Ok world, I’ve done it! No drinking for a month. It actually wasn’t very hard. I still went out and just had soda water. I wasn’t a hermit. I still had fun with friends.
I also realize that I prefer a balance of this yogic lifestyle and also living and enjoying this physical and by nature material world. I’m right in the middle of Dharma Mittra’s 500Hr Teacher Training. If I thought not drinking would be a challange...well, let’s just say I didn’t really know what I signed up for.
No coffee, no caffeine, no eating before noon, no eating after 6pm, 45 minutes of breathwork and meditation daily, 1 hr of practice daily, no salt, no tree nuts, no coconut, basically no fun. Kidding! Kind of.
I guess this is the closest thing you can get to being immersed in ashram life, although somewhat ironically I’m still living and working most definitely not on an ashram. I am adhering to the rigorous diet and homework schedule as much as possible.
Did I have green tea earlier today? I’m not saying yes and I’m not saying no.
In reality, I agree with clearing and cleaning the body to clear and clean the mind. And I also think that living on an ashram and adhering to this schedule is different than living in the middle of New York City, teaching 20+ classes per week and adhering to all of this.
There are a lot of questions coming up for me around my own lifestyle choices and how strict I actually want to be. Finding that balance and being okay with it.
I’m starting really tune in to all of these practices and their ultimate purpose, liberation, love and freedom.
What are our attachments? Food? Alcohol? Being chronically busy? The prowess of our physical asana practice? The point is not necessarily alchohol/coffee/shopping, insert your attachment, is bad and should never be done again. I think the interesting space is in our curiosity and inquiry.
What happens when we eliminate certain behaviors or substances? Can we continue to be these chill, zen AF yogis? Or do we lose our proverbial sh*t.
I’m in the middle of this exploration and the answer I’m finding is, it depends. Sometimes when I come to my mat to sit and meditate I am all for it and it feels so right, and sometimes I want to be anywhere but there.
This is our shifting nature as humans and we can honor it by allowing some fluidity I think. We can allow some moving meditation and we can allow more stillness. I think these are powerful tools I’m just tapping into. Also, I have a few “cheat” days and certainly plan to use them on coffee and jerk Seitan from my favorite Caribbean restaurant in Brooklyn.
By Anna Farkas
Anna is a Brooklyn based yoga teacher and writer. She loves looking at all the sides of the health and wellness industry and shedding some playful light on tough issues. Her favorite hobby is buying plane tickets and she leads retreats internationally. She is AcroVinyasa certified and pursuing her 500 hr certification with Dharma Mitra. She will eat all the avocados in the sunshine.
Support cleansing and detoxing now, with Yoga Download's 3, 4, or 5 Day Yoga for Fasting Program!
If you ever say you just can’t squeeze in time for yoga because you’ve got too many other things to do like work, family, or Netflix, we say yes you can! If you ever think, if I can’t practice yoga for at least an hour, it’s not worth my time. We say, yes it is! If you believe committing only thirty minutes a day to yoga wouldn’t really make a difference. We say, yes it does!
We all have the same twenty-four hours in our day so, why do we make time for certain activities and not for others?
It all comes down to priorities. What matters the most? We make time for what is important and we’re here to tell you that if you can’t commit an hour or more to yoga each day, it’s okay.
You can reap all the awesome benefits of a regular practice in small chunks of time.
The key is consistency. It’s better to practice yoga or meditate for fifteen minutes a day then to take one ninety-minute class a few times a month. You can choose to wake up earlier, turn off the television, or hop off of social media. Sometimes finding an extra fifteen or thirty minutes involves setting boundaries and just saying no to others demanding your time. Make self-care a priority and know you’ll show up as your best self when you’ve taken time for yourself. Make time to replenish your energy.
So, what will happen if you start to practice just fifteen minutes or thirty minutes of yoga a day? You’ll clear your mind and improve concentration. You’ll gain strength, improve your flexibility, relieve stress, boost your energy, deepen your sleep, improve your posture, and relieve pain. You can absolutely garner all these benefits with only a small time commitment. Of course, if you can practice for longer some days, that’s great, but know shorter sessions will do the trick too.
We’ve got four excellent new classes for you to add to your routine whether or not you’re busy or in a time crunch. You’ll feel great in less than thirty minutes.
1. Jackie Casal Mahrou - Hip Opening Quickie
2. Dana Smith - Lazy Day Yoga
3. Jack Cuneo - Quick Core - Challenging Gravity
4. Dia Michelle Smith - Breathe Your Way into the Perfect Day (audio class)
A side effect of modern life seems to be that we’re always on the go. From balancing your career and personal life, to spending time with your family, it can be hard to find time in your schedule to dedicate to yourself and self-care. Finding time for self-care can often take a backseat to our other responsibilities and obligations, but it’s important to take the time to feel refreshed and rejuvenated.
Here’s our top 7 tips for finding time for self-care, even if you’re living an ‘on the go’ lifestyle!
1. Master a go-to meal
When we’re having a busy day, or even a busy week or month, taking care of our nutritional needs is often the first thing to go out the window. Eating well is one of the most basic aspects of self-care, although it might sound obvious – but how often do we just grab something with little to no nutritional value because we’re in a rush? Finding time for self-care with our food is easy, if you can master just one or two meals that you can whip up when you’re too tired or busy to think about your next meal. Think about what you can make that is simple, with ingredients like lean proteins, whole grains and fresh fruit and veg that will take care of your nutritional needs.
2. Meditate
Taking some time out of your schedule to meditate is a great way to practice self-care. Meditation is a great way to tap into yourself and increase your sense of self-awareness, which can help with your well-being. However, if you’re on the go it can be hard to find the time. Taking just five to ten minutes to check in with yourself is a great way to add meditation into your daily routine. Setting up an area in your home where you can sit in peace is a great way to help yourself relax and switch off from your busy lifestyle for a few moments.
3. Have set work and play hours
Technology is a vital part of modern day to day life, but it can make it hard to switch off. Smartphones, email and instant messaging means that we’re reachable at all hours of the day and night, and can the lines between work and our personal lives blur. It’s easy to pick up your phone and reply to that work email straight away, but having set working hours and personal hours is a simple way to find time for self-care. It ensures that you’re present in your personal life and not letting your to-do list cloud over time spent with friends or family.
4. Practice yoga breaths
For those days where you just can’t find the time for a yoga practice, or even our quicker classes, you can still bring a bit of yoga to your life by practicing yoga breaths. Taking the time for conscious breathing will bring you into the same zen-like mind-set you experience while in a yoga pose.
5. Write down your to-do list
This might seem like a simple action, but finding time for self-care can be just as simple as staying a little more organized. If you’ve got a hectic day with lots to do, take a few moments to write down the tasks you have to complete, and don’t forget to include basic items, like ‘have lunch’ or ‘take five minutes to meditate’. You’ll feel a sense of achievement as you tick things off throughout the day, rather than feel overwhelmed.
6. Keep active
Keeping moving throughout the day is important for your mind and body to take a break. This might be hard for those who have a desk job, and it’s easy to stay sat in our office chairs from 9 to 5 without taking a break. Try to set reminders to get up, stretch, and walk around for even just five or ten minutes. This can help your clear your mind, and gain perspective. If you can get outside, even better!
7. Start your day with yoga
If you don’t find time during the day or evening, consider moving your yoga practice to the morning. This week’s classes on Yoga Download are designed to slot into a busy life, and are the perfect way for finding time for self-care. If you get into the habit of starting your day with a yoga practice, you’re helping to set the tone for the rest of the day, and start with an energized and calm mind-set. Not a morning person? Try just setting your alarm for a few moments earlier each day, till you’re waking up with enough time for your yoga flow.
By Amy Cavill
Pressed for time? Check out these yoga classes designed to fit perfectly into your busy day!
Quick Core: Challenging Gravity with Jack Cuneo
Hip Opening Quickie with Jackie Casal Mahrou
Hey there, Jo here! As a working mom and with the beginning of the school year already upon us, I’m always looking for ways to streamline weeknight dinner prep. That’s why I’ve developed an easy basic salad recipe that is a great go-to for those nights you have less than 30 minutes to put dinner on the table.
