Category Archives: Guest Writers

My Yoga Journey

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Katie Burns. Katie is a student in Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. She can be contacted at ka**********@***il.com.

Five years ago during my first yoga series , I noticed that my body felt better, and I felt more grounded and focused after I left class. From that first experience with yoga, I knew that I wanted to pursue a long-term relationship with yoga, but being afraid of commitment, I needed to embark on my own journey before coming to the point where I was ready to plunge into a yoga teacher training.

I started seriously thinking about taking a teacher training a little over a year ago. To begin, I researched various teacher training programs from multiple lineages and offered in a plethora of locations. I could move to India for a month to study in Dharamsala or perhaps I would trade in our rainy Northwest winters to spend a handful of weeks in Costa Rica or Mexico at a teacher training retreat center. Then again, I could move back up to Vancouver, BC for a one-month intensive training and study through the school where I used to regularly attend classes. The more I reflected on my options, the more I realized that although those choices were quite appealing, they would not help me to meet one of my personal goals: integrating yoga into my daily life.

Around this time, I came across Whole Life Yoga’s ten-month teacher training. The more that I looked into Viniyoga, the more it seemed like the best fit for me. On a personal level, I liked that the training was spread out over the better part of year so that I would have time to fully absorb and integrate the material, philosophy, and practice. I appreciated that the class meets at least once a week which provides the opportunity to create community with the other participants as well as a designates a weekly time and space for learning about and practicing the different components of yoga. Furthermore, the training schedule allows me to continue working full time while I complete the program. However, most importantly, Viniyoga takes a student-centered focus that meets the differing needs of each individual’s body and situation. Instead of taking a one-size-fits-all approach, Viniyoga is flexible and adaptable. It meets each student where he or she is currently. This tenant of Viniyoga is connected to my personal as well as professional motivation in participating in the Whole Life Yoga teacher training.

Professionally, I work as a mental health case manager with homeless and formerly homeless individuals. After completing the training, I would like to offer yoga to clients at my agency. Further down the road, I would like to integrate mental health counseling with yoga as the body holds so many emotional memories and traumas. I hope to either open a private practice or work at a wellness center and serve clients who are interested in working through these duo modalities. Finally, I would also like to teach yoga classes at a studio in addition to my work in mental health as I believe the physical, emotional, and spiritual benefits of yoga should be accessible to all who are interested. In line with this belief, I would like to offer a by donation class at least once a week so that money is not prohibitive to potential students. While these are my initial goals, I am open to future opportunities that may present themselves.

The journey has already begun for each of us. Your journey may include a teacher training or it may not. Regardless of where it takes you, I encourage you to trust your instinct and follow your passion. As Rumi said, “Let yourself be drawn by the strange pull of what you love. It will not lead you astray.”

Namaste

Katie

Yogi Skydiver

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Annika DiNovi. Annika is a graduate of  Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. She can be contacted at an***********@***il.com.

Last year I embarked on a wonderful journey, the Teacher Training program at Whole Life Yoga with certified yoga teacher and therapist Tracy Weber. As I began the program, I was excited to deepen my yoga practice and explore boarder aspects of yoga including philosophy, meditation, and the methodology of viniyoga.

Through Tracy’s teachings, I came to understand that “viniyoga” literally means “adaptation and proper application.” I discovered, through my studies and deepening practice, that yoga facilitated growth in all areas of my life, both on and off the mat. But, I was not prepared for just how adaptable viniyoga truly was…

About 9 months into my study with Tracy, my husband and I went on a great adventure – we went skydiving! It was a beautiful Sunday, the sun was shining and summer was just around the corner. I clearly recall, prior to loading the airplane at Skydive Snohomish, a bit of hesitation and anticipation. “What was I getting myself into?!” I allowed the anticipation to turn into excitement – there was no turning back.

And, excitement it was! What an experience – I still can’t find the words to describe the feeling – thank goodness my husband loved it as well. The following weekend we were both back at the drop zone enrolling in the program to become licensed skydivers – we were hooked!

