In Georgia for the summer I find myself coping with some unrelenting heat and humidity. I admit to complaining daily but there are those good moments when heat and dehydration leave me delirious enough to embrace the air. Then my thoughts shift to an internal dialogue that usually goes like this:
“This is fantastic weather for hot yoga, I’m gonna sweat it all out .
I pay good money for yoga in heated rooms and here’s my own free heated space.
… On a sweet front porch looking into the woods of north Georgia none the less.
This is fantastic!”
I rush on this wave of positive spirit. I change my clothes, throw my hair up, put bug spray on (it’s outside Georgia, I’m sure I can not yet find peace while being eaten alive by mosquitoes), get my mat on the porch, bring out my laptop get an online class pulled up ….
and then ….
REALITY SETS IN
By this time I’m already soaked with sweat just by the act of moving outside. Now the internal dialogue sounds more like,
“Are you nuts? What the hell are you doing? You are gonna pass right out on this front porch? Don’t you just wanna go take a cold shower and have some iced espresso? Really, really … do you seriously want to do this?”
Having a face off staring blankly at the play button on my computer screen this is when warrior face pose begins. I know because I can see it in the glassy reflection on the monitor caused when taking it into foreign territory (outside). I capture the moment ‘face’, I take deep breaths and I give myself one very motivational quick powerful feminine warrior pep talk.
“You just found your first gray hair today and you turn 30 next month, Get Your Ass On The MAT … of course you want to do this.”
I want more then anything to be healthy and fit so I can do all the fun active activities I love for a lifetime. There may have been some immediate vein personal threat with the word ‘bikini’ thrown in the pep talk as well :)
… So, 1 hour in the heat. I survived and loved a full thirty minutes of it. After ten years I’m still at a point in my practice where I just curse myself for the first half wondering why in the world I’m doing such a thing. However, the second thirty minutes are bliss and shavasana with meditation remind me why I do it every time.
note: Yes, that is me and my summer front porch above.
After many comments and emails I was prompted to search further to help share more episodes of Inhale! It’s not an easy job considering the show went off the air years ago. I emailed Maha Yoga and Steve Ross to ask about where to get episodes or when Mr. Ross might be going online or doing a DVD. I got a pretty stale form letter reply citing the excuse that he likes to use popular songs and the difficulty with licensing to do new stuff and try and contact Oxygen channel for the old stuff. He’s been using that music excuse for YEARS now, it’s time to find an answer for the thousands wishing only to laugh, smile, sweat and have some fun inspiring yoga! I have a few suggestions for answers to the music dilemma to send and plan to go out to Cali and go to Maha Yoga for a class. Hopefully I can be more persuasive in person!
Currently I’m living in a small town in Georgia with no access to a yoga class :( I’m really trying hard for all of us middle and rural Americans! Just cause we choose not to live in the cities doesn’t mean we don’t deserve access to fun yoga!
Help build the online library! If you have a taped episode try and get it online :) If your not tech savvy your more then welcome to mail it to me and I’ll put it up and mail it back. Email me for mailing address.
Enjoy the episode below … part four has no sound due to YouTube licensing restrictions but it’s an easy 3 pose stretch section. Play teacher and inspire and make yourself laugh during this part!
part one
part two
part three
part four this section has no sound due to YouTube licensing restrictions but it’s an easy 3 pose stretch section. Play teacher and give your own narration … inspire and make yourself laugh!
Back in the day, I remember when yoga mats were provided to all students and no one charged. Actually, at the first studio I went to (way back in the 90s), I received a tank top with my first class pass purchase. I still have that tank top, but see more and more the pushing of “extras” at yoga studios. Last night, I went to a class with a friend I was visiting outside of Boston. As I paid for the class ($17, ouch), the receptionist asked, “Will you be needing water, towel, or a mat?”It reminded me of McDonald’s: “Would you like to Supersize that?”
I don’t run a studio. It’s not for me. So maybe I don’t understand the need to charge for everything. The truth is, though, is that studios never used to charge for what I consider a basic need of yoga classes: mats and, sometimes, towels. To me, it seems like paying for a gym pass and then needing to pay extra for each type of equipment that you use. When did yoga studio owners shift to not providing everything needed to do yoga? And why?
