Sep 6, 2011 |
There were a few weeks of summer left and that meant one thing for me: time to get in at least one chick-lit novel while lounging in a beach chair and sipping a cool, refreshing drink. I want to go on the record to say that I don’t take the term chick-lit as derogatory; there comes a time when you just need something fun, light, and entertaining, and this year mine came with the added bonus of spirituality, courtesy of Meryl Davids Landau and her first novel Downward Dog, Upward Fog (DDUF). Meryl stopped by the Daily Downward Dog (DDD) a few months ago and sent me a note asking if I would take a read of her book, and I’m glad she did.
This tale is about Lorna, a thirtysomething special-events coordinator for an ice cream company (cool job!), with a large circle of gal pals, a hot boyfriend, and a beautiful home. It appears she has everything, including the required plot tension of a mean-spirited mother, but even with all that, her life is feeling a little empty. No worries; she has the extreme good fortune of finding her spiritual path through a feel-good new age radio host, an awesome big sis with an extensive new age library, and the discovery of how cool it can be to practice yoga and meditation.
Yep, Lorna goes on an awesome yoga journey and starts to figure out the important things in life via her yoga mat, a few self-help books, and a burgeoning meditation practice. Through Lorna’s eyes, I recognized glimpses of my own early yoga journey, struggling to quiet my mind during meditation, letting go of judging myself and others, and wondering if I would ever get vertical in a headstand. As I read through the book, quite a few corners got turned down as I found passages that moved me. I’m not a big fan of the law of attraction, but I do believe that what you give is what you get, and Lorna became a shining example on how putting forth a positive attitude, opening your heart to others, and putting your dreams out into the universe can bring beautiful life-changing results.
One of my favorite parts of the book was reading about Lorna’s experience at a silent weekend yoga retreat, and even though I can’t imagine how I could ever possibly live through such an experience, I am now curiously intrigued by the idea! (Anyone know a good silent weekend yoga retreat I can attend?)
Of recent, I do feel that a lot of books are homing in on the popularity of yoga and sensationalizing the more extreme yoga practices. I’m not quite sure if it is just for effect, but the thing I loved about DDUF is that it just plain tells the story of one woman’s spiritual transformation in a nonsensational way. Not everyone has to travel to India and drink urine to find their spiritual nirvana; believe it or not, you can achieve Samadhi quite nicely on the comfort of your yoga mat in Hoboken (or Akron).
I’m not a fan of sugarcoated books that end with a big ol’ red ribbon to tie up all the loose ends, but I’m gonna give Meryl a little break for that and just say that yes, there is a little bit of sugary cheese in this read. But don’t let that stop you from diving in for some yogic fun. Downward Dog, Upward Fog will provide uplifting moments for any woman that has come to yoga and discovered that it is so much more than just the stretching.
If you are in a book club this book would not only make a nice pick, but also lead to some spirited conversation. Meryl has even included a list of questions for book club discussions at the end of the book. Whatever your reason to pick up this book, you will enjoy hanging out with Lorna and going on her spiritual joyride.
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!
Jul 19, 2011 |
It is mid-July, and if you have not gotten your yoga mat outside for a little outdoor yoga, you need to get on it. I have been practicing and teaching yoga outdoors quite a bit this summer, and, to be honest, I’m getting a little spoiled. It gets harder and harder to go inside to the studio. If you are wavering about whether outdoor yoga is for you, here are a few incentives to get you motivated.
1. Being outside. If you live north of the Mason-Dixon Line, you have got to take advantage of the opportunity to get outside and blow the stink off. Seriously, any chance you can get outside for any activity between May and the first freeze have got to be taken advantage of. ’Nuff said.
2. Amazing views. How cool is it to do a spread-legged forward fold and then, when you twist to the side, see a beautiful blue sky or the green leaves of a tree flapping in the wind? This is the view I had today during this very pose
3. Challenge. Anyone can practice inside but not everyone can practice with their feet in the sand or grass. The ground might be uneven, an ant might crawl across your mat, or the sun may be shining in your eyes, but that is what makes outdoor practice so rewarding. You get to go outside your normal routine, feel the earth beneath your feet, and make playful adjustments to your asanas.
4. Best yoga-class playlist ever! The music comes courtesy of chirping birds, flowing wind, and the waves lapping up on the beach. I couldn’t put together a better playlist if I tried. Close your eyes and it is sublime.
5. Special effects. You may get the unexpected delight of seeing a fish jump out of the water, an eagle soaring through the sky, or ducks waddling down the beach (if you are practicing by water).