As we began the coursework, the first and most essential skill to master was the ARCH, this crates a stable surface for flying. The ARCH is practiced by lying on your belly, lifting your arms in a goal post position and lifting your legs both several inches off the ground. We practiced this countless times to build muscle memory.

Our instructor jokingly said, “I hope you’re good at yoga, you might be sore.” Little did he know – this was yoga! We were practicing cobra in preparation to fly – I couldn’t believe it!!

As I mentioned before, yoga has truly facilitated growth in ALL areas of my life. When Tracy teaches that viniyoga is adaptable, she isn’t kidding! At the drop zone where we skydive there is a quote, “take risks, not to escape life, but to prevent life from escaping.”

This has been a remarkable year; Tracy’s teachings have encouraged my growth in many ways. In reflection, I’ve learned that life is too short not to enjoy it. Allow yourself to grow, allow yourself to be challenged in new ways both on and off the mat and share your experiences with others.

Hope to see you on the mat soon – if I’m not there, I’m in the sky!

Namaste.

Annika

ABCs of Yoga

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Roy Holman. Roy is a graduate of Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. He  can be contacted at ho**********@***il.com and at http://holmanhealthconnections.com.

I had a chance to ask T.K.V. Desakachar a question when he was leading a workshop in Portland a few years ago: “Do you think we in the West are too asana focused?” His eyes lit up and he said,”Oh yes! By age 60 one should be doing 20% asana, 40% meditation, and 40% pranayama.” His father Krishnamacharya once said, “Nowadays, the practice of yoga stops with just asanas.”

Many of us get into yoga for Exercise reasons, which is fine. We may begin yoga for physical reasons–perhaps to help heal an injury–and stick with yoga for other reasons; perhaps we become more centered or peaceful. Some of us may even begin yoga for the other E word: Ego. We may wish to impress people with our fancy poses or even sexy body. As Yoga Sutra scholar Chip Hartranft puts it, “In fact, hatha yoga practice may initially be driven to some extent by narcissism.  After all, hatha yoga can appeal to us because of the powerful way it addresses some of the self’s most cherished preoccupations–health, attractiveness, sexual energy, and longevity.”

There are four letters that precede E that may get ignored.

A might stand for Awareness (not just asana).  Our practice begins and ends with awareness. We can begin to notice what draws us to the mat (or away from the mat). Awareness involves no judgment, just noticing how we feel in each pose, what draws us to certain styles of yoga and to which teachers. What is our motivation? What are our patterns? Additionally, A also stands for Ahimsa (nonviolence), the most important “yama.”

B is for Breath. Connecting the breath to the movement, to me, draws me out of the head and deep into the body and the yoga practice. I begin to lose  myself and find my Self. Breath seems to bridge body to spirit. Pranayama–breath regulation–is a profound but underappreciated limb of yoga.

C is for Compassion and ties into ahimsa mentioned above. We are often so tough on ourselves. Can we accept where we are?  Can we have compassion for ourselves even if we realize that, due to our low self esteem, we indeed practice partially because of the egoist reasons mentioned earlier? Can we have compassion for ourselves when we find ourselves
comparing ourselves to other students or judging the teacher?

D is for Devotion and Divine.  While reading about the great Krishnamacharya’s life and practice, it struck me how dedicated and devotional a yogi he was. He once said,  “…the reason for learning yogasana is not just for good physique but to obtain atmajnana (spiritual progress.)” Yoga teacher Dharma Mittra, known for his ability to do thousands of incredible poses, said,  “The postures mean absolutely nothing, no matter how adept one is with them, if they’re not done is a spirit of devotion.”

When I studied at Oneness University in India, there was a big focus on devotion to the Divine.  It was humbling for me to see that I was really  more into ego and control than surrender, trust and a devotion to the Divine.

Whether you define this devotion as one to your Higher Self, God, Universal Intelligence or whatever, I suppose that all paths eventually lead there even with our egoist detours. Indeed, we need look no further for the Divine than within our most sacred, essential Selves.

