 It feels like so much is changing at the moment.
My kids are entering new stages of their lives, there is the usual flux of summer schedules with holidays and plans, alongside some class changes and new equipment coming to the studio In the midst of change, I love my morning routine that keeps me constant and on the front foot each day. What's your morning routine? Perhaps a shower, tea, check emails, breakfast, clean teeth, walk the dog. Morning routines I know many of you have also integrated yoga into your morning routine (which makes my heart sing). And I know before that I have likened developing the habit of doing a short daily yoga practice to cleaning your teeth. My aim here was to help you see it as an essential and non-negotiable start to your day. Even when your on holiday, you still clean your teeth right? It's the most gorgeous bit But that doesn't do justice to just how gorgeous it feels to do yoga each morning. It is actually nothing like cleaning teeth. I can't say I love cleaning my teeth, it is fine, it does a job, it tastes quite nice, and feels good after. But the actual act of doing it is a bit of downtime where I think about other stuff. I don't stand their loving every moment and marvelling at how lucky I am (perhaps I should!). It's nothing like cleaning your teeth My yoga isn't anything like that. The hardest part is stepping on to the mat. The rest is easy. From the first moment of arriving on my mat, I get to stop, connect to my inner landscape, fully experience that first inhale and lift of my arms above my head, and come into a wonderful flow with myself. The fluid breath starts to hum and expand me, the moving and stretching awakens everything from head to toe, the twists ease movement into my spine and hips, and the vibrant downward facing dog gets the breath going deeper and fuller and then the sublime lying twists... where I get to stay there and allow the pose to work its magic and the breath to be felt at an energetic level in every fibre of my being. By the end I feel energised and wonderfully spacious and light, open and fresh and ready for everything the day has in store for me. But the process to get there was way more enjoyable and fun than cleaning my teeth! It becomes pure joy If you haven't discovered the joy of a morning yoga routine yet, I would highly recommend trying it every day for a week and waking yourself up properly (not just rolling out of bed and getting on with the day). Give yourself a chance to build the habit, and stick with it while you get used to it. Don't give up if you forget or find it hard. Play the long game and keep having a go. Keep it super simple. Perhaps pick your three favourite poses and do each one for a couple of minutes, slowly and dynamically with your breath, feeling each pose and exploring each breath fully. Or use my free 12 minute video as a starting guide to get you going: Free Morning Yoga Video >
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 Yoga is a balancing act of...
physicality (with kindness & ease) effort (without strain) ease & openess (with focus and stability) relaxation (without dullness) slowing (without stagnating) pace (without rushing) familiarity (without automation) attention (without hypervigilance) space (with focus) creativity (with boundaries and intention) flow (with precision) challenge (without grasping) intention (without rigidity) focus (without strain or judgement) joy (without desire) reward (with humility) gratitude (without bypassing) honesty (with compassion) gentleness (with vitality) acceptance (with perseverence) consistency (with flexibility) revelation (without delusion) serenity (with honesty) ... what are you juggling to feel balanced? In our life we are constantly fine tuning and balancing. Adjusting having too much or too little of something, or we're doing the wrong things. We are honing in on that sweet spot. Yoga offers us the opportunity to explore, refine and deepen our wellbeing and establish ourselves in the sweet spot of our lives, no matter what the world is hurling our way. Make it to your mat this week > Enjoy 🌞  By far the most common reason to do yoga in our recent survey responses, was for mental calm and clarity.
This was reported more often than any of the physical benefits (which of course are undeniable, as are all the other benefits that yoga can bring). Fitness and spiritual exploration and connection were also very popular reasons to come to a yoga class. Yoga is an all rounder, which is why it has stood the test of time. The fruits of our practice include physical, mental and spiritual aspects integrated into a beautiful sense of wholeness and vibrant serenity. The Mental Benefits are HUGE When we feel better mentally, then our mood is better, we enjoy life more, we show up in our relationships with our family, friends and at work better, and we are healthier in all aspects. Our diet is better, our sleep improves, we take better care of our self and everyone benefits. Improving our mental state is life changing. We experience everything through a more positive perspective. We get less caught up in the negative spirals and the over-thinking. We learn how to reset ourselves and get quicker at overcoming upsets and frustrations. Mental clarity and calm can be cultivated in only a short space of time once you know a few techniques to get you there, and you all you need to do it show up and do them. And brilliantly, the effects of yoga are reliable and accumulative. It works. A single class feels amazing and the after-glow mentally lasts way beyond the class. A regular weekly class builds up and accumulates over time. Your nervous system anticipates it so that the effects are present just because you anticipate your class, before you even get there. And the benefits last longer and are easier to bring to mind throughout the week. A daily practice of even just 10 minutes compounds this connection and calm even further. Cultivating a state of mind that becomes more integrated and reliable in daily life. A yoga retreat allows you to deepen your experience, take it to a new level and inspire how you practice when back in everyday life. Everything and everyone, including you, will benefit as a result.  How the hell did you do that?
