Sustainable Yoga Week 1; Sivananda Yoga (or something like that) and CTV Downward Dog Butt

Thanks everyone for the input and thoughts on various yoga mats! I have my solution, but I'm going to wait until Mr. Crumbles replacement comes in to chat about it. Keep the thoughts coming in- I'd LOVE to hear about your mats and experience. :)

Week 1 of 'Bike Sustainably to Yoga Class' has ended with minimal mishaps (as in I survived bicycling on the road). So far this challenge has been WAY easier than 'yoga every day'... and boy have I been enjoying NOT having to practice every night. Ya know what though... I kinda feel like I'm missing something- weird.

In any case, as I mentioned, Thursday I attended my first Sivananda class (with the embarrassment mat who shall remain nameless... cough-MrCrumbles-cough). My plan: to walk to The Yoga Loft straight from work with a fellow yogini- L. It wasn't too bad, we arrive SUPER early, sat in the studio and chatted.

I had no idea really what to expect. I read the description online but my research ended there. It was developed by Swami Vishnudevananda in India... and that's about all that I can gather. The International Sivananda Website along with The Yoga Loft's description is pretty darn vague and maybe for a reason? I was a little nervous, as I am for all my new yoga class experiences. 

It was *very* different from any type of yoga class I've ever attended. We moved in 'slow-mo' (practicing my dance moves!) which was difficult and in my opinion not done enough in most yoga classes. I love moving mindfully, but at the end of this class my muscles had been clenched for so long that it was painful. My back muscles STILL hurt from Thursday's class.

There was no flow, which I found a bit sad (and practiced 'letting go' of my yoga expectations), after the class I felt ready to actually *flow*. The teacher- Paul- was fantastic and extremely approachable after class. When I mentioned how it was my first Sivananda experience he muddied up the waters even further by saying 'Well I just teach 'yoga', and really every class is different- sometimes we flow, sometimes we don't'. Alright. Now I have even less knowledge about the tradition...

As L. and I left the building I got ready to walk home in the misty misty fog... and heard the little 'beep beep' of my car horn. Yep, Andrew had driven over and waited patiently in order to give me a ride home. Aww... so cute, except this was my *sustainable* yoga week! The first thing I said (ungrateful me) was 'but I'm supposed to WALK home today!'. Le sigh. What could I do, he'd been so thoughtful. So class 1 was 50% sustainable.

This Saturday I attended the four hour Great Canadian Yoga Stretch finale event. I almost punked out- until the organizer emailed me confirming my attendance. Yep, I am a sucker for peer pressure.

I got up at 7am on Saturday morning, donned my classy bicycling helmet and rode my yoga butt over. I was a bit nervous that since it was only advertised through one studio (as we know that Halifax studios don't communicate well with each other), that it would be a 'one-studio lovefest'. It kinda was, but it was fun nonetheless.

AND I was a super 'eco' geek which caused a bit of embarrassment on my part. The organizer (who is ridiculously kind and friendly) proudly handed me a plastic bag containing paper hand outs, a plastic bottle of water and other trinkets. I had a moment of 'Ahhh sh*#, what do I do?' followed by: 

'Umm, not to be a total weirdy, but is it alright if I don't accept this? Thank you very much for offering gifts, but I'm kinda an eco-geek and not really a fan of plastic bags or bottled water. Thank you very much though'.  

She didn't even blink an eye. Looking around the room though, I was a bit disappointed with all the plastic bottled water, plastic bags and lack of composting facilities to put my eaten apple.

Randomly people started showing up taking pictures for local papers and such... and then a camera guy showed up for the local tv station and started filming at the BACK of the class. We all know what posture he managed to capture right? And who was in the last row? Yep, my parents and cousin actually facebooked me last night to announce that they had seen my downward dog butt on tv. Great.

Bicycling back home (Andrew was not in fact there to pick me up) was not very pleasant. Lots of traffic+ rubbery four hours of yoga legs+ really steep Chebucto Road= walking my bicycle. I tried really hard to do the whole 'I am a vehicle, I will not hug the curb, I am a vehicle...' mantra but the cars just kept squeezing by! I actually had to take a nap when I got back I was so exhausted. (I have no idea what will happen to me when I have children... yes I know).