E also stands for Enjoy, so let’s enjoy this beautiful yoga journey together!

Roy

Yoga in the Peace Corps: Khotso and Namaste

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Barbara Meyer. Barbara is a graduate of Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. She  can be contacted at el*********@***il.com.

For thirty years, I’ve wanted to be a Peace Corps volunteer. One year ago, my dream came true—my husband and I received our invitations to serve as Peace Corps volunteers. After several months of preparations and clearing 30 years of accumulated possessions out of our home, we departed for Philadelphia to meet our fellow volunteers. Three days later, we were in southern Africa’s Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho. Khotso is a common greeting here, meaning peace in Sesotho. Our host families greeted us with wild ululation, song and dancing and dozens of people pressed against usas we walked to our home for training—a traditional thatched roof rondavel with no electricity or running water. Among the items that made the final cut into my two suitcases were my yoga chimes, a golden silk shawl from India and a travel yoga mat.

During three months of training,I was able to use yoga for stress reduction when things got rough. Since moving to my work site (for two years), I’ve been practicing yoga three to four days per week. We live in a studio (half of a duplex) set in a garden with an amazing view of the mountains. Despite the cramped space, my husband agreed that we needed to preserve the space by the window for yoga.

The Peace Corps ads say it’s “The hardest job you’ll ever love.” One of the hard parts is daily uncertainty about so many aspects of life. Aside from creating my own job on a daily basis, I’m learning a new language (Sesotho), a new culture (Basotho), meeting many new people and trying to figure out how pretty much everything works.

Yoga has become more precious to me since becoming a Peace Corps volunteer. The challenge of cross cultural living in a poor country brings some strain. Children often knock on our door in groups of three or four and say, “I am asking for bread.” Or they may ask for candy, money or a job. When walking through the village, similar requests are made by children and adults alike. The struggle is that we have the means to help some but not all. How do we decide when to respond and when to pass by? In contrast, at our work site, a hospital, many Basotho are extremely well educated with good professional jobs. Life in a developing country is complex. The HIV rate is 23% among adults and many children have lost one or both parents to HIV. Unemployment is nearly 50%. There is so much to think about! And have I mentioned that we live on $250 per month in a town with no restaurant? In fact, no store where you can buy cheese or chocolate! For this reluctant cook, starting from scratch (e.g. make own tortillas and injera) on a daily basis has been a test of my self discipline.

This is where yoga comes in. Three or four mornings a week, my first activity of the day is to clear my yoga space and lay out the mat and clean towels on the floor. I face the river valley with mountains beyond and lengthen my breath. As I proceed through the asana practice, I feel the slowing down and calming that yoga movement brings. Through pranayama breath practices, I have to let other thoughts go as I focus on the counting or the technique for the day. That brings me to meditation. I have chosen three qualities that I want to enhance in myself, qualities that I need on a daily basis here and sometimes find in short supply. I like to end with a short chant that we used to close each class during yoga teacher training. Chanting helps me to visualize the support of the community of people I have met through Whole Life Yoga. It is easy to feel alone in the Peace Corps! Because of my practice, I carry these friendships with me through my day. I end my practice with three chimes. Folding up my travel mat (thanks for the tip, Suzanne Stephens!), I feel calm, peaceful and happy. I am ready to face the uncertainties of the day with some equanimity.

One year into my Peace Corps service, things have become easier. We are building relationships with people here and our work is starting to show results. Maintaining a sense of non-attachment is so useful. Things have a way of moving forward then backward often at a very, very slow pace. One project that I abandoned as a lost cause resurrected itself months later. Someone came up and asked me to get a replacement for a stamp that had been designed for the outpatient department months earlier. I didn’t even realize that they had started to use it again!

Another gift I received from one of my teacher training colleagues was a really useful quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”

In my Peace Corps service, regular yoga practice is as necessary as food. The emotional grounding that comes from yoga practice has helped me immensely to meet the challenges I face. Thank you so much, Tracy and the Whole Life Community for all of your support.

