before i tell you about my very first yoga teaching experience (!!!!), first let me tell you why im afraid i might not be that good at it....
actually, let me provide you with a link to someone else who thinks they might not be that good at it, but echos my sentiments exactly. and more beautifully.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Monday, April 2, 2012
the view from here is something to see
ever wish you could do a headstand? yea, me too. which is why i signed up for the totally rad headstand class at this year's Wanderlust Festival! more to come on that soon....
but if you cant make it to Wanderlust and you're still jonesin' to see the world upside-down, here are some amazing tips, via lululemon's website. good luck!
but if you cant make it to Wanderlust and you're still jonesin' to see the world upside-down, here are some amazing tips, via lululemon's website. good luck!
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
teach me how to use the love that people say you make
yoga training #9
So this training actually took place weeks and weeks ago and i'm slightly backed up, so i will attempt to take some blogging-metamucil and become slightly more regular with my updates...
hm. i just realized i make a lot of poop analogies. that's weird, right? one of my co-workers once told me that eventually, all conversations make their way back to boobs or poop and im starting to believe that.
anyway, our ninth training session was all about alignment and arm balances, which had me totally twitterpated. if i had to pick one thing that i would like for you to remember about me, it's that i am a huge fan of arm balances. also, i like fro yo. and puppies. oh, and the scratchy sound that old vinyl records make when you play them for the first time in years... but seriously- arm balances are such an amazing combination of strength, flexibility, and stability. maybe it's that feeling of victory once you nail an arm balance and hold it- i just get so excited! does that make me a yoga geek? i hope so...
we practiced our alignment for the first half of training and my teacher stressed the importance of using the 'knives edge' of our foot when in warrior 2 and other similar poses. for example, if you are in w2 with your left knee bent, your right leg should be straight out to the right side, hips open, foot pointing in the same direction as your hips, and you should be pushing off of the outside edge of the right foot. it actually takes a lot of the pressure off of your knees and helps with balance...
after alignments, we moved our mats up against the wall and practiced tri-pod, basasana (crow), headstand, shoulder stand and shoulder stand with blocks. it was glorious. and now im determined to do all of these sans wall... a good tip for attempting any of these inversions is to put a yoga block between your upper thighs and squeeze. this action helps you focus on your core muscles and isometrically pulls them together, which allows you to 'float' upside-down with ease.
and forget the fact that arm balances make you look super cool- they are good for you, too! my teacher explained how inversions have been proven to help depression, which makes a lot of sense- any time i am able to squeeze a downward dog into my day, i always feel much better afterwards.
after training, i was so pumped that i started attempting going into scorpion from several different positions and found that it was easiest for me if i came up backwards from bridge. i even held it for 4 whole seconds before i kicked joey in the face and fell on my rump. so worth it!
so the moral of this story is, find a crazy pose, make it your goal and go out there and nail it!
p.s.- remember on my last post when i eluded to a super special trip im planning? well, it looks like my mama and i will be heading to wanderlust this year in good ol' vermont!! so unbelievably pumped- 3 days of yoga and music in one of the crunchiest, loveliest states... more to come about that soon! *sigh
So this training actually took place weeks and weeks ago and i'm slightly backed up, so i will attempt to take some blogging-metamucil and become slightly more regular with my updates...
hm. i just realized i make a lot of poop analogies. that's weird, right? one of my co-workers once told me that eventually, all conversations make their way back to boobs or poop and im starting to believe that.
anyway, our ninth training session was all about alignment and arm balances, which had me totally twitterpated. if i had to pick one thing that i would like for you to remember about me, it's that i am a huge fan of arm balances. also, i like fro yo. and puppies. oh, and the scratchy sound that old vinyl records make when you play them for the first time in years... but seriously- arm balances are such an amazing combination of strength, flexibility, and stability. maybe it's that feeling of victory once you nail an arm balance and hold it- i just get so excited! does that make me a yoga geek? i hope so...
