Practicing Ahimsa towards ourselves: Rachel Hawes Guest Post & e-course!

Today I have a special guest post from a fabulous Yoga Blogger from "Across the Pond": Rachel Hawes of Fusion Studio. She was one of the first online yoga bloggers with whom I connected with and I LOVED listening to her audio pod cast (her and her partner have the BEST interactions). I adore Rachel's writing style, her open and practical approach to yoga and healing while keeping her teachings very grounded in physical health and balance.

Now we can all benefit from Rachel's fabulous teachings from all around the world! She has created "Serenity Seasons" e-course that will be available at the end of this month (see the final section at the end of this article for details). As a preview of her awesome, rocking self; enjoy her perspective on "Ahimsa" (at my request for insights re: stress and self-care). Merci Rachel!

Practicing Ahimsa towards ourselves

Ahimsa, the first of the Yamas or Moral Restraints in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras is often translated as non-violence.

"Being firmly grounded in non-violence creates

an atmosphere in which others can let go of their hostility."

Yoga Sutra 2:35

Rather than looking at is as a lack of violence, I prefer to see Ahimsa as a cultivation of loving kindness towards all beings.  Once we start to focus on loving kindness we often realise how many of our thoughts are unloving and unkind.  I am often seen to get increasingly impatient in the supermarket queue behind that old lady who just will not stop talking to the cashier and get on with packing her bags, and I'm not the most patient driver in traffic! By being mindful of these things, however, and noticing when they are happening I can take a breath, open my heart…..and react in a different way.  

Let it go.  Loving kindness.

Don’t for a minute think this is easy for me.  It just isn’t.  But like so much in life, it’s all about baby steps.

As Darren Main says in his book Yoga and the Path of the Urban Mystic:-

"By simultaneously refraining from violent acts and looking at the unconscious thought patterns that inspire them, we become more peaceful, and our natural reaction to adversity will be peace rather than attack." (page 81).

Ultimately though, to make this search for Ahimsa more personal to me, I try to focus the loving kindness towards myself.  Too often we get so caught up in our work, our families, the chores, the needs and wants of others, we forget about ourselves, our own wellbeing. Over the last few years I have been working on finding moments of self-care within my busy days. Five minutes of meditation, five minutes of yoga, ten deep breaths. It stops me from burning out. It keeps my well of energy, inspiration and creativity full so I can serve my clients with 100% of my focus and attention.

I truly believe that if we don’t take care of ourselves, our ability to take care of others diminishes. By looking after myself I am surprised by how much more compassion I have towards those around me.

This journey in self-care and serenity is something I want to share with the world. We all know how important looking after ourselves is but sometimes we're just so busy, so stressed, that we don't know where to start. We don't have time to go to a yoga class, or for a massage. 

So I have created the Serenity Seasons e-course (link: http://massage-movement.co.uk/courses-support/the-serenity-seasons-e-course/) to help you bring serenity and self-care back into your day, moment by moment, season by season. 

To be amongst the first to sign up and get the early bird discount, as well as receive a free 10-minute guided relaxation MP3 immediately and a recording of a talk I am giving entitled "Help! I'm too busy..." on 28th November, then do sign up to my mailing list (link:  http://eepurl.com/gagi9). There's an opportunity to win one of ten Serenity Self-Care packages too! I can't wait to connect with you! 

Rachel Hawes is a yoga teacher and mentor, holistic therapist, stressbuster, serenity seeker and owner of Fusion Studio (linkhttp://massage-movement.co.uk). She is passionate about helping people eliminate stress and anxiety by tapping into their inner energy and joy to find wellbeing, mindfulness and pain-free movement. She has worked with a wide variety of people from stressed-out office workers to new mums, from people recovering from chronic illness to trainee yoga teachers. She has a toolbox of techniques and practices to suit you, at whatever point on your journey you find yourself.

Follow her on Twitter (@Rachel_Fusion), join her on Facebook (http://facebook.com/fusionstudio74) and read the blog (http://massage-movement.co.uk/blog)

A Very Mindful Wedding- Where Is My Guru GP!

The wind is howling outside our apartment. It's a bit more than what we expect, but we still have power and, well, it's always windy and howling in Halifax.

The wind often makes me feel a weird combination of at home and powerless all at once. It was fitting that on our wedding two years ago we also received the tail ends of a tropical storm- home and chaos fit perfectly in those last few days and hours with my emotional state.

A month ago, Heather from Namaste Heather and Where is My Guru, contacted me asking if I'd like to do a blog post on "A Very Mindful Wedding" as the founder of WIMG Jess's own wedding is happening shortly. After two years I felt like I was finally ready to reflect and share a few thoughts on what I felt a "Mindful Wedding" could be.

"A Very Mindful Wedding"

I hope you enjoy it and that you are all keeping safe and warm during the windy chaos.

 Strength and Healing to all those who are affected by Sandy.

My Face on Honey

Have sensitive skin? Wish you could wash your face sans chemicals sans paying a fortune? Check out my guest post over at the lovely Feed Seed re: My Face on Honey where I reveal my inner, surprisingly effective, granola secret!

Blessings and Happy Quarter Moon!
EcoYogini

Finding your Journey: A Guest Post from Five Seed

As many of you know, I am a huge fan of the wonderful company "Five Seed" and their fabulously eco-conscious and well made herbal/beauty products. My current favourite: The infusion massage oil. I have been using it as perfume and it is the BEST natural scented product I have ever encountered. It lasts the longest and the dropper is perfect. Plus they smell divine!