If you are interested in reading more about our adventures in Lesotho, our blog is www.alesothojourney.blogspot.com

Namaste,

Barbara

More information about Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program can be found at our web site:  Yoga Teacher Training at Whole Life Yoga.

 

 

 

 

Keeping Yourself (and Your Students) Safe with Viniyoga

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author and Whole Life Yoga teacher training graduate Jacqui Trent.   Congratulations, Jacqui, on your recent graduation! Jacqui can be contacted at ja*********@***il.com.

When I started this training program I’ll admit – I had no idea what Viniyoga was.  I knew very little about other lineages, but this one was completely foreign to me. My experience was in general Hatha/Vinyasa flow that didn’t really follow any sort of rules.  I’ve been in
group classes where we’d start the practice popping right into headstand, without any regard to the neck or shoulders, and (I won’t lie) I loved it!  I wasn’t sure about all these (in my first impression) “restrictions.” Now, as a WLY graduate, I have so much appreciation for these restrictions!

In January of this year I got quite a shock.  All of a sudden I felt an intense pang from my neck and shoulder all the way down my right arm as well as awful sciatica.  It basically came out of nowhere.  This pain was so debilitating that I had to completely stop all yoga and running and since then it’s only gotten worse.

While I couldn’t really say that my prior yoga experience caused my pain, I know that it didn’t help.  Every week for the past nine months, it’s become more and more apparent to me.  I should never have been starting a class in headstand; my neck and shoulders were in no way shape or form prepared for all that weight.

Two things Tracy has ingrained into our heads: “Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should” and “you have to ask yourself if the risks outweigh the benefits.”  Had I not been going through this training when my pain started and had I never heard those words, I guarantee you I would be doing headstand right now (as well as other poses that could be harmful for me) instead of typing this article.

Another amazing thing I learned from Tracy is the art of sequencing practices. Yes, there are rules, but they meant for protecting and preparing the body for poses. While daunting and completely overwhelming at first, I’ve really come to love designing classes!  It’s like a puzzle.  How can you keep your student(s) safe while also meeting their needs? I’m still working on maximizing my sequences, but I believe that will only come with time.

Finally, (although I promise you I’ve learned quite a bit!) I’ve learned how to teach a class without having to do the entire practice with the students. It is my goal to talk students through the practice and only demo if needed and when it’s safe for my body (grabbing a demo student if I can’t do it). This not only allows me to more closely observe my students; it also saves me from injuring myself even more by trying to demonstrate a pose.

While I may have started this training slightly skeptical, I really see the value and beauty of this lineage.  It baffles me that not everyone would put as much emphasis on protecting your body as Viniyoga does.  It has stopped me from further injury and taught me how to keep my future students safe.  These principles will definitely always be a part of my teachings!

Jacqui

More information about Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program can be found at our web site:  Yoga Teacher Training at Whole Life Yoga.

Teaching Yoga to Kids

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Liziah Woodruff. Liziah is a graduate of Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. She  can be contacted at li****@*****il.com.

The Teacher said: “Put your hands on your belly and think of a color for your balloon. Breathe in and blow up your balloon; breathe out and deflate your balloon slowly. Breathe in, blow up your balloon–uh oh it pops!” Little mouths with big laughter fill the room. Welcome to the dynamic, creative, challenging, sweet, fun world of Kids Yoga! When I first started studying to be a yoga teacher eight years ago, I knew that translating the magic of yoga to kids was something I wanted to do.

I have been working with kids for most of my life. They follow me everywhere, so I have no choice. I have been a nanny, babysitter, school teacher, god mother and mentor.  Adding teaching  yoga to my work with children was not too cold, not too hot–it was just right! However it has taken me years of trial and error, study, creative exploration and many, many, many groups of kids to learn how to teach them confidently.  And of course I am still learning.

