To Challenge Or Nurture? That is the question.

When we head out the door and make our way into a class, most of us do so because we want to get something out of it.  If we turn up and it seems as though it's not really making a difference, then we stop going.  Our compass is pointed toward finding just the right level of challenge.  However, having been in the fitness industry for many years and witnessing different yoga styles (power Vinyasa, hot yoga, etc) we most definitely meet up with challenges.  But so often, I have experienced or seen that by doing so, the concept of nurturing ourselves at the same time flies out the window. 

The harder, the better.  If it really challenges us then it must be really good for us.  Right?

Throughout my life, I have always pursued challenges.  When I see the word, it looks like CHALLENGE...all in bold and luring me into taking it.  The idea of looking after myself as I undertook the challenge was often greatly neglected.  The word

nurture was just that...seemingly small and insignificant.  I didn't realize until I started  yoga, that the two could co-habitate...if I allowed it.  I needed to invite nurturing into my challenges and guess what?  When I did, the challenge seemed more robust and kept in balance.  The challenge didn't knock me off my feet due to the simple practice of looking after myself as I pursued the next goal.

This is the beauty of advancing along our yoga path -  that we can seek to challenge ourselves and at the same time, look after ourselves in the process.  We learn to know our edge and how it fluctuates.  We begin to give less voice to the concept that how we treat ourselves is in reaction to being good or bad and more to the idea that we deserve to offer ourselves compassion and love as we step into situations that push us.

So the next time you decide to go for the gusto, check in with yourself.  Can you push to your limits without bursting through and creating havoc and imbalance.  Can you be in a strong pose or one that butts up against what you know to be familiar and take a breath of ease.  Can you soften not only excessive muscular tension but your attitude as well.

With practice and a decent dose of awareness, we can both stretch to our full potential from a place of self-love and self-care.  Isn't it time that we nurture ourselves more deeply?  Try it out and see what happens...you might just soar higher than you ever thought imaginable!  

All By Myself

 

 

I am entering my 31st year of teaching to groups...it feels surreal to actually write that, but it's true. Over the years I have taught literally thousands of people in thousands of classes and I've learned that if you are good at what you do, you create a loyal following. What I've also learned is that every few months, I need to step away to keep it fresh for both myself and my students. But, when I announce that I'll be away, some students wonder how they'll continue with their practice. Just because I'm away, doesn't mean you're off the hook for stepping off your mat, so here are some suggestions to keep you on track.

1. Visit another local studio and try out a new teacher.

2. Roll out your mat at home, step on it and let your inner teacher begin to guide you. Follow what your intuition is telling you. You might be surprised at how much you know from the classes you've taken. Just standing in mountain pose and taking a few conscious breaths is a perfect place to start.

3. Take a class on-line. Here are two sites that have many options: My Yoga Online and Yoga Glo.

4. Visit the videos that I have created:
Detox Yoga Flow - Part One
Detox Yoga Flow-Part Two
Standing Warm Up
Sun Salute
Standing Postures/Warriors
Standing Balances
Seated & Savasana

My advice is to trust what you know, listen to your body and try something different. I will back to the mat with you before you know it!

Beneath The Surface

 

As I was teaching a class this past week, a story popped into my head about scuba diving. I asked if anyone in the class was a diver, to which I got a silent response...no, nobody. Not too surprising considering we live in the desert with the nearest ocean being two hours away. What made me think about scuba diving as it relates to yoga, was moving from the gross to the subtle, from the most obvious big thing to the barely-there sign.

When I first began diving, my initial thought as I was about to be jumping into the ocean was, "I wonder if a shark, who hasn't yet found lunch, is waiting for me to splash on in". I'd jump in with a deeply held breath and scout out my aquatic environment, quickly doing double check that all was okay. As a novice diver, I would notice the big stuff...large bits of kelp, fish and patterns on the seabed. But as I became more comfortable over many dives, I started to look at the smaller stuff. I'd take in the textural variations of coral and plant life seeking out who was living in the small crevices and swaying with the current. I found myself looking around for jaws less and less and, if I did see a shark, it didn't send me flying to the surface (with an important decompression stop on the way, of course!).

The experience of scuba diving has so many parallels to our yoga experience. When we first step onto the mat, our focus is drawn to getting into poses...right foot here, left foot there, look up/down, arm extended, breathe easy and so on. But the more time we spend on the mat, the more we are able to look at the subtle elements that can make such a huge impact on our practice.

Have you ever had the experience where you move your weight into a different part of your foot and the pose you're in completely comes to life? Or you notice the pressure change within your abdomen as your head moves lower than your heart and your breathing alters?

Instead of looking for the big "ta-da" of what a pose looks like, we evolve in our practice to get a sense of what the pose feels like. In a way, we become more comfortable (even if it's challenging) with the gross elements and are therefore able to enjoy the sweetness of subtlety.

The beauty of the whole thing is that it all co-exists within the same experience. Just as the tiny seahorse hangs out with the Great White. One big happy family enjoying the ebb and flow, both above and below the surface.

Out With The Old, In With The...wait a minute!

The other day I had a strong insight as we've just stepped over the threshold and into a new year. I was at a meeting and someone was describing a session that they were offering which would "get rid of all the old stuff from 2012 and bring in new stuff for 2013". I hope I didn't overtly react with an obvious recoil, but that's what my unfiltered reaction was...to pull back from the idea of out with the old and in with the new.

As I sat in reflection for what has transpired over the past twelve months, I'm nothing short of amazed. SO many good things happened. I traveled, I taught, I learned, I was challenged and I raised almost $28,000! "Wow", I thought, "I've had a great year." Sure, at times I wondered what lurked in the shadows, but it was truly a year that possessed manifestation. So, why would I want to get rid of the old when I learned so much? Quite frankly, I don't.

Instead, I want to honor what has evolved and acknowledge how it came about. Often, we are ready to let go of things before their time, thinking that the grass might be greener if we do. Take a moment to consider ONE thing that you've added into your life this past year that has made it unquestionably better. That one thing began as an inclination that something needed to change and you stepped onto a path of creating that change. And now...here you are in the present moment with what now seems to be quite a normal part of your life, although it didn't begin that way.

I'm all for living in the present moment and practice it daily. But I also recognize how our past is a magnificent teacher. If we're paying attention to our actions and how they echo firstly within and then beyond us, we begin to become better attuned to what is truly working. It's a dynamic process that will forever be unfolding, yet I hope that with acknowledging what's working that I get more efficient at finding out what's worth keeping and what is not.

This past year was a pivotal one for me. I remember having a conversation with a friend in Australia who said, "Jaynie, it seems like it's all coming together and that life is going really well". I replied, "Yes, I can actually say that what I was always searching for...for what was next, is here. And I think it's called manifestation". I had never said that before, but truly had an opportunity to feel what coming to fruition really meant.

So what you've been working on is in process. It's in the loop of having been recognized and, if given the right nourishment, will blossom into what you've been thinking about.

Go ahead. See what you planted in 2012. Now, it's time to manifest!