Category Archives: Yoga

YIN & YANG; ATTENTION & INTENTION

Yin and Yang = balance; Attention and Intention leave no stone unturned.

When one considers how long the practice of Yoga has been in existence, my own study might be called neonatal. For fewer years than the fingers on one hand, I have, almost daily, rolled out my Yoga mat and attempted some sort of practice. Like many newbies, I was attracted to the physicality of the poses (Asanas), the flow (I do love a Vinyasa class), and the beauty of the practice itself.

Because it is my habit to do so when learning a new skill, I went straight to the venue of teacher training in order to learn as much as I could of the technique and philosophy. It was the right thing to do. First I studied Yoga for Athletes at Kripalu with Sage Rountree. Then I leapt eagerly into 200 hours of Yoga Teacher Training with Regina Trailweaver at Lotus Yoga in Vermont. After becoming certified, and along the way, having met a teacher who would ultimately become exactly the right teacher for me, I chose to pursue advanced training in the study of Yin Yoga. I am currently working through an additional 300 hours of training with Josh Summers and Terry Cockburn, Summers School of Yin Yoga.

OK, so these are simply dry stats. What these studies are doing for me is beyond explanation or definition. It is truly humbling to realize that teachers before me have continued to study, learn, practice and teach for literally decades and still suggest that they have only begun to scratch the surface of what we call Yoga.

Though there are many forms of Yoga being taught in today’s world (a huge subject for another blog post), there seem to be a few universal truths. First of all, as a student of both Yin and Yang Yoga, I believe it is important to balance our Yoga by practicing both techniques. I now know that Yoga envelopes far more than simply the physical Asanas. In fact, as you may already know, early Yoga practice thousands of years ago was designed to aid meditation and was comprised of one action (or inaction) – sitting for long periods of time. Today, Yoga classes range physically from the proverbial sublime to the ridiculous – though I guess if it works for you, nothing is ridiculous! More and more Yoga students stretch their bodies, minds and emotions mingling bodily attainments with spiritual seeking. Mind and body clearly connect, support and sustain.

Coming to Yoga from a professional personal training and athletic background, I am excited by the relatively recent emphasis on functional alignment. Years ago in the gym, after gleaning far more information about the human body and how it works, we first moved away from traditional training to eagerly embrace the new and exciting approach to training as “functional.” A little later the pendulum swung back to more of an integrated form of training, but the wisdom and pragmatism of functional training stuck.

It appears that Yoga technique may be journeying down the same path. As injuries have stepped into the spotlight, more teachers and practitioners look to making adaptations to strict alignment, which, albeit aesthetically pleasing, might not work for all bodies as all bodies are certainly not the same.

Bernie Clark, a leader in the field of Yin Yoga, (www.YinYoga.com) has recently published the 2nd of his trilogy of books serving as detailed texts on the science behind the Yoga-practicing body. Clark urges the reader to know why he or she is practicing Yoga. What is your intention? Why are you even stepping on the mat? Whether considering a particular pose or thinking of the practice as a whole, what do we want from our efforts? Are we seeking spiritual enlightenment, a body that could grace the cover of Yoga Journal, increased energy, improved sports performance, or maybe physical health and well-being coupled with mental and emotional balance and stability? Will we even recognize it if we begin to reach steps towards achieving our goals – that is, if we have defined them?

Clark puts it this way: “One of the great gifts of yoga is the ability to attend–to notice what is happening right here, right now, in your body, in your heart and in your mind. By paying attention and comparing what is arising with what you intend to arise, you can make a skillful, conscious choice to either accept what is or change it, based on whether or not what is arising is helping you achieve your intention.” (Your Spine Your Yoga, Bernie Clark, Wild Strawberry Productions, 2018)

Yin and Yang = balance. Intention and Attention leave no stone unturned. Teachers who teach best are eternal students. Students who question approach learning with healthy curiosity, receptivity and the daring to taste and test change.

Many years ago as a student at Johns Hopkins University I was both horrified and fascinated by graffiti found on a brick wall on the Homewood campus: QUESTION AUTHORITY! I was, and somewhat still am, a rule-follower. Yet the memory of those two words continues to affect my thinking. Theory should work. Practice is its proof. In Vermont we like to say, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Perhaps another take on this would be, “If it ain’t working, fix it!”

Question. Test. Adapt.

Walk into a Yoga studio. Step onto your mat. Begin your practice. Notice. Notice how you feel and what you feel. Notice the room in which you practice and the bodies around you, each beginning his or her own uniquely individual practice. Notice the connection you invariably feel with those in close physical proximity and with those who you instinctively know you have connected mentally and emotionally. Notice that spirituality is a living, almost palpable thing, an integral part of your practice. Attend.

A friend suggested that I go to www.Tricycle.org and sign up for Daily Dharma.

