In this day and age, there seems to be a pink elephant in the fitness space – weight loss. We’re not supposed to bring it up in class. The idea that one might want to lose weight infers that one is not accepting their body. It’s anti body positivity, and society is really sensitive about that right now. Well, being a healthy weight matters to overall health and well-being. When fit pros preach about body symmetry, it...
From my estimate, the three most prevalent tension spots are: the jaw, the chest & shoulders, and the ankle & foot. Take a moment right now and see where there is tension happening in your body. The jaw along with the chest & shoulder area are obvious and you probably knew about a tendency for tightness there, but the ankle & foot? You probably didn’t realize until now. One of the many reasons why I...
Please do check out the new video interview on Let’s Move! with the one-and-only, Nicole Renée. I say one-and-only because she truly is a unique soul, marching to the beat of her own drum. She’s carved out a beautiful career for herself, helping people feel their best with movement and meditation, and with herbal medicine. Something I want to emphasis with Nicole and all of our interview subjects is they all model self-care and empowered wellness. They take inspired action...
“Let’s go from ground to crown.”I say the aforementioned statement a lot, especially at the onset of classes, as it covers a few bases. First, it’s a check in – how’s it going? Second, it’s grounding – am I here, now? Third, it’s alignment – is everything in the right place? All it is is bringing your mind’s eye to your feet and proceeding to work your way all the way up to the crown of your head. Noticing. Feeling....
Would you consider yourself limber? I bet most of you would, because you see how good it feels and how functional it is. But you know what? You’re a unicorn. Limber is not the norm. When I’m out and about in the world, i see the opposite of limber. I see tight, constricted, stiff joints, especially in men. It’s a real shame because being limber is entirely up to each individual. Sure, someone might be...
Okay, so you’ve planned for a 3pm workout. It’s 45minutes long. You’ve got your exercise clothing on and your water bottle nearby. You’re ready to workout, but there’s one more thing to do – put your phone on airplane mode. It’s 2023, and from what I see in my classes, with clients, and with myself, the cellphone is the #1 workout sabotager. It has a tendency to intrude, interrupt, and disrupt. I know there are...
There’s a brand new workout debuting this week on Let’s Move! and it’s a slow-flow, all standing, 20minute yoga sculpt called Yoga With Weights. I love love love mixing yoga with fitness modalities because 1. it’s fun, entertaining, and helps hold people’s attention. 2. it provides movement variety, and 3. it saves time. 20minutes of yoga is always an excellent choice – and I am not knocking pure yoga when I say this – but 20minutes of yoga with weights turns up the “yang”...
Happy Baby pose, where you lie on your back and grab your big toes, is a natural action that I remember watching my own baby organically do, way back when he was an infant in his crib. I marveled, thinking, wow, yoga is innate. Plus, the name of the pose was so apropos. Then there’s the dancers I’ve spent time with over the years. They are so body-oriented, they can’t be idle for long. Even when...
The idea that “gentle” is for babies or for the injured, but aside from those specific demographics, you should be embracing intensity, is still alive and well in the world today, but not in my world. In my world, gentle is sustainable, nurturing and a winning aspect of longevity. What is a gentle workout? First, gentle might just be slower. It might just be shorter. It might just be avoiding certain ranges of motion that cause pain. Gentle doesn’t mean less effective. Secondly,...
The biggest problem I come across these days in yoga classes, which I don’t remember ever seeing twenty years ago, is excessive restlessness. There are lots of people who just cannot get settled on their mats. At the onset of class, they twitch, they breathe with irregularity, their eyes struggle with being shut or with holding a singular focus, and there is an overall inability to find a comfortable seat. This type of person used...
