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Yoga Practice

Confessions of a (Yoga) Sensation Junkie.

by on May 24, 2013

Sometimes staying consciously aware, and consciously connected to everything that’s occurring around you and in you, is the last thing that you want to do—and that’s why being a sensation junkie isn’t always a good thing, or even a helpful thing, either.

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Can the Journey Be the Path?

by on May 24, 2013

 Week 6: Share My Path Series. Many times finding your individual path requires exploration; spirituality, practice, is not  one-size-fits-all. This week the Share My Path Project  features Brian. His path is a reminder that though there may be difficulties and off-shoots along the way, we need not allow these hindrances to sway us. And if [...]

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Made with Love: Extreme Yoga Demo in Thailand with Craig Proctor. ~ Carrie Stiles

by on May 23, 2013

Ashtanga brings out the intensity and dedication in us. The series takes practitioners deeper into the evolution of asana. Yet, the Ashtanga practice remains illusive to me. Ashtanga has always been on the periphery of my wild, spontaneous Vinyasa practice. I tend to approach my beloved, movement-obsessed asana practice like a light-hearted, joyful child rather [...]

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It Flows Through You. ~ Kelsey Frazier

by on May 21, 2013

And yet, it occurred to me that there is one thing I can do in every moment: Be true to my self. This is a self that is ready to love, ready to shine, ready to be extraordinary and inspire other towards the extraordinary in themselves—because you are all (whether you know it or not) extraordinary.

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Who’s Your Teacher? ~ Anne Samit

by on May 20, 2013

In yoga, how old we are apparently doesn’t matter. Yoga seems to be an equalizer. This might not be evident when walking by each other on the street, but once we are on the mat, it’s really so easy to see.

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10 Lessons from My Yoga Travels. ~ Lucy St. John

by on May 20, 2013

Gaining Yogic Wisdom While Sailing Down the Pacific West Coast. I’m a little bit of everything; a yogi, sailor and teacher. In October, I sailed from Vancouver, Canada to Ensenada, Mexico to travel and teach yogic knowledge. When I enrolled at a new studio that was close to the boat before leaving, I thought it [...]

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7 More Ways for Yogis to Enjoy Summer. ~ Josie Huang

by on May 17, 2013

Enjoy summer’s abundance with a yogic mind. When we think of yoga, we usually associate it with practicing on the mat and asanas. While this is an integral aspect of yoga practice, there are many other ways to incorporate different elements of yoga practice, which are often neglected or due to lack of supportive opportunity. [...]

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How to Bring Discipline to Your Practice.

by on May 17, 2013

 Week 5: Share My Path Series. Could you vow, and most importantly keep that vow, to do anything for 1,000 days straight? How about 2,000 days? How about every day for the rest of your life? This week we feature Travis Eneix and his path: a meditation journey that began in a small hallway; his [...]

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A Message to Yoga Teachers, Students, Practitioners, Healers & Clients.

by on May 17, 2013

Who doesn’t love their yoga teacher? Yoga teachers are the bomb. They’re guiding their students in the classroom to feel and experience the empowering strength and unconditional love that engaging in the practice itself teaches. Who doesn’t love their healer/therapist? They’re showing their clients how to heal themselves, awaken their soul and redefine their concepts [...]

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My Students, Myself: 4 Tips for Attracting Your Type of Student. ~ Kimberly Lo

by on May 13, 2013

New yoga instructors are often given a lot of advice when they are starting out, but few are ever asked about the sort of students that they would like to teach. The fact is, there are as many different types of students as there are styles of yoga.

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Naked. Perfection. Celebration. {Nudity}

by on May 12, 2013

​ The most important relationship you have in life is the one you have with yourself; that is the relationship on which all our other relationships are built. This is me. I have spent years sub-consciously (sometimes consciously) trying to be perfect. The perfect woman, daughter, mother, dancer, yogini, student, teacher. These photos are a part [...]

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Coming Back to Harmony.

by on May 11, 2013

Yoga brings us to wholeness. The benefit of coming into health and wholeness through self-awareness is that we stop being just a body – needy, grasping, selfish – and become a living being in the process of gaining wisdom and compassion.