These are the veggies I usually make sure I always have in my house, but you can adapt it to use whatever you have in your fridge. You can use it as a side or add some grilled chicken, roasted chickpeas, quinoa, or any other protein to make it your meal. This recipe can really be an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink kind of salad!
Do you have a favorite go-to weeknight dish? Let us know in the comments below!
With love,
Jo’s Easy Weeknight Salad
Yield: 2 salads
Ingredients: Salad:
4-6 cups fresh spring greens 1 bunch radishes, sliced 1 cucumbers, sliced 1 head radicchio, shredded 1 bunch rainbow carrots, sliced
Dressing:
¼ cup olive oil 2 TB champagne vinegar ¼-½ fresh lemon, juiced
Instructions: In a large bowl, combine spring greens, radishes, cucumber, radicchio, and carrots. For dressing, combine olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice. Whisk until fully blended. Toss the salad with champagne vinaigrette dressing or your favorite salad dressing and serve. Enjoy!
Variation: Feel free to add or subtract raw or roasted veggies based on what you have available. Add your favorite protein for a heartier salad.
Jo Schaalman and Jules Peláez are co-authors of the book The Conscious Cleanse: Lose Weight, Heal Your Body and Transform Your Life in 14 Days, a best-selling, step-by-step guide to help you live your most vibrant life. Together they’ve led thousands of people through their online supported cleanse through their accessible and light-hearted approach. They’ve been dubbed “the real deal” by founder and chief creative director Bobbi Brown, of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, beauty editor of the TODAY show.
Practice the Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality program to support healthy eating!
“To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle.” -Walt Whitman
In the last article, we discussed how to jumpstart your morning routine with a journal and utilize yoga philosophy off the mat. In order to balance the jumpstart, we also need the wind down night time routine to balance. Instead of preparing for an active day, we can now prepare for a restful and calm night, perhaps even right before sleep. Like yoga, journaling is a powerful tool for self-discovery and impetus for positive change in your life. An evening journaling ritual can be a powerful way to end your day.
All you need is a writing utensil and a journal. A basic notebook is fine, but there are also journals specialized for yoga practitioners.
Here are 5 ideas for an evening or night time journaling ritual.
1. Give yourself space to find flow.
Sometimes after a long day, we to release our thoughts and find our “flow”. Flow is psychological term describing when you become completely immersed in what you are doing. When you are in the flow, you are completely present in the current moment. But finding this flow state can be tricky- sometimes it happens fast, other times it takes longer to surface. Practice on finding your flow by Take a few minutes to write freely about your day. If you aren’t a huge writer, you could also color or draw your day as an alternative. Don’t set expectations here- just allow yourself to be, release and flow. This technique relates to the niyama ishvara pranidhana, or “surrender to a higher power”.
2. Reflect on what went well. Also acknowledge what did not.
The end of the day is a great time to reflect on your experience, including what you did well and areas you could improve in. You can practice this by naming 3 things you did well and matching it with three things you could improve. This activity helps you organize your thoughts and identify strengths and room for growth. It can also help connect you to your larger goal and what you are trying to connect to by journaling in the first place. Reflecting is a great example of utilizing the niyama svadhyaya, or self-study.
3. Make a note of your daily habits.
We all have habits, or behaviors that we follow automatically. Most of us have habits in the morning, such as brushing our teeth having a shower, or in the evening like reading before bed. Because we have learned these habits and do them automatically, it is normal to not think about them. Noting these habits provides an outside view of your behavior, which can be immensely helpful when you are looking to make positive changes to your mental and physical health. It is also helpful to note how you are feeling both physically and each day to pinpoint detrimental habits and increase your self-awareness. It is a great way to add the yama satya, or truthfulness, into your day.
4. Add forgiveness in.
It may seem odd to add forgiveness in to your everyday routine, but doing so can help foster self-care, healing and improve emotional intelligence. When you are able to forgive things, it is easier to live in the present moment. Instead of holding on to things from the past, you can experience and appreciate what is happening right now. Forgiveness is a great example of the yama ahimsa, as well as the niyama santosha.
5. End the day with something you are grateful for.
Reflecting on what you are grateful for in your life is a valuable thing to do at any time in the day but can be particularly poignant right before you go to sleep. Why? Well, gratitude is the expression of thanks and appreciation for something. Practicing gratitude alters your focus from what is lacking in life to what you have. Regardless of the day you had, when you shift your perspective in this way, you end the day with a positive outlook (and perhaps a restful sleep.)
Our evening routine says a lot about us, including how we choose to nourish our bodies and mind before sleep. Adding these simple journaling techniques into your evening is an effective way of self-study (svadhyaya) that can help you feel grounded and in touch with yourself.
By Laura Heggs
Laura is an anthropologist and 500-hour RYT based in Norwich, UK.
Need more night time rituals to help you sleep soundly? Practice the Yoga for Better Sleep program to have you drifting off nicely!
Transitions are the perfect moment to pause and observe how you are feeling in the present moment. This week, we mark the transition from summer to fall or winter to spring, depending upon where you’re located on the globe. Why not slow down, check in, and use this natural transition to appreciate your life? Savor your experiences instead of anticipating what’s next.
Have you been to a concert lately? Noticed all the people with their phones up in front of their faces, videotaping a song instead of actually watching the show? They could be fully immersed in what’s happening on stage, but instead choose to create a barrier with a camera screen in order to save the moment for later. So, they never actually fully experience the gift of the live performance. Now consider in how many other areas of your life you are focused on the past or anticipating the future?
It’s easy to be pulled into the “doing” pattern of life.
We tend to pride ourselves on how many items we can check off our to-do lists and in the process, we can lose the focus on what is really important in our lives. If we are speeding to accomplish and “do” everything, often we are not being. We are not present. We’re so focused on what is next, we aren’t appreciating what is happening now.
When did being busy become a badge of honor?
If you’re living like this in your daily life, chances are you could be speeding through your yoga too. Anticipating instead of living it. The way we show up on our mats is often a direct reflection of how we show up in our personal and professional lives. This week, we offer you the opportunity to dial back the hectic, busy, multi-tasking schedule and purposefully slow down. By choosing to focus on a more serene approach, you create space for more calm and peace inside. We’ve got four classes for you to encourage you to slow down in order to replenish your well-being and approach the other twenty-three hours of your day with more equanimity.
Taking your time is powerful.
Check out these four featured classes this week to help you slow down!
Dia Michelle Smith - Yin Yang for Inspiration
Kristin Gibowicz - Metamorphosis: Slow with Soul
Eric Paskel - It's Juicy
Jackie Casal Mahrou - Slow & Relaxing Yoga
Whether you're in the northern or southern hemisphere, the seasons are beginning to change. There’s no way around it, when the seasons begin to change, we simultaneously feel a shift internally. Our moods, daily routines, what we eat and our overall energy changes with each season. What satisfies you in the summer is not going to be the same as what makes you happy during the fall. Seasons help us examine different parts of ourselves and they bring balance to our lives.
One of the best ways to take advantage of the changing seasons is to check in with yourself. Think of it as a clean slate. Nature’s cue to slow down and press the pause button. So much can happen in such a short period of time and each season has its magical moments and lessons. We can get lost in the day to day and busy moving on to the next thing that we don’t take the time to reflect. When we don’t take the time revisit and reevaluate, energetically we can find ourselves stuck in old thought patterns that no longer serve our growth or bring us true happiness.
Use this time to take a deeper look at your habits, beliefs, relationships and overall state of mind. Be honest with yourself and open to making necessary changes.
It’s the perfect time of year to connect to how you feel mentally, physically and spiritually in order to make clear headed and heart-based decisions moving forward. Seasonal shifts make it that much easier to bring awareness to your reality and acknowledgement of your feelings. Without bringing things to light, you can end up burying emotions that will negatively effect you down the road mentally and physically. Make it a priority to do things that help you access your true feeling like spending time in nature, meditating, journaling and practicing yoga.
Incorporating yoga during transitional times helps you tune in to how you are feeling on and off the mat. Physical activity with moderate amounts of stretching is an important component to physical, emotional, and mental well-being during transitional times. By staying in harmony with the change of seasons, greater health and peace of mind can be achieved. You will find it easier to deal with stress, stay grounded and be appreciative of the changes you experience from season to season.