Children’s natural dramatic energy is activated in yoga as the kids and I climb together up mountains, become strong warriors, turn into fierce lions, wise owls, and soaring eagles. Yoga poses named after nature and animals–things kids love–lend themselves to easily connect to kids. There are endless stories and adventures that can be told with yoga poses. I like to make up my own adventures, which always change a little or a lot depending on the group.

I blend my classes with movement, music, story, active and calm poses, and resting at the end of the class. It is very common that the kid who didn’t seem like he would ever want to be still says during the closing circle: “I like resting the best.” Or a shy child that wouldn’t even say her name in the beginning circle becomes the most vivacious volcano of them all. Teaching yoga to kids is a skill.  It requires finding the right combination of active and quiet yoga, balancing the shy and expressive personalities, keeping the kids engaged, flowing and in control, and knowing what works for each age group.  And believe me some things work and some things don’t. I used to fear three and four year olds, but now I have learned how to teach even them!

Yoga teaches kids how to feel good in their bodies, how to challenge themselves to get stronger, more flexible and hold that tree pose for as long as they individually can. It teaches kids that focus and peace is possible to find within themselves. It inspires them to feel power within, not power over. It shows them that, like the roots of trees in a forest,  we are all connected.

I believe the ancient teachings of yoga are modern medicine for our children as well as us.  I am excited to have the opportunity to teach  what I have learned so far about  teaching yoga to kids in the Yoga Teacher Training for Kids Workshop at Whole Life Yoga on July 1st. I hope you will join me there and  in a family or kids yoga class soon.  Let’s give the gift of yoga to our kids! Let’s thrive and improve our whole selves together.

The light in me sees the light in you. Namaste.

Liziah

If you would like to see me teaching, check out my kids yoga video, The Changing Star.

Come visit Whole Life Yoga in Seattle!

Insight from Injury

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Jenny Zenner. Jenny is a graduate of Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. She  can be contacted at jz*****@***il.com.

I recently spoke on KUOW’s The Conversation with Ross Reynolds sharing my yoga injury story during William Broad’s appearance for his new book The Science of Yoga. His book and recent article “How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body“ have sparked a lot of discourse within the yoga community. As a journalist who suffered a significant injury in yoga, he’s played the publicity game well, getting the attention of many to challenge certain practices while shedding light on the true benefits available through yoga.

As someone who was dropped on their head like a pogo stick in an advanced teacher training workshop, I hope that the ripple is wide, reaching a multitude of teachers and students to improve safety on the mat. My injury occured in spite of my training. I was at a studio where I was hoping to impress the owner by taking the advanced workshop to get added to the teaching schedule. Instead of engaging my own philosophy, I followed the instructions given, doing challenging backbends, doing an additional workout the morning of the second day to “warm up” and changing partners for each pose over the course of the two days. So it was under these conditons of being sore and fatigued, trying to impress and getting assisted by a complete stranger that I attempted a posture I’d never done before. The strong but slight woman was at least 15 years my senior. In retrospect, she had no hope of being able to successfully support me, and I had no business attempting the posture. Crumpled on the floor after getting released from the failed assist, tears welled in my eyes as I regrouped on my hands and knees, embarrassed and shocked. The owner stood by, recommended I work on getting my hips over my shoulders next time, and proceeded with the class.

Fortunately I only sprained my neck and got a concussion, as the next levels of spinal chord severity are paralysis and death. I’m a safer teacher as a result. I don’t teach risky postures to strangers in group classes. I didn’t have the courage to challenge the workshop teacher even though I was a certified instructor myself. I can only wonder how many other students are embarking on risky postures taught out of tradition and pride. Alas in a recent class at a studio I was visiting, I heard a man in his 50’s gushing about a training he’d done over the weekend where they’d done Crow to Handstand, the very act that led to my concussion and sprained cervical spine, an injury that impacts me to this day 4 1/2 years since it happened. Looking at him, I wondered under what circumstances he found the need to do such an acrobatic posture. Thus I am compelled to continue the conversation by inviting fellow teachers, trainees and students to explore with me the risks of postures like headstand, plow, locust and transitions to wheel.

