Dec 21, 2011 |
Do you have a yoga asana (pose) that you dream of doing? Maybe it’s adho mukha vrksasana (the elusive handstand) or a challenging arm balancing asana like bakasana (crow or sometimes called crane) or astavakrasana (eight-angle) pose.
It’s the time of year where I do a lot of dreaming and goal setting, so I thought it was a good idea to start putting some dreams out into the universe for the poses that I want to master in the coming year.
In a Kathryn Budig Aim True workshop I recently attended, she referred to dream poses as challenge poses. She talked about the fact that we often set goals to accomplish many poses at one time, when in actuality we should pick only one or two poses per year to really apply ourselves to; we should dedicate the time needed to build up the strength and flexibility to achieve one goal, one asana at a time.
Good thinking, Kathryn! I’m a habitual overachiever, so I took Kathryn’s advice to heart when I selected my top two DREAM POSES for 2012. (I prefer the word “dream” over “challenge.”)
2012 Dream Poses
My #1 dream asana is crow. I can do it now…but just barely. I don’t have the confidence that I should have; I wobble and hold it for about 5 seconds tops. By the end of 2012, I want to ROCK crow pose. I want to be able to jump into it from downward dog and hold it steady for at least a minute. I may even post some videos on The DDD next year to track my progress and the celebration when I finally get there!
My #2 dream asana will be to take crow pose one step further and move into parsava bakha (side crow pose).
The long-term plan is to eventually – someday or some year – move into mayurasana (peacock pose). I figure if Bette Calman can do this pose at age 83, I need to get there sometime before I hit 70. And, can I just say that it is going to take a ton of core and arm strengthening to get me where I want to go in each one of these asanas.
I have to add one more pose that I’m going to work really hard on this coming year (like I said – overachiever). Savasana is one of the easiest poses to get into, but in actuality, it is probably one of the most unbelievably challenging poses I know. I think every yogi should set a goal to master savasana in 2012, to strive during each yoga practice to fully relax, let go, and receive the full benefits.
So what’s your dream pose for 2012? Have some fun with me and set a goal for yourself. Leave me a comment, and I’ll check in throughout the year to follow everyone’s progress. I hope you will keep me in check and motivated as well!
You don’t have to pick something super challenging; it could be an asana that you’ve struggled with getting into proper alignment, or you could set a goal to simply move your foot higher up your leg in tree pose. Make it something that is attainable based on your abilities, but don’t compromise – dream BIG!
Thanks to @SuddenlySus for inspiring this post a while back on Twitter. Her dream pose is to do a handstand unassisted, so go for it in 2012, Sus! I’ll be checking in with you.
Handstand Image: Jakub Sopicki
Nov 22, 2011 |
While the classic Thin Lizzy hard rock tune “The Boys are Back in Town” did not make one of my latest yoga class playlists, there were still plenty of wild-eyed boys blasting out my favorite yoga songs. One Trevor, two Michaels, a dash of Krishna, and one of my previous yoga-playlist-featured artists Lenny Kravitz; these crazy cats provide the perfect tunes for this testosterone infused yoga class playlist.
Opening Breath Meditation and Warm Up
“Pacific II” – Yoga Zone: Music for Meditation – William Ackerman
Acoustic guitar at its finest – slow, quiet, and perfect for an opening meditation.
“Butterfly Meadow” – Sounds of Spa – Peace – Kevin Kendle
Close your eyes and imagine butterflies fluttering through a meadow, water trickling down a stream, blue skies with plenty of sunshine, and a peaceful melody to transport you to a still, quiet place. This Kevin dude is way in touch with his feminine side and I like it.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5fMubdqmTc[/youtube]
“West Side Serenade” (LP Version) – Avenue Blue Featuring Jeff Golub
I’ve been using more and more jazz in my playlists, and this tune comes from Akron, Ohio native Jeff Golub (woot woot – hometown boy). Jeff has had some issues with his eyesight lately, so if you are reading this please take a moment and send some healing karmic vibes his way.