It reminds me of Spirit Airlines, who I will be flying with on Friday (to Mexico for two weeks). Spirit is a super-budget airlines. This means that they charge $3 for beverages on the plane, make you pay for a new ticket if you miss your flight (or are just checking in late), and– the kicker– pay for carry on luggage. In fact, carry on luggage is more expensive then checked luggage.
There’s a parallel between the airlines the studios. No one is forcing me to go to studios that, as I see it, charge for things that should be included. No one is forcing me to fly with an airline that has been fined mondo bucks by the Better Business Bureau for horrific customer service. But I wanted to go with my friend to her home studio and Spirit had the schedule that worked to go to Mexico. So why couldn’t they just charge more, and therefore be more upfront about the costs that you end up paying anyway?
I’m soooo happy to be able to share this full episode of Inhale with Steve Ross! It’s been off the air for years and making it to Steve’s Maha Yoga studio in Brentwood, CA or retreats just is not possible for the majority of people. Some may disagree with Steve’s laxed style of teaching complete with jokes, some of those very fun ’7′ words that can’t be said on tv, loud music and don’t worry just do it attitude. Me, I LOVE IT!!!! I have so much fun doing an episode of Inhale and super fun when I’m in Los Angeles and actually get to go to a class. I’ve tried many other teachers, studios, videos and I’ve never enjoyed the fun flow as much as I do with Steve. I remember attending a Bikram class once and feeling so angry and out of balance that I left went home and did more yoga to calm me down.
On a personal note, I’m now 29 and was 18 when introduced to Steve Ross. I grew up dancing and taking gymnastics and had been to a couple hot yoga classes. As much as I liked stretching and sweating and the amazing energy that comes from a great teacher it wasn’t til I found ‘Inhale’ that I really fell in love with yoga. My mother also grew up dancing but when I was 18 and she was 36 she was over weight, living in the desert (even though she’s inlove with the ocean) and in a job that sucked the life out of her. Basically she wasn’t happy and our relationship was not good and had not been good for years. She too had tried some yoga dvd’s but found herself very bored with them …. and then one day I told her about Steve Ross and Inhale!
My mom fell inlove with Steve Ross’s style of teaching. She began doing yoga regularly and turned her friends onto as well. The side affect from this was life changing for both of us. She got happy, lost a bunch of that extra weight, started inspiring others to have fun and be happy and our relationship became the best it had ever been. Steve Ross was in Las Vegas for a book signing for Happy Yoga: 7 Reasons Why There’s Nothing to Worry About . I went there to thank him for making my mom happy which made me love her more then ever, she became an inspiration. Soon after she moved to Southern California to be near the ocean! But wait it gets better … !!!! …. WAY BETTER!!! She then quit her very lucrative job in Corporate America and flew down to the Bahamas to live in an Ashram for a month and became a yoga teacher!
My mom is Denise Wells she is a Registered Nurse and a Certified Yoga Teacher. She lives in Mission Viejo, California and goes by Om Sweet Om Yoga! She loves being outside and does guided yoga hikes, yoga in the parks and on the beach. She also does private in home sessions for all those busy Corporate America types who don’t have time to leave.
Yoga Studio Decor and The Happy Blog was completely inspired by Steve Ross and my Mom! They’ve both been an inspiration and a support system in my life. When I’m facing my hardest challenges or I’m in the worst mood, either Yoga w/ Steve or a call to my Mom gives me the strength to be happy.
I am Kiesha Jean. I am a photographer who loves yoga and life! All of the images in the Yoga Studio Decor store were taken by me on my travels. I currently live in the mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. I hope for the Happy Blog to be someplace you can always come to when you need a smile, a laugh, inspiration, love and wisdom. If you have a story you’d love to share email [email protected]
My guess is that I’m not the only one currently experiencing extra people. Extra people in your home, or you are the extra people in the home of someone else. The extra people experience, so emblematic of the holidays.
