You are My Sunshine...seeing the Light

There is a light within each of us as bright as the sun. A spark of light filled with love and kindness that always shines. Each of us has this inner light; it is who we are at our core. This light illuminates our life, affecting our thoughts, words, and actions.

Sometimes we don't notice it and other times we forget it's even there. Yoga wakens us, allowing us to see the inner light. As we begin to see this inner light in ourselves and others we become more loving and kind. 

A simple way to practice is to offer a silent greeting of Namaste when you encounter someone, " The light in me, sees the light in you." When the light guides us we treat others the way we want to be treated. Therefore embrace your inner spark and let it light your way!

Seeing the light in our sassy seniors led us to this month's story; You Are My Sunshine. We opened the practice by letting our "Sun shine" for all to see. Circling the arms overhead with full, deep Sunbreaths fanned the flame while loosening up stiff upper backs, necks, and shoulders. Then gentle twists created sparks that had us shining all the brighter as back discomfort diminished. Simple leg lifts strengthened and stretched hamstrings and quadriceps, tight from time spent mostly sitting.


The ancient practice of yoga is perfect for seniors. It helps keep the mind sharp and the muscles strong. Our inner light illuminating the way, we closed with a grateful Namaste.

The light in me, sees the light in you. 

Cleansing Twists

Mel in Chair Twist

Kathe in Lunge Twist

Spring has arrived and it's a great time to assist the body in its natural cleansing process. There are many ways in which we can help the body to obtain vibrant health and wellness. We yogis' like twists!

Twists are good for the back, belly, shoulders and chest. Our practice this month focused on twisting from the core; strengthening the immune system by stimulating the lymphatic and digestive systems. These systems keep us healthy. 

Our story for the month; I am healthy. I am well.  

To fully express the twists, we need to concentrate on our core and rotate from the lower spine. Twists keep the spine flexible and supple, helping to prevent herniated disks and compressed nerves. They massage and tone the abdominal organs. These organs compress when you twist, squeezing out stagnant blood. When we release the twist fresh oxygen filled blood enters the tissues. Twisting stimulates respiration and circulation too, nourishing us and removing toxins from the body. Twists also relieve stress; opening the chest and shoulders, areas where most of us hold tension. 

No wonder we feel so good after yoga twists. May these twist help you obtain vibrant health and wellness!

Here are a couple of poses from this months sequence. Remember to engage your core as you lengthen through the spine before twisting...

Chair pose with a twist

Stand in mountain with feet hip distance apart. Inhale and extend the arms forward at shoulder-height, reaching forward through your fingertips. Exhale and bend the knees as though you are sitting back into a chair, engage your center as you lengthen through the spine, shift the weight to your heels. Bring your hands together in prayer and then twist to the right, bringing the left elbow to the right knee, lifting the right elbow high. Look out over your fingertips, holding the pose for several breaths. Inhale to center and exhale twisting to the left. 

Lunge pose with a twist

Stand in mountain with feet hip distance apart. Inhale and step the left leg back as you extend the arms forward at shoulder height. Exhale and bend the front knee as you come up on the toes of the back foot. Inhale as you bring the left hand to the ground and exhale as you twist to the right, lifting the right arm straight overhead. Return the arms to center as you step up into mountain and repeat on the opposite side.

Mahalo, we serve. 

Yoga and Meditation for Memory Care

Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet...the colors of the rainbow; our theme for yoga and meditation with the residents of an assisted living facility specializing in memory care. Yoga and meditation help keep the body and mind strong, improving overall health, increasing relaxation and instilling a sense of general well-being, and research has shown that yoga improves the quality of life for seniors in assisted living facilities. 

A sensory sequence for these sassy seniors was planned, a tactile experience with joyful sound, movement, color and touch. Rainbow colored scarves waved in the air as we came into the present moment with the song "Colors" by Kira Wiley. Chair yoga pose variations that promote circulation and flexibility were practiced as well as deep breathing techniques while traveling "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" with IZ, loosening up the neck, shoulders, arms and hips. Relaxation with a Kirtan Kriya Meditation connected us to the Sun, Moon, Earth and Sky by way of finger taps. Before long we were remembering "What a Wonderful World" we live in!

Kundalini Yoga Kirtan Kriya Meditation has been the subject of study for many years. The outcomes suggest it can actually help preserve memory and slow Alzheimer's disease and related dementia. Results show yoga and meditation reduces stress and strengthens the brain. Yoga and meditation are not a cure but the science points to one conclusion; yoga and meditation help slow the progression of Alzheimer's and dementia.

