took a picture of each child. This was really cool, as these kids dont have mirrors let along pictures and many have NEVER seen themselves. So we printed out a headshot of each beautiful child and put it in a plastic frame for them. It was a delicious experience. Each little face wore a unique expression. Some were ecstatic, others more reserved yet some of them wore bright smiles for the moment but you could see the loneliness in their eyes.   I bounced around and did all the activities, then settled in the picture room to read with the kids while they were awaiting their turn for the photo. At first I was just reading to them, but soon I realized they wanted to read to me. They were very excited to practice their reading ” and to prove to me that they were “good” and I soon had a group gathered around. They were sitting on my lap, squishing in on both sides hovering over my shoulders and even sitting in front and reading upside down. In a chorus we read aloud, and I walked them slowly through any words they didnt know. I made a point to touch them all, to rub their backs, to look them deep into the eyes, and to tell them how smart and wonderful they are. Typically this is what ones parents do, but unfortunately for these kids they dont have parents.      The day was a great success, and the children had a fabulous expierence, laughing, playing and having the time of their lives. But soon, it was time for us to leave. We still have a few more places to work while were here, so just this one day was all they got. We gathered the whole crew together, our group and all of the children to take group photos and to say goodbye. By this time I had two young ladies who has attached themselves to me, one holding each hand and not letting go. They had been with me all day long and I knew that my attention was meaningful to them. I walked them over to a small bench under a tree (one of the only small places in the entire yard that actually had some shade) and I told them that they can make something of their lives. I told them that they were smart and beautiful and that if they study hard, and focus on their education that they can create a good life. I hugged each of them really really hard. I told them to hold me tighter and we took a few very deep breaths together as we embraced as though that would allow my love to penetrate deeper into their souls. When I released the hold one of my ladies looked directly through me, tears beginning to stream down her face, and she told me that she needed a _______. ( something I didn’t understand). I asked her if that meant a teacher and she shrugged and said “not really but yes, we need someone to show us”. What she was asking me for was for someone to love & take care of her. And to that, I had no answer. My bus was waiting, and I had to leave.      As we pulled away, they all stood outside watching us drive away. They didn’t chase the bus laughing and waving like the other places we had served on this journey. Instead they looked very sad. They know, as well as I do, that they will never be adopted. They will not get to university. In fact once they reach a certain age, they are to go back to their villiages that have no jobs waiting, with their limited education and no resources. They will marry and have babies. They will struggle and will continue the cycle of poverty & disease. The women, many will be raped, others will work tirelessly until they eventually die of HIV or during childbirth. The men, they will be so disempowerd by their inability to provide for their families that many will turn to violence or addiction. It will be a miracle if even 5% of the innocent faces that we saw today actually get out of this situation. These kids dont get the ARVs (HIV medication), no one is going to pay for that.      This was just too much for me to handle and once we pulled away I lost it. The emotion came uo so strong and so fast that my entire body began to writhe with pain. Chest convulsions, runny nose, inabilty to take a breath. I couldn’t pull it together. WTF????? This is not fair. These innocent children do not deserve this. I am a spiritual woman, and I can usually see the the upside, the beauty, and the grace. But right now I just cant. We just frickin drove away and left them all there to suffer unloved. I know that we helped to make their life experience a little better. I know that the garden and water are invaluable, that the mattresses will greatly improve their conditions for a while and that the books will offer the only chance they have. But what doesn’t sit right in my heart is that we came in for 1 day and showed them what it feels like to be seen, loved and cared for. Then we just left.      I honestly dont know if it was kind or just plain cruel to do what we did. I know that our intentions were in the right place, but I just dont feel good about it. I bet that those kids are going to cram into their new beds tonight, and lay there thinking about us, wondering if we’ll ever come back. But we wont. I keep thinking about the guest registry book that we signed and the column that asked for reason of visit. All of the entries on the 2 pages before me said they were there to “drop off their children”. There wasn’t a single visitor. Not one! The reality is that these kids know abandonment more than any other feeling. And we just came in and did the same damn thing. I know most people think it’s better to have loved and lost. But after today I’m not so sure. I guess if you really look at the big picture, I’m a 35 year old woman who has never been married and has no kids. Perhaps I’ve always disagreed with that cliche’.      