Here are 7 quotes to help you embrace the seasons of life:
“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Gratitude for the turning of the seasons. May we attune our hearts to their enduring message of renewal.” -Kristin Granger
“Nature is never static. It is always changing. Everything is in a constant state of flux. Nothing endures. Everything is in the process of either coming into being or expiring.” -Kilroy J. Oldster
“Each new season grows from the leftovers from the past. That is the essence of change, and change is the basic law.” -Hal Borland
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished” -Lao Tzu
“Perhaps the earth can teach us, as when everything seems dead and later proves to be alive.” -Pablo Neruda
“All the trees are losing their leaves, and not one of them is worried.” -Donald Miller
By Suzanne Kvilhaug
Slow down now to nourish you during the change of seasons!
Slower & Deeper: A Gentle Vinyasa Flow with Christen Bakken
This recipe is delicious and will leave you feeling completely satiated. Raw corn is sweet, soft, juicy, and a little crunchy. It is incredible without cooking. Just cut the corn right off the ear.
This recipe is so simple and it takes just minutes to prepare, yet tastes gourmet!
Raw Vegan Avocado Corn Salad Recipe
Ingredients (serves 1-2): 1 ear of Corn 1 Avocado Cherry Tomatoes (handful chopped) Sour Kraut Green Olives (handful chopped) Dill Garlic
Instructions: Simply put all of the ingredients (except the garlic) into a bowl, chopped into small enough pieces to eat without needing to cut, and mix together. You can add as many chopped olives, cherry tomatoes, or sour kraut as you'd like.
For the dressing: Juice one clove of garlic and mix into the salad, top with some dehydrated dill. Lemon and salt and pepper can also be added for taste. Mix together in a cup, and pour over salad and mix in.
Enjoy! Increase ingredients if sharing with more than one loved one.
By Shannon Connell
Shannon is a certified Jivamukti, Power, Hot Yoga, and Mindfulness Meditation Instructor, Usui and Karuna Reiki Master Teacher, and Registered Psychotherapist. She honors the interconnectedness between All-beings and All-things and is passionate about participating and supporting her community in physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Visit her at her website www.shannonconnellhealth.com.
Practice Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality to complement this healthy, vegan recipe!
Many of us reminisce to those simple days of being a kid.....there were no worries of bills, traffic, and work. A kid's biggest worries are compromised of lunch, friends, and whether the class stays inside or out for recess. Big deal right?
But if you really, really think back to childhood, it was a big deal and still is for kids! Childhood can be overwhelming and stressful, as kids are growing, changing, and learning about the world around them. Going back to school with new teachers, new faces, and new rules can seem daunting and stressful for kids as well. So, just like us, kids need a way to decompress and release this tension. Fortunately meditation and breathwork, works for kids in similar ways that it works for adults.
Here are five breathing techniques and meditations for kids, they can use for stress management from returning to school:
1. Color Breath: Kids love to discuss their favorite colors, food, movies, you name it, right? Color breath is a nice way for them to focus on breath imagining that they breathe all the way in with their favorite color. They then empty it all the way out with a 2nd favorite color such as their favorite animal in that color or a rainbow.
2. Belly Breath: Have them lie flat on the floor and place a pillow or stuffed animal on their belly. As they breathe in, the object grows with deeper and deeper breaths. As they breathe out the objects goes back down. They can play around with trying to knock that object over from breathing so deeply.
3. Emptying the brain "garbage can": My 7 year old gave me this analogy the other day (and I use it for myself sometimes at the end of a long day!). Lying in bed or winding down at the end of the day, think of any unpleasant thoughts, worries, or occurrences to the day. Then imagine putting those in the trash can & throwing them away.
4. Sound breaths: There are various types of breaths available but the main purpose here is to ensure the focus is brought inward and deeper breaths are taken. Some of my favorites are horse breath in which you breathe in and exhale like a horse moving the lips. Another one would be lion's breath in which you inhale, then exhale sticking out the tongue & taking gaze up towards the sky. At the least these will produce giggles which usually decrease the stress immediately!
5. Any other "un-plugged" time: Bottom line here is, as long as they are engaged and bringing awareness to how they feel, it is helping to cope with those stressors. Less TV, iPad, and game time. More thinking, imagining, feeling.
By Stefanie Ezratty
Hi! My name is Stefanie Ezratty! I am a mom, wife, and yes yogi! I dabbled in yoga for years deepening my practice through prenatal yoga while pregnant with my daughter. It was after that time that yoga had a lasting impression on my life. I then went on to complete my 200 hr Yoga Teacher Training Certification. In addition, I completed my 85 hr Prenatal Yoga certification, and have trained in Kids Yoga. Though a sanctuary, I did find some areas and aspects of modern yoga culture to be intimidating. For that reason I am passionate about making yoga truly for everyone-young, seasoned, newbies, and everyone in between.
Try this selection of classes for kids right now to help children with stress management from school and life!
The seasons are changing. Whether it’s Autumn or Spring in your hemisphere, it’s September and it’s time to align yourself with nature. Choosing to make a deliberate shift now will give you extra power to transform your life or at least your yoga practice.
Our two-week FREE challenge is designed to help you release the past and create space for the future. Autumn commemorates letting go and Spring welcomes the blossoming of new energy.
Join fellow yogis from around the globe and let’s transform together.
Why participate in a yoga challenge? We all know change isn’t easy and having the support of thousands of other yogis will keep you on track.
Here are four benefits we think you’ll resonate with:
1. Increased Strength: Not only will your quadriceps and triceps get stronger from daily practice, your brain will also get a workout. You’ll feel more clear, calm, and able to make decisions from a place of resolve. When you commit to yourself to practice daily no matter what, you are engineering positive shifts in your self-discipline and this exercise expands out to other decisions you make throughout the day.
2. More Tapas! No, not appetizers, but your inner heat. Tapas is one of the Niyamas, and a vital part of the eight-limbed path of yoga. Tapas is the cultivation of self-discipline. It’s the inner fire in your belly you stoke each time you buckle down and do your work. Tapas is key in shining your brightest and being your best self. It takes work.
3. A Self-confidence Boost: Each day you follow this challenge, you’re fulfilling a commitment to yourself and that’s powerful. Empower yourself by creating positive shifts in your body, mind, and spirit.
4. Accountability and Community Support: Enjoy the support and accountability of your global yoga community. It’s great to know you are part of something bigger. Even if you are practicing alone at home or on the road, you’ll feel the energy of everyone else doing the same thing. There’s power in numbers and you can be a part of it.
So what are you waiting for? Read the full 2-week challenge description and directions and sign up for your seasonal shift today!
Sun Salutations, Warrior Poses, Downward Dog – every yogi has their favourite tried and tested poses and flows that they may be able to do with their eyes closed. As you move through your daily routine on the matt, you might notice your mind drifting. The flows that once took concentration and took your mind away from the humdrum day to day thoughts are now second nature, and you’ve lost your sense of zen. It’s easy to get into a rut if you stick to your comfort zones in life – and your yoga practice is no different. This week we’re challenging you to try a new class every day for two weeks.
Here are four key benefits that branching out in your yoga practice can bring you.
1. Keep your brain active
Did you know that learning a new skill, such as a different language or something creative like a musical instrument can help your brain form new connections? The same applies when you learn a new yoga flow or try a challenging pose. Stimulating your brain in this way can increase your memory skills, concentration and even your creativity levels. Learning something new, like figuring out a new yoga challenge can create neural pathways in the brain, increasing brain power.
2. Relieves stress
There’s no question that modern life has led to stress being an almost unavoidable part of our day-to-day. Whether it's demanding at work, kids acting up, or getting stuck in traffic when you just need to be on time – stress can cause your heart rate to rise and lead to anxiety and an increase in stress hormones in the body. Stress can be hard to manage, and many of us aren’t equipped to handle those kinds of responses.
Challenging yourself in yoga can help train your brain to handle stress responses better. Putting yourself in a controlled environment and pushing your boundaries in yoga can help you deal with stress. This is because putting your body into a new or uncomfortable posture forces you to use the part of your brain that suppresses your stress and emotional reactions. This means when you encounter stress away from the matt you’re well equipped to deal with it. Trying new things in life can also broaden our minds and allow us to handle stress better.
