Happy Autumn (and happy Spring for our friends in the Southern Hemisphere)!
With the school year well under way here in Colorado, we wanted to share a recipe that is a great go-to when you don’t have much time. As working moms with little ones, we know how hard it can be to make sure your family gets a nutritious dinner while trying to juggle all your other responsibilities. That’s where this recipe comes in! This stir fry is healthy, delicious, and best of all, can be on the table in less than 30 minutes.
This recipe is also super versatile – it can be easily modified to use whatever veggies or protein you have on hand.
You could even make it vegetarian or vegan by substituting the turkey with quinoa or cauliflower rice and omitting the fish sauce. So many possibilities!
Do you have a favorite recipe you’d like us to give a Conscious Cleanse makeover? Let us know in the comments!
With love and simple weeknight dinners,
Weeknight Turkey Broccoli Stir Fry
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
1 ½ TB. olive oil 2 cloves of garlic 1 ½ lb. ground turkey 1 head of broccoli, chopped into bite sized pieces 2 cup snow peas 2 cup shiitake mushrooms 1 TB. grated ginger 3 TB. coconut aminos 3 TB. apple cider vinegar 2 tsp. Red Boat fish sauce 1 ½ tsp. sesame oil ¼ tsp. crushed red pepper 2-3 green onions, for garnish Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions: In a large skillet or wok over medium heat, heat olive oil and garlic for 2 minutes. Add ground turkey, stirring to break larger chunks into small pieces. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes or until the turkey is crumbly and no longer pink. Stir in broccoli, snow peas and shitiake mushrooms and ginger and cook for 5 minutes. Vegetables should be lightly cooked, not wilted. Stir in the coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, fish sauce, sesame oil and crushed red pepper. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the skillet from heat, top with chopped green onions for garnish.
Jo Schaalman and Jules Peláez are co-authors of the book The Conscious Cleanse: Lose Weight, Heal Your Body and Transform Your Life in 14 Days, a best-selling, step-by-step guide to help you live your most vibrant life. Together they’ve led thousands of people through their online supported cleanse through their accessible and light-hearted approach. They’ve been dubbed “the real deal” by founder and chief creative director Bobbi Brown, of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, beauty editor of the TODAY show.
Practice yoga with Jo of the Conscious Cleanse right now, from wherever you are!
Conscious Cleanse Detox Flow with Jo Schaalman
“Also, I could finally sleep. And this was the real gift, because when you cannot sleep, you cannot get yourself out of the ditch–there’s not a chance.”
― Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat, Pray, Love
One of the most agonizing states I know is the purgatory of insomnia, when I am exhausted and desperate to sleep but still my mind and body hold me captive in the waking world. If the Centers for Disease Control statistic that one in three adult Americans are not getting enough deep sleep on regular basis is right, you may well know this particular agony also. Sleep, so seemingly simple, continues to allude many of us.
Why does sleep matter anyway? As Liz Gilbert says, we must sleep well enough and long enough in order to stay out of the “ditch.”
Here are some of my favorite practices and tips to set myself up for good sleep.
Design your own unique Power Down Hour by choosing which ones work best for you and practicing them consistently.
Start winding down an hour before the time you’re wanting to fall asleep.
Practice gentle evening yoga – I’ve got a few perfect classes for you right here on yogadownload.com.
Turn your lights down low lights, or light some candles instead.
Stop using TV, computer or handheld device screens two hours before sleep, or if you must be in front of the screen, wear blue light blocking glasses (which make a stylin’ evening yoga accessory!)
Make sure you’re well-hydrated, but try not to drink liquids just before bed so you won’t have to get up in the middle of the night to eliminate.
Take an epsom salt bath or warm shower.
Rub lavender oil into the soles of your feet, or sprinkle a drop onto your pillow case.
Eat earlyish in the evening to be finished digesting before slumbering. Consider taking an evening walk after dinner.
Brew yourself up some turmeric Golden Milk for an after dinner treat.
Write out a gratitude list in your journal, or do a “brain dump” exercise if your mind is still busy from your day.
Ask your doctor about taking Magnesium before bed. Generally helps sleep, muscular relaxation and digestion.
Spend a few minutes rolling around on the floor with Yoga Tune Up Balls.
When you get into bed, take a few deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth, then scan your body for any tension and give it permission to relax.
Consider using an app to help you fall asleep. This NPR piece details which ones work best and why.
Sweet dreams, Elise
By Elise Fabricant
Elise is a life coach and teacher on YogaDownload.com.
Want some more support on getting enough quality rest? Elise's online course REVIVE: 30 Days to Vitality, Health & Ease dives deeper sleeping rituals and other yogic lifestyle habits. I’m also always at your service for one-on-one coaching. If you’re ready to make big changes in all aspects of your life, sign up for a complimentary clarity session here.
Practice the Yoga for Better Sleep program now, for a restful night's sleep.
Do you know anyone who couldn’t benefit from cultivating more patience? We’ve become so accustomed to moving at a breakneck speed in life, from speeding down busy highways to accessing any type of information on our phones in nano-seconds that we rarely hit the pause button. Often we translate that hectic pace into our yoga practice.
While a juicy Vinyasa flow class is wonderful for many reasons, if you are out of balance, this type of Yang or active practice can actually exacerbate feelings of impatience, anxiety, and anger. Sometimes when life is moving too fast, the best thing you can do is slow down to equalize out your energy.
Enter Yin Yoga. What is Yin Yoga? There are three tattvas or principles of Yin Yoga. It is characterized by getting into a posture, becoming as still as you can, and holding it for time, often up to five minutes. If you’re unfamiliar with this style of yoga, read on for all they benefits you’ll receive by quieting down.
In a Yin Yoga class, you will practice a handful of postures, most of them seated or lying down. You won’t sweat or build heat, and that’s the point. Don’t mistake the lack of sweating as a lack of effort, in fact, these deep poses include moments of profound intensity. Holding poses for a longer period of time forces us to tune in to what emotions are coming up for us. There’s nowhere to go.
Different areas of our bodies relate to certain emotions. You’ve probably heard that past trauma or stress sits in our hips. Many Yin postures involve some type of hip opening. If you haven’t held Pigeon pose for five minutes, you haven’t lived! These poses are often uncomfortable and there’s no flowing out of them after five breaths, like in an Ashtanga class.
There is nothing else to do but breathe and cope with whatever comes up for you in the pose.
In addition to digging into your emotions, Yin is excellent for going deeper than the muscular level and benefiting your ligaments, connective tissue, and joints. So, if you’re an athlete and looking to balance out all the work you do training for your sport, Yin can be a great option to help prevent injuries. Physically, emotionally, and mentally, one of the main goals in Yin is to access a sense of surrender in each pose. So, if you are ready to cultivate more patience, lightness, and softness, we’ve got 9 Yin practices with varied lengths and focuses to help you relax.
Treat yourself to this 9-class Yin Yoga package now!
If you haven’t tried Yin Yoga the classic “what are you waiting for?!” question comes to mind. Yin Yoga can be described as a treat to the body, a slowly moving meditation, a way to connect with what’s really going on internally. When I do a lot of cardio and strength training workouts, Yin Yoga is my sanctuary. If I am not that active, Yin Yoga is a relaxing time where I can check in with how my body is feeling.
So, what exactly is Yin Yoga? Let's take a look at this unique and healing practice!
Yin Yoga is influenced by the philosophies of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Yin poses are created with the intent to improve the flow of chi, the subtle and invisibly energy that some believe run through the meridian pathways in the body. Whenever there is an excess or lack of chi, the body is said to become unbalanced. Yin poses are working with meridian lines to help circulate chi throughout the body and release stagnant energy to help the body function optimally. Yin Yoga is similar to acupuncture in theory, both target intersections of meridians to stimulate and restore chi. The belief is that when chi flows freely, our mind, body and soul function much more harmoniously.
The concept of yin and yang
The concept of yin and yang comes from the opposite and complementary principles in nature. Yin is the unmoving, stable and hidden aspect of things; yang is the changing, moving, revealing aspect. Tolerance, reflection, allowance and passivity are yin qualities. Doing, controlling, improving and achieving are yang qualities. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, both are necessary and neither is superior. Balance is found between having both.
Yin Yoga works on slow holds in postures as opposed to more vigorous and fluid yang practices. Yang practices focus on movement, strength, and using a lot of muscle to produce heat. One of the main objective’s of yin yoga is to open and release connective tissues, joints, and ligaments that have become tight from stress, poor posture, injuries and emotional pain stored in the body. Yin Yoga can bring emotions to the surface which helps you process and let them go.