we practiced our alignment for the first half of training and my teacher stressed the importance of using the 'knives edge' of our foot when in warrior 2 and other similar poses. for example, if you are in w2 with your left knee bent, your right leg should be straight out to the right side, hips open, foot pointing in the same direction as your hips, and you should be pushing off of the outside edge of the right foot. it actually takes a lot of the pressure off of your knees and helps with balance...
after alignments, we moved our mats up against the wall and practiced tri-pod, basasana (crow), headstand, shoulder stand and shoulder stand with blocks. it was glorious. and now im determined to do all of these sans wall... a good tip for attempting any of these inversions is to put a yoga block between your upper thighs and squeeze. this action helps you focus on your core muscles and isometrically pulls them together, which allows you to 'float' upside-down with ease.
and forget the fact that arm balances make you look super cool- they are good for you, too! my teacher explained how inversions have been proven to help depression, which makes a lot of sense- any time i am able to squeeze a downward dog into my day, i always feel much better afterwards.
after training, i was so pumped that i started attempting going into scorpion from several different positions and found that it was easiest for me if i came up backwards from bridge. i even held it for 4 whole seconds before i kicked joey in the face and fell on my rump. so worth it!
so the moral of this story is, find a crazy pose, make it your goal and go out there and nail it!
p.s.- remember on my last post when i eluded to a super special trip im planning? well, it looks like my mama and i will be heading to wanderlust this year in good ol' vermont!! so unbelievably pumped- 3 days of yoga and music in one of the crunchiest, loveliest states... more to come about that soon! *sigh
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
yea i got love handles, but i cannot handle love
here are some enlightening words, courtesy of soul yoga, because i just dont have much to say today, and i probably couldnt say it better if i tried...
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
so wherever i go, im taking you with me
we interrupt these very important yoga messages to announce the 5 year anniversary of me and my boo. yup, count 'em! 5 big ones!
on february 23, 2007, a boy with a generally pleasant disposition and super long eyelashes agreed (via instant messenger) to see the movie "23" (starring jim carey, but not funny. the opposite of funny, actually. scary and weird. not a good combo.) with me at crossgates cinemas. he picked me up in his gold saturn- a car which i would later find out did not go in reverse- and we listened to jack johnson the whole way there.
a few months later, after we had somehow, unofficially become 'official', someone asked us how long we had been together. as we tried to figure it out, our dear friend geoff offered us this sage advice- "dudes, you dont know? you gotta pro-rate that shit back to your first date." so, after geoff (the business major) explained to me (the art major) what pro-rate meant, we did just that.
and every year since then, on february 23, my joey, (aka buster, my boo, thee fiance, and, lovingly, josephine) wishes me a happy anniversary... and then shouts "we made it!". how sweet...
so, i would just like to say,
happy 5 years, buster... we made it!
love, katie
(aka rascal, boob, tookers, and lovingly, your stink-butt)
p.s.- i know we use really weird nicknames.
p.p.s.- i dont really have a stinky butt.
on february 23, 2007, a boy with a generally pleasant disposition and super long eyelashes agreed (via instant messenger) to see the movie "23" (starring jim carey, but not funny. the opposite of funny, actually. scary and weird. not a good combo.) with me at crossgates cinemas. he picked me up in his gold saturn- a car which i would later find out did not go in reverse- and we listened to jack johnson the whole way there.
a few months later, after we had somehow, unofficially become 'official', someone asked us how long we had been together. as we tried to figure it out, our dear friend geoff offered us this sage advice- "dudes, you dont know? you gotta pro-rate that shit back to your first date." so, after geoff (the business major) explained to me (the art major) what pro-rate meant, we did just that.
and every year since then, on february 23, my joey, (aka buster, my boo, thee fiance, and, lovingly, josephine) wishes me a happy anniversary... and then shouts "we made it!". how sweet...
so, i would just like to say,
happy 5 years, buster... we made it!
love, katie
(aka rascal, boob, tookers, and lovingly, your stink-butt)
p.s.- i know we use really weird nicknames.
p.p.s.- i dont really have a stinky butt.
