Prepping for Parsva Bakasana!

Shoulders, wrists, core, hips, spine, back strength, flexibility, Oh My!!!!

Arm balances have always been tough for me. I've had to work on my hip flexibility and shoulder stability and strength a lot to be able to do a couple of them.

Bakasana (Crow), and Parsva Bakasana (Side Crow) are 2 arm balances that I can do. Others I'm working on and a few more advanced ones I think may have to wait until the next life time, lol, and I'm totally fine with that.

Plus, as I always say to the other yogis in my classes, it's not about getting into the main pose; that's not always our goal. And in class sometimes we don't even get to the 'peak' pose and I'm totally fine with that (hopefully the folks in the class are too!)

For me what's most important is to teach how to strengthen the body areas that are involved in the peak pose as well as to understand the actions needed to prepare for and execute the pose and warm up the body overall to get there.

If in class we...

 Have YOUR OWN Life Experience!

After you watch the quick video above, read below to check out an experience I had......

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So I have a funny example about having your own life experience around something.
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Last year when I chose to have a colonoscopy, I started mentioning it to some people & I started getting all these reactions and stories about their experience. Well, I probably should've kept it to myself! LOL.
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So after hearing a ton of stories, I did decide to keep it to myself, to support myself through the process best I could, and have MY OWN experience around it.
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And you know what? Since I had no stories created around it, the experience was my own and it all went fine without any added drama.

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Not only that but I was not anxious or nervous at all, and I have not been put under since five years old when I had my tonsils out. Hence, less stories floating around in the mind, less chance of anxiety and nerves coming...

This summer I did a whole series on the chakras in my yoga classes and just finished up another series around the 5 Elements.

In the Yoga & Ayurveda Teacher Training I'm taking, we learned about the 5 elements, and what I learned blew my mind and that's why I created sequences around them for my yoga classes.

Ayurveda, the traditional medicine of India, says that all of creation is formed from the 5 elements coming together.

The 5 elements are Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether.

Each element has certain qualities, and they also all have a relationship to each other.

Once you understand this, you can use the 5 elements to help balance your body and mind.

Let's start with Earth.

When you think of Earth, what do you think of?

The qualities of earth are solid, heavy, dense, immobile, hard, cool, grounded, stable. In the body think in terms of the dense components such as bones, muscle & fat tissue, joints, ligaments and tendons.

You can connect to the earth element any time you...

The Crown Chakra

Here we are! We've arrived at the 7th main energy center!

And that energy center is the Crown Chakra or Sahasrara, which is the Sanskrit term and means 'thousand-fold' and is commonly referred to as the 'thousand-petaled lotus'.

If you missed previous posts on the Chakras in this series, you can start here with the Root Chakra.

The Crown Chakra is located at the top of the head and some even say about a foot above the head.

The color associated with this chakra is crystal light, white or violet and is symbolized by a thousand-petaled lotus flower.

The color violet is associated with wisdom, devotion, peace and mystery.

The color white is associated with light, purity, faith and goodness.

This chakra connects you to the element of consciousness or cosmic energy.

The bija or seed sound is Om.

This chakra symbolized the limitlessness of Pure Consciousness. It correlates with our spirituality, moving beyond the self and feeling the connection of being one with the...

The 3rd-Eye Chakra

Today we'll chat a bit about the 3rd-Eye Chakra or Ajna, which is the Sanskrit term and means 'to perceive' or 'to know'.

If you missed previous posts on the Chakras in this series, you can start here with the Root Chakra.

The 3rd-Eye Chakra is located at the space between the two eyebrows. The body areas and organs associated with this chakra are the pituitary gland, pineal gland, eyes, head & lower area of the brain.

The color associated with this chakra is indigo and is symbolized by a lotus flower with 2 petals. The petals represent the two hemispheres of the brain and are on either side of a circle with a downward-facing triangle which houses an all-seeing eye of wisdom.

The color indigo is said to be a very spiritual color. It's associated with boosting intuition and developing a deeper awareness of reality; of what's really going on.

This chakra connects you to the element of light and is referred to as our 6th sense.

The bija or seed sound is Sham.

The...

