Yoga Ventures

Playful Standing Poses Sequence

2012-01-16T15:29:00.000-05:00

My motto is "Relax, Breathe, Play." As life takes its toll, we often get really uptight, take shallow breaths, and forget how to be playful. When I get yoga students in class, they are often sooooo serious. We are only living for such a short time, why not use it to be more playful! It's yoga poses--it's movement, which is fun and relaxing, so lighten up and have fun!

So, in this series of poses, I'd like to help you invoke the relaxed and playful you. As you move through this sequence of poses, there are only a few directions: In each pose think: relax, breathe, and play. There are often all of these yoga cues that you hear in class, and that I tell you in my videos, but just let those go for now. Let go of the thinking mind. Feel the pose in your body. Don't worry about the shape of the pose or emulating what I am doing in the photos, just feel the pose for you. If a pose hurts you, back out and move in a range of motion in which you can relax, breathe, and play.

Also, hold the poses for however long you want. Do what feels good to you. There are no rules!

Upward Arms Pose with a backbend. Do one that feels good to you!

Tree Pose One Side

Balance, laugh!

Tree Pose Other Side

Warrior 2 Pose and flow into

Reverse Warrior and flow into

Flow, Breathe!

Extended Side Angle and flow into

Half Moon

Come down to Mountain Pose and repeat the sequence on the other side.

Then:

Warrior 1 Pose and flow into

Intense Side Stretch Pose and flow into

Warrior 3 Pose--don't worry about how far you do or don't get in a pose! The journey is the destination!

Repeat the sequence to the other side. Now you can continue with more yoga postures of your liking or come down into Childs Pose and then move into Corpse Pose for naptime!

By finding a state of relaxation, of full breathing, and of playfulness, you will find freedom.

This sequence was shot in the Waves of Freedom Pants from Soulflower on the West Fork of the Pigeon River in Pisgah National Forest of North Carolina.

Late Fall Appalachian Hiking

2011-12-13T16:19:00.000-05:00

I recently went out for a hike in the mountains near my house and snapped a few photos. I noticed that this time of year, it's hard to take interesting photographs--everything is so stark and gray. So, I played around with some of my iphone photo apps to see what was possible. I don't know if these are any good or not, but it sure is fun playing around!

Take It Easy Restorative Yoga Session

2011-11-21T18:20:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year when things get really busy, people get on your nerves, and colds and flu start making the rounds. When you are super busy, and your body and mind are exhausted, it's a good time for restorative yoga. The goal is to promote rest and calmness while stimulating your lymphatic system.

For even more benefit, practice pratyahara, sense withdrawal. As you do each pose, concentrate on relaxing each and every part of your body and feeling your breath move through your whole body. Become absorbed in what you are doing and feeling instead of letting anything distract you. Unless something is an emergency, just let it be and deal with it later. You will learn to become less reactive and begin to understand that many things that we think need our attention actually don't. You end up saving more energy for the things in life where it is needed.

Begin in Supported Child's Pose:

Cat/Cow moving with the breath:

Supported Half Down Dog:

Supported Standing Straddle:

Gate Pose:

Staff Pose:

Smile during your yoga practice--don't take yourself too seriously!

Forward Fold, being sure to take it easy.

Twist, broaden the collarbones, be gentle:

Reclining Supported Twist:

Ahhhhh

Hump the bolster pose...JK! This is Supported Inverted Reclining Bound Angle to gently open the hips:

Supported Reclining Bound Angle:

Supported Bridge--backs of the shoulders and all of shoulder blades on the floor:

Legs Up the Wall:

You can end in Corpse Pose or you can end after Legs Up the Wall. If you are on your period, skip the last 2 poses.

Here are some other resources to get you through the holidays:

How your family can help you practice yoga

Breathing Exercise Be sure and check out the audio version at the bottom of the page!

My bolster is hand made from Inner Space Yoga. Bolsters are great to have for restorative practice!

My sweatshirt is from Soulflower--if you're looking for some cool gifts for yogis this year, be sure and check them out!

Enjoy!

Pisgah Fall Mountain Biking

2011-11-17T13:49:00.001-05:00

The weather has been dry and warm here in the Southern Appalachians of Western North Carolina--perfect for mountain biking! I went out just before peak color and got a few shots of this gorgeous place on a gorgeous day!

I headed down into here:

And saw all of this:

Ahhh, clean mountain water!

We had a great time together!

Authentic Practice

2011-11-09T15:50:00.000-05:00

I've been practicing yoga for a long time, and I've been through many phases with it. I've been in phases where I went to tons of classes and workshops, and I've been through periods where my practice was purely mental. Right now, I am taking a break from classes and balancing my mental and physical practices. In my physical practice, I am following a different teacher--I am listening for inner guidance. I am listening to my body by paying attention to all of the details of what I am doing, but not getting caught up in those details. I am letting my practice be more playful and explorative.

I am doing yoga when and where I want and moving how I feel like moving. Exploring, feeling.

To me, this is what it's all about. It's not about doing what a teacher tells you to do or trying to mimic a pose in a picture. It's about feeling your own body and exploring movement that feels good and natural to you.

It's not about doing as many poses as possible or doing certain poses, but exploring movement however slow or fast you want to move.

Try it! Whether your yoga practice is in classes or elsewhere, I encourage you to start feeling more. Find your authentic practice.

Russell Fork River!

2011-11-04T16:36:00.000-04:00

I love fall in the Southeast US for many reasons, but the number one reason is that we have a plethora of dam releases through river gorges to choose from for whitewater paddling! In the fall, in preparation for the winter rains, many lakes are drained through the rivers below the lake. The result is warm water flowing through river gorges with beautiful fall colors! One of my favorites is the classic class 4, 5 whitewater of the infamous Russell Fork River. Enjoy our photos and a write up from one of our recent weekends up in this area tucked away in the Kentucky/Virginia coal mining country:

At the Put-In

Contemplating El Horrendo

Andria At El Horrendo

Andria at Second Drop

Andria at First Drop

Drew prepares for the race at El Horrendo

Happy Ending!

Jeff at Climax

Jeff at First Drop

Leland lands ElHo

Crazy Rafters!

Sean Climaxes

Sean Runs 3rd Drop

Jeff has the wood out before Climax

Our friend and Colorado Kayak Supply team paddler, Joe Keck did a nice write up of the weekend from a Colorado boy's perspective and a discussion of the great whitewater guidebooks of all time:

Forkin' Fun

Festival Yoga

2011-06-17T15:06:00.001-04:00

It's high summer festival season, so I put together a short sequence of festival friendly yoga poses that refresh and relax, so you can be ready for the next band! Festivals are tons of fun, but they can be stressful, so be sure and make time for yourself each day by taking a break from activity and re-connecting with yourself. You'll get a lot more out of the festival if you're feeling your best.

As you perform these exercises, allow your body to be as it is without forcing an experience, relax your facial muscles and your throat to provide relief from so much interaction, and release areas of your body where you are holding unnecessary tension so that later you can fully release on the dance floor!

Mountain Pose

Instead of overdoing this pose, take the time to just be. Stand, using no more energy than you need to hold yourself up. Let gravity relax your pelvis and your low back. Feel your feet on the ground. Let your torso and upper body rise up effortlessly. Broaden your collarbones without forcing. Just be where you are instead of trying to force an experience.

