1. eating potatoe chips while sitting on the couch watching world cup means the next practice i feel like lead
2. lunges at the wall are phenomenal
3. penalty shoot-outs are ridiculously stressful
4. ample does not mean what i thought it meant
5. london has an entire collection of hidden fabulous veggie restaurants and cafes (thanks di!)
6. peanut m&ms in London only have half the peanut...melaina theorized that peanut prices went up and chocolate prices down so they had to make some changes. why are the english losing out on their other peanut half?!
more to come i'm sure :)
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
last week in london!
this is the start of my final week in london (i leave july 7th). i can't believe the time has flown by so quickly! favorite area so far is still probably camden town, but this week i am on a mission to explore a couple of yet unseen areas. disappointing football games this weekend however i have renewed faith that something good has to to happen now that the two teams i liked are out!
should be getting a camera this week so ill get some pictures- yoga pose with the palace guards is high on my priorities :). also, L graduates from her training (!!!) this weekend and takes the SI exam on sunday- send her good studying thoughts!
should be getting a camera this week so ill get some pictures- yoga pose with the palace guards is high on my priorities :). also, L graduates from her training (!!!) this weekend and takes the SI exam on sunday- send her good studying thoughts!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
handstand vs. ego
here's the update: L has gone back to training in Oxford with Tom Myers...she’s in the homestretch- graduation is july 3rd! i've spent most of the last few days around home watching nearly every world cup game. so today i've changed that by following advice to get out- which technically i’ve already done ;-)- and am now at 'first out cafe' near tottenham crt. road. i’m a fan.
later today, along with everyone in england, i’m going to watch the 2 football games. to answer the big question of which game i’ll watch (believe it or not i’ve been asked quite a few times) ill probably watch england on the tv and have the US game on my laptop.
to balance my excessively verbose previous blog-thought, my musing for today is short and sweet (and oh so true).
[ch2s7] sukhanusayi ragah
pleasurable things cause strong attachments
handstand, without a doubt, is a pleasurable thing. the empowerment is easy to get attached to.
when i do handstand in an attempt to flare my ego or purely to attain that pleasure, the attachment to the asana prevents it’s expression, thus i fall.
on the flip side, when i approach it as just another asana, or another expression of breath if you will, then at this point i generally have it down (or up?!).
essentially, handstands keep it real- so do them a lot :)
later today, along with everyone in england, i’m going to watch the 2 football games. to answer the big question of which game i’ll watch (believe it or not i’ve been asked quite a few times) ill probably watch england on the tv and have the US game on my laptop.
to balance my excessively verbose previous blog-thought, my musing for today is short and sweet (and oh so true).
[ch2s7] sukhanusayi ragah
pleasurable things cause strong attachments
handstand, without a doubt, is a pleasurable thing. the empowerment is easy to get attached to.
when i do handstand in an attempt to flare my ego or purely to attain that pleasure, the attachment to the asana prevents it’s expression, thus i fall.
on the flip side, when i approach it as just another asana, or another expression of breath if you will, then at this point i generally have it down (or up?!).
essentially, handstands keep it real- so do them a lot :)
Monday, June 21, 2010
yogascittavrtti nirodha
im finally on the recovery upswing, spent all day saturday and most of sunday sleeping and watching football. i think i am emotionally too weak of a person to watch too much of it though... i end up getting all riled up. as lauren pointed out, if the team i want to win loses, i get really upset, and if they win, then i start to feel bad for the other team and how upset they must be. its all very complicated really :). however, the drama between ivory coast and brazil yesterday was rather exciting, as was the new zealand tie!
L and i finally went to the big grocery store, waitrose; have to say, london grocery stores are pretty much exactly the same as american ones except the fact that a. they do not have coconut milk icecream (although jason, they do have goat’s milk icecream!), and b. the carts are much nicer and go side to side as easily as forwards and backwards. preeetty exciting!
last night i took class with Amme, who was fabulous: if you’re ever in london definitely check her out. she’s an American who did the Forrest Advanced TT and studied at yogaTree in SF. the practice was well rounded, but what stood out was her sweet blend of being down to earth while simultaneously really fierce.
