Holidays and Yoga

Hi Everyone, It has been a little while since my last entry. Yoga and fitness have expanded so much that my time has been aborbed! Anyhow, thought many thoughts around this topic for me
today and what a great time to recenter ourselves at the holidays. I find that during my time off at the holidays is a great time to seek something new and restore my reserves for after the first of the year. How do we do that? Seek out a restorative yoga class. I gave one this week and I highly recommend taking one. Laura has one this next Wednesday, the 17th. to find out more go to www.yogachi.com. What a great way for us to move into the holidays.
It is also a great time to hit your mat at home, do your favorite poses to uplift that energy. I love warrior I and downward dog and find that anytime of day, twice if I can, do these poses.
Try Downward dog with a block, to rest the head and soften the eyes and forhead.
Also, spending more quiet time meditating, whatever that is for you. And of course our favorite
focus on gratitude and abundance. In spite of what is being said around us, there so much abundance in life. In spite of our best efforts not to pick up on the chaotic energy out there, we still can, so quiet time is even more important. Even just a few minutes. It is amazing what 5 mintues can do. Take care all, and have a happy holiday season. Speak with you in the New Year!

Sensation

Good Afternoon, a phrase came to me recently, "fake it till you make it". So many times in yoga poses, we all want to "look" as if we have the pose or are able to do the pose even if it doesn't feel good. We just do not want to feel left out in class. I can't tell you how many years I felt this when I attended classes. I did not like being the odd girl out! Well, these days, I could not care less. It is such a good feeling and really, I have been forced to do it to take care of my health. Teaching more and knowing that I have so many lovely people depending on me including myself has pushed me to do yoga that feels really good! Downward dog......our favorite! My teacher has been working with me for years....on getting into my legs to balance my weight. Which has caused elbow and shoulder trouble for me
During our many classes together I would try to do as I was being directed but frankly I really was not getting it. Changing my focus to a sensation or visualizing what it would feel like to be more in my legs made it easier for me. And now actually feeling the differance in my body has become noticable. I can tell when I am not balancing my weight and utilizing my legs and feet in the pose.

Downward Dog Pose

Hi All: I hope everyone is enjoying the end of summer, it is such an active time. Taking in as much as we can.
I wanted to mention in this blog what pose I have done the most all summer. And it is Downward Facing Dog. Very few days have gone by that I not done the pose. Mostly because I have been learning so many new things on the teaching front and doing a Downward dog or a couple really helps me stay centered and strong. It is also restful as I move more into my legs and balance my weight. I notice mentally it is much more calming for me.

Please look for my next blog on the Yamas and Niyamas.....Coming soon.

Peace and tranquilty to you, Denise

More thoughts on yoga practice

Hi Everyone, I have found my home practice changing dramatically. The asana portion of my practice has always been so much more prominent than the meditative and breath work. I notice that I have needed more meditative practice but very unable to sit for any length of time and it was suggested to me to a moving meditative practice instead. Taking long walks has been extremely helpful in calming my thoughts and to help me focus more deeply on feelings that need to surface. I notice that I can bring this mindfulness to the many tasks through my day and to bring me more present the more often I do it. I also think back to my training, yoga practice is many things, reading the sutras or other inspirational readings, chanting, the yamas and niyamas etc. It was wonderful to get support and hear from a couple of sources that it was time to expand what I think if as my practice and start to reach out more into other areas. It is easy to get stuck on one way of doing something and opening up one thing can open my creativity to many other areas in life! Enjoy your practice, maybe today it is time to try something differant!Namaste' Denise

Finding ease in seated poses

Good afternoon all, I have had some interesting insights on practicing seated poses. It all started with our Master class with Laura two weeks ago. She suggested we try to figure out why we do not care for a certain pose rather than just that we do not care for it. Forward folds have since I began yoga more challenging for me, physically as well as mentally. I have found ease in a few of them and practice those regularly. Recently, Maryiciasana I, which I tend to avoid if possible was the one I focused on due to Laura's class. What I found out was it became more clear to me when I found the action of the pelvis in the pose. Also, being on my sitbones and feeling my heels, although I am seated and close to the ground I am not rooting well in my seated asanas.
This had been my focus as of late which has helped. At home it is much easier to play and try differant props rather than get to a class and all of sudden need to be in it with out being fully able to make thoughtful adjustments. Mentally, I have to experience acceptance and allow myself to be there and feel the release. Mentally, in life in general I can become unrooted and consistently through out my day in many ways trying to ground myself in my thoughts so coming to pose such as this becomes more challenging. I am sure I will have more thoughts about this as I practice. I hope this is of interest and helps to bring some thoughtfulness to your practice around a pose that is more challenging to you. Namaste, Denise

Waiting and Practice

I was very inspired today from a newsletter I received from a wellness practitioner. It was about "Waiting" in yoga. Many times when we are in asana class or at home doing our practice we do not even notice the subtle changes that have happened physically or mentally. Maybe we feel an overall sense of calmness, less agitated, more sleep, not feeling stiff or we have more energy. These subtle changes are all part of the process in yoga. I remember back to when I first took yoga and how impatient I was with almost everything! I found it challenging to just "be" in any pose for very long and then frustrated with my own body at how inflexible I thought I was. This inspiration was about waiting in Shavasana(corpse pose) and allowing the benefits of staying peaceful without moving to take over and give our bodies time to absorb the pose. Which is extraordinarily challenging to beginners as well as long time practioners. So next time you are Shavasana, allow your self to be there, be present and experience stillness. If something trys to pull your attention, let it go. What other pose do you find the most challenging? Use this same idea there, practice a modification of the pose with stillness and presence. You will find your practice to be more nurturing and beneficial when you allow yourself to experience this. And if you have a day that is more difficult to practice this process, take a breath and thank yourself for taking the time to try it!