Perform these next exercises while sitting or standing:

To release tension in the neck and shoulders:

1. Stretch the back of your neck by bringing the crown of your head forward and down for a breaths. Slowly come up and stretch each side of your neck by bringing the crown your head down to each side for a few breaths. Relax the opposite shoulder. Slowly come up to neutral.

Shrugs

2. Leading with your shoulder blades, shrug your shoulders up. Then release down letting everything go. Repeat a few more times.

Rolls

3. Again leading with your shoulder blades, roll your shoulders. So bring your shoulder blades up, together, down your spine, then draw them apart. Repeat a few times, then reverse. Bring your shoulder blades together, up the spine, then draw them apart and down. Repeat a few times. Doing these exercises leading with your shoulder blades is awkward at first, but you'll get the hang of it!

To create more lung capacity for more dancing perform Breath Stretches--let your breath lead the way:

1. Inhale as you broaden your collarbones and bring your arms slightly back and fill the front of your chest with air. Exhale and release down. Repeat a few times.

2. Inhale as you round your upper back, spreading your shoulder blades and fill your upper back with air. Exhale and come up. Repeat a few times.

3. Inhale and bring your arms overhead. Exhale to one side. Stay for a few breaths. Feel the breath making space between each rib. Relax your head, your shoulders, and your opposite hip. Repeat to the other side.

Come back into Mountain Pose and just be.

Waterfall Forward Bend
Now slowly come into a forward bend; bend your knees and come all the way forward letting your upper body dangle forward. Keep your weight even in your feet. Let go. Relax your face and throat. Feel as though your upper body is a waterfall.

The rest of the poses provide relief from standing, walking, and dancing to get you ready for more!

Come onto your hands and knees.

Half Dog
Scoot your knees back slightly and then move your hips back toward your feet. Move your ribcage toward your hips, not the ground. Let your head hang. Make sure to not overextend out of the shoulder joint—keep your shoulders and your upper back relaxed. Do not try to force an experience. Be with what is. After a few breaths, come back to all fours.

Down Dog
Push up through your abs to bring your hips up and back. Bend your knees if you need. Honor your body. Let your hamstrings slowly unwind. Then "walk the dog," stretching each calf separately.

Lunges
Step one leg up between your hands. Drop the back knee down. Keep your pelvis square and neutral. There should be no tension in your hips or low back. If there is, move to a place of no pain or tension. Move your hips forward, not down, to come further in the pose. Bring your arms overhead and fill the front of the chest with air. Take a few big breaths and switch legs.

Bound Angle
Come to a seated position with your knees bent and the bottoms of your feet together. If your knees are higher than your hips, sit up on a support. Place your hands besides your hips and take some big breaths. Then bring your hands in front of you and come forward any amount breathing into your back body. Release into the pose. Take a few breaths and come up.

Seated Wide Angle Pose
Straighten your legs so that you get a stretch, but not too much! Place your hands besides your hips again and take some big breaths. Then place your hands in front of you and come forward any amount without forcing. Take a few calming breaths and come up.

Supine Log Pose

Lying down on your back with your knees bent, place your ankle on the opposite knee. Do not push on your knee to stretch the hip--let your hip release on its own through relaxed breathing. For more stretch bring the legs toward you. Take a few breaths and switch legs.

Easy Twist
Lying down with your knees bent, bring your legs up to a 90-degree angle. Make sure you don't arch your back as you bring your legs up. In this position, relax your hips and draw your belly in slightly. Exhale as you release your legs to one side. Come all the way to the floor or have your legs up on a support if bringing them all the way to the floor makes a twinge in your low back. Be in a pain free zone always. Release and relax the side waist. Now, straighten your top leg and feel a nice stretch in that hip:

Take a few breaths. Inhale, come up, and switch sides.

When you are finished, hug your knees to your chest and then slowly release all the way to the final pose, Corpse Pose, lying down in a comfortable position. Take a few minutes to fully release in this pose. Feel the weight of your body heavy on the ground. Release all muscular effort. Go through each body part releasing tension. Feel your breath through your whole body.

If you like, you can begin and end your yoga practice with this breathing exercise:
We Begin With The Breath

Roll to your side and come to sitting. Don't you feel so much better! Bring the peace, love, and connection that you feel out into the festival!

If you really dig the clothes that I am wearing for this shoot, keep your eye out for my upcoming review of the "Carry Your Own Sunshine" Tank on the Soulflower Karma Krewe blog soon. For now, you can check out the tank and the pants at Soul-flower.com!

In an Injury Rut? Quit Skimping on Your Rehab and How Yoga Therapy Can Help

2011-06-15T15:03:00.001-04:00

Being involved with outdoor sports, I am around lot of people who have or had injuries. One thing that we all have in common is that we want to heal fast and get back at our activities and our lives. However, if you want to fully heal from your injuries, you can't take short cuts, so it's best to have a holistic plan that involves both treatment and rehabilitation.

There are many treatments for an injury; examples are surgery, prolotherapy, acupuncture, or any other choice that involves a specialist doing something to your injury to help stabilize it. Rehabilitation, such as physical therapy and/or yoga therapy can either follow or be included along with the treatments. In both PT and YT, the purpose is for you to learn to move your body again using kinesiology principles that you learn from your therapist. Then you move your body through the exercises in a pain free zone until it becomes engrained in your mind and body and you develop necessary strength and flexibility.

Yoga therapy is a tool for healing that looks at the whole person—body, mind, and spirit to achieve your goals. So, in a yoga therapy session not only do you learn physical movements that you can do to heal your injury; but you learn better ways of breathing to release tension and create stability; and awareness exercises for your mind so that you can be aware of how you are holding yourself on a daily basis and during your activity. You are also encouraged to look at what your injury means on a deeper level—what personality traits are causing you to move in such a way as to cause injury? Are you rushing through a movement because you don't have proper technique? Is your mind somewhere else, such as on the perceived outcome? Are you tense and nervous? Are you trying to move your body faster than you are able? Do you constantly push yourself past exhaustion? These traits are human nature and by becoming aware of them, they no longer will control you. You can learn these things about yourself just by being mindful of how you do your physical exercises in a yoga therapy session. The purpose of the session is to learn to slow down and pay attention to what you are doing so that you can hold your body in a way that is healthy and effective, and you learn how to observe where your mind is so that you can bring it into the moment and apply yourself fully.

Any injury rehabilitation is not a passive process and can take a few weeks to years. Actually, it is a process that never ends. I'm sorry, but there are no shortcuts in this step. Saying that there is would be like saying you can become a great cyclist by going out one time, or that you can learn to climb or kayak instantaneously. Just like the outdoor sports that we love, rehabilitating after an injury is a learning process. If you skip steps, the only person that you cheat is yourself. Plus, if done thoroughly and mindfully and with the appropriate therapist, your rehabilitation will probably make you better at your sport or activity than you were before!

So if you've recently been injured and you're cutting corners on your rehab, I encourage you start fully participating in it now! You don't have anything to lose except the couch!

