Stretched Thin?

"If you don't take care of yourself, the universe will overtake that responsibility for you." ~LT

Did you know it is possible to stretch yourself so thin that your body physically shuts down? I've always known this, but today made me really think about what Ive been doing. Whether it is internal or external, our universe has a way of stopping us in our tracks if we refuse to take care ourselves. We've all seen this. People get sick, injure themselves & have to break from busy schedules, etc. The month of April seemed to be exhausting for all of us. Rushing for the summer we have pushed our limits & disregarded our bodies. I myself am learning to take more time for myself in order to heal so I can heal others. What are you doing?

You have two choices: Be the change you wish to see or be the person you are now that is watching the 60 year old next to you kick your ass crossing the finish line. Today, I learned while watching an older man crush me in a workout that yoga IS NOT the only thing that'll keep me alive at the end of my days, but putting myself first will! We have those gut feelings, we just need to listen...

Poses that came to mind are two that relate to being stretched too thin (Trikonasana) & being able to open our throats in order to communicate better with ourselves & others (Matsyasana).

Fish Pose- Matsyasana

Triangle Pose- Trikonasana

Happy Friday!!

Holiday is over

"Yoga is very similar to music; there is no end to it".

Now that the holidays are over we need to remind ourselves to get back into the swing of things, myself included. When we have a break or time to relax we get in a lazy groove. This goes with anything! Our house becomes a bit more cluttered and/or dirty. Left overs pile up in the fridge, our work-outs or routines fall apart & we tell ourselves we'll do it when we can. The thing is we both know we wont get around to it...

Keeping all these things in mind, make your home & body clean again! Easter was Sunday, so any left overs that are in your fridge should be thrown out. Keeping old stagnant food means we are taking in old stagnant energy. Same goes for unwashed clothes, sheets for our bed, towels for our shower. EVERYTHING carries energy & not just actual energy you hear the hippies talk about, but energy that sets a tone or mood for our day. Sleeping in fabric softener smelling sheets followed by a warm clean towel leaves me a very happy person! New clean clothes & a healthy fresh breakfast also puts a smile on my face. So make tonight a "semi-cleaning night". Get your breakfast planned, do some laundry, clean up around the house & make your Wednesday have a newer, better feel than your Monday & Tuesday had.

Did I forget yoga? What about massage?

Be sure you are treating your body like one of your most prized possessions. Try a new flow & rid of a routine you may be following. If you've been practicing too much or maybe not enough, treat yourself to a massage! Keep in mind I know the initial response is "I don't have time". "I don't have the money". Ive been there, I've said it. But if you make the time & put the money aside, you have no excuses. Can we PLEASE make the month of May a month for us?? It's time to treat our bodies to some luxury before we beat them up over the summer. When winter arrives I'll stop harassing you & let you hibernate!

New flow ideas...

Downward Dog

Crescent Lunge

Warrior III Balance

Eagle Balance Pose

~Trying flowing the balances in one breath instead of grounding & breaking.

Don't think I've forgotten.... Challenge yourself with a flow & treat your body to some love!

Karma Yoga

The beauty of yoga is that people often come here for the stretch, but leave with a lot more~

Whether you have been practicing yoga for years or just a few times you know the power it has. We can all benefit from yoga if we understand that yoga is not just a practice, but a lifestyle! Be sure to practice & live with an intention & a smile everyday of our lives. If you see someone or have someone that could use a friend, guidance, or is curious about yoga, there should be no hesitation. Lend a helping hand!

Karma Yoga is paying it forward! Make selfless actions happen today & everyday! Work for a few extra unpaid hours, help a friend or family member, even a stranger! Whatever we decide to do just know we are putting our karma & good thoughts out there. My good deed today? Sharing this gift with you! Who knows, great fortunes always start out this way..

Namaste

Rainy Day Restoration

Smiles don't have to be saved for a rainy day. Its better to use them when we can ~LT

Days like today remind our bodies of relaxing & restoring. Find some time to do just that! Use pillows, bolsters & blankets to deepen the relaxation. Melt to the floor, listen to the storm & allow the gray silence to surround you. If you are trapped at work do a few stretches & open up the muscles until you are able to get home.

Awwwww.....

Reclined Bound Angle- Supta Badha Konasana

Reclined Twist

Dead Bug/Happy Baby Pose

Corpse pose- Savasana

If you are stuck in the office modify some Sun Salutations. Only work on 1,2,3. Blossom open & back for the heart & forward fold for the back. Bring it back up for another set. This is great to increase brain activity & energy! If you have room for the whole set, go for it!