So that's my week 1! I have realized that should I bike to certain studios they either don't have bike racks out front or they do and I don't feel comfortable leaving my bike out there unattended... This is going to be an issue I'll have to resolve (i.e. take off my dringdring bell). It's going to feel kinda like when you park illegally and 'hopehopehope' that when you come out you don't have a ticket...


Any Sivananda Yogis out there?? I'd love to hear your thoughts :)


Blessings!


article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Sustaina-Yoga Adventure and a Trip to Saint John NB

I am a sucker for punishment. Seriously. 

I have a new goal for June. Yep- June 1st, I get a little tweet from Yogaglo asking me what my June challenge will be. Kinda like what happened with the Great Canadian Yoga Stretch, May 1st got an email asking if I'd like to participate. Since I'd already practiced in the park that day I thought 'why not?' (nope, not more planning than that...).

My 'June Yoga Adventure': yoga-hop different studios in the city and get there in a sustainable fashion. No exceptions. Guidelines:

• At least one studio class a week (maybe two, but my budget might kibosh that).
• New instructor or style is a must (this will help my yoga-growth)
• I have to bike, walk or bus there. Carpooling does not count as sustainable.
• Sustainable yoga also includes 'Yoga in the Park' on the weekends (oh my legs will be STEEL by the end of June!).

I'm hoping this will result in more opportunities to get used to biking to appointments or errand-type activities in the city. It should also help shift this reliance on using my little jelly bean (car). As the oil spill worsens to catastrophic proportions, the time has passed for us to pretend that our gas and oil lifestyles can be balanced by recycling. We need a new way of life.

This week I will be attending a Sivananda level 1 class at the Yoga Loft (Thursday). I'll walk there after work with another fellow yogini. I've never tried Sivananda before and am excited!


With regards to the GCYS challenge, I can proudly announce that I reached my goal with *one* exception... One day of 31 I had to curl up in a little ball as the monthly moon pains were so severe I barely made it through work. Otherwise, every other day was a minimum 30 minute if not 45-60min practice!


Thanks to all your kind support and generous donations we have raised 520$ for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind!!! This is the first time in my life I have ever done something like this, and I am so proud of myself and the giving Karma of my lovely readers. I am touched by your generosity and community. Many Blessings to all of you!


So who's with me on the Sustaina-Yoga Adventure? I know that Rachel, you bike to Yoga every day- any advice for myself and other Sustaina-Yogis? :)

Blessings!

And just for fun, lets all go on a vacation to Saint John, New Brunswick! To set the stage- Saint John is the oldest confederation city in Canada (1700's I think..).

A typical street in Saint John (the street where Andrew and I met four years ago!) Not grid-like, the streets twist and turn up and down hills. Although not an actual island, SJ is right on the Atlantic ocean. Which means that the temperature was 14 degrees celcius that day and a wall of fog surrounded the city... waiting for the sun to set (like The Mist...).

The fog at the end of Princess Street. A bridge was actually in that fog, a few hundred feet away...

Andrew's old apartment building (I lived in the 'carriage house' next door. Yep, it was SKETCHY. Thank goodness for great neighbours!)

A typical street in Saint John. Lots of brick!

My favourite part of New Brunswick- the bilingual stop signs! The only "officially" bilingual province in Canada, I love how all signage is in French and English. 

Can you pick out the imposter?? :)

article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

The Coil; Moving Prayer

This post is part of 'The Coil' hosted by Greenspell every new and full moon- go check it out!

(please note, this post is a part of my personal journey. I feel all spiritual journeys are valid and beautiful as long as they are honest and healthy)
Spirituality. Funnily enough, it being 'THE' point of yoga, I don't talk much about it here. I think perhaps it has a lot to do with it being personal... and not really meshing with Yoga.


As an entry to 'The Coil', Greenspell has pointed out that New Moons equal New Beginnings, creativity and perhaps new adventures. I thought for this moon's entry I would share tidbits of a discussion I had last week regarding the 'point' of yoga.


I met with a local studio owner, Robert from The Yoga Loft. Robert is quite unique in that he has been a practitioner for over a decade and he has a PhD in Political Science, focus on Philosophy. His primary interest: the dichotomy between Eastern and Western Yogic Philosophy. This guy knows his stuff.


