For the last 7 months I've been working on my 300 hour yoga certification. Each month we do a long-weekend intensive. Two of those are 5 day retreats somewhere fabulous, for us to bond, practice our yoga teaching skills, and work on ourselves. January 10th was the date for our second retreat, and we decided to forego the mountains of Northern California (the location of our first yoga retreat) and we opted for the ocean town of Newport, Oregon. Bright and early on Wednesday morning we …
Yoga
12 benefits of yoga
This post is sponsored by Mambo Sprouts and prAna. Over the last 25 years I've tried just about every fitness trend thats come out. Heck I've taught most of them too. However the one staple that always remained in my program no matter whether my program involved weights, running or rebounding was yoga. Yoga just makes me feel good. Even bad yoga is good yoga. I walk out of every class feeling taller, and my joints feel like I took oil to a squeaky hinge. There are so many other benefits of yoga …
Living your yoga. Are you practicing yoga, or asana?
As a yoga teacher I try to live my yoga, but it's not easy. What does living your yoga mean? Following the 8-limb yoga path. When people talk of "doing yoga", what they usually mean the physical practice of asana. Practicing yoga isn't about headstands, backbends or bending like Gumby. Asana as a physical practice is just one part of yoga as a whole. Any spiritual practice has rules and the first rule of yoga is that you don't talk about yoga. Wait, no, that fight club sorry. The first 'rule' of …
Living your yoga. Are you practicing yoga, or asana?Read More
7 Reasons to use Yoga Socks during your practice
This post is sponsored by Zen Paws, FYI links in this post may be affiliate links. Have you ever been in a yoga class and just found your feet slipping all over the mat? Or maybe your feet just get cold? Well, you're not alone. While I go barefoot at home a lot, when I'm at the gym I wear yoga socks during my yoga practice. But what are yoga socks and why are they a good idea? If you've been to a yoga class, no doubt you'll have seen someone wearing socks during their yoga practice. …
10 tips towards better Sleep
I'm training for my first Triathlon (it may also be the last, we'll see), in just three weeks and I'll be hitting the ocean bright and early for the Nautica Triathlon . My training consists of running, cycling and swimming, along with watching my diet and hydration. Look at any training program and it's all about the workouts and the nutrition. Very rarely will you see a mention of sleep, rest and recovery, or if you do it's a one liner regarding a 'rest day'. It's unfortunate as sleep is one of …
10 tips for foam rolling
This post is sponsored by Peak Win Athletics. The Peak Win Athletics foam roller used in this post can be found on Amazon. This is a great little foam roller perfect for home gyms, or foam rolling on the go! The storage compartment makes it a snap to store your extra equipment (jump rope, gels, towel, keys), grab it and go! In this post you'll find a review, 10 tips for foam rolling, how to, and benefits to foam rolling. It seems like such a constant in my fitness program that going over the …
One little word 2016 – Aloha!
Each year I choose a word for the year ahead. Ali Edwards first introduced this concept to me in 2007, and I fully embraced it. As I prepared to write this post declaring my One Little Word for 2016 I suddenly realized it's TEN YEARS of choosing a single word for the year. Wow, time flies. So why choose One Little Word for the year? As Ali says: A single word can be a powerful thing. It can be the ripple in the pond that changes everything. It can be sharp and biting or rich and soft and …
Fitmas Gift Guide for Yoga
It's gift giving season! So to help you on your gift purchasing endeavour I'm bringing you a series of Fitmas blog posts that's all about Fitmas gift giving. Now here's the thing, these posts are meant for people you KNOW, and know that they are already into said Fitmas Gift activity. PSA: DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT buy unsolicited fitness gifts for people who do not already partake in fitness activities. Whilst you might care about someone's health there are better ways of giving the gift of …
10 things I learned in Yoga Teacher Training
A year ago as we were getting ready for our UK vacation I was also making plans for my professional future. After 30 years of doing yoga, and 5 years teaching yoga in gyms I was itching for more yoga knowledge. Was it time to stop pretending at being a yoga teacher and put some time (and money) into actually doing my 200 hour yoga certification? Yoga teacher training Having looked at my options I settled on the 9 month program with Jeni Winterburn at Yoga Nook. Not only was it 5 minutes …