Tadasana (Mountain Pose): Choose Your Own Foot Position

I have been thinking a lot about this pose since my yoga group “The Muses” and I spent April studying it. (Read more about our discoveries here.) I realize I have learned at least a dozen different ways to have the feet in the pose. In fact, I rarely hear the same direction from two different teachers! So, what is the “right” way? In answering that question, I am reminded of something Barbara Benagh said to me years ago. She said that whatever a teacher teaches you is only her opinion about a pose based on how it feels in her body.

What a sage observation! So, it is then our responsibility to take the information we are given and decide how we want to use it or even to discard it altogether if it doesn’t fit our body’s needs. I realized that I needed to find the foot position that gives me the grounded feeling I love in Tadasana (which, by the way, is feet hip width apart. I have a torque in my pelvis so if I put my feet close together I feel like I am twisting.) What foot position works for you? What helps you feel grounded and open in the body? Play with it. What you have always been told might not be what you need in your body.

My Yoga Boy

Remember Under Dogs? When someone pushes you on the swing and gets you so high, she can run under you? The other day, while swinging, Zack asked me for a "Down Dog"! That's my yoga boy!

77 Surprising Health Benefits of Yoga.

Check this out! What a fabulous, and thorough, list! It should keep you doing your yoga for years to come...77 Surprising Health Benefits of Yoga.

Injuries as Blessings

What if your injury was a blessing? What if you no longer saw it as an inconvenience? Something to be tolerated until you could “return” to your “normal” life and “normal” practice. If you have been practicing long enough, you probably have encountered an injury and you have probably also encountered the frustration and irritation that often accompanies an injury. What if injuries were blessings? What if they were gifts from the universe to help you focus on a specific area? Stop focusing on a specific area? Or to learn something new about your body or mind? In hindsight, can you glean any gems from past injuries? I have spoken at length on this blog about my hamstring injury that challenged me for almost thirteen years! I can list a dozen benefits from that issue. I also had a neck injury (I straightened the curve in my neck doing inversions incorrectly) that took three years to fix. One of my best gems from that period of time was really taking a fascination to inversions and how to teach them well.

Your yoga practice is about where you are right now, balancing you whether that balance is physical, mental, emotional. When you have an injury your practice is around supporting the issue, helping it heal or release or restructure, whatever is appropriate. When you no longer see an injury as an irritation, a whole new world opens up!

7 Random Things About Me

I was tagged for this so long ago, I don’t remember who tagged me! (Sorry)! It is a fun one, though, so I thought I would put it out there now.

Here are the rules:

- Link to the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog. (If you can remember who tagged you that is...)
- Share 7 random or weird things about yourself.
- Tag people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs
- Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here they are!
o I am a closet Rocker. It is true! I can hardly sit still when I hear Bruce Springsteen or the Steve Miller band.
o I also love Lionel Richie. I got tickets for a concert in high school and even my boyfriend wouldn’t come with me! My science lab partner said he would love to go and my boyfriend was relieved! ☺ (On a bright note – that same lab partner then took my to Billy Joel as a thank you!) (And did I mention I am a “Fanillow” too! )
o I really do not enjoy shopping. I can hardly even go into a mall for a “quickie”. Even catalog shopping isn’t fun because I often have to return it for another size and returning something feels so inconvenient. My friends often give me hand-me-downs and I love them for it! Pre-washed, I know they won’t shrink, and I never set foot in a store.
o My favorite movie of all time: True Lies. (I think it has to do with the fact that I wanted to be James Bond when I was little. Never a teacher or a mom or a nurse, just a spy!)
o I love to sweat when I am exercising! I love the feeling of working my body that way.
o I cannot figure out lyrics to songs. It can be quite amusing to listen to what I say. (I thought “Midnight toker” was a “Midnight talker” – which makes sense if you know me – I talk a lot!)
o I studied at the London School of Economics. Go figure! ☺
o “Louie” (pronounced Lou – ee) is my family’s nickname for me and has been for as long as I can remember. My middle name is Louise and apparently when I was learning to talk I called myself “La La Louie”. It was used so exclusively when I was young that I thought it was my name. When I went to study in Italy, it became “Luigi”.

Now I want to here from you! and especially: Karen, Marya, Beth, Tammy

Samskaras: Part II

To take the analogy a bit further from Part I, when we drive through such deep ruts, aren’t you completely fixated on the ruts? It can be a bit scary to go through them and you are focused on the work involved. Ironically, if you were to look up, not only would you see that you are actually in a vast Africa Savannah and can see for miles, you would also find that driving through the ruts is easier as well when you are focused on where you are going.

