Yoga Heart & Mind E-News
November, 2008
I recently received a circulating e-mail that began with "I am thankful for" followed with something that at first seems like a negative or an inconvenience followed by a "because" that flips the perspective. For example, "I am thankful for the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to eat." and "I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home."
These statements inspired me to consider all the things that are going right in my life that I tend to take for granted (at least until they go wrong). My alarm goes off; hence, I did not oversleep. I turn on the shower and have hot water. As I go through my day and recognize how many little and big things go right that I often don't notice, it feels a little embarassing. The things that go right far out number anything I can complain about.
One evening this week, my family sat around the dinner table and together we starting listing from the beginning of our day the minutia of details that went right in just one day, we started giggling because it began to feel a little ridiculous but also very profound.
I am so thankful for all those things that go right in your life that allow our lives to intersect. :)
View Yoga Teaching Schedule On-Line!
Thursday, 11/27 - no class due to Thanksgiving
Friday, 11/28 - no class since we'll be so well fed and full!
BVRC students may make-up any missed classes (or any known future classes due to travel, etc.) during the Fall session prior to December 19th. Please let me know what class you are making up so I can mark it on the attendance sheet.
Mondays & Fridays 10:00 - 11:00 am in classrooms 4 & 5
Mondays & Thursdays 6:15 - 7:15 pm in classrooms 1 & 2
Winter Enrollment for Blue Valley Rec Classes is now available! :)
Therapeutic Yoga Practices by Susi Amendola, ERYT 500
Susi is the National Director of Stress Managment for the prestigious Dean Ornish Program for Reversing Heart Disease using yoga and meditation in hospital sites around the country (and even more important she is Robin Hackney's mentor and teacher!). ;)
Friday, Nov. 14th 6:30 - 8:30 pm: Yoga Nidra
Saturday, Nov. 15th
10:30 am - 12:30 pm: Yoga & Your Ayurvedic Dosha
2:30 - 4:30 pm: Yoga Practice to Restore Your Dosha
Sunday, Nov. 16th 10:00 am - Noon: Yoga Practices to Open Your Heart
All sessions will be held at Loch Lloyd Country Club Health Club located at 116750 Country Club Dr., Kansas City, MO 64012.
Cost is $150 for the entire workshop or $40 per session
For more information or to register, contact Robin Hackney at 913-909-7967 or to to www.DoYogaNow.com
Karma, Compassion & Forgiveness by David Lipshutz
David Lipschutz is the Director of the Temple of Kriya Yoga in Chicago, a professional counselor and astrologer. He is a highly respected and much loved teacher here in Kansas City. David teaches with great compassion and love, and generously shares his knowledge with a lot of humor and understanding. He communicates in a way that makes the topic easy to understand.
Friday, Nov. 14th 6:30 - 8:30 pm: Astrology Workshop: Karma through the Signs; $25
Saturday, Nov. 15th
1:00 - 4:00 pm: Karma, Compassion & Forgiveness; $35
Sunday, Nov. 16th 1:00 - 4:00 pm: Karma, Compassion & Forgiveness; $35
All sessions will be held at Mark Blanchard's Progressive Power Yoga at 3665 W. 95th St, Ranch Mart South Shopping Center, Overland Park, KS 66209.
For more information or to register, contact Gretchen at 913-901-8970 or visit http://www.markskcyoga.net/events_workshops.php
I receive many questions on where to purchase props and wanted to provide you with some resources. Locally, Darling Yoga is one of the studios in town that carries props. The following are on-line resources:
Before attempting this sequence:
Please read through the entire sequence and make sure that it is appropriate for you. :)
The sequence has tips but is incomplete as far as alignment cues.
1. Centering Phase (3-5 minutes):
Sitting tall on the edge of a folded blanket or bolster to allow a neutral spine; begin to observe your breath and allow it to deepen
2. Warm-up Phase (5-10 minutes):
*change up your seated position anytime you need
*keep your spine tall, heart open and your breaths smooth
Shoulder rolls in the direction of opening the heart, side stretches, twists in both directions
Transition to all fours; keep ball mounts of index fingers and thumbs grounded
Melt the heart to allow shoulder joint to hug the arm bones and hip joint to hug the thigh bones; breathe in between the shoulder blades to broaden the back
Extended child's pose; draw up centers of arm pits; lengthen front body and breathe into sides of the lower back (kidney area)
3. Heart of Practice (20-30 minutes):
*keep your spine tall, heart open and your breaths smooth
*release tongue/soft palate*keep groins soft*draw sitting bones to one another
*line up center of hip with center of knee with center of ankle
*keep all four corners of feet grounded
Tadasana - Mountain Pose
Sungod
Warrior II (Virabadrasana II)
Triangle (Trikonasana)
Tree (Vrksasana)
Eagle (Garudasana)
Lunge to straight legs (with blocks)
4. Cool Down (tips above still relevant) (5-10 minutes):
Hero Pose (Virasana)
Separated Leg Seated Forward Bend (Upavistha Konasana)
Bound Angle (Baddha Konasana)
Supine (laying on your back stretches) possibilities are hamstring stretches with a strap, happy baby, twists, bridge, etc.
5. Savasana-final relaxation (as long as you like)! Yippee! :)
***Most importantly breathe!***
If possible focus on "lengthening" with your inhales and exploring "depth" on your exhales.
My favorite DVD to recommend is "Yoga for Inflexible People" currently available at www.amazon.com for $11.49. The instruction is very clear and has compatible cuing to what you receive in class. Most sequences advise for props. The nicest thing about this DVD is the menu options that allow you to select a practice by time length and body focus.
A book that I could spend years exploring is "The Breathing Book" by Donna Farhi. This will teach you about your current breathing habits/patterns and give you a plethora of exercises to explore your breath. You will notice the effects physically, mentally and emotionally. It is a text that was part of my teacher training but is very accessible to everyone. It is a phenomenal guide.
**Each image will take you directly to the appropriate location on amazon.com**