As Yoga begins to broaden, expand and take on a New Life in my world, this question of spirituality keeps popping into my brain.


Robert's take? Yoga is spiritual. It's our way to 'let-go' of all external and internal attachments, including our thoughts, so that we can connect with God. Everything else can easily become distraction or an attachment. For example, being attached to one discipline of yoga, one set sequence, one instructor etc. 


Seriously a wonderful conversation (over coffee!).


Most discourse around Yoga and spirituality is patriarchal in nature and often uses Hindu representations and allegories. God is always labeled in the masculine, represented in the masculine and goddesses, although present, are outnumbered by more prominent male gods. I can't relate. It feels fake.


Further, this concept of 'non-attachment', letting go of all in order to unite with the Divine, really doesn't fit with my view of spirituality. For myself, the Divine IS everything. My spiritual self doesn't exist as something 'other' or separate, but is a part of every thing and every one. It's how we make connections with our world, with our community and with our planet.


Truly, I have yet to attend or read a passage regarding spirituality and Yoga that easily fits into my view of the Goddess. 


Of course, this doesn't mean that Yoga is not spiritual for me. In fact, quite the opposite, Yoga has grown into how I communicate with my spiritual more. I like Seane Corn's explanation of 'moving prayer'. During class, this is dampened significantly as the language and discourse of traditional Yoga peaks in, but in my own practice... it takes on a new Light.


My sun salutations become experiences for grounding, for collecting and sending energy and for quiet introspection on all that I am grateful. Quiet musings to the Goddess during my practice, reconnecting with Nature outside my window.


This New Moon, I'd like to set aside these strange expectations of how I *must* mesh traditional Yoga spirituality and myself. Which I guess is a form of 'letting go'....


Blessings and happy New Moon!


article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

How to Build a Yoga Eco Community?

A huge part of living sustainably that isn't discussed much is 'community'. Oh, it's sometimes alluded to, or mentioned, but part of our unsustainable lifestyle that we've built is how isolated in our cities and towns we've become. In smaller, more rural communities, people just know who can help build the house-garage, bake awesome bread, make the best jam, take a look at your car... etc.


Here in the city, it took a while before I felt comfortable asking our neighbours for sugar. If it came to an emergency, I would certainly knock on their door for help, but I know that as an apartment dweller I am in the minority.


Andrew always thought it was weird that wherever we lived I made 'friends' with random people. In BC the coffee shop and local organic grocery store people knew me. At the time I chalked it up to feeling lonely and needing a semi-familiar face to greet me. Now that it seems to have continued in Halifax... I'm thinking maybe it's something to do with 'me'.

Guerrilla Yoga in the Park! Can't wait until Spring!

I like connecting with people- so I try. Which results in many awkward moments (especially when I lived in Montreal! I had to be careful!). Sigh, I think it's the 'rural' in me that just never went away.


Local is a huge part of living sustainably and it requires some connection. None of us can bake, sew, create everything from scratch and still have the time to pursue our passions. By building a community, along with creating connections to take advantage of different skills, we nurture feelings of ownership and responsibility. The more we connect, the more we care about our community and the Earth it inhabits.


For some reason, I thought getting 'in' on the yoga community would be easier than say, other groups. In Halifax, not so much. It's actually been more difficult- who knew? Oh, each teacher and studio owner knows everyone else, but us students don't see them together all that much. The studios even have different Lululemon-featured months!


Instead of having all the studios come together for general yogic celebrations such as solstice or Yoga Day, each studio has their own free or by donation isolated events.


An example; Seth's new Ashtanga studio that has opened above the Lulu store (convenient location!). As a reader commented, The Shala was having a week of free yoga classes to commemorate their opening... so I went last Monday. The studio is gorgeous, beautiful colours, bathroom with two showers, trendy low couches and decorations. As I walked in, yogis were lounging on the couches and looked très cool... in fact I felt not cool enough to be there (flash back to high school or what?). The class was fine, Seth intimidated the crap out of me and then I left.