Ruts keep us stuck in our old consciousness with our limited perspective. Look up! There is an infinite array of things you can do!

Samskaras: Part I

There is this wonderful Sanskrit word I just love: Samskaras. It actually has around 20 meanings (almost literally, check the The Shambhala Encyclopedia of Yoga by Georg Feuerstein). My favorite translation is “mental permeations”. It refers to having a set mental pattern. In other words, we think the same way every time the same thing happens. You always feel annoyed when your Dad tells that story from when you were young. You always feel irritated when the person in the cube next door begins to talk loudly on the phone. You always feel stress and tension when you see traffic ahead. Interestingly, in studies done on the brain, researchers have found that the more we think something, the stronger that thought pattern becomes. Our brain literally builds more connections for that path! The stronger the pattern becomes, the easier it is to go down the same path.

I like to see a samskara as an African mudhole. You know when you drive through mud, ruts appear. The more you drive through the mud, the deeper the ruts become. Once the ruts dry, it can be incredibly difficult to choose a different path.

If you do choose a different path and try to come out of the rut, you may fall right back into the track, but you have shaved a bit of the rut away in the attempt which makes the next attempt a bit easier. Each time you choose a new thought, a bit more gets shaved away as a new track forms. Interestingly, that is just what brain researchers have found. When you choose a new path, a few links of the old are broken, weakening the old pattern a bit.

I use this analogy frequently with coaching clients and my yoga students. It can feel frustrating when you think you have “failed” at changing thought patterns. Success is not evaluated by completely letting go of the old thought pattern and using the new one, success is each time you are conscious of the old pattern and changed it a bit. Each time it changes, you have weakened the old thought pattern.

What's for Dinner: Spinach Balls

I love this recipe! They are good hot, cold and even frozen. Incredibly versatile and yummy, too!

• 1-10 ounce package frozen spinach


• 1 cup oat flour


• 3 eggs


• ¼ nutritional yeast or parmesan cheese


• large chopped onion


• ¼ cup olive oil


• ½ t garlic powder


• 1 t salt


• ½ t thyme (maybe more)


• ½ sage

1. 350 degrees


2. Mix half the spinach and the rest of the ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. Add the rest of the spinach and pulse until mixed. Be sure to keep the spinach “chunky”.


3. Use an ice cream scoop to scoop out “balls” (they are a bit runny) onto a cookie sheet. I make small cookie sized, but feel free to make them any size you want.


4. Bake for 10-25 minutes (depending on size)

Spinach Balls @ Group Recipes

Yoga in the French Alps

Yoga in the French Alps
Originally uploaded by kajo55

I found this photo so inspiring! Both the pose and the location...just wanted to share.

Seated Forward Folds

I have been studying seated forward folds for the year in my study of Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender). Since forward folds are the pose of surrender, this seemed appropriate. I just realized I grip the tops of my feet to “pull” myself into my pose! (So much for surrender!) Check it out. Do you do it?

Aligning with the Intention of Tadasana (Mountain Pose)

Tadasana (Mountain Pose) is a very powerful pose. Or, at least, that is its intention. To fully engage the energy of the pose, you must have a balance between grounding and lifting. Often, the balance is tipped one way or the other. If you are overly grounded, the pose is heavy and lacks the expansion. If you are overly lifted, the pose is too light and lacks grounding. The intention of the opse is to be like a mountain, grounded and open to whatever comes. What are you?

Too grounded: Do you have a hard time lifting your chest? Do you feel as if you are standing in a hole? Do you tend to ruminate about the past?

Too lifted: Do you feel your weight in the soles of your feet? Do you grip the tops of your feet? Does your ribcage come forward? Do you tend to spend time thinking about the future?

Musasana: A New Blog

I want to introduce a new blog I have created with the women with whom I am beginning a new company. On this blog we investigate one yoga pose in-depth each month. We share our thoughts and experiences as we study this one pose. Please join us! We would love your comments as well. Musasana

New Use for Yoga Mats

I bet you hadn't thought of this one!! He taped it together and made it his "skirt".