Join Tracy Weber and me for Prose+Pose™ at 7pm on June 21st at 5focus to question, defend, and learn. Tracy is the founder of Whole Life Yoga in the viniyoga tradition, grounded in the philosophy of tailoring practices to individuals with safety at the forefront. She will discuss what led her to viniyoga and the foundations of her teacher training program. I will lead a discussion on the sections of William Broad’s book addressing risky postures and opportunities for more rigorous training of yoga teachers.

Jenny

Come visit Whole Life Yoga in Seattle!

Deconstructing Cravings–Eating for Energy!

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Today’s post is written by guest writer Kamala Chambers, who will be teaching a free workshop at Whole Life Yoga on Sunday, June 3!  She can be reached at ka*********@***oo.com

Nobody can give you wiser advice than yourself. -Cicero

The body is an amazing source of intelligence. It is always there for you, pumping blood, never skipping a heartbeat, digesting whatever food you put in it and maintaining homeostasis. Is this reliable, intelligent bio-computer making a mistake by craving ice cream or a hamburger or chocolate? Are cravings due to lack of will-power or discipline? I’d like to suggest that cravings are not a problem. They are critical pieces of information that tell you what your body needs.

The important thing is to understand why you crave what you crave. Perhaps your diet is too restrictive or devoid of essential nutrients. Perhaps you are living a lifestyle that is too boring or stressful. Your body tries to correct the imbalance by sending you a message: a craving. A craving for something sweet could mean you need more protein, more exercise, more water or more love in your life. The key to stopping the sugar craving is to understand and deliver what your body really needs.

No book or theory can tell you what to eat. Only awareness of your body and its needs can tell you. Of all the relationships in our lives, the one with our body is the most essential. It takes communication, love and time to cultivate a relationship with your body. As you learn to decipher and respond to your body’s cravings, you will create a deep and lasting level of health and balance.

The next time you have a craving, treat it as a loving message from your body instead of a weakness. Try these tips to respond to your body:

  • Have a glass of water and wait 10 minutes.
  • Eat a healthier version of what you crave. For example, if you crave sweets, try eating more fruit and sweet or root vegetables.
  • What is out of balance in your life? Is there something you need to express, or is something being repressed? What happened in your life just before you had this craving?
  • When you eat the food you are craving, enjoy it, taste it, savor it; notice its effect. Then you will become more aware and free to decide if you really want it next time.

To learn more about understanding cravings, and and eating for energy, join Kamala on June 3rd at 1pm at Whole life Yoga!

My First Dive Into the Universe of Viniyoga

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Today’s post is written by guest writer Jasmine Kaloudis, who teaches yoga in Philadelphia and who is now, after 15 years of practice, is finding herself drawn to the wonderful tradition of viniyoga.  She can be reached at in**@**************ne.com.

I just got back from my first Viniyoga training with Gary Kraftsow at the NYC Yoga Journal conference last weekend.  I’ve been practicing hatha yoga for over 15 years and have mostly gone to classes that just had a bunch of sun salutations in them.

Yoga has been a way for me to release tension and tightness but I think I was not trained in proper alignment and anatomy and after doing thousands of up-dogs, down-dogs, shoulder-stands and warrior poses without proper body mechanics, I have a feeling I injured my body pretty badly.  I’ve had chronic neck stiffness and headaches for many years now and the last year my knees have been pretty bad.    I was starting to dread yoga teaching so much since I would have to ice my knees after my classes and I would not be able to sleep due to my screaming knees.

I started to take some Iyengar classes and that seemed to help my throbbing knees.   I went to a doctor that specialized in athletes and knee pain and based on his recommendations and my Iyengar classes I was finding a higher level of manageability for my knees but my neck and headaches were persistent (despite rounds of holistic practitioners and conventional western medicine I could not figure out how to get rid of my head-aches and neck stiffness)

Imagine having someone whack you on your head with a sledgehammer all day long and just about every day.  Now imagine someone is sticking a little knife at the back of your neck.  Welcome to my body.  I used to want to run away from my body but there was no where to run to.  Deep sleep provided the only vacation from my body.  I used to hate waking up in the morning since I had to wake up to my neck and forehead screaming at me.