Here’s one you might like: “Grace provides the framework within which a meaningful life is lived. Love is the substance of it day to day. To live a spiritual life, then, is essentially to do things ‘for the love of it’-to do things without attachment to a result or reward.” Dharmavidya David Brazier.

May we all practice Yoga ‘for the love of it,’ safely, effectively, profoundly, physically and spiritually. Yin and Yang = balance. Intention and Attention leave no stone unturned. Question authority. Do all, receiving and sharing Grace. Namaste.

AFTEREFFECTS OF TRAINING (and Yoga) LAST FOR HOURS

There is a phenomenon, sometimes called the “afterburn” and sometimes referred to by a more official sounding title, “excess post-exercise oxygen consumption,” or EPOC. Simply put, when you exercise (here the intensity of your training is relevant), your heart rate, oxygen consumption, metabolic rate and thus calorie burn are elevated. The minute you walk out of class, step off your bike or kick off your running shoes your system does not dive to the level prior to working out. Surely you remember that it took time to stretch, breathe and gradually shift gears in your remarkable machine of a body in order to get it to perform at full capacity, or at least efficiently. It makes sense, then, that it would take an extended period of time to do the reverse. It’s a lovely bonus that your fit and tuned body will continue to crank it out even after your reps or miles are done. A bonus, as well as a strong incentive!

Today as I closed my Yoga class, I offered my students an ineloquent prayer or wish for them. “Your Yoga does not end with Namaste. May your practice – physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually – go with you through the remaining hours of this day.”

I thought about what I had said a few hours later as I walked through the woods on trails wet with rain. Years before I would have been snug at home with a book (or maybe my computer) and a cup of tea. These days, however, my Sophie gets me out there and by the time I stop whining at her I realize I’m so happy to have done so!

Sophie.

On one hand, I watched with interest as my young Chocolate Lab raced through the woods chasing birds (good luck with that), chipmunks, and all sorts of imaginary or otherwise creatures. (I’m so proud of this girl – she comes right back when she flushes out a deer. We know there are bear(s) out there but so far so good and I have no idea what she will do. Practice recall. Practice recall. Practice recall.)

On the other hand, the slippery roots, muddy patches, and dense yet soundless dimness of the woods guided me back to my morning Yoga practice. I was ‘taking my practice with me through the remaining hours or my day.’

Because I am a dedicated student of my teachers, Terry Cockburn, Freeport Yoga Company, and Josh Summers, Summers School of Yin Yoga, I borrow heavily from them. Periodically I will “workshop” a particular asana or principle, stopping to spend time to explore a shape, identify target areas, and practice execution suggesting appropriate functional alignment. (There’s oh so much to say on this particular subject – but that’s for another day and another post.)

I urge my students to consider their own anatomy, discover which of several possible target areas they address, and then, the big question – “what do you feel?” Yes, when one has taught, studied and observed bodies for many years, one can sometimes have an educated opinion of what a student might be feeling. However, the bottom line is NOT what you, the teacher, thinks, it is what the student feels!

Think of it this way. Say something very sad, or even traumatic, has happened to you. You are emotionally exhausted and broken – say the death of a family member, a broken marriage, or a terrible accident. Someone you meet offers compassion and says ‘I know exactly how you feel….’ You want to shout back at them ‘NO YOU DON’T!’ Enough said.

To accompany that bottom line is the equally important objective to help our students become informed about their bodies, movements, and potential. A commonly accepted concept in the practice of Yoga is to be able to know one’s “edge,” and to work towards and with that edge within a given practice. To be a student is a marvelous adventure and one that thankfully never ends. I encourage all Yoga students to read, study, practice, experience and learn, learn, learn about each individual uniquely precious being that he or she is!

So, see? I was thinking about all of this as I walked. (Fortunately I didn’t trip over anythingJ)

Yogic principles can be applied to so many situations. Physically one can seek strength, balance, endurance and a means to meet and complete tasks and challenges. Universally Yoga teachers often begin classes by encouraging students to “set an intention.” Perhaps that intention is to work with the concept of a target area or a level of intensity. For example, when I head out with Sophie I try to take that idea with me and set a goal for the day’s activity – sometimes a strenuous hike (I do live in Vermont and I do love those rocky climbs above the tree lines), sometimes distance, sometimes off-leash playfulness with fartlek for me, sometimes on-leash controlled pace, sometimes a run, sometimes, like today, just a walk in the woods. It’s all good and it’s all better when you know what your goal, your target, is.

Mentally, emotionally and spiritually taking time to absorb your surroundings, notice your breath, stop to watch a sunset, calm anxiety with trust, reach out to others in loving kindness and tolerance. Such thoughts are so possible and somehow easier to embrace while moving and “practicing” Yoga throughout the day.

Don’t allow rain and mist keep to distort your vision.

