Archive for the ‘Exercise/Fitness’ Category

3 Yoga Poses to Relieve Stress in Just 20 Minutes A Day

Piera Bonventre is a Homeopathic Practitioner, raw food connoisseur and a travelling yogi. She also tweets energy healing and daily yoga instructions- encouraging you to include yoga anytime of day. Piera will be our in-house yoga instructor, providing insight and direction into this unifying form of movement. Here’s what she has to say:

I know time is valuable.  Time is now a precious commodity.  Sometimes there isn’t time to breath it seems. And some of us really aren’t breathing much at all.    How you breath sets  your whole mental, emotional and physical state for the day!

Deep lower belly or diaphragmatic breathing is the most beneficial way you can regain your focus and calm during harried times and circumstances.  So when the kids are screaming, deadlines have to be met and your mother in law is coming over for the weekend, get on the mat to stay sane and your best amazing self.

YOU don’t need hours of YOGA to gain benefits!

MAKING time for Yoga should be a no brainer.  Yoga will encourage you to breath in PURE  energy enhancing PRANA.  Yoga will “reset” your whole state so you are BALANCED, FOCUSED and CLEAR.  And you don’t need hours of Yoga to gain the benefits! You actually will be more efficient and therefore need less time to do all those “must do” tasks.

Actually a good 20 minute session will do you a world of a difference when life gets really hairy and you feel tied up in knots. So lets get those knots unraveled, that breath flowing and your JOYFUL heart brimming with energy.

3 POSES + 20 MINUTES +AWESOME INTENTION= A STRESS BUSTING PRACTICE

Here are the three poses I believe are some of the best for receiving the most out of a yoga practice in a short amount of time. These poses are often considered foundational to any Yoga practice.  You will gain strength, increase flexibility and encourage cleansing of the whole system.

Pose  #1 Warrior Pose:

Any warrior pose can be implemented and choose to do all three for maximum benefits.  Warrior poses are standing poses and as such encourage the building of strength and stamina.  They also nurture INTERNAL strength and are excellent to improve self esteem.

In Warrior poses be very conscious of the alignment of your hips, you want to direct them so that they remain equal and not off center.  If your right leg is forward for example, encourage the left hip to come forward, and not sway back putting the lower torso out of proper alignment. Hips are huge in this pose!  Keep them squared and equally balanced.  Also remember to keep shoulders relaxed, and not hunching up to your ears.  Think of lowering the shoulders, yet keeping them engaged inwardly.

Pose # 2  :   Parivrtta Parsvakonasana Or Revolved Side Angle Pose

This is a twist type of asana.  Twists are very beneficial for the health of the spine and organs.  Twists encourage spinal circulation and help relieve blocked energy channels to the spine.  Twists also DETOXIFY organ systems.  Digestive organs get massaged and are helped to digest, assimilate and eliminate food.  Also the whole LYMPHATIC system is stimulated and encouraged to release toxins and waste products.

Again be conscious of the hips in this pose.  Keep them aligned and the spine long and straight.  Open the heart center as you twist to the side and keep the shoulders balanced with the hips.

Pose #3   Sarvangasana  or Shoulder Stand:

I’ve included this particular pose because its a very effective nerve and glandular balancing inversion.  It helps in so many ways to detoxify and re balance the whole system.  Shoulder stand will help you release toxins from the organs and lymph system.  In addition to this it has a very healthy effect on the hormonal system because it helps to regulate the thyroid.  A very special gland that regulates the metabolism and hormonal system of the body.  Shoulder stand also calms the nervous system, encourages SLEEP and tranquility.  Don’t we all need a great night sleep?

If you just do these three poses,  you have a well rounded practice you can do in just 2o minutes!  Even if you only have 15-20 minutes, THE EFFECTS are amazing.

Get on your mat! 5 minutes becomes 10 minutes.  10 minutes becomes 30 minutes, and 30 minutes becomes  a life time!

It did for me

keep walking lightly,

Namaste

Piera

Motivation on the Yoga Mat

Piera Bonventre is a Homeopathic Practitioner, raw food connoisseur and a travelling yogi. She also tweets energy healing and daily yoga instructions- encouraging you to include yoga anytime of day. Piera will be our in-house yoga instructor, providing insight and direction into this unifying form of movement. Here’s what she has to say:

So you started a yoga practice  all gun ho and it was exhilarating and all that you hoped it would be.