There is a fun posture this term that has foxed a few people. It doesn't look like much. Some people can just do it. Others have a go and realise they have no idea how to do it, find it impossible, look perplexed and then try again. Welcome to the joy of yoga. It requires you to show up and playfully and curiously explore body, breath and mind and see what we discover along the way. The more open we are, the more rewarding it will be. Put the expectation and the judgement aside My top tip is to leave the judgement and expectation off the mat, and step into your practice with an open, curious, beginners mind. Enjoying the full physical embodiment needed to figure out a new body position, all the while being supported by conscious breath. Don't worry if you find it hard. Just this attitude of simply having a go, no matter the fruit of the effort, takes practice. Step beyond your comfort zone Postures like this can take us beyond our comfortable practice. We want both in our yoga, comfortable ease and also challenge, in equal measure. We want the comfortable, nourishing movements and breath to support and sustain us, ground us and rebalance where needed. But also invite along stimulating and curious aspects, revitalising our inner adventurer and challenging our pre-conceptions and habits. You can't think your way there You can't think your way into this. You need to become more aware and present of all the forces at play physically, mentally and emotionally, while embracing the challenge at all levels. Surprise yourself Keep trying new things - it is a valuable art that shouldn't be lost. And remember to look on the bright side - it doesn't matter if you manage it or not. If you can just do it physically, then the focus needs to shift to what your breath is doing. There is plenty to develop here which may be exactly what you need. Ask me if your not sure what I mean - the transformative power of breath could revolutionise your practice. And if you find it hard, there will be the reward of simply keeping on showing up and having a go and going beyond what you thought you could do. Let's do something that will surprise you.  This past weekend was our wonderful yoga retreat. We arrived with bright sunshine and were welcomed with heaps of elegance and charm and a fabulous country house and garden, and were greeted with freshly baked cake adorned with rose petals from the garden. Inspired by tortoises We stepped into the slow pace of life and enjoyed the roaming tortoises in the huge walled vegetable garden living their best life. There were fields of buttercups up the lane, sheep grazing down the lane, and very relaxed owners who indulged us with homemade cakes, fabulous vegetarian food, homemade apple juice and ice cream, all served on antique crockery.  Their slow-paced lifestyle and attitude was such a gift in helping us all to land and wind down. It was well deserved We were beautifully spoiled which was delightful and well deserved. We all had our own reasons for coming. Some of us needed some downtime from stress, some in need of space and time, healing, deep rest, others sought comtemplative time, to address aches and pains, or to have an experience of yoga that is beyond what we normally have time and space for.  Find your rhythm The yoga room was sunny and warm with character-filled paintings overseeing our practice and the gently ticking clock keeping rhythm for us. A rhythm that we all benefitted from tuning into and aligning with as we stepped out of the busy demands of our everyday lives.  Deeper dive into yoga experience We explored wonderful yoga practice. Morning yoga to energise and set us up for the day, evening meditations, and afternoon restorative sessions. Plus a workshop on Saturday where everyone came with their own curiosity, questions and we took a deep dive into new areas of yoga that were waiting to be discovered. Did you even know that tweaking 'how' we breath can have such a profound effect what we get from a yoga practice? Space for everyone Some took a lie down in the field of buttercups during a country walk, a swing on a tyre, a swim in the river, and there was lots of lounging around on the lawns or on the veranda with a good book.  Here are a few wonderful comments from the weekend: "Lovely environment and food, felt cared for and comfortable and so peaceful. Gorgeous." "The house and room are beautiful. Food delicious!" "Truly lovely and special." "Great to be able to explore things I've wondered about for years." "I feel inspired to learn more and carry on the journey." "Everything was offered gently ... and I tried different things I thought I couldn't do" "My back stopped hurting on day 1 and my cushion was no longer needed!" "10/10" I run yoga retreats regularly so please do join me on the next one as it is such a wonderful, valuable and fruitful way to spend a weekend.  I have one jumper drawer and it's full. If I get another jumper, it simply won't fit in unless I cram it down. Every time I get a new jumper, I have to get rid of an old one. It is a fair exchange so that I don't overflow into other spaces.