Friday, February 17, 2012
but all i ever need is everything
yoga training #8
for our eighth training session, we focused almost completely on alignment. my teacher wanted to make sure that we were holding our poses correctly before we began to instruct others, which makes total sense... so i was all pumped and ready to get my pose on, until i realized that "checking our alignment" was just sneaky yogi-code for making us HOLD EACH POSE FOR A RIDICULOUS AMOUNT OF TIME while my teacher looked at every toe, finger and tiny little muscle to make sure that it was doing what it was supposed to.
boy, did that burn (but in a good way, of course!)
the best part is, i actually learned that i was over-working some of the simpler poses that we take for granted, like downward dog and warrior one. in dd, i was pushing away from the floor so hard that i was over-extending my shoulders and that was causing all sorts of problems. my teacher suggested that i pull my shoulders back in, which improved my balance and made my heels reach the ground with ease.
and when it came to w1, i discovered that i had basically just gotten lazy, which i guess is pretty easy to do with this pose. to make sure your warrior one is the best it can be, make sure your back leg is straight, and that you are tucking your butt under and pulling your stomach in with little to no arch in your back. i had been treating it similarly to crescent moon, which is hard on the legs but easy sleezy on the torso. well, no more!
so now we are preparing to teach our very first class, which we've decided will be an express class- a quick 15 minutes is just enough time to squeeze everything in without feeling overwhelmed. i think this will be good for me to start out with, because i tend to move pretty quickly through my at-home routines anyway. and, just in case i get stuck, i have soooo many yoga apps on my new iphone!! honestly, i hadn't even considered purchasing an iphone until my teacher told me there were all of these incredible yoga apps- is that weird? or awesome. i pick awesome. im so pumped to try them all! let me know if you guys have any suggestions...
AND, remind me to tell you about my super awesome, yoga-tastic, summer plans which involve one of the best states in the US, good music, peace, love and lots of posing!!!
xo
for our eighth training session, we focused almost completely on alignment. my teacher wanted to make sure that we were holding our poses correctly before we began to instruct others, which makes total sense... so i was all pumped and ready to get my pose on, until i realized that "checking our alignment" was just sneaky yogi-code for making us HOLD EACH POSE FOR A RIDICULOUS AMOUNT OF TIME while my teacher looked at every toe, finger and tiny little muscle to make sure that it was doing what it was supposed to.
boy, did that burn (but in a good way, of course!)
the best part is, i actually learned that i was over-working some of the simpler poses that we take for granted, like downward dog and warrior one. in dd, i was pushing away from the floor so hard that i was over-extending my shoulders and that was causing all sorts of problems. my teacher suggested that i pull my shoulders back in, which improved my balance and made my heels reach the ground with ease.
and when it came to w1, i discovered that i had basically just gotten lazy, which i guess is pretty easy to do with this pose. to make sure your warrior one is the best it can be, make sure your back leg is straight, and that you are tucking your butt under and pulling your stomach in with little to no arch in your back. i had been treating it similarly to crescent moon, which is hard on the legs but easy sleezy on the torso. well, no more!
so now we are preparing to teach our very first class, which we've decided will be an express class- a quick 15 minutes is just enough time to squeeze everything in without feeling overwhelmed. i think this will be good for me to start out with, because i tend to move pretty quickly through my at-home routines anyway. and, just in case i get stuck, i have soooo many yoga apps on my new iphone!! honestly, i hadn't even considered purchasing an iphone until my teacher told me there were all of these incredible yoga apps- is that weird? or awesome. i pick awesome. im so pumped to try them all! let me know if you guys have any suggestions...
