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Yoga

Yoga

A new chapter

If I ever wanted confirmation of what prana feels like, (that’s yoga speak for energy or life force) then I got that today. As I sat on my mat in front of 20 bodies resting in savasana for what will be the last time for many months, I can truly say I felt that buzz of amazing energy that is present within all of us. Ok, so you will have to forgive me for coming over all yogically sentimental today, but it is for good reason, so bear with me! This morning, I taught my last yoga class before I take some time off to prepare for the next chapter in my life…having my first baby. 

Tomorrow morning I head on holidays – one week at home, then two weeks in Cyprus…read: Baby Moon! After checking the hotel in advance for a large bed, extra pillows and provisions for small beached whales, we are good to go. Our last holiday as two, and before life changes immeasurably, but for the better. Continue Reading

By on April 30, 2012
Yoga

Peking Duck

I was teaching a Vinyasa class a while ago and building up to one of our peak poses, Bird of Paradise (check out my pregnant one pictured…probably won’t be busting that one out in a few weeks!) If you are blessed with flexible hamstrings and open shoulders then you are probably up for the challenge, otherwise this is one bird that might not even get off the ground.

So what do you do when you can’t get there? Criticise yourself? Give up? Silently curse your extra bendy neighbour? Why not take a leaf out of one of my student’s books and have a laugh trying, find your own edge, and give it your own label…in his case, Peking Duck! Despite being surrounded by females, this well-built guy is never afraid to accept where he is at in his yoga practice, and his level of Bird of Paradise, self titled Peking Duck, is the perfect example! It is also a great reminder that right we are now is right where we need to be. Continue Reading

By on January 25, 2012
Yoga

Yoga Mama

yogaMama-a1Take one Mac Book Pro, mix in one drinking yoghurt and what have you got? A recipe for disaster to the tune of about 700 quids worth of damage (almost the cost of this new one that I gingerly type on now, liquids well out of arm’s reach.) Yes, this is just one of the things that has happened to me over the last two months (the flying lasagne is another story). Happily, though, you won’t find me crying over spilt yoghurt. The reason? I am 14 weeks pregnant, and frankly, life is pretty good! 

I’ve known I was pregnant from about 4 weeks in and every day since finding that plus sign on the stick has been a journey. Even from this very early stage, I was amazed at how I could feel the subtle changes in my body…the ache of a couple of things upfront getting a little larger, the strange tightness in my lower belly, the roller coaster of emotions, the pregnancy clumsiness and the constant urge to pee! Then week six kicks in and I wake up feeling like I am on the Titanic. The ever-present nausea takes centre stage, ramping its way up as the weeks progress, and generally making life miserable. Continue Reading

By on January 17, 2012
Yoga

It’s only yoga…

its-only-yoga-cartoonIt’s only yoga…so why do we constantly beat ourselves up on our mats? Whether it is judging our bodies, comparing our practice to someone else’s or forcing our limbs into something they are not ready for, our mat can often become a battleground of sweat, pain and judgement! It got me thinking, how often do we forget that yoga is more than just physical? 

When it comes to the practice of yoga postures or asana, we can get caught up in the notion that this is the only tool in the yoga box. In fact, asana is the third rung on the ladder of what is known as the eight limbs of yoga. This path to enlightenment was laid down in Pantajali’s Yoga Sutras a long time before we ever had funky yoga clothing and studios. As one of the founding fathers of yoga, Pantajali was a guy who knew what he was talking about. Before we even get into the physical, he highlighted two things we should tackle – the yamas and the niyamas. I like to think of them as yoga’s little moral and ethical codes, and over the next few weeks we will take a look at each one and how they can relate to our yoga and life. Continue Reading

By on November 10, 2011
Yoga

Hop on the yoga-coaster…

I remember chuckling to myself a good few years back when my yoga teacher was talking about the link between yoga and our emotions. I mean, who cries on their yoga mat? Ha! Not me, I thought. I’m far too ‘together’ for that. Nope, you won’t catch me sniffling in savasana, or welling up in wheel pose…

Then during my first teacher training, it happened. There I was just chilling out in child’s pose when one of the teachers pressed down on my back. It was as though she had found the switch for my tear ducts. It took me completely by surprise…I mean, tough old me? Who would have thought! Continue Reading

By on October 31, 2011
Yoga

The sound of silence…

Left hip on fire…Stabbing sensation right side lower back…mind everywhere but the ‘present.’

If the teacher does not ring that bell RIGHT NOW and end today’s miserable excuse for my meditation, then I may be forced to stand up and ring it for her! (Please note, this is a slightly more PG version of my inner most ramblings on that day).

Now, I do not consider myself an angry person. Nor do I think of myself as particularly impatient. But boy, did both those sides rear their ugly heads during some of my meditation practices over the last few days! Weeks one and two of my yoga training seemed to be my sleeping phase, while week three was a mix of drowsy days and a sprinkling of blissful still moments (during which I almost thought I’d got this meditation lark on the right road). Continue Reading

By on September 3, 2011