Standing Asanas and Flow
“Who You Gonna Turn To” – Trevor Hall – Trevor Hall
Ok, I’ll admit it – I’m old enough to be his mother, but I have a big Trevor Hall crush. His reggae inspired music and raspy voice are sultry and, although at first I was going to say “sexy,” I’ll replace that with “spiritual.” You can tell from his music and lyrics that Trevor is a yogi and finds inspiration from his yoga practice, from meditation, and from many trips to India. His music is his message, and he donates a large portion of his earnings to children in India, making him the perfect poster boy for yoga music. If yoga had a heart-throb magazine (kinda like Teen Beat) Trevor Hall would be on the front cover (a lot)!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qITk42wpB_Y[/youtube]
If you like Trevor, check out his latest album titled Everything, Everytime, Everywhere …everygood!
“Lost in My Mind” – The Head and the Heart
This is my latest yoga theme song and is perfect for yoga class playlists. I was pretty excited when Josiah, one of the band members commented on my post about this song!
“I’ll Be Waiting” – The Sound of Sunshine – Michael Franti & Spearhead
The lyrics say it all…
“The best things in life aren’t things – they’re living and breathing…they’re laughing and crying…”
More reggae, more inspirational messages wrapped up in the music, and another big crush on the talented Michael Franti.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQfnAwFG6Jw[/youtube]
“O Rama” – Putumayo Presents: Yoga – Susheela Raman
Susheela is the only woman representing on this playlist, and she does more than a fine job. I love the drum beat and the cool, flowing vibe of this song. (But I still need to look up the meaning behind these lyrics and check out more of Susheela’s music.)
Every yoga teacher needs to have this album full of great music for yoga class.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Zmtlk6fUsc[/youtube]
“Hanuman Baba” [Dub Farm Remix] – Putumayo Presents: Yoga – Krishna Das
A little kirtan love from one of the masters – Krishna Das.
Floor – Back Bends, Heart Openers, Hip Openers, Abdominals, and Twists
“Everybody Hurts” – Automatic for the People – R.E.M.
I can’t tell you how bummed I was to learn recently that R.E.M. was calling it quits. In homage to the band, I had to include one of my favorite R.E.M. tunes to show my love.
“Dream” – Black and White America – Lenny Kravitz
Lenny has made it to the playlists several times, and this song from his latest album, Black and White America, has a slow moving beat and a prayer-like groove. If you’re looking for other great Lenny hits to include in your playlists check out “Believe” and “Let Love Rule.”
“It all starts with a dream.
The dawn of a new day.
The god inside of you will always see you through.
So hold onto your dreams.
No one can take the dream from your heart.”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Er7qniZqG3E[/youtube]
“From the Soul” –Sounds of Spa – Peace – Stuart Jones
Starting with Stuart, the piano took us out for the last three songs with slow, peaceful ticklings of ivory.
Savasana
Magic Flower – Piano Dreamers 2002
Sundown: A Windham Hill Piano Collection – Jim Brickman
Another hometown boy, Clevelandite Jimmy Brickman closed out class with a gorgeous sundown.
Thanks for listening and please leave your comments, feedback, and suggestions for cool yoga music!
Oct 31, 2011 |
Happy Halloween! I’m teaching a yoga class tonight and couldn’t resist the urge to mix in a little flavor of the holiday. No, I won’t be showing up to teach in a costume, but hopefully I’ll be dispensing a few treats for my students. The treats are going to come in the form of practicing loving kindness for ourselves.
How many times during the week do you trick yourself out of doing good things for yourself? We tell ourselves we don’t have time for yoga, that it will be much better to stay glued to the desk, plugged into email, and that we’ll feel much better that we accomplished one more task on our to-do list. Right…and that right is delivered with a very deep sarcastic tone. This is the biggest trick in the book and one that I used to be the queen of.
When I was a little girl, I would hide my Halloween candy (yeah, I had to hide my candy, I had four older siblings) and allow myself to have a few of those mini treats each day. Now as a grown up, I try to follow this same simple routine of giving myself bite-size daily goodies of yoga and meditation. If you don’t have time to carve out an hour for class, just spend a few minutes in silent meditation or step away from the desk and do a few simple poses to release the part of your body that may be feeling tension. Give your mind a break from the i-[fill in the blank] for a few minutes and just relax and sink into a few yummy breaths. It’s even more rewarding than candy.