Until I spoke with the owner of Breathing Space while cleaning the studio on Sunday, I didn't think much of it. She pointed out that The Shala's free week coincided with The Yoga Loft's annual (forever!) free week... As Seth was a previously well-loved instructor at the Yoga Loft prior to opening his studio, obviously it was no coincidence. It was also rumoured that they had a very public falling out and there's some weird drama occurring.


It's all quite weird and a little sad. Personally, as a student, this type of drama makes me want to stay away from that little soap opera. I want to practice yoga and didn't expect this type of division between studios for whatever the reason (style, theoretical approach). 


So how to foster community in Halifax's Yoga world? I could just accept that it's lacking... but then I like community. As I'm not an instructor that also adds a bit of a challenge on my 'street cred' front. What I was thinking was organizing some sort of group open to students, teachers whatever. We could meet, have yoga-geared events, perhaps have a reading night with different topics of discussion and.... dare we say... speakers? We could talk about yoga stuff over fair trade organic COFFEE... and of course it would have to be 'eco'.


It's time I step out of my 'boîte' of an apartment- what do you think my eco-readers? Suggestions, thoughts?


article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Punk Rockah Yogini

Tonight Andrew and I are going to see Flogging Molly; a Punk Celtic band from the West Coast. Andrew is a Punk Rockah and has introduced me to various bands including the classics Bad Religion (my FIRST punk concert ever!) and Lars Frederickson from Rancid. I must admit that I am definitely not a Punk music fan overall, not usually heavy enough or well played musically enough for my tastes. Flogging Molly, however, kicks bum; lead singer from Ireland, awesome maritime-y music with enough of a heavier sound to make me VERY happy :)

This Punk themes fits in perfectly with my analysis of the Lulu love-hate issue. Why exactly (beyond their most certainly questionable "made in china" practices) do I sneer at them so? Svasti's comment on my previous post made something clique. I am a Punk-Rockah Yogini.

As Andrew has taught me, being Punk has nothing to do with the "look" and everything to do with attitude and belief systems. Specifically Anti-Establishment, Anti-Culture. Lululemon is most definitely "The Establishment" in the corporate/popular yoga world today. It's everywhere and that annoys the crap out of me. Part of the reason why I don't like the brand is the popularity itself. I don't want to be a lemming, I want to be original, different, PUNK. Part of me says: "Eff that popsicle stand" while at the same time walks right in (grumbling under my breath of course).

With some birthday moneys promised from my mom (awww- I think that stops when you have your own kids right?? lol) I threw all restraint into the wind and guiltily walked into the Halifax store. Avoiding eye contact with all workers there I finally saw this AWESOME bomber jacket. Tried it on and was immediately accosted by a super-duper happy employee (thanks for the Times link Vegan!):

"Did you know the jacket was made with recycled plastic bottles and is water resistant??"
Ugh, I SO do not want BPA plastic near my body. I wonder how much carbon it takes to make fabric from plastic?

"Oh really?" alarmed look followed by a sniff on the jacket: "What is it treated with?"
"Oh!! Hah, don't worry! Nothing bad for you I'm sure!"
Right.

Walk up to the cash with my cute cute, guilty purchase and ask the cashier what chemicals it's treated with.
"Ummm, wait let me ask.... DWR!" BIG smile.
"Ok... what does that stand for?"
"Ummm... wait- Durable Water Repellent!" BIGGER smile.
Sigh "So essentially that tells me nothing."

To that I got a confused look and I had to explain briefly at her confused and awkward "Oh no this customer is going to be difficult" look that it was ok, I would google it when I got home. This was followed by a week of googling and emailing Lululemon with the response that actually Lauren, the GEC (Guest Education Consultant), didn't *think* it was treated with anything! Super!

Upon further thought, if I were a Punk-influenced Yogini, this would explain other random thoughts and opinions I have about yoga. For example my dislike of Bikram and Hot Yoga. Part of this reaction, if I were to be honest with myself (and you!) is because it has become SO popular. "THE" yogis go to the local Moksha studio. Hot Yoga is the money maker in this city. I don't want to be part of the crowd, one with the masses. I want to practice "MY" yoga. Of course, it's not blind dislike- I do believe that practicing in that kind of heat can be dangerous both for the individual's muscles and respiratory system. The fact that it's a studio where new yogi/ni's attend makes me nervous.