Happy Tuesday

Who Doesn't Want A Little Glow...?

"You cannot always control what goes on outside. But you can always control what goes on inside. "

Starting our week off right & reflecting over the past couple weeks, have we been waking up our bodies with a morning routine? Practicing a flow, pose or Salutation in the morning? Keeping up with our balances? Whatever we are doing & not doing we need to be sure that we are loving our minds & our bodies! Simple routines or poses create a memory for our muscles. Do them a favor & keep them healthy & happy! If we are still searching for something we enjoy how about trying an inversion! Arm balances are great party tricks & good to keep practicing, but with inversions we are doing a great service to our bodies! Here are several facts of all the good we will create inside & out.

• Inversions relieve back pain with better posture & greater spinal mobility
• Inversions boost brain power
• Inversions improve digestion & elimination
• Inversions promote lymphatic drainage & blood purification
• Inversions elevate the mood & relieves depression
• Inversions enhance relaxation & promotes sounder sleep
• Inversions can lead to a more beautiful appearance & a glow in the skin by increase circulation

Dolphin Pose Headstand

Shoulderstand Plow Pose

Here is one more for those tough yogi's out there....

Scorpion Pose- Vrschkiasana (Wall support always helps me in this one. Face the wall & let our feet slowly walk down)

Always keep a slow steady breath in these inversions! Remember to support our backs & we can always use a wall to practice. As we deepen our practice slowly inch away from the wall!

Weekend Arm Balance!

Crows are considered to be among the most adaptable & intelligent birds in the world...