6. Growing your practice. Said special effects in #5 can also provide extra challenges in staying mindful and present. Yesterday, while practicing on the beach, I kept spying sea glass around my yoga mat. I had to set those thoughts aside, resisting the urge to bend over and start collecting up all the sea glass and really focus on remaining present. Surely, this has to be good for building mental strength and clarity in my practice
7. Sunshine. There’s just something special about doing a sun salutation when you can reach your arms up and truly salute the sun.
8. Wind. Sometimes an outdoor yoga class can feel like Bikram yoga. It can get a little toasty out there. But when that cool wind brushes across your face, it is nirvana.
9. Incredible inversions. Getting into a handstand always feels pretty damn good, but when you get to do one and see a view like the one below, the pose takes on a whole new dimension.
10. High on nature. Yep, yoga can get you high when you practice inside, but I’m here to tell you the buzz you get from an outdoor practice is simply yogalicious.
11. (I never stop at 10!) Postpractice curriculum. Once your practice is complete, the postgame activity choices are pretty cool. My favorite is a little beach-walk meditation, or just sitting with your eyes closed while in meditation, letting the sounds of nature envelop you can provide an excellent way to seal in your practice. Or you may just want to wander off the mat and find a few pieces of sea glass…
No matter where you live, do yourself a favor and get outside this summer for a little outdoor yoga. Yoga is all about the union of the body and the mind, and when you add the extra element of the outdoors, you can also make it about becoming one with nature. Just a note of caution: Use sunscreen and maybe a dash of bug spray before you venture onto your mat!
Summer Beach Yoga Classes Bali Retreat – March 2017
Jun 16, 2011 |
I just recently finished reading A Life Worth Breathing by Max Strom. Well, actually, I plowed through the second half of the book in record time in order to finish before attending live workshop sessions with Max at Inner Bliss Yoga in Ohio. I read the book as part of the Twitter Yoga Book Club (#YOBC) and have been tweeting my thoughts while enjoying the tweets of my fellow Twitter yoginis over these past few weeks.
A Life Worth Breathing is full of little nuggets of wisdom aimed at helping us live a meaningful and happy life, and reading the book got me super excited to not only hear Max speak, but also to practice yoga with him live and in person right here in Cleveland, Ohio.
Max encourages note-taking in his sessions and, like a yoga teacher with really awesome verbal cues, makes a point of telling the audience when to write something down. I attended three of the four planned workshops and have to admit, my head was spinning when I left (in a good way, not The Exorcist way). I took a ton of notes and have distilled them down to this Reader’s Digest version of my key takeaways.
1) Yoga is a breathing system accompanied by movement and postures.
2) Max Strom can breathe! Holy cow, I’ve never heard a person breathe so beautifully and for such a period of time. It was quite an inspiration. While Max took us through ujjayi breathing exercises, we practiced inhaling and exhaling to a four-count. I had no trouble with the exhale but found (much to my surprise) that my inhale is very shallow. I’m so glad this came to light and now that I’m conscious of it, I will begin the journey to improve it. Next time you are in yoga class moving through asanas, try this exercise and take note of your breathing.
3) The ego mind is our worst enemy and will not hesitate to rear its ugly head on our yoga mats. Maybe telling you, for example, that you are not a good person if you can’t touch your toes in forward fold. When this happens you need to call on your internal bouncer and kick that ego right off your yoga mat.
4) Based on all the new technology and medical advances, if we can stay healthy for the next 15 years, we may just have the ability to live decades longer than we thought we ever would. This is a really cool concept but one that also left me wondering how I will ever have enough money set aside for retirement.
5) We’ve lost the value of having nothing to do. I know this is true for me, as I’m always trying to fill every moment of every day. I think I need to schedule in a little nothing time each and every day.
6) Killing time is not an option; live as if you only had a few years left to live.
7) Demand that technology simplify your life, not make it more complicated. Ask yourself, Does this i-[fill in the blank] really help me save time, or is it a total time-suck?
8) Make a list every day of everything you are grateful for.
9) Yoga does more than just open our hips. It opens our eyes, our hearts, and our ears. It has an impact on how we live our life, what we eat, with whom we spend our time…it initiates great change in our lives. I guess you could say I am the poster child of yoga initiating great change, having been a stressed-out workaholic VP who somehow morphed into a blissed-out yoga teacher.
10) How we decide to react to situations and deal with them is the only thing we really have any power over. Are you going to choose to be Norman Negative or Paula Positive?
11) Teaching yoga is a privilege. I knew this but hearing Max talk about it really hit home. I never really thought about the fact that my students listen to me for 60 minutes. I need to make sure I use this time effectively and use my voice to help them grow in their yoga practice and hopefully convey a message they can take off their yoga mats.
Just to add some perspective to how tall Max is...