3. Discover new poses
If you never tried new things in yoga, you’d never discover the flows and poses that you already know and love. Trying something new not only fires up your brain synapses but gives you a feeling of euphoria and relief. Learning and kick-starting those brain connections releases feel-good hormones like serotonin, giving us that boost of happiness. Trying new flows and types of yoga you don’t usually practice can open your mind to something new, and you might fall in love with a different type of practice!
4. Get in the flow
Using your brain, whether it’s on the mat or off, can put you in a peak performance state called ‘flow’. This is where your brain is focused on the task at hand and you’re flooded with energy. This state can help increase creativity levels, productivity and even make you happier! But this doesn’t happen unless we’re fully focused on the task at hand, and aren’t challenging ourselves.
Pushing yourself to branch out in your yoga practice can allow you to incorporate challenge in your life – but it’s also important to have realistic goals. Don’t expect to master a new pose straight away – it’s the brainpower, time and practice spent getting there that gets us in the ‘flow.
So now you know the benefits of branching out in your yoga practice, how can you challenge yourself.
Here are two other ways you can push yourself and branch out in your day to day practice.
Push yourself to the edge
When you’re holding a yoga pose, even the ones you’re as familiar with as the back of your hand, try to push yourself to your edge. This is the place where you feel your body deeply stretch and work it hard – but without going to the point where you injure yourself or overwork your body.
Everyone has a different edge, so it’s important to listen to your body and stop when you feel pain or like it’s too much. Let your mind clear of any distracting thoughts or feelings, and take it slow. By listening to your body as you deepen into each pose, you can slowly ease your way to your edge, and remember to breathe into the stretch.
Incorporate challenging postures
An easy way to branch out in your daily yoga practice is to incorporate postures you find challenging. Start off your practice with the postures that make you feel confident and bring strength to your body to warm up. You can then move on to add a posture or two that you’ve always struggled with or feel like you can’t do. Remember to move slowly into these poses focusing on your breathing and listening to your body. It’s important to remember you can stop at any time if your body is saying no. If you try to push out those thoughts that tell you that you ‘can’t’ do it. Trying something new can bring up lots of emotions, so it’s key to keep a calm and open mind.
Are you inspired to branch out in your yoga practice? Try our free two-week yoga challenge and see for yourself how trying new yoga postures and teacher can benefit you.
Here in Colorado, the kids are back in school and with the end of summer in sight (sigh!), we thought it was a good time to squeeze in one more summertime treat.
Kids love popsicles, making today’s recipe a perfect after school snack. Heck, this healthy popsicle recipe is so full of goodness, we would let our kids have it for breakfast!
But what about us adults?
Packed with chia seeds, fruit, and coconut water, our cleanse-friendly tropical Mango Chia Seed Popsicles make a great post-workout snack, giving you instant energy and the quick cool down you need this time of year!
Check out the recipe below and if you need to order some popsicle molds, check these out. They’re our favorites. Be sure to share your popsicle creations with us on Facebook and Instagram and stay tuned for more great, cleanse-friendly recipes coming your way. Until next time, stay healthy and strong!
With popsicle fun,
Mango Chia Seed Popsicles
Yield: 10 popsicles
Ingredients:
3 cups frozen mango chunks 1 ripe banana 10 oz. coconut water 1 ½ TB. chia seeds
Instructions: In a high-speed blender place frozen mango chunks, banana, and coconut water and blend until smooth. Stir in chia seeds by hand. Let mixture sit for about 20 minutes so the chia seeds can soften a bit. Pour mixture into 10 (3 ounce) popsicle molds placing a wooden stick into each (or follow the directions of your popsicle mold). Freeze until frozen, at least 8 hours.
Practice yoga with Jo from the Conscious Cleanse now!
Conscious Cleanse Detox Flow with Jo Schaalman
“The more free time we devote to shaping our minds, the better off we will be. I recommend waking up early to use the morning to meditate “. -Dalai Lama
Journaling daily has surprising benefits, many of which intersect with and complement a yoga practice. Journaling, like anything, takes dedication, consistency and practice, but the benefits are well worth the work. Use these tips and ideas below to explore and support your life, mornings, and yoga practice!
Journaling is an amazing ally, as you can do it anywhere and all you need is a writing utensil and a book with paper. Basic notebooks do the trick, however there are also more specialized journals for everything from goal setting to journal's for yoga practitioners.
Here are 5 morning journaling ideas that can jumpstart you towards amazing days. Have fun with them and explore which work best for you.
1. Get Grateful
A little gratitude can go a long way. Start you day by waking up and immediately listing 3 things you are grateful for. This habit can help you avoid picking up the smart phone, which fills your mind with outside thoughts, and instead helps you focus inward. The question to consider is “what do you have to be grateful today?”. Consider this question every morning and write down what comes each day, regardless of what it is. This helps set a positive tone for the day by showing appreciation and contentment for your life. It also relates to the yogic niyama of santosha, or contentment. You will be able to carry this gratitude throughout you day with this simple mindful practice. Plus, it feels good to do.
2. Set Your Daily intention
What is your main goal today? Where do you want your energy and focus to go? This is your intention, or the underlying thread that helps to connect your daily actions, forming a large, connected quilt of meaning. Think about it. A quilt has a collection of pieces, sometimes scraps of fabric that, on the one hand, look completely disconnected from the other scraps, but can positioned in such a way that makes sense. Each day is comprised of many parts, like the scraps, to form the whole of your day. Setting an intention helps you connect the various scraps in your life to create the pattern of actions and thoughts you desire for your day. Write your intention down, either every day or at the beginning of every week. Setting your intention is connected to the yogic niyama of self study, or svadhyaya.
3. Make a Plan
Making a plan helps to lay out a structure we so often need when first starting a new routine. Consider what your morning routine is now, and how you can adjust it to allow for new activities. Use the morning to place reminders on your calendar, finalize loose plans with a friend, or take notes to yourself to help keep your mind focused.
It can also be helpful to write down a reason you are wanting to start your new morning routine- is it for better health? Focus? Mental clarity? Whatever your reason, remind yourself of it when you feel unmotivated. A plan will help you get started and provide a platform to forming healthy habits. Making a plan to help stick to your ultimate goal, is an example of using the yogic niyama tapas, or self-discipline.
4. Tell yourself you are awesome
When you value yourself, your perspective on things changes greatly. At first it may seem odd to “talk” to yourself, by in reality we talk to ourselves all the time. When this talking is positive, you are starting to support and believe in yourself. When you believe in yourself, you are more likely to stick to your goals, move forward and find growth. Starting the day with a positive self-affirmation (spoken or written) can help your keep your inner voice positive, supportive and your number one fan as you move forward. Start each day by choosing an affirmation using the “I am” structure. For example, “I am strong. I am capable. I am happy” all follow this basic structure. Write “I am”into your journal and fill it in with a positive message. Showing this love and kindness toward yourself is an example of inserting the yama ahimsa toward yourself.
5. Take Care of Your Physical Body
When your physical body is strong, you layout the framework for a strong mind. Commit to caring for your body by keeping a regular yoga practice, a healthy diet and exercise. Use your journal to monitor your diet, yoga practice and how you are feeling each day. Looking back on these notes is a great way to explore your habits and notice where you could be healthier, how your refining your patterns, or how your yoga practice fits into your life. Journaling can surprisingly help keep you in top shape physically, by writing about the patterns you notice about your body, or how well you're maintaining healthy habits. Taking care of your physical body is an example of the yogic yama brahmacharya, or “right use of energy’ and of the niyama saucha, or cleanliness.
Starting a new habit takes time, but a journal and morning journaling routine can help you and improve the quality of your days. It requires dedicating time and focus your attention, something that many of us feel limited on or stretched to do, but it does not have to be an extensive time commitment. Journaling is like any practice that requires time and space to flow so you can explore, learn and grow. Give it a try to get to know yourself better and take your yoga practice off the mat.
Stay tuned for the 2nd part of this article where will explore setting an evening routine using a journal!
Support your morning journaling with some morning yoga that you can do in under 30 minutes to start your day beautifully!
Morning Manifestation Meditation with Jackie Casal Mahrou
Start your Day Right with Robert Sidoti
Are you a morning person and already practice yoga when you wake up? Awesome! Feel free to skip down to our list of four fabulous new classes to start your day with and push play. Or, review the benefits of a regular morning practice and let us know if we included all your reasons why you salute the sun first thing.