My Son Eats Meat

It is true. My 4 year old eats meat. It was a difficult decision for me, I have been vegetarian for over fifteen years for a variety of reasons and my seven year old daughter is flourishing as a vegetarian. My husband and I suspected our son needed meat for 6 months before we finally fed it to him four months ago. My husband also eats meat so it isn’t an anomaly in our house. He was vegan for several years in high school and just couldn’t keep himself grounded. He needed meet for balance. He still does. I can tell when he hasn’t had meat for awhile and have been known to suggest he go out for a hamburger so he can feel better. My son is similar. He doesn’t seem to enjoy food very much and yet was very interested in meat when he was around meat from babyhood on. He was thrilled to eat it. He is even more excited about beef than cookies. It is an interesting process in letting go of what you expect and allowing others to do what they need to do, especially when it is with your children. When I surrender to what he needed, I felt myself soften and the rest was easy. Seeing him flourish on beef also helps me surrender. It was clearly the right decision.

Surrender - Being in the Heart

I just realized that surrender is about being in the heart! I spend so much time in my head, ruminating, planning, thinking, analyzing and reanalyzing. None of those things are necessary when you are truly surrendering! I had created this meditation awhile ago when I realized the energy bubble around my head was buzzing when I meditated and the energy in my heart was still. I wanted more energy in my heart for meditation. I thought you might enjoy it too. May it bring you more into your heart and a state of surrender:

Energy In The Heart

Inspirational Quote

“Ultimately, whether we achieve the final posture or not is insignificant. Those who do not believe this may be quite disillusioned to discover that nothing particularly remarkable or even pleasant happens when you finally put your feet on the back of your head. If our practice has been driven by hopes of radiant delight in that final moment, we may find ourselves asking, ‘Is this all there is?’ when we achieve our so-called goal. The delight, the remarkable moment, was happening all along, but we were too busy getting somewhere to notice.” (Donna Farhi)

How many of you needed to hear that one today? Another great quote comes from Ramanand Patel, one of my favorite teachers. In a particularly challenging class when we were working up to a pose that makes you wish you had no ligaments, he wryly commented, "I have been in the final pose. There is nothing there. There is no hurry." We often need reminders of these thoughts. Yoga is not about the final pose. Frankly, it isn't about getting stronger or more flexible either. Yoga is about growing, evolving, learning more about yourself and ultimately growing in consciousness by taking your body where it hasn't been before.

My Time With Judith Lasater

This is what I did last weekend:

Surrender: Part II (or is it III or IV?)

Okay, I am back and what an interesting month it has been! Between being sick, attending a conference, going on a trip, and having internet on the fritz, I kind of feel like March was a blogging blur. I feel I abandoned my blogs! I feel renewed energy and a bunch of ideas are flowing around my head and I can’t wait to share them with all of you!

The biggest idea and the one I want to explore here is around my study of surrender this year. For those of you who read my blog often, you know I choose a theme each year to focus on. This year it is Ishvara Pranidhana, or surrender. What is surrender? We talk about it a lot. “Letting go” and “trust the universe” are the catch phrases of our current times, but what does that mean? How does one “do surrender”? I am a “doer” and I want to know what I can “do” to surrender. This question is one I am still answering for myself and continue to explore it on my mat in my practice (where I always turn when I have questions). You can read what I do to “practice surrender” yogically here.

Ironically, though, it seems surrender is more about not doing and instead merely being. Relaxing into the space of the moment, the process of what you are doing, and being fully present. It means not forcing yourself into the future nor being stuck in the past. When you surrender, you are open to what the future might hold for you (not your idea of what the future might hold for you) and you are grateful for whatever the past had to teach you so you can move on.

For now, surrender to me means not worrying because I trust God, the Universe, the process, the bigger picture, whatever phrase works for you, to guide me into the experiences I need to have to grow more into the person I know myself to be. It means not doing things out of fear (doing things because you are afraid something else will happen) and instead doing things because you know they will bring good things to you. (Coming from love not fear – intrigued to read more about that idea? Read my other blog entries here and here.) Surrender also means trusting that even the challenging times have their purpose and I needn’t add to the challenge by worrying about them.

As a recovering control addict, I find the balance between doing what I want to do and going over the line to doing what I feel I have to do for something to succeed extraordinarily fine. It is what I am working on now – it is only April!

YJ Asana Column: Revolved Janu Sirsasana

Ever struggle with reading the asana column in Yoga Journal while trying to perform the actions? Or get your spouse to read it to you? Me too! I finally recorded reading it for myself and thought you might enjoy it as well. This recording is Charles Matkin's article on Parivrtta Janu Sirsasana. I talk you through the entire process, repeating for the other side. Let me know if you enjoy the recording and I will do more. Enjoy! Recording

Recovering

Hi, Everyone. Sorry I haven't posted in awhile -- I have been very sick! I am better now and am preparing a few new posts. I will put them up soon. Peace, Laura