You got the heavy weight and heavy tagged yoga mat, and couldn’t wait to get it all broken into so you wouldn’t slip during those long 5 breath downward dogs.

You ran out an bought 3 pairs of everything in Lululemon because, it just fits your cute butt so well.  You even let the sales girl convince you that a matching yoga tote would really be useful to haul that ginormous mat around town.  You purchased the the 90 class card pass because it was as the girl said ” the best value if your planning to really be committed to your practice”.

Then the days, weeks and months passed and life’s inconveniences and often interruptions led you astray.  The mat sits in the closet next to the cute bag it supposed to be carried in.  You find you have “so much to do” and “no time to do it” and yoga gets put aside. You convince yourself  “I’m just too tired and I don’t have the energy”.

We’ve all been there.  Even the die hard Yogi’s who have practiced for decades.  We encounter a slump, or a life crisis such as a death or divorce and our connection to Inner Self gets shunted.  Sometimes its very healthy and appropriate to take some time off, rest and reintegrate ourselves and energies. Its actually one of the best ways to prevent burn out.

But when you find your practice has taken too many “sick days” because you just have been uninspired, or unmotivated then you need to refresh your experience on the mat.  Our healing and growth is always a process. We are dynamic and as energetic beings we shift and transition as much as we allow ourselves to.  So you need to become aware of what it is you need in your practice each time you come to the mat.

Every single time I practice its a different experience.  I may do the same poses, with the same teacher or on my own. But each time I practice according to my needs that particular day.  What does this mean? I practice with the guidance of my INTUITION.

I take note of the following and use these elements to guide my practice:

1) My energy levels: Have I gone vigorously my last few practices and need more of a gentle or slower paced practice today?  Or will a more vigourous practice today give me a boost in energy, because even though I have had a long day, I need the heat of an ashtanga practice to encourage the stagnation to move within my body?

2) How am I feeling emotionally and spiritually? – has it been a super awesome, rockin’ high sales and quota busting day at the office?  Or do I feel some emotional stress do to personal family matters?  CHECK IN with yourself everyday. Get in touch with whats going on inside.  Then use your practice to go even deeper within to come to the awareness of what you need to release, and to find resolutions and acceptance of what is. Use your practice to ask your HIGHER SELF what is needed for you at the moment to become connected and out of the rut.

You will find doing just these two things everyday and before every practice will give you a better awareness of what you need.  You will benefit from checking in because you are sending messages of RESPECT and acknowledgment to that greater part of you that directly guides and supports you. This builds SELF TRUST and releases doubt and fear from interfering with your greater intentions.

Motivation to Stay on the Mat:

So what can we do to stay motivated?  With every exercise program there is the possibility of boredom, getting burnt out and just lose the initial interest we had when we started.  Here is what has helped me stay and enjoy the mat more and more each practice.

1) Consider practicing a different style of Yoga.

If you are an avid Ashtanga freak, why not try a KUNDALINI class once a week?  We learn from all experiences in life.  All practices come with benefits.  Its the INTENTION you bring forth to the mat that determines the outcomes. You may just learn another aspect of this VAST philosophy we call yoga, that may reveal something you haven’t yet discovered in your usual style.

2) Remind yourself  what BENEFITS yoga has brought to your life:

So WHY did you come to Yoga in the first place?  WRITE about it.  Go inwards and reflect on what you have already taken and integrated from your yoga practice.  Meditate on the feeling of presence, and stillness. The joyous feeling this gives you should remind you of what Yoga offers you every moment you become aware and practice.

3) LET GO OF the SHOULDS

We often can caught up in ALIGNMENT, and how this foot should be angled, and that how leg should be spiraling inwards. I’m not saying alignment is unnecessary.  Loosen the hold on all the shoulds, and practice with INTUITION.  Focus on FEELING THE BREATH,  moving through the pose, or accepting the STILLNESS of the moment.  I find myself at times frustrated with a pose I can’t quite find ease in.  When I let go and feel my practice with awareness, the body follows and the resistance loosens and all those challenging poses become friendlier.

