Don't do this, do this #365Yoga

(Photo credit: GO INTERACTIVE WELLNESS)

There is a saying that if you really want to integrate something, you should teach it to someone else. I've found that to be true, especially with yoga. Then creating and teaching a yoga teacher training program really drove home pieces of yoga philosophy that I had been just flirting with for years.

For the session that just started, I decided to narrow the study of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras into an in-depth look at the Yamas and the Niyamas. As a result, I've been researching how different people interpret and apply yoga's ethical guidelines. Like all of the Sutras, I wonder how best to apply the Yamas and Niyamas in the time we live in.

The five Yamas are yoga's "don't do this" list - "don't harm," "don't lie," "don't steal," etc. The Niyamas lay out five better choices to make, including staying clean, cultivating contentment and exploring your inner self. All ten are at once simple and extremely complex.

While what North America has truly embraced is Hatha Yoga, it is interesting to note that, when Patanjali laid out the eight limbs of yoga, he put the Yamas and the Niyamas first and second. Did he believe that the rules for living needed to be embraced before one was ready to tackle the other limbs? Well, that's a question for a group of yoga teacher trainees in a couple of weeks.

Insanity before teacher training #365Yoga

Yesterday's Insanity workout was called "Cardio Recovery." I have renamed it "kill your quads." While it didn't have much cardio, there was a great deal of lower body strengthening. My muscles were burning! Surprisingly, I'm not very sore. A great yoga class on Wednesday along with post-workout Isagenix shakes helped reduce the aches. My energy level is way up. I don't think I've ever been this productive, which is good, because I have a very busy weekend ahead.

My favorite part of last winter was leading a 200-hour yoga teacher training for the first time. Tomorrow I begin again with a new group of trainees. I have heard from some that they are excited about starting the program. I wonder if they are as excited as I am.

Some of the graduates of that first program are teaching at the True North Yoga studio, so I have been able to enjoy their classes and watch them progress as teachers. It is very humbling to notice that their classes contain so much more than the basics I offered them. It reaffirms my belief that good yoga teachers are made on the inside, inspired by and integrated with the great Guru, or whatever you choose to name god/dess, and I am just providing a space for that integration to start.

Even without the extra energy provided by the Insanity workouts, I'd be headed into the weekend filled with excitement, and humility, open to the flow of grace which will guide my teaching. This is for the new teacher trainees. This mind of mine, this body of mine, my every atom is dedicated to you, for the next six months and forever.

A gift to special not to share: Dance #365Yoga

dance with the wind (Photo credit: cambiodefractal)

The first class of yoga teacher trainees graduated from the True North Yoga Advanced Yoga Studies/200-hour Yoga Teacher Training program on March 10th. I had an amazing six months with these women, learning as much from them as I hope they learned from me. The time we spent together felt like weekends with old friends. The love and support these women offered each other was incredible and I feel blessed just to have been able to create the space for them to come together.

The "final exam" for the program was to teach a yoga class. Each class was unique as the personalities and experiences of each teacher came through in their words and asana sequencing. One new yoga teacher wrote a poem for the others in the group and shared it at the end of her class. It was touching, meaningful and embodied the author in every way. I asked her if I could post it and she agreed. Enjoy this gift from yoga teacher Alexis Sandiford-Fisher:

Dance

My wish for you

is that you take the time to...

Dance with the earth, draw your strength from the strong roots that keep you

steadfast in the face of adversity.

Dance with the wind, blowing your cares away and ushering in the breath of new life and ideas.

Dance with the flames that fuel the desires of your dreams. Move with them as they rise and wrap

themselves around to shape and reveal the truth in your heart.

Dance with the rain, let it wash over you clearing your body and mind of all negativity.

Dance with the rays of the sun, with your bare toes in the grass and flowers all around.

Dance with the falling leaves while colourful dreams swirl all around you.

Dance with the snowflakes - even if there's slush in your boots -  let them kiss your

nose and caress your cheeks.

And finally... Dance with your children - or significant other - whether 2 legged or 4 legged 

because there is nothing sweeter than this.

AFS  3/13

Thank you, Alexis, for giving me the gift of your friendship, your presence, and your energy. And thank you for the lovely poem. I danced with the snowflakes today. Lots and lots of them.