by Jasmine | Nov 18, 2013 | Yoga Health
Guest Post By Mike Manning
The holiday season brings joy, love and togetherness each year, along with stress, anger and a limited sense of personal space. The negative emotions can be made more intense when there is family visiting or tension between friends. Yoga can be an effective tool against the more challenging situations that arise at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The most important step is to set aside time each day for meditation and yoga. Doing so keeps the mind and spirit centered during a hectic holiday schedule. For some, engaging in yoga first thing in the morning helps to get the day off to a relaxed start. For others, it may happen while children are napping or when everyone else in the house is otherwise engaged.
It can be helpful to write out feelings in a journal before beginning the meditation, as this will relieve emotional stress. Listening to soothing music in a candlelit environment will aid in calming and centering the spirit. Using balanced breathing, which involves inhaling through one nostril while exhaling through the other, prepares the body for yoga poses.
One simple pose that can be done nearly anywhere is legs on the wall, or Inverted Action. This is done by placing the legs against the wall, with a pillow or other type of support under the hips. The arms are relaxed and placed at the sides. This pose is about simply letting go and resisting the urge to check a smartphone or be in a hurry to go somewhere else. Five minutes in this position can bring much inner calm.
While gift-giving can be a challenge in both cost and pleasing the recipient, making gifts very personal can be rewarding in terms of showing gratefulness. Taking the time to choose gifts that suit the personality and essence of each individual can remove much of the tension associated with the holidays.
Another way to avoid inner turmoil is to not overeat at Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas get-togethers where there is often unhealthy fare. Placing the digestive system under stress will upset the body’s balance, disrupting sleep patterns and emotional reactions. While yoga can help keep these issues in check, it is best to not eat more than necessary.
The holiday season is mainly about giving to others, but it should also be about giving to oneself. Yoga and meditation can do much to keep a person in balance and allow for a joyful, happy holiday season.
by Jasmine | Nov 8, 2013 | Beginner Yoga, Meditation, Weight loss, Yoga DVDs, & Podcasts, Yoga Health, Yoga Teacher training
Yoga for Vampires – DVD Reviews… Ones you can practice at home, whenever…..
Here are some of my personal favorites. I have always been drawn to ones that work on developing a pretty six-pack, just so you know my bias. Also ones that are about 30 minutes long I usually like also. Here are my favorite Yoga DVD Reviews.
Mark Blanchard – Power Yoga. He is a Yogi to many celebs, including Andy Garcia among others. It is an intense work-out and many of the poses are not accessible to beginners or to those that are not very flexible or have a lot of upper body strength. If you do this on a regular basis you will get that sculpted, toned look. I think it is 90 minutes. His language is very inspiring. This is a great one for those that have a foundation of yoga and are up for a challenging practice.
Ten Zen Tummy Toners – Rodney Yee and Cameron Shayne. These are actually two 25 minute workouts, that you can combine or do separately, I actually bought this because I am a Rodney Yee fan but have ended up doing the Cameron Shayne workout more only because my knees have been hurting lately and the Rodney Yee one was making my knees ache more.
Shiva Rea – Creative Core Abs. I love the music and drumming in this and it is filmed with the dramatic backdrop of the desert. Her language is very beautiful too. It’s only 34 minutes. She does go a bit fast for beginners so this is probably better suited to at least intermediate or advanced level yogis since the poses are not always explained slowly. You do get the toned, sculpted look if you do this a few times a week on a consistent basis.
Yin Yoga – Paul Grilley. Yin Yoga is a very meditative, slow, patient practice. It’s almost like a meditation in slow motion. You’re not building up core strength in this kind of practice. Yin Yoga is great to do when you need to just take the edge off and want to have a deep inner experience. He is great at explaining anatomy and the benefits a quieter practice. He offers lots of modifications as well, which is not something most yoga DVDs offer. This is great value since you get 3 DVDs for a reasonable price. There is also an instructional part where he is just explaining the theory of Yin Yoga, which is great for Yoga Teachers. This would be a great one for beginners, inflexible or people that just feel really stiff.