What to expect during a Yin Yoga class
You can expect a Yin Yoga class to generally consist of long-held poses that mainly work the lower part of the body. Parts of the body that are worked on most during yin include the hips, inner thighs, and lower spine because these areas are especially rich in connective tissues.
Opposed to other styles of yoga, Yin Yoga poses are held for up to five minutes. If you’re new to Yin Yoga, it’s not unusual to find this uncomfortable at first. The reason for holding the poses for periods of time in yogi terms is to “find your edge.” Yin poses aren’t about moving too deep but finding your edge and being able to let muscles go in the stretch and access the deeper tissues. Holding poses for a longer period of time is said to help the chi move deeper into the body and start any healing process needed.
Mentally, holding poses and pushing through discomfort increases mindfulness and teaches stillness. It’s helping build your tolerance and push limits of what you can handle on and off the mat.
Benefits of Yin Yoga
Helps promote the strength, vitality, hydration, and mobility of connective tissues
Improves the flow of chi
Calming
Helps bring the mind to a meditative state
Reduces stress and anxiety
Increases circulation
Releases fascia
Improves joint mobility
Yin Yoga is for everyone
One of the great things about Yin Yoga is that it’s for everyone. Regardless of ability or age, Yin Yoga uses very little muscular effort and is safe. Practicing Yin Yoga on a regular basis enhances your natural range of mobility, increases flexibility and helps to strengthen the mind-body connection. Yin Yoga gives you the best of both worlds, a workout for neglected areas of the body and the opportunity to go inward and clear your mind.
By Suzanne Kvilhaug
Immerse yourself in Yin Yoga now, with a 9-class package!
Fall is finally here in Colorado and pumpkin season is upon us! This time of year, it seems like EVERYTHING is pumpkin-spiced! So why not take advantage of the flavor for your skincare routine? We’ve developed a non-toxic Pumpkin Facial Scrub that is not only great for your skin, but will leave you smelling like sugar and spice and everything nice.
Besides being the flavor of fall, pumpkin has many hidden benefits for your skin! When used topically, pumpkin can help brighten dull complexions, is full of antioxidants, and has anti-aging properties. Sugar gently exfoliates dead skin away, while avocado oil and coconut oil help to moisturize and cleanse your skin. Honey is antibacterial, which can help acne-prone complexions, and cinnamon can help increase blood flow and plump skin.
(Note: If you have sensitive skin, make sure to spot test this scrub on your arm before using on your face.)
For more non-toxic skincare, download our free natural skincare guide here.
Are you ready to get your pumpkin-spiced glow on? Try this scrub today!
With love and pumpkin spice,
Pumpkin Facial Scrub
Yield: 1 ½ cups
1 cup raw sugar (the finer the crystals the better!) ¼ cup avocado oil ¼ cup coconut oil, melted ¼ tsp. cinnamon ⅛ tsp. ground ginger ½ tsp. vanilla 1 TB. raw honey 2 TB. pumpkin puree
Instructions: In a small bowl combine the sugar, avocado oil, coconut oil, cinnamon, ginger, vanilla, raw honey, and pumpkin puree. Mix until no lumps remain. Place the mixture into a mason jar and cover. Massage 1-2 TB. onto your face and neck. Let sit for a few minutes to let your skin soak in the beneficial oils. Remove using a warm damp wash cloth. Use once or twice a week to help your skin glow! This can be kept unrefrigerated for up to one week, after that store in the refrigerator for up to one more week. If refrigerated, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour to soften.
Practice Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality to help have radiant looking skin!
Handstand is a pose that might seem unattainable or impossible at first sight. However, with persistence, technique, and patience, anyone can learn how to do a handstand with time.
Learning to engage the shoulders, core, and arms properly, will increase and build steadiness over time. From there, handstand becomes easier to refine. They key, in practicing and integrating these simple tips, is patience. Anyone who takes the time and is patient, can learn how to do a handstand, regardless of how hard it may seem in the beginning.
Here are 5 simple and concise tips for learning how to do a handstand:
1. Press down more through inner hands
2. Keep legs very straight and strong
3. Press arms to straight and strong
4. Kick up to handstand at the bottom of an exhale
5. Gaze slightly forward and down
More importantly then how to do the pose, is why is it worth taking the time and energy to learn how to do a handstand?
Here are 5 of the best benefits of handstands:
1. More Patience: It is healthy to practice poses that you may not nail in one class. Chances are, holding a handstand takes considerable time and persistence. In a culture that loves quick fixes, cultivating patience through practicing something like handstand, has value.
2. Upper Body Strength: Even prepping from handstand strengthens the upper body and trapezius muscles. Whereas, many yoga poses fovea flexibility over strength, handstand is more a more strength based posture and will tone your upper body.
3. Better Balance: Handstand is a balancing pose. Balancing postures are meant to help you feel balance inside. To balance in a yoga pose, means needing to use your entire body, in unison, as a connected whole. Through practicing handstand, whether or not you’re able to stay balanced, you’re practicing inner balance.
4. More Confidence: It takes courage to go upside down and learning how to do a handstand is (something that is seemingly impossible to most people), can help cultivate a healthy sense of confidence. While, well-being is never worth assessing based on external circumstances (like how much money we have, or whether or not we can balance on our hands), working towards something intimidating over time, and mastering it, is something to be proud of. The benefits learned on a yoga mat, have the potential to create more confidence and breakthroughs in other areas of life as well.
5. Strong Core: You cannot do this posture without knowing how to engage your core properly. This pose incorporates the use of your lower abdominals in connecting your legs, which must be powerful in the pose, with your arms, that are your source of balance. Doing this pose over time will not only make your core stronger, but also make you more in tune with how to use your core.
By Keith Allen
These 5 handstand tips are taken from Keith's book, The Yoga Fix. Keith teaches yoga internationally, leading teacher trainings, retreats, and workshops. He also teaches on Yoga Download. In addition to yoga, Keith is passionate about traveling the world, producing videos, meditation, skiing, making art, and enjoying music. Connect with him on his website or instagram!
Learn how to do a handstand now!
Upside Down Flow with Keith Allen
Handstand Workshop with Channing Grivas
In yoga, students are often sharply divided about inversions. Some people can’t wait and approach headstands or handstands with joyous anticipation. Other practitioners choose that moment to take a sip of water, rest in child’s pose, or otherwise avoid getting their heads below their hearts. We believe as long as inversions are practiced with safe alignment and modifications if needed, there’s a pose appropriate for almost everyone.
What is an inversion?
It’s any asana where the head is below the heart. So, Downward Dog, Legs up the Wall, and standing forward folds count. More dynamic inversions include Headstand, Handstand, Shoulder stand and Forearm Stand. Of course, if injuries or other physical limitations exist, some of these postures may not be appropriate. People who have suffered a stroke, have neck injuries, heart conditions, high blood pressure that isn’t regulated, or glaucoma may need to modify or skip some asanas.
Why inversions?
1. Improve your circulation: When your go upside down, circulation is increased because you are reversing the direction of your blood flow. This fresh oxygenated blood provides your brain with more oxygen and helps improve concentration and focus. Better circulation also means healthier, smoother skin and some yogis consider inversions the fountain of youth!
2. Stimulate your lymphatic flow and detoxify: The lymphatic system is how toxins move through and are released out of your system. Unlike the circulatory system, which has the heart pumping the blood, the lymphatic system needs muscular movement to keep flowing. Inversions encourage the lymph to travel more easily to the lungs where toxins hang around. The power of gravity aids your immune system and stay healthy.
3. Shift your mood: Inversions boost your energy or helps you fully relax. Instead of grabbing a mid-afternoon coffee, try one of the more heated postures like Headstand, Forearm Stand, or Handstand and see how clear and invigorated you feel.
Cooling postures such as Shoulder Stand or the modified Legs Up the Wall pose activate the parasympathetic nervous system and help your mind quiet, your muscles relax, and your emotions to be soothed. Legs up the Wall or Vipariti Karani is an excellent pose to do before bed if you have trouble sleeping.
4. Strengthens Your Core and Upper Body: For active inversions, the shoulders, back, chest, arms, and core all must work together to support your body. Working against gravity is an excellent way to strengthen your posture muscles, not to mention ensure you improve your balance!
5. Shifts Your Perspective: Life can feel crazy sometimes and as we journey along this rollercoaster ride, we can become stuck in habits and patterns. Literally turning yourself upside down helps you see we can address issues from a different perspective. Inversions encourage a playful, childlike attitude and offer a chance to simply have fun.
This week's classes bring you a fresh opportunity to play with getting upside down.