The Who, What, and Why of "Yoga for Shoulders"

2011-03-31T17:30:00.003-04:00

So, I've been posting up for months about my Yoga for Shoulders classes and video. You may be wondering why I teach Yoga for Shoulders and if it's appropriate for you. So here is my story, some info on shoulder injuries, and how you can and can't use yoga to heal:

Yoga for Shoulders—7 Steps to Healing and Preventing Sports Injuries

As a whitewater athlete, I’ve had my share of shoulder injuries over the years. During my first couple of injuries, I was in my yoga teacher training and healed up pretty quickly; or so it seemed. As I got older, I developed chronic pain in my shoulder. I thought that I would just need to get used to the pain—I was an extreme athlete, and pain was par for the course, right? Then I began studying yoga therapy and playing around with some different yoga techniques. To my amazement, pain that I'd had in my shoulder for seven years went away in about two weeks with the right exercises. As the pain faded, I gained a safe range of motion that I never thought possible, and my strength increased. Now I can do all kinds of things that I had been told that I would never do again without surgery. My yoga practice and paddling are thriving, and my athletic life is opening up to new possibilities every day.

Inspired by my healing, I began educating myself further so that I could help other injured athletes use yoga to gain more freedom and strength in their bodies. For several years, I immersed myself in more therapy based yoga teacher training, and I taught yoga classes to people with shoulder injuries. Through the process, I discovered what shoulder problems are common in active people and what should be done in order to heal through yoga practice.

Generally, active people's shoulders become injured because of trauma–such as a dislocation and/or repetitive motion and posture–such as kayaking or riding a bike. Obviously, after trauma, an injury needs healing time. If you experience pain in the following months or years, the injury has become chronic. Bodily imbalances then develop that are often similar to repetitive motion injury. Either way, the typical scenario is that the arm bone tends to move forward in the socket due to muscular imbalances. As the arm bone rolls forward, it causes the opening between the arm bone, the collarbone, and the shoulder blade to become smaller until it pinches on important stabilizing tendons causing pain and swelling. Further, when pinched, the tendons are cut off from the muscles causing instability in the shoulder. The symptoms of this are weakness and burning in the front and back of the shoulder and feeling as if your arm might come off as you reach for the shampoo bottle in the shower.

If you exercise and push through these pain sensations, go ahead and make an appointment with your orthopedist for surgery. The exercise will speed up the injury process, and you'll need surgery pretty soon. Think of a rope moving back and forth between sharp rocks. What will eventually happen? By pushing through pain sensations in your shoulder while working out or doing yoga, you’re causing damage—pain and swelling are your body's signal. If you truly want to heal, you have to learn to listen to your body's pain signals and work within a pain-free range of motion, or you will be in pain and injured forever.

So, what should you do to heal or prevent this kind of injury? These are the steps that I take using yoga as therapy to help someone heal from a shoulder injury, heal after surgery, and to prevent shoulder problems:

1. Breathing—learning to fully breathe in a relaxed body is the base of a yoga practice.

2. Bandhas--energy locks in the body, some of which create necessary core stability for yoga poses.

3. Releasing the fronts of the shoulders. This is stretching–kind of. I like to think of it as releasing—you are gently returning your body to its natural state.

4. Movement in the shoulder blades–your shoulder joint is actually only as mobile as your shoulder blades.

5. Standing poses—learning to move your whole body in a pain free range of motion.

6. Building core strength—not only strengthening your abs, but also your spine and shoulder blades.

7. Weight bearing poses on the shoulders—a culmination of all the previous techniques, learning to balance effort and ease in the body by moving through poses that develop balanced strength.

Can you get this from attending your local yoga studio? Maybe, but probably not in a general class setting. I've been in some classes where the teacher helped me tremendously. But in some classes, when I was moving improperly and making my shoulder worse, no one ever corrected me. Also, there are many poses done in general yoga classes that are not appropriate for athletes with shoulder injuries; some common poses will actually weaken injured shoulders. If you are an athlete with shoulder problems, you should make a private appointment with a yoga teacher who is trained and experienced in shoulder therapy for athletes. After you are healed and understand your injury, you will be free to go to any sort of yoga classes!

What about doing yoga on your own to heal your shoulder? That’s okay as long as you know what you’re doing. If you don't, seek help–or you may never get to do your beloved activity again! A home yoga practice is good as long as it's tailored to your shoulder injury. You can use a video as a guide, but make sure it's okay for your injury. If you are going it alone, my advice is to always move slowly while you exercise and pay attention to your alignment. If you get pain and pinching, stop doing what you are doing and work within a pain free range of motion.

A path to healing is never quick and easy, but if you want to play hard, it's essential. So, take the time and a little extra effort (and ease!) to get out of the pain and injury cycle and discover the amazing rewards of your accomplishment. May your shoulders be free!

I am available for private instruction in Asheville, North Carolina and over the internet. I also created a yoga DVD with a step by step program to heal and prevent shoulder injuries. You can send me and email or visit my website YogaVenturesDotCom for more info!

Praise the Effort, Not the Reward

2011-03-16T14:08:00.002-04:00

In our society, we have this ugly dichotomy that on the one hand says that you can do anything, and then when you do it, if you're not the best at it, then you're just not good enough. I have always wondered about it and in the following article a writer and a psychologist explain the situation.

I am stoked that I have had to work hard in my life for everything I have achieved--I am not naturally good at anything and the hard work is the reward for me. I have a "growth mindset," but it has taken some work to even have that--learning to turn off the media, avoid negative people, and combat negative self talk.

Don't let society fool you into being stuck or thinking you suck. Don't worry about your swim or your fall--just get back up and try try again! That is what I keep doing--my sweetest successes have come after huge failures.

If you are into sports and/or have kids, this is a must read! Here is the article from Women's Adventure:
A is for Effort

A Review of "Yoga for Shoulders"

2011-03-10T10:41:00.000-05:00

Making a yoga video is really tough. First, I have to decide what all I can fit in there--I have to usually cut down my material tons and then think of how to put it all together so that it will be simple to the end user. Then I have to figure out how I will say each cue so that the user can understand. While I did practice for years on my yoga students before I made this video, once the video was finished, I wondered if I made any sense. I wondered if the structure and the language were useful or confusing. So, the first thing I did was send off the video to the very groups of people that I was targeting with this video: active people who may or may not already do yoga. I thought Tali from the Cupcake Mafia blog would be perfect because she is an active outdoors girl who happens to be in yoga teacher training. A teacher in training is perfect because they are being taught to be critical of other teachers and I wanted an honest opinion. It helps me tremendously to hear that she understood the structure of the video and that the very purpose is to slow you down in your yoga practice and pay more attention to the process. That is the only way to heal. Thanks so much to Tali for taking the time to be thorough with my DVD and give a review that is super helpful to me and to you:

Review: Yoga for Shoulders with Andria Davis, RYT by Tali of the Cupcake Mafia blog.

"Yoga for Shoulders" DVD is finally finished!

2011-01-05T18:33:00.001-05:00

You can purchase the new DVD, read all about it, and check out the trailer at the YOGAVENTURES WEBSITE.

If you'd like to read more about how we made the DVD and my inspiration for it, check out my blog posts below.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me through my website.

May you be well and free of suffering!

Family time gives us an excellent opportunity for yoga practice! Here are some tips to help:

2010-11-24T12:04:00.003-05:00

1. Get out and go for a walk and do some yoga poses during the holiday. You'll be a good role model for the kids and the fresh air and exercise can clear the brain and increase endorphins.