Participants in the studies experienced reduced stress, improved mood and resilience, reduced depression and anxiety, improved verbal memory skills as well as improvements in visual-spatial memory, which is the ability to navigate and remember locations. In addition, grey matter and protective tissue increased, benefiting decision making. Regardless of your current age or cognitive abilities these are things we can all benefit from. 

Here is a link to the technique of Kundalini Yoga Kirtan Kriya Meditation found at the Alzheimer's Research and Prevention Foundation if you'd like to give it a try.

http://alzheimersprevention.org/research/12-minute-memory-exercise/

Mahalo, we serve. 

Yin and yang...A balancing act

You are probably familiar with the yin/yang symbol. Yin and yang represent opposite energies, the symbol represents bringing these energies into balance. This is what our yoga practice aims to do, bring us back into balance. Calming us when we are overstimulated and energizing us when we are sluggish. Yoga offers us different tools and practices to achieve balance but first we need to understand the difference between yin and yang energy. 
         

Yin energy is feminine. It is associated with the earth and the moon, it is calming and cooling. It is the ease we feel in a yoga posture. The opposite is Yang male energy; the sky and the sun, activity and warmth. The effort we put forth in our practice is yang. We consider these energies as opposites but in reality they are interrelated, each contains aspects of the other. 

Being out of balance leads to dis-ease in our life. When we are overstimulated and stressed out there is too much yang energy in our life. If we are feeling sluggish we have too much yin energy. Everything in life has either a yin or yang quality, finding a balance between yin and yang brings us a sense of harmony. 

Hatha yoga is a balanced practice, a little bit yin and a little bit yang. We seek to balance ease and effort. We begin with slow postures to warm up and get flexible. The practice then becomes more yang as we focus on strength and endurance. Once we cool down, stretch and relax in Shavasana we often notice a feeling of balance, of harmony. 

This month we concentrated on balancing poses. Our story for the month; My body and mind are in balance. Balancing has both yin and yang qualities; the poses require effort and ease, steadiness and subtle movement to stay upright. Feel the play of opposites, have fun and remember, when you wobble you are learning to balance! 

Tree pose; begin in mountain pose, bring the sole of one foot up to the inner calf or upper thigh, not against the knee, the bent knee should be pointing out to the side, press into the leg with the foot and into the foot with the leg, balance. Bring the hands together in prayer or you can slowly reach the arms overhead it you would like, hold the pose as you gaze forward. Repeat on the other side. 

Warrior III; begin in mountain pose, reach back with the left toes touching the earth, balance on the right foot, look down at the ground. Inhale and bring all of your weight onto the right foot, exhale and lift the left leg back while extending and reaching the torso forward, arms can reach forward or towards the toes. Keep the core engaged and the muscles of both legs working to bring the torso parallel to the ground. Gaze at the ground, breathe and balance. Gently return to upright and repeat on the other side. 


A guided relaxation for Shavasana

Get comfortable...the relaxation will help you to become aware of the yin and yang aspects of the breath. Balancing these energies brings health to the body and the mind. The inhale is yang; masculine and warming. The exhale is yin; feminine and cooling. Begin scanning your body, take your attention to your toes and feet, relax your toes and your feet. With each breath move your attention upward slowly and gently relaxing the body. On the inhale the belly rises and on the exhale the belly sinks. As you inhale imagine the sun warming you, filling you and lifting you, you expand and float upward. As you exhale the moon cools you, you become empty and soften, contracting and sinking. Imagine yourself floating and sinking, expanding and contracting. Stay here as long as you'd like and feel the peace of this balanced harmony. 

Mahalo, we serve.

                                                                            

5 Minute Yoga Breath Breaks

Mel and I had the privilege of empowering 30 teachers from Breaux Bridge Elementary School during a Professional Development workshop. We were asked to put together a presentation of yoga and breathwork the teachers could learn and take back to their students. 

Research suggests that yoga and breathwork cultivate mind-body awareness, self-regulation and physical fitness. All leading to greater health and well being. Numerous studies have proven that teaching kids stress relieving exercises such as yoga greatly improves test scores as well as classroom conduct.

Since testing was soon to begin, we came up with several 5 Minute Yoga Breath Break exercises. The aim of which is to empower teachers by recharging and refocusing young minds, these stretching and breathing exercises soothe the nervous system, allowing the muscles to relax, enriching the blood supply and feeding the brain, as well as develop focus and calmness. Exercises that will benefit the teachers too, making it a win win for sure. They can be done before testing, between testing and anytime students or teachers need a 5 Minute Yoga Breath Break.

Breath awareness connects us to our bodies and our minds. The breath can calm us or energize us. The following exercises contain an energizing and a calming aspect. Each exercise takes about 2 minutes; combined they create a 5 Minute Yoga Breath Break that will help to bring the body and mind into balance.

