Compassion

There are people in your life who care about you and love you.

They believe in you.

Take a moment today to honor this foundation they provide. This support they give.

And based on their compassion toward you, be kind to yourself.

Photo by Tom Huynh.

Trust Yourself

Trust your instincts.

Believe in your strength. Look how far it has brought you.

You can be happy on your own, without asking anyone else for their approval.

You're capable, and the universe has offered you this moment to shine.

And if you get to the end of the day and realize you haven't even been aware of your instincts, or noticed your strength, give yourself permission to shake that off and start over again.

Photo by Ken Johnson of CKCImage.com.

Your Yoga Practice

Consider for a moment that every move you make today will count as your yoga practice.

Each word you speak. Each breath, the fullness with which you breathe.

Let your poses, like your life, be an offering.

Consider the way you move through your day.

Can you leave more evidence of love?

Can you spread kindness in subtle ways, even when your first reaction isn't compassion?

Go within. Do your meditation.

Share your practice.

Namaste.

Yoga is a Practice

Here are a few things that I know, in this moment.

Yoga is a practice.

And my practice is in a constant state of flux, just like me.

Postures will come and go.

Inversions? Fancy transitions? They do not define me.

Today I practiced yoga for the first time in a week, and my body felt stiff and tight. My joints ached. I tried for binds in Goddess pose and Extended Side Angle, and felt as though I was in a different body than my own.

I felt uncomfortable. I kept going. And in savasana, I felt relieved and a little proud of myself for sticking through the discomfort.

I've heard other teachers and students talk about 'taking a break' from their practice. It has been years since I've done that with mine, but in the last few months there have been moments when I'd rather do anything than yoga.

I know I've spent a lot of time comparing myself to other yogis, teachers and students, deciding who has a 'stronger' practice, who knows more, who is capable, who is worthy.

I'd love to let all of that go.

I journaled about it today, actually. How I'm tired of letting my practice define me, rather than support me.

I don't live to do yoga; I do yoga in order to live a more balanced, happy, peaceful life.

Let that be my mantra. Let the comparisons and judgments fall away.

I want to be remembered as a yogi who loved wholeheartedly.

I want to be remembered as someone who cared, who took care of herself with grace and kindness, and who refused to let fear get the best of her. If handstand is in that picture, OK. If not, OK.

How do you practice ahimsa in your yoga routine? How do you let go of a fear of failure, of not being good enough?

Yoga Poses for When You're Sad

Do you keep practicing yoga, even on days when you are sad?

I once heard a friend say that yoga is not always a practice for feeling 

better, 

yet it is a practice used for 

feeling more

.

I love this thought, and I love that my yoga practice supports me even on days when I am gloomy, upset, grieving a loss, or feeling depressed.

Yoga can help us feel

more

, so that we can release negative feelings.

On days when you are feeling sad, or ready to release sadness, try these yoga postures to help you connect with the place you're in. You may just find that after your practice, you feel a little lighter. And if after practicing you still feel some intense feelings, please still give yourself permission to be exactly as you are; sometimes we need to feel heaviness before we can feel lightness again.

Begin in

seated meditation

.

Find stillness in a comfortable position.

Close your eyes and tune inward.

What's going on for you in this moment? Though it may be uncomfortable or a little unsettling, see if you can invite the feeling of sadness. Notice where it is present for you in your body. Maybe your hands or feet? The center of your chest? Your hips?

Without trying to change anything, simply notice. Bring your attention to your body.

If you're craving some movement, consider seated cat/cow for a few minutes, cat/cow from hands and knees, or a few sun salutations.

Then, come into 

pigeon pose

. From downward facing dog, draw your right knee forward toward your right wrist. Allow your hips to sink down. Feel free to slide a block or pillow under your right hip, crawl your hands forward, coming down onto your elbows or letting your forehead rest on the ground.

Stay here for 1-5 minutes on each side. Be sure to keep breathing!

Again in this pose, invite feeling. If there are tears, allow them to process. Remind yourself, you are exactly where you need to be. Let your body be heavy, and your breath deep.

From pigeon, do a few rounds of

low lunges (anjaneyasana)

on each side. You can have your arms up overhead, lifting through the chest, or bring your arms down by your sides. You can even take a lizard variation, both hands inside the front foot.

Move around a bit and stretch your hips in a way that feels right.

Take a few audible exhales through your mouth. Release.

Move through downward facing dog on your way into

Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II)

 pose. Take up a lot of space in this pose.

Notice the wide stance of your feet, and the expansive reach of your arms. Get tall in your spine and gaze forward over your front middle finger. Set your gaze.

Then, allow the pose to intensify a little. Breathe more. Feel the large muscles in your legs start to fire. Engage the muscles around your core, your center, and picture energy lifting up through the spine -- tailbone all the way to the crown of the head.

Tune into your power center. Perhaps today, even with the feeling of sadness, you can also feel the energy of strength. Notice the play between these two energies, and offer what you can in the pose. Surrender your expectations.

If you can, stay for 8-10 breaths on each side in Warrior II. 

Next, have a seat on your mat. Take your legs wide to a straddle and take

wide legged (seated) forward fold

. You can walk your chest forward down toward the mat, tucking your chin into your chest. Or maybe you try an upright version of the stretch, with your fingertips placed on the ground behind your hips, and you lift up through the chest, finding a little backbend.

Deep breaths here, sending energy into the back body and the backs of the legs.