2. If you are throwing the dinner, don't overwork yourself and then blame others by becoming short-tempered—this is controlling and selfish. See this as an opportunity to work together and delegate tasks. Teach that this is a time when the family works together. And if you are a guest, be of service.

3. Practice non-judgment and compassion. We throw these words around a lot in yoga, but really think about them. Others have a right to do what they do and believe what they believe. Your family has feelings and a belief system just as you do and having respect towards them will gain them respect towards you. Learn to see past the things that annoy you about people and into their humanity. Practice loving them even though you don't agree. Love supersedes all boundaries.

4. You can't control others, but you can control your reactions to them.

5. The reason that we practice mediation is for this moment! When all of these family energies, noise, food, children, emotions, loud television, and other chaos are going on around you, stay in touch with the peace inside yourself.

6. The most complicated thing is to do is to be who you are. We have a tendency to begin to see ourselves as we think that our family sees us, which causes resentment. Just be observant of your behaviors, emotions, and thoughts and you can break this pattern. Easier said than done, but maybe for now, just practice!

I know everyone throws around advice for the holidays and even that can seem overwhelming. So, to keep it simple, just remember to be happy, loving, and peaceful and have all of your actions come from that place and the holiday could be one to be worth celebrating!

Finishing up the "Yoga for Shoulders" Video

2010-11-04T16:21:00.019-04:00

We are finally finishing up the "Yoga for Shoulders" video! It's been a long tough road, but we finally got the last footage that we need. I am really stoked to help out others with shoulder issues and I really hope that this video will help out!

Here are some shots from Linville Gorge in North Carolina:

This is a restorative pose to work on releasing tightness and tension in the fronts of the shoulders that can cause impingement.

We will work on becoming more aware of the shoulder blades and work on moving them around to prevent frozen shoulder.

Not a bad place to be working! My husband and I do all of the work on these videos ourselves--we love it, but it's also very difficult in many ways. He is amazing--he does all of the camera work (3 video cameras and 1 still) and directs too! We use all natural lighting, which is why it takes us awhile to get the right day. We also do all of our own editing and sound.

A variation on Mountain Pose to help with better posture.

Downward Facing Dog Pose--we will work with the mechanics of this pose for safely performing the pose for those with shoulder issues and with using your core to lift the weight out of the shoulders and wrists.

Plank Pose--we will work on the same concepts as in Down Dog--how to use the whole body better to relieve the shoulders and wrists.

Whew! This is Chaturanga Dandasana (Four-Limbed Staff Pose). It is better to perform this one with knees down to work very diligently on making sure you are using your body correctly. It can exacerbate problems if done poorly, but if done mindfully it will build strength and grace in your body!

Ahh--my shoulders feel so good and free! I have not had surgery and I have never felt better! I have made much progress with this program for my own shoulders by overcoming injuries that resulted in impingement, pain, and severe shoulder blade winging and dysfunction. I heard the same complaints from many of my friends--some who had surgery and some who didn't, so I began to want to help people get out of the shoulder pain and injury cycle. I have been teaching shoulders classes for a few years and now have put the class together for this video. I hope that everyone finds freedom and strength in their shoulders!

Kayaking, Road Cycling, and Mountain Biking...

2010-10-12T12:39:00.004-04:00

That is what I wish I were doing every waking hour! On the kayaking part, I almost have been! September and October is Gauley Season. This season takes place in West Virginia every year when the Army Corps of Engineers releases water out of Summersville Lake and into the Gauley River gorge below it to drop the lake in preparation for winter rains. Here is a video head cam tour of the Gauley River taken by my husband, Leland, via squirt boat, a special kind of glass boat that kicks the river up a notch.

On the 3rd week of September, there is the biggest festival in the whitewater kayaking world there. We had a booth and had some fun! Here are some pictures from the shenanigans at Gauley Festival 2010.

On the mountain biking part, I haven't been on my bike in months! But these ladies have been taking up the slack for me: the Minx Girls. They are some rad women from the UK, who just wrote up this Compendium for a huge cycling event over there. There are some core articles here (including one on yoga, hehehe!).

Tis the season for road cycling events here in Appalachia as we come into one of our best seasons—the colorful mountains, cool dry air, and dry roads make for sweet rides! This is one of my favorite local events, the Tour de Tugaloo. Tucked away in the north Georgia mountains, if you are looking for a ride with something for every level and a fun vibe, put this one on your to do list. You might even win a "Yoga for Cyclists" DVD!

See ya!

Yoga for Shoulders Class is Back!

2010-09-22T11:25:00.003-04:00

You can find out more and sign up here.

Yoga Core Exercises for Healing and Preventing Sports Injuries

2010-08-19T15:12:00.029-04:00

It's not news that in order to increase your sports performance, you need to exercise your core. But if you think that this means doing a bunch of sit-ups, you need to freshen up your strategy. Core exercises should not only strengthen your core, but also teach you to use your whole body in a more functional manner. Your body is more efficient when your power emerges from your strong, stable center taking pressure off all the peripheral and much less stable joints of the body. The end result of learning to move from your core is that you will have better posture, less injuries, and more energy. The holistic viewpoint of Yoga makes it the perfect tool to teach us these lessons.

While doing these exercises, think in terms of your body as a whole. The point of these core exercises is to re-teach your body how to move in a more efficient manner. These exercises are from the upcoming "Yoga for Shoulders: Restore and Strengthen" DVD, so the focus is on how the core relates to the shoulders.

In all of the poses, make sure that when you engage your shoulder blades, that they move into the back and not toward each other. In the Boat Poses, think of all energy emanating from the navel and work on releasing unnecessary effort in the rest of the body:

Half Boat Pose, Ardha Navasana:

Begin in Supine Mountain Pose: lying on your back, feet together and flexed, arms at your sides. Lengthen your spine, relax extraneous tensions, and breathe fully. Exhale as you strongly engage the abdominals and lift the legs and torso without arching the low back or jutting the head forward. Concentrate on only using your middle: don't tense the fronts of the shoulders keeping the collarbones broad. Draw the shoulder blades down the back and then firm them onto the back. Breathe fully and relax the jaws and the face. Stay as long as you can stand it. Release back to the floor and relax fully taking deep breaths. Repeat.

Full Boat Pose, Navasana:

Begin sitting with your legs bent in front of you and feet flat on the floor. Lift in and up with the inner thighs, pelvic floor and navel. Lift up through the spine and the crown of the head. Broaden the collarbones and draw the shoulder blades down the back. Engage the bottom tips of your shoulder blades forward--toward your sternum.

Using your hands on the floor next to your hips for balance, exhale and lift your feet off the floor. Keep all of the above actions going. If you need more challenge, lift your hands and straighten your arms in front of you. Draw the arm bones back in the sockets, slide the shoulder blades down the back, and engage the bottom tips of them forward. Lift up with the back body as much as with the front body. Keep the collarbones broad and breathe evenly. Relax the face and jaws.

To go one step further, straighten the legs. Squeeze the inner thighs. Activate and spread the toes. Breathe and maintain all of the above actions.

Release back to sitting and take some deep breaths and relax all effort. Repeat.