My final takeaway is a little embarrassing to admit, but I promised a while back to be honest and confess the silly things I do. I arrived at the workshops with not a minute to spare and was rushing into the studio to find a place for my yoga mat in the already-crowded room. As I reached the door, a very tall man came right up to me, put out his hand, and said hello. The man looked somewhat like Max, but I wasn’t sure because the man in front of me was a lot bigger than the one on the dust cover of the book I held in my hand. Totally surprised by the height and presence of this man, I looked up as I shook his hand and said, “Are you Max?” The man quickly responded with a smile and said yes, he was Max Strom. Then, like a huge dork, I proceeded to say, “Wow, you’re really big.” Thankfully, he just laughed as I backpedaled to explain my comment in light of his headshot on the book cover. So, write this down: If you ever get the chance to meet Max or any well-known author or person you admire, take a deep breath, smile, and try not to say the first absurd thing that spews out of your mouth.
Jun 7, 2011 |
A few weeks ago I shared my latest yoga theme song, “You Get What You Give,” but never got around to sharing the yoga class playlist it was a part of. So, without further delay, here’s the music that embellished the mudras and mantras of a few of my May yoga classes.
Opening Grounding and Warm-ups
“Like Rain/Radhe Bolo” · David Newman/Mira
Still high from my virgin kirtan experience, I’ve been exploring the world of kirtan and stumbled upon David Newman. I’m going to a Krishna Das concert later in June, so I’m thinking there will be some more kirtan tunes showing up in my playlists.
“Freedom” · Jim Brickman
“For the Summer” · Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs
Ever since I heard “Be Here Now” (which happens to be on my all-time top savasana songs list), I’ve been a huge fan of Ray LaMontagne. I love Ray’s story. He was working in a shoe factory and heard “Tree Top Flyer” by Stephen Sills as he was waking up for work one morning and decided to shuck the job and pursue a career as a singer-songwriter. Worked out pretty well for him!
Standing — Sun Salutations and Flowing Sequences (e.g., yoga-mat dancing)
“Light You Up” · Shawn Mullins
This song from Shawn’s CD titled “Light You Up” pretty much sums up my goal in every yoga class: I just want to light you up! When I first heard this song, I knew I had to plug it into a playlist. Favorite line: Everybody wanna lick a your ice cream!
“F**kin’ Perfect” · Pink
Before you get all freaked out that I was openly dropping the f-bomb in my classes, rest assured that I picked up the PG version with the f-bombs conveniently dubbed out. The song still rocks without the profanity and conveys one of the core teachings of yoga: to love and accept yourself and your body.
“Pretty pretty please, don’t you ever, ever feel like you’re, less than, less than perfect. You are perfect to me.”
Sending a big thank-you out to Dave Frenz (@Frenzy36) for offering the suggestion to add this song! I loved the message that it sent out to my students.
“You Get What You Give” · New Radicals
The song title says it all. This song was my yoga theme song and the theme of the class.
“Waiting for the World to Change” · John Mayer
Floor — Back Bends, Heart Openers, Hip Openers, Abdominals, and Twists
“Daydreamer” · Adele
Adele’s gorgeous voice accompanied only by a strumming guitar = nirvana! This song is from Adele’s CD titled 19, aptly named because she wrote the music when she was a mere 19 years old. Her CD titled 21 is equally impressive. I highly recommend both.
“Fields of Gold” · Sting
Actually, I’m surprised I have not had more Sting popping up on the playlists. I need to get on that. Would really love to include “Roxanne” on a playlist, but not so sure a song about a prostitute would evoke good yoga vibes.
“The Sweetest Gift” · Sade
“Antes de las Seis” · Shakira
This song by Shakira is sung completely in Spanish. I had no idea what the lyrics meant, and, to be honest, that didn’t really matter to me. I just love the feeling and emotion that flow out of Shakira. My curiosity got the best of me, though, and I looked up the translation for the lyrics online as I was writing this post. Bugger; I have to admit I was a little disappointed to find out the real meaning of the song.
“Bolo Ram” · Wah!
Savasana
“Purnamadah” · From Putamayo Presents: Yoga – Shantala
I highly recommend the Putamayo Presents: Yoga album, which includes 14 yoga playlist-worthy songs. Shantala is the music of duo Heather and Benjy Wertheimer. Take a listen and you’ll know why this song makes a perfect background for savasana. I’m digging the flutey/lutey instrument in the background. I need to research what this sacred chant means, but, meanwhile, it is taking me to a heavenly place.
“Sammasati” · Deva Premal
If you are a yogini, you gotta love Deva. No words in this one, just lots of ooh, ooh, ooh, oohs and a yogalicious savasana wake-up call.
Candle Image: Sabina Graczyk
Love to get your feedback on my playlists. Tell me what you like to listen to in yoga class or if you prefer silence?