By all means, roll out your mat and give yourself the necessary gift of a Yoga practice (or a fitness training session), and then, when you have considered your purpose/goals/target areas/intention, let them guide you through your practice and on, as you step off your mat into your day.

A SILENT MEDITATION RETREAT IS INDEED AN ENDURANCE EVENT

I was counseled that a Silent Meditation Retreat is an Endurance event and so it is. Let me compare:

In the days, weeks and months prior to the event, there is periodized training that culminates in show-time. Mentally and physically the upcoming event takes center stage and preparations are made to ensure the best possible performance.

Tapering ignites anxiety and eagerness, doubts and concerns, anticipation of the as yet unknown. Bags are packed, gear or tools are checked and double checked. An endurance athlete may well have run the marathon, raced the ultra distance trails or cycled the century route before, but each time is always a confluence of new conditions.

Then its time to begin. You want to either turn around and run away, or explode over the start line. The gun goes off and you’re in it. There’s no turning back and at this point you really don’t want to. You’re a trained athlete/meditation practitioner so you get right down to it. You find your pace or position. You begin – not too fast at first, not too aggressively – to build your momentum. As an athlete, you kick out that initial anaerobic rush and level off in what will be a sustainable aerobic pace. Meditating, you find stillness, perhaps begin your practice with the help of a guided technique, then settle more deeply into stillness.

But let’s take this analogy to a slightly different place. Lets consider the endurance event, say a timed century (been there/done that-many times) with an entire week of silent meditation and Yin yoga practice (been there/done that as well).

Kelly Brush Ride, Linda Freeman through the covered bridge, Middlebury and Addison County Vermont, September 12, 2015. Photography by Caleb Kenna. Coincidentally, as I write this post, the KB ride is coming up in a few days. It was my first century, and about 6 years later possibly my last and definitely my fastest (over 2 hours faster!). It is a ride and a cause dear to my heart and epitomizes my cycling soul.

Mile 0-10. Ouch. That first hill really hurts. I’m breathing so hard – will I ever catch my breath? Ahhhh, a downhill….

Day .5 -1. OMG this is awful! It is so so hard! What was I thinking to actually choose to do this? What time did you say it was? Day one? Really?

Mile 11-40. OK, I want to push a little harder here. I am determined to better my time and send better stats to my coach. Raise those Watts a bit and lower the HR and continue the drive across the top and into the downhills…. Commit.

Day 2: I don’t think I can do this. I want to go home. I hurt physically and my head is tired from moving so very slowly from minute to minute. Simply waiting for the bowl to sound at the end of each meditation period takes more energy than I possess. This is so truly a friggin’ sufferfest…. But, I did Commit.

Mile 41-60. Are you kidding me? Is that all I’ve done? I’m getting tired! I keep forgetting to drink enough. My butt hurts. My mind is wandering. My right gastroc is threatening to quit on the next climb, maybe today is just not my day…. But, recommit.

Day 3. This is it. If it doesn’t get better soon I can’t guarantee the results. Even my stomach hurts. I decided to fast from the noon meal until breakfast. Maybe that will help. And then – there was small group. It was the turning point. I’m not the only one. Meditation can also mean to “just sit”. Recommit.

Mile 61-80. Just do it. Do not give an inch. Technique, fueling, breath. Do not lose focus. Watch that white line.

Day 4. Just do it. Take hold of what is happening and move forward. Do not entertain doubts or self-criticism. Watch that strip of grass when walking down the path.

Mile 81-90. Rededicate. Power into the climbs. Pass anyone you see ahead. Breathe. Stay centered and calm. Focus on each pedal stroke. This is not the time for an adrenalin rush.

Day 5. Rededicate. Patience. Interest. Awareness. Be not tempted to look to the finish. Continue one moment, one step at a time.

Mile 91-100. The race is won or lost right here, right now. Give it all you have, leave it all on the course. Replace whatever might be frantic with pure, beautiful strength. Dig deep. Then fly.

Day 6. This is it. There is renewed energy and my practice goes deeper, more spiritual, more comfortable yet more demanding. I don’t want to make any mistakes. But wait, that’s wrong. Refocus and give it all I’ve got which might be translated as release, open, but DO be aware of absolutely everything.

Post race: It takes a few minutes, but then there’s the rush; the joy of knowing that I have done my best and that I have indeed bettered my past performance is overwhelming! I personally am sensationally energized after an event. I want to laugh, change out of my sweaty kit into a dress and Birkenstocks, hang out with family or friends in attendance, and finally pack my beloved bike, find some good coffee and enjoy the long drive home alone.

Day 7. After morning meditation, the lifting of silence and the return of our cell phones, it takes a few minutes, but then there’s the realization that I did it!