Ever heard of Marie Kondo? She has recently inspired the art of letting go of things that you don't love anymore so that you have space for things that you do. She applies this philosophy to your home, to decluttering and getting rid of the things that you don't use or love. This philosophy applies to how you spend your time as well. It's life-maths Whenever your trying to fit in something new that you want to do, and that you know will serve you well and be good for you, and that you will love - then something else has got to go. Avoid cramming, rushing and squeezing things in. It's life-maths. We have a finite amount of time. We can't just cram more and more in. With every addition there has to be a subtraction. What are you willing to give up, so that you can make space for something better. Make time. Make space. For your Yoga. Keep it simple. Show up. Let go of something less important. I have yet to meet someone who regretted making the time to get on their mat and make themselves feel great. Enjoy.  When I started out with yoga I was in my late 20s with an exciting career and crazy-busy life. I was having fun and there was opportunity and potential all around. However, I was also going through a divorce, working long hours and knew that stress was my default mode.
I thought I was pretty healthy and fit (ish), ate a 'not awful' diet, and seemed to be getting away with what I was demanding of my body and mind. So what's the problem? Why change? A few clues started to show themselves that this wasn't sustainable. Crashing flu and colds every now and again, irritable moods, and a feeling of dissatisfaction even though things seemed to be going well. Do your yoga A friend suggested yoga to me. So I bought a VHS cassette and went home and did it. 20 minutes, short and pretty easy. And it was an absolute revelation. It felt great. I felt great, and more than that, I felt grounded and more vital. I was able to land for a moment in the midst of the whirlwind of my life, and look around and see more clearly what was going on. I already had a movement practice of morning stretches that I had kept up since my dance training. And I had begun a meditation practice to help with stress and the underlying feeling of dissatisfaction. Yoga simply and perfectly bought the two together. I did it every day. I would get up early to fit it in. The 20 minute video became so familiar that I could do it on my own when I was travelling and know more or less what to do. And it kept bringing me back to my centre, to the ground beneath me, and a place of solidity in the midst of a busy, crazy life. What brings you back to your centre, everyday? Everyone needs something to bring them back to their centre. What is it for you? And if you haven't found this yet, then what are you waiting for? Life gets better, right away. You enjoy everything more, immediately. You are more able to ride the highs and lows and aches and pains of life with more grace and less frustration. And you connect to what is truly important to you. Live from your centre Living from a place of feeling grounded in your centre instead of being buffetted around by life is well worth making the time for. And has never felt more needed in this rather chaotic world we live in.  The sounds of that day are still vivid. And for months afterwards I couldn't hear anything even close to them without being transported right back to a frightening experience I once went through. It is over 20 years ago now, and while my reaction is much more neutral than it was, I can still feel it.
Many more sounds have wonderful and positive associations, and some are utterly delightful. Certain music, bird song, beloved voices, laughter, the sizzling of delicious food. Sound can be jarring, soothing, rhythmic, regulating, informative, stimulating, annoying, inflaming, desirable or undesirable... or absent. There is always something to hear when you tune in. Sometimes we might notice the silence. The gaps between the sounds. We've worked with sound as a theme this term. The sounds of our breathing, the environment, our bodies, the chiming of the singing bowl. Sound can help us stay very present and connected to the immediacy of the moment, and at the same time, enable us to be aware of our relationship to it. We can find clues to our state of mind, to our mood or the level of relaxation or agitation of our nervous system. Sounds can also help us notice the silence that is always around us that we overlook as we travel through our day. Pockets of quiet, here and there, constantly coming and going. Noticing the silence is just as valuable as noticing the sounds. Noticing the gaps between sounds, the gaps between our thoughts. We overlook the silence and gravitate towards the noise. We fill the gaps with more sound in case it feels uncomfortable. But being aware of these silent moments can be a useful practice, and can help us find a more grounded space within. Beneath our reactivity and before being taken over by our thoughts and memories, there remains an ever-present, quiet stillness that we can get connected to. The practices of yoga help with this. We might glimpse it from time to time at first. Feel a sense of ease and openness, a quietening of reactions and mental noise, getting used to quiet moments, even though at first they are outside of our comfort zone. The art of yoga is to keep re-connecting to your own, internal quiet space. At first in a controlled environment, like our lovely quiet yoga studio. But eventually we can connect to this quiet space, no matter what sounds are arising and no matter where we are. Cultivate your own stable, quiet harbour deep within, even when life gets noisy.  After class recently, I've had a couple of conversations about the quality of sleep after yoga.