I asked Yancy to write about what her experience in following her dream has been like over the past year... and what a beautiful answer. If you're considering a new Life Journey; this post is for you!

EcoYogini asked me to write this post at least two months ago – maybe three. I kept waiting for
inspiration to strike – to figure out what exactly I wanted to talk about. And then I realized that my
journey into following my dream has been so filled with different challenges and emotions that I would
never work out what I wanted to say until I sat down and just started writing. So here we go…

I have always been interested in herbal remedies and perfumes, and friends encouraged me to sell them for a long time. But ironically, I don’t think I was ready until after I buckled down at 30 and decided to get a “real degree” and a “real job.” I earned my MAT the same year our local schools started bi-annual rounds of layoffs. I subbed for about two years – a job I loathed. I kept it up because I needed to pay the bills, but my health and emotional state were suffering every month that went by. I started contemplating a way out: Could I make money on my own terms?

My first thought, of course, was to open an herbal remedy business. Yet I held on to subbing. One day,
after expressing my frustrations about it on my blog, one of my fellow bloggers, Mon at Holistic Mama,
said simply, “How long are you going to force yourself to do something you hate so much?” It was a real eye-opener to hear that and I realized it was time to do something and stop dreaming about it.

I admit, I did not exactly do things in the right order, or in a “correct” manner. Many people take
business classes through their community education programs – which I highly recommend. I did not do this and wish that I had. But I grew up with my parents owning several businesses, so I had their advice, and frankly, I just wanted to dive right in.

Although I had enormous support from the blogging community (special thanks to EcoYogini!- my pleasure!), the first six months were the hardest. I scrambled to learn things I probably should have learned before opening the shop. I only had a few orders a month, and things were looking bleak. I spent hundreds of dollars on supplies and packaging for items that never came together and wholesale requests from people who never followed through.

I started out with just four items in my shop in January 2010, and then built up the inventory bit by bit.
But if you had followed my store every month through July, you would have seen the inventory go up,
and then come right back down to about six items last summer. I have a tendency to try things intending to give it my all, but really only giving it 50% because I don’t want to end up wasting time or money when in the end, something might not work out. (This is an old pattern of mine.)

For an entire month, I struggled with thoughts of closing the store down. I made less money in July than in any other month I have been open. I did not make or add inventory – I gave my business very little energy. For a long time, I had very passive, destructive feelings about it. I felt that this was a sign that I was supposed to close the shop down and go back to subbing. Obviously, the universe was not going to support me.

But as the month went on, I realized that I was drowning in fears – fears of not knowing what I was
doing, of being in “over my head” (which is an easy thing to feel when you’re in business by yourself),
of losing money, of failing. And ultimately, after exploring those fears, I came to realize that I was not a
passive victim of the universe. Of course I wasn’t doing well – my store only offered six items, and I was largely ignoring it on every level.

That’s when I started focusing on what I wanted to sell. I started out with lip balms and moisturizers, but I realized I wanted to delve more deeply into perfumes and herbal remedies. When my inventory started reflecting my passion for herbs, I started receiving more energy from the universe. My store started doing better and better.

And now, a year and a month later, the journey is far from over. In fact, I feel as if I have just begun.
The mistakes I made last year were extremely costly – I ended up quite deep in the hole. But then, most businesses do not turn a real profit for 3-5 years. Plus, those mistakes taught me more than a book could have taught me. I find myself far more careful about what I spend and why I spend it. There are still many mistakes I fall into, but each one helps me improve myself and the business.

I have realized that the biggest obstacle I have faced and will continue to face with my business is fear. I am already a highly strung, overly-anxious person. I was already afraid to start a business and maintain it. Afraid of people not liking the products. Afraid of not doing the paperwork right and having the mayor charge in and shut me down (LOL). Afraid of losing more money. Afraid of having to go back to a job I hated. And when people find out you have started your own business – well, no one is stupid. We all know the odds for a small business in today’s economy. And people feel the need to remind you of the statistics. They feel the need to make sure you know (as if I don’t) and to make sure you have a “back-up plan” in the very likely scenario that you end up part of that 95% of entrepreneurs who don’t make it.

The lesson I have learned this year is that the world is full of well-intentioned naysayers. And the biggest naysayer of all is the one in our own mind. So maybe it’s not about making a profit, or having your business “succeed.” (What does that really mean, anyway?) Maybe it is just about trying for something that makes you happy. Maybe it is just about learning how to fuel yourself with courage and positivity instead of listening to the worries and anxieties (yours and others’).

It makes me think of that old adage about deciding to jump off the cliff and to expect that God(dess) will either catch you or give you wings. If you jumped, most people would think you a fool, but really – what other option do you have? Stand there on the edge of the cliff for the rest of your life?

Thank you so much Yancy for sharing your experiences with us! 

You can find her beautiful products at her etsy website: Five Seed
Her fun website: fiveseed.wordpress.com
Her personal website: agreenspell.wordpress.com
and of course Twitter @5seed

Yoga Noobs; 27 Things to Know About Yoga Blog Tour + Book Giveaway!

Although yoga has been a part of my life for about 5-6 years now, I still feel like a yoga-noob all the time. I very much feel like my practice is growing and still so young and wide-eyed.