End with

legs up the wall

 pose. Scoot your booty as close to the wall as you can, lay back, and then bring your legs up the wall. Allow your whole body to soften and rest. Let the breath slow down.

Come back to the feeling of when you started your practice. Notice your emotions, and where you may feel them in the body.

You can begin counting the breath for a few minutes, inhaling to a count of 4, and exhaling to a count of 5 or 6. Or, try inviting the mantra,

I am that I am

. On the inhale,

I am

. On the exhale,

that I am

.

Stay for as long as you like, taking your time to finish your practice and return to your day. Always the option here to spend a few minutes journaling about what came up for you. 

Here's a summary of the 

YOGA FOR SADNESS 

practice:

• Seated meditation. Notice where in your body you may feel your emotions.

• Cat/cow to warm up

• Pigeon pose (1-5 minutes on each side)

• Low lunge or lizard on each side (breathe into the hips)

• Downdog

• Warrior II

• Seated wide legged forward fold (Upavistha Konasana)

• Legs up the wall (deep rest)

• Optional journaling :) 

Letting Go of What Others Think

Yesterday on Instagram I posted about a topic that I keep coming back to lately...

Letting go.

Right now I'm working on letting go of caring what others think of me. 

I had a moment yesterday where I thought, 'You know, today has been a really good day.' And then I listed off the reasons it was a good day, and none of them were related to me; they all had something to do with other people -- granted, people in my life that I love and care about, but not me. 

And I thought, 'I want to be happy with myself regardless of what's going on with other people, and outside of their opinions of me.' 

This is something I struggle with, that I've struggled with for a long time without realizing it; I constantly look for approval from others. 

I base my happiness on the happiness of those around me. 

 And sometimes, as an empath, I feel my energy merge with that of those who are close to me, and I struggle to separate my experience from theirs. 

So, how do I work on this? How do I create my own experience, and develop my own self-worth outside of what's going on around me, or what other people think of me? 

My yoga practice is a good starting place. When I'm on my mat, it's just me. I give myself permission to move in my own way, to feel what I feel, to let go of shit, and to be imperfect. 

Re-reading this very blog has been helpful lately, too, as I've been writing about the topic of loving myself for YEARS. 

This struck me yesterday, actually...I have so many posts about self-love, self-acceptance, and compassion! I have given myself so much advice on this topic! Haha. It almost felt silly to realize I have all this advice and I still struggle to take it in...to practice what I preach. 

But, coming back to the theme: LET GO. Be present. Begin again in this moment.

Namaste.

Photos in this post by Tom Huynh.

Sequencing a Yoga Class: Advice from Real Yoga Teachers on How to Create Your 'Flow'

Calling all yoga teachers, and teachers in training!

How do you sequence your yoga classes? What tips, tricks and tools have helped you learn to put together a class that 'flows' beautifully?

Sequencing can be a challenge for yoga teachers, especially in the beginning...I know for me it took a few years to feel totally comfortable creating new yoga sequences. When you're fresh out of teacher training, you may have one memorized sequence you're ready to use, but how do you branch out from there? What helps keep you creative and coming up with new ideas? 

Putting together a cohesive, intelligent, engaging yoga class is not easy. In an effort to encourage and inspire all of my fellow yoga teachers out there, I'd love to share some awesome advice from three of my favorite teachers on how they sequence a class, memorize a flow, and create an environment for students that is supportive and fun. Enjoy!

Tristina Kennedy:

The most authentic inspiration that I find for classes is to get on my mat and move. Some days I just allow myself to be led by my breath and intuition. Other days, I may have a specific intention/focus that I want to bring to class, so my movement is informed by this.

I’m visually minded, so once I have my game plan, I write/draw out the sequence for class. I like to use symbols, abbreviations, and little stick figure yogis. :) I keep a format that divides the various sections of class, so that it's easy to reference when teaching, if needed.

I love the way that this starts to build a catalog of classes. It is fun to look back at past classes; I will often revive, and sometimes refine, things that I've taught in the past.

Jany Slay:

In the beginning I would write almost every single transition or pose down in a linear list (took up half a page!) but now I focus on just one or two key poses or transitions that I really like and put in my basic flows around those pieces. I stop writing as much down too and just practice on my mat more WITH music. For me, music inspires my movements so getting on my mat with a great playlist is where I get inspired. From there, it's a random note-fest of transitions or poses that I must have in my class.

The biggest tip my teacher had for me in my classes she would take was "BREATHE

!" I try to never skip a breathe cue. I try to emphasize fuller breaths in the middle and end of class when that can sometimes be forgotten. When I feel lost or nervous, I breathe. I also remember that some of my favorite classes was more because of the vibe and energy of the teacher and less to do with the sequences or poses.

Aren't these tips super helpful? I can't wait to try some of them when I'm putting together my next class sequence.

I'm so grateful to each of you-- Tristina, Jany and Elizabeth-- for offering all these awesome ideas on how to sequence a yoga class.

To summarize, here are some ideas for how to create a class that flows effortlessly:

• Spend time during your own practice noticing the transitions between poses.

• Keep a journal of class sequences you've taught.

• Let music inspire you.

• Choose a peak pose and work up to it.

• When you arrive to teach, remember to breathe and adapt to who's in the room.

For all you Vinyasa yogis, I also recommend checking out my post on how I memorized the

Baron Baptiste sequence

during my 200 hour training.

Do you have tips or tricks for sequencing? I'd love to hear in the comments below!

Power Yoga Script with Sanskrit Posture Names

$39.99