I can hardly believe that I actually remained silent for the better part of a week. Yet that was the easy part. Oh! The meditation! Those incredibly long minutes were surely equally as strenuous as the most serious climbs on my bike. Yoga practice was a gift. But the meditation. All that thinking and processing and practice and awareness….I want to laugh and talk with my new friends. I want to wear my red threads on my wrist forever. I want to take home everything I can – incorporate meditation in my daily schedule, reclaim those sweet spots of stillness, practice loving kindness – all these grand ideals and down to the pragmatic – what was that amazing natural cleaner I used when I did my work chores and what cookbooks did Steve and Tim suggest?

Take home: For the athlete and the meditation practitioner – what we do, even once, we DO own. That experience can never be taken from us. How we use that, and what we choose to do next, is up to us.Mt. Moosilauke, 4802′, NH. 2018

SILENT MEDITATION and YIN YOGA (post #2)

AM I MEDITATING?

“Am I meditating?” That’s the question I asked part way through a week long Silent Meditation Retreat. A group of us circled to share and ask, briefly breaking our silence. Meditation is whatever experience you have when you come to the practice to meditate. Sitting, walking, generative (guided), recollective (receptive, reflective), Yin, random moments during the day – all are types and times of meditation. Kindness, Attention, Tolerance and Patience – what we bring. Everything teaches.

DISCLAIMER: I do not pretend to offer guidance or wisdom within the sentences of this post, but I do hope to share with you, the reader, some snippets to ponder or practice, small gems that I brought home.

STATS:

https://joshsummers.net (Josh Summers)

https://freeportyogaco.com (Terry Cochburn)

https://www.spiritfireretreatcenter.com (Steve, Tim and, of course, DK)

August 27 through September 2, 2018. Daily schedule: 6 a.m. to lights out at 10 p.m. UNPLUGGED for the week! Sitting/journal, breakfast, work period, instruction/sitting/journal, walking meditation, sitting/journal/walking meditation, 12-1 lunch. Work period and time for a walk. Sitting/journal or small group discussion, sitting/journal/walking meditation; 4-5:45 p.m. Yin Yoga with Terry. Dinner and time for a walk, Dharma talk, sitting/journal, done. 24 hours: tea, meditation, wandering indoors and out.

SILENCE: This was the easy part. Go figure. When it was finally appropriate to speak again, the words came slowly and quietly until they built momentum culminating in a rather enthusiastic closing breakfast!

STILLNESS: Finding a comfortable seat is the start. Settling into stillness may be both the beginning and the ending of a practice. If that’s all we do, we have meditated. For me, the physicality of stillness, recognizing that it is not really passive but active in its own right, makes it an achievable component of my personal practice. As the week wore on I was better able to identify that very second when I slipped into stillness. Perhaps it was only a second, but it was real and I knew it. From my journal: “There is a definite moment when I slide into the sweet spot of the right dynamics, right alignment, to rest in stillness. It is purely physical and I recognize it when it happens. All of these physical experiences and qualities surely have a perfect counterpart mentally, emotionally and spiritually!”

MEDITATION: Throughout the week we meditated for blocks of 30 minutes the techniques of our choice. Generative meditation is guided, controlled, and can be helpful at the beginning of a sitting; receptive allows thought to wander, develop, return or resolve, tolerant, yielding; conflicted happens in any process. “A meditation retreat is like a massage for your psychic knots!”

While a sitting leads to mental processes, walking shifts focus to movement and embodied experience. I found attention to the mechanics of walking meditation, placing one foot in front of the other, led to balance and centeredness, easily seguing to the mental and emotional. Walking and sitting reinforce each other.

Josh guided us to use our schedule, silence and intention as the framework of our retreat. Through meditation we might develop awareness of our inner world and use it to benefit daily life. Repeatedly we need to remind ourselves to bring qualities of interest and awareness to everything we’re doing.

Meditation is part of a larger tradition. As we learned more about a few basic precepts of The Buddha, we also learned that Dharma is a collection of teachings that remind us of our own unique awareness and are easily inclusive of multiple spiritual paths (Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, etc.)

Coming to sit/walk in meditation forces all of us to confront the habit patterns of our minds. Stillness reveals what is below our consciousness. Movement masks pain. And then there are the big four: Kindness. Attention. Tolerance. Patience.

During one of my morning sittings, I began in prayer. I recognized gratitude, as I am so richly blessed. One by one I visited each family member, friend, client, naming each and blessing each. (Loving kindness may sound a bit hokey, but the concept is pervasive! How our world would change if a practice of loving kindness could insinuate itself into community, business, education and politics!)

Sometimes I like to contemplate a single word and see where that leads. For example, patience. I am impatient. I want to do do do. I want to hurry up and achieve. And what does this say? It says I am afraid that I do not have enough – not enough time, resources, fitness, years to do all that I yet want to do. In relationship, if I am impatient, I do not have enough tolerance. So, perhaps patience presumes abundance. Nice, eh?