My weird aversion to the Yoga Loft could also be attributed to an Anti-Establishment attitude. This studio is one of THE most popular studios in the city. Going there bugs me, I feel like one of many. Of course, my terrible experience with the owner of the studio, combined with rude studio etiquette and the type of yogis who attend may factor into the equation. Sigh- honestly- my rebelliousness definitely lurks behind many thoughts.

Finally, musical choice hangs out there as well. I've always hated those musicians that despised a band-genre of music simply because it was popular. Perhaps in this area I've been a bit less Punk and a bit more balanced, most likely because I'm a classically trained musician myself. If it's fantastic skill and sound I usually don't care about the popularity of the artist. Great music is just that. However, I'm starting to wish I had other "yoga" music besides Krishna Das. He's fantastic and his music speaks to me but it speaks to everyone else too.... lol.

All that being said; I do believe it is important to retain a balanced, critical and informed view on choices, likes and dislikes. Which means that this whole Punk attitude isn't rational or what I feel very proud about admitting. After the heated discussion over at "it's all yoga, baby", (here, here and here) I feel that this sub-culture or underlying influence of Punk Yogis definitely exists beyond myself.

We want yoga to become popular, yet we want complete control as to who, what, where and how. And when it does spiral out of our "niche" control it's upsetting and disconcerting. We're no longer special or unique. Others are defining and shaping yoga to suit their purposes, which may not always be what we want or adhere to. All of a sudden, the counter-culture movement of yoga has become The Man (Woman). So us Punk Yogi/nis are categorizing in order to remain true to our Yogi-selves.

Any other Punk Rockah Yogi/nis out there?

Blessings! I'm off to bee-bop along to celtic punk!

article authored by EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Man-Yoga...

Sometimes I stop and think how lucky I am to have Andrew as my fiancé, someone who so completely shares my loves and interests and supports who I am with all his being. He even practices YOGA with me!! I have friends (and a coworker!) ask me how I "did it", convincing an east coast man to jump into the yoga bandwagon.

(Andrew-white and I-black in front setting our intentions of peace at last years' Global Mala)

By the time I met Andrew I was finally beginning my private home practice in earnest, rolling out my mat on the ugly dingy rug of my tiny "barn" apartment to practice to Llorca while gazing out at the colourful dumpster... Those first few summer months while we sat on my floor, next to the couch, drinking each an entire bottle of white wine, talking about everything from feminism, the environment to life... yoga invariably came up. (Andrew being Andrew... with Chog, our wrench-frog sculpture friend we met at Lorenzo's in Enderby BC)

Having lived his entire life in ultra conservative, uber Loyalist Saint John, New Brunswick, Andrew was not even a smidgeon open to trying yoga. He was more of a (and still is!) World of Warcraft, Clone High and drinking Schooner's (blegh!) kinda guy.

Our big move to British Colombia, after having known each other for three months (ack!), truly changed both our lives forever. After a few catastrophic yoga studio experiences (think hives and scary instructor...) I was in no place emotionally to continue putting myself out there in such a negative environment. As a result, I could either give up on yoga... or practice in our tiny basement apartment. Within a few months I bought a cheap folding screen, a few beautiful yoga statues and my personal yoga space became a corner in our "dining room". As Andrew cooked supper, I would put the screen up between myself and the kitchen/island and try to pretend that he didn't exist... (My yoga space in our first basement apartment overlooking Kalamalka Lake)

Eventually, as it became apparent everyone in the Okanagan (and BC) were crazy exercise-o-philes and we stuck out like sedentary sloths... I decided to increase my practice to more than once a week and asked Andrew if he'd like to join me. Funny thing about living in a place where active, yoga-men are more accepted, it starts to feel ok for men to practice foofy things like yoga. He flat out refused to try a beginners class, or try a dvd, so we started with (in weird shorts he found buried deep in his luggage) Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutations A). As best as I could I taught him the basics, talking through the inhales and exhales, heels aligned, flat back, hips forward, open shoulders...