Which is why I was quite interested in the recent email I received from Victoria Klein regarding her book- "27 Things to Know About Yoga". Kinda like a primer for yoga, her book is a great starter giving the essentials without the fluff or hippie intimidation (yep, I think hippies can be intimidating... lol).


I was especially interested in her focus on environmental living. As a writer, photographer and eco-consultant she's interested in knitting, sewing, reading and of course, practicing yoga. I'm very pleased that she was willing to answer a few questions, not all of which are yoga-centric. 


Even better, Victoria sent me a reading copy of her book "27 Things to Know About Yoga", which I enjoyed. As I think this book would give a nice lift for those other yoga-noobs out there I'd really like to share the book-love... which means Book Giveaway!! After the fabulous interview, please read instructions on how to win a copy of "27 Things to Know About Yoga" by Victoria Klein!!

 Atreyu inspecting the book. No worries, it's safe from kitten mayhem :)

1. Writing a book about yoga is a pretty big deal. How did you and yoga "meet"? Was it love at first sight, or was there a progression with some bumps along the way?
I met yoga nearly 10 years ago & loved it after my first class. Since then, my practice has had some bumps, including finding the right teachers, relocating to new cities, and simply maintaining my commitment to practice regularly at home. No matter where my life has taken me, I always end up coming back to yoga. Yoga is what you make of it – it does not judge or grade you – it just is what it is. As humans, we assign meaning to things & yoga means the world to me.

  2. With the recent drama regarding Yoga's image in advertising what are your thoughts on the "business" and image of yoga? As a fashion model and photographer does this shift your perspective?

The whole “drama” was a long time coming. Yoga is at a very transformative point in its awareness in Western culture. Yoga is still very much a physical & spiritual practice, but it also has a business side to it. You can’t have an effective yoga studio if you don’t manage the business correctly; the same goes for brands that focus on selling to yoga practitioners.

As someone who is personally & professionally interested in visual arts, especially photography (both in front of & behind the camera), I think I do have a different perspective on yoga’s business and image. Should we use sex or sexy-ness to sell yoga or yoga products? No. Should we use sex to sell anything? No – but we do anyway, because it works. Advertising is another business altogether & I don’t claim to know it well.

I’m not against using sexy concepts to get folks interested in yoga. I personally believe that once folks actually try yoga, whether their reasons are sex-related or not, they will grow to love yoga for other reasons – the practice has an unwavering ability to constantly surprise people. In actuality, yoga has little to do with sex at all, and that needs to be reinforced in classes, but advertisers are advertisers & removing the “sex sells” mantra will be a long uphill battle.

3. Although 27 Things to Know About Yoga is obviously about yoga, you have many other passions in your life including a pretty intense focus on environmentally friendly living. How do you see Yoga meshing with eco-friendly living? 
Yoga meshes seamlessly with living a sustainable life. As I highlight in 27 Things to Know About Yoga, the spiritual side of yoga includes commandment-esque values like non-harming, truthfulness, non-stealing, and non-possessiveness. All of these values can be related to our treatment of ourselves, each other, animals, natural resources, and our overall environment.

I often use practicing yoga & food as an example. As you practice yoga, your diet naturally changes – you want to keep your body healthy and strong, so you start to gravitate towards fresh fruits and vegetables instead of processed and packaged foods. The same can be said for practicing yoga & living sustainably.
There is both a wonderful organization & book (not related) on the subject. California-based Green Yoga Association helps yoga studios run their operations more sustainably, get their students interested in green living, and be an active part of their community. Canada’s Georg & Brenda Feuerstein wrote Green Yoga, a frank connection between environmental preservation and the ethical concepts of yoga.

4. I've read that you're married (and had an "eco-wedding blog" but I can't find it anymore... :(- I'm getting married in October and it would have been a fun read). Does your husband share your eco and yoga views? Do you practice together and if so, did you introduce him to yoga? If not, has it been difficult to mesh eco-living with someone of a different perspective?

Yes and no. He is an eco-yogi, but not nearly as committed as I am. I was the one who introduced him to yoga & we have taken a few classes together, but he doesn’t maintain a regular practice. Whenever he is sore from a workout or military event, the first thing I do is recommend a few yoga poses. Though he has only taken a few classes, he vividly remembers how great they made him feel, so he usually takes my advice. When it comes to living sustainably, we do see eye-to-eye on just about everything, though sometimes I do have to remind him of our environmental impacts. 

5. Why did you write the book, 27 Things to Know About Yoga? 

To dispel the ever-present myths about yoga. From coffee shops and airports to restaurants and local streets, I meet folks that think yoga is nothing but funny-looking poses for flexible people. It’s these myths that are keeping millions of people from experiencing the fantastic possibilities of a yoga practice. I wanted to write a book that could explain yoga to anyone.

6. If you only had one "Thing" you could tell someone about Yoga, what would it be?

You can do yoga – yes, you, behind that computer, smart phone or iPad. No ifs, ands, or buts.

******

Wow! Thank you very much Victoria for answering so thoughtfully.

Now for the extra fun bit- Win the book!

How: In the comment section tell me how you are a "yoga-noob". I'll need some way to identify you, so a name at least would be ideal. :) You have until this Sunday, September 12th to enter. I'll put all the names in a hat and announce the winner!

Good luck!

Hot Yoga Done Right: Moksha Yoga and Ted Grand :)

As most of my regular readers know, I gave 'hot' yoga a good try. From Moksha to Baptiste a half dozen sessions resulted in my acceptance that it is alright to actually not like a certain style of yoga (perhaps my pitta-vata self?).