I might begin a sitting watching my breath, listening to sounds, squirming until still, thinking about a word … and then the meditative flow carries me off on its current, meandering here and there and perhaps finally pooling. The journey is mine to receive, investigate and relate.

JOURNALING: Used as a tool, journaling allows us to find our own language. Start with what we remember and then reflect upon it, connecting with our experience. The act of writing imprints, develops and expands. What is literal or factual transitions into creativity and ultimately that which is functional.

Towards the end I wrote: “The fabric of my life is richly textured and more profoundly beautiful for it. The tears have been stitched, the holes mended, the rough edges smoothed. Though the bones have at times been broken, they have healed stronger than before.”

TEACH: A teacher is a spiritual friend. The ‘teacher’ is everything that is happening. If you let it, everything will teach. At this Retreat I was in the company of teachers. In fact, we are all teachers in some respect, each of us giving generously of ourselves as parents, coaches, leaders, managers, advisors, trainers or whatever. And we each, at some point, desperately need to refill our depleted reserves. Thus we seek to be taught.

Thank you, my Yoga Teacher and friend, Terry Cockburn.

Thank you, my Meditation and Yin Teacher and friend, Josh Summers.

Oh, what a privilege to teach and to be taught.

TAKE-HOME: “If we lose something, it was never ours in the first place.” It is not about holding on or letting go, but to cultivate openness to receive all experiences in their totality. Learn to be at peace with that. Daily practice? Different way to look at our relationships, our jobs, our words and reactions, our self-talk? Loving kindness? Perhaps I cannot claim intensity and drama within the context of each sitting; perhaps I cannot claim to have “gone deep” or to have become “enlightened.” Hey, I only did this for one week and those experiences are not so cheaply purchased!

But I will say this, my life IS changed. How so? I do not even wish to define that now. I will wait. I will continue to seek that sweet spot of stillness, if only for a few seconds. I will practice. I will study. I will do all with the presumption of abundance. And gratitude.

(and with my fellow Retreat attendees, I will near the end of each Meditation session with Ring the damn bell!)

SILENT MEDITATION and YIN YOGA (post #1)

Silent Meditation Retreat with Josh Summers and Terry Cockburn, Spirit Fire Retreat Center, 8/27-9/2/2018.

Late August in Vermont 2018

Oh how I resisted coming to this Retreat! For several months I prepared – read, practiced Yin, listened to Podcasts, emailed Terry, took care of clients and stressed-stressed-stressed about leaving Sophie. In fact, the very morning I dropped her off at the kennel, I would have cancelled if I could have.

The drive to Leyden MA was beautiful, as was the weather. [And I will tell you right now, if you ever want to attend a retreat or take your retreat somewhere, run do not walk to Spirit Fire Retreat, https://www.spiritfireretreatcenter.com. You will fall in love with the Center as well as your new BFFs, Steve and Tim, who quite possibly literally and spiritually make the difference.]

Terry (https://freeportyogaco.com) warned this would be the hardest endurance event I’ve done. It was. It was so damn hard. The early days gave new meaning to sufferfest! But endure we did.

One night near the end of the week I journaled: “I am learning and evolving. Though the days have crept by, I do hope the practice has been enough and will become a part of me. But practice may be the key concept here. As Josh (https://joshsummers.net) counseled, ‘practice what you teach.’ And silence? It is so much easier in reality! As a group of individuals who had, for the most part, not even known each other’s names, the connection we shared was woven in a web of silence, a life-line of silence, so much stronger – and immediately so – than the polite chatter of new relationship”.

Reviewing my journal I note that early entries were hectic, worried, stressed, grasping for intention and some kind of significant practice. I noted physical discomfort, even pain. I blamed the restlessness on too much of the excellent coffee, but when I tried cutting back, it made no difference. Skip to the last full day: “I have found all 3 sittings this morning to be ‘energized,’ meaning no fatigue or struggle, balanced, grounded – far from the early days as restless or ‘itchy’. Equanimity: a warm embrace of what is going on.”

Perhaps each of us everywhere sincerely wishes to make the world a better place for our having lived in it. Even if our individual efforts appear futile, collectively? … who knows? I love that Josh gifted us with these words: “Our practice is a form of social action.” And so it is.

Yoga for Athletes, Sage Rountree

Once again I am headed to Kripalu for another Yoga for Athletes workshop with Sage Rountree. It is impossible stay current with the ever changing, exciting and expanding body of information flooding the fitness world. We need help sorting out the new findings and choosing that which is specific to our own individual needs whether we seek health and well-being or athletic achievement.

Rountree, the author, is prolific. Her books are direct connections to her wisdom and work. I encourage you to take a look.