1. Bhavani Maki Amrita: The Nectar of Inversions
2. Keith Allen Upside Down Flow
3. Desiree Rumbaugh Build Inversions Safely
4. Dana Smith - Shifting Paradigms
Time comes for us all, and while getting older is a natural process that’s fully embracing, you may want to fight certain signs of aging. Whether it’s physiological changes such as slower movements and decreased mobility, or something more superficial, like those wrinkles around the eyes, everyone has a different concern about getting older. You might be wondering what the best way to fight signs of aging are, or just want some advice on how to stay healthy and active in older age. We’ve put together some key tips to fight signs of aging, from what you use on your skin, to what you do to stay active, and even how to keep your brain sharp.
Here are 12 essential tips to fight signs of aging, broken down into 4 important categories!
Skincare
1. Use Sunscreen
Protecting your skin from the sun is essential when it comes to fighting signs of aging. Sun damage can cause havoc on your skin, and is the main cause of aging skin and wrinkles. Wearing a sunscreen daily is an important weapon in fighting signs of aging on your skin. Don’t just limit use to the summer months, as the sun can damage your skin even when it’s cold out.
2. Use Retinol
Retinol contains Vitamin A, which is universally regarded as the best ingredient to fight signs of aging and skin damage. Vitamin A is key in stimulating the production of collagen, as well as fighting wrinkles and acne, so it’s a key component of your skincare regime if aging is one of your concerns.
3. Moisturize
Your skin loses its natural ability to retain moisture as you age, which means you might be noticing more dry and flaky skin when you get older. The easiest way to combat this sign of aging is to start using a moisturiser, to keep your skin smooth and hydrated.
Food
4. Nuts
Nuts are an amazing source of anti-aging properties. Eating one or two ounces a day will help to lower your cholesterol, as well as providing your body with the proteins, nutrients and fibre it needs to stay healthy. Adding these as a snack in your diet will keep your heart strong.
5. Blueberries
You may already know that antioxidants are vital in fighting signs of ageing, but did you know that blueberries contain more antioxidants than other fruits? Adding these into your diet will ensure you are getting protection from free radical damage - that’s all the signs of aging that come along with stress and pollution, as well as a healthy dose of vitamin C.
6. Turmeric
The health benefits of Turmeric are vast, and this spice has long been hailed for its health and anti-aging properties. It can help with signs of aging such as inflammation, arthritis and even diabetes.
Exercise
7. Yoga Inversions
Yoga is a great way to stay young, but did you know that you can also use it to fight wrinkles and signs of aging? Practicing yoga inversions can help fight signs of aging, as they encourage our muscles to fight gravity. By practicing inversion poses, we can encourage our blood flow back to our head, and also can help fight hair loss and wrinkles. By staying active and moving your body, you’re also fighting stress, which can cause signs of aging. Yoga is also a great way to keep your body moving and combat against the body slowing down as we age. Take a look at some of the inversion classes available from Yoga Download, and take advantage of those anti-gravity, anti-aging poses today!
8. Weight Training
By introducing strength training into your workouts, you can encourage your body to stay stronger, active and more mobile as you age. This can massively reduce the risk of injuries as you age, and reduce muscle loss that occurs as you age, as well as help reduce stress.
9. HIIT
Recent studies have shown that High Impact Interval Training is one of the best workouts to fight aging. HIIT has been proven to increase the ‘mitochondria’ of our cells, which is the source of our bodies energy, as well as improve heart and lung function. Try introducing a HIIT workout into your regime, and see if you notice an increase in energy.
Stress Management
10. Meditation
Meditating even for just a few minutes each day can help to ease stress and calm your mind, as well as easing ailments that come along with aging. Meditation can also boost your brain power and increase your attention span, keeping your mind sharp and young. If you’re new to meditation, try guided meditation to help you get used to the practice.
11. Positive Thinking
An easy way to relax after a stressful day - and reduce the way stress can age your skin, body and mind - is to think positive thoughts. Daily positive affirmations can help to change your thought processes and help fight stress and depression.
12. Get enough sleep
What’s an instant way to look older and show signs of ageing? Not getting a good night’s sleep. We’ve all been there when we’ve had a long night and noticed dark circles and dull skin in the morning. Habitually not getting enough sleep can not only age your appearance, but also affect your mind. Getting into a bedtime ritual, and making sure you are going to sleep early enough to get 6-9 hours a day is vital in fighting the signs of ageing, both inside and out.
By Amy Cavill
Want to feel braver with each passing year? Try the Fearless After Fifty yoga program to unleash into your most powerful self!
It’s finally starting to feel like fall here in Colorado and we could not be more excited to share this autumnal recipe with you! When the weather starts to get cooler, it can be hard to find salads and veggie-based dishes that feel warming and filling. That’s where this recipe comes in! Full of roasted root veggies, it’s hearty enough to keep you going all day long.
However, the real star of this dish is the delicata squash! Delicata squash is high in fiber, which can help normalize bowel movements and lower bad cholesterol. It’s also high in vitamin A, which helps eye health, and immunity-boosting vitamin C. We do keep winter squashes off our plates during the cleanse, but this is a dish to enjoy while living your 80:20 lifestyle.
Our 80:20 program is how we maintain our vibrancy whenever we’re not cleansing. Join today for more delicious recipes like this, plus more exclusive content and access to a community of other health-focused individuals.
We hope you enjoy this hearty salad! What’s your favorite thing about fall? Let us know in the comments below! We always love hearing from you.
With love and autumn thoughts,
Roasted Vegetable Salad with Delicata and Arugula
3 turnips, unpeeled, cleaned and cubed 1 Delicata squash, unpeeled 4 red beets, peeled and cubed 4-6 shallots, peeled and whole 3 TB. olive oil 1 tsp. sea salt 1 large bulb fennel, thinly sliced 4 cups baby arugula 1 tsp. ume plum vinegar 1 cup hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
Instructions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Slice squash into 1 inch rounds and scoop out seeds with a small spoon. Add turnips, squash, beets, and shallots in a mixing bowl and toss with olive oil and salt. Arrange the vegetables on a baking sheet in one layer. Roast for about 30 minutes, flipping halfway. Toss the fennel slices and arugula with ume plum vinegar. To serve, plate warm roasted vegetable in each dish, top with the greens and garnish with hazelnuts. Serve immediately.
Jo Schaalman and Jules Peláez are co-authors of the book The Conscious Cleanse: Lose Weight, Heal Your Body and Transform Your Life in 14 Days, a best-selling, step-by-step guide to help you live your most vibrant life. Together they’ve led thousands of people through their online supported cleanse through their accessible and light-hearted approach. They’ve been dubbed “the real deal” by founder and chief creative director Bobbi Brown, of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, beauty editor of the TODAY show.
Practice the Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality program to complement this healthy recipe and a healthy diet.
While there are many ways to be a powerful yoga teacher, here are some common traits of the truly excellent yoga teachers. A teacher loses their power when they become self-absorbed and the solid teachers know this. As teachers we must get over our selves and show up to serve others. We must truly embody and practice yoga to teach yoga authentically.
Here are 7 key qualities of the very best yoga teachers:
1. Presence
To be a powerful yoga teacher, we must be focused and present while teaching. How can we inspire our students to show up to the moment if we are distracted? As teachers of yoga we must breathe for and with our students, we must set the rhythm, the energetic tone, and hold strong in presence.
2. Adaptability
When I was a new teacher in my early 20’s, I remember I was initially attached to the actual sequencing of teaching a yoga class. It was all about remembering! I would spent hours designing the creative, challenging yoga flow sequences and the music playlists I was going to present for my first studio classes as a hired yoga teacher. When my first students arrived and I began to teach, I noticed that a lot of the sequences I was teaching were not appropriate for the students who were actually taking the class. They couldn’t physically do them. I remember the confusion and humility of being attached to the sequence, so much so, that I lost my ground with guiding the actual practice of yoga.
Luckily I had good teachers and had been prepared for these moments with postures like child’s pose, and downward facing dog to safely hold students in for 5-10 breaths while I got my BS together, found my breath, my practice, and became inspired with more appropriate sequencing.
Now as I step into teach a yoga class there is no plan, just presence. I never have a planned sequence, unless teaching hot yoga. Now I just hold the resonance and sense the collective energy of the group. We can tell so much about our energies through our physical bodies. To the trained clairvoyant eye, the body is the way the soul communicates. As a teacher, I can just sense the energy of the group. I take a couple breaths and I can feel the molecules and vibrations of the collective. Here, I ground and hold the seat. From the two plus decades of practicing yoga, and who knows how many years through previous incarnations, there is an expansive resource of artful and beneficial sequences. It is more simple than the very breath.