Eventually, we decided to join the local gym (such a bad idea). This meant he needed work-out clothes... and a trip to Lululemon! Most definitely, he told me the fact that he didn't know a soul in the Okanagan, his closest friends living 6000 km away, was essential in this transition. Eventually, after about a year of personal practice he felt ready to try a yoga class with a real (male!) instructor. The class was a yin-hatha class and felt SOO boring to me. My busy type A brain kept becoming annoyed that we were slowly raising our arms... AGAIN. Andrew LOVED it and asked why I always made him practice more "hard" yoga at home (hah, I guess I just assumed he'd love Vinyasa like I do!). (My second yoga space at our 4th place in BC, note the PINK walls... very Institution-Zen)

By the end of the two years of living in BC Andrew had his own mat (well- my old TPE Lulu mat that was flaking apart), two pairs of lulu pants and two shirts and could practice with me for about 40 minutes.

When we moved to Halifax I asked him if he'd still practice with me... (hopeful, doe eyed look). I was surprised that all of a sudden my open, non-affected Andrew was being influenced by the traditional city and had weird reservations about being.... no.... seen in PUBLIC carrying a yoga mat bag! (he still refuses to sling it over his shoulder and carries the bag from the strap in his hand...lol). Thankfully, that silly phase lasted about a few weeks here and he's now even attending yoga classes, vinyasa flow classes at that! My moment of ultimate "YES" moments: after a particular hatha-y and slow class at the Yoga Loft (post Yoga with R, this class was not with R!) he looked over and announced: "That was the most boring class ever, I really just wanted to DO yoga". LOL. WOOT! (I have nothing against slower yoga styles.... I just prefer a more active practice, mostly because slower styles make me MORE stressed, my mind has more time to wander. I have found that recently I am getting better at quieting my mind during moments of yin practice...).

So there you have it! How I convinced my Andrew to actually, seriously practice yoga. Now that he's started running he even cools off with 10-15 minutes of yoga... all.by.himself!!! He has drawn the line in the sand though... I really wanted to practice yoga in the commons here (a wide open grass filled space that is nice and flat for Haligonians to play sports) and he absolutely, emphatically refused. I guess I can't complain, he does come to the park with us and only feels mildly weird :) (Andrew and I in Warrior III at Global Mala)

Since then we've gotten two couples to start practicing along with us by joining our weekly home practices. Classes, even intro ones, are so intimidating to new yogis especially in a city where barely any men practice. Dvd's are nice (that's how I began) but not as informative or interactive as someone actually talk you through a sequence in a friendly open setting.

I don't know why I felt the need to share this little part of our yoga-life. Hope it's been helpful for some other hopeful yogi/ni's out there!

Blessings and Happy Full Moon!

Yogaphiles...

This past post made me think about how we all have different tastes and styles of yoga and how we all believe that our style is perfect (which it IS for us!). 

This is why I completely disagree with Bikram's comment on how North America has ruined yoga with introducing various styles (see the previous link to his interview in the Chicago Times). Having the freedom to choose a yoga that works best for me has been a wonderful experience overall. As someone who isn't very strong or bendy and is Type A (relaxing is hard!) finding a studio that I can justify paying the class prices has been tricky to say the least. But then, what's the harm of shopping around? It's just a yoga class, and if I don't like it I can simply try the next.

Let me quickly share my first experience at the "Yoga Loft" late last August. The instructor has won "Best Yoga Instructor" in Halifax a zillion times in a row, he has a PhD in Political Philosophy and the class we attended was a level 2 with specific indications that modifications for all abilities were given. His classes aren't restricted to a "style" but simply named "Yoga with R". I was excited to see why so many people in Halifax LOVE this instructor. We had just moved from BC where I had two years of other traumatizing yoga experiences and had been practicing at home. 

Well, he definitely didn't let me down on the new "yoga" experience! Although filled with different ways of using props (chairs etc) and new sequences that were interesting, a lot of the class submitted to a more "militaristic" style of instruction. At one point he stood at the back of the class and said: "You in the front, I said bring your chair closer!". By the end I was almost giggling to myself, his style was so akin to being back in Grad class at McGill with the prof informing us how to learn. I was ready to believe he was having a bad day- yoga teachers are just human after all.

