Hi, yogis :) How are you?
Recently I moved from the Sacramento area to Eureka, California. What a whirlwind month it's been!
I'm still getting settled and checking out yoga studios in the area and wanted to share a few reflections from the last few classes I've taken.
It's wild how much I've learned being in a new environment with teachers who come from different schools of yoga. In the last week I've experienced my first Forrest and Anusara practices and I've enjoyed picking up on small yet impactful differences in the language, cuing, and pacing of the classes.
Do you ever mix up your yoga routine? Or try classes at local studios when you travel? I highly recommend getting out of your comfort zone and taking a class where you aren't quite sure what to expect... open yourself to learning, and being a beginner again!
Tosha Yoga, Arcata, CA
This is a breathtaking space on the top floor of the building that I'll definitely return to. I love the natural light, the collection of lovely succulent plants around the room, and the calm, uplifting energy of the space. The Forrest yoga class I took here involved some awesome core work, grounding meditation, and new flows and movements that felt nourishing to the body (lots of Eagle arms, which I even felt the next day in my upper back!).
The teacher Janine was very clear and precise in her teaching, and I appreciated the few hands-on adjustments she offered which helped me relax my neck and take tension out of my shoulders. At one point I could hear the sound of the rain on the rooftop. Very peaceful. I felt spaciousness, grounding, and openness. Even a little glimpse of blissful
samadhi
during Shavasana.
Om Shala Yoga, Arcata, CA
Om Shala offers a diverse range of yoga classes on their schedule. So far I've tried a basics Anusara class, a Hatha 'align and flow' class, and an all-levels Power Vinyasa class. The teachers here certainly have a wealth of knowledge about alignment and I've picked up some awesome tricks and tips about my practice. I love having reminders to pay closer attention to what my 'bad' habits are in class, or just to notice something new. This week I've been working on:
Knitting the low ribs in. Drawing energy into the center of the body really allows me to move from a place of more power! This helps in every pose - in foundational poses like Tadasana and Downdog, and especially in backbends and balancing postures.
Waking up the feet. Keeping the feet alive and the toes active brings more prana into the lower half of the body and the legs, giving more stability and grounding. Pada bandha, engaging the arches, is a subtle but very useful technique that makes a pose feel more balanced. I noticed this one in Half Moon. I also realized that metaphorically and energetically for me at this moment in my life it's very important to keep the feet awake so that I can feel more grounded in these new spaces I'm in!
Using props and the wall for support. I learned an awesome trick for using three blocks on the wall in Dolphin pose (beautiful, supported way to open the upper back and chest). I also worked on Ardha Chandrasana (Standing Half Moon pose) on the wall-- I was able to see how my hips needed to be more engaged in order to access more opening in the pose. Also started to work on wall walks in Wheel (!!!!) and practiced Forearm stand. So excited to incorporate these new 'tricks' into my home practice!
Sasha's power flow class at Om Shala was my favorite local yoga class so far since I moved. I loved her simple, direct cuing, her upbeat playlist, and the way she reminded us to send our breath into the area where our bodies most needed to heal. I definitely felt challenged and inspired, and was surprised by how many arm balances and sun salutations I was able to fit in!
Redwood Strength, Fortuna, CA
This class was an hour-long hot vinyasa practice in a new gym that's a mix of Crossfit-style workouts and hot yoga. I enjoyed the heat and thought of my friends and colleagues at CorePower Yoga and how I miss that beautiful room and its humidity ;) I enjoyed the teacher's enthusiasm and sense of humor and felt at home listening to the sound of Krishna Das' voice.
HealthSport, Eureka, CA
I took a Hatha class and was easily the youngest yogi in the room. One of my favorite moments was about 15 minutes into class, looking over at the gorgeous gray-haired yogini next to me take on full Hanumanasana with her arms overhead and a smile on her face :) The teacher Francis had a unique way of getting me to try more depth in the poses and I loved the mindful, intentional sequencing. At the end of class my body felt open and my mind clear.
Home practice
My home practice has been really key in the last few weeks, too. Rolling out a mat in the kitchen or in my backyard has given me space to be completely comfortable, to relax, to release stress, to breathe loudly and sigh heavily, and to cry a little. Moving is incredibly draining and exhausting work, and it hasn't been easy.
During the weeks leading up to moving, I felt overwhelmed by to-do lists and I benefited greatly from having a restorative yin practice. Since we arrived here on the coast, I've felt a little down and lonely on some days, so a more vigorous practice with inversions and backbends has helped me stay positive.
I can tell that in the weeks and months to come, as I take a little break from having classes to teach, my home practice will be a great way for me to stay creative, to keep up my self-confidence in my teaching, and to play with new flows and ideas for what I love to teach.
