I’m a big fan of online yoga video websites. Of course, nothing beats going to a live yoga class, but when you get busy, especially during this hectic month of December, you may have a hard time making it to a yoga studio at the exact time when they offer classes (like those nights when taking a class at 10 PM seems like a swell idea).
The beauty of online video classes is that you can do them WHENEVER YOU HAVE THE TIME and wherever you have an internet connection. They offer flexibility in terms of length, yoga style, intensity, and an amazing variety of different teachers.
1) Free pose guides(this is the coolest feature!) – If you like a class and want to do it again, each class has a pose guide you can download as a PDF. These guides show the sequence of yoga poses from the class, and under each pose picture is the name of the yoga pose. You can save these guides to your computer and print them out for a visual reference during class or to use again for your own home practice.
2) Try it out for FREE first – Yoga Download offers 47 classes that you can try for free. The free class is 20 minutes, and if you like it you can try out the longer versions of these classes. There is a huge variety of free offerings like Jivamukti, Power Baptiste, Forrest Yoga, Anusara, Yin, Prenatal, and Pilates, to name a few. If you’ve always wanted to try out these different styles of yoga, now you can for FREE.
3) Stream it or Download it – If you are one of those people who like to buy the DVDs of your favorite movies, Yoga Download has an option like this. Try a video first, and if you love it, you can download it and keep it forever.
4) Chill-out yoga music– There’s a whole section of chillaxing style yoga music you can check out and purchase. If you dig electronic and organic instrumentals and are looking for some cool new tunes for your yoga classes, you’ll find a great selection of new artists and styles here. For each featured album you can view the tracklist, listen to a portion of each track, and either buy individual tracks or the full album.
5) Community – Yoga Download gives a portion of their proceeds to these organizations: The American Cancer Society, Foundation for International Community Assistance Small Loans (FINCA), Big Changes, Plan USA – Helping Children Through Sponsorship, and Cambodian Children’s Fund. In fact they’ve developed a special class, Yoga for Cancer Survivors, and for every download, they donate 50% of the fee to the American Cancer Society.
6) Awesome pricing plans – For just $10, you can get unlimited streaming classes for a month. For $24, you get unlimited streaming for 3 months, and for $90, unlimited streaming for a whole year! If you want to add downloads to that, it costs just a little more. Don’t want to commit to a full month or year? You can stream most classes for a $1.99 a la carte price.
7) Stress release – Yeah, December is a tough month. Let yoga get you through this stressful time with classes like Yoga for Anxiety and Yoga for Back Pain.
9) Great gift idea – Yoga Download is the perfect gift for a busy friend or someone you know who doesn’t live near a yoga studio. Give the gift of unlimited yoga for a month or a year to someone you love!
10) Yoga for Peace –Yoga Download established the Yoga For Peace program to show support for American troops overseas and current members of the Peace Corps. In the true spirit of yoga, the entire Yoga Download catalogue is available FREE to active duty servicemen and women as their way of thanking those who have offered themselves to a greater mission.
If you or anyone you know is serving in the armed forces or Peace Corps and would like access to free yoga classes, please send an email to help@yogadownload.com for more information.
I recently saw this post on Sandy Kish Jordan’s (one of my super cool summer beach-yoga friends) Facebook page and got a big smile on my face:
BLACK FRIDAY IS COMING!!! Just imagine if everyone spent their money locally instead of on discount crap that no one will even remember they got next year! We could support our friends and neighbors and truly make a difference in our economy. I challenge all my friends. Buy your gifts from local businesses, artists, restaurants.
Great minds think alike, because as I was preparing this post, I realized that almost all of my yoga holiday gift ideas are created by Ohio-based small businesses that just so happen to be run by some amazing yogini goddesses.
It’s a win-win proposition. You get to give your yogi friends unique yoga-inspired gifts, and then you get the added satisfaction of knowing that you helped support a fellow yogini and female-owned yoga business.
If you have a friend, wife, lover, husband, kid, or colleague on your Christmas gift list who loves yoga, these gift recommendations are not only cool, but they’re also designed to enhance their yoga practice. You will not find these gifts at any big box store, and you don’t even need to leave home or wait in line; you can browse in the comfort of your PJs and order the best yoga gifts online right now. So grab a nice warm beverage, relax, and do some stress-free shopping (and don’t forget it’s always fun to treat yourself to one or two holiday yoga gifts too!).
No More Slip Sliding Away – NamaSTAY Yoga Towels
Have you been having trouble with sweaty palms and feet on your yoga mat? Do you worry in those hot classes that you might lose your grip and hurt yourself by slipping and nose diving into the floor? I have to say – that used to be one of the biggest factors that kept me from staying fully present in class. Now, I depend on my NamaSTAY towel to keep me securely planted in my downward dogs.