Usually sleep is great and notably improved after taking yoga practice, even if the session was earlier in the day. If you are taking yoga once or twice a week, then those are often the best sleeps of the week. And if you practice daily, then the general trajectory of sleep is hugely improved. But one student noted that their sleep hadn't been as good as usual after yoga and we dug a little deeper. We talked through her practice and there were two suggestions that she took on board, and I'm happy to say that her sleep is back on track. If ever you aren't sleeping really well after your evening yoga, consider these tweaks to help improve things: Posture choice 1) Reduce the amount of downward facing dog or staying down in forward bends after 7pm. This isn't a rule, but these are quite a stimulating poses which when you are getting into the wind-down part of the evening can be helpful to reduce. So if your sleep is struggling use a more gentle, flowing visit to the poses rather than staying and holding the pose. Or even going half way in rather than the full pose can be better. Experiment and see what you can tolerate and what is helpful. More is not always better. Breathing 2) Notice if you are holding your breath during yoga We are aiming to free up our breath and improve how well it flows in harmony with our body. There are often patterns that I observe in students breathing and posture, where things are a little stuck, or there is a tension pattern observable in the chest or in the depth of the breath. The ocean breathing (Ujjayi) is great at helping us discover and improve these patterns. The smooth sound, or lack thereof, can be a great reference point to help us understand and improve our breathing habits. Holding the breath, particularly after the inhale, is contraindicated if you are struggling with sleep or anxiety and observing that they are showing up in your practice is the first step to improvements. It takes a little practice to get the hang of but it is well worth prioritising. The research There's heaps of research that shows us that sleep is a primary pillar of health and wellbeing, and there are lots of resources and supports out there to help clean up your sleep patterns and help optimise sleep. Try this one for starters if you are interested: https://www.hubermanlab.com/newsletter/toolkit-for-sleep Other suggestions If you know you are going to be on a limited supply of sleep for a while, perhaps as a new parent or for lifestyle reasons, then the skills of yoga are invaluable. 1) Avoid overthinking about the quality or quantity of your sleep. Cultivate being more accepting that this is how life is right now and resolve to make the best of what you have, rather than dwelling on what you don't have. Check your attitude towards it and resolve to not let things you can't control take up too much of your headspace. 2) Take a lying relaxation or yoga nidra practice which can be deeply restorative if you find your sleep windows are too sporadic. YogaSpace members: use the short-practices in the library Remember that in the short-practice video library there are gentle practices from only a few minutes and also a couple of yoga nidra videos to help guide you and support you with this. Yoga is great for your sleep It will be notably improved if you are practicing regularly. However if that isn't the case, then these suggestions or a chat with me can help understand areas to tweak your practice to be more helpful.  Have you noticed the paradox in yoga practice?
A) Be present On the one hand, we are invited to be fully present. To pay full and vibrant attention to every aspect of the moment that we are in. Notice and experience each breath as it happens, the sensations in the body, the feeling of each posture, the placement of the feet, the thoughts going on around all of this. Not thinking ahead to where we are going. This helps us feel more alive in the rest of our day as we stay grounded in what is actually happening, rather than leaping ahead to all the other things coming our way. B) Improve and change On the other hand, we are working on ourselves. Hoping and aiming to make improvements and changes. Improve our posture, our breath, our focus, our tense and tight areas and feel stronger, healthier, more mobile and less achy, more alert and energised, to feel calm and steady, grounded and serene. We are doing both Simultaneously we are being in this moment, and becoming something more. We are improving and developing for future health and wellbeing. Plus we are full immersing ourselves in the moment as it unfolds. And cultivating our awareness to all of this. There is no contradition Yoga invites us to be fully immersed in the practice. To let go of the goals and aims for a moment and realise the potential of the place that you discover you are already in. The practices also do the future work that you are hoping to achieve. The postures, the breath, the flow, the ease and stretch are there to serve you. You simply enter into your yoga, do the exercises and techniques sensibly, and watch it all unfold. It isn't as effortful as it sounds. Sometimes less is more - allow the posture to do the work, let go of struggling or pushing and just be in it fully. You just need to show up The effort may well be showing up in the first place. That much you do have to do. A bit like spring time, where we find ourselves now. A magical unfolding of buds, flowers, lambs and all things gorgeous. You can't rush it. You show up to it and be in it and reap the rewards of its beauty and potential. (The above photo is from last year's retreat in Somerset. A gorgeous toddler staggering happily after a cute pet lamb in fabulous countryside followed by a fluffy puppy. Seriously, you can't make this stuff up.)  When I first bought my puppy home, in the car journey she was distraught and anxious. She was in a cardboard box and jumping up, whining, sniffing around, and very agitated. Then all of a sudden, she collapsed in a heap and didn't move.