Sage Rountree is a smart and personable athlete, business woman, wife, mom, coach and teacher. Rountree has put Yoga for Athletes on the map and made her practice and the science behind it available to everyone. She likes to quip that Yoga for Athletes is for “tight and tired people.” Her books are not only readable and easily understood, they provide tangible mentoring for anyone’s individual practice.

As a fitness professional, I consider anyone who intentionally exercises to be an athlete and therefore recommend to all my students and clients ALL of the writings, videos, workshops, classes, and website (http://sagerountree.com) of Sage Rountree.

To understand the importance of Yoga for Athletes, read:

The Athlete’s Guide to Yoga: An Integrated Approach to Strength, Flexibility, and Focus Feb 1, 2008

The Athlete’s Pocket Guide to Yoga: 50 Routines for Flexibility, Balance, and Focus Jul 1, 2009 …is a handy collection of practices for those times when you really don’t want to develop your own and just want to follow the dots.

Though I love all of Rountree’s books, perhaps my favorite – or at least the one I go to most often whether teaching or snagging time for my own home practice – is: Everyday Yoga: At-Home Routines to Enhance Fitness, Build Strength, and Restore Your Body Jun 4, 2015

There are plenty more where these came from as well. Rountree, after all, has been there/done that as competitive runner, cyclist and triathlete. See also: The Athlete’s Guide to Recovery: Rest, Relax, and Restore for Peak Performance Apr 1, 2011

Racing Wisely: A Practical and Philosophical Guide to Performing at Your Personal Best Aug 8, 2013

Lifelong Yoga: Maximizing Your Balance, Flexibility, and Core Strength in Your 50s, 60s, andBeyond Aug 1, 2017 NOTE: this book is coauthored by Alexandra Desiato, long time associate of Rountree.

The Runner’s Guide to Yoga, 2nd Edition Oct 24, 2017. NOTE: this is an updated version of one of Rountree’s excellent Runner’s Guide to Yoga originally published 2012 – perhaps the best go-to book of them all for all athletes.

To learn more, go to http://lindafreemanfitness.com/2016/02/ where you will find a post of my initial encounter with Sage Rountree at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. This article was originally published in the Rutland Herald and Times Argus, Active Vermont page.

[All books are available at Amazon or through your local bookseller.]

INTENTION

Whether unrolling your yoga mat, unzipping your gym bag, lacing up your running shoes, clicking into your pedals, or tapping ‘start’ on your fitness computer of choice, what is your intention? Why are you about to do what you are about to do?

For many years I have urged my students to define their goals, be able to explain to themselves just why they are trying to manage heart rate, increase flexibility, build strength, achieve quickness and agility. Furthermore, what is the purpose behind each training session, each exercise? OK, you might be trying to tweak your fuel, increase your sleep, include Yoga in your training – but why?

Of course there is science behind all of it, but perhaps the more significant element might be why do you WANT to do___________________ (fill in the blank)?

Are you seeking happiness? According to Bridget Jones in her Diary, ‘Happiness does not come from wealth or power, but from the attainment of reachable goals.’ (paraphrased)

Each January 1st I ask my clients to hone in on a goal or two for the coming year – specific and attainable. This year the stars came out and I was able to post an entire board of wonderful, meaningful and achievable goals.

There were specific goals such as more ski days this year, prepare for knee replacement surgery, develop a home Yoga practice, improve my golf game, mountain bike 3x per week, improve posture, ride the Kelly Brush Century, hike some of New Hampshire’s 4,000’ers, run a faster 10k.

There were generalizations such as enhance balance, maintain ability to work in the woods, continue with personal training, increase arm strength, build core stability.

I received a card that read: “Live with Intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Continue to learn. Appreciate your friends. Do what you like. Live as if this is all there is.” (Mary Anne Radmacher)

This morning I attended a Yoga class that was packed to capacity. It was sheer joy. Our mats were nearly touching and our limbs moved through space with the exquisite awareness of our neighbor’s nearness. Cognizant of each other’s tiniest movements and aware of each subtle nuance and breath, I felt as if I sank ever more deeply into my own practice, my personal and individual experience.

I had entered the studio thinking that my Sankalpa would be something along the lines of practicing more expansively, enhancing strength and balance, moving fully extending my flexibility and skills as I stretched my heart and mind.

And then it shifted. My intention became itself – simply to practice with intention. And to share the 90 minutes with those with whom I also shared space, and oxygen, and the practice of Yoga. Lovely.

As I ponder the concept of intention, I think that Confucius had it right way back when … “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.”

SHARING GIFT GEAR RECOMMENDATIONS

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are over and done. Cooked. Now it’s time to get really serious about holiday shopping and/or winter equipment to gift oneself!

A little help here, please? Give me a shout out for some of your fav gifts or gear and I’ll be sure it gets a post.