3. The best teachers stay humble.
I remember experiencing insecurity and anxiety in that moment teaching yoga in my first class. I had remembered every breath, every transition, everything of the "pre-planned" class. Another sweet teaching from the experience is, we can't control things like this, all we can do is train ourselves to stay in the practice of presence. I got lost when my student’s bodies weren’t like the 21 year old flexible body I was then experiencing. My mind became irritated because I wanted to show off this great sequence. Luckily, I recovered my center and modified the practice when I realized it was not an appropriate fit for most of the students, but my face flushed, I was sweating, and embarrassed. Before this I had only taught yoga to other yogis in my teacher trainings, and some of my friends who were experienced with yoga in studios. This was a valuable and humbling experience.
4. Perhaps they've done it before.
Some of the best advice I got was from one of my first yoga teachers and spiritual friends, Alanna Kaivalya. Alanna too was very young at that time in her body, but oh so, wise and deeply rooted in the devotion and mysticism of yoga. I remember being awe struck by her ability to calmly present throughout the yoga teacher training I was enrolled in. What was the magic she had? She was maybe 19 years old and teaching ancient knowledge. It was still one of the most impressive things to be apart of for me to this day.
To me, it was a true sign, that, we are not just coming to the yoga practice for the first time ever when we go to our first yoga class. Many of us have been practicing since ancient times. The soul spark is eternal! That is why mentioned earlier remembrance is an important step to commitment in yoga. We may not have clear memory of a past life as a yogi, but we sense the connection, a strong sense that we found refuge.
5. They recognize it is not about them.
Alanna observed my internal struggle with my ego. She lovingly, yet clearly, shared with me the truth about my role in creating my confusion with teaching those first yoga classes. It was like a bolt of lightning how quickly I saw the truth in her words. I literally gulped. What Alanna told me was, “Get over your self!” She reminded me that when we show up to teach yoga, it is never about us. It is always about the student. Ah-ha! Being a good teacher wasn’t about having a unique sequence or great playlist, but it is about showing up in service to the student, in honor of the devotion to the practice.
Powerful yoga teachers realize, it is not about them. When we step into the world as a yoga teacher we must get over ourselves. We are here to offer our service. We teach our students to listen, not just to listen for the cues of the postures, or breathing. It is beyond that. A yoga teacher must create the resonance. A yogi practices, seeing the best in others, their inherent nature, and thus creates the space of allowance for others to become just that, their best.
7. They practice yoga.
Another of my most influential yoga teachers and spiritual friends, Sharon Gannon, shared with me that to be a good yoga teacher we have to be a good yoga student. We have to be thirsty for the teachings of yoga revealed through, and inspired by, the practicing of, yoga. A good student of yoga lives the practice and lifestyle of yoga. As yogis we practice holding our own in our energy, and not getting over reactive with the whirling’s of mind, and the emotional entanglements of the material world. It is an essential characteristic that, a yoga teacher must practice. How else can we assist our students in achieving liberation? We must reach with our entire being to receive liberation for ourselves. We must be thirsty. Then we will become the teachings. Then we will illuminate like a lighthouse to our community and students. We have to practice what we teach. Yoga is as much of a journey as it is a destination.
What I do do to prepare for teaching yoga is I live my life in service to my students off the mat by acting in accordance to the morals and ethics of the yoga I teach. I study yoga texts and follow many of the lifestyle suggestions from ancient yoga scriptures. I live in practice of radical love and acceptance towards myself, people, Nature, and animals. These things help me live my yoga and because of that, be a powerful yoga teacher. Hold your seat yogis, practice, all is coming.
By Shannon Connell
Shannon is a certified Jivamukti, Power, Hot Yoga, and Mindfulness Meditation Instructor, Usui and Karuna Reiki Master Teacher, and Registered Psychotherapist. She honors the interconnectedness between All-beings and All-things and is passionate about participating and supporting her community in physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Visit her at her website www.shannonconnellhealth.com.
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Are you curious about how yoga can protect and heal your body? Why strength is just as important as flexibility and how understanding the way physical postures impact your muscles, joints, and bones can help you develop a practice that lasts a lifetime?
We are and we’re thrilled to present internationally acclaimed expert yoga teacher, Desiree Rumbaugh’s new five class all-levels yoga series for you this week, Strengthen, Protect & Heal. Take the time to gain a deeper knowledge of your yoga foundation and learn to appreciate your practice on a new level.
Strengthening your muscles through practicing weight-bearing yoga asanas like Warrior series, Triangle and Tree Pose will help support healthy joints. Creating strength will protect your knees and shoulders from injury that could occur if you are stressing the joints too much because of weak quadriceps or deltoids. Stable joints are happy joints. Hypermobility in joints is a major issue that can lead to pain and long-term issues.
For some of us who love the flexibility aspect of yoga, we often ignore the much needed strength component.
These two factors are both vital to a sustainable enjoyable yoga practice that lasts a lifetime. By shifting the focus this week to creating strength to protect your body from injury, you’ll make sure your practice is balanced and will give you all the benefits you desire without over stretching.
What if you’ve already sustained injuries from yoga or other activities? Rumbaugh believes you can harness the healing capability of your body through specific yoga techniques to heal injuries. So, these classes could be your gateway to recovery and prevention of further pain. These classes are all specifically targeted to a certain area of the body, so you can pick and choose based upon how you are feeling today. Get ready to see some tangible results!
Get stronger with Desiree through this 5-class series now!
1. Desiree Rumbaugh - Strengthen Protect, & Heal: Knees
2. Desiree Rumbaugh - Strengthen, Protect & Heal the Lower Back
3. Desiree Rumbaugh - Strengthen, Protect & Heal Your Hips
4. Desiree Rumbaugh - Loosen Those Tight Hips
5. Desiree Rumbaugh - Strengthen, Protect & Heal the Upper Body
I was first introduced to yoga 15 years ago in high school by a gym teacher who was a true believer in yoga’s healing ability. She offered yoga class as an alternative to more mainstream physical activities and I’ll try anything once so I decided to see what it was all about. At the time I was more into competitive sports and this was...different. I’m saying different in a sarcastic tone because it felt odd, uncomfortable and a bit “woo-woo”. Every class the teacher would praise yoga for all of its physical, mental and spiritual benefits. I didn’t necessarily doubt her but I wasn’t connecting to anything but the clock to signal class was over.
After that semester was done, I didn’t think I would ever try yoga again. But a few years later curiosity led me to another yoga class. If at first you don’t succeed try again, right? Well, nothing had changed and I was sure this was my final attempt. Fast forward to a few more years later and I found myself at a yoga studio yet again. Third time is a charm? Yes...third time is a charm! It was like a light from above shined down on me and something finally clicked and I felt the healing power of yoga. I began to practice yoga regularly and I got it. I got the appeal, I got why people swear by it and really, I just got how yoga is holistically healing on so many levels.
Yoga is one of those things that may take awhile to “get” but once you do, you really do. Although it’s not always easy to articulate what yoga does for me personally, I know it’s an integral piece of the puzzle needed to stay healthy, strong and happy. Over the years science has started to show that yoga has a list of healing benefits for the mind and body.
Here are 3 powerful ways that yoga is healing for you:
Better stress management and less anxiety
Did you know that mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and stress are among the most common reasons people try yoga? The overall objective of yoga is to increase self-awareness and bring the mind to a peaceful state. It is possible to walk into yoga class with anxiety and walk out feeling blissful and without a care in the world. Scientifically, one of the reasons yoga helps with stress is because yoga optimizes the body's sympathetic responses to stressful stimuli. Practicing yoga can help inhibit the areas responsible for fear, aggressiveness, and rage. In turn, this will stimulate the rewarding centers and other areas, leading to a state of bliss and pleasure. People who practice yoga experience lower anxiety, heart rate, respiratory rate and blood pressure. So if you’ve been practicing yoga and feel like it’s a major part of stress reduction, you’re right.
Helps with sleeping problems
Sleep dictates everything. Moods, weight, decision making, metabolism, ability to concentrate, and the list goes on. Yoga's ability to increase relaxation and induce a balanced mental state was studied to evaluate its effect on sleep quality and improving insomnia. Regular practice of yoga resulted in a significant decrease in the time taken to fall asleep, an increase in the total number of hours slept, and in the feeling of being rested in the morning. There’s nothing better than a good night’s sleep and nothing worse than a bad night’s sleep.