If stepping onto your mat before the sun sets in the west isn’t your preference, check out five great reasons why practicing yoga in the morning could become a ritual you embrace and even learn to love. So, stop hitting the snooze button and who knows, you might even become a morning person.
Here are 5 reasons to make yoga part of your healthy morning routine!
1. Create a Good Mood: Start your day out right and create a positive mindset before circumstances conspire against you. Energize your brain and be awake and alert before you face the rest of your day. The morning is one of the most crucial times of day to create productive, happy, and healthy days. With online yoga, you can roll out of bed onto your yoga mat––easy right?
2. Yoga as your New Morning Coffee: When you practice first thing in the morning, you naturally raise your energy levels. This means you can minimize or possibly eliminate your need for morning coffee.
3. Reserve Your Personal Time: Once the day starts, professional and personal demands can take over the day and suddenly, your planned afternoon or evening practice is no longer an option. Get your personal time first and no matter what happens, you completed your practice. Remember taking care of yourself first allows you to take care of those you love.
4. Stoke your Digestive Fire: Many yoga asanas like twists and forward folds compress and massage your internal organs and stimulate circulation. These movements aid in increasing your digestive fire and increase the circulation throughout the digestive system, which will help you feel invigorated and renewed.
5. Improve Your Sleep: Whatever time of the day you practice yoga, more restful sleep is a benefit because you soothe the nervous system and learn to relax more readily. By practicing in the morning, you encourage more regular sleep patterns because your body knows it needs rest before waking up and stepping onto the mat.
If these benefits sound appealing, create this powerful morning ritual and see what happens. Experts advise it takes 21 days to cement a new habit.
Start with these four varied new classes designed for the morning, and see how centered and energized you feel.
1. Robert Sidoti - Start Your Day Right (Free Class)
2. Pradeep Teotia - Wake Up and Flow
3. Kristen Boyle - Calm People Breathe
4. Keith Allen - Quick Energy Boost
“The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep! You must ask for what you really want. Don't go back to sleep! People are going back and forth across the doorsill where the two worlds touch. The door is round and open. Don't go back to sleep!” -Rumi
The snooze button being pressed repeatedly, breakfast on the go, and a general feeling of racing against time to get to where you need to be. Does this sound like your morning everyday? Many people associate the morning with an anxiety ridden mad dash. A mad dash to the finish line that’s ironically the beginning of the day. As easy as it can be to fall into a habit of doing everything on auto-pilot to make it out the door on time, could this be negatively impacting you more then you realize? If you think about it, isn’t the way you start your day going to set the tone for everything that follows? If you begin with chaos and disorder, can you expect to be as connected, productive and happy as you want to be?
If you feel like you need to start off the day in a more peaceful and relaxed way, adding morning rituals can be the answer.
The sunrise symbolizes new beginnings and beneath all the busyness, the morning holds a special kind of magic that’s always there to connect with.
Begin to test out morning rituals and see which ones feel right. Choose morning rituals that make you want to get out of bed in the morning. Make sure you decide on ones that you can make into a habit without dreading. Maybe you can’t dedicate 30 minutes or more of your morning time to rituals, but even 5-10 minutes can make a world of difference.
Here are 8 Morning Rituals that can help you start your day with a clear mind and ppen heart:
1. Wake up and really enjoy your coffee
Coffee is one of those things you get used to having and can easily be taken for granted. If you are a coffee drinker in the morning, imagine not having it available tomorrow. Just that thought alone could bring a sense of panic on. Appreciating coffee for all its glory can really create a sense of gratitude and joy early in the morning.
2. Drink water with lemon
If coffee isn’t your thing, lemon water is a detoxifying and calming drink to begin the day with. During winter months, hot water and lemon is warming and really helps to heat up the body. Lemons help with digestion and to balance pH in the body so making this a morning ritual can really help you feel a sense of letting go of the day before and starting a brand new day.
3. Do some yoga poses
If yoga isn’t part of your morning yet, consider it. Yoga is a great and gentle way to get the body moving and to start to clear your head. During the warmer months, try and do yoga outdoors to connect with nature. Sun Salutations in the morning are energizing and a way to open your heart and strengthen your mind.
4. Breathwork
Breathwork is often pushed to the back burner because of the lack of time people have to commit to it. However, different forms of breathing techniques are the perfect thing to try as a morning ritual. Breathwork helps with overall well-being and is a potent and effective self-healing tool you can turn to.
5. Start a meditation practice
Developing a meditation practice in the morning helps to control your thoughts and help ease any leftover stress from the day before. Our mind is much more at ease first thing in the morning so meditation can be even more beneficial if you do it then. When you start out, be patient with it and start to take note of the way your day goes on the days you do it versus the days you don’t do it. Meditation is possibly the most powerful morning ritual you can do for a clear and calm mind.
6. Ground yourself by eating greens
Eating or drinking greens first thing in the morning just feels right. It’s refreshing, healthy and a way to start off fueling your body with good nutrition. Consider blending or juicing greens as a morning ritual and start to add fruits and vegetables that are in season to really connect to nature.
7. Foam Roll
Foam rolling is one of those things that falls into the category of I know I should do it more but I forget about it. Adding foam rolling as a morning ritual is a smart way to take care of your muscles while giving yourself a little quiet time.
8. Set An Intention
Whether it’s in your mind or you write it down, set an intention for the day. Being mindful about your day and how you want to feel can make a world of difference. Energy flows where attention goes so it only makes sense to set yourself up for what you hope for.
Get creative and use these 8 ideas for morning rituals for a clear mind and open heart to explore what works for you. Remember, your morning sets the tone for your day, so use this powerful time to get into the best headspace possible to enjoy the days of your life.
Practice Yoga or Meditation to Start your perfect day, right now on YogaDownload.com.
Wake Up and Flow with Pradeep Teotia
Morning Yoga In Bed with Shy Sayar
Before fall forces you to surrender completely to all things pumpkin, give summer one last hurrah (for those of you in the Northern Hemisphere) with this refreshing Raw Key Lime Vanilla Bean Tart. Our Key Lime Tart has all the creamy goodness of the original but without the wheat, dairy, processed sugar, or eggs, so you can feel better about having that second slice (we won’t tell!).
For more great recipes, habits, tips, and inspiration for how to continue living vibrantly long after the cleanse ends, be sure to check out our 80:20 Plan HERE.
With love and key lime bliss,
Raw Key Lime Vanilla Bean Tart
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients for the crust:
2 cups raw, unsalted cashews ½ cup shredded, unsweetened coconut 1 cup dates, pitted 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
Ingredients for the filling:
1 large avocado, pitted and peeled 1 ½ cups raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours and drained ½ cup melted coconut oil ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice ½ cup maple syrup 1 vanilla bean, scraped Pinch sea salt 1 TB. lime zest
Instructions: To make the crust, add the cashews, coconut, pitted dates, and sea salt to your food processor, fitted with the “S” blade. Whirl together until the ingredients are mixed and finely broken down sticking together when you squeeze a small handful. Press the crust ingredients evenly into the bottom of an oiled, 9-inch spring form pan.
To make the filling, using a high-speed blender blend together the avocado, cashews, coconut oil, lime juice, maple syrup, vanilla bean seeds, sea salt, and lime zest until smooth. Spread the filling over the crust using a spatula to make the top very smooth.
Chill the pie in the freezer for an hour, then transfer it to the fridge and let it set for another 3 hours, or overnight. Cut into slices and serve with coconut whipped cream.
“If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine, it is lethal.” ~ Paulo Coelho
While nestled in the mountains near Granby, Colorado on the YogaDownload.com retreat this August, a student called her week away a “pattern interrupt.” (That’s us in the picture, having a coaching session “al fresco”).
And indeed, unless one’s regular life consisted of camping in teepees, being served three colorful vegetarian meals per day, receiving Thai massage in a tent in the meadow, hiking to waterfalls, outside yoga twice daily, sipping fine whiskey at the state’s smallest bar, and throwing an impromptu dance party with new friends, then the experience surely interrupted the daily routine.
We all need such breaks in the routine.
There’s something so refreshing and heartening about infusing our senses with different sights, sounds, tastes and smells. Switching things up makes us come alive again, especially when we’ve dug ourselves into a rut of repetition.