You too can take a 5 Minute Yoga Breath Break!  Below are a couple of exercises for you to try. 

All exercises begin with Standing or Sitting Mountain pose. Feel the feet or seat firmly rooted to the ground; the body is stable, steady and secure. The back is straight, spine is tall, head lifted high. The belly and chest expand on the inhale and contract on the exhale. 

Energizing Breath of Joy
Begin standing in mountain pose with a gentle bend in the knees, arms are alongside the body. Inhale through the nose and swing your arms up in front of you in line with the shoulders. Exhale through the nose opening the arms out in a "T" feel the shoulder blades coming together in the back as the chest opens to the front. Inhale and swing the arms overhead, fingers to the sky. Exhale with an open mouth "ha" and swing the arms down towards the ground letting the torso fold forward. Slowly round up to standing. Repeat 7 times. 

Calming Peace Breath
Begin in sitting mountain pose. Bring one hand to the belly and the other hand to the heart, close the eyes. Sit tall but relax the body. The breath is slow, in and out through the nose. Breathe in and feel the peace inside you, notice the belly and chest expand. Exhale and send peace out into the world, notice the belly and chest contract. Repeat 7 times. 

Mahalo, we serve. 

A "Golden" Opportunity

Who knew a "golden" opportunity was right around the corner? Actually we did, we just didn't know what it would be. One never knows how or when the universe will bestow its blessings, however it's always a good idea to be open to the infinite possibilities that await. 

Lydia the owner of "Gold's Gym" here in our humble little city was looking for a yoga teacher and we were open to the possibility. A dark and gloomy back room at the gym got a stunning new look; a soft coat of paint created a comfortable background and a funky light fixture in the corner set the mood. We brought in a sweet sun&moon tapestry and tada... the perfect bohemian space to share and experience a bit of rhapsody!

We like to practice a sequence for a month at time which allows students to become familiar with the poses and notice changes that occur. This month we decided to focus on foundations, specifically the feet and the seat. The feet and the seat give us stability, steadiness and security in our postures. Our story for the sequence; I am the mountain. Stable, steady, and secure. 

Our foundation is our connection to the earth. How our feet and seat are secured in our postures gives us stability. Surrendering to gravity our base becomes balanced and stable. This leads to lightness in the upper body, the spine lengthens and the head lifts high towards the sky. This lofty peak is where wisdom resides.  

Standing mountain pose and sitting mountain pose are the foundation poses in yoga. We prepare for and end our practice either sitting or standing and come back to mountain again and again. These poses give us a moment to be still. They invite us to return to our center; stable, steady and secure. Mountain is a powerful pose that has a potent effect on the body and mind.

These simple postures begin our journey to balance, strength, and flexibility. They improve posture allowing us to breathe easier. They may appear to be nothing more than standing or sitting but from them arises steadiness. 

In yoga we build our poses from the ground up. Attention to the foundation affects how tall your mountain will be.  Once our foundation is secure an in-breath lengthens the spine. We actually grow taller, the joints and discs decompress relieving pressure. 

Mountain pose is often considered a beginner pose, when in fact there is a lot going on. It incorporates many joints and muscle groups. When standing the ears are over shoulders, shoulders over hips, hips over knees and ankles. The body is vertically aligned supporting the natural curves of a healthy spine. Perfect posture they say...essential for overall health and well being. 

Be the mountain, stable, steady and secure.  

Standing Mountain Pose 

Stand with the feet together, arms by your sides, press your feet into the ground, lift your arches, ankles and knees, engage your thighs, tilt the pelvis ever so slightly pulling in the belly, your head, neck and spine should be in a straight line. Chin level. The gaze soft. 

Sitting Mountain Pose

Sit up tall and come into any crossed leg position. Sit on a folded blanket if your hips are tight. Press your seat into the ground. Balance your weight evenly across your sit bones. Align the head, neck and spine and allow the upper body to lift tall.
Chair variation: feet flat on the floor, knees over ankles to come into alignment.

Mahalo, we serve.

Dreaming the Impossible Dream

After a brief but too long separation, "We're back!" For several years our library careers took us down many different paths. We are grateful for the opportunities that were presented to us, we learned so much personally and professionally. Our passion for literacy lead us toward a storytelling precipice and along the way we stumbled upon yoga, where we are discovering balance and harmony. 

With endings come new beginnings, and these former librarians are choosing to Dream the Impossible Dream in 2017 as we come to realize that nothing is impossible. We'll be excavating and bringing to light buried treasure. Yes, of course it involves yoga and story. May riches flow from our lives to yours!

We hope you will join us from time to time on this yoga storytelling adventure.

Mahalo, we serve.