Creative Yoga – Claire Diab. This is a great one for beginners and those with less flexibility. She does a great job of slowly and simply explaining the poses and offering modifications. She also has two segments on here that you can combine for a nice long juicy practice or a shorter one you can squeeze into your schedule. I used to do this one with my mom, who is not a regular yoga practitioner but finds all the yoga poses are accessible to her.
Yoga Music Reviews- Top 10 CDs I play in Class
by Jasmine | Aug 13, 2013 | Vegetables, Yoga Health
Guest Post by Paige Forster
Image credit: Wikimedia
In the contemporary world, the internet has greatly influenced how businesses are conducted. Online shopping has become so favorable to people across the world. People were just used to buying products such as clothes, electronics, shoes and furniture on the internet but the good news is that today you can also buy vegetables online.
So, if you have not tried buying vegetables online read along to see 7 reasons that can influence you to buy vegetables online.
Convenient
This is one of the major reasons that should draw you to buying vegetables online. Today, people are living fast-paced lives because they have multiple tasks to do in order to put food on the table and they hardly have enough time to go shopping for groceries. Online shopping is very convenient since you can shop at the comfort of your home or office without necessarily altering your busy schedule. In addition, you can shop any time you want because the online stores are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You do not have to worry that the grocery store will be closed before you do your shopping. This gives you peace to carry on with your normal chores and do the shopping later even if it is at the middle of the night.
Wide Variety
Online grocery stores provide a wide range of vegetables that you can order. This is to cater for various tastes and preferences of individuals from various parts of the world. There is a plethora of vegetables you can buy without moving from one place to another to analyze what various vendors are offering the market. With online shopping, you can compare prices as well as products within few minutes by just browsing through various sites. This gives you the opportunity to purchase the best products at the best prices.
Home Delivery
When you buy your vegetables online, the vendor will ensure that the goods are delivered to your doorstep. This enables you to save gas, time as well as effort of having to go to a local shop to buy the vegetables and carry them home.
Flexibility
Because online stores are open around the clock, you have the flexibility of buying the vegetables whenever you want. This provides you ample time to do other important things at peace. Online shopping enables you to choose what you want and more so be delivered at your home seamless and hassle free.
Saves Time and Money
Shopping online for vegetables saves you considerable amount of time as well as money. First, you save money because you do not have to use fuel to go to your local grocery store to do your shopping. In addition, online grocery stores such as Charlies Fruit Online give their clients discounts from time to time. You can take advantage of such offers to save several dollars in your purchase. On the other hand, you save time because you can easily get what you want. As long as you have a list of the types of vegetables you want, you will just type on search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo and you will get sites that match your requirements.
Information and Reviews
When you are shopping online, you have an opportunity to have a look at what other customers are saying about a particular product or a certain vendor before you can commit your hard earned cash in the purchase. This enables you to make a sound and informed decision. If an online vegetable store has numerous bad reviews then it is a red flag that all is not well. It will be appropriate to look for other alternatives so that you might not end up losing your money to unscrupulous vendors.
No Hurry
If you are not sure of the types of vegetables you want to buy, you can take your sweet time browsing various online stores since the stores do not close. You will not feel pressured or rushed to commit in purchasing a product. In addition, you have ample time to compare what various vendors are offering in terms of quality and price to settle for the best deal.
There is a plethora of benefits that accrue from shopping vegetables online. Discussed above are some of the reasons and it is crystal clear that it saves you ample time and money as well as it is very effective and efficient.
Guest Post by Paige Forster
Paige Forster is a professional writer. In addition, he works in one of the most established grocery online store, Charlies Fruit Online. He also contributes in some of the popular marketing companies on the internet.
by Jasmine | Nov 2, 2012 | Spirituality, Stuff I like, Yoga Health
Top Yoga Blogs
Top Posts of the Week in the YogaWorld
Yogadork.com satisfies two needs of mine… the need to keep on what is fresh in ooooming-land and juicy tidbits about high profile yoga figure and pop culture celebs and yoga……. kind of like Yogajournal meet People magazine. She also wrote a very introspective and heartfelt peace about the impact of Hurricane Sandy. This is a fun yoga-centric blog to follow.