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21 Questions with Chloe Park & Noelle Beaugureau.

by on May 11, 2013

21 Questions with Chloe… What, in your own definition, is yoga? Yoga is my medicine. Yoga is my way back to the Source. Yoga is my relationship with God. Yoga is the route to my own realization and understanding of who I really am. Yoga is my water! What’s your favorite thing to eat? Coconuts, [...]

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Art, Greece & Hatha: A Surreal Yoga Story.

by on May 10, 2013

I embarked on a voyage to find the Experience Hatha Yoga teacher Oona Giesen. Under heavy winds, strong tides, and a rose orangerie sunrise, I traversed the Mediterranean sea in a ferry until arriving to the Cycladic Island of Paros in Greece. It was an explosion of karmic enigmas; yes, indeed it was like starring at a Surrealist painting of karmic anarchism, yogic mysticism, a perfection in color matching, brushstrokes in slow motion…a framed canvas that portraid the artist’s life story.

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Reclaiming Joy.

by on May 7, 2013

Because trauma and anxiety are physiological events, which leave physiological residues, resolving them needs an approach which includes the body – talk therapy isn’t enough. Our bodies remember everything that happens to us, although those ‘memories’ may not be available to us as discrete mental events; they are neurological (biochemical) pathways that cause changes on the cellular level. But those changes affect our emotions and our ability to deal with stress.

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My Mat is My Mirror. ~ Linda Fenelon

by on May 7, 2013

I find my yoga mat to be an honest and faithful mirror. Day after day, I roll out a full-length reflection of myself and no amount of hot breath or sweat droplets can obscure what I see. How can an opaque, yet eco-friendly plastic mat accurately reflect what is going on inside and out? ‘The [...]

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5 Reasons to Teach from the Front of the Room. ~ Gabriel Azoulay

by on May 7, 2013

A new survey conducted by Newspoll for the training website reasontospeak.com found that an individual’s biggest fear is the fear of public speaking. Yoga teaching allows you to face and conquer this fear. Here are five more reasons why teaching from the from of the room builds confidence and connection with students: 1. Yoga teaching [...]

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BottleRock Festival: Rockin’ Out in Napa. {Playlist}

by on May 7, 2013

  Music for the Yoga Class & Music for the Weekend Fest. This weekend marks the introduction of a new music festival in the Bay Area. San Francisco and the surrounding cities already have an awesome music festival line-up, with Outside Lands, Treasure Island and Noise Pop bringing throngs of bands and music lovers together [...]

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The Fruits of Falling, Both on & off the Mat. ~ Jennifer Radhika Lung

by on May 6, 2013

I remember the first time I fell out of the Feathered Peacock Pose, known to Sanskrit junkies as Pincha Mayurasana.  It was a calm and beautiful sunny morning and the dew on the grass in my protected and fenced backyard was starting to evaporate due to the brilliant rays of sunlight.  On many different occasions, I [...]

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Balancing Life—Motherhood, Work & Joy.

by on May 6, 2013

Life is strange, the way that things sometimes work out. I finally finished my 200 RYT—over five years since my very first teacher training workshop—and five years since I began teaching yoga. Ironically, this isn’t terribly far off from how I finished my bachelor’s degree either. I left college with one semester to go in order [...]

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The Wife vs. The Mistress.

by on May 6, 2013

Yes, she was part of a decision that ruined my family. Yes, she is culpable and must live with her decisions. But, sitting in front of me is a woman with her own demons to wrestle with. I can scream and curse at her. I can cut her with my words. She is sitting close enough I can reach out and strike her physically. I choose not to. Compassion has allowed me the privilege of finding happiness again.

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10 Things I Learned from Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training. ~ Jordan Kate Bakani

by on May 5, 2013

A few weeks ago the universe conspired and blessed me with the opportunity to study with one of Shri Pattabhi Jois’ most senior students. Until the teacher training started, I was very sceptical hearing that “he is more Iyengar than Ashtanga.” Being the borderline Ashtanga fundamentalist that I am, and a pragmatic who chooses to [...]