Cleveland, Ohio-based Cherie Greenwald has developed a pretty damn innovate non-slip yoga towel that has sleeves to hug yoga mats so that the towel stays flat. You can read my review of NamaSTAY yoga towels, and if you decide you want to purchase one, order direct from the Daily Downward Dog to save an extra 20% offof your order or use code DOWNWARDDOG at www.namastaytowel.com to get the 20% savings.
NamaSTAY yoga towels fit most standard size mats and come in a variety of gorgeous colors, including darker, manly colors for the yoga dude in your life. When you give the gift of a NamaSTAY yoga towel, you show how much you care about the safety and well-being of your yogi friends.
Yoga Crack
Indu Lotion, otherwise known as Nectar of the Moon, and sometimes affectionately described as Yoga Crack, is perfect for anyone on your gift list who needs a little something (legal) to help them relax. No prescription required – this all-natural lotion is made with essential oils of bergamot, lavender, and geranium to create an aromatherapy potion that helps ease anxiety and tension, fights fatigue and stress, and (the product feature near and dear to my heart) helps promote clear thinking. The creator of this product, Marni Task, lives and teaches yoga in northeast Ohio (and she also puts on a pretty fierce kirtan too)! You can read more about Indu and can order it right here on The Daily Downward Dog.
Memory Foam Meets Yoga Mat
Say goodbye to sore wrists and achy joints. The Vernice Vita (VV) yoga mat provides three layers of comfort, one of which is memory foam, that keep you protected and comfy during your daily downward dogs. If you love savasana, imagine how much more amazing it could feel lying on those three layers of yumminess. I wrote about my experience using my Cadillac and Studio size Vernice Vita mats, and I have to say that once you go VV, you’ll never go back to a conventional mat. Major kudos to Rachael Ennis, the genius behind Vernice Vita.
Show the yoga lover in your life how much you really care for them with the gift of a Vernice Vita comfort yoga mat. Their wrists, ankles, knees, and heart will have an even greater appreciation for you.
One of the most hotly debated topics on the D.D.D. this year was my post about teaching yoga classes in English versus Sanskrit. It seems that many of us need a little refresher course on the fine art of speaking Sanskrit, and if you or one of your buddies belongs to this camp, why not invest in some Sanskrit training? The awesome yogini Cheryl Hall can get you over your fear of mispronouncing poses like Padangusthasana, Ardha Chandrasana, and Parivrtta Parsvakonasana in under 45 minutes. If you want more information, please read my review of Cheryl’s online training sessions (done via Skype), and then contact her direct (azvedicchant at gmail.com or by phone 480-216-2602) to purchase a gift certificate. Mention the Daily Downward Dog, and Cheryl will give you $5 off the 45-minute class (which is normally $35).
The Ultimate Shop Local Gift
I can’t think of a better gift to give someone you love than the gift of yoga. Why not encourage a friend or family member to start by inviting them to practice with you, or by purchasing a yoga gift certificate for them to try classes in their town? You’ll be supporting your local yoga community and doing something really extraordinary (and maybe even life changing) for your recipient.
If you are looking for recommendations in the Akron, Ohio area, I highly recommend Yoga Bliss . If you live in a remote area with no local studios, you have to try out Yoga Download, an online yoga video resource that lets you pick from hundreds of classes whenever it’s most convenient for you.
Seva – The Best Gift of All
In the rush of holiday craziness, please take a moment to consider giving back some of the goodness you’ve received this year. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention at least one organization that could use some love and support this coming year.
I just recently learned about the efforts of Street Yoga, a non-profit organization that teaches yoga, mindful breathing, and compassionate communication to youth, families, and their caregivers who are struggling with homelessness, poverty, abuse, addiction, trauma, and behavioral challenges. This practice encourages them to grow stronger, heal from past traumas, and create for themselves a life that is inspired, safe, and joyful.
Mark Lilly founded Street Yoga in 2002 by organizing a handful of yoga teachers to teach yoga at a day shelter and school that serves homeless youth. Lilly says his life was deeply bettered by yoga. He started Street Yoga partly because of a song by Neil Young; there’s a line from the song that goes, “We were giving, that’s how we kept what we gave away.” To keep what yoga gave to him, Mark Lilly said that he had to give it away as fast and as much as possible.
Over the last ten years that giving has reached thousands of kids!
Please visit the Street Yoga website. There are plenty of ways to get involved, either through volunteering, starting Street Yoga in your community, or by making a donation.