Improves flexibility = reduces physical pain
My flexibility is not something to write home about and it’s one of the main reasons I am staying consistent with my yoga practice. I know intuitively that if I don’t commit to increasing my flexibility, I may experience physical problems down the line. Better flexibility reduces pain, decreases muscle soreness, decreases risk of injury, improves performance and improves range of motion. With continued yoga practice comes a gradual loosening of the muscles and connective tissues surrounding the bones and joints, which is why yoga is associated with reduced aches and pains. If you are hesitant to try yoga because of your lack of flexibility, see it as a reason to start instead.
If you’re wondering how often you need to practice yoga to experience benefits, there’s no concrete answer. The obvious one is that the more you do it, the more likely it is you’ll see results. And if you really want to like yoga because you know it’s good for you but you don’t enjoy it yet, be patient. You never know when you’ll be on your mat and think to yourself, oh...I get it now.
Practice yoga to improve your sleep now with the Yoga for Better Sleep package!
“Love yourself. It is important to stay positive because beauty comes from the inside out” - Jenn Proske
Smoothies made of vegetables, fruits and low-fat dairy products are packed with vitamins and minerals and they offer a healthy, refreshing drink option. You can also experiment with adding matcha powder to any of the recipes below for an added twist!
A variety of smoothies can be made by using a few key ingredients rich in nutrients, vitamins and minerals, ranging from vitamin C to calcium.
They are ideal for the warm summer months since they’re easy to digest and can keep your hair, skin and nails healthy. Adding smoothies to your diet is the best way to make sure that you consume enough fruits and vegetables.
Let’s take a look at some energizing fruit and veggie smoothies today.
Popular ingredients used for making smoothies are fruits such as mangoes, watermelon, avocados, oranges, papayas, strawberries, blueberries, pineapples and kiwis that are rich in vitamin C.
Being an antioxidant, vitamin C boosts your immune system and protects your body from harmful elements in the environment. While papayas and mangoes enrich smoothies with vitamin A, avocado is full of vitamin K, vitamin B6 and folate and bananas are rich in potassium and manganese.
Dairy products, mainly, low-fat yogurt or skimmed milk which are often added to increase the thickness of smoothies are rich in calcium and vitamin D. Milk offers nutrients such as riboflavin, phosphorus and iron whereas yogurt is a great source of vitamin B-12 and riboflavin. Soy milk, tofu, peanut butter, nuts or granola adds more protein content to your smoothie.
With their nutrient-dense nature, vegetable smoothies, made from vegetables alone or a mix of vegetables and fruits, offer several health benefits.
You are consuming all parts of the vegetable, including the fiber. These juices digest more slowly and are healthier. Chia seeds and spinach deliver omega-3 fatty acids that are essential for healthy hair and promote circulation to the hair follicle.
Here are six recipes for smoothies that can improve the quality, thickness and appearance of your hair over time.
Mango Strawberry Smoothie
Ingredients
Large chard leaves, washed well, tough stems trimmed - 3
Frozen mango - 1 cup
Strawberries - 1 cup
Plain Greek or regular yogurt - 1 cup
Walnuts - ¼ cup
Flax seeds - 1 Tbsp
Water - ½ to 1 cup
Instructions: Mix all the ingredients together in the blender with adequate water so that the chard can form a puree easily. Chard and mangoes are high in vitamin A, an anti-hair loss ingredient that helps your hair to stay in good condition and prevent dandruff, dryness and itchiness. While walnuts have omega-3 fatty acids, flax seed gives protein to the smoothie.
Sweet Potato Smoothie
Banana - 1 medium sized
Sweet potato - 1 cooked (small)
Protein powder- 1 scoop (optional)
Almond milk - 1-2 cups
Ice cubes – as required
Instructions: Blend the ingredients together. Rich in vital hair growth nutrients such as Vitamins A, B6, C, and D, and iron, copper, zinc, calcium, niacin, potassium, and magnesium, sweet potato helps improve the health of your scalp. Almond also provides shine & strength to the follicles.
Avocado-Berry Smoothie
Ripe avocado - 1
Raspberries - 1 cup
Spinach - 2 cups
Almond milk - 2 cups
Chia seeds - 2 tablespoons
Instructions: Blend all the ingredients together until creamy. With its rich nutrients such as Niacin (B3) and fatty acids from avocados, this smoothie helps generate energy from carbohydrates and improves blood circulation in the scalp, resulting in improved healthy hair follicles and prevention of brittle hair that breaks easily. Almond milk also provides proteins, necessary for a healthy hair.
Papaya Spinach Smoothie
Papaya - 1 cup
Banana - 1
Spinach - 1 cup
Coconut milk - 1 cup
Instructions: Chop up the deseeded papaya and banana and blend all the ingredients until you get a smooth mixture. Rich in antioxidants and vitamins K, A, C, B2, B6, B1, E, manganese, zinc, iron, and omega-3 fatty acids, spinach promotes healthy eyes, and skin and makes your hair strong and smooth. Spinach is a good source of iron, vitamin E and zinc just like papaya.
Cucumber Smoothie
Cucumber, chopped - 4 cups
Greek yogurt - 1 cup
Lemon juice
Salt
Black pepper, freshly ground
Ice, crushed
Lemon wedges to garnish
Instructions: Blend all ingredients except ice and lemon wedges to a smooth consistency. Pour it in a glass filled with ice before garnishing, using lemon wedges. Cucumber keeps the hair shining, while yogurt provides proteins for rebuilding damaged cuticles and the lemon juice treats dandruff and other minor scalp irritations.
Almond Kale Smoothie
Almond milk (plain or vanilla) – 1 to 1 1/2 cup
Banana – 1
Natural peanut butter - 1 tablespoon
Ice cubes – 3
Kale leaves - 2–3
Blueberries (optional)
Instructions: Blend all ingredients until the mixture is smooth. Kale is a leafy vegetable loaded with vitamin A and vitamin C, which can improve hair growth and scalp circulation.
Blueberries assist in UV protection, and heal damaged follicles. Bananas add more vitamins to this smoothie, while the peanut butter gives extra protein, making it a perfect health drink.
These recipes don’t consume much amount of time. You should also make sure to drink lots of water and avoid stress with meditation, yoga, exercise and by getting involved in activities such as gardening or spending time with pets.
Also, it’s equally important to limit your exposure to harmful UV rays as it may damage your skin as well as hair.
This will help you achieve a more radiant and youthful look through natural methods. Certain beauty supplements are also available for healthy hair, skin, and nails.
By Catalin Zorzini
Catalin is the founder of Ecommerce Platforms and Web App Meister. He blogs about matcha, Japanese lifestyle, and mindfulness at matcha-tea.com. He's a design enthusiast and loves matcha, and is uber passionate about blockchain technology and travel.
Complement your healthy smoothies with Yoga for Detox, Cleansing & Vitality program.
Ok world, I’ve done it! No drinking for a month. It actually wasn’t very hard. I still went out and just had soda water. I wasn’t a hermit. I still had fun with friends.
I also realize that I prefer a balance of this yogic lifestyle and also living and enjoying this physical and by nature material world. I’m right in the middle of Dharma Mittra’s 500Hr Teacher Training. If I thought not drinking would be a challange...well, let’s just say I didn’t really know what I signed up for.
No coffee, no caffeine, no eating before noon, no eating after 6pm, 45 minutes of breathwork and meditation daily, 1 hr of practice daily, no salt, no tree nuts, no coconut, basically no fun. Kidding! Kind of.
I guess this is the closest thing you can get to being immersed in ashram life, although somewhat ironically I’m still living and working most definitely not on an ashram. I am adhering to the rigorous diet and homework schedule as much as possible.
Did I have green tea earlier today? I’m not saying yes and I’m not saying no.
In reality, I agree with clearing and cleaning the body to clear and clean the mind. And I also think that living on an ashram and adhering to this schedule is different than living in the middle of New York City, teaching 20+ classes per week and adhering to all of this.
There are a lot of questions coming up for me around my own lifestyle choices and how strict I actually want to be. Finding that balance and being okay with it.
I’m starting really tune in to all of these practices and their ultimate purpose, liberation, love and freedom.
What are our attachments? Food? Alcohol? Being chronically busy? The prowess of our physical asana practice? The point is not necessarily alchohol/coffee/shopping, insert your attachment, is bad and should never be done again. I think the interesting space is in our curiosity and inquiry.
What happens when we eliminate certain behaviors or substances? Can we continue to be these chill, zen AF yogis? Or do we lose our proverbial sh*t.
I’m in the middle of this exploration and the answer I’m finding is, it depends. Sometimes when I come to my mat to sit and meditate I am all for it and it feels so right, and sometimes I want to be anywhere but there.