Oh no! Is she still breathing? I checked and looked, and it turns out she had exhausted herself and fallen into instant sleep. No pre-amble, no sniffing around, no time for landing comfortably, no settling into just the right spot. She stopped exactly where she was and stayed there for about half an hour. In hindsight, it's funny. At the time I thought we'd lost her. Savasana Savasana, the lying rest pose in yoga, rather unromantically translates from Sanskrit into 'corpse' posture. A cessation of movement. A resting from all effort. A stopping of 'doing'. Pausing into an awareness of simply 'being'. Over time we learn to be fully present in an otherwise resting body, and then notice all that remains when you land there. Tune in Perhaps you can tune into subtle sensations of your heartbeat, your breath, and the open presence and aliveness that we can sense more deeply when we are still. It is often a hard posture to get the hang of and a stark contrast to the rest of our lives. It isn't sleep. It isn't Yoga Nidra which is another practice again, even though from the outside they look similar. Pause & be curious It is a pause from being busy and fidgeting, from being lost in thought, from reacting to impulses to adjust our hair or our clothing. We are letting our nervous systems relax and rest, along with our limbs, and our tensions. Be curious next time you are invited to Savasana about what it translates into for you. It is nothing like what my puppy did. That was a scarily abrupt. But on the other end of the spectrum, sometimes the process to get ready for the pose takes longer than the pose itself. Donning socks, jumpers, blankets, having a drink, adjusting hair, getting 'nested'. How much comfort is enough? A level of comfort is helpful for the body to relax. And sometimes if we are feeling anxious or agitated, these preparations are as close as we get. They are important ways to sooth and care for ourselves, and allow us to feel able to approach the pose. This is all part of the process of our yoga which over time, if our practice is working for us, get easier. If it is a 10 minute Savasana then more comfort can be helpful. But lying in mild discomfort can bear its own fruit too. A curious openness to how reactive often are. And how deliciously freeing it can feel when we discover that we can let go of all of that. We can even start to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, which is one of the many gifts yoga can offer us. Build tolerance & patience Savasana is one of those precious poses that we gradually get used to, and build up our tolerance to. We can't rush this process. But we could sleep through it. Be patient and curious along the way.  Most common reason to skip yoga
Jobs, family, clubs, caring responsibilities, life admin, and then recovering from it all. By far the most common reason not to make it to your yoga practice is that you're too busy. When the survey results came in (thanks for replying!) this was by far the most common reason for not getting to your mat. Being busy won't change I know friends who have retired only to say that they don't know how they managed to find time to fit in a job. If we have any free time, we fill it with something. There is always so much to do and we enjoy being busy and don't like to say no to things. How many times in the last year have you been too busy to clean your teeth? To take a shower? Put petrol in your car? Name / insert any important self-care thing in here ___________ Looking after body and mind, and regularly connecting to yourself in a meaningful way (which is essential to connect well with others) is in the same important category as all the other things you think of as important. It is essential maintenance, not a luxury. However it might be the first thing to stop when we feel squeezed unless it is prioritised. Even 10 minutes, when pushed for time, is well worth showing up for. And if you are anything like me, then you probably lost at least 10 minutes to your phone today. Let's prioritise the important stuff. 3 top tips 1) Schedule it in Book important things (like yoga) into your week, in advance, and commit. Term bookings and memberships help you show up even when your feeling squeezed. 2) Have a buddy Tell someone you plan to do it, then ask them to follow up with you, or even better, do it with a friend while you build the habit. Keep yourself accountable. 3) Realise that... this is it There is no time in the future when you will have more time. Realise that it is now. Say no to less important things and do what will actually make a difference. Everyone is busy, hopefully with mostly good things. Let's prioritise our self care of body and mind, and nurture a deeper connection with ourselves. Everything and everyone, including you, will benefit as a result. Try a little home practice (use these free yoga videos) if getting to the studio doesn't work for you at the moment. And enjoy.  It's better than you think
My teenage son's room is a bombsite. This afternoon he freaked out when he couldn't find his club uniform. I got both barrels of his temper - apparently it was my fault. It wasn't an ideal episode in my afternoon. But it resolved itself eventually, and as suspected, it was in amongst the debris in his room and with a little help he got things back on track. I don't always, but today I helped him navigate it and managed to hold my patience and good grace, even in the face of a teenage tantrum. I'm attributing my greater abundance of patience directly to my yoga practice - particularly with what we have been threading through the classes this week. Gratitude The intentional turning of our minds towards things that are good in our lives, looking for the blessings in amongst the problems and challenges. Even when on the receiving end of both barrels, I found it easy to be grateful for him caring about his uniform enough to get upset, and being healthy enough to express it so energetically. Sure, his expression needs finessing, but I'm so grateful that he is going to his club tonight and wants to look smart. Simple but powerful The simple but powerful act of bringing to mind the good stuff in your life for a moment or two is well worth cultivating. It might seem trite, it might seem like you're deliberately ignoring the bad stuff and being overly hopeful, but it really works. Most of us go easily towards what is