Let me start with a few of my tried and true besties:

YOGA

MAT

Jade Yoga for best all around mat – www.jadeyoga.com – Harmony Mat

Manduka for tough and dense – www.manduka.com – any

Sankalpa for amazing graphics – www.livesankalpa.com – oh so many

ATTIRE

PRANA PRANA PRANA – love it all – www.Prana.com

Fav leggings or capris – Roxanne!

EXTRAS

Again Manduka – especially

Weighted cork yoga blocks

Enlight ® round bolster – delicious color – thrive

Align yoga strap 10’ (currently out of stock but hopefully  returning soon – extra length is useful)

There’s a chance you just might be headed to Freeport to do some outlet shopping before the year ends. If so, DO NOT MISS a Saturday morning class with my fav instructor, Terry Cockburn, at my fav studio – Freeport Yoga Company – www.freeportyogaco.com

OUTDOORS

Last night the temps here in Vermont dropped to single digits. Might be time to think more about staying warm in the outdoors.

My BEST find this year has been La Sportiva! Mind you, I haven’t gotten past the footwear, but the trail shoes have saved my life – or at least they have been so awesome they have pushed me out there more than ever. I prefer any shoe that gives me good traction as I have a way of shooting my feet out from under me on just about any vertical adventure. Log on to www.lasportiva.com, be sure you are in the US site, and check out Bushido trail runners. I hiked a fair amount this year and these babies were so confidence inspiring that I climbed outside my comfort zone.

I looked for other models for the fall season and struck out on a few that were too narrow in GTX. And then, after a long conversation with a customer service rep at LaSportiva, I took the plunge and tried the Women’s Crossover 2.0 GTX.

LaSportiva W Crossover 2.0 GTX

This boot/shoe looks like a Nordic boot with lacing and a zip closure, ankle high, warm, great traction, and instant comfort. Pricey but this will be my go-to boot for a long time, I’m sure!

PATAGONIA – Is there anything that Patagonia doesn’t have? Well, I LOVE vests – so great for layering. My 2 favorites from P. are the Nano Puff which comes in awesome colors and a very rugged, warm, weather and abrasion resistant vest called the W’s BIVY hooded vest. Check it out at www.patagonia.com.

There are SO many manufacturers and SO many places to shop. I can only scratch the surface and share my personally tested and recommended gear.

Furthermore, because they are “personally tested,” the items above are primarily for women – but there’s a man’s version of just about everything so have at it!

This is truly just the beginning of a list and, frankly, a list for someone special as one must dig deep to make these purchases. So, what about you? What can you add? Let me know. And happy shoppingJ

DUALITIES. BALANCE. THINK ABOUT IT.

Dualities. Balance. Yin and Yang. Effort and ease. Activity and stillness. Community and solitude. Sound and silence. The list just might be infinite. Sage Rountree (http://sagerountree.com) introduced the concept of dualities to those of us participating in training at Kripalu to Teach Yoga to Athletes. It is a profound concept.

It’s something we think about – a lot – in the practice of Yoga. Life is so full of ups and downs, ins and outs, happy and sad, ease and disease. Our quality of life, our emotional and mental stability, in fact our very lives, depend on the balance of these opposites, these dualities, these partners in each individual existence. And it is, in fact, a balance rather than the elimination of one or the other. Many dualities are equally positive or equally challenging, just different. Often it is a matter of coincidence, coordination, comingling, cooperation.

In our Yoga practice, we give equal time to stretch and strength, twist and bend, prone and supine, kneeling, standing, lunging, forward fold, back bend, Tadasana and Savasana. And those are just the Asanas, or physical poses. (Asanas are but one of the eight limbs of Yoga so there’s plenty more to practice!)

In the gym we make certain to cover all our bases: warm up and cool down, challenge ourselves aerobically, build muscular strength, enhance quickness and coordination, balance without falling as well as balancing opposing muscle groups in training, and, of course, flexibility.

Once again I am reminded of the shared elements of all forms of training. Yoga has been around for a very long time, so coincidences in functional training, physical therapy, Pilates, and so much more can usually be traced back to some form of Yoga. Likewise, practice in one discipline aids performance in another.

Perhaps I find it most significant to remember that there is no right or wrong. Of course, asking each individual body to move in a way appropriate to that body, seeking maximal alignment for each, is key. Repeatedly practicing a movement, a training exercise or a Yoga pose inappropriately leads only to overuse or even wear and tear that negates the effort invested over long periods of time.

But that being said, there should be no feuds between instructors, coaches, athletes, or schools of practice.

Josh Summers (https://joshsummers.net/podcast/what-is-yin-yoga/) presents an excellent definition of Yin Yoga. The notion that Yin and Yang are BOTH valid and should BOTH be practiced, simply triggers the imagination to consider the value of blending opposites of all kinds.

Balance is, after all, equilibrium.