A pattern interrupt is a concept popularized by Neuro Linguistic Programming to change a particular thought, behavior or situation.
Over time, we all develop strategies and behaviors that turn into patterns and habits. These patterns and habits are largely unconscious, meaning you do many of them without being aware or at choice. If the pattern of behavior is unhealthy, this can cause you to be stuck and unfulfilled in life. Running the same old behaviors can sabotage close relationships, stunt any career growth, and even cause you to give up on the dreams you once had.
Even if the pattern is healthy, there can still be a feeling of stagnancy and boredom in life.
Sound familiar in any way? Maybe it’s time to implement a pattern interrupt.
What can you implement to change up your routine behaviors and habits? Drive a different route home from work today? Try a new recipe for dinner? Sign up for a fitness challenge or a creative arts class?
A pattern interrupt can come in many forms, but it must start from awareness. Perhaps you aware of redundant repetition, stifling stagnancy or just a sense that you’re not living a life of purpose and happiness. Luckily, life is full of experiences to choose from to break monotony and stagnation. Being stuck in any routine is simply an illusion. Treat yourself to do something different and shake things up in your world. The benefits can be more far reaching that you imagined.
By Elise Fabricant
Elise is a top teacher on YogaDownload.com and life and health coach. Want to have a pattern interrupt with Elise? She's offering several opportunities to treat yourself to a pattern interrupt. If so, please join Elise for any of these pattern interrupting events. Reach out to Elise directly if you believe your life could benefit from any or all of the above pattern interrupting offerings.
14 Day RESET cleanse. Nothing like a cleanse to interrupt your patterns of eating. I’ll be leading a small group through this elimination diet to give the gut a vacation. September 15-October 1, $49.
Yoga and personal growth retreat in Mexico with me March 25-30, 2019. Prices start at $600.
Total Transformation Discovery session on the phone with me. Help me help you out of the rut of your daily life by signing up for a coaching session on the phone with me. Uncover where you’ve been stuck and develop a plan of action to start living a more fulfilled, powerful life. Absolutely FREE!
Practice yoga with Elise now to interrupt any stagnation in your day!
Reset Refuge: Come Home to Yourself with Elise Fabricant
We like strong bones and we cannot lie…and toned muscles and healthy joints are awesome yoga benefits too. A regular yoga practice gives you flexibility and mobility, but this week we bring you four classes especially targeted toward building bone and joint health. Without stability and strength, you can become more susceptible to injury and who wants that? Invest some time into bolstering your bones and protecting your joints in order to continue all of your daily activities feeling great.
To balance out the flexibility and mobility aspect of yoga, we suggest you try these new classes from two of your favorite YogaDownload.com instructors. Ben Davis' - Fitness n' Yoga: Sea Star Flow will get you moving and ensure you are working your muscles to build strength, stability and functional fitness. You may already know that weight-bearing exercise is vital to keeping your skeleton healthy. You don’t have to jog or run in order to build muscular strength and bone health, because all standing yoga poses are weight-bearing.
So, when you’re in Warrior II or I, you are actually creating more stability and balance in your muscles and bones. Move into Tree Pose for just thirty seconds and by balancing on one leg you start rebuilding the bone we all lose as we age.
A healthy spine is essential for great posture and preventing back pain. One of the best ways to maintain spinal health is with a toned, strong core. Check out the latest class from Pradeep Teotia - Core & More.
Solid bones provide the foundation for solid joints, where the bones connect. Yoga can help increase the range of motion in your joints, like those in your shoulders, elbows, and knees, which translates into ease in your daily activities. It is vital to keep your joints healthy and strengthening your muscles with yoga asana can help support the body and keep the joints stress-free. If you don’t have the muscular strength to balance on one leg for example, your joints will begin to bear the stress and become unstable. A well-rounded yoga practice will encourage the circulation of synovial fluid in your joints. This liquid, along with cartilage, ensure the bones can move without pain and grinding. Healthy joints keep your movements smooth and steady.
Take a little time to supplement your regular classes and get a gentle release for your joints with Shy Sayar’s Therapeutic Yoga for the Joints and Caitlin Rose Kenney’s Gentle Joint Release. These practices will complement all the other activities you do. Healthy joints and bones, strong and supple muscles, and a balanced calm mind––step onto your mat today and enjoy all the benefits yoga offers.
Enjoy this week's new classes now!
Caitlin Rose Kenney - Gentle Joint Release
Shy Sayar - Therapeutic Yoga for the Joints
Pradeep Teotia - Core & More
Ben Davis - Fitness n' Yoga - Sea Star Flow
If you’re struggling with painful or weak joints, you may be avoiding exercise, to reduce the inflammation and sensitivity. But did you know that practicing yoga can help strengthen the joints and certain poses can actually reduce joint pain? Here’s our top reasons why yoga can strengthen the joints, as well as some poses to practice if weak joints are affecting you.
A joint is the place where two bones meet, and are made up of bones, tendons to connect your muscles to your bones, ligaments, cartilage for cushioning and synovial fluid for lubrication and to reduce friction. Most joint injuries occur from working out too hard, lifting weights that are too heavy, repetitive movement or falling. Common injuries are sprains and strains that inflame the joints and cause pain.
Yoga is a great way to ease back into exercise while also helping to strengthen joints.
Yoga works to increase your range of motion, which reduces future injury. As each joint has a range of motion that is usually measured in degrees. This includes extensions, which is moving the joints backwards, and flexion, moving the joints forwards. This can differ between person to person and joint to joint, but practicing yoga more often can increase this range of motions, and help reduce the risk of joint pain while also serving to strengthen the joints.
Yoga also works to improve the strength of the muscles around your joints. The tendons around the bones support the joint, and by practicing yoga you can strengthen these muscles to help support the body, and reducing strains on your joints. If you have weaker muscles, your body starts to rely on its joints to stay stable, running the risk of your joints locking out and causing stress. Keeping strong muscles is a simple way to keep your joints strong.
Yoga also increases bone strength, which is another key component to keeping healthy joints. Bones are the main part of joints, so it’s logical that healthy bones equal healthy joints. Activity such as yoga signals to the cells of the bones to increase production. This leads to stronger bones which help joint strength in turn.
Another part of the joints is the cartilage, and yoga can help keep joint cartilage healthy. Staying active and mobile can help keep your joint cartilage in good health, so yoga can really help improve joint strength. If you don’t keep mobile, cartilage can actually deplete, increasing the risk of joint injury.
Finally, practicing yoga can help circulate your synovial fluid around your joints. Keeping active and mobile helps keep your synovial fluid healthy. Synovial fluid is crucial for healthy joints, as the right amount of fluid allows the ends of your bones and cartilage to move around easily instead of grinding on each other.
Yoga Postures to strengthen your joints
While practicing yoga as a whole will undoubtedly help keep your joints healthy, there are a few poses that will specifically help strengthen the joints, and heal them if you are post-injury.
Vaerbhadrasana, or warrior pose, is an ideal pose for strengthening your knee joints, as well as helping stretch and release any stress and tension from the shoulders. It is great for bringing balance to your body. This pose also strengthens your legs and upper back, and stretches your hip flexors. If you are a beginner, you may find it easier to raise your back heel on a block, as it may be difficult to keep your back heel on the floor while lengthening your lower back.
Dhanurasana, or Bow Pose, is great for opening your shoulders and helps strengthen the four joints that make up the shoulder joints. It also provides a great stretch for the front of your body, as well as the deep hip flexors, and can strengthen your back muscles, though be careful in this pose if you have back or neck injuries. You can use a strap if you cannot hold your ankles directly in this pose, or deepen it by touching your legs together.
Setu Bandhasana, or Bridge Pose, is another pose that is great for strengthening your knee joints, and can also help if you suffer from weaker bones. It can also stretch your chest, neck and spine and improve digestion issues as well as reducing anxiety and stress. Avoid this pose if you have neck injuries, avoid this pose. You can modify this by lifting the pelvis and using a block underneath you, or deepen this pose by lifting your heels off the floor.
Trikonasana, or Triangle Pose is a great pose for strengthening the leg, knee and ankle joints. It can also stretch your hamstrings and relive back pain. If you can’t comfortably touch your bottom hand to the floor in this pose, make sure you support yourself with a block. You can also align your front heel with the arch of the back foot for a deeper stretch.