When Jelly Donut & Daveed Diggs are the only dudes in a class of beautiful yoga girls, they rise to the occasion. Get it? Warning – this is NOT appropriate for work so if you are at your desk or in church then watch this later. Another warning – spontaneous gaffaws likely as a result of watching this video. For those of you that take your yoga seriously and are easily offended, don’t watch. (I guess now that I have put on these don’t watch warning, y’all just have to see it now, huh?)
Elephant Journal is another progressive but non-new-agey blog with a variety of topics. Erin explores how to connect with the ether of the universe without the teacher or other students bugging her. Savasana is such a previous time… it feels like graduation since you work so hard to do your practice, make sacrifices to just get to your mat and then you have the most lovely float-y feeling when you finally get to this part. As the teacher, I strongly encourage eye pillows or at least eye coverings and I also offer to spray aromatherapy on my students’s feet ( they let me know by just putting a hand on their belly). I actually have the polar opposite needs as Erin though…. I used to love it when the teacher came by (only in the beginning of Savasana) and adjusted my shoulders and put a drop of lavender oil on my feet. It’s pretty rare that teachers do this. I think when I was single and not dating in New York, I literally did not have physical human contact for days at a time and I just craved the innocent non-sexual touch of another person…. ok…. maybe I have overshared but that is why I have a different preference than Erin.
What are your favorite yoga blogs for the week?
Staying as impartial as I can on my blog ( my personal Facebook page is another thing…), it’s time to use your voice at the polling station. Can you imagine if everyone thought their vote didn’t count? If your vote doesn’t count, then whose does? You’re never too small too matter… just ask someone sleeping with a buzzing mosquito in the room. This is one of the most emotionally charged elections and we can make a commitment. You matter.
Anyone else want to send me suggestions for what yoga blog posts I should put in the next curated list?
by Jasmine | Sep 20, 2012 | Beginner Yoga, Yoga Clothes, Yoga For Weight Loss, Yoga Health
Clothes to Wear in Yoga Class
Before new students come to a yoga class, I usually tell them what they should bring. Some of these might seem basic but will just throw them in the mix anyway.
What To Wear and Bring in Hot and Beginner Yoga Classes
Clothes to Stretch In – For women this means a fitted shirt. If you just wear a loose T-Shirt then when you do a forward fold, you will be giving us a show of your bra and tummy. If you are wearing a tank top be aware that you might do doing poses where you might end up giving a cleavage show. Check your tank top that it is fitted and also covers some cleavage, especially if you are folding over. You do a lot of bending, twisting, and sometimes hopping and jumping so you need clothes that cover your lady parts no matter which direction your body goes.
I generally would avoid shorts since many of the poses you will be wide legged and you either might be giving us a show or you run the risk of your pants splitting, which has happened to me more than once. Sweat pants, yoga pants or my newly favorite pajama-jeans are some of my favorite bottoms to wear to yoga.
For a hot yoga class, it is acceptable and encouraged to wear crop bra tops and shorts. Sometimes the guys don’t wear shirts for these… depends on the class though.
A yoga mat. I always tell my students to bring their own yoga mats. Most yoga studios will have extras on hand, sometimes for free, sometimes you pay extra. Often these are not washed or cleaned just before. Do you really want your bare skin and face on a mat that was just smeared with someone else’s sweaty body? . One studio I went to never washed their mats and they smelled like Snooki’s armpit. I like to go to The Clymb as a cost and time efficient way to find a mat online.
Water– Just plain water. You might get pretty hot during the class and the studio often will not have a water fountain there. Sometimes they have bottled water but then you have to pay more for it. For a hot or power yoga class this is a must. Please don’t bring your double mochac part-skim decaf in the room. If it spills, it will be all sticky…… yuck.
Bring Your Yoga Mat, Eye Pillows, Towels, Stretchy Pants to Yoga
Eye Pillow – This is one of the most heavenly ways to get more connected to the ether of the universe during shavasana (relaxation) Ideally one that is lavender – scented will turbo charge this. If you don’t have an eye pillow, then an eye- covering is a basic substitute. A simple thing that makes relaxation more profound. Not always easy to find these but if you do it will be worth the effort.
Towel (For hot or power yoga only) You’re going to sweat so planning on mopping yourself up a bit.
Depending on the class, you should inquire if you should bring blocks, a Mexican blanket and a strap and a towel..
