Beyond Asana Blog

My weekly blog is a forum for contemplative inquiry into the intersection of yoga practice, traditional teachings, and real life.

4 Seconds of Flow Feb 21, 2018

I got stuck this morning. My 10-year old, bless her heart, missed her bus and I had to drive her to school. Granted, this was the first time this year that this has happened. And, driving her to school is not really a big deal because my schedule today is pretty flexible and the school is only about a 10-minute drive. Yet, I found myself critical, annoyed, frustrated. I could see that holding onto this episode was neither necessary nor useful. Stuckness.

After I dropped her off, I took the opportunity of being out earlier than usual to take a walk. After all, we are at balmy 15 Celsius and its a beautiful sunny day here. The snow is melting and the rivers are rushing. My lesson was right...

Continue Reading...
Bursting The Bubble Feb 15, 2018

A studio owner once told me that she wanted her space to be like a bubble, a place where students could temporarily escape their worries and be surrounded by an atmosphere of love, acceptance, and good vibes.

Wow, sounds great, I thought.

I really like and respect this person, and actually, I love what she’s created. Yet, something didn’t fully resonate with the bubble idea. It got me thinking about how I approach practice and teaching.

I completely agree that we all need healthy ways to escape, regularly. Time alone, self-care appointments, things that give us relief from the stresses of daily life are rejuvenating and VERY necessary. I love those...

Continue Reading...
🎊Beyond The Bells And Whistles 🎊 Feb 12, 2018

When I teach at conferences and festivals, I always find that the exact right people show up for my session. This weekend at Expo Yoga in Montreal was no different. As usual, I was delighted to be with a group of curious, engaged students interested in taking their yoga a little bit deeper, getting some input on refining their practice and exploring how to integrate the lessons of the postural practice into their lives. 

And, as usual, I’m the teacher without the awesome playlist, without the elaborate ritual, without the bells and whistles. 

Don’t get me wrong; I have nothing against a great playlist. I LOVE to groove out in my practice from time to time. And, I...

Continue Reading...
Making Your Sacred Offering (&Your Offering Sacred) Jan 24, 2018

May you awaken like the sun at daybreak,

Ready to make your sacred offering.

Set forth with delight, like a pilgrim on his journey.

 

O heroic one, move forward with resolve

To make this sacred offering of yourself to life.

May you plan the banner of victory

In the service of humankind.

Rg-Veda

 

When I returned from living in India for 4 years, one of the things I dearly wanted to hold onto was the awareness that everything I do can be approached as an offering. I wanted to remember, no matter what, that my highest goal in life is to be of service to others.

To remind myself of this intention, I put a small candle on my desk and lit the flame each day when I began...

Continue Reading...
What Really Matters? Jan 11, 2018

I almost skipped (or at least postponed) my morning meditation today in favor of being “productive.”

As my coffee was brewing, I glanced at my Facebook feed and saw:

- an account from someone in Montecito, CA about the devastation happening there.

- a crowd-funding campaign for a friend who was recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer

- A tribute to an old friend who recently passed away.

- A blog post from a colleague about her experience of grieving a recent miscarriage.

- Many, many messages of support and good wishes from friends all around the world for what all these people are going through

Struck by the intensity of all this (especially at 6:30 am, and especially before...

Continue Reading...
How Does it Feel to Begin Again? Jan 04, 2018

How was your practice over the holidays? Interrupted? Sporadic? Non-existent?

I can relate.

Over the past 25 years, I’ve experienced the full range of what I think of as ‘seasons’ in my yoga practice. There have been long stretches when I could practice uninterruptedly for (sigh) 2 hours a day. And, there have been times where yoga couldn’t, or didn’t, happen regularly. Whether due to travel, family or work responsibilities, injury, illness, or just plain-ol’ laziness, I have slacked on many occasions. 

And I know I’m not alone. For anyone who embraces yoga as a path of practice over the long haul, this is how it goes. Life, or oneself,...

Continue Reading...
Top Cold-Weather Yoga Hacks Nov 30, 2017
 

I asked my Canadian yoga-teacher friends from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, to share their top tips for getting to the mat when the temperature drops. They responded with some really enticing and cozy ideas, none of which involve practicing in a 35-degree room. Clearly, we Canadians have got this winter-yoga thing down! 

Thanks to Christine Guenette, Eliot Acuna, Erin Moon, Janie Pelletier, Melanie Richards, Nathalie Keiller, Robin Golt, and Sara Lamb for weighing in!

GETTING READY

  • I light beeswax candles, definitely! Sara

  • Wear layers - this way I can start feeling warm, then peel off the layers as my body heats up, and have everything near by for a cozy...

Continue Reading...
Top Cold-Weather Yoga Hacks Nov 30, 2017

I asked my Canadian yoga-teacher friends from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, to share their top tips for getting to the mat when the temperature drops. They responded with some really enticing and cozy ideas, none of which involve practicing in a 35-degree room. Clearly, we Canadians have got this winter-yoga thing down! 

Thanks to Christine Guenette, Eliot Acuna, Erin Moon, Melanie Richards, Nathalie Keiller, Robin Golt, and Sara Lamb for weighing in!

GETTING READY

  • I light beeswax candles, definitely! Sara

  • Wear layers - this way I can start feeling warm, then peel off the layers as my body heats up, and have everything near by for a cozy savasana. – Christine

  • Playing...

Continue Reading...
Q & A: How to Combine Different Practices Oct 26, 2017

A student in a recent retreat shared the following with me:

It was my first time attending a day dedicated to Yoga and the many forms of practice. Importantly, I understood that asanas are only one part of the yogic practice. This simple but powerful insight helped me understand that meditation, chanting, breathing, intention and visioning are part of a system.

Though we may chant in class, meditate, practice breathing exercises, it may not be obvious that postural practice is a part of a holistic system that involves and addresses all parts of oneself. 

If you’ve been attending class for sometime, you might have been doing this more than you think. A student in a recent...

Continue Reading...
When Yoga Gets Boring; 6 Ways to Refresh Your Practice Oct 04, 2017

Free Home Practice Guide! If you didn't already receive my new 16-page Home Yoga Practice Guide, you can DOWNLOAD IT HERE! It’s full of practical tips and suggestions to support your independent practice, and includes  a pose syllabus and practice sequences if you have 15, 30 60 minutes or more. I hope you enjoy it!


With all that's going on in our world, I thought I couldn't write about yoga this week. It felt superfluous and even self-indulgent to talk about practice amidst the tragedies we are dealing with these days. However, the truth is that yoga is precisely what allows me to build resilience in the face of struggle. Practice is...

Continue Reading...