Heated yoga, in all it's versions, is quickly becoming one of the trendiest forms of yoga out there. Everyone is doing it. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Until you start thinking of the sheer amount of energy (and oil) used in order to heat those studios.

Which is why I am very excited to share with you a special opportunity I was given last week! Ted Grand is one of the founders of Moksha Yoga. An passionate environmentalist and impressive 'yogi-background', I 'met' Ted for the first time via an interview with Jian Gomeshi on Q. It was a fabulous interview and I was extremely impressed with how well he answered challenging questions and discussed the conundrum of yoga and business with Yoga Inc film and book author John Philip.

Moksha Studio Halifax taken today on my lunch break :)

 

Moksha studios do a lot to negate and lower the impact of their energy usage. Unlike other studios, Moksha actually has a written environmental contract that they require all their studios to sign. They use heating panels and systems that can decrease energy usage by 40 to 50%, sustainable building supplies (from cork or bamboo flooring to low-energy lighting and low VOC paints). Most studios use Bullfrog Power; a company that will take your coal energy and put sustainable energy back into the grid. If the province or state does not have Bullfrog, then they will offset their use or carbon throught 'zerofootprint.net' (or an equivalent organization). Rooms are insulated to keep in the precious heat and decrease actual energy required for heating.


Halifax has a beautiful studio which I have had the opportunity to practice in and Dartmouth will soon be opening their very own. Both studios have many environmental benefits, the most impressive being the heating panels and use of Bullfrog Power.


Ted was kind enough to accept my request in answering a few questions and I am so happy to share his thoughtful answers with you! So without further ado:

1. First things first: as an environmentally conscious blog, featuring Hot Yoga would seem a bit counter intuitive, but as per the description above, Moksha Studios do a LOT to counteract their carbon footprint. I feel Moksha is the best eco-Hot Yoga organization out there. As someone with an environmental activism background, why did you choose heated yoga instead of another, less energy intensive style?

The reason we chose to go with heated yoga was primarily due the effects it had when compared to practicing asana in regular-heated class settings.  I had never felt anything like the sense of feeling cleaner and less weighted down - I slept deeply, my digestion was better and my mental clarity was greatly improved from practicing asana in a heated room.  Certainly there are advantages with the heat in terms of increasing flexibility as well, but the sense of clarity and detoxification was what kind of rocked my world.

That said, I have also had crappy experiences in hot yoga.  I have been to studios where the air quality is very poor, where there is carpet that absorbs or holds the sweat of others, and where the instructors encouraged students to fight through all the warning signals that the body gives when it is overheated.  So with Moksha we took all the things that were great and ditched all of those variables that we felt were not so good.

As for the environmental aspects, we were hyper-aware of the energy consumption that occurs in most hot yoga studios, so we went waaaaay out of our way to design the best eco-studios that we could.  The heating panels we use, the light fixtures, the plumbing, the office supplies and the cleaning products are all chosen specifically for their diminished impact on the earth.

2. Is Moksha continuously striving to lower the impact of heating so many studios? If so, in what ways and are there any obstacles?

As a community, Moksha Yoga is continually looking for ways to decrease our carbon footprint, but it can be really difficult.  One of the great things about there being 40+ Moksha studios is that we have that many more people out there looking for the greenest avenues towards constructing and managing the studios.

Some studio owners have looked into solar panels, some have considered geo-thermal heating/cooling, and some have done research on what the best bamboo is for flooring.  Some of the technology needs to get to the next generation of sophistication and affordability in order for small businesses to embrace them, so that is a big variable.

I do have to say though, I think that time is getting close.  The insulation we are using for example, is so much better than it was 10 years ago - there is some really great soy foam that a lot of the studios are using, and one studio uses insulation made from old blue jeans.  I think in the near future we are going to see some amazing innovations in green building because the government is now recognizing that if businesses are greening themselves up, then everyone benefits.

3. Moksha does so much to make yoga accessible, which is interesting as it is (like discussed on Q) becoming a trendy option. Why was it important to offer affordable yoga and how were you able to make it work in the studio business model? 

For a guy who is so involved and interested in the yoga world, there is a lot about it that drives me crazy.  Though things are changing now and more and more communities are getting involved in yoga, it has traditionally (in the West) been a pursuit of image-obsessed caucasians with disposable income.  Quite simply, yoga is not accessible to everyone, both in terms of what it costs and where it is offered.  So all of the Moksha studios have in place ways that people who could not otherwise afford it can do as much yoga as they want.  First of all, there is a trade system in place whereby students can clean the studio, do administrative work or do odd jobs, all in exchange for unlimited yoga.

The average studio has about 15-20 'energy-exchangers' and some of the bigger studios can have as many as 50 people on 'trade'.  We also encourage studio owners to give free yoga or greatly discounted classes to those who just can't afford it.  We also support and help sustain the New Leaf Yoga Foundation (Moksha Yoga teacher Laura Sygrove and Moksha Yoga co-founder Jess Robertson founded the organization), which goes out to youth detention centres and offers yoga to the inmates there.  The success of New Leaf is massive and their reach is expanding daily.

We also have weekly 'karma classes' at every Moksha Yoga studio, whereby people anonymously pay what they can.  The money raised through the Karma classes goes to local and progressive charities and causes in the studio's local area. 