In Restorative and Iyengar classes, they usually supply plenty of props such as blocks, blankets, chair, eye pillows and a dozen other things as well. When you are at your mat with all your props you feel like you have your own campground.
Wallets – it has been rare but it’s worth it for your peace of mind to have your wallet and keys in the room with you.
Avoid wearing hanging jewelry such a big dangling earrings and necklaces. When I invert then my necklace tends to choke me or whack me in the face.
Avoid dressing too sexy, which means clothes that are uber-tight and or see through. Generally it is mostly women in the class but if there are a bunch of dudes then you will feel self conscious doing a wide legged forward bend while wearing your see through camel-toe yoga pants with your crop bra top.
Avoid heavy perfumes and scented lotions. Just be neutral smelling. On the flip side, don’t come to class all stinky and subject us to your fumes.
Leave your cell phone in the car. Too easy to forget to turn it off and we don’t want to hear your snazzy cell phone ring when we are becoming one Shiva and Shakti.
Leave your shoes off or outside the room. In my thousands of yoga classes I have taken, I have never heard of anyone having their shoes stolen outside the room.
What are things that you always make sure to bring or leave at home during yoga? Post your answers on our Facebook page.
by Jasmine | Aug 2, 2012 | Beginner Yoga, Meditation, Spirituality, Yoga Health
In Corporate America, a Shell engineer starts a meditation program that helps innovation & creativity
Far be it from me to promote any oil or gas company. I like to keep track of which oil companies are involved with the most unsavory labor or environmental practices and avoid buying my gas at these stations…. often driving a bit farther to do so and usually going to a locally owned station which according to my husband makes worse quality gas. I’m not actually that educated or knowledgeable about this subject so chime in if you have more info about this subject…. seems hard to find a gas station that runs on sustainable environmental practice and fair trade as part of their governing practices.
I was reading in the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Business school newsletter about noteworthy practices in the corporate and government world. I can across an article about “Innovation and Entrepreneurship” at Shell, which had an example of using conscious breathwork and meditation in order to be more creative and productive.
Mandar Apte, a chemical engineer, has worked at Shell for 12 years. He is part of Shell’s Game Changer program, whose mission is to provide seed funding and guidance to cutting-edge ideas and foster a culture of innovation.
Mandar Apte is also the founder of a staff-led initiative called Empower, which uses breathing and meditation exercises to nurture personal creativity as well as inter-personal skills. So far, some 2,000 employees at Shell offices in the U.S., U.K., the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates have gone through classes that are part of the Empower program.
In a conversation with Knowledge@Wharton, Apte discusses the impact that Empower has had on him and his colleagues and his hopes for its future. (Video with transcript)
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/3063.cfm
As part of an initiative to make Shell the most innovative energy company in that industry. Apte ‘s regular job involves encouraging innovation and weeding out limiting or disruptive ideas. According to Apte, “Game Changer is a program where you can bring out-of-the-box thinking to our team, and we are licensed to give you not only a budget but also the support structure and network that you need to build that idea into a proof of concept. In today’s world, innovation happens when you make non-traditional connections. The skills you require to foster this innovation culture are mental and social. You need courage to think out of the box. You need to forget past failures. You have to have the skills to manage anxiety because when you are trying something new, you are stepping into the unknown. You need to build a circle of trust around you where you get positive criticism. By enabling staff to develop these mental and social skills, the Empower program has enhanced the ability of Shell employees to innovate.”
Innovation is about thinking of new things. You learn how to drop the old habits, the old ideas, taking a pause from the day to day task of business That’s what meditation allows you. It gives you tools and techniques to pause. And silence is the mother of creativity. That’s the first step. The second step involves social processes and interpersonal skills. If you can invoke that quality of compassion or empathy in yourself, where you are not judging yourself, you’re not criticizing yourself, nor are you judging somebody else, then I think there is a space for insights to be created. How much energy do we spend negatively judging not only ourselves but also our friends, family, co-workers, managers and even strangers? These qualities of non-judgement, acceptance, open-mindedness are crucial for grooming and harnessing your own innovative skills and nourishing the innovation culture in an organization.
Have you ever participated in a course like this at your company that taught you skills to help you nourish your creativity and innovation through holistic practices? What was it like? How did it impact you?