Speaking of candy, do you remember that one cool house in the neighborhood that always gave out the full-size candy bars or something special like a caramel apple to trick-or-treaters? Well, the Daily Downward Dog wants to be that really cool house today and offer up a restorative pose as an extra special treat. No worries, you won’t need to do a trick first, and you don’t need any special props other than a blanket and a towel.
Halloween Relaxation Treat
All you need is five minutes. Lie down on your yoga mat or a blanket and then place a pillow, rolled up blanket, or a bolster under your knees. Roll up a towel and place it under your neck. If you want to really block out the outside world, place something over your eyes. Begin to breathe deeply into your belly and feel your body melt into the floor. Let go of any areas of tension around the eyes, neck, and shoulders by breathing into these areas and feeling the release on the exhale. With eyes closed, simply listen to your body, allowing yourself to reconnect as you experience the delicacy of simply slowing down. Restorative poses like this help soothe your nervous system. Focusing on the breath aids in quieting the mind and helps you release deep-rooted chronic stress. Think of it as a big hug that heals your body.
Give yourself a treat this week, spend some time practicing yoga, and enjoy a few blissful moments that come from a balanced mind, body, and spirit.
Halloween Image courtesy of Graphics Fairy
Sep 29, 2011 |
The very first yoga mat I ever purchased cost five dollars, came in a lovely shade of lavender, and was ultrathin. If you’ve never bought a yoga mat, I’d just like to say that ultrathin is not a product feature you want in a mat. I still have and love this mat. (Hey, you never forget your first one!) Despite its lack of cushion, I quickly learned that I could compensate with a trusty blanket under my knees during the kneeling poses.
The studio I was frequenting at the time had “professional” yoga mats for sale that had the thickness and support my body craved and came in a palette of gorgeous colors, but they cost over a hundred dollars. Yikes, there was no way I was going to shell out that much money. Even though my knees coveted those mats, my motto was that yoga should be affordable. I didn’t need hundred-dollar yoga pants or a hundred-dollar yoga mat to deepen my practice.
So, what the heck am I doing on a new mat that costs over a hundred dollars?
Well, I have learned an important lesson. Just as it is wise to invest money on the mattress for your bed (we spend one-third of our time there), it is wise to invest money on the best yoga mat you can find for added comfort and support of your body.
My downward dogs are now done on a Vernice Vita (VV) three-layered yoga mat and my wrists have never been happier. If you are familiar with memory foam, this mat is made with that material. And before you get all hung up thinking that there is no way you can be stable on a cushy mat, I’m here to tell you that I’ve never felt more stable and grounded on a yoga mat.
The bottom layer of the mat is a skid-proof EVA material that stabilizes your mat and prevents it from slipping and sliding on studio floors.
The middle layer has one-half inch of cushy memory foam that not only supports you, but provides a super-comfortable practice. This yummy layer relieves pressure points and pain in your knees, elbows, ankles, and hip bones in yoga postures and even your head during inversions.
The top layer is textured neoprene that is water-resistant, so it helps to stabilize your hands and feet when you are in poses like downward dog.
Rachel Ennis, a yogini from Manhattan Beach, California, came up with the idea for this mat when she found that her yoga practice was not progressing due to pain she experienced during some yoga postures. She bought a piece of memory foam and laid it on top of her traditional yoga mat and immediately noticed a huge difference. The relief this brought amazed her, and she eventually knew she had to share the benefits with others. She got a patent and has worked hard to develop an ethically manufactured product (PVC-free, 25 percent natural rubber, recycled packaging).
Thanks to Rachel, I’ve been test-driving my very own VV yoga mat for the past few weeks in both gentle Hatha and hot power classes and love the way it feels under my feet and my hands. No issues with slip-sliding away (although I still recommend using a NamaSTAY Yoga Towel on top for those really hot sweaty classes), and I feel as if I can hold poses longer.
If you are a fan of savasana, then I can tell you that doing savasana will never be the same now that I have experienced it on my ultra-comfy Vernice Vita mat. It is truly the definition of yogalicious!