Enter Viniyoga…..

I am not sure if I had ever heard of Gary before this weekend.  I think his name was familiar to me from Yoga Journal.  I remember reading once about Viniyoga but whatever I read didn’t grab me and I was never interested in exploring it any further.

I went to his first workshop on upper body, neck and shoulder pain.  We did some unusual yoga poses that were similar to other poses I had done before but there were key differences.  Gary kept emphasizing coordinating our breath to our movement, (otherwise it’s just calisthenics .   We twisted,  We triangled. We saluted and we warriored.   After about 30 minutes of breath-centered poses, I slowly but deeply started to feel some relief.    It would take hours for my body to integrate what we did and later I started to feel more relief.

I was comfortable just being in my body.  I felt present.  I felt at home.  I didn’t want to run away from myself or my body.

I went to Gary’s all day intensive even though the title sounded uninspired. “Yoga for Depression and Anxiety.”  We dove deeper into some of the physical and emotional mechanisms behind anxiety and depression.  We explored chanting and breath centered movement.  It was like a moving meditation.  I could feel deeply ingrained patterns of limitation, pain and constraint being worked though levels of my fascia and psyche.

I felt a sense of liberation.  I was freed up to have new thoughts and new feelings.

I taught some of these methodologies the next week in my beginner yoga classes and was delighted to see the look of relief on my students’ faces after I had introduced them to Viniyoga.

I can’t wait to dive deeper into the warm waters of Viniyoga.

Jasmine

Jasmine Kaloudis teaches  beginner yoga in Philadelphia  and is the author of the best spiritual websites list.  She writes about yoga on her blog at http://www.synergybyjasmine.com/yoga-blog.

Come visit Whole Life Yoga in Seattle!

Connecting with Your Body, Mind–and Baby–with Yoga

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This week’s blog entry was written by guest author Shelley Curtis. Shelley is a graduate of Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program, and our newest prental yoga instructor!  She  can be contacted at sa***@*******nk.net.

I started taking yoga classes after a minor back injury, partly to heal but mainly to strengthen and stretch my body to prevent hurting myself again. I loved the way yoga made my body feel and sensed there was more to it for my mind but didn’t understand the mental and emotional benefits until I was introduced to viniyoga just before I became pregnant with my first son (now 5 ½).

After I found out I was pregnant I started going to prenatal yoga classes at Whole Life Yoga and practicing at home almost daily. This is really when I started to get the body-mind connection that yoga, especially viniyoga, has to offer. By practicing viniyoga regularly throughout my pregnancy I was able to connect with my body and my baby in a way I don’t think I would have otherwise. The breath work and linking breath and movement allowed me to be fully present and helped me to ride the emotional roller coaster of pregnancy in a much more mindful way. The same held true for labor – and motherhood. I used the same tools during my son’s birth and then again as I struggled with being a new mom.

A couple of years (and many viniyoga classes) later, my dear friend and mentor, Sharon Beaudoin, urged me to consider enrolling in Whole Life Yoga’s teacher training program. I hadn’t ever thought about teaching yoga but met with Tracy anyway and decided to enter the program mostly as a way to enhance my home practice. Then came baby number two! I was lucky to experience the teacher training during my pregnancy for many reasons, one of which is that it ignited in me a passion for teaching prenatal yoga.  And of course I fully experienced the many benefits of viniyoga throughout my pregnancy, labor and transition to mother of two!

Yoga is such a gift for pregnant women, most of who are getting know their bodies – and their minds – in an entirely new and different way. I feel so fortunate that I get to join them as they begin their journey to motherhood.

Shelley

Please Join Shelley in her new prenatal class at Whole Life Yoga!