about halfway through practice i had this realization: part of the responsibility of all of my rudimentary experiences thus far with yoga here in london may actually lay in the hands of the london yogis themselves rather than with the teachers. up until then i had been focusing mainly on what the teachers could have done differently- and while this still may apply- it may also be that they have tried to push the envelope with more challenging and dynamic (out of the box, if you will) classes and been poorly received. and, in the end, it doesn’t matter how exceptional your classes are; if no one is coming to them, something needs to change.
this brings up a discussion i had a bit ago with sunny hitt (and possibly one or two other wed AM yogis @ SBY) about gym yoga versus studio yoga, as well as the challenge of “all levels”; what is the balance between teaching what you want and teaching that the students want? when the two line up perfectly, fantastic. however in my experience, more often than not, some sort of compromise is required. this doesn't mean i stop teaching my truth, but rather i've learned to teach with the balance of self-honesty with what the students can/are willing to hear and do.
when i first started teaching, i wouldn’t teach corework (even though it is, in my eyes, one of the most critical pieces of practice) or even chant (which i have always truly loved, bad singer or not!) because the idea of having a class glare at me and roll their eyes was too much (although thanks to Ana and Mary Kathryn Stevens i now do both freely). then i spent a while on the other end of the spectrum teaching inversions and core as the focus of nearly every class because that was exactly where i was at in my practice.
i found that ultimately, neither one actually served me or my students. attempting to cater to what students think they want- which they almost never know anyways- doesn’t break patterns (david vendetti’s ability to get a gym buff to love kundalini meditation is a perfect example!), and teaching only one realm of practice- inversions, for instance- left out the balance that allows me the practice i have today.
it’s a fine line to walk, but as a teacher i'm not doing my job unless i have successfully tried to communicate with and cater to my students’ needs (beyond ego). and as students, we won’t like a teacher unless they are being true to their practice and passion. so i guess that’s the trick then, be honest enough and real enough to see beyond both parties’ egos and teach what will ultimately bring us all deeper within.
ys2ch1: yogascittavrtti nirodha...yoga is the practice of moving beyond the likes, dislikes, egos, distractions and fluctuations to find the moments of truth and breath and thus the capacity for change and shift.
L and i finally went to the big grocery store, waitrose; have to say, london grocery stores are pretty much exactly the same as american ones except the fact that a. they do not have coconut milk icecream (although jason, they do have goat’s milk icecream!), and b. the carts are much nicer and go side to side as easily as forwards and backwards. preeetty exciting!
last night i took class with Amme, who was fabulous: if you’re ever in london definitely check her out. she’s an American who did the Forrest Advanced TT and studied at yogaTree in SF. the practice was well rounded, but what stood out was her sweet blend of being down to earth while simultaneously really fierce.
about halfway through practice i had this realization: part of the responsibility of all of my rudimentary experiences thus far with yoga here in london may actually lay in the hands of the london yogis themselves rather than with the teachers. up until then i had been focusing mainly on what the teachers could have done differently- and while this still may apply- it may also be that they have tried to push the envelope with more challenging and dynamic (out of the box, if you will) classes and been poorly received. and, in the end, it doesn’t matter how exceptional your classes are; if no one is coming to them, something needs to change.
this brings up a discussion i had a bit ago with sunny hitt (and possibly one or two other wed AM yogis @ SBY) about gym yoga versus studio yoga, as well as the challenge of “all levels”; what is the balance between teaching what you want and teaching that the students want? when the two line up perfectly, fantastic. however in my experience, more often than not, some sort of compromise is required. this doesn't mean i stop teaching my truth, but rather i've learned to teach with the balance of self-honesty with what the students can/are willing to hear and do.
when i first started teaching, i wouldn’t teach corework (even though it is, in my eyes, one of the most critical pieces of practice) or even chant (which i have always truly loved, bad singer or not!) because the idea of having a class glare at me and roll their eyes was too much (although thanks to Ana and Mary Kathryn Stevens i now do both freely). then i spent a while on the other end of the spectrum teaching inversions and core as the focus of nearly every class because that was exactly where i was at in my practice.
i found that ultimately, neither one actually served me or my students. attempting to cater to what students think they want- which they almost never know anyways- doesn’t break patterns (david vendetti’s ability to get a gym buff to love kundalini meditation is a perfect example!), and teaching only one realm of practice- inversions, for instance- left out the balance that allows me the practice i have today.
it’s a fine line to walk, but as a teacher i'm not doing my job unless i have successfully tried to communicate with and cater to my students’ needs (beyond ego). and as students, we won’t like a teacher unless they are being true to their practice and passion. so i guess that’s the trick then, be honest enough and real enough to see beyond both parties’ egos and teach what will ultimately bring us all deeper within.
ys2ch1: yogascittavrtti nirodha...yoga is the practice of moving beyond the likes, dislikes, egos, distractions and fluctuations to find the moments of truth and breath and thus the capacity for change and shift.