The next pose stretches the front body and strengthens the often-ignored back body and the spine. A strong and flexible spine is part of a strong core:

Locust Pose, Salabhasana:

Lie in a prone position with your forehead on the floor, your feet about hip width, and your arms by your sides with your palms face up. Take a deep breath and release all tension. Lengthen your spine from your tailbone through the crown of your head. Broaden your collarbones, draw the shoulder blades down your back and engage the lower and inner shoulder blades into the back. Inhale as you lift your legs, torso, and arms. Keep the head in line with the spine and take your gaze up. Release tension from your face and jaws. Breathe fully. Exhale and slowly come down and release completely into the floor.

End with Relaxation Pose, Savasana:
Lie in a comfortable postition. Release your body into the floor completely. Stay for at least 5 minutes.

If these poses cause any sharp pains in your body, your body is not ready, and you need an instructor to watch and correct your alignment. Listen to your body and seek guidance if you need.

Improve Your Posture and Your Performance With This Simple Yoga Exercise

2010-08-12T14:14:00.006-04:00

Aligned posture will bring you better health and livliness because it takes pressure off your joints and allows the blood to flow and the organs to function better giving you more energy for the fun and necessary things in life! Try this one simple and quick exercise: take a belt (or a strap, paddle, or broomstick) and hold it behind your back shoulder width with your arms straight and your palms facing your butt; stand in Mountain Pose with your weight distributed evenly between your two legs and into the base of the big toes, the pinky toes, and the center of the back of the heels; gently draw the belly in and up without disturbing your breathing; lift up through the crown of the head; broaden your collarbones, roll your shoulders open, draw your shoulder blades down your back and the inner shoulder blades forward toward your sternum; do not let the upper arm bones roll forward and down, do not let the rib cage protrude forward, and do not lock the elbows. Do this exercise as often as possible always letting the body unfold into the pose and not forcing. Smile and breathe!

Let's Be an Angel

2010-05-25T17:12:00.012-04:00

Many people wonder why I am so obsessed with whitewater that I have completely dedicated my life to it. It may even look as though I live selfishly. But this is far from my intentions. Back in 1996, I almost lost my life. Just in time, I found whitewater and it drew me into the magic of the river. The river gave me my life back and began to teach me about myself and everything else--it has made me complete. The sport of whitewater is a gift to me and I want to share this gift with others. So, I have joined a team of women kayakers to help raise money for young adults with cancer so that they can go to a whitewater camp for free and feel the joy of paddling. Our team is called River Angels, and I intend to be just that. This is not a competition for me to call attention to my ego, this is a chance to show someone else the magic of the river. If you would like to donate to this cause in my name from now until June 15 2010, please visit this website: Eddyflower Vertical Challenge, and simply 1. select my name; 2. enter your info; 3. and make your donation. Thanks for helping me be a River Angel!

Yoga for Shoulders

2010-05-08T16:08:00.016-04:00

We have finally started filming my next yoga video (actually YOUR next yoga video!), "Yoga for Shoulders!" We will be out filming in various spectacular outdoor settings this summer so that we can make a kick ass video that you will love to watch and do!

Here's the scoop: A few years back during my yoga teacher training program, I sustained a shoulder injury while out whitewater kayaking. We were working on Sun Salutations at the time, and my shoulder healed up really fast. Since then, I have focused much of my yoga study on healing the shoulders. I have discovered some secrets to yoga techniques that have made a huge difference in my life, and now I want to share what I have learned. The DVD will be a step by step program to restore functional alignment and strength in the shoulders. As I make the DVD, I will post up some poses, so that hopefully you can start working on getting back in the game right away! But beware--if these poses irritate your shoulders, you need more instruction, and you should consult your yoga teacher and/or wait for the DVD.

If you want to do this series right now, I suggest you begin your session with my previous post on breathing, We Begin With the Breath. I have included an audio version down at the bottom of that post, which will be much easier to follow.

Also, follow these instructions in each pose: 1. lift mula bandha and uddiyana bandha (if you don't know what they are, ask your yoga teacher and/or wait for the video); 2. slide the shoulder blades down the back; 3. don't protrude the bottom rib cage; 4. keep the gaze steady; 5. avoid over-efforting from forcing into poses; 6. avoid sloppy lifeless poses by paying attention to your body and mind; 7. Relax your face! 8. Breathe Fully! There are many more instructions, of course, but just work on those for now.

And last, but not least, end the session with at least 5 minutes of Corpse Pose.

Here are some poses from the 4th Session in the video, "Standing Poses:"

Urdhva Hastasana--Upward Arms Pose:

Utkatasana--Powerful Pose:

Virabhadrasana 1--Warrior Pose 1:

Prasarita Padottanasana--Standing Straddle series:

May your shoulders be free!

Yoga and Exercise

2010-03-21T10:00:00.004-04:00

Because I am an athlete, I do many kinds of activities and kinds of exercise. I view my yoga practice as a tool in life to help me in all of my endeavors rather than an end in itself. And this is my message to people--yoga is a tool to help you do whatever it is that you do better and with more clarity. So I love to hear stories where people's yoga practice is helping them live a better life--in the regular every day activities kind of way, like exercising at the gym. I read this story and its awesome--how practicing yoga has helped Francesca on her road to fitness at the gym. Read her quick and inspiring story here: YogaHub Blog.

We Begin With the Breath...

2010-03-12T12:50:00.009-05:00

Before attempting any yoga poses, its necessary to develop awareness of your breath and relaxed breathing. Here is a breath practice that is good for complete beginners to advanced yoga practitioners.

To begin, lie on your back with your knees bent or straight. Completely release into the floor. Let go of any distractions and bring the mind inward to prepare for practice. Become aware of your body and of your breath.

Release the face, the jaws, around the mouth, the forehead and between the eyes. Let the eyes become receptive. Let the ears become receptive.

Now place your hands on your chest. Feel the chest rise and fall with the breath. Feel the collarbones as they spread apart. Feel the shoulders broaden outward. Notice the shoulder blades pressing into the floor as you breathe.

Now feel the breath as it moves your rib cage. Feel the breath in the front of your rib cage, in the sides of the rib cage, and in the back. Let the breath fill the whole rib cage.

Now bring your hands to your belly. Feel the belly expanding on the inhalations and falling on the exhalations. If you feel the opposite happening, you must stay with this exercise until you feel the belly expanding on the inhalations and falling on the exhalations. Do not force the breath, just let it move through your body. Release, relax.

Now place your hands on your hib bones. As you inhale and exhale, feel how the pelvis rocks with the breath.

Feel the breath moving through the whole body. Feel the whole body breathe. Let the body accept the breath.

Here is the exercise in audio: Enjoy!

Be a Better Athlete Through Yoga

2010-03-02T14:31:00.006-05:00

Learn to move through difficult emotions during your sport by practicing moving through them in your yoga practice. If you have trouble meditating because you "cannot sit still," do it anyway-do it past your comfort zone and then you will be able to push past your comfort zone off the mat too. Set a timer and sit or lie down for that amount of time, even if its just 3 minutes--it will help you! Or if during your asana (posture) practice, you zone out and don't pay attention to what you are doing, not only will you eventually injure yourself, but you are not benefiting from your mind training that an asana practice provides. During your physical practice, when the mind wanders, bring it back to what you are doing. Then you will notice as you are about to run that rapid or push up that hill, when your mind wanders and then you get scared and feel like giving up, you can bring your mind back to what you are doing. In the moment, there is no fear.

Here are a couple more great articles from my favorite Yoga Journal writer, Sally Kempton:
Free Yourself
What Are You Resisting?