negative in a situation, most of the time. Our inner critic takes over, we problem solve things that might best be left to work themselves out in their own time. We worry rather than allow patience to take the lead. Find the joy Looking for problems and solving them is natural and helpful, and makes us more successful at navigating life. However, being overly involved in the problematic aspects of our life contributes to high stress levels, low mood, and most importantly, overlooks the abundant joy that life has to offer. If you take the time to look, you might be surprised to realise that much of life is going great. Or at least fine. No-one's is perfect. But overlooking the blessings and good stuff is so easy to do. Try it Right now, there are far more things going right for you than are going wrong. It is up to you to name a few... before they go unnoticed. When you pause and take the time to count your many blessings, you'll find that they are in abundance, and all around you. This simple act of naming a few things that you are grateful for, done regularly, is a powerful practice. Spend a moment the next time you step on your mat and do this. Make it a habit of doing it daily at the start of your practice. Stick up a post-it note so you don't forget. And before you know it, it'll come much more naturally and easily, even in the midst of a challenge. You're welcome.  10 minutes of yoga every day sounds like hardly anything. What difference will it make?
My 3-week home yoga challenge starts on 1st January, you'll know what I'm talking about after only 1-week. You'll feel better, more grounded, more mobile, stronger, and more resilient. There is still time to join in if you haven't already registered, just send over your name in the registration form by the end of 2024! Jumpstart your home yoga practice with my free short home practice video series. Enjoy! Register Here before 2025 >  This week has been another doozy with chaotic, moody teens.
My job: to stay calm and not lose it, and help them navigate the ups and downs of where they are. I have mostly succeeded, which means I've lost it a couple of times. Ahem. Not proud. But I think I would have lost it many more times, and for a lot longer, if I hadn't started my day with my full quota of yoga. I knew I would need it. I knew the day could be much rockier had I not stepped on to my mat early, before they woke up, to do my practice. Yoga can be multi-layered and multi-purpose. It keeps us strong and fresh, grounded and feeling our best. It brings a calmer perspective and a more clear view. And it resets and helps regulate and rebalance emotions, mental turbulence, stored stress and an over-wired nervous system. And it enables us to connect to an inner spaciousness, even when experiencing challenging times. There is still a space where we are fine, even amidst chaos. Think you don't need this over the holiday season? We all do. We all have our own means to do this for ourselves, and in turn to help those around us. Keep up your daily practice, whatever it is, even when life is busy (especially if life is busy). I can highly recommend yoga.  I had a wonderful week away on the Mediterranean coast and the lemons in the picture above (yes, green lemons!) were fresh from the grove behind the apartment.
I had forgotten how a week of sunshine, sea and an abundance of fresh lemons can be truly restorative and the memory of it is still with me to drop in to when the grey skies aren't uplifting. My daily yoga was on the roof terrace in the glow of the morning sunrise overlooking the bay. The terracotta tiles were cold but the warmth of the sun was fabulous. But of course, there are still flies and bugs, and the idyllic bay still offers up the chug of boat engines. Even in paradise there are things to take issue with, if you want to. Yoga in a beautiful environment Our yoga practice doesn't need to be in a beautiful and inspiring environment (although it is wonderful!). The end of the bed, the corner of the studio, tuning in to a few breaths at our desk with a taller spine - it all counts. Eyes closed and tune in - it doesn't matter where you are. Enjoy each moment - get inspired by Chris Hoy I was listening to the cyclist Chris Hoy on the radio this morning and he summed this up brilliantly. As you might know, he has recently announced a very challenging health diagnosis. Yet he has learned to take inspiration from it. Whereas before he might get stuck waiting for a delayed plane and be frustrated and get annoyed. Now when he gets stuck waiting for a plane, he turns to enjoying the moment. He gets to notice and fully appreciate the day that he has been gifted, instead of just moving through it. He has time to experience the breath in the body, the friendly people around him, the book that he doesn't get to read enough, the health that he has while it lasts. Time is limited When you are facing how limited your time is, it helps you stay focused to attending to each moment more and make the most of it. When we don't face a challenging diagnosis we still have that option to bring this same attitude of appreciation, gratitude and enjoyment to our moments, even the challenging ones. Our surroundings ultimately aren't as influential as we think they are. We can all wake up to the moment we are in and enjoy it more fully. We can choose to let go of worrying about what might happen. We can let go of dwelling on that troublesome thing from a recent memory. We practice this on the yoga mat, focusing in on what is actually going on in the body and breath, without the extra thoughts layered over about past and future. Moving and breathing We stand on our mat. We breath and feel the body. We move and start to come out of our heads and pay attention to what we find. The movements help us settle into steadier breaths and release our tense shoulders and backs. We rebalance physically, mentally and emotionally, and find ourselves loosening our knots and becoming more connected to ourselves. We let go of the small stuff and rediscover that this moment, that we are in right now, this body and breath, is good. Sunshine or not. Enjoy it.  This term of classes has flown by. Kids and those who work in education have been hard at it for 8 weeks and next week is half term. We've also done a lot with our yoga practice over the last 8 weeks. It is good to reflect on what we have been doing.