This is our shifting nature as humans and we can honor it by allowing some fluidity I think. We can allow some moving meditation and we can allow more stillness. I think these are powerful tools I’m just tapping into. Also, I have a few “cheat” days and certainly plan to use them on coffee and jerk Seitan from my favorite Caribbean restaurant in Brooklyn.
By Anna Farkas
Anna is a Brooklyn based yoga teacher and writer. She loves looking at all the sides of the health and wellness industry and shedding some playful light on tough issues. Her favorite hobby is buying plane tickets and she leads retreats internationally. She is AcroVinyasa certified and pursuing her 500 hr certification with Dharma Mitra. She will eat all the avocados in the sunshine.
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If you ever say you just can’t squeeze in time for yoga because you’ve got too many other things to do like work, family, or Netflix, we say yes you can! If you ever think, if I can’t practice yoga for at least an hour, it’s not worth my time. We say, yes it is! If you believe committing only thirty minutes a day to yoga wouldn’t really make a difference. We say, yes it does!
We all have the same twenty-four hours in our day so, why do we make time for certain activities and not for others?
It all comes down to priorities. What matters the most? We make time for what is important and we’re here to tell you that if you can’t commit an hour or more to yoga each day, it’s okay.
You can reap all the awesome benefits of a regular practice in small chunks of time.
The key is consistency. It’s better to practice yoga or meditate for fifteen minutes a day then to take one ninety-minute class a few times a month. You can choose to wake up earlier, turn off the television, or hop off of social media. Sometimes finding an extra fifteen or thirty minutes involves setting boundaries and just saying no to others demanding your time. Make self-care a priority and know you’ll show up as your best self when you’ve taken time for yourself. Make time to replenish your energy.
So, what will happen if you start to practice just fifteen minutes or thirty minutes of yoga a day? You’ll clear your mind and improve concentration. You’ll gain strength, improve your flexibility, relieve stress, boost your energy, deepen your sleep, improve your posture, and relieve pain. You can absolutely garner all these benefits with only a small time commitment. Of course, if you can practice for longer some days, that’s great, but know shorter sessions will do the trick too.
We’ve got four excellent new classes for you to add to your routine whether or not you’re busy or in a time crunch. You’ll feel great in less than thirty minutes.
1. Jackie Casal Mahrou - Hip Opening Quickie
2. Dana Smith - Lazy Day Yoga
3. Jack Cuneo - Quick Core - Challenging Gravity
4. Dia Michelle Smith - Breathe Your Way into the Perfect Day (audio class)
A side effect of modern life seems to be that we’re always on the go. From balancing your career and personal life, to spending time with your family, it can be hard to find time in your schedule to dedicate to yourself and self-care. Finding time for self-care can often take a backseat to our other responsibilities and obligations, but it’s important to take the time to feel refreshed and rejuvenated.
Here’s our top 7 tips for finding time for self-care, even if you’re living an ‘on the go’ lifestyle!
1. Master a go-to meal
When we’re having a busy day, or even a busy week or month, taking care of our nutritional needs is often the first thing to go out the window. Eating well is one of the most basic aspects of self-care, although it might sound obvious – but how often do we just grab something with little to no nutritional value because we’re in a rush? Finding time for self-care with our food is easy, if you can master just one or two meals that you can whip up when you’re too tired or busy to think about your next meal. Think about what you can make that is simple, with ingredients like lean proteins, whole grains and fresh fruit and veg that will take care of your nutritional needs.
2. Meditate
Taking some time out of your schedule to meditate is a great way to practice self-care. Meditation is a great way to tap into yourself and increase your sense of self-awareness, which can help with your well-being. However, if you’re on the go it can be hard to find the time. Taking just five to ten minutes to check in with yourself is a great way to add meditation into your daily routine. Setting up an area in your home where you can sit in peace is a great way to help yourself relax and switch off from your busy lifestyle for a few moments.
3. Have set work and play hours
Technology is a vital part of modern day to day life, but it can make it hard to switch off. Smartphones, email and instant messaging means that we’re reachable at all hours of the day and night, and can the lines between work and our personal lives blur. It’s easy to pick up your phone and reply to that work email straight away, but having set working hours and personal hours is a simple way to find time for self-care. It ensures that you’re present in your personal life and not letting your to-do list cloud over time spent with friends or family.
4. Practice yoga breaths
For those days where you just can’t find the time for a yoga practice, or even our quicker classes, you can still bring a bit of yoga to your life by practicing yoga breaths. Taking the time for conscious breathing will bring you into the same zen-like mind-set you experience while in a yoga pose.
5. Write down your to-do list
This might seem like a simple action, but finding time for self-care can be just as simple as staying a little more organized. If you’ve got a hectic day with lots to do, take a few moments to write down the tasks you have to complete, and don’t forget to include basic items, like ‘have lunch’ or ‘take five minutes to meditate’. You’ll feel a sense of achievement as you tick things off throughout the day, rather than feel overwhelmed.
6. Keep active
Keeping moving throughout the day is important for your mind and body to take a break. This might be hard for those who have a desk job, and it’s easy to stay sat in our office chairs from 9 to 5 without taking a break. Try to set reminders to get up, stretch, and walk around for even just five or ten minutes. This can help your clear your mind, and gain perspective. If you can get outside, even better!
7. Start your day with yoga
If you don’t find time during the day or evening, consider moving your yoga practice to the morning. This week’s classes on Yoga Download are designed to slot into a busy life, and are the perfect way for finding time for self-care. If you get into the habit of starting your day with a yoga practice, you’re helping to set the tone for the rest of the day, and start with an energized and calm mind-set. Not a morning person? Try just setting your alarm for a few moments earlier each day, till you’re waking up with enough time for your yoga flow.
Pressed for time? Check out these yoga classes designed to fit perfectly into your busy day!
Quick Core: Challenging Gravity with Jack Cuneo
Hip Opening Quickie with Jackie Casal Mahrou
Hey there, Jo here! As a working mom and with the beginning of the school year already upon us, I’m always looking for ways to streamline weeknight dinner prep. That’s why I’ve developed an easy basic salad recipe that is a great go-to for those nights you have less than 30 minutes to put dinner on the table.
These are the veggies I usually make sure I always have in my house, but you can adapt it to use whatever you have in your fridge. You can use it as a side or add some grilled chicken, roasted chickpeas, quinoa, or any other protein to make it your meal. This recipe can really be an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink kind of salad!
Do you have a favorite go-to weeknight dish? Let us know in the comments below!
With love,
Jo’s Easy Weeknight Salad
Yield: 2 salads
Ingredients: Salad:
4-6 cups fresh spring greens 1 bunch radishes, sliced 1 cucumbers, sliced 1 head radicchio, shredded 1 bunch rainbow carrots, sliced
Dressing:
¼ cup olive oil 2 TB champagne vinegar ¼-½ fresh lemon, juiced
Instructions: In a large bowl, combine spring greens, radishes, cucumber, radicchio, and carrots. For dressing, combine olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice. Whisk until fully blended. Toss the salad with champagne vinaigrette dressing or your favorite salad dressing and serve. Enjoy!
Variation: Feel free to add or subtract raw or roasted veggies based on what you have available. Add your favorite protein for a heartier salad.
Jo Schaalman and Jules Peláez are co-authors of the book The Conscious Cleanse: Lose Weight, Heal Your Body and Transform Your Life in 14 Days, a best-selling, step-by-step guide to help you live your most vibrant life. Together they’ve led thousands of people through their online supported cleanse through their accessible and light-hearted approach. They’ve been dubbed “the real deal” by founder and chief creative director Bobbi Brown, of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, beauty editor of the TODAY show.
Practice the Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality program to support healthy eating!
“To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle.” -Walt Whitman
In the last article, we discussed how to jumpstart your morning routine with a journal and utilize yoga philosophy off the mat. In order to balance the jumpstart, we also need the wind down night time routine to balance. Instead of preparing for an active day, we can now prepare for a restful and calm night, perhaps even right before sleep. Like yoga, journaling is a powerful tool for self-discovery and impetus for positive change in your life. An evening journaling ritual can be a powerful way to end your day.
All you need is a writing utensil and a journal. A basic notebook is fine, but there are also journals specialized for yoga practitioners.
Here are 5 ideas for an evening or night time journaling ritual.
1. Give yourself space to find flow.
Sometimes after a long day, we to release our thoughts and find our “flow”. Flow is psychological term describing when you become completely immersed in what you are doing. When you are in the flow, you are completely present in the current moment. But finding this flow state can be tricky- sometimes it happens fast, other times it takes longer to surface. Practice on finding your flow by Take a few minutes to write freely about your day. If you aren’t a huge writer, you could also color or draw your day as an alternative. Don’t set expectations here- just allow yourself to be, release and flow. This technique relates to the niyama ishvara pranidhana, or “surrender to a higher power”.
