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Yoga, Health, and Wellness Articles + Recipes

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Yoga, health, wellness, and recipes from YogaDownload.com


Spontaneous Yoga
Spontaneous Yoga
Check out this beautiful yoga sequence in the stunning backdrop of Australia brought to us by Masha Yoga.

Yoga for the Gold
Yoga for the Gold
Do you have Sochi fever, YogaDownloaders? Seeing the world gather in one place, in a global celebration of fitness and human potential, has been truly inspiring. We've been watching all of it: the figure skating, the snowboarding, the luging, even the curling. And what we've seen in almost every event is YOGA. Maybe we’re watching the games through yoga-colored lenses, but every event reminds us of the asanas. Yoga is not about competition, but what we practice on the mat – strength, balance, focus, flexibility, awareness, stillness – will help make us more potent and powerful skaters, skiers, lugers, curlers. So without further ado, please enjoy this round up of Sochiasana, with YogaDownload classes to help you reveal these poses in your own practice.

A Lesson From the Lotus
A Lesson From the Lotus
The lotus flower grows (and grows and grows, possibly for more than 1,000 years) through the mud and deep murky waters. Its roots hold steadfast into the dank dark dirt far beneath the surface of the water on which the lotus flower appears to float. One simple lotus flower can evolve for hundreds of years, stretching upwards at its own pace until its perfect center and delicate petals rest above the surface of the water, its divine little face peering towards the sunshine, perfectly vibrant, with not even the slightest marking of the mud from which it grew. If not for the murkiest of water, the thickest of soil, this sacred flower could not thrive, would not be as beautiful and unique as it is.

Yogi Superfood Breakfast Smoothie
Yogi Superfood Breakfast Smoothie
How about a breakfast that tastes like dessert but is actually PACKED with nutrition. I love it when it feels naughty and it’s not.

Manifestation
Manifestation
Sometimes I sit back and look at my life and I think, wow, I created this. This is a far cry from where I used to be which was, how did I get here? The difference between the two thoughts is simple. One comes from a highly awakened state and the other is from a very deep sleep.

Cacao Aphrodisiac Elixir of Love
Cacao Aphrodisiac Elixir of Love
Looking to spice things up with your sweetie this Valentine’s Day? Woo them with this mind-blowing superfood elixir.

Speak It. Feel It. Believe It.
Speak It. Feel It. Believe It.
Lately I have come to appreciate the power of positive affirmations. Simply speaking a sentence aloud a few times can change our state of mind. Once we change our state of mind we can start to feel the positive emotion behind our words. When we harness the emotion our energy shifts and so does our reality.

Serpentine Wave of Transformation
Serpentine Wave of Transformation
One of the most common poses in yoga class is bhujangasana, cobra pose. This heart opener promotes flexibility through the spine. When in full asana, the yoga practitioner embodies the magnificence of wide-hooded cobra. No matter if your cobra is a baby or fully-hooded, the serpentine movement required of bhujangasana will open you into the energy of the cobra. This serpent energy is perfect to embrace as we are still in the beginning of the new year. During this time, we begin to shed layers, release past restraints, and set intentions for growth and abundance.

Spinach Artichoke Dip
Spinach Artichoke Dip
So what I am bringing to my Super Bowl party? Spinach Artichoke dip, of course! This Spinach Artichoke dip whips up in less than 30 minutes and combines raw ingredients with warm sautéed veggies. It’s best served warm with a few slices of cucumbers or flax seed crackers.

Maple Bacon Sweet Potatoes
Maple Bacon Sweet Potatoes
This is a SUPER side dish for the Super Bowl! For most people, super bowl parties means lots of foods that don’t actually support you in your health goals. It’s the beginning of the year and you’re still committed to your healthy living resolutions…so don’t let one BIG party derail you.

Bunless Bison Burger
Bunless Bison Burger
Super Bowl Sunday is the second largest food event next to Thanksgiving in our country. Topping the list of party favorites are wings, pizza, beer, dip, popcorn and soda. While we do love to indulge from time to time, we wanted to challenge the dairy-filled, greasy, gas-inducing status quo of typical Super Bowl party fare to see if we could come up with a healthy replacement.