I very often get the question of "what should I practice?" from students. My answer is to practice what you remember from class, which is usually something you need or something you found joy in. Even if it is just one pose, do that. Without thinking or planning it, do your pose and notice how it feels. Most often if you have been practicing a long time, you will be practicing at home and if not, give this a try, doing one pose will lead you to the next one.

Enjoy your practice! Namaste' Denise

Inner inspiration

Hi All, I continue to find new ways to practice and to inspire myself. I was recently gone on a one week vacation. It was quite a getaway for me, I was very present finding myself living in each moment and not thinking about home. What I have always noticed about vacations is reentry after I am home. Very difficult to fold into my old routine and all the things that need to be done. In the past I would have dove in and just worn myself out getting it altogether. Instead, this time, I was okay with were I was. I was slightly down from being away, overwhelmed at what I saw around me and decided that it was okay. I thought what can do with this time given to me......practice my yoga; asana, meditation and some inspirational reading. I come away from my practice more balanced and mentally ready to show up for what I need to do. As much quiet mellow time I had on vacation, it is nothing like quiet mellow time in my own surroundings. It is definitey inspiring.

denise

Newness in Practice

Hi Everyone, I posted the last time about my practice around backbends and feeling inspired. Something that continues to inspire me is the many ways I can practice yoga in my life. Somedays I do not have the energy for a full asana practice especially when my teaching schedule is as full as it is now. So the other ways I practice, breathing and meditation--this has been such an eye opener for me. It rounds out my day and I do not feel the pressure to do a "practice". I was definitely programmed for many years about practice being only asana. It frankly fueled my judgement issues for myself. Over coming judgement in my life is a very large issue to me and something that I bring mindfulness (also a yoga practice!) to daily. So offering new things to practice and seeing another area of my yogic life expand is wonderful. I wholeheartedly suggest to those out there, try something new to expand your practice. Namaste' Denise

backbends

This month I have decided to commit myself to a more mindful practice. I find, and I know I am not alone, that my mind wanders and all of sudden I may be practicing but it is just a physical practice or what I think "I should" be doing. My practice took a wonderful turn after a master class with Laura, I enjoyed two weeks of solid practice on chaturunga and learned so much! And then I was back to my waundering and not focusing. My first thought as I drove to a class was what would balance me physically and mentally, what poses do I visit less than frequently?
Easy answer, back bends.....My next question was how do I take the frustration out and turn it into something fun that I look forward to? I started with what I need and that is I feel as if I have time, I have to feel warmed up and I have to feel centered in order to focus on backbends. I did a little research and found a sequence to start with and added my own variations and got started. It is wonderful! And so engaging for me mentally. I will keep you posted as to how I am progressing and post it here! Namaste' Denise

Adapting

I was surprised to see how long it had been since I posted. So this is long overdue. As a yoga practioner I notice my practice ebbing and flowing with my life instead of praciticing with intention each time I come to my mat. I very often take it for granted and do a practice I am used to doing or a series of poses that are nice and easy feeling for me. I then notice that I walk away from my mat feeling dissatisifed. I experience the disconnection and then am not sure what to focus on. So during this time two things came up for me, 1) I attended my regular yoga class and we did a pose that I had not done in 12 years. Supported halasana with a bench. It was unbelievably difficult for me mentally and physically. The teacher tried helping me become more comfortable and finally had me come out. I spoke with a yoga teacher friend and we got together and approached it again. Finally coming to the conclusion that I needed to practice halasana in a whole differant way and to chose a differant pose if it came up again in class. Discovering that I was just not ready for it in that form was humbling. And then it brought back memories from when I first practiced it. 2) the other part that worked its way into my practice was a slight over stretching that I did while teaching. I was distracted by someone coming inside the classroom and fell out of my pose. I over stretched something in my hip from this little manuever. And ever since, my practice has had to be about resting it. It is intersting to me how the universe gave me a focus and a purpose behind my practice. I have since been focusing on one pose and relaxation in my daily practice. It is fun to just be in one pose for a period of time and or try alternative ways to prop it and practice it. I am being more mindful since I have had these two things to steer me. Looking more deeply and mindfully at the pose I do translates into the rest of my day. I look at everything more deeply and mindfully, it also lifts my spirit to know that I am able to adapt my practice. Judith Lasater in her daily yoga readings discussed adaptability vs flexibility. In yoga we become more aware and although I think of myself as a flexible person in life, I am actually able to adapt. The ability to adapt comes from our ability not to resist what is happening within ourselves. I took this into my daily life as a way to meet the challenges that come to me on a day to day basis. I can easily begin to resist even the smallest thing but knowing that I am beginning to resist, I then let go and move on or go with the flow of it.

If you are having trouble with your practice look at what the universe may be showing you and begin there..........