Dear YogaDownload students, To my favorite group of yogis: Wow, have I missed you all. I hope you are finding ways to stay healthy and strong in both body and mind throughout this season. I am hoping to get some new classes filmed for you soon! Be on the lookout for some prenatal and postpartum workouts, which I created while pregnant with my son last year. I truly cannot wait to be back guiding you through some fun and slightly challenging flows ;) You all continue to inspire and motivate me with your dedication to your practice. Keep it up and stay the course. You got this! Sending you all love in the new year.

Dear YogaDownload students, It’s truly my honor to be one of your yoga teachers. Thank you for continuously inviting me into your homes virtually and trusting me to guide you through this practice. May these classes help you discover a lasting peace, joy, strength, and freedom that extends beyond the four corners of your yoga mat.

Dear YogaDownload students, The past 18 months has been a test of our Yogic mettle. During this time I have often asked myself these questions: How am I doing during this great testing period? When the pandemic passes, how will I feel about the way I handled myself? Like many others, I have been navigating this terrain as best I can using all the yogic wisdom I have ever learned. I have also learned to allow space for my inevitable human reactionary tendencies.

Dear Yogadownload students, First of all, thank you for choosing to spend some time with me on your yoga mat. I love the idea that we spent part of our day together! It is truly an honor to hold space for someone's exhale, and I want you to feel comfortable showing up as simply as you can manage. In my classes, I hope that you are empowered to customize your practice to honor your beautiful body's unique design. The practice of yoga is powerful and can interrupt your bad mood, bring awareness to the "little t" truths swirling around your mind, help you re-align with your Truth, soften the effects of stress and tension, and strengthen you to walk courageously in love. My deepest prayer is that you would receive the homecoming awaiting you each and every time you return to your mat.

Dear YogaDownload students, Being able to share yoga with you, from all over the world has been one of the best treasures of my teaching career and a true honor. Hearing from many of you over the years and knowing we get to virtually connect on the mat, makes me smile. Yoga has helped me tremendously, so being able to share its benefits with others is wonderful.

Dear YogaDownload students, Here in the United States in July, 2021, we are afforded an opportunity to look back on the toughest stretch of the pandemic. Without disregarding the global and personal pain and loss of the past 16 months, I'm finding it beneficial to feel gratitude for this time where possible. I am grateful that many (if not most) people in the world had access to the connecting power of the internet during this isolating time. While sheltering at home, it was vitally important for me to be able to see my friends and family via my phone screen. Teaching live online yoga for YogaDownload also became the highlight of my week! How sweet it was that YogaDownload could provide affordable yoga to students around the world who could no longer attend studio classes. Can you imagine what the pandemic would have been like pre-internet times? I invite you, dear Yogadownload students, to identify some good that came from your past year. What are you grateful for?

Dear YogaDownload students, It is a rare occasion when I meet someone in real life who says they have practiced with me on YogaDownload. When it happens, it makes this virtual experience feel so real, and I know that yoga is making a difference. I am reminded and am grateful to YogaDownload and to you, that my reach extends beyond the studio walls, and into your life, wherever you may be when you practice. I am honored that you have invited me into that space with you, in a way that is accessible and meaningful. My true hope for you is that wherever you are, whatever is happening, your yoga practice will help you to ride the "roller-coaster of life" with all its ups, downs, and loop-de-loops, just a little bit smoother, better, and without knocking you off your well-aligned center. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your practice. With love, Kristen

Dear YogaDownloaders, As the great Pattabhi Jois has said: take practice and all is coming. Remember that asana, or the physical yoga of postures and transitions, is a vehicle for the transformation of consciousness, and upon or during transformation it may one day fall away. As the body ages (and it is aging, whether you begin yoga at 10 or 100), Yoga may deepen its way into your actions, your words and even your thoughts. Yet, there is no predetermined timeline for this evolution, and pretending that it is here before it is can only lead to disappointment, frustration and wasting precious life time. As long as asana gives you joy, keep practicing. As soon as it feels like a chore or a rote pattern, change it up - either with other approaches to asana or something else entirely. As long as you continue to inquire into the essential nature of the self - of reality itself - beyond all ideas and concepts, yoga will continue to deepen through you. Godspeed!

To our beloved YogaDownload community, Please take a moment to breathe and acknowledge yourselves for showing up with a sincere willingness to participate, to play, and to practice presence. May this platform be a source of inspiration for you and may it serve as a reminder that you are extraordinary! Thank you for being a part of this co-creation. As always, may it be of benefit!

Dear YogaDownload Students, During this time of elevated stress, uncertainty and finding a rhythm with the new normal, it is important that we take the time to connect to mindfulness, movement and our breath. The beauty of yoga is that it meets us exactly where we are. Today’s practice doesn’t need to mirror yesterday’s practice or anyone else’s for that matter. Sustaining our practice, even when it is hard to, can help us to heal and stay tapped into our natural, happy nature.