Each term always has challenges and discoveries to explore and new ways to help you feel more established in your practice. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned practitioner. This term has built strength, technique, stability, insight and depth. Getting familiar with the posture set and breath, which in turn helps our focus and clarity of mind to become more tranquil. Physical development At one level, the poses have progressed to become either more adaptive or more demanding, and more precise as we get to grips with what we are doing. This term we have strengthened our backs, knees, core and hips in particular. At the start of term, each of us had to discover what was possible as a starting point. Gradually strength and stability are embodied and you to start to feel more spacious and confident in your practice (and throughout the rest of your day). Thank you for bearing with the challenge of locust pose over so many weeks! No-one's favourite I suspect. But it will have left us all with stronger posture and breath, and at less risk of injury going forwards. Hurrah and well done! Breath development At another level, our breath has developed. The exhalation has been encouraged to lengthen and become smoother, which in turn will calm the mind and nervous system. We've learnt a wonderful balancing pranayama technique and spent several weeks becoming more proficient. I often go to classes where pranayama is sprinkled in without much introduction and the technique and refinement leaves you hoping for the best. Once learned properly, the 'deer' hand mudra needed, the quality of inhale and exhale, and familiarity with the pattern alllow you to settle into a much more subtle practice. You need to get past the initial 'this is curious' stage of trying things, to allow these ancient techniques to become subtle, absorbing and thereby more effective at the rebalance, clarity and calm they can invoke. Calm, spacious presence We've all felt it. We can't really put a name to it. That wonderful quality that arises in moments during our practice, or at the end when we sit or lie down, or as we go back into the rest of our day feeling lighter and more open. What we cultivate during our practice is a connection to a quiet, calm space that is ever-present within us but that gets cluttered over by the day-to-day 'stuff'. This regular reconnection appreciates over time. It becomes easier to be calm and present, on and off the mat. It gradually gets to be our default setting as we go about our day. And ultimately helps us feel better about ourselves, our lives and cope with whatever comes our way. I hope you have enjoyed this term. As you know, each class is stand-alone too, but taken over the weeks you have experienced the progress and depth that can develop. As always, come and chat about anything that you find confusing. As teachers we are all here to help guide you towards the benefits, and help you overcome the obstacles that we all encounter along the way.  Last weekend I was an attendee at an inspiring weekend retreat of yoga and rest. Time away from day-to-day life to immerse myself in my practice, and to reconnect to the ancient wisdom underpinning it.