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For the past three weeks I have indulged in shared time spent with my dog, or friends, or family. Each dynamic generously gifts its own special blessing. This year has been different from past in that my “me-time” has been with my 11 month old Lab. (As my brother quipped, “it’s just like having a toddler!”) She has been by my side for multiple and daily trail walks, swims, off leash runs/on leash training, and even a little rock scrambling in Camdenhttp://www.mainetrailfinder.com/trails/trail/camden-hills-state-park-interior-trail-network). We’ve both learned a great deal about each other and have kept each other moving almost constantly, mutually increasing fitness as we go.

Balancing outdoor activity have been hours of Yoga practice (both Vinyasa and Yin at Freeport Yoga Company, http://freeportyogaco.com) and the deck.

Time spent on the deck where I am living is time sketched in gold. Vivid oranges and pinks fire up the day even before the sun makes its early appearance, bouncing color and energy off the surface of the water. (No wonder Sun Salutations are integral to one’s Yoga practice.) Though the sunset on the other side of the peninsula is equally dramatic, there is something oh so lovely about its residual glow from our deck. And the full moon? There are not words …. But if it weren’t for the deck, would I pause to sit there and observe?

The deck is the intuitive gathering place for all of us. Sophie could sit there and look for hours. My family and I can talk endlessly, but there always comes the fall into a reverent or contemplative silence – just watching. Tides ebb and flow, lobster boats motor up and down the sound working while I play, fish rise and re-enter with a significant slap, ducks search for food as cormorants dive under for so long I wonder if they’ll ever reappear. They do.

But it is not in stillness that my random thoughts are born. Movement, not stillness, generates curiosity, the attempt to define, ponder or even organize what floats in and out of mind. Hours spent hiking the trails, walking the rocky shoreline, or riding the roads are the hours that produce thoughts that beg follow up study.

So, in my experience this summer, it seems that balance has been paramount. The Yin and Yang of the hours teach. May I be a receptive student.

EVERYONE DESERVES YOGA

 

While at Kripalu in January, I picked up this post card.

EVERYONE DESERVES YOGA. courtesy of Kripalu

EVERYONE DESERVES YOGA. courtesy of Kripalu

It is a request for donations to help share the Yoga experience, but the message is an apt reminder that Yoga is, indeed, for everyone. Whatever one’s age, physical ability, educational, social or political beliefs, anyone and everyone has within his or her reach the practice of Yoga.

Full disclosure. Oh how I resisted Yoga! With a long-ago professional ballet career in my resume and a boatload of training and certifications as Personal Trainer, athlete and Fitness Professional, I was sure that, in addition to strength and cardio training, a sensible, flexibility routine was all that one needed to remain healthfully fit and functionally sound.

Then, just two years ago, I woke up one morning and thought “Yoga is missing.” A quick check on my computer identified an attractive Yoga studio just minutes from my house. “Serendipity,” I thought. And I was off.

I began with a one-hour class each week. Then two. Then I explored classes in my area and while on vacation. I started to read. And read. Bottom line, I was, and am, HOOKED. Within weeks I will have completed three certifications including my basic 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training, Teaching Yoga to Athletes, and level one of YIN yoga.

I am fully cognizant that this is just the beginning, the tip of the iceberg, the scratch on the surface. Yoga is so very much more than the asanas (the Yoga poses) and the “workout.” Yoga is the epitome of mind-body connection. In fact, it sounds trite to say even that. I am humbled by all that Yoga is. I do not have enough years left available to me to learn enough about Yoga to teach the many aspects of the practice, but I can share what I do know and share my respect for this ancient wisdom.

Perhaps the first thing I want to share is this – whoever you are and whatever you do, wherever you are in life’s journey, I encourage you to cast aside preconceived notions, find a legitimate Yoga studio in your area and begin at the beginning. Check in with the studio, introduce yourself as a newbie, ask about an appropriate class to attend, and then attend several. Give it a chance. Take time to openly experience breathing techniques, flexibility, balance, and, yes, strength challenges, honor Savasana (you might welcome the stillness at the end of the class or be popping to get on with your day, but stay…) and listen to the cues flowing from your instructor. Then pay heed. How do you feel later the day of your class, the next day, the day after? Do you notice a change in your energy, your mental acuity, or your spirits? Does your body feel leaner, primed? (Over time you will even note that your performance is enhanced and you acquire tools to help you get through your days, activities, workouts, meetings and competitions.)

Remember Yoga has been around for thousands of years. You are not going to take a big bite out of it in just a few weeks. Become an observer, a participant and a friend.

One of my favorite quotes comes from Julian Fellowes (Downton Abbey), “Everyone deserves a few moments when life is quite perfect.” Might those few moments be found in Yoga practice? .imagesYes, Yoga is for everyone and Yes, EVERYONE DESERVES YOGA.