4) MYSORE

If you have not tried this type of class, I would highly recommend you find one.    The name Mysore comes from the city in India where Ashtanga yoga guru Shri K. Pattabhi Jois lives and teaches. It is a self led class, whereby you practice being led by your own intuition and needs, and not directly by a teacher.  This is such an EFFECTIVE way to evolve your practice.  You will learn so much just by listening to your own guidance and a teacher is always around to adjust you and offer any help you may need. You can concentrate on one or several aspects of your practice each time.

Wishing you happy travels on your mat and beyond.

Namaste

~Travelling Yogi~

Diving into Yoga: Where to Start?

Piera Bonventre is a Homeopathic Practitioner, raw food connoisseur and a travelling yogi. She also tweets energy healing and daily yoga instructions- encouraging you to include yoga anytime of day. Piera will be our in-house yoga instructor, providing insight and direction into this unifying form of movement. Here’s what she has to say:

Recently I’ve been asked on numerous occasions “How do I start a yoga practice?”  I understand it can be daunting or intimidating just thinking about the possibility you might be lead into getting your leg stretched behind your head.  I’ve been there.  The feeling of walking into a class with 30 die hard yogis who proceed to pull out their Mandukas, lay their water bottles down, and start warming up in ways you only Gumby could manage can make anyone new to practice a little queasy.  But it doesn’t have to feel this way at all.

START where you are. That’s really the only option you have. Actually in Yoga I believe we never are “advanced,” we always come to the mat BEGINNING something new.  Our practice evolves every day. and each time you come to the mat, the pose bring you to another place.

AND get this, (I learned this quite quickly) just when you think you “got the pose,” you realize you can discover SOOOO much more- that its a beginning yet again.  We never get it “right,” and we never get it “done.”  What really is “right?”  This very moment ends, and how can it be compared to the next?  This is what I believe an “evolving” and dynamic practice means.  It fosters true self growth in the PROCESS of it all.

MY FIRST YOGA CLASS:

Yoga humbled me from the very first experience on the mat.  I will NEVER forget my first class.  At the time I was completing my university degree and working part time in a big chain health club as a personal trainer.  I worked out at least 5 times per week with weights, stability balls, pylometrics, and did spinning classes, ran 5 and 10Ks for cardio.  On top of this I trained clients for hours in the gym, and  many  wanted to get “lean and just  fit into their bikinis.” A very different world from the one I would soon discover in that yoga studio that day.

I initially turned to yoga because I wanted to get “flexible” .  All the weight training I was doing was tightening my body and limiting my range of motion which eventually contributed to a number of nagging injuries.  This would often leave me in so much pain I was incapable of enjoying my workouts and engaging in activities I enjoyed.

So this strong, “fit” personal trainer entered The Yoga Sanctuary Studio and would soon be brought down a couple of notches.  I walked up to the counter, placed my credit card down and stated “I want a month pass, and when do the advance level classes take place?” The hippie blonde behind the desk just smirked at me and proceeded to hand me a schedule.  “Have you practiced Yoga before”, she asked pretending to not personally offend me.

“Ummmm no,” I replied.   “Trust me, I’m very fit and I could easily squat your body weight, I scoffed.”  (yeah I know, BIG EGO was doing all the talking).  She tried to grin  but I knew she was holding back a few words she would have liked to have said.

She handed me my membership card and directed me to the advanced class.

I strutted right into the class  and ready to breeze right through it. However thats not quite how it panned out.

Twenty minutes in I was drenched in sweat, toppling over my feet and realized I had no clue what I had gotten myself into.  Let’s just say Ms Fit trainer, just got owned by yoga.  BUT the amazing thing was, I knew I wanted MORE.  I left feeling  moved, inspired and more human than I had ever felt in my life.  My lesson of compassion began that very day, at least on a very conscious level.

Next class, which was 5 days later (I could barely walk the rest of the week lol) I hung up my Ego and left it in the locker room. After that I took the Prep class for over a year.  I got very hooked.  It was the beginning of a very new experience of moving feeling, and breathing my way through life.

My injuries subsided, mental clarity tremendously improved and life felt NEW again.