What is yoga?

2010-02-23T20:20:00.002-05:00

I saw this posted on facebook, and its awesome! Its a a unique description that describes yoga very well, so I wanted to share it: Yoga Manifesto

Updates!

2010-02-11T15:07:00.004-05:00

We are back from our adventures in Chile. We have many photos and stories! Here is our first trip report eloquently written by Leland Davis: River Gypsies in Chile

More news--Jeff McIntyre of the In Between Swims Podcast found my story that I submitted to Rock Climber Girl's blog last fall and he asked me to read it for his podcast! Here is the Valentine's Day special "The Adventure Together."

Enjoy and stay warm!

You Can Change Your Mind--How yoga taught me to find joy in failure

2009-11-12T14:57:00.017-05:00

When I first started this blog, I thought I'd be posting up posture techniques for adventurous types to apply to their asana practice, but I keep writing about the mind techniques. I will get around to some poses and tips eventually, but my yoga practice has evolved over the years from focusing on the physical to focusing on the mental. So much of life is mental, esp. our approach to sports and the outdoors.

Yoga is more than about postures--there are many other tools to help us overcome suffering in our lives. The second branch of yoga is the Niyamas, or "rules of personal behavior." The fourth niyama is Svadhyana, or self-study, and Deepak Chopra describes it as this in The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga: "When svadhyana is lively in your awareness, joy arises from within rather than being dependent upon outer accomplishments or acquisitions."

When I began my life as a whitewater junkie back in 1997, I was full of self doubt, negativity, and fear. But I loved being out on the water, so I was determined to overcome those obstacles. I entered a whitewater race the other day that showed me just how far I have come in overcoming these obstacles, and the practice of svadhyana is the reason.

When I first got into whitewater, I was lured into the aspect of how good it made me feel about myself. I had had so many years of low self esteem and now this new sport was giving me tons and tons of self esteem as I became better and better. But the more involved I became in the sport, the more my self esteem became enmeshed in how good I performed. I would become devastated at one little failure and then slip into a deep dark depression that made me want to revert to my former self destructive life. One of the number one no-no's of sports psychology is to have your self esteem dependent upon your performance. I knew this, yet I couldn't help how I was feeling.

I had a number of key things happen over these years--I attended my yoga teacher training and became a yoga teacher, found my one true love, and suffered a debilitating back injury. My yoga study delved me deeper and deeper into the why of my being. My (now) husband who is a brilliant amateur sports psychologist taught me how to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. And my back injury laid me out on my back for almost a full year unable to kayak or to "do" yoga. After the crying fits of "why me?" and "who am I without kayaking and teaching yoga," I decided to delve even more into the non-physical aspects of yoga.

I laid on the floor and visualized for months--it was all I could do. And guess what? I found out that I could be happy just lying there! There was so much to explore in my mind, I became fascinated. Ever since, my yoga practice has centered around mind training. I learned to fully turn my life around by just changing the way that I think. What an amazing and basic concept that had eluded me for so long!

So, what does all of this have to do with the kayak race? Coming up to the race, I was extremely busy, and did not have the option to get out and train as much as I needed. Then a week prior, I got a cold, which sabotaged the week that I had saved to get out and train my lines on the creek. I know what you'd like to hear is that I visualized my lines and then competed and won--that is because our society reveres numbers and winners. But something even more profound than that happened--I completely wrecked and instead of self pity, I found happiness. Finding happiness in winning is easy, but finding happiness in complete and utter failure is amazing.

How? Because I have trained myself to only see the positive in this situation. Yes, I tried the visualizations and it worked in all but one place. Race day came, and I was not that nervous--I felt completely solid inside knowing that I could handle whatever happens. As I sat in the start eddy, I was delirious from sickness and I knew this was not a good idea, but I was compelled to be there racing in my favorite race. Like Arjuna in the battlefield in the Bhagavad Gita, I needed to perform to the best of my ability without being attached to the results. I peeled out and absolutely aced every rapid with amazing speed and style until I got to the one move that I was just going to trust myself to make because I couldn't remember it enough to visualize--in kayaking when you cannot visualize a line on the river, but you run it anyway, it is called oblivion charc (from The Squirt Book by Jim Snyder), and this is not a good thing. I flipped over in the worst part of the rapid. I was completely out of breath because the cold I had was in my lungs and I just didn't have the juice in me to deal with the crash. I barely eeked out a roll above the "Notch," the real real crux, flipped again, and my technique went out the window and caused me to fail to roll up again. Completely exhausted, I swam out of my kayak in front of 1000 people and cameras.

It all worked out--I got all of my gear back from the river and only got a couple of scratches. And I can honestly say that I am happy (although more ill) even though I crashed and burned. In years past, I would not have even tried to race without practicing or being sick--and then I would have beat myself up for not trying. Also, in years past, I would have been devastated by the swim and all of those people watching and I would have been relentless on myself for "failing." But now as I write this, instead I feel more confident than I ever have about myself as a kayaker and as a person, because I am focused on the many successes I had that day rather than on the one failure. I am so grateful for this sport that has given me a zest for life, but I am even more grateful to not be imprisoned by results. In my own mind, I have won. I beat self doubt, negativity, and fear just by changing my thinking. I have come full circle with my sport. First I used it to feel good about myself, and now I am free from that entrapment. The practice of yoga is what freed me and allows me the full benefit of the sport. And now I feel so enthused to get out on the river and kayak more--more enthused than ever! Could it be because there are no expectations? I feel so free! I am now even closer to freedom as Tich Nhat Hanh describes it, "Freedom is, above all else, freedom from our own notions and concepts."

*If you are into an adventure sport, pushing yourself outside of comfort is imperative to progress. But you have to remember to apply equanimity--balance your enthusiasm with restraint. By this I mean that decide to push yourself in smart places. For instance, I would not have gone out and kayaked in a remote river gorge that day while I was sick. The Green is a class V river, yes, but I know it extremely well and that was my 3rd race. Use the "self study" (Svadhyana, the Fourth Niyama) tool of yoga to know when its appropriate to push yourself and when to be conservative.

The purpose of yoga is unite you with You. This can only happen by overcoming the suffering of the body and the mind. Life is so short and there is so much suffering that will happen due to terrible circumstances, don't waste your time creating even more suffering over petty things like how you perform in one event or what people think about you. To free yourself to live in joy is the true gift of enlightenment, of yoga.

Action photo by Chris Bell of BoatingBeta.com
After race photo by Brad Roberts

Yoga Meets You Where You Are

2009-10-15T17:48:00.026-04:00

Recently I read a couple of other blogs by yoga teachers and their thoughts on what yoga is. Here are the links to them--they are great quick reads if you want to learn more:

A Yoga Reality Check

What Yoga Is

I like these blogs and I agree with these teachers on some points, but I hear a sense of frustration in their voices. They are frustrated about what yoga has become in Western culture and wondering if students are "getting it."

First of all, I love our culture! I have learned to embrace it and I see more and more beauty everywhere around me the longer I practice. Our culture has taken yoga and created a beautiful thing. There is nothing wrong with evolution. The evolution of yoga and everything is inevitable--I am not a traditionalist at all though. When I look around and see how yoga has blossomed through this country, I am uplifted. I see that people are becoming more open-minded and more into taking care of their minds and bodies--its a beautiful thing. Those people could be out there doing all sorts of things in life, but they are practicing yoga! How wonderful. Whether they ever "get it" or not is up to them.