4. How does Yoga as a discipline fit with your environmental views?

Quite frankly, yoga as a discipline and the philosophies inherent within it are what have kept me sane.  I have gone from being in environmental clubs to fundraising for environmental groups to protesting to blockading roads to hanging off of ships to getting arrested, but it all caused me more and more suffering and sadness.  

For every environmental victory that served as a step forward, there were multiple ongoing travesties that felt like 10 steps back.  The injustices and the manipulation involved in forestry, mining, manufacturing and politics were really getting to me and I was getting more and more radical to match the intensity with which I felt things.  Of course I eventually burned out and realized that I needed some help if I were going to remain in a place of caring and compassion, and this is how meditation and yoga came into my life.  

Through the tools and techniques that can be cultivated in a yoga practice, I found myself less reactive and angry and more focused and peaceful.  I will never forget one day I was blockading a road into a mill, and these guys would bring their cars up to the gate and spin their wheels to have me choke on the dust. 

They also decapitated a pigeon and put it right in front of me. When I was hanging off of the ship, the workers were trying to shake me off of the rope even though I would likely have been crushed by the ship had I fallen. 

What I am trying to say is that my anger and efforts and resistance were met with acts of greater anger and acts of resistance.  I was not making the world a better place, only perpetuating and amplifying anger in the world.  

To be clear, I am still a big fan of civil disobedience and non-violent direct action, but I know that if I want to make a difference, it is in cultivating peace in people's lives, so that they are less inclined towards anger, reactivity, conspicuous consumerism, and abuse in all forms.  This is my activism, and it is as sneaky and subversive as it ever was, cause it looks all peaceful and non-threatening!

5. I've read that you're the father of three lovely girls (congratulations!), how has that changed your perspective on yoga, life and the environment?

My girls are my world.  Just writing this out brings tears to my eyes.  Parenting has taught me how to be an activist through storytelling, kid science, and illustrating the principles of cause and effect.  In no ways am I trying to brainwash them - I just want them to see how magical and infinitely fascinating the earth and the universe are, and how blessed we are to be a part of this web that gives life.  And it is so cool that the girls and I can try to play (in the woods and waters) and eat (no animals) and love (all peoples and creatures) with reverence and empathy, because as they say in yoga, it is illusory to think that we are fully separate from anything else.  

The more we feel we are separate from the earth, the universe and the mechanisms that work together to give life, the unhappier and more disillusioned we will become - and I would love it if my kids grew up to be curious, connected and inspired.  Ultimately, this is what I hope to achieve in and through both my parenting and my yoga practice - to see how harmony and peace is created in nature and focus my efforts towards replicating that in my actions and in my home.

Inside of the lobby of Moksha Studio Halifax where I was able to officially meet Joanna- studio owner, in person! Unfortunately there was a class going on, so no pictures of the pretty cork flooring! But trust me, it's there :)

Exactly! This was such a wonderful experience for myself. I will say that I am *very* impressed with all the Moksha Studios have been doing from an environmental perspective and am excited to see where it will lead them in the future. I hope you were touched by Ted's answers as much as I was.

Again much thanks to Ted Grand and his willingness to help a heated yoga skeptic see the positive.

Blessings!

ps- this article is dedicated to my friend JenP who ADORES Moksha and my fellow bloggy-friend Callah who is currently taking her Moksha Teacher Training. :) 

Interview on Conscious Shopper!

Check my interview over at The Conscious Shopper! Erin asked some pretty interesting questions from my Overshares to why I'm trying to mesh Yoga-Environment-Feminism all in one :)

While you're there, check out her great space. Erin has a ton of info and practical, doable suggestions on going green without spending a zillion dollars!

Many Thanks Erin!

Celebrating Local Studios Part 2: Sunrise Yoga Studio

Welcome back for Partie DEUX of our conversation with Jack Godfrey, owner of Sunrise Yoga Studio. Although I really enjoyed the first part of the conversation, this second part is where I really consider the answers and content to get 'juicy' :).

A quick recap: Sunrise Yoga Studio is over in Dartmouth, Coffee and Yoga crew had recently bombarded a wonderful class with Helen Fong and we were all blown away by the warmth and sense of 'actual' honest community. Jack has been teaching Ashtanga yoga for 12 years and has studied with many big Ashtangi names. Last week he stated that the Beatles originally introduced him to Yoga.

And now, for the rest of the story:

6. What brings you the most Peace and Joy in your life?

At the yoga studio.  The most joy comes from seeing person that has come to the studio heal their body.  I have had several people come to the studio with injured backs and other injuries and they have been able to heal them by doing yoga.

One person had been in a car accident a couple years before starting yoga.  She had been going to physio and chiropractor treaments on a regular basis to help manage the pain.  She started coming to yoga and after 6 months of regular (2-3 classes a week) she no longer had any back pain.  She stopped physio and chiropractor treatments and used the yoga to complete the healing of her body.

Another person has environmental sensitivities and he has been able to improve the health of his body by doing yoga on a regular basis (5-8 classes a week).  His blood pressure has improved.  His weight has gone down.  His body is healthier.  He is able to manage the effects of his illness with yoga.  He recovers more quickly from exposures with Yoga.

A third person has been using yoga to lose weight.  He has lost 40 pound in the last eight months.  He comes to about 5 classes a week plus he does yoga at home.

And of course lots of people are more flexible and less stressed.  They use yoga to improve their well being.  They are healthier and calmer as a result of doing yoga on a regular basis.

These people make teaching yoga a joy.