Ancient Wisdom The lead teacher was Sriram who rather impressively has been teaching yoga since 1977. He has encyclopaedic knowledge of the Yoga Sutra, and great insights into practice and philosophy, plus incredible stamina! The Yoga Sutra is an ancient wisdom text and is the foundation of what I teach in yoga classes. We study it, chant it, understand as many of the rich teachings as possible and embody them in our mat practice to help bring them into everyday life. They are as relevant now as they were 2,000 years ago. Sriram's sessions were lively and had me attempting things that were seemingly impossible. I say seemingly impossible because he is in his 70s and managed to do things that I simply couldn't get close to. He wasn't showing off. He sort of expected us to be able to do some things, and then adjusted it to be more accessible when he realised we couldn't. Apparently it all starts by playing Kabaddi as a kid. There is always something you can do Whether you have limited energy or mobility or come to yoga much later in life which many of us do. The practice will always meet us where we are and works its magic when we keep showing up to our practice consistently over time. Find the right starting point and benefit from there. Our mat practice embodies a profound philosophy to bring us to a place of greater contentment with life, no matter what our hamstrings, knees or or state of physical health are up to. It brings us to a place of greater equanimity, that lovely calm glow at the end of class, where our life-challenges don't feel as daunting. My kids remind me of this every day at the moment, and my yoga practice shows up not just on my mat each morning, but in my mindset, my relative equanimity, and my open heart in the face of teenage angst and tantrums. As I'm sure some of you know, parenting can mean holding a tough line sometimes, as long as it is done with clear intentions held with a loving heart. Both of which I cultivate on my mat each morning as I move and breathe. Yoga is transformative If you find yourself with struggles in your life in any form, a yoga practice or class can help you transform how you feel about them and how you handle them. The strength, confidence, equanimity and clarity born out of a regular practice aren't there to simply make you feel good. Even though they do. They are there to help you show up each day in the best way you can.  My family life with a teenage tearaway is hovering around Def Con 3. It can get pretty intense at times, but I'm riding the storm, parenting as best I know, and of course, am safe in the knowledge that it is only a 'phase' and will pass. Brilliantly though, this coming weekend I'm away immersing myself in yoga, handing over the reins to my partner. Every year me and about 100 other yoga teachers get together and share yoga workshops, practices, enjoy good company and good food. Early morning practices, in depth teachings, chanting together and enjoying the expertise and wisdom of some of the most senior teachers sharing yoga in the world today. Even the granddaughter of Krishnamacharya (the forefather of modern yoga), daughter of TKV Desikachar, is Zooming in to share yoga with us. Should I go? Absolutely. It's important. By committing to this time away, I'll return able to be a better parent / friend / spouse / person. I'm making time for myself to reconnect deeply to the yoga practice that sustains me every day and that I share with those around me. This weekend will help me show up for my son in the way that I need to, with patience and love while also holding firm boundaries and accountability. On a smaller scale, day-to-day, week-to-week, we are always faced with distractions interrupting our best-placed intentions to get to our yoga mat. Family demands, work emergencies, dark and rainy evenings, tiredness, etc. The list of potential hazzards on the way to our mat is long. Important or Urgent When I used to work in business, we used the Eisenhower Matrix. You took your To-Do list, and placed everything into a grid of four boxes. Each box has a title along the axis: Urgent, Important, Non-important, Not-urgent. Everything in the Important and Urgent box is prioritised to the top of what you need to do. It helps you weed out the Urgent stuff, the stuff that feels really pressing, but actually might not be as Important. It helps you prioritise wisely so that you ensure the Important things are attended to.  Yoga lands firmly in the Important box. Sometimes the Urgent stuff isn't as important and has to wait. Sometimes we leave getting to our mat until it is Urgent, instead of just Important. We wait until a health crisis, a burnout, anxiety overload, back pain, immobility, before we decide the time is right to get to yoga. Don't wait until it is Urgent Treat your yoga practice as Important now, don't wait until you have an Urgent health crisis. Yoga, alongside good sleep and nutrition are our foundation. They support us in our daily life so that literally everything feels easier and less urgent. And it even helps you enjoy the turmoil along the way.  Do you collapse in a heap at the end of the day?
Do any of these sound right: 1) If our yoga feels hard, then we must be getting more benefit. 2) If it feels easy, then it can't be 'doing' anything. 3) If we invest more in something, it has to pay us back with what we want. More effort = better results. Let's think again. There is a false belief that if we do something that is hard, or do more of it, it will give us better results. Of course this can't be true. If eat chocolate, it might feel good at first. If I keep on eating lots and lots of chocolate, my mood won't continue to feel better and better and better. I will get to a point where my body will grumble and I'll feel horrible. The amount of time and effort we put into something needs to be just right, and the way to tell is often subtle. We are used to listening to our heads, not our bodies or more subtle sensations or energetic cues. Our willpower often determines our level of effort. We override everything else. We do the hard stuff, enjoy the buzz, and carry on. Even though we may be increasing our stress levels, not noticing that we have become accustomed to struggling through our days and collapsing in a heap at the end. Yoga practice can become that quieter place where things become easier to listen to. We learn to attend to the subtle cues in the body, in the breath and in how grounded we feel. We start to notice that we are rushing, or pushing into a pose, or struggling to breathe well instead of inviting a full unfolding of ease and stability in each pose, and in each breath. Of course, at first this may feel elusive or even impossible but once established in your practice, sensitivity increases. Yoga helps us move and breathe better, to become more aware of ourselves, our habits, our blind spots and helps us work with ourselves in a much more skillful way. We learn to listen with openness, care and attention. And listening in this way is definitely a skill worth cultivating. Ultimately it can help unfold a new dimension of relationship to ourselves, and to those around us. And help us avoid the need to collapse in a heap at the end of each day. ___ |
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