I'm still struggling a little bit to find where my new yoga 'home' is, and I'm certainly grieving the loss of having weekly classes to teach in beautiful communities, but I'm doing my best to keep a positive attitude and stay open to whatever opportunities come my way.
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I made a discovery while teaching yoga today.
When I am able to be vulnerable, and sit with my students-- when I am willing to get up close, to be seen, and to share space with them -- I receive so much wisdom and healing.
During last few moments before Savasana, I knelt down on the floor, right in the middle of the room, and suddenly I could feel this profound sense of support and love and sacred energy in the room. What an incredible thing to witness-- yogis willing to be with themselves, stretching, taking care of their bodies, releasing.
It felt so simple and pure, in a way. Just being together in a room. I was sitting there watching yogis do a spinal twist and close their eyes and just
be
. Nothing to do. Nowhere to go. Just resting and receiving a much-deserved rest.
And I felt this urgent longing in me to be close to them -- not to be in the back of the room near the music or up in the front on my own mat. I just wanted to be near them. In it, with them.
So I sat down and placed my palms face up and asked that Reiki would move through me and into the room, and help facilitate healing. I asked that their burdens could be released. I asked that they might feel love and healing. I asked for this process of healing to be immediate and profound.
And I could feel the healing come to me, too. For as much as I give when I teach, I also receive. I realized today that the more receptive I can be to the moment, the more healing the moment brings.
One girl in class had been crying while we were doing hip openers. I brought a box of tissues and set it by her mat-- didn't need to say anything or call it out. I offered a simple gesture to show her that she was supported, and in that moment I remembered all the times on my own mat recently when I'd cried.
Her vulnerability offered me the opportunity to be vulnerable. To be more open today.
Student is teacher is student
, I thought.
We are each our own best teacher.
Often I've had this perception that I need to hold the room
, or I've had the goal to create something incredible and breathtaking in a class... to bring in a theme or offer up a song that fits perfectly... but often it seems that the more I try to plan something, the less authentic it feels.
I've realized how powerful it is simply to show up and to be receptive to what's going on in the moment. To teach from the space I'm in, whether that's a tired and grumpy space, or a joyful one. Even if I'm hesitant, fearful, depleted, overwhelmed... I can still teach.
And from this place of authenticity, my students feel permission to be authentic. To be vulnerable. This is what creates the powerful experience of yoga.
Being willing to sit with what is. Being
willing to cry, or to lie there silently in a spinal twist and just feel everything that is sacred in the room, and how transformative this practice is.
Teaching yoga today was a gift.
May this practice continue to help me be receptive, and may it touch you to be more open, too.
Namaste.
Photo by
.
Calling all yoga junkies! :)
Do you ever read about anatomy and the function of yoga poses to help deepen your practice?
Sometimes reading about the postures can help you understand them in a completely new way.
Here are two books I'd recommend.
The Complete Guide to Yoga Inversions
by
, R.Y.T.
The Student's Manual of Yoga Anatomy
by Sally Parkes
I've been reading these books lately for new ideas about how to sequence my yoga classes leading up to a peak pose. They are filled with so much great information!
I'd recommend both of these books to any yogi, especially if you:
teach yoga
want to practice advanced poses safely
are completing a yoga teacher training and studying anatomy
I love that
The Complete Guide to Yoga Inversions
offers foundational pose alignment (ie downdog, side plank, and forward fold) before getting into the details of more challenging poses. I also love that each pose has a few tips and tricks that help make the posture more accessible-- shifting the gaze or moving the weight in the hands or feet, or an idea for what to do if you get stuck. Truly an amazing book!
The Student's Manual of Yoga Anatomy
--
this book would be a great starting place for someone in their first teacher training, or if you're a yogi who practices mostly at home and you can't usually get to a studio. I love that the beginning of the book includes information on spinal movement and types of muscle activity. Then the book details each pose with information on how to get into the pose safely, how to modify and use props, and what to be careful of. This is a very thorough, easy-to-digest manual for many poses, and a book I'd highly recommend to practitioners of all levels.
Photo by
@the_lost_portraits
.
What yoga books are you reading lately?
A big thanks to the team at The Quarto Publishing Group for offering me the opportunity to check out these books. I'll definitely be recommending them to students and teachers, and using the knowledge from each book to inform my own practice!
Namaste.
PS Four of my other favorite
yoga books
and a book featuring
yoga and poetry
.
Alive in the Fire is a blog inspired by practicing yoga mindfully, teaching from the heart, giving hugs, and living a badass life.
Alive in the Fire is a blog inspired by practicing yoga mindfully, teaching from the heart, giving hugs, and living a badass life.
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