As well as staying mobile and practicing yoga, there are other changes you can make in your life to help you improve your joint strength. Always make sure that you look after your body when you’re getting active and playing combat sports, and listen to any aches and pains. You may need to wear a brace on your wrists or knees if you have issues with these joints. If you are exercising, always remember to warm up lightly first to loosen your joints – and low impact sports are better to protect your joints. Finally, make sure you are getting enough calcium and fish oil in your diets, as these are key components to help healthy joints.
Practice yoga for healthy joints right now!
Gentle Joint Release with Caitlin Rose Kenney
With this super easy cocktail recipe, we’ve got you covered. It takes about 10 minutes to make and is so delicious and refreshing your guests will never guess just how easy it is! It also features our all-time favorite kombucha, Rowdy Mermaid! They have tons of delicious flavors, and their formula is much lower in sugar than other kombuchas.
With the addition of fresh peach slices and raspberries, this cocktail is a celebration of the bounty of summer. Plus, this is a great cocktail for those of you who need a lower sugar option. If you’re looking for a great selection of low sugar wines, check out Dry Farm Wines. We love that they curate wines specifically to make sure they are both high quality and low sugar.
We enjoy the challenge of giving a traditional cocktail, like this one, an 80:20 spin!
With love and kombucha kisses,
Kombucha Sangria
Yield: 4-6 servings
2 peaches, pitted and sliced 1 cup raspberries Handful of fresh mint 1 750 ML bottle of dry white wine 1 12 oz bottle of kombucha (we love Rowdy Mermaid’s Savory Peach in this recipe) 1 lime, sliced in discs
Instructions: Add the peaches, raspberries and mint to the bottom of the pitcher. Pour the wine and kombucha over top. Garnish with the lime discs. Serve over ice with fruit in the glass.
Want to make it a mocktail? Replace wine with an additional 12 oz of kombucha and 12 oz of sparkling water.
If you have too many Kombucha Sangrias, detox with Yoga Download's Yoga for Detox from Overindulgence program.
Do you feel that your hair looks dull and dreary? Do you go through your old pictures and wish for that thick and beautiful hair to return?
Well, quit sulking, stop blaming your hair products and start practicing yoga for long, healthy and shiny hair.
Hair loss is a major concern for both men and women. There are a number of reasons that can lead to hair loss, such as age, pollution, poor diet, stress, and thyroid problems. Thanks to the sedentary lifestyle many lead, stress has become the primary reason for hair loss and unhealthy hair.
That’s right! Now, you can stop cursing your hair products and straighteners. They probably play only a small role in damaging your hair.
Stop right there and don’t waste another penny for those expensive hair products and treatments. Choose the harmless, happy and healthy way to combat hair loss and accelerate hair growth.
Yes! You heard it right! Yoga is a great way to protect your hair, restore its strength and prevent hair loss.
It enhances blood circulation and oxygen flow to the head and scalp region for the regrowth of healthy hair and improves your physical and mental health as well.
Here are 7 yoga poses that can work wonders for your hair. Let’s take a look at them now.
Balayam Yoga
Balayam Yoga is also known as the rubbing nails posture. It is a very simple and natural exercise according to the ancient books of yoga. The biggest advantage is that it can be done anytime anywhere.
Turn your palms inwards, curl your fingers and start rubbing the surface of your nails firmly against each other. It is considered one of the best exercises for hair growth.
Vajrasana
Vajrasana is known by many names, such as the thunderbolt pose and the diamond pose. As the name suggests, the diamond pose will make your body as strong as a diamond! It is one of the few poses that is beneficial when done post a meal.
Vajrasana can benefit the body in many ways:
Cures constipation
Reduces obesity
Relieves stress
Increases blood circulation
Calms the mind
Ustrasana
Ustrasana which is also called the camel pose is a very effective yoga exercise. Stand on your knees, bend backward and touch the heels of your feet. Practice the asana in the mornings on an empty stomach for best results.
Ustrasana improves digestion and excretion. It heals and balances your chakras, ameliorates your posture, and nourishes your body. It also balances any abnormalities of the thyroid gland that can lead to hair loss.
Uttanasana
Uttanasana is also called the standing forward bending pose. Stretch your hamstrings and abdomen muscles, bend downwards and try to touch the floor or toe with your palms. This yoga pose completely revives the body and refreshes the mind.
It energizes the cells in the head, provides a sense of calm and keeps the headaches and insomnia at bay. It provides relief from stress and anxiety, which are the primary causes that lead to hair fall.
Sirsasana
It is popularly known as the headstand pose, it’s tough to master this pose but once you do, it can help you in plenty of ways. Sit with your knees on the floor and your buttocks resting on the heels of your feet. Slowly, lean forward and place your forearms on the floor and interlock the fingers of both of your hands. Press the back of the head against the inside of the interlocked fingers and place the top of the head on the floor and lift your heels. Stay still in this position for a few minutes. Relax and breathe deeply.
Sirsasana is the king of all asanas. It helps to rejuvenate the brain by directing a good supply of oxygenated blood to the brain cells. As a result, scalp cells gets nourished, which leads to hair growth.
Sarvangasana
It is also known as the shoulder stand pose. It is nicknamed the queen of all asanas. Lie on your back and slowly raise your legs till your feet points to the ceiling. Your body should rest on your shoulders and the back of your neck. This shoulder stand works best when done in the morning on an empty stomach.
Sarvangasana supports hair growth by activating the most important glands of the body like the thyroid gland. While practicing this yoga pose, more blood flows into the throat, and the thyroid gland will be invigorated. Thus, hair loss and premature greying of hair are controlled or put to an end.
Adho Mukha Svanasana
The asana is also called the downward facing dog pose as it resembles a dog bending forward. Stand on all four limbs, then gently lift your hips and straighten your elbows and knees. Make sure that your body has formed an inverted ‘V’. Keep your hands shoulder-width apart and, legs hip-width apart. Press your palms to the ground and lengthen your neck. This beginner level asana needs to be practiced in the morning on an empty stomach.
Adho Mukha Svanasana, if practiced regularly, has numerous benefits. It strengthens the abdominal muscles. It improves blood circulation, thus enabling fresh blood to flow into your head and increase the hair growth. This pose also helps you to relax and calm your mind, thus reducing anxiety.
These are some of the best yoga asanas for combating hair loss and for staying healthy. These asanas have been practiced and recommended by people all over the world. For best results, add a healthy, balanced diet in your daily routine as it will provide proper nourishment to the hair and prevent them from falling.
In addition to a healthy and balanced diet, add some matcha to your life. Matcha green tea hails from Japan and is made into a powdered form, from tea leaves that have been grown in the shade— a condition that forces the plant to produce health-benefiting compounds.
Researchers have concluded that drinking matcha tea regularly or applying it on the hair and scalp promotes hair longevity. And the best part- you can easily prepare matcha tea at home or anywhere because it’s a pretty simple recipe.
Another important tip is to drink plenty of water. Water plays a crucial role in combating hair loss and premature greying. So drink at least 8-10 glasses of water everyday.
Say yes to Yoga! Say yes to thick and healthy hair.
By Catalin Zorzini
Catalin is the founder of Ecommerce Platforms and Web App Meister. He blogs about matcha, Japanese lifestyle, and mindfulness at matcha-tea.com. He's a design enthusiast and loves matcha, and is uber passionate about blockchain technology and travel.
Practice one of these postures now with this class from YogaDownload.com
The Safe Path to Headstand with Shy Sayar
Hey yogis, this week is all about the men. Broga is our new series of classes geared toward the guys. If you’ve felt that yoga is directed toward women, these new classes are created specifically for the male body and perspective. Look at these classes as a return to the time where only men practiced yoga. What you may not know is that up until 1937, women were specifically forbidden to study yoga.
So, how did yoga become a seemingly female dominated practice in the West?
Yoga’s eight-limbed path was studied in India, by men only in it's origins. Then, a Western woman, Indra Devi, convinced Sri Krishnamacharya, considered by many to be the father of modern yoga, to allow her to study with him in his school where the pupils were all teenaged boys. Most of the Ashtanga based Vinysasa classes and Hatha yoga come from what Krishnamacharya taught at his school in India. Devi, along with Iyengar and Pattabhi Jois, worked to bring yoga to the West. The rest is history. So yes, real men practice yoga.