2. Reflect on what went well. Also acknowledge what did not.
The end of the day is a great time to reflect on your experience, including what you did well and areas you could improve in. You can practice this by naming 3 things you did well and matching it with three things you could improve. This activity helps you organize your thoughts and identify strengths and room for growth. It can also help connect you to your larger goal and what you are trying to connect to by journaling in the first place. Reflecting is a great example of utilizing the niyama svadhyaya, or self-study.
3. Make a note of your daily habits.
We all have habits, or behaviors that we follow automatically. Most of us have habits in the morning, such as brushing our teeth having a shower, or in the evening like reading before bed. Because we have learned these habits and do them automatically, it is normal to not think about them. Noting these habits provides an outside view of your behavior, which can be immensely helpful when you are looking to make positive changes to your mental and physical health. It is also helpful to note how you are feeling both physically and each day to pinpoint detrimental habits and increase your self-awareness. It is a great way to add the yama satya, or truthfulness, into your day.
4. Add forgiveness in.
It may seem odd to add forgiveness in to your everyday routine, but doing so can help foster self-care, healing and improve emotional intelligence. When you are able to forgive things, it is easier to live in the present moment. Instead of holding on to things from the past, you can experience and appreciate what is happening right now. Forgiveness is a great example of the yama ahimsa, as well as the niyama santosha.
5. End the day with something you are grateful for.
Reflecting on what you are grateful for in your life is a valuable thing to do at any time in the day but can be particularly poignant right before you go to sleep. Why? Well, gratitude is the expression of thanks and appreciation for something. Practicing gratitude alters your focus from what is lacking in life to what you have. Regardless of the day you had, when you shift your perspective in this way, you end the day with a positive outlook (and perhaps a restful sleep.)
Our evening routine says a lot about us, including how we choose to nourish our bodies and mind before sleep. Adding these simple journaling techniques into your evening is an effective way of self-study (svadhyaya) that can help you feel grounded and in touch with yourself.
By Laura Heggs
Laura is an anthropologist and 500-hour RYT based in Norwich, UK.
Need more night time rituals to help you sleep soundly? Practice the Yoga for Better Sleep program to have you drifting off nicely!
Transitions are the perfect moment to pause and observe how you are feeling in the present moment. This week, we mark the transition from summer to fall or winter to spring, depending upon where you’re located on the globe. Why not slow down, check in, and use this natural transition to appreciate your life? Savor your experiences instead of anticipating what’s next.
Have you been to a concert lately? Noticed all the people with their phones up in front of their faces, videotaping a song instead of actually watching the show? They could be fully immersed in what’s happening on stage, but instead choose to create a barrier with a camera screen in order to save the moment for later. So, they never actually fully experience the gift of the live performance. Now consider in how many other areas of your life you are focused on the past or anticipating the future?
It’s easy to be pulled into the “doing” pattern of life.
We tend to pride ourselves on how many items we can check off our to-do lists and in the process, we can lose the focus on what is really important in our lives. If we are speeding to accomplish and “do” everything, often we are not being. We are not present. We’re so focused on what is next, we aren’t appreciating what is happening now.
When did being busy become a badge of honor?
If you’re living like this in your daily life, chances are you could be speeding through your yoga too. Anticipating instead of living it. The way we show up on our mats is often a direct reflection of how we show up in our personal and professional lives. This week, we offer you the opportunity to dial back the hectic, busy, multi-tasking schedule and purposefully slow down. By choosing to focus on a more serene approach, you create space for more calm and peace inside. We’ve got four classes for you to encourage you to slow down in order to replenish your well-being and approach the other twenty-three hours of your day with more equanimity.
Taking your time is powerful.
Check out these four featured classes this week to help you slow down!
Dia Michelle Smith - Yin Yang for Inspiration
Kristin Gibowicz - Metamorphosis: Slow with Soul
Eric Paskel - It's Juicy
Jackie Casal Mahrou - Slow & Relaxing Yoga
Whether you're in the northern or southern hemisphere, the seasons are beginning to change. There’s no way around it, when the seasons begin to change, we simultaneously feel a shift internally. Our moods, daily routines, what we eat and our overall energy changes with each season. What satisfies you in the summer is not going to be the same as what makes you happy during the fall. Seasons help us examine different parts of ourselves and they bring balance to our lives.
One of the best ways to take advantage of the changing seasons is to check in with yourself. Think of it as a clean slate. Nature’s cue to slow down and press the pause button. So much can happen in such a short period of time and each season has its magical moments and lessons. We can get lost in the day to day and busy moving on to the next thing that we don’t take the time to reflect. When we don’t take the time revisit and reevaluate, energetically we can find ourselves stuck in old thought patterns that no longer serve our growth or bring us true happiness.
Use this time to take a deeper look at your habits, beliefs, relationships and overall state of mind. Be honest with yourself and open to making necessary changes.
It’s the perfect time of year to connect to how you feel mentally, physically and spiritually in order to make clear headed and heart-based decisions moving forward. Seasonal shifts make it that much easier to bring awareness to your reality and acknowledgement of your feelings. Without bringing things to light, you can end up burying emotions that will negatively effect you down the road mentally and physically. Make it a priority to do things that help you access your true feeling like spending time in nature, meditating, journaling and practicing yoga.
Incorporating yoga during transitional times helps you tune in to how you are feeling on and off the mat. Physical activity with moderate amounts of stretching is an important component to physical, emotional, and mental well-being during transitional times. By staying in harmony with the change of seasons, greater health and peace of mind can be achieved. You will find it easier to deal with stress, stay grounded and be appreciative of the changes you experience from season to season.
Here are 7 quotes to help you embrace the seasons of life:
“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Gratitude for the turning of the seasons. May we attune our hearts to their enduring message of renewal.” -Kristin Granger
“Nature is never static. It is always changing. Everything is in a constant state of flux. Nothing endures. Everything is in the process of either coming into being or expiring.” -Kilroy J. Oldster
“Each new season grows from the leftovers from the past. That is the essence of change, and change is the basic law.” -Hal Borland
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished” -Lao Tzu
“Perhaps the earth can teach us, as when everything seems dead and later proves to be alive.” -Pablo Neruda
“All the trees are losing their leaves, and not one of them is worried.” -Donald Miller
Slow down now to nourish you during the change of seasons!
Slower & Deeper: A Gentle Vinyasa Flow with Christen Bakken
This recipe is delicious and will leave you feeling completely satiated. Raw corn is sweet, soft, juicy, and a little crunchy. It is incredible without cooking. Just cut the corn right off the ear.
This recipe is so simple and it takes just minutes to prepare, yet tastes gourmet!
Raw Vegan Avocado Corn Salad Recipe
Ingredients (serves 1-2): 1 ear of Corn 1 Avocado Cherry Tomatoes (handful chopped) Sour Kraut Green Olives (handful chopped) Dill Garlic
Instructions: Simply put all of the ingredients (except the garlic) into a bowl, chopped into small enough pieces to eat without needing to cut, and mix together. You can add as many chopped olives, cherry tomatoes, or sour kraut as you'd like.
For the dressing: Juice one clove of garlic and mix into the salad, top with some dehydrated dill. Lemon and salt and pepper can also be added for taste. Mix together in a cup, and pour over salad and mix in.
Enjoy! Increase ingredients if sharing with more than one loved one.
Practice Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality to complement this healthy, vegan recipe!
Many of us reminisce to those simple days of being a kid.....there were no worries of bills, traffic, and work. A kid's biggest worries are compromised of lunch, friends, and whether the class stays inside or out for recess. Big deal right?
But if you really, really think back to childhood, it was a big deal and still is for kids! Childhood can be overwhelming and stressful, as kids are growing, changing, and learning about the world around them. Going back to school with new teachers, new faces, and new rules can seem daunting and stressful for kids as well. So, just like us, kids need a way to decompress and release this tension. Fortunately meditation and breathwork, works for kids in similar ways that it works for adults.
Here are five breathing techniques and meditations for kids, they can use for stress management from returning to school:
1. Color Breath: Kids love to discuss their favorite colors, food, movies, you name it, right? Color breath is a nice way for them to focus on breath imagining that they breathe all the way in with their favorite color. They then empty it all the way out with a 2nd favorite color such as their favorite animal in that color or a rainbow.
2. Belly Breath: Have them lie flat on the floor and place a pillow or stuffed animal on their belly. As they breathe in, the object grows with deeper and deeper breaths. As they breathe out the objects goes back down. They can play around with trying to knock that object over from breathing so deeply.