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Desperately Seeking Expert Guidance. ~ Vrindavan Rao

by on May 5, 2013

This is because having a guru is not a fad and the guru is not there to make you feel better. A true guru, a genuine bhakti yogi, is there to help you on your spiritual journey to reconnect with God.

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Bandhas Are Sexy! ~ Jessica Cartwright

by on May 4, 2013

Bandhas: they amp up your sex life, transform your yoga practice and make you feel alive and full of goodness inside. Simply put, they make everything better. So what exactly does this weird word mean, anyway? Bandhas are subtle energy locks or holds, engaging certain muscles within the body to seal off energy. In doing [...]

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My Warrior II: A Recounting of My Day at the Boston Marathon Bombings. ~ Carlene Benelli

by on May 3, 2013

Source: facebook.com via YogaTrail on Pinterest Where Warrior II and Real Life Meet I was recently asked, “What is your favorite yoga pose?” Easy answer: “Warrior II.” “What?” that person said to me, “Warrior II is brutal!” Warrior II, arms stretched front to back, powerful stance, laser-gaze forward. It’s a beautiful pose to me, but [...]

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Samskara Runs Deep.

by on May 2, 2013

This is a meditation on myself and others but mostly of myself. For every person I meet is a mirror and a guide. Some mirrors are taller than others. Some mirrors are skewed. So when I step onto my mat every morning I do this by choice. Recognizing that some reflections are not always what they seem.

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Panic to Peace: How the Boston Bombings Made Me a Better Yogini.

by on May 1, 2013

The following column was written by Demi Clark, 36, of Fort Mill, SC—a marathoner, Duke-trained Integrative Health Coach, vegan & 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher. According to at least one photograph, the timing clock read 4 hours, 9 minutes and 44 seconds when the first bomb was detonated at the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. [...]

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In Praise of Periods, or, 5 Ways to Stop Ragging on Your Rag.

by on Apr 30, 2013

We’ve been taught to see our periods as nothing but a nuisance, a uniquely female inconvenience that prevents us from achieving powerful accomplishments like playing tennis in short shorts or whirling in slow motion on beaches. We’ve been taught we need “sanitary napkins” or “feminine hygiene products” that euphemistically imply that our blood, and especially our vaginas, are unsanitary and dangerous to touch.

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Remembering What We’ve Forgotten.

by on Apr 30, 2013

Because the point of yoga has never been to learn something new. The point has always been to remember things that we have forgotten. And that’s why when we practice and we download wisdom, it hits us like a ton of bricks and our realizations become just so….obvious.

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Mindfulness is Mainstream; Get Over It.

by on Apr 29, 2013

The fact is, for better or worse, the West has spawned many branches of meditation (and more of yoga), including a version of Buddhist-based mindfulness that is secular and is helping lots and lots of people who don’t necessarily classify themselves as Buddhists.

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Jai Hanuman.

by on Apr 28, 2013

  “Hanuman is considered to be the embodiment of what Ayurveda calls the “three vital essences”—Prana, Tejas and Ojas. Prana is the life force, the Air element that gives us energy, intelligence and adaptability. Tejas, the purified Fire element, gives us glowing health, strength and courage, and penetrating insight. Ojas, the essential Water element, keeps [...]

611 views
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Be Inspired, Come Alive. ~ Noa Mati

by on Apr 28, 2013

Creation comes from inspiration. Inspiration is simply spirit in motion. And when spirit moves us, our creative power goes far beyond anything we can imagine. In a moment of inspiration, the idea of this video came to me. I had been taking my own yoga pictures in different places around the world and one day [...]

173 views
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10 Things Yogis Don’t Admit About Yoga Class.

by on Apr 23, 2013

I love being both a yoga student and a yoga teacher. I adore the connections with my fellow yogis, and I appreciate new and fun sequencing and warm rooms. There are, however, a few things that most people won’t tell you about their time spent in a yoga classroom. Well, I will. 1. Yes, you [...]

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