HOW TO START A YOGA PRACTICE:

• CHOOSE A STUDIO OR CLASS- that is appropriate to your needs.  Every studio has its own culture, vision and style of practice.  Try out as many places as it takes to find the one that you feel most comfortable and meets your desires.  You may want to try Kundalini, Ashtanga, Hatha, Hot Yoga or Iyengar style.  Try different ones, and you will know which one you resonate best with.

• BUY A BEGINNER LEVEL DVD- This is one way you can practice on your own time, and this can also accommodate your particular schedule.  I strongly believe having a good teacher in a reputable yoga studio cannot be replaced , at least in the beginning stages.  So supplement the yoga studio classes with a few DVD at home practice times.  Variety also brings freshness to your practice and growth.

• LESS IS MORE – I can’t stress this enough. I still find myself having to PULL BACK from overdoing the pose. You end up compromising alignment, and the whole benefit of the pose.  As Yoda said to the young Jedi in Empire Strikes Back  “You must unlearn what you have learned”. UNLEARN!! Listen to your body. BREATH! The breath is much more important than twisting your head 180 degrees.  Step back, and FEEL what is happening throughout the whole pose.  Forget about the finish line.

• Talk to your Teachers- You will be surprised how willing yoga instructors are to spend time with you after class to discuss a particular aspect of your practice.  You will find that you will begin to cultivate wonderful relationships with them.  If you become a regular to their class its almost inevitable that a distinct type of connection develops between you both.  You then become THEIR teacher in return!

We would love to hear your stories!!  Please leave comments, questions or replies!!

~Travelling Yogi

Namaste

Exercise Tips for Winter

You wake up to the sound of rain and sleet against your window seal. You peek one eye open to see what’s happening outside only to find a winter wonderland at your doorstep. How easy would it be to roll over, throw the covers over your head and just sleep in? But instead you have to contemplate leaving extra early to clean your car and manage the crazies on the road.

It’s hard enough to not use up a “personal day” so early in the year, let alone to actually work out! But we are not bears, so this cannot be a hibernation for us! Just because some of us are facing winter conditions is no excuse for not exercising and working out. Being a raw foodist is about more than just eating right. It’s about taking care of yourself (mind, body and spirit). The benefits of exercise when paired with dynamic eating habits are greatly enhanced.

Here are some tips to help get you in the mood to get physical during these cold winter months:

• If you do have a gym membership, try to get there! It might be difficult to work up the nerve to do a workout by yourself, so see if you can enroll in one of their aerobic classes. If the classes do not meet your schedule, talk to gym management to see if they have a workout partner program or a free trail period for a friend. People who have work out partners are more likely to keep to their workout routine because someone else is holding them accountable. Invite a friend along…your workout will be much more fun as you gab about the day and challenge each other to who can lift the most weights (within reason of course!)
• Let’s say the gym is out of the question. With the recent state of the economy we can understand why a membership may not be as high on your priority list as paying your gas and electric bill. No worries. Next time you are in a department store, stop by their fitness equipment section. No worries, we are not asking you to invest in a tredmill or some other giant monster that won’t fit in your home. But it might benefit you to get a workout ball or a couple dumbbell weights. These are things you can easily do at home.
• So you’ve got some weights and a couple other fitness items at home but they are pretty much collecting dust. Well, after you wipe them down with some good ol’ fashion water, set up a time for you to use them and stick to it. If you are living by yourself, use your computer to make some up beat workout playlists. And then let’er rip. Working out to upbeat music helps to keep your momentum going and takes your focus off of things like “oh my goodness how long do I have to do this?”
• If you happen to have a partner or a family in the mix, share in on the fun. Kids love to run, jump and move (plus it will tire them out which will be great when bedtime comes along). And your partner might not mind stretching with you or dancing to some music while turning down the house or doing chores. Some movement is better than no movement at all.
• Snag some workout videos!!! They practically go for absolutely nothing! Don’t get one, get 3 or 4 to allow for some variety. This will help keep your heart pumping while you are beating those winter blues.
• It’s important to start small. If you find that working out at home is not an option, there’s nothing like hitting up the local mall and doing a couple laps there. And there is no shame in checking out some items that you may want to buy later once you are done.

The key is to start small and stay motivated. We know it’s tough, but we also know it’s worth it. Feel free to share your workout tips and how you are beating the winter blues too!