Friday, June 18, 2010
football and "good" yoga
my goal for these posts is every other day or so...we’ll see how i manage. as was pointed out by my father, the last post had several grammatical etc errors- i warned you! its the thoughts that count ;-)
i must admit, i am really settling into this london lifestyle. just watched two football (yes football!) games. the US game was exciting, albeit unfair that we didn’t get that 3rd goal, and the England game disappointing. it really is amazing how wrapped up in these games ive gotten when 2 weeks ago, i couldn’t have told you who rooney or gerrard or donovan were for anything. i actually spent most of the day at home, battling allergies or some sort of now-that-im-on-vacation-i’m-sick thing. unfortunate but good rest... and did get to skype with David from SBY- much love to boston.
i’m quite excited for tomorrow’s yoga class: going to take with Sundara at TriYoga. heard she’s an exotic type with a fierce practice...has to beat our class yesterday. here’s my anatomy news flash number 2 (so far in england i’m really getting some good lessons!): apanasana- or supine hugging the knees in- is now a hip flexor stretch. aarg. am going to give it a go though and see if maybe i can’t teach a class or two while i’m here; perhaps share a little boston/magi love with these london yogis!
on that note, a thought i was having was what makes a “good” yoga class. while i can’t quantify it exactly, sutra 49 from ch1 is brought to mind. i’m always looking for the teacher who provides the space and vocabulary for me to form my own language and expression. these teachers that are giving me scripture i should adhere to (like feeling my ovulation or inhaling a ball of energetic light into my solar plexus) are giving me a language i don’t speak and thus an experience that isn’t mine.
ultimately, i think johanna hynes said it best: a “good” yoga teacher is one from whom the student walks away feeling empowered and liking themselves. or, to continue with my previous linguistic analogy- i hope to have given my students a vocabulary with which they experienced an incredible conversation within themselves and their asana.
we do this practice to dive within, so that we can connect to others, rather than searching outside some validation for the inner self. our teachers create a path through the asana sequence, and it is our own journey that brings us inside.
i must admit, i am really settling into this london lifestyle. just watched two football (yes football!) games. the US game was exciting, albeit unfair that we didn’t get that 3rd goal, and the England game disappointing. it really is amazing how wrapped up in these games ive gotten when 2 weeks ago, i couldn’t have told you who rooney or gerrard or donovan were for anything. i actually spent most of the day at home, battling allergies or some sort of now-that-im-on-vacation-i’m-sick thing. unfortunate but good rest... and did get to skype with David from SBY- much love to boston.
i’m quite excited for tomorrow’s yoga class: going to take with Sundara at TriYoga. heard she’s an exotic type with a fierce practice...has to beat our class yesterday. here’s my anatomy news flash number 2 (so far in england i’m really getting some good lessons!): apanasana- or supine hugging the knees in- is now a hip flexor stretch. aarg. am going to give it a go though and see if maybe i can’t teach a class or two while i’m here; perhaps share a little boston/magi love with these london yogis!
on that note, a thought i was having was what makes a “good” yoga class. while i can’t quantify it exactly, sutra 49 from ch1 is brought to mind. i’m always looking for the teacher who provides the space and vocabulary for me to form my own language and expression. these teachers that are giving me scripture i should adhere to (like feeling my ovulation or inhaling a ball of energetic light into my solar plexus) are giving me a language i don’t speak and thus an experience that isn’t mine.
ultimately, i think johanna hynes said it best: a “good” yoga teacher is one from whom the student walks away feeling empowered and liking themselves. or, to continue with my previous linguistic analogy- i hope to have given my students a vocabulary with which they experienced an incredible conversation within themselves and their asana.
we do this practice to dive within, so that we can connect to others, rather than searching outside some validation for the inner self. our teachers create a path through the asana sequence, and it is our own journey that brings us inside.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
wednesday morning thoughts...
As promised to my Wednesday morning yogis...here are the thoughts ala Magi for Wednesday morning :).