3. Emptying the brain "garbage can": My 7 year old gave me this analogy the other day (and I use it for myself sometimes at the end of a long day!). Lying in bed or winding down at the end of the day, think of any unpleasant thoughts, worries, or occurrences to the day. Then imagine putting those in the trash can & throwing them away.
4. Sound breaths: There are various types of breaths available but the main purpose here is to ensure the focus is brought inward and deeper breaths are taken. Some of my favorites are horse breath in which you breathe in and exhale like a horse moving the lips. Another one would be lion's breath in which you inhale, then exhale sticking out the tongue & taking gaze up towards the sky. At the least these will produce giggles which usually decrease the stress immediately!
5. Any other "un-plugged" time: Bottom line here is, as long as they are engaged and bringing awareness to how they feel, it is helping to cope with those stressors. Less TV, iPad, and game time. More thinking, imagining, feeling.
By Stefanie Ezratty
Hi! My name is Stefanie Ezratty! I am a mom, wife, and yes yogi! I dabbled in yoga for years deepening my practice through prenatal yoga while pregnant with my daughter. It was after that time that yoga had a lasting impression on my life. I then went on to complete my 200 hr Yoga Teacher Training Certification. In addition, I completed my 85 hr Prenatal Yoga certification, and have trained in Kids Yoga. Though a sanctuary, I did find some areas and aspects of modern yoga culture to be intimidating. For that reason I am passionate about making yoga truly for everyone-young, seasoned, newbies, and everyone in between.
Try this selection of classes for kids right now to help children with stress management from school and life!
The seasons are changing. Whether it’s Autumn or Spring in your hemisphere, it’s September and it’s time to align yourself with nature. Choosing to make a deliberate shift now will give you extra power to transform your life or at least your yoga practice.
Our two-week FREE challenge is designed to help you release the past and create space for the future. Autumn commemorates letting go and Spring welcomes the blossoming of new energy.
Join fellow yogis from around the globe and let’s transform together.
Why participate in a yoga challenge? We all know change isn’t easy and having the support of thousands of other yogis will keep you on track.
Here are four benefits we think you’ll resonate with:
1. Increased Strength: Not only will your quadriceps and triceps get stronger from daily practice, your brain will also get a workout. You’ll feel more clear, calm, and able to make decisions from a place of resolve. When you commit to yourself to practice daily no matter what, you are engineering positive shifts in your self-discipline and this exercise expands out to other decisions you make throughout the day.
2. More Tapas! No, not appetizers, but your inner heat. Tapas is one of the Niyamas, and a vital part of the eight-limbed path of yoga. Tapas is the cultivation of self-discipline. It’s the inner fire in your belly you stoke each time you buckle down and do your work. Tapas is key in shining your brightest and being your best self. It takes work.
3. A Self-confidence Boost: Each day you follow this challenge, you’re fulfilling a commitment to yourself and that’s powerful. Empower yourself by creating positive shifts in your body, mind, and spirit.
4. Accountability and Community Support: Enjoy the support and accountability of your global yoga community. It’s great to know you are part of something bigger. Even if you are practicing alone at home or on the road, you’ll feel the energy of everyone else doing the same thing. There’s power in numbers and you can be a part of it.
So what are you waiting for? Read the full 2-week challenge description and directions and sign up for your seasonal shift today!
Sun Salutations, Warrior Poses, Downward Dog – every yogi has their favourite tried and tested poses and flows that they may be able to do with their eyes closed. As you move through your daily routine on the matt, you might notice your mind drifting. The flows that once took concentration and took your mind away from the humdrum day to day thoughts are now second nature, and you’ve lost your sense of zen. It’s easy to get into a rut if you stick to your comfort zones in life – and your yoga practice is no different. This week we’re challenging you to try a new class every day for two weeks.
Here are four key benefits that branching out in your yoga practice can bring you.
1. Keep your brain active
Did you know that learning a new skill, such as a different language or something creative like a musical instrument can help your brain form new connections? The same applies when you learn a new yoga flow or try a challenging pose. Stimulating your brain in this way can increase your memory skills, concentration and even your creativity levels. Learning something new, like figuring out a new yoga challenge can create neural pathways in the brain, increasing brain power.
2. Relieves stress
There’s no question that modern life has led to stress being an almost unavoidable part of our day-to-day. Whether it's demanding at work, kids acting up, or getting stuck in traffic when you just need to be on time – stress can cause your heart rate to rise and lead to anxiety and an increase in stress hormones in the body. Stress can be hard to manage, and many of us aren’t equipped to handle those kinds of responses.
Challenging yourself in yoga can help train your brain to handle stress responses better. Putting yourself in a controlled environment and pushing your boundaries in yoga can help you deal with stress. This is because putting your body into a new or uncomfortable posture forces you to use the part of your brain that suppresses your stress and emotional reactions. This means when you encounter stress away from the matt you’re well equipped to deal with it. Trying new things in life can also broaden our minds and allow us to handle stress better.
3. Discover new poses
If you never tried new things in yoga, you’d never discover the flows and poses that you already know and love. Trying something new not only fires up your brain synapses but gives you a feeling of euphoria and relief. Learning and kick-starting those brain connections releases feel-good hormones like serotonin, giving us that boost of happiness. Trying new flows and types of yoga you don’t usually practice can open your mind to something new, and you might fall in love with a different type of practice!
4. Get in the flow
Using your brain, whether it’s on the mat or off, can put you in a peak performance state called ‘flow’. This is where your brain is focused on the task at hand and you’re flooded with energy. This state can help increase creativity levels, productivity and even make you happier! But this doesn’t happen unless we’re fully focused on the task at hand, and aren’t challenging ourselves.
Pushing yourself to branch out in your yoga practice can allow you to incorporate challenge in your life – but it’s also important to have realistic goals. Don’t expect to master a new pose straight away – it’s the brainpower, time and practice spent getting there that gets us in the ‘flow.
So now you know the benefits of branching out in your yoga practice, how can you challenge yourself.
Here are two other ways you can push yourself and branch out in your day to day practice.
Push yourself to the edge
When you’re holding a yoga pose, even the ones you’re as familiar with as the back of your hand, try to push yourself to your edge. This is the place where you feel your body deeply stretch and work it hard – but without going to the point where you injure yourself or overwork your body.
Everyone has a different edge, so it’s important to listen to your body and stop when you feel pain or like it’s too much. Let your mind clear of any distracting thoughts or feelings, and take it slow. By listening to your body as you deepen into each pose, you can slowly ease your way to your edge, and remember to breathe into the stretch.
Incorporate challenging postures
An easy way to branch out in your daily yoga practice is to incorporate postures you find challenging. Start off your practice with the postures that make you feel confident and bring strength to your body to warm up. You can then move on to add a posture or two that you’ve always struggled with or feel like you can’t do. Remember to move slowly into these poses focusing on your breathing and listening to your body. It’s important to remember you can stop at any time if your body is saying no. If you try to push out those thoughts that tell you that you ‘can’t’ do it. Trying something new can bring up lots of emotions, so it’s key to keep a calm and open mind.
Are you inspired to branch out in your yoga practice? Try our free two-week yoga challenge and see for yourself how trying new yoga postures and teacher can benefit you.
Here in Colorado, the kids are back in school and with the end of summer in sight (sigh!), we thought it was a good time to squeeze in one more summertime treat.
Kids love popsicles, making today’s recipe a perfect after school snack. Heck, this healthy popsicle recipe is so full of goodness, we would let our kids have it for breakfast!
But what about us adults?
Packed with chia seeds, fruit, and coconut water, our cleanse-friendly tropical Mango Chia Seed Popsicles make a great post-workout snack, giving you instant energy and the quick cool down you need this time of year!
Check out the recipe below and if you need to order some popsicle molds, check these out. They’re our favorites. Be sure to share your popsicle creations with us on Facebook and Instagram and stay tuned for more great, cleanse-friendly recipes coming your way. Until next time, stay healthy and strong!
With popsicle fun,
Mango Chia Seed Popsicles
Yield: 10 popsicles
3 cups frozen mango chunks 1 ripe banana 10 oz. coconut water 1 ½ TB. chia seeds
Instructions: In a high-speed blender place frozen mango chunks, banana, and coconut water and blend until smooth. Stir in chia seeds by hand. Let mixture sit for about 20 minutes so the chia seeds can soften a bit. Pour mixture into 10 (3 ounce) popsicle molds placing a wooden stick into each (or follow the directions of your popsicle mold). Freeze until frozen, at least 8 hours.
Practice yoga with Jo from the Conscious Cleanse now!