AND, remind me to tell you about my super awesome, yoga-tastic, summer plans which involve one of the best states in the US, good music, peace, love and lots of posing!!!
xo
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
got ben folds on my radio
yoga training #7
my seventh training took place during one of our new sunday morning classes, where i quietly observed/sort of participated in/took notes during/stared creepily at other people in downward dog. i know it sounds strange and if i were a participant in that class, i would have undoubtedly been slightly uncomfortable, but my teacher assured everyone that i was 1.) not creepy, and 2.) a yogi in training.
le sigh
i just love the way that sounds- "yogi in training". but i digress...
ok, so after class ended, i realized the majority of my notes were based on the verbal cues that my teacher was using for different poses. she has this really wonderful way of simplifying positions and helping you adjust your body without sounding critical or judgy (yea, i said it. judgy.). for example, when we are doing *mandalas (not to be confused with gondolas) she simply says, "now, bring your right arm past the naval as you turn to face the back of the room, in warrior 1." swoon.
after reviewing our notes, we moved on to.....drum roll.... teaching the teacher! i went through a quick 15 minute warm-up that i had created, complete with lunges and down dogs and cobras, oh my! it was just the basics, but i'm still getting nervous instructing others soooooo, i had this amazing idea that was, of course, inspired by beyonce. i've decided to create an alter-ego, sort of the yoga equivelant to beyonce's 'sasha fierce'. i even tried a few different accents, because, who knows? maybe my alter-ego is a 40 year-old french canadian woman who was born in ireland but raised in jamaica and occasionally roots for the red socks...? (unfortunately, that's what all of my accents sound like, despite my best efforts.) the only problem is, i can't think of a good name for my alter ego so i'm asking for suggestions... any ideas?
post warm-up, we went over the playlist i had created for my future classes. my teacher suggested that we veer away from any emotional songs, as participants can sometimes be vulnerable and affected by what they are listening to during a yoga session. so, my obvious choice of music included songs by band of horses, radiohead, and lil weezy (duh). i've added a couple of songs off my 'yoga mixtape' to my blog playlist, for your listening pleasure...i hope you enjoy!
*mandala is a sanskrit word that means circle. it also represents a movement, in which you start facing the front of the room, and transition to another pose facing the back of the room...
my seventh training took place during one of our new sunday morning classes, where i quietly observed/sort of participated in/took notes during/stared creepily at other people in downward dog. i know it sounds strange and if i were a participant in that class, i would have undoubtedly been slightly uncomfortable, but my teacher assured everyone that i was 1.) not creepy, and 2.) a yogi in training.
le sigh
i just love the way that sounds- "yogi in training". but i digress...
ok, so after class ended, i realized the majority of my notes were based on the verbal cues that my teacher was using for different poses. she has this really wonderful way of simplifying positions and helping you adjust your body without sounding critical or judgy (yea, i said it. judgy.). for example, when we are doing *mandalas (not to be confused with gondolas) she simply says, "now, bring your right arm past the naval as you turn to face the back of the room, in warrior 1." swoon.
after reviewing our notes, we moved on to.....drum roll.... teaching the teacher! i went through a quick 15 minute warm-up that i had created, complete with lunges and down dogs and cobras, oh my! it was just the basics, but i'm still getting nervous instructing others soooooo, i had this amazing idea that was, of course, inspired by beyonce. i've decided to create an alter-ego, sort of the yoga equivelant to beyonce's 'sasha fierce'. i even tried a few different accents, because, who knows? maybe my alter-ego is a 40 year-old french canadian woman who was born in ireland but raised in jamaica and occasionally roots for the red socks...? (unfortunately, that's what all of my accents sound like, despite my best efforts.) the only problem is, i can't think of a good name for my alter ego so i'm asking for suggestions... any ideas?
post warm-up, we went over the playlist i had created for my future classes. my teacher suggested that we veer away from any emotional songs, as participants can sometimes be vulnerable and affected by what they are listening to during a yoga session. so, my obvious choice of music included songs by band of horses, radiohead, and lil weezy (duh). i've added a couple of songs off my 'yoga mixtape' to my blog playlist, for your listening pleasure...i hope you enjoy!
*mandala is a sanskrit word that means circle. it also represents a movement, in which you start facing the front of the room, and transition to another pose facing the back of the room...
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