What a wonderful pose to practice! Have fun this weekend & practice "Bakasana". Crow pose is a beautiful arm balance & one of the quicker ones to get into. Keep practicing on your down time & by next week I know you'll have it! Remember the one rule of yoga, BREATHE! Don't be afraid to fall either. Arm balances along with inversions give us the feeling of being young again. So have fun with this!

~~~~~~~~~~

Putting our hands flat on the ground. Lift our heels & shift our weight to our hands. Next, lift our feet & keep our balance on our hands. Our knees should be resting gently above our elbows. Whatever place is comfortable for you, high or low. Some even have their knees hug the outside of their arms. Play with all variations! Stretching our back in order to keep our chest free, breathe & concentrate. Keeping our neck in-line & relaxing, stay here for as long as we can!

I challenge 1 minute...

Caught In A "Bind"?

The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit word "yoke", meaning "to join" or "unite."

With that being said, take that into a whole new direction! Instead of uniting our body & mind with yoga, unite our hands in a bind! Allowing our energy to circulate without an opportunity to release at the hands increases the intensity & deepens our practice. This will actually relax our body more. These postures may seem intimidating, but once we reach that "sweet spot" we'll find that they are much easier than holding our arms in an extended or neutral position. Remember this is YOUR practice, so modify & ease into the pose. Our arms are not used to deep stretches so it may or may not take same time. Have fun & enjoy the process!

Extended Side Bound Angle Pose- Baddha Utthita Parsvakonasana. Find a Warrior II Stance to begin. Shift our hips forward. As in the picture below, place our left forearm above our left knee & let the right arm sore over our ear. Shift forward & slide our left arm underneath & reach our right arm over & down. If we cant bind, use a towel or strap. Keep practicing & our hands will touch soon!

Add in a balance Bind! Bird of Paradise- Svarga Dvidasana. While holding our Bound Angles, step our back foot up in a squat, still binded. Balance on the leg that isn't bound & slowly make our way up. Good luck!

(Note: not everyone can look so good in this. So allow your knee to bend & rest.)

Tired of standing yet? Try a couple seated Binds as you begin to cool down.

Sage Pose- Marichyasana. Keeping a lengthened spine here, move at our own pace. We can have our leg extended if it feels good, otherwise have it in.

Cow Face Pose- Gomukhuasana. This one may be hard on the knees, so if it is too much, we can always sit in an Easy Pose & continue to bind our arms. Don't forget to open our hearts & allow our shoulders to be relaxed. We tend to hunch over while binding.

REMEMBER TO BREATHE!

If we fall out, the joy of yoga is that we can get right back in!

The Tortoise & The Hare

"Yoga is the perfect opportunity to be curious about who you are." ~ Jason Crandell

Whether we woke up a little slower this morning or we woke up feeling great & ready to move, yoga has a posture to offer us! If you are still feeling sluggish, find yourself stretching in Tortoise Pose-Kurmasana. This pose actually massages our internal organs! Opening up our hips & increasing circulation & flexibility! This is a sure way to help our bodies speed up a little! If we are already energized & ready to go we can fuel that energy in Rabbit Pose- Sasangasana. This pose is amazing for our brains! Relieving mental fatigue, insomnia & depression. It is great for our memory & our focus by activating the crown of our heads! Last, it stretches our spines & helps keep them younger by increasing elasticity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sit down with your legs stretched out in front of you. Open your legs a good distance between your feet. Almost a straddle. Take in a nice deep breath & as you exhale bend forward slide your hands & arms under your legs & straighten your arms so that your shoulders are in between your legs. Your legs remain straight & grounded on the floor. You are right in the posture when your knees come to lie on top of your shoulders. Remember, move at your own pace & bend your knees if your body needs too!

Grabbing our heels with thumbs on the outside, fingers on the inside, roll forward until forehead is close to our knees. Pull on heels lifting hips high with very little weight on our head with heavy knees.

After our postures reset the spine & relax the low back in Child's Pose- Balasana. A great restore before we get back up!

Happy Posturing!!

Chaturunga Challenge

"Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live." ~Jim Rohn

I know I mentioned Sun Salutations in the "Flabby Arms" blog, but today is dedicated to Chaturunga push ups! Let's see how many you can do today! Increase the number each day until Friday. Your arms are going to love you & they'll look awesome!!

Start off with 4-6. If it feels good go up to 10, 15, 20! Keeping our elbows tight in at the ribs, Head in line, flat backs, tight cores, nose to the mat. Release to our knees to modify.

Be Thankful

"Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured" ~B.K.S. Iyengar

Take today to be thankful. Thankful for our bodies, our health, the moments we have had & will have. Meditate for just a moment, a breath, a step, a blink. However long we find ourselves in meditation, be thankful for that as well. We all understand that our lives are too short, but I'm afraid we don't understand that living our life means endless possibilities. If you have been waiting or wanting, nows the time to make a change. Why wait?

Our bodies are not getting younger, but our heart & our mind will if we let them...

Sit Down. Stay Awhile.

"A photographer gets people to pose for him. A yoga instructor gets people to pose for themselves." ~ T. Guillemets

Busy weekend? Haven't had the time to sit down? Lazy weekend? Haven't had the strength to get up? Either way you look at it, its time to enjoy some Chair postures! Utkatasana is one of the more familiar postures in yoga. Many varieties to practice & to have fun with! Keeping it short & sweet today, take the time to activate your muscles before your weekend is over. This is also a great posture to sneak in a few times during your day. Make a work out flow with them! Flow a minute of chairs, sinking lower has you exhale each time. Just be sure your boss doesn't catch you "sitting on the job"...

Reach your wings....Open.....Balance....Twist....Sink...

Most important, HAVE FUN!

..

Waking Up

I do yoga so that I can stay flexible enough to kick my own ass if necessary~

We need sleep to function, and though it feels great, it's rough on our bodies. As we wake up each morning, find a small routine to get yourself together. Rinse your face. Several splashes of cool water. This is a great way to help the skin prepare for the days stress. The more hydration the better. Rinse your mouth. We all have that dry mouth when we wake, along with our morning breath. Cleaning our tongue & inner mouth dislodge an stagnant energy. Also a good way to activate our taste buds & prepare us for another great day of delicious foods! Find your flow. It is always good to pick a few of your favorite postures to help move your body. Getting out all those snap, crackles & pops is a great way to start any day! Enjoy the weekend yogis!!

Morning flow.... Warrior I>>Warrior II>>Reverse Warrior

SLOW DOWN

A Yoga motto: "Don't just do something - sit there!"

Remember that it is alright to not do anything. Our generation is always moving! We need to take a minute & breathe. If you couldn't tell already, my blogs are all stating to take control of our psyche, our well being. Enjoy today, tomorrow, this minute, these moments. When you find yourself scattered, frustrated, stressed or over worked, try these breathing techniques & a couple restorative postures.

Ujjayi Breath- Inhale through your nose, exhale in the back of your throat with your lips closed. Create an oceanic sound or "Darth Vader" sound.

Nadi Sodhana- Alternating your nostrils. Take a nice deep inhale through the right as you close your left. Switch & close your right as your exhale left. Inhale left, exhale right.

Reclined Bound Angle

Full Belly Twist