Last Saturday Lauren, Todd, Diana and I took with Matthew Sweeney. I’ve loved his book for quite a while now...it’s a spiral bound large book, “Vinyasa Krama”, with pictures of him doing 5 different sequences he’s created complete with every posture labeled in sanskrit.
Without rambling extensively, the workshop was not our cup of tea (note British
reference!). He used minimal warmup- dhanurasana within 5 minutes for example- to achieve the allusive dropback-which we didn’t actually get to. He closed with an extensive discussion about “moon cycles” and how as women we “should” be able to feel ourselves ovulating (complete with a visual of the egg being released)...needless to say my feminist side was riled up. When’s the last time he ovulated?! Finally, news break in anatomy here, apparently your psoas now runs superficially across the abdominals, over your bladder, in the shape of a V. Alas...
Through all this however, I was reminded of the ever valuable lesson that one can often learn much more from something disliked as from something really liked. For example, teaching from one’s own experience and practice is infinitesimally more powerful and true than teaching from something written 3000 years ago for 12 year old boys in India...
One idea he mentioned in passing spoke to mulabandha, calling it the ever illusive and one of the least-understood concepts of yoga. He mentioned that mulabandha is always there, it’s our awareness of it that has the capacity to change. It isn’t something you “do”, its something you observe happening. This idea of observation of what is, rather than some mental creation of what we think could be happening, is what I hope to attain each time I visit the mat.
In short warm up, speak from experience without declarative statements you can’t back up, know your anatomy, and be a witness to what is without commentary!
After a tough morning of waking up at 10 and drinking my tea while watching an interview with Wayne Rooney (yes, I'm up to date on my english footballers!) I’m soon off to my first official led class in London @ TriYoga...
Last Saturday Lauren, Todd, Diana and I took with Matthew Sweeney. I’ve loved his book for quite a while now...it’s a spiral bound large book, “Vinyasa Krama”, with pictures of him doing 5 different sequences he’s created complete with every posture labeled in sanskrit.
Without rambling extensively, the workshop was not our cup of tea (note British
reference!). He used minimal warmup- dhanurasana within 5 minutes for example- to achieve the allusive dropback-which we didn’t actually get to. He closed with an extensive discussion about “moon cycles” and how as women we “should” be able to feel ourselves ovulating (complete with a visual of the egg being released)...needless to say my feminist side was riled up. When’s the last time he ovulated?! Finally, news break in anatomy here, apparently your psoas now runs superficially across the abdominals, over your bladder, in the shape of a V. Alas...
Through all this however, I was reminded of the ever valuable lesson that one can often learn much more from something disliked as from something really liked. For example, teaching from one’s own experience and practice is infinitesimally more powerful and true than teaching from something written 3000 years ago for 12 year old boys in India...
One idea he mentioned in passing spoke to mulabandha, calling it the ever illusive and one of the least-understood concepts of yoga. He mentioned that mulabandha is always there, it’s our awareness of it that has the capacity to change. It isn’t something you “do”, its something you observe happening. This idea of observation of what is, rather than some mental creation of what we think could be happening, is what I hope to attain each time I visit the mat.
In short warm up, speak from experience without declarative statements you can’t back up, know your anatomy, and be a witness to what is without commentary!
After a tough morning of waking up at 10 and drinking my tea while watching an interview with Wayne Rooney (yes, I'm up to date on my english footballers!) I’m soon off to my first official led class in London @ TriYoga...
welcome
[ch1s1]atha yoga nusasanam.
now is the time for the study of yoga (on and off the mat, around the world) to begin!
welcome to my blog! at first merely a passing thought, i have now officially decided to document my transition from boston to new york city with a month in london in between. here you'll find an assortment (or hodgepodge if you will) of experiences, thoughts and musings- with i'm sure the occasional picture- as i make this move. feel free to comment or send me emails and keep in mind that everything i say is subject to change :)...
now is the time for the study of yoga (on and off the mat, around the world) to begin!
welcome to my blog! at first merely a passing thought, i have now officially decided to document my transition from boston to new york city with a month in london in between. here you'll find an assortment (or hodgepodge if you will) of experiences, thoughts and musings- with i'm sure the occasional picture- as i make this move. feel free to comment or send me emails and keep in mind that everything i say is subject to change :)...
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