 

7. There has been a lot of talk recently in the Yoga blog-o-munity regarding 'What is and isn't Yoga' with respect to the commercialization of yoga through organizations like Lululemon, Rainbeau Mars as well as whether Yoga is a religion. What are your thoughts on how Yoga is changed and portrayed in the general Western media-culture? Is this something to embrace as it brings more Yogis to yoga, or should we strive to retain what many call 'pure' or 'traditional' yoga?

I have heard this as well.  I am and elder in my church. I see no conflict between being Christian or whatever religion and having a yoga practice.  I feel that they are quite complimentary.  Having a calm mind and a healthy body means that I can be better at what I need to do in life and in my religion.

There was a discussion on line a few months ago about Yoga Inc (the commercialization of yoga)  One person had a very insightful comment.  Year ago the student would join a yoga teacher as he sat under his tree.  He would listen to the teacher and absorb his teachings.  If he did not agree with the teachings, he would discuss the differences with the teacher.  He would learn from this discussion. 

At some point the student would become dissatisfied with the teacher and decide to move on.  This may be because he has learned as much as he can from this teacher or their view points no longer meshed.  The student would then get up and leave this teacher and wonder along until he found another yoga teacher under another tree and he would sit down and listen to see how well their views meshed and what he can learn.

Not all teachers and not all approaches to yoga will mesh with every teacher and every student.  There are many students and their are many teachers and studios. There is lot to choose from. 

Most people are drawn to the physical aspect of yoga and will go to a Yoga Inc place that focuses on the physical aspect.  As the they become more experienced with yoga they will develop a need for the mental aspects of yoga.  They may or may not be able to satisfy that need at their current studio.  If they can not fulfill the need at the current studio it is time for them to get up and wander on to the next tree and the next teacher.

The exposure of yoga in the media, makes more people aware of yoga and its benefits.  This is a good thing.  A lot of people will give it a try and then move on.  A few of these people will give it a try and make a connection.  And they will move on to the true purpose of yoga which I believe is to improve the health of the body and calm the mind and prepare it for meditation.  Without the media exposure the new people would not connect with yoga and the benefits.

A finishing 'extra':
Eight years ago there were no yoga studios in Dartmouth.  We all had to travel to Halifax to take classes.  There were several teachers offering classes in church halls, rec centres, and community centres.  There were no purpose built spaces to practice yoga in.

For several years I was traveling around the continent going to conferences for work.  Every where I went, I made a point of going to yoga studios.  Finding out what worked well, what I liked, what I did not like. 

Then I started looking for a place in Dartmouth to open a yoga studio.  It took six months of looking to find the current space.   I opened a yoga studio and implemented all of the positive features that I found in those other studios and tried to avoid the negative features.

Now six years later there are three studios in Dartmouth with another opening later this year.

It's been fun.

Thank you very much Jack for giving such insightful and thoughtful answers to my questions! 

Interestingly enough our topic at Coffee and Yoga last night was the 8 limbs of Ashtanga Yoga... and I'll be going to my FIRST Mysore class ever at Sunrise Yoga Studio tomorrow night!! I'm pretty nervous, but I'm sure it will be a great learning experience. :)

You can find Jack on Twitter, facebook, his blog and his studio webpage!

Many Blessings!

article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com 

Sunrise Yoga Studio, Part 1: Celebrating Local Studios!

After our fantastic experience over at Sunrise Yoga, I thought I'd approach the owner of the studio- Jack Godfrey- about a feature here on 'the blog' so that other Haligonian (and those visiting!) could learn about his studio. I also talk a lot about eco-aspects I'D like to see in studios, but thought it was high time I celebrate what is being done locally already. :)

Jack Godfrey has practiced Ashtanga yoga since 1998 and yoga in general since 1968. He's trained with local Ashtangis (Jody Manley) and 'biggie' Ashtangis such as David Swenson, Darby and Patabhis Jois (to name a few!). His approach to teaching Ashtanga contains humour and his goal is to help students explore yoga poses safely and with insight. (I can attest to the humour part, as we were practicing Yin with the wonderful Helen Fong, I could hear his class laughing during what I knew was an intense primary series practice).

To my surprise, Jack answered each question with such thoughtfulness and without any sense of hurry. Even though I know it must have taken him time to formulate and write. As a result, the post is a bit lengthy- so I thought I could post them in two parts. Also, check out his blog, with posts on Mysore, class etiquette and yoga.


Without further ado, part 1 of my e-interview with Jack!

1. You're biography is impressive and filled with wonderful experiences such as several big name Ashtangi workshops and long time yoga practice. What first drew you to Yoga initially, and why did you eventual choose Ashtanga?

What first drew me to yoga was the Beatles.  In the mid 60's they went off to India to do some yoga.  At the same time, my mom took an interest in yoga.  I tried a few poses from the books and really liked the challenge in attempting to do the poses. 

Over the years I kept poking away at yoga but never really made a solid connection until the mid 90s.  At that time the fitness facility at work was adding yoga classes.  I decided to get involved and did a search on the internet and discovered the book Power Yoga by Beryl Bender Birch.  When I read the book, I had an epiphany.  The Ashtanga system provided the missing piece that I was looking for over all those years.  I thought that there had to be a proper sequence to the postures.  If you did them in this order you would get more benefit than if you did them in a random order.