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New Hope by Terri Cooper

February 11th is a very special day for me. Twelve years ago on February 11th, I gave birth to my son, Charlie, and became a mom. My world was forever changed. This year I was in a tiny African village on February 11th, trying to find a way to honor the rite of passage I hold most dear in my life. When I was given the opportunity to work in a local birth Clinic, I decided this was the perfect way to celebrate Charlie’s birth, as well as my own birth into motherhood. Nothing could have prepared me for what I experienced. We entered the birthing room, a small cement square with two birthing beds separated by a fabric curtain. My senses were immediately assaulted by the smells of shit, sweat, blood, and tears. It smelled strongly of both life and death. A young 17 year old girl named Miriam lay on one of the beds. It was covered in a plastic garbage bag that the birthing women are required to bring themselves. There are no clean sheets, pillows, ice chips, or even bottled water. If you need it, you bring it—otherwise you go without. They go without a lot. I noticed that the metal stirrups were covered in rust and the floor was splattered with blood.  Miriam was in labor, she was alone, and she was terrified. She spoke English and asked us to pray for her. She was certain God was not with her, that she had done something wrong, that she was going to die.  I held her hand and assured her that God was there, that she was strong, and that she and her baby were going to be fine. A little voice whispered in my ear that this was Africa where things often go wrong. I spent the next 4 hours determined to prove that voice wrong. The doctor told Miriam she would have to have a cesarean if she couldn’t get the baby down further. In Kasana, a cesarean is often a death sentence. We convinced Miriam to climb off the birthing bed and start walking, squatting, swaying, breathing, singing—performing that primitive birth dance. Four hours later, I held her hand as she delivered a healthy baby girl and cried happy tears as another mother was born. Later, she looked at me and said, “sister this is our baby.” She even asked me to name her. I told her I had already named my babies and it was her turn. She giggled like the 17 year child that she is and said , ” I want to name her baby Miriam after me.” Then she asked for a coke. Seane raced to a roadside stand and brought back two cokes. Miriam beamed. I have no idea what happens next in the story of Miriam and Baby Miriam. I wish I could write them a happy ending, but this is Africa where things often go wrong. Then again, we could prove that voice wrong if we all really tried.

