WORKSHOP: Rediscovering Health Through Mindful Eating

Are you struggling with losing holiday pounds? Is losing weight and staying healthy on your 2011 resolutions list? Or would you like to enjoy food more without experiencing a sense of guilt after it? If you answered yes to any of the above questions, Mindful Eating Workshop is for you!

5 Ways to Take Your Yoga Practice to The Next Level

Yoga is a powerful instrument that can bring health, energy, and peace to anyone willing to devote time to a regular yoga practice. Yoga revives your muscles and opens joints, it makes you comfortable in your own body and with time encompasses all aspects of a human life. With a regular yoga practice you sleep better, wake up more rested, have more energy throughout the day, your mind becomes clear and more focused. Suddenly things that created chaos out of your life seem just another interesting challenge. Life in general becomes a lot more colorful.

Story about my dad

Yogacitynyc recently posted an article about the unsung heroes in our life – true teachers who teach by example not by preaching. They are the ones who inspire us, support us,  and make us smile when we need it the most. I was honored to share a story about my best teacher – my father. Here is a piece about him:

Yogi's Holiday Entertainment Program

Christmas weekend is almost here and many of us will be spending it with family and friends. There will be lots of hugging, exchanging news, eating, drinking, and probably TV watching… All good comforting holiday things… If you are lucky enough to spend more than 2 days with your family, non-stop eating and gossiping schedule can get pretty boring. While ‘non-doing’ is a great yoga concept, doing nothing is just a waste of a precious life time. In case you find yourself frozen in front of a family TV just because you can’t think of anything better to do, here are some ideas for a yoga-style holiday entertainment program (Share the Yoga Wisdom!):

5 Holiday Stress Busters

Is holiday shopping and party planning wearing you down? Holiday stress can get even to “yoga people”! Whether you’re worrying about scheduling in-laws dinner, pre-holiday work deadlines, traffic jams, or getting everyone suitable presents, stress takes it toll on your body and mind. Modern scientists agree that stress can trigger anything from allergies and asthma to headaches and indigestion. If experienced over a prolonged time, stress can lead to heart problems, ulcers, and nervous breakdowns. According to ayurvedic expert Vasant Lad, stress and anxiety appear “primarily due to an aggravation of the vata dosha. So to heal anxiety, we have to balance vata.”

Yogi's Grace

Happy Thanksgiving guys!
It’s been 6th years since I was first introduced to Thanksgiving as a holiday and it became one of my favorite days to celebrate. Not just because of the turkey and sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie (even though, I do love them) but because it is an entire day devoted to acknowledging everyone and everything that makes our life so beautiful.
We live in a very abundant time by historical standards and it makes hard to appreciate little things. Barely 100 years ago very few people could afford a separate family house, 3 meals a day, or to stay warm during the winter. Our life would be considered luxurious by our ancestors’ standards. Now, we take it for granted. Our health, intelligence, family, an ability to breathe, see, and walk are rarely noted as well. We pay attention to it when it is lost not while it is present. This ignorance and lack of awareness might be a reason that the richest society on earth has the highest rate of depression. Things don’t make us happy, acknowledging the fact that you have something and being grateful for it does! Gratitude has the power to make us happy in a very deep and meaningful way. It feels amazing to wiggle toes and fingers after a deep relaxation being fully aware of how precious our ability to move is.

HOLIDAYASANA

Yogis Unite! Wondering how you’re going to stay sane and healthy amid the holiday
mayhem? Join us for HOLIDAYASANA, a one month healthy living challenge bringing together 14 of New York‘s top yoga studios. The challenge starts December 1st, but you can sign up now at socialworkout.com/holidayasana. The mission: Practice yoga 20 times; eat 25 very healthy meals; volunteer 60 minutes for someone in need; and avoid using ANY disposable plastic bags. That’s right: It’s about living healthy and green, and giving a little back. We’ll track our progress online, and hold each other accountable. Together we can bring a bit of good yoga love to the city! Join us!   www.socialworkout.com/holidayasana.

Delivering Happiness V - Be Humble

We are almost done with Zappos shoe story and their incredible core values. The last core value that is very relevant to yoga business and yoga practice is Being Humble. By humble I don’t mean not appreciating your work, education, and knowledge or having a low self-esteem. It means being accepting of others opinions and choices, not considering yourself the ultimate truth or authority. There is always something to learn, someone who knows more, or somebody who wants to share their story. There are many different roads that lead to the same final destination; it is not up to us to make choices for others. Often being humble means being more authentic and showing your true emotions. Taking your armor off and letting your inner light shine through, you will become more approachable and magnetic to others.

Delivering Happiness IV - Find Your Strengths and Stick to Them

All yogis are not created equal or to be more exact – we all have different talents and strengths. If you are good at teaching restorative classes and making people feel relaxed but find teaching advanced arm balancing filled classes agitating, don’t force yourself. With time, your students will have certain expectations of how they want to feel after your class if you change it every time in a very drastic way they might not be very happy. Some teachers are really good at pushing students’ limits and challenging them, while others have a gift to create serene environment with their voice and flow that will relax the most tense hedge fund guy out there. A few teachers can even artfully interlace philosophical wisdom into their classes without making it corny.