Wherever you shop this holiday season, please support local businesses, your local yoga studio, and spread the love. If you want to give a shout out to a local business or yoga studio, please feel free to give them a plug in the comments below!
One last note, if you want to save money on shipping, remember to order before Tuesday, December 20th to receive orders shipped by USPS Priority Mail or UPS Ground in time to arrive before Christmas.
Stop by again next week for an awesome holiday giveaway featuring some of these yogalicious products!
“You should sit in meditation for twenty minutes every day—unless you’re too busy; then you should sit for an hour.”
–Old Zen adage
I’ve had a crazy couple of weeks. I’m not complaining, because they have been filled with lots of wonderful summer activities, family visits, and good, fulfilling work. Summer is a busy time for many people, and the problem is that when we get busy, our regular yoga and meditation practices get pushed to the side, and that is precisely when we need it most.
We need to step away from the notion that we don’t have enough time and just carve out at least 10 to 30 minutes for a little breath meditation and yoga. You may not think this is enough to get the benefits, but your body and your mind will thank you for giving it a little respite from the incessant chatter and stress of your day. Just spending a few minutes sitting still, closing your eyes, and breathing deeply can be highly therapeutic. I can testify that the time I spend each morning meditating helps me stay focused, alert, and ready to take on the day with a joyful spirit.
One of the best places I know to get the instruction you need when you don’t have time to make it to the yoga studio is the web site My Yoga Online. The cool thing about My Yoga Online is that you just dial in the amount of time you have (under 15 minutes, 15–30 minutes, 31–60 minutes, or over 60) and shazam! a whole list of online yoga video classes come up in the search results.
My Yoga Online co-founder Michelle Trantina, courtesy MyYogaOnline.com
I just did a search for yoga videos that are under 15 minutes in length and found an 8-minute guided meditation focused on contentment, a quick 10-minute yoga class video that focuses on stretching and releasing your lower back and limbs, an 11-minute session great for people who sit at school or work all day, and an 8-minute routine to open the heart and the shoulders, just to name a few.
My Yoga Online has hundreds of videos covering different yoga styles from beginner to advanced, Pilates and dance, meditation, workplace wellness, and workshops that cover topics like anatomy, breathing, and the chakras. If you would like to learn more, read “My Top 10 Reasons To Try (and Love) My Yoga Online.”
One of my favorite videos on My Yoga Online (and I have a long list) is “Morning Yoga Flow,” with Neil Mark. Neil starts out the class in savasana and progresses to sun salutations, with a special emphasis on the lower back and sacral spine. The class takes just 36 minutes, but when it is done, my body is tingling, and that yogalicious feeling stays with me throughout the entire day.
There is nothing better than attending a live yoga class at a studio (or a beach!), but when you are short on time, don’t rob yourself of the benefits of a daily yoga practice. Just turn on your computer and spend a few minutes nourishing your body and your soul.
WIN A FREE YEAR OF MY YOGA ONLINE!
My Yoga Online co-founder Kreg Weiss, courtesy MyYogaOnline.com
Aren’t you glad you kept reading this post?! Yes, it’s true; because the yogis at My Yoga Online are so cool, one lucky Daily Downward Dog reader will win a free year of online membership to My Yoga Online. Here’s what you need to do to win: Visit My Yoga Online and take the site tour of all they have to offer. Maybe like them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter if you’re feeling a little love in your heart, and leave a comment below just letting me know what you would be most excited about trying if you had your very own membership to My Yoga Online. You will get an extra entry if you tweet or share this giveaway on Facebook (just be sure to let me know in the comments below). The contest is open until July 25, 2011, at noon, when I will pick one person from the comments below in a random drawing and they are going to feel like it is Christmas in July! Woot Woot!
If you already subscribe to My Yoga Online you can still enter. Just leave a comment below and let me know your favorite videos, so I can check them out too!
Today’s yoga theme song (actually, this could work year round) is “Let Love Rule” by the incredibly hot and musically gifted Lenny Kravitz. I got inspired for this theme song at the end of a yoga workout given by Eoin Finn on MyYogaOnline.com. Eoin led me through a class called Daily Dose of Bliss. Eoin, with a class name like that, you had me at hello!
I totally love Eoin’s job title—Blissologist—and his life mission: “To stay in touch with that deep vibration of love so that I can be a conduit for it in all I do in life. I want to inspire people to be continuously lit up by this mysterious but powerful force.”