Secondly, who are we to judge what others are getting out of yoga? Here is my story for example:

I started practicing yoga when I was 19 (that was in 1991)--I was basically a mess, and something in the yoga classes was working on me. At the time, I had no idea what I was searching for in yoga--all I knew was that I felt better. I did not practice anything in yoga except the postures and I did not seek answers--somehow I trusted that they would come to me one day if I just did the postures. Years went by and slowly, very slowly, I began to see things differently and to change. After a final bout with a crazy drug addiction, the yoga really started to work--I kicked the drug addiction and anorexia and completely turned my life around. You know, I guess some people would have scoffed at me coming to yoga class appearing to get nothing out of it--maybe they wondered why I bothered--maybe they judged me. But you see, all I could do at the time was the postures, and slowly, oh so slowly, over time the lessons seeped into my being and today I enjoy the benefits of this wonderful practice that gave me my life back.

So, I have experienced first hand that yoga can work on you wherever you are--don't exasperate yourself worrying about if you or others are "getting it" or not. If you want it, you'll get it eventually and if you don't then noone can make you. Just know you are beautiful wherever you are in life and whatever culture you come from. Believe me, I have spent my time hating this and judging that, but over time, I am learning to let that go and spend more time loving myself, life, and others. As a teacher, when I watch my students just blindly show up for class and go through the motions of the poses appearing to get nothing out of it, I have to remind myself of this journey that I had. I know that as long as you keep practicing, you will find what you are looking for, and if you aren't looking for anything except for more flexible hamstrings, that is fine too. But if you keep practicing, you will be blown away. Just be patient.

River Lessons, Life Lessons

2009-09-23T11:45:00.004-04:00

Life is awesome--I am super busy working on a book project and I am getting out kayaking when I can. I recently read this article by my friend Anna Levesque--she is a great kayaking and yoga instructor and an awesome business woman. She stole the words right from my mouth on this one--even if you are not a kayaker, this is a great read. And maybe it will inspire you to get out there and go kayaking, climbing, adventuring in some way to help you discover your true self, your true strengths, and how amazing life is:

Teachings from the River

Peace.

Finding Love Down By the River

2009-09-03T18:13:00.004-04:00

I entered this outdoor romance story contest on one of my favorite blogs, Rock Climber Girl.com. Its a fun romantic read about how I met my husband and how we started down this crazy path together.

Read our story here.

Check out all of the romance storied if you are there and want more--there are 4 total.

Jedi Mind Training

2009-08-17T14:30:00.009-04:00

Recently I went on a whitewater kayaking trip to Washington and BC. Normally my husband and I like to run very difficult whitewater (steep class V) when we go on these trips. On the months preceding this trip, we were working full time in our office on an upcoming guidebook (The River Gypsies' Guide to North America). The rivers around where we live weren't running all that much and we really didn't have the time to go out and chase the water (they are rain dependent) anyway. Every day I felt exhausted and my brain felt dull. When I would do my yoga practice, I just couldn't focus and it faltered as well. We thought we would just get it all together once we got on the road. What we found out was that when we would put on these difficult rivers, really any river, we had a lot of trouble focusing and it caused some bad lines and poor decisions. We just weren't as sharp as we are used to being. We knew that it was our lack of kayaking preceding the trip and that our brains had become tired and dull from all of the work.

What I also know now is that I could have used yoga to train my brain to focus during this time that I couldn't kayak. When I began my yoga practice each day, I could have taken the time to discipline myself during my yoga practice. One of my teachers says, "Lazy feet, lazy mind." during classes all the time, and I would just get so irritated if I was tired--I didn't want to put that energy in my toes, but I would do it anyway--she would give us plenty of opportunity to relax in Savasana (the ending relaxation pose). The active physical practice of yoga has a purpose and the purpose is not to just flop around on the floor completely disconnected from my body and mind--that is not yoga.

Yoga is a mindfulness practice. This is one of the main reasons that it works for athletes. We can use our yoga sessions to train our brains to focus, and one of the ways this works is to slow down and pay attention to how we are doing the poses. By slowing down your yoga practice, you will learn to focus your mind on what you are doing to an even greater level. Eventually you will also begin to notice exactly what you are thinking during your sport and you will begin to know where your body is at all times.

Click here to read more about using yoga as a cross training tool for the mind.

Yoga is experiential, so, this is your homework: I encourage you in your yoga practice to learn to slow down and pay attention to what you are doing. Do this by beginning each yoga session by sitting or lying down. Let all of your thoughts flood your mind. Begin to just pay attention to your thoughts without becoming involved in the drama—watch them like clouds. Then bring your awareness into your breath…and then bring your awareness into your body. Feel the breath in the body. Notice how it feels on your nostrils as you breathe in and out. Relax your face. Now take your awareness to your throat and feel the breath and releasing tension if necessary. Next feel your shoulder girdle—your collarbones, arm bones, and shoulderblades—let the breath move these bones. Now your ribcage—let the entire rib cage—top, middle, bottom, front, back and sides undulate as you breath. Feel your belly—let the belly move and imagine the breath moving through your organs. Now feel your pelvis—let the breath move through the pelvic bones. See if you can feel the breath in your legs and all the way to your toes.These movements and sensations are very subtle, so you have to really pay attention. Feel you whole body breathe. Bathe in it.

Next, as you move into your physical practice, only do half of the amount of postures you were going to do in the same amount of time. As you practice the poses, slow down and notice where your breath is free and where it is restricted. In each pose, either feel or look in a mirror--where are your shoulders, arms, hands, fingers? Your rib cage—is it poking forward? How is your pelvis situated? How is it moving—restricted or freely? Where are you thighs? Your lower legs? Your feet, ankles, each of your toes? What is your spine doing? Is there pain or sensations anywhere? Where are your eyes focused? Where is your mind? After each pose, return to a neutral pose such as Mountain Pose and take a few breaths and noticed any sensations in the body and mind.

Then you take it with you "out there." Slow down and notice as you ride, climb, or paddle—where is your breath? Where are your shoulders? Your rib cage? Your pelvis? Your eyes focused? Your mind?

The road to awareness is never-ending. There is so much for you to discover about yourself and the world. Learning to slow down and pay attention is the foundation of discovery.

Simply Yoga

2009-08-11T15:57:00.013-04:00

I get asked the question "What type of yoga do you teach?" often and I hear that people are sometimes confused about what yoga is and what types of classes they should take. First of all, yoga is not a religion and it did not come from religion--its just about creating awareness, that's all. Its really not that difficult to understand and the less you try to understand it intellectually, the less confused you will be--yoga is more about experiencing it. For a cool brief history of yoga click here.

Next, practicing yoga is not necessarily sedentary. Active people are often not drawn to yoga because they say they can't sit still for that long. How active or sedentary yoga is depends on the teacher and what kind of class you go to. Also, how spiritual and chanty class is depends again on the type of yoga and the teacher. So, here is a super basic run down:

Hatha Yoga--all of the following are Hatha Yoga--Hatha Yoga means that a practice is made up of postures (asanas), meditation, and breathwork (pranayama).