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Birthday by Amanda Stuermer

$150K of the money raised last year is going to an organization called, Shanti Uganda, started by a woman named Natalie Angell.  Natalie is from Vancouver and studied Ugandan history in college.  She decided to travel to the country a few years ago and discovered that the birth practices in Uganda were very aggressive and negative.  She wanted to provide women with information about safe and supported birth practices.  When she connected with Off the Mat, her dreams of building an eco-birth house were realized.  She chose the village of Kasana because of her connection to the current birth center there, started and run by a nun who is also a midwife.  Natalie’s intention is for the new birth house to be a training center for midwives and dualas throughout Uganda.  Women can visit, learn, and bring the information back to their own communities. Kasana is an extremely remote village about an hour north of Kampala.  Now we’re starting to see parts of Uganda that we imagined in our heads: the bush, the scattered mud homes and narrow, blood red roads.  Usually when people need an Internet connection they have to drive to Kampala!  When we arrived, we checked into the volunteer house, which is much nicer than any of us expected.  I am sharing a small room with Sarah, one of the fellow seva participants.  I feel lucky to have her in my room because she is a Duala back in the states and these next couple of days will be simply incredible for her.   After check-in, the group traveled about five minutes to get to the current birth center, to meet Natalie and the women in her “Women’s Group.”    The group is comprised of 26 HIV positive women, chosen out of 600.  Some of the women have children, some are pregnant.  All of the women are on ARV’s while they’re in the program.  They make necklaces out of recycled paper beads as well as fabric handbags for profit.  Natalie makes sure everyone is paid equally each week, that the women learn to manage and save their money, and provides business training.  After a certain period of time the women will graduate from the program and receive a certificate of completion.  They set short term and long term goals together.  They are encouraged to improve their nutrition while in the program.  It took a while for the women to come together peacefully.  Often, women are in competition with one another because polygamy is practiced in this part of Uganda.  In the beginning, women were stealing from each other and trying to get others kicked out of the group.  They’ve been together for a year now and because of the high standards that Natalie sets for them, things have become much better. The women greeted us with a lively, upbeat song.  Everyone was beautifully dressed for the occasion.  We immediately started singing and dancing with them, as we were lead into a small pavilion, women tossing recycled paper bead necklaces around our necks along the way.  The nun/midwife that started the birth center was there and she gave the women a lesson in safe birth practices while we watched.  Then the women sang two more songs for us and we sang one back.  It’s simply beautiful.  We were all laughing and dancing together, happy to meet one another.  They had made us an intricate fabric banner with beads sewed in that said, “THANK YOU OFF THE MAT!”  Many of us got teary, considering how long it must have taken to make the banner.  I can’t remember smiling this much in a long time. After our heart-felt greeting, we all sat down to lunch.  The women cooked us delicious, hot Ugandan food- even better than what we ate yesterday for lunch.  There’s this awesome purple peanut sauce that you can put on anything! After lunch we split into groups to learn how to roll beads (I rolled 2 decent beads!) and teach yoga to the women.  I taught Warrior 1 and even with the language barrier, we all did really well.  It was really fun to just play in the grass, yogaing and dancing to Suzanne’s drum. After several hours with the women we returned to the volunteer house to clean up.  Sarah, my roommate, stayed behind to deliver a baby in the birth house!  That evening we were split into groups of five to have dinner with one of the women from the group.  It was like Thanksgiving!  We ate a lot of the same food we had at lunch- beans, white rice, potatoes, mashed banana with peanut sauce, squash, spinach, watermelon, pineapple, pumpkin, passion fruit juice, cabbage, and more.  There is a lot of starch in the Ugandan diet, so the hopes and dreams I had of losing weight on this trip are completely dashed.  The house we ate in was very small, with just enough room for all of us to sit around a small table, packed with the food.  There wasn’t any electricity, so all we had was a small, battery powered light blub to see our food.  The woman that prepared the food for us was so gracious and spoke little English.  She did not eat while we were there, and she did not let us help set up or clean up.  Ugandan hospitality is out of this world, and I found it hard to simply receive. On our bus ride back to the volunteer house I thought back to how nervous I was about this trip, only a week ago.  It seems so silly now.  Each moment has held beauty all it’s own, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.  It’s only been three days and I already feel forever changed.  This journey is one of the greatest blessings of my life.

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Shanti Uganda by Megan Ridge

Birth: raw, rich, emotional, sensual, intense, calm, powerful, and hopefully supported . As a doula (birth assistant), in Minneapolis, my main goal is to make sure that the mothers I am working with are fully supported in every aspect of birth. And that was my motivation for joining the 2009 SEVA challenge; to support the woman of Uganda in birth. 30 women die every day in Uganda due to childbirth complications . . . I knew this country was in need, but what struck me most was the loneliness the woman here face during birth. Expectant mothers come to this local birthing clinic, typically solo and bring with them their own birth supplies: a plastic sheet to birth on, 2 pairs of gloves for the midwives, and a baby blanket. Where as a typical birth in the U.S. uses a dozen pairs of gloves, half a dozen sheets, handfuls of washcloths and most importantly their partner, possibly a doula, friend or family member. I was blessed to be at the clinic for two days and support 4 women through their births (1 cesarean) . . . without the help of Off the Mat Into the World, and the team of us that where there that day, these women would have been unsupported. There was an incredible transformation for all of us in the bare room. New life was given and women on both sides were empowered. We ALL were supported and full of spirit . . . but to know that there will be unsupported births, at this clinic and hundreds of other places around the world today, is hard one for me wrap my head around. It is our birthright to be loved and held up, especially in times of transformation.

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Birthing by Sarah Longacre