Energy Infused Yoga
Energy Infused Yoga
Yoga has many facets to reveal. One facet might be more prominent than another based on a number of factors including: your ability to adapt and your teacher’s ability to reveal. One facet not well known is the energetic aspect of yoga. This is not to be confused with the “physical intensity” of the practice. The energetic aspect I refer to is the unseen part of what happens to you in your subtle body and in the room, as a result of the yoga.

Who Do You Want to Be?
Who Do You Want to Be?
Who do you want to be? What do you want to do? Who do you want to inspire?

Let Go & Let Love
Let Go & Let Love
It’s so important these days to keep a mental check of your thoughts. Here are three things you can do to let go of the negativity holding you back and let in the love that is all around you.

Wake Up and Smell the Incense
Wake Up and Smell the Incense
Holy savasana! It’s time for yogis to wake up from resting pose — the English translation for the Sanskrit word pronounced shiv-asana — and smell the incense. In the latest salvo proving big business is here to stay in the yoga world, a company received a patent last week for its technique of filming yoga classes for online distribution.

Ditch Your New Year's Resolutions
Ditch Your New Year's Resolutions
It’s estimated that over 40% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, but only 8% actually achieve their goals. With the odds stacked up against us, why do we keep doing this to ourselves?!?

From Darkness to Light
From Darkness to Light
I’ve had thousands of New Year’s wishes and “anthems” come into my awareness these last few days leading up to today. So many, it’s almost overwhelming. This whole instant access to information can be daunting and too much for one person to navigate honestly.

YogaDownload's Last-Minute Gift Guide
YogaDownload's Last-Minute Gift Guide
From dealing with rabid crowds at the mall to toiling over the perfect gifts for the special people in your life, the holidays can be a stressful time...especially if you've waited until the last minute to do your shopping (despite promising yourself last year that you wouldn't find yourself in this position again)! Worry not, yogis! The little elves here at Yoga Download are all about putting the PRO in procrastination. We've scoured the interwebs for unique last-minute gift options so you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your cozy little homestead. So kick back, grab a hot cuppa something yummy and get your shopping on...

A Yogi's 'Twas the Night Before Christmas'
A Yogi's 'Twas the Night Before Christmas'
Twas the week before Christmas and all through the home, Not a yogi was stirring, not even an OM.

Top 5 Foods to Indulge in During the Holidays
Top 5 Foods to Indulge in During the Holidays
I love to eat. I was raised in an Italian family in the Midwest who ate three hearty meals a day with a side of pasta at dinner each night. My family owned a chain of banquet halls and at five years old I was scooping lasagna and garlic bread onto the plates of family, friends and strangers.

7 Tips for Finding Balance During the Holidays
7 Tips for Finding Balance During the Holidays
I am inspired to write about connection again at this time of the year for those of you who adore the holidays as much as I do. And for those of you who don’t – you may get something out of this as well so read on.

Sitting in Joy
Sitting in Joy
People ask me all the time, “How do you do it? How do you manifest every single thing you say you are going to do?” And I laugh because although I’ve gotten really skilled at manifesting the ‘good’ things, I’ve also been witness to patterns that create less than desirable outcomes time and time again.

Reconsidering Savasana
Reconsidering Savasana
On the topic of Savasana, I've heard some variation of this for years: "Savasana means dead man's pose." That's because when you're in Savasana, you're supposed to be as still as a dead man." Then there's something about how stillness is elusive in modern Western society and how we deserve a few minutes of peace and quiet in a chaotic world.

Connection
Connection
I am inspired to write about connection again at this time of the year for those of you who adore the holidays as much as I do. And for those of you who don’t – you may get something out of this as well so read on.

The Disease of Doing
The Disease of Doing
There is an epidemic in the industrial world that is accepted, embraced, and nearly revered by most of us. Do you suffer from this vastly-spreading, oddly coveted disease? It remains nameless, but you know of it, for sure. If you don’t have it, then you most certainly know a person — or ten — who has caught it and talks about it with a hint of self-importance.