Iyengar, Anusara--work for long periods of time with alignment in poses. Classes are good for those with injuries or a super active lifestyle.

Ashtanga, Power, Vinyasa, Flow--move from pose to pose, sometimes quickly. Class is good for those who have a sedentary lifestyle and need some movement. Does tend to be more difficult.

Bikram and Hot--like the flow classes, but done in a hot room. Good for winter time, those who are more sedentary, and those who need to detox. Not good for people who are sensitive to heat, or I would imagine not good for menopausal women.

Yin--slow moving and more passive approach to poses. Therapeutic.

ViniYoga--Therapeutic, usually one on one to restore postural problems.

Kundalini--works with the breath, can be vigorous or slow moving, has more chanting.

You can read a more in depth article about yoga styles here and here.

Most classes and DVDs will explain what kind of yoga they are, but keep in mind, that classes can vary depending on the teacher and the mood of the teacher. I recommend trying different classes and different teachers. Same with DVDs--get lots of different kinds and try them out. Some teachers you will love, some will get on your nerves. Some DVDs you will reach for on low energy days and some you will reach for on high energy days. One day the teacher who once got on your nerves might even be your favorite--don't be afraid to try different styles and different teachers--variety is the spice of life. Yes, you might waste you money on a class or DVD you don't like sometimes, but you will never learn about yourself if you don't take risks. Don't pigeon hole yourself to be one type of person and so never try something because you don't think you would like it. You might be surprised.

To learn about me and the style of yoga that I teach click here--Andria Davis.

One big word of caution is if you are an athlete and you work out alot, you probably need to stay away from the super vigorous styles of yoga. I did this mistakenly thinking that the yoga was restoring my body and instead, I got overuse injuries. I ended up having to take time off of yoga postures, working out, and all sports. It was maddening. So, now, since I work out pretty vigorously, I use yoga as a more restorative practice. Although, when I am in a more sedentary period in life, I do still practice some vigorous styles--I just have learned to pay better attention to what my body needs.

And last, don't be afraid to be still...what is it that you are afraid of anyway? I have learned to slow down and pay attention more to the details of life because I learned to sit down and meditate sometimes (although I lie down to meditate since I have endured so many back injuries due to extreme sports). I will get more into this later, but learning to move slowly, do breathwork and meditate have made me better in my activities and have just made life, well, more lively.

Non-Judgement

2009-06-03T11:42:00.003-04:00

I just came home from a visit with my Grandparents for my Grandfather's 90th birthday. It was amazing to be there. But also difficult. I was around family for an entire 2 1/2 days. Whew! In my youth, put in this situation, I would have spent the entire time preaching about politics, environmentalism, and social issues. I would have yelled and gotten myself and everyone else upset and fighting. Luckily the practice of yoga has taught me to be a more loving, compassionate, and non-judgemental person. I have learned that when someone says something that seems ignorant that just downright pisses me off, to just listen. Listen to what other people have to say--maybe I can learn something. Also, if I just smile and give love back, I feel better and everyone feels better. My Grandparents will leave this world soon and I want the thing that they remember is how they felt loved and accepted. I want them to leave in peace--they have done alot for this world and for our family.

I am learning a valuable lesson from my family--the practice of non-judgement. I have very different views on just about everything, but I love them all dearly. They teach me that it doesn't really matter what people believe about this or that, its their essence that is the only thing real. I love who they are beyond their beliefs. I have also learned that I should only visit for about 2 1/2 days.

Speaking of Competitions!

2009-05-24T15:21:00.000-04:00

My husband and I have entered our company into a grant competition. We made the top 50 out of thousands of entries! So how can you help? Well, we had to make a movie about our company's story and part of the judging comes from how many votes we can get. So, please help us out and vote for us--we are running a bit behind b/c we're not very good at competitions (read previous post).

Go to this website to get to know us. To vote, click on the icon, ("inspiring," "useful," and/or "funny") and then create a username and password (to prevent voting fraud), then vote!!

If you do, we will be so grateful and good things will come to you!

Competition

2009-05-22T10:27:00.000-04:00

It has always baffled me the way humans are so hung up in competition. Maybe its just genetic, but this is what I observe. I see that people are obsessively caught up in results and image. Everyone wants to be the best. I have to say, I love competition in its pure form--I love pushing myself to do something that maybe I wouldn't have done otherwise. But insert other people into the equation and it becomes ugly. All of a sudden, people are comparing themselves, maybe saying negative things about their competition--they end up being against each other rather than supportive of one another. And in the world of an extreme sport such as whitewater kayaking, its not good--we need each other for survival.

I went to a comp last weekend and there were so many bad vibes--I got caught up in it--thus the drama in the previous post. I got angry and frustrated, and I was surprised by how people acted when I thought it was going to be a fun and lighthearted event for girls to get together and support each other. But in the end, it helped me because I decided to take a good hard look inside.

Like I said, I love competition because I love to push myself, but I don't like the game playing. I also don't like to be confined by rules--in order to compete, you have to be somewhere at a certain time and then you have to play by the rules--all things that I am not good at and really don't like--its not for me, so why have I been expecting it of myself? The expectations on myself and subsequent guilt when I would always inevitably not show up for the event that I signed up for seemed to be the real issue here. I realized that I have been made to believe by media and the thoughts of the herd that somehow I needed to be in competitions when its really not my thing. So, I have decided to channel my energy in life to the things that I do well and the things that bring me joy because in the end, that is what matters. I no longer need to feel guilty for being original. So, my energies are redirected at creating yoga routines for athletes, going kayaking for pure joy, taking pictures and video and sharing my travel, joy, and viewpoints with the world through our blogs, books, and videos. I will stay fit in mind in body so that I can participate fully in the sports that I love doing--and I can do it my own way--with my own original twist (the judges on American Idol love and encourage that!) and it will be more effective that way because its real.

Drama

2009-05-21T14:26:00.000-04:00

Well, I did it--I created drama in a community for one of the first times in my adult life. I have tended to avoid it. But, I think all situations can be an opportunity for self growth. It really is so important to turn each and everything into something positive. So, remember if you get mad at someone or you are judging someone or something bad happens to you, turn it around and look inward. Figure out what inside you created it. Self inquiry is the magic of life. Don't bury yourself in it, though--remember to balance. Figure it out, see it, then let it go, and move on. Inner strength is created through your ability to see yourself as you are and your ability to forgive yourself, change it, and move forward with your life.

Who am I?

2009-05-21T14:04:00.001-04:00

It's the ultimate question and one I have been pondering since I was too young to wonder about such things. I have always been very philosophical and spiritual, yet also very physical and outdoorzy. As I grew, my life and interests took me in many directions, but one day stands out in particular. In my first yoga class, I knew that was my calling in life--to teach yoga. It took me many more years and adventures to come back around to it, but here I am today living my dream. But my dream has evolved--in the process of life, I have also found a love for outdoor adventures, whitewater kayaking in particular. I never would have dreamed I would be strong and confident enough to be the athlete that I am today. But it was all made possible through the self inquiry and growth that is available to us through a yoga practice. It doesn't matter where you are in a practice--don't let all the hype get to you. All you have to do is observe yourself from wherever you are. Think about your toes and know that you will have found enlightenment when you are no longer looking for it, but you are truly intrigued by your toes--or if you don't have those--substitute something else, like maybe, lightening bugs.