Yoga has the power to offer real tools for coping with daily stresses and demands of life. Learning to breathe, focus, and balance on the mat translates to true benefits for the rest of your day. This accessible yoga-based fitness program can also connect you to your best version of yourself: strong, peaceful, internally and outwardly connected. Become powerful and compassionate from the inside out.
This program is specifically designed with the male perspective and special attention to strengthening your core, quieting your mind, as well as opening tight shoulders and hamstrings. Look at your practice as a way to prevent injury in sports or daily activities, enhance performance for your daily run or swim, and a method to hone your mental focus and minimize stress. Yes, holding some of the yoga postures can feel humbling and learning to breathe and be present during your yoga practice is challenging, but the benefits are real.
This 5 class program, designed for men is accessible to all levels of men, whether you are brand new to yoga, or an experienced practitioner.
Classes include:
1. Robert Sidoti Stretch & Stress Relief
2. Robert Sidoti Sun Salutation Breakdown
3. Robert Sidoti 5 Best Daily Stretches
4. Robert Sidoti Squat Sun Salutation Flow
5. Robert Sidoti Core Strong
It improves your physique as well as your mental health, but even though yoga is one of the most beneficial exercises to do, many men still shy away from the practice. From increasing your strength to helping your sleeping patterns, there’s a wealth of reasons why men should do yoga.
Here’s our top nine reasons why you should incorporate yoga into your workout regime.
Builds your muscles evenly
A lot of men schedule their workouts to build their muscles on certain parts of their body, for example their arms or shoulders. Yoga works to build muscles all over the body evenly. Yoga practice will work the muscles many men ignore in their workout regimes, which makes it a great exercise for overall body conditioning, an ideal reason why men should do yoga, especially if their aim is to build muscle.
Reduces the risk of injury
As yoga works out the parts of the body we may not usually work or think about, it means that it strengthens the muscles that men don’t usually use efficiently. This is a great reason why men should do yoga, as it reduces the risk of injury when partaking in other sports and exercises.
Promotes weight loss
If your workout aim is to aid weight loss, yoga is a perfect exercise to aid this. Yoga helps weight loose as is lowers the levels of cortisol, or stress hormones. Cortisol causes your body to collect fat. As well as lowering cortisol, yoga also helps build lean muscle, by using your own body weight and resistance.
Relieves back pain
If you’re a guy who sits at a desk day in and day out, you may be feeling the effects on your lower back. This is a great reason why men should do yoga, as it can help relive this pain. Back pain can be caused by underuse of muscles, which yoga can help counteract. Studies have actually shown that yoga can help alleviate lower back pain, as well as other chronic pain.
Reduces stress and anxiety
Yoga is a practice that utilises mind-body techniques. The combination of physical movement and poses, with controlled breathing and relaxation can help reduce stress. This is because it lowers the heart rate and blood pressure, which helps reduce the stress hormones. Yoga will also help combat anxiety and depression.
Improved Breathing
If you’re new to yoga, you might find it challenging to focus on inhalation and exhalation, especially while you’re trying to hold unfamiliar poses using muscles you’re not used to working. Yoga challenges you to slow down your breathing, taking in long and slow breaths. This helps to expand your lung capacity and allows you to train your body to take in oxygen more efficiently. This will help you when you’re working on your regular workout regime, especially if you’re working on cardio or muscle building.
Active Rest
If you’re serious about working out, the words active rest won’t be new to you. Many men struggle to take rest days from their regular workout, which is important as it allows your body to recover, heal, and build muscle. Yoga offers a great opportunity for ‘active rest’, which is a great reason why men should do yoga. It allows you to be active, without overwhelming your body. If you’re a guy who can’t stand to sit around and not move on your rest days, yoga is a perfect way to take some down time.
Increase in flexibility
If you solely partake in high intensity workout sessions and heavy lifting, you may be causing a build-up of lactic acid in your body and muscles. Yoga is extremely helpful to get rid of this build up and reduce the stiffness. This is because yoga works to stretch and release tension, flushing out lactic acid. This will allow you to get back to your regular workouts faster, and improve your flexibility.
Better Sleep
If you’re a guy who struggles with dropping off at night, yoga could be your answer. There’s so much evidence out there that regular yoga practice can actually help to relieve insomnia, improve your sleeping quality and cure anxiety and stress that might be keeping you up at night.
So now that you know the reasons why men should do yoga, you might be wondering how you can incorporate the practice of yoga into your regular workout regime. There are a few ways you can fit yoga in and around your workout regime.
You can add a yoga cool down after your regular workout to help reduce muscle soreness the next day. This should be around fifteen to thirty minutes consisting of restorative stretches like downward dog, pigeon and lizard. This will relax and lengthen your muscles and reduce the risk of injury from over-working.
You can also add a starter yoga workout to the beginning of your regular workout, lasting anywhere from five to thirty minutes. This will activate your muscles that you are about to use in your workout; align your body to allow you to workout with proper form, and reduce the risk of imbalance; and warm up your body, to help reduce the risk of injury. As you’ll be working out after this yoga practice, stay in each pose no longer than 30 seconds so you don’t wear your muscles out.
A solo yoga workout can be done on a rest day the day before your regular workout. These can last up to an hour, and will help to address any imbalance in your body and flexibility, as well as improve your range of motion and increase your strength. It can also improve your core strength before a workout. You can hold each pose for a little longer, as longer poses will allow your muscles to lengthen and grow more – a great ‘active rest’ for your body. Include strength building poses such as warrior and warrior two, and cobra.
Did our reasons why men should do yoga sway you into adding the practice into your daily routine? Take a look at our Broga: Yoga for Men program to get you started!
Ever go to a kid’s birthday party and realize there’s nothing your little one can eat? That’s a regular occurrence for me and my daughter, Ilse. Ilse, like me as a child, is super sensitive to a LOT of common allergens like sugar, eggs, gluten, dairy, and nuts. Wherever we go, there’s often times not a sweet treat she can eat and it’s never fun to be the only kid at a party who doesn’t get to eat any dessert.
So my husband Adam and I came up with a super easy, allergen-free cookie we could always bring so Ilse would be able to have a sweet treat with the rest of the kiddos. And guess what happened? Not only did Ilse love these cookies, all the other kids loved them, too! Even when there was a conventional cake or cupcake option, other kids gravitated towards our cookies instead. I even started having parents ask me for the recipe or request that I bring the cookies for their next party! This recipe is truly kid-tested and approved!
Since it’s the end of the summer (for those in the northern half of the world), we wanted to share this recipe with our community because these cookies make a perfect healthy back-to-school treat. They are allergen-free (perfect for peanut-free or nut-free schools) and don’t take much effort to make. And they are a healthier alternative to conventional packaged oat bars or snack bars, a staple of many school lunches. Plus, it’s such a simple recipe even your kids can help make them!
We hope you enjoy these cookies as much as our family does! Do you have another back-to-school snack you’d like us to give the Conscious Cleanse makeover? Let us know in the comments!
With love and allergen-free treats,
Oatmeal Banana Cookies
Yield: 18-20 cookies
1 cup gluten-free quick oats, whole 1 cup gluten-free quick oats, ground 2 ripe bananas 1 tsp. vanilla 1 tsp. sea salt 1 tsp. aluminium-free baking powder 1 TB. lakanto*
*1 TB. of honey can be used as a substitute
Instructions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium size bowl, combine whole oats, ground oats, sea salt, baking powder and lakanto. In a small bowl, mash the bananas with the vanilla until smooth. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix to combine. Using a spoon or cookie scoop, scoop cookie batter onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, let cool, and enjoy.
Complement this healthy recipe with Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, & Vitality, now!
Yoga's flexibility benefits may be more obvious and known, however, this practice can visibly tone your entire body as well. Strength is just as essential in yoga, as flexibility, and because of this, yoga builds strength and tones the entire body. Whether you want to tone your arms, legs, core, or back, there are specific poses to make each area more lean and strong. Enjoy this easy to follow yoga infographic, that clearly gives postures to practice to tone your body.
By Irina Gabriela
Irina Gabriela is a Contributing Writer for BookYogaRetreats.com. She is a rookie yogi and meditator and a continual seeker of truth and spiritual adventures.
Practice yoga to tone your body right now!
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