I recently went to a three-day yoga workshop, where we spent a lot of the day sitting on the floor. While everyone was grabbing blankets and bolsters to sit on, I was totally comfy on my cushy VV. If you are in yoga-teacher training or spend a lot of time sitting on your yoga mat, I highly recommend a VV.
The VV yoga mat is also highly recommended for pregnant yoga students and is perfect for meditation and restorative yoga.
The mat is thicker when you roll it up, so you may want to pick up one of their over the shoulder mat straps so it is easier to carry, but I’m sure other yoga-mat straps would work as well. Be aware that when you take a VV mat into a class, it will attract attention. People get very curious when they see me unroll my mat, and I always let them touch it so they can feel the comfort.
My only complaint is that the mat does have a strong scent when you first remove it from the packaging. I’ve already noticed that this scent has diminished, and you can air out the mat by laying it outside just as long as you avoid direct heat or sunlight.
So, what is up with the name of this mat? Well, Vernice Vita (pronounced ver nee chey veeta) means to “paint life” in Italian and is a positive approach to how much more you can add to the world and the people around you when you’re at one with your own mind, body, and spirit. My Italian soul loves that, and my knees do too!
Give your body the comfort and support it deserves and purchase your very own Vernice Vita yoga mat from The Daily Downward Dog and save $10 on each mat. Just click the Buy Now button below, and you can order and pay securely through PayPal or your credit card. Or you can order direct from vernicevita.com and use offer code MARIA10 and you’ll still get the $10 savings!
The pricing for shipping and handling that is applied in the PayPal transaction is only for standard shipping within the United States. If you would like to order a Vernice Vita Mat and you live outside the United States or need expedited shipping, please contact me and I’ll provide a quote to handle your order.
Aug 2, 2011 |
Take your yoga off your mat. You hear this a lot in yoga classes, but what does it really mean? Does it mean I should practice tree pose while I’m standing in line at the grocery store or to practice savasana and take a few more naps during the week?
Well, those are both good things to do, but the phrase and the teachings of yoga have a much deeper meaning, and here are just a few ways you can take your yoga off your mat.
- Breathing. As you learn the breathing techniques to help support and guide you through difficult poses, take this same concept out into the world with you. When you encounter a stressful situation, instead of trying to run away from it (you know that is how you feel sometimes in chair pose), take a deep breath, smile, and let the calming effects of your breathing carry you through the situation.
- Compassion. Yoga is about honoring your body and learning to accept and love where you are right now. Why not take some of this compassion off the mat into your daily activities? Try not to judge yourself and others. Learn to accept others for who they are, and understand and respect these differences. If everyone were exactly like us, the world would be an awfully boring place.
- Strength. If you are practicing yoga, I’m sure you are starting to see changes in your body and that you are growing stronger. You may even have taken a few risks on the mat and tried new and challenging poses. Why not take this newfound strength off your mat and try something different or more challenging today? Have some fun and don’t be afraid to take a risk now and then.
- Being present. If you think it is hard to stay present on the yoga mat, it’s even harder when you practice it out in the real world. We simply have too many distractions nipping at our heels. But I’d like you to try out a simple exercise today. When you are talking with someone (your spouse, child, coworker), try being completely focused on the person and the conversation. Forget about what you have to do next or the stressful meeting you just came from and give your full attention. Be a good listener and see how good it feels to be fully in the moment and how those on the receiving end respond to it.
- Gratitude. It’s not hard to find things to be grateful for while moving through asanas in yoga class. Heck, I’m grateful my body can just get into some of the poses and grateful for my breath for guiding me through them. I’m grateful to the teacher and the music and all the teachers who came before them. Whatever gratitude you feel on your yoga mat, take some of it off the mat today and show some gratitude for the people in your life. Call up a good friend and thank him or her for being a part of your life.
Hummm, there really is something more to all this yoga stuff than just stretching and standing on your head. I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Here’s hoping you continue on your spiritual path of growth both on and off your yoga mat.
Got an interesting way you take your yoga off the mat? Leave a comment below and share it!