The last part of the class "R" began to guide us through a more interesting shoulder opener using metal folding chairs. He indicated that our legs should be over the top of the chair, with our backs on the seat and our shoulders on the ground. Now I don't like shoulderstand all by itself, it makes me feel anxious- so add a flimsy metal chair and I was a little nervous. I gave it a try- cuz you know, maybe it wouldn't be that bad. When I immediately began to hyperventilate, I quietly moved out of the pose and asked him if there was a modification I could do. This is the conversation that echoed in the quiet class:

Lisa: "Is there a modification I could do?"

R: "why?"

Lisa: "I just don't want to do this pose"

R: "why don't you want to do the pose?"

Lisa: "Well, because I'm afraid, honestly"

R: "there is no modification for fear, you either do the pose or you don't"- cue turning away from student.

WTF? Ok. So I tried again, actually had tears come to my eyes this time and glanced over to my side. A woman who didn't have a chair had been set up by R with a few blocks under her mat and was doing the modification for the pose.... So we switched- she balanced precariously on the chair and I did the modification.

I have no idea if R was having a bad day or what, but he is extremely popular in Halifax. So, it must be personal preference on what people are looking for with yoga. I have only been back to that studio once though and not with R.

Now I do believe that "hot yoga" can be beneficial for many people- but it is also more extreme than other styles and does have more potential for injury and dehydration, especially as it's probably one of THE trendiest styles of yoga. Although not everyone does "hot yoga" just because of the media attention, trends tend to attract more people who may be less informed than other styles of yoga. Also, this is an "eco" blog; and well, despite all the green measures Moksha studio took to help lessen their environmental impact, the reality is that "hot yoga" is definitely on the lower end of being green.

Does anyone else have specific styles of yoga they prefer? Have you switched throughout your yoga journey? (I know I have!) Please leave a comment! :)

Blessings!

Free Yoga- Another Interesting Experience

This week is the Yoga Loft's (Halifax) birthday week and all classes are offered free of charge- YES! Although our first experience at the Yoga Loft was catastrophic (perhaps a story for another day) and ended with very non-zen thoughts, we decided to give it another go: especially since it's GRATUIT! 

Due to my over traumatizing my Fiancé by bringing him to a ton of intense vinyasa flow classes (I guess being a Vata/Pitta kinda makes me a little wonkers that way lol) I conceded to a slower, intro flow class. We got at the studio 25 minutes early and there was already a line- studio people at the top of the stairs greeted us and directed us firmly to line up against the right wall to wait. It got extremely noisy in that hallway- and I really started to feel bad for those yoginis/yogis in the rooms trying to relax in savasana.

Anyhoo, we were surrounded by newbies to yoga and those more experienced, but the energy of this crowd and was markedly different than the other studios I've attended. All around us were discussions on what level Ashtanga class each person could achieve and how hard they pushed their bodies ("Oh ya, well I went to a class where the next day I couldn't even lift my ARMS"). It was so competitive and super weird.

Once in the class we were squished- but then it was a free class so I was cool with that. When we started the class- the lovely instructor was extremely kind, but it always surprises me when instructors don't modify postures to accomodate space issues (i.e. arms forward during forward bend as opposed to swan diving). I have to say, the most interesting part of the class were a few key individuals- a long haired guy without his shirt in front of me and a mousy woman behind me. I really have no idea how no-shirt was allowed to practice sans-shirt... that was a first for me in a studio class. This guy was totally in the moment and at one point he was swaying peacefully to the music.

The woman behind me on the other hand was definitely not in the moment of the class, but doing her own "moment" thing. If the class was seated- she was standing and swaying slightly. Casually taking downward dog at any point and generally doing her own poses. I seriously didn't see her do one pose that was suggested by the instructor. It kind of made me wonder why she had come to the class at all. 

In any rate, my previous traumatizing experience with the owner of the studio, the loud noises from the street outside, the atmosphere of non-zen and the disrespect of the employees talking loudly in the lobby while we were trying to meditate in savasana have made my decision. I'll stick with Breathing Space. Funny how we have particular ideas about what studio/atmosphere/environment we prefer to practice yoga! Has any other yoginis/yogis come to this self-realization as well?

As I end this blog- I do feel open hearted. Despite my decision, the instructor was wonderful in her guidance and the postures were filled with chakra meditions and exploration- loved it! Now if only she would start teaching at Breathing Space Yoga Studio...