In addition to turning me on to a really cool variation of pigeon pose*, the 45-minute class was the perfect yoga workout for me. It loosened and lightened my body, released toxins, and, I have to admit, I felt pretty damn blissful when it was over. At the end of class, during savasana, Eoin asked us to remember the radiant place we created through the practice and to ask ourselves how we could share it with others. He urged us as we practice yoga to light someone else’s fire and to let love rule! Enter today’s theme song…
I hope Lenny, Eoin, and I have lit your fire today! I know I’m feeling a lot of love in the room. This song is definitely going on my yoga songs playlist.
*Pigeon pose variation: Below is a screen grab of the video to give you an idea of what this variation of pigeon pose looks like. While in pigeon pose, with your right leg behind you and left leg bent, take your right arm and thread it under your left arm and feel that delicious stretch in your left hip and then repeat on the other side. You gotta gotta let pigeon pose rock!
So, you’ve seen the ads and wondered what My Yoga Online is all about. Well, in a nutshell it is an online subscription service that offers a huge selection of yoga, Pilates, and meditation classes on-demand. If you’ve thought about trying it but need a little nudge in the right direction, here’s my top-ten list of reasons why you should give it a try.
You Call the Shots: We’re all busy, lead crazy lives, and have way too much on the to-do list. It’s really easy to eliminate a yoga workout—or any form of exercise, for that matter—because we can’t fit class schedules into our life schedules. My Yoga Online eliminates all the excuses by providing online access to yoga classes 24/7. Anytime you’re ready just pull out your mat and schedule your very own class. You can even download classes onto your phone for yoga to go!
Flexibility: My Yoga Online takes this yoga flexibility thing pretty seriously. If you’ve only got a few minutes to get that yoga high for the day, My Yoga Online has classes that run in length from five to ninety minutes, so you can pick the class length that meets your time constraints.
31 Flavors: For $9.95 you get all-you–can-eat yoga for a month. That means you can try a different class each day for a month—and try out 31 different flavors of yoga. Pick from a variety of yoga styles, like hatha, power, ashtanga, Kundalini, Yogalates, and Zen meditation, all available in beginner to advanced classes. Variety really is the spice of life!
Work is Stressing Me Out: Pressing deadline, obnoxious boss…My Yoga Online has you covered with a selection of workplace and at-your-desk practices to help you eliminate your workday stress.
Meet Fellow Yoga Dorks: When you join My Yoga Online, you can create a profile and be part of their yogini community with your very own wellness diary, a blog, forums, and newsletters. You can track your progress and goals and get support from fellow yoginis who share your passion for downward dogs.
My Yoga Online co-founder Michelle Trantina
Money, Money, Honey: Nothing beats attending a live class, but if you forego a few live classes and utilize My Yoga Online, you are gonna save some serious money, honey! Their Web site claims that you can save 90 percent compared to traditional studio fees and 20 percent on their yoga class and music downloads.
Cool Free Stuff: Even if you don’t subscribe to My Yoga Online, you can still take advantage of a lot of really cool stuff on their Web site. They have a section of yoga poses that provides helpful pictures, instructional steps to complete the pose, including modifications, and the benefits of the pose. They also have a whole section with articles that demystify yoga, explain what meditation is all about, the power of pranayama, what the heck is a chakra, and they even have a glossary of terms.
Who Sings That Song? Don’t you just hate when you hear a song you like on the radio and they don’t tell you the artist’s name when it’s over? At the end of every online class, My Yoga Online tells you the artist who provided the background music for the class. They provide a music store so you can pick up the songs you like—and even offer them at a discount! How cool is that?! You can download individual songs to build up your very own rockin’ playlist.
Sorry, I Need My Yoga Live and In Person: My Yoga Online realizes the need for that live yoga class vibe, and they have a local wellness guide that allows you to search for yoga instruction and equipment by state.
My Yoga Online co-founder Kreg Weiss
Kick-ass Yoga Classes: Quite frankly, this is the number one reason to try My Yoga Online. Their yoga classes—led by world-class yoga teachers—are amazing! They constantly update the library and have one of the best online collections I’ve seen. I love going to a live classes, but for the price, convenience, and variety of classes, My Yoga Online has become my go-to yoga fix!
I couldn’t stop at 10: Want to check out My Yoga Online for free? Or even better, want to win a FREE year subscription to My Yoga Online? Visit their site from now until September 30 and view one of the free classes they are offering during National Yoga Month. Leave a comment below about the class you tried and what you thought about it, and we’ll pick one lucky winner to get a whole year free of My Yoga Online!
4) Chill-out yoga music – There’s a whole section of chillaxing style yoga music you can check out and purchase. If you dig electronic and organic instrumentals and are looking for some cool new tunes for your yoga classes, you’ll find a great selection of new artists and styles here. For each featured album you can view the tracklist, listen to a portion of each track, and either buy individual tracks or the full album.