The Ashtanga sequence of the postures filled this missing need for an order to the postures.  The other aspect of the Ashtanga system added to this.  The breath, the gaze, the jump backs.  The heat.  The challenge of doing a pose well.  The thrill of doing a posture slightly better than last time.  The humbleness when you do the posture not as well this time as previously.  Becoming more aware of your body and improving the health of your body.

The Ashtanga systems teaches you humbleness, patience, and determination.

I have improved the health of my body and reduced my weight by over 20 pounds over the last 15 years.  I am more aware of my body and its health as a result of yoga.  

2. Visiting your studio imbued a sense of community and warmth in our Coffee and Yoga group. How do you mesh the necessary business-commodity aspect of teaching Yoga for a living and running a studio with the Living Yoga aspect?

Right from the very beginning, I decided that the studio would be as friendly and accommodating as possible.  All of the teachers make sure that all of the people in the class know each others name.  If we have new people in class, we introduce them to the other members.  We encourage conversation before and after class.  We are deliberately trying to build a friendly place that people want to come to for more than yoga. (Lisa's note- VERY true!)  This has several benefits for the member and the studio:

• The member will come more often
• They will bring their friends
• They will rave about the studio to their friends and neighbors
• They will recommend us.
• The more they come the better their body will become.  They will become healthier.  More in tune with their body.  They will become hooked on yoga.  The more you do it the better you feel.  When you stop doing yoga you will feel less well.
• We have a quarterly pot luck at our house to which the members bring their family,friends and food to share with everyone else.
• We offer credit.  If you are buying a pass card and forgot your wallet, no problem, we will make your card up.  Pay the next time you come.  We do not keep records of the IOU.  We tell the member that we expect them to keep track and pay up when they can.  We have never had this hurt us.
• We do not have classes that you enroll in.  This means that you do not lose money when you miss a class.

I have done all of this in an attempt to make our members as happy and as comfortable as possible.

I see no conflict between the business side and the yoga side.  The happier we can make the members the more they will come and the better they will feel.  And they will tell their friends and they will come and so on and so on.  We get 50% of our new members because of referrals from our existing members.

3. I've heard that your studio does many things to lessen it's environmental footprint. What sorts of things are you currently doing to make your studio 'green'?

One of the things that we do is the mat cleaning.  We supply clothes and spray bottles for our members to use.  The clothes are called bar mops when you buy them at the dollar store.  We have a dilute solution of vinegar and water in the spray bottles.  Shirley (my wife) takes the clothes home and washes them.  We have our hot water supplied by solar panels.  Shirley times the washing to match the supply of hot water from the solar panels. That way we do not use any energy to heat the water. We have free hot water and no carbon footprint for this.  We do not have a dryer.  Shirley hangs the cloths in the laundry room / furnace room to dry overnight or they go out on the clothes line if the weather permits.

We sell three types of yoga mats.  The ones that I selected are as durable as possible.  The high end mat has a life time guarantee.  I have been using one of these mats for over 12 years.  The mats themselves are not as eco friendly as they could be, but if you only need one of them for a lifetime of practice then the carbon foot print over the years is very low.

I have moved the registration system to online for the Intro classes and will be moving the other registrations online in the future.  This will reduce the amount of paper we are consuming.

4. Are there areas you find more challenging to 'eco-fy', or are on your wishlist to green up?

I will be moving the class sign in process to a computer based system and eliminate some more paper consumption in the future.  I will be using one of the little netbook computers for this.  This will get rid of the sign in sheets and the pass cards.  Again trying to minimize the impact on the environment.  Get rid of the paper and minimize the impact on the environment with the smaller computer.

5. How do you view the Yoga community's role with environmentalism and the green movement?

I view these as a person's individual commitment.  A yoga practice will make a person more aware of their impact on the environment and will lead them down the path to reduce their impact.  Becoming more in tune with their mind and body, I think leads to becoming more in tune with the environment and their impact on it.

Thank you Jack very much for the thoughtful and indepth answers to my questions! I hope, lovely readers, that you will take the time to check out his beautiful, warm studio in Dartmouth. Well worth the trip over the bridge! Part 2 of this interview will occur next week, same time, same place :)

article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com, photos used with permission from Jack Godfrey.  

Yoga and Food... and some Link Love!

Rachel (Suburban Yogini) and I have done a bloggy energy exchange! Go on over and check out my post on Yoga and Food... and my thoughts on eating sustainably, vegan and vegetarianism. Also, while you're there check out here awesome vegan chocolate cookie recipe (yum!).

Also, while I'm chatting about other blogs here are a few new (to me!) that I have found:

Bob Weisenberg, American Gypsy, Padre e Hijo (what does that mean Bob?): You may recognize Bob as the wonderful author of 'Yoga Demystified', but maybe you didn't quite realize that Bob has MAD SKILLZ with guitar playing. Seriously. I mean I would drool a bit just listening. Take a listen. I hope he blogs soon about the Yoga Flamenco connection!


Operation Beautiful: A wonderful and empowering site that offers healthy advice for eating and body image. This woman has spurred a Guerrilla Yoga-worthy movement of posting little 'love' post its anonymously, taking a photo and sending it to her site. Telling the readers that they are beautiful. I LOVE reading about the daily bits of spreading the self-worth and her site is FILLED with useful information about dieting, body image, eating disorders and self-esteem.

Mama-Om: I adore this woman's perspective of motherhood and life. She has such calm and insightful ways of viewing her role as a mother and parenthood. I'm not a mother yet, but I hope to take some of her wisdom with me into my journey (some day).