The Throat Chakra

Today we'll chat a bit about the Throat Chakra or Vishuddha, which is the Sanskrit term and means 'purification'.

If you missed previous posts on the Chakras in this series, you can start here with the Root Chakra.

The Throat Chakra is located at the center of the throat. The physical body areas associated with this chakra are the neck, jaw, throat, ears and mouth.

The color associated with this chakra is sky blue and is symbolized by a lotus flower with 16 petals. The petals are arranged around a circle with a downward facing triangle with another circle in the center representing a shining full moon.

The color blue is associated with trust, wisdom, faith, purification and is said to benefit the mind and body.

The main theme of this chakra is expression; to express ourselves freely and openly.

The element associated with this chakra is space. Think of the qualities of space --> subtle, vast and expansive.

The associated sense is the sense of hearing and the...

The Heart Chakra

Today we'll discuss the Heart Chakra or the Sanskrit term, Anahata, which means 'unstuck'.

If you missed previous posts on the Chakras in this series, you can start here with the Root Chakra.

The Heart Chakra is located at the center of the chest.

The color associated with this chakra is emerald green and is symbolized by a lotus flower with 12 petals. The petals are arranged around a circle with two triangles; one pointing down and one pointing up, forming a 6-pointed star. These two triangles represent the integration of the 3 lower chakras and the 3 upper chakras, thus acting as a bridge between the world of matter and spirit. 

The main theme of this chakra is love as well as unconditional compassion, lovingkindness and forgiveness.

The element associated with this chakra is air. Think of the qualities of air --> light, flowing, gracefulness, ease, formless. 

When we are balanced in this energy center, we feel light, flowing with life, full of...

The Solar Plexus Chakra

Today we'll discuss the Solar Plexus Chakra or the Sanskrit term, Manipura, which means 'city of jewels'.

If you missed previous posts on the Chakras in this series, you can start here with the Root Chakra.

The Solar Plexus Chakra is located at the navel center. It is also referred to as your Power Center.

The color associated with this chakra is yellow and is symbolized by a lotus flower with 10 petals. The petals are arranged around a circle with down-ward facing triangle and a golden sun in the center which represents the element associated with the Solar Plexus Chakra which is fire.

The Solar Plexus Chakra is the third closest main chakra to the earth. The main theme of this chakra is transformation --> clarifying your life purpose and manifesting it fully.

It also relates to confidence, self-esteem, will power and the ability to access our 'gut' instincts. Body areas associated with this chakra are the abdomen, waist, mid back and digestive organs....

 The Sacral Chakra

Today we'll discuss the Sacral Chakra or the Sanskrit term, Svadhisthana, which means 'inner dwelling place'.

If you missed the first post on the Root Chakra in this series where I also explain a little bit about the chakras, you can read that post here.

The Sacral Chakra is located at the center of the pelvis, between the Root Chakra and the navel.

The color associated with this chakra is orange and is symbolized by a lotus flower with 6 petals. The petals are arranged around a circle. The circle represents wholeness and the crescent moon at the bottom of the circle represents the element associated with the Sacral Chakra which is water.

The Sacral Chakra is the second closest main chakra to the earth. It correlates with our emotional balance, sensuality and what I like to call our energetic sparkle.

When unbalanced you may feel isolated, emotionally unstable and creatively blocked. You can feel bored, lacking desire and passion and also become rigid in body...

The Root Chakra

The Chakras are energy centers that help balance the human being on all levels.

If this is your first encounter with the chakras, it may sound a bit 'out there', but science has proven that we are made of energy. Energy can be stored, transformed, depleted, or excessive.

From the online dictionary, energy is defined as:

the strength and vitality required for sustained physical or mental activity

The quote below is from an interesting article:

As science goes deeper and deeper into matter it finds that matter is no more and only energy remains, only energy is.

Chakra means 'wheel' and the main 7 chakras are aligned along the spine from the very bottom tip below the tailbone all the way through the neck to the crown of the head.

These wheels of energy balance, receive, transform and store energy. They are also the communication pathway for the subtle energy body and the physical body.

When the energy is flowing freely all is well and good. But sometimes when the...