It can be a stressful time. Having more people in your space can result in a feeling of claustrophobia and being in someone’s space can create less agency. It’s like being in a romantic relationship; suddenly, you’re not just making decisions for yourself anymore. You might wake up, be totally ravenous for a strawberry-banana smoothie… only to find that Pops, in his infinite love for you, has made a gigantic batch of french toast. Just for you.
Or, like me, you’re a bit addicted to the asana side of your yoga practice. You. Need. To. Move! But your parents have a teeny little living room, and it is filled with presents. Yesterday, I practiced to Live.Love.Yoga‘s podcasts (go to iTunes and enter “Power Yoga with Nikki Wong” for FREE downloadable podcasts of sheer yoga brilliance) while I worried about knocking over things and staring at Christmas wrapping. Did I mention that I’m Jewish? And am really anti-consumer?
I think I need to accept the fact that this week, this one week out of the year, my yoga practice needs to move off of the mat. I need to eat the french toast and detach myself from smoothie cravings. I can take a looooooooong walk in the Shawangunk Mountains to get some air and do Mountain Pose on the real thing. Mostly, I can make space for the needs of other people while being aware of my own. Especially whether my needs are just attachments and routines that, while they may be “healthy,” are still attachments.
However, just in case your parent’s living room, or your living room crowded with guests, is a little less packed than my own, here is a yin practice that requires a bit less space to move around in.
Sukhasana (Easy Pose)
Dirgha and Ujjayi Pranayama (Three Part Breath and Ocean Sounding Breath). Come back to this breath often throughout this practice.
Baddha Konasana (Cobbler’s Pose). Hold for 2-3 minutes.
Bhujangasana on forearms, forearms shoulder width apart (Cobra). Hold for 1 minute.
Gomukhasana (Face of Light Pose) with arms resting in a comfortable place. Hold for 2 minutes on each side.
Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Bend Pose). Hold for 2-3 minutes. (Note: avoid or be careful is you have sciatica or chronic lower back issues)
Supta Matsyendrasana (Reclined Twist Pose). Hold for 2-3 minutes each side.
Ananda Balasana (Happy Baby Pose). Hold for 2 minutes.
Viparita Karani (Legs up the Wall Pose). Hold for 5-10 minutes.
Savasana (Corpse Pose). Hold for twice your usual length.
It’s the harvest season here… and you know what harvest means. Harvest means food. Halfway between Canadian and American (US) Thanksgiving, there are all sorts of beautiful things clamoring for space in my refrigerator. Beautiful orange squashes, dark greens, and the completely sexy color of beets make my plate an exquisite thing. Not to mention sweet potatoes, which are my favoritest, are literally popping up out of the ground. Most delicious treat ever?: Baked sweet potato with salted, crunchy peanut butter, cinnamon, honey, and extra salt. Decadent and filling.
It’s a very happy thing and these days the eating is so good. What’s better than fall harvest? Accordingly, here’s a sequence for massaging internal organs and aiding in digestion. Eat up, and enjoy!
1. Begin in Supta Baddha Konasana (Reclined Bound Angle). Take hands to the lower ribs, thumbs to the back (towards the floor) and the rest on the front of the ribcage.
2. Breathe deeply, feeling the expansion in the ribs with the breath. Feel the movement underneath the hands.
3. Remain here for 1-3 minutes
4. Draw the knees together with the hands and drop them to the side for a supine twist.
5. Repeat other side
6. Supta Pavana Muktasana (Reclined Wind Relieving Pose). Repeat other side
7. Draw both knees tightly into chest
8. Urdhva Prasarita Padasana (Straight Leg lowering and lifting). Repeat 12x.
9. Jathara Parivartanasana (Straight legs side to side). Repeat 12x.
10. Place hands on belly and gently massage and breathe
11. Come onto belly
12. Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose). Using the breath, rise higher and inhale and lower on exhale. Continue to raise and lower for 6 cycles of breath
13. Bhujangasana (hold for 5 cycles of breath)
14. Dhanurasana (Bow Pose). Repeat 3x. On third time, use breath to “rock” body in Bow.
15. Release to floor, allowing legs to “windshield wiper” side to side, releasing lower back
16. Garbasana (Child’s Pose)
17. Walk hands in front of you to one side. Side stretch. Repeat other side.