Eat The Damn Cake: I just discovered this space, with a mission to get women to talk about their issues around body image. LOVE. It's honest, open and perfect. It's about time we connect and support each other on this taboo topic of the scary disordered eating thoughts we have.


Yogic Dancer: A dancer and yogini, she recently completed a personal yoga challenge and her thoughts were interesting and motivational. Her recent posts for A Green Spell's The Coil (coming up btw!! check it out!) were honest and respectful.


One Green Generation: This space is a HUGE resource for all you would be gardeners out there. From seed saving to garden planning to Urban gardening, this site has it all. Not only that, but Melinda so often opens up the discussion BEYOND the easy 'plant this and that' to how to build a community, why being 'green' is difficult, cultural and social issues. I love reading her thoughts. Check out her latest 'Are we abnormal?' for a fantastic read on sustainability, culture and body image.


Life on the Balcony: alright, like Melinda's, not really a new space for me, but I've come back to it this spring season. This space is fantastic for tips on how to be an urban balcony gardener, from plants that go together, organizing a pretty flower pot to types of soil. Seriously, awesome resource.


Flandrum Hill: Amy-Lynn is a talented photographer and naturalist in Nova Scotia. Her pictures really capture why I love this province and she always has posts on things I would normally consider mundane... until she writes about them. She makes rural Nova Scotia the magical place it used to be while I was growing up.


Funemployment DIY: This is my friend Jen's space! She is a ridiculous crafter, baker and DIY-er eco-extraordinaire. Seriously, I wish I could make cool stuff like she does. In any case, during a month of unemployment, she has decided (in her wisdom) to have a FunEmployment Month of sustainably DIY-ness. From a cool coat-rack shelf dealy to a beautiful gift for her pregnant sister, I love reading about her adventures :)

Hope that was a fun blog-hop! :)

article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Regularization of Yoga: Guest Post from Suburban Yogini!

Rachel, from Suburban Yogini, is a beautiful and vibrant Soul. She kindly offered to write a guest post for me and I love her chosen topic: Teacher Training in the UK. As I have been considering embarking on that journey, I am honestly jealous of the time frame required for certification. 2.5 years- wow, the opportunities and level of experience. With this post, Rachel offers a nice perspective from beautiful Cambridge England, on what it might be like should Yogis in North America simply 'chill out' (my words). Thank you so much Rachel! (Don't you LOVE her Red Hair?? Gorgeous!)

Embarking upon yoga teacher training in the UK isn’t an easy option.  It’s not just something you can do in a few months to add another string to your bow, it is a huge commitment of both time and lifestyle.  It can be up to 2.5 years of arduous training, essay writing and anatomy tests usually combined, for most of us, with a full time job because that’s the only way we can afford to pay the £2,500 that the training certification costs!  On top of that you have to have been practicing, with an accredited teacher, for at least two years and it is preferred if you have done the twelve month Foundation Course first. 

There is a reason for all this – yoga teaching certification is overseen by the governing body of yoga in the UK, The British Wheel of Yoga (BWY).  And this brings us nicely onto the thorny subject of regularising yoga certification.

In the UK we have governing bodies for pretty much everything.  It’s not as bad as you’d think really.  While I’m not going to pretend that the BWY is faultless (believe me, it isn’t), it does exactly what it says on the box.  It oversees all yoga certifications within the UK.  This means that if your yoga teacher’s certification is with the BWY or one of its affiliates then her training is up to a certain standard and has taken her at least two years to achieve. 

That is not to say that there are not very many fantastic and capable teachers who have not trained with the BWY, but it just means that one cannot set oneself up as a Yoga Instructor in the UK without sufficient qualifications.  After all would you want to be seen by a doctor who had only spent a few weeks at medical school?  No, thought not.  So why put your body in the hands of somebody who doesn’t know the deep physical, mental and emotional journey that yoga can put a body through?

I’m an impatient person.  If I could have done my yoga teacher training in nine months or six months I would have done (although perhaps not in the two to four days promised by one organisation that will remain nameless).  But in hindsight I’m glad it took me so long.  I’m glad I had to dedicate such a huge part of my life for over three years to it.  The British Wheel isn’t very glamorous.  It’s more about dusty church halls than exotic beaches and pine-floored studios.  But it is a one-stop shop in health and safety and other legalities that are essential to know when you set up on your own as a self-employed yoga teacher as I did.  

My yoga teacher training was fantastic not because of the syllabus, or the teachers (although both were brilliant) but because of the sheer length of time it took me to achieve. (Lisa here- 560 hours minimum required from what I can gather from their website)  In those three years I changed a lot.  I truly began to understand my body and the bodies of others and the timeframe allowed me to assimilate fully all that I learned - far more so than I would have been able to if I had taken in that amount of information in six months. 

The fact that our certification is regularised by a governing body has never limited us as teachers here on our little island.  We continue to teach in our own ways and from our own hearts but safe in the knowledge that we are adequately trained and adequately insured at all times. And that is something that we deserve both as teachers and students. 

Please visit Rachel at her wonderful sites: Suburban Yogini, Facebook or Twitter

Find more information on the British Wheel of Yoga on their website. 

Aims of the British Wheel of Yoga

To encourage and help all persons to a greater knowledge and understanding of all aspects of Yoga and its practice by provision of study, education and training
To maintain and improve the standard of teaching of yoga
To co-operate with and support other organisations having similar aims 


Article and photo Copyright of Rachel at SurburbanYogini.com