Style Undefined

I started with a basic Vinasa flow DVD. Now I flow freestyle. My Asana varies from day to day depending on my mood. Sometimes its fast, and energetic, and other days its slow and relaxing. I let my body tell me what it needs. I have very little classroom time, so my yoga is not included by any particular style. I don't see anything wrong with that.

Austin, Texas has a very large, and fast growing yoga community.  Driving up and down the streets of Austin Texas - "the big city" - one finds a very large variety of yoga studios. 

So many studios, so many different forms of yoga, the choices can be overwhelming to somebody who is trying to choose a class for the first time. 

We, in the western culture, seem to be obsessed with branding, and putting labels on things. We dwell over making names for ourselves, and strive to prove to those around us that we are unique, or gifted one way or another, but in the end all these efforts at differentiation are essentially meaningless, because deep down we are all the same. 

We are all unique, every single one of us is unique by nature. We are all gifted, we have skills that we excel at, and everybody excels at something different, but in the end we all have the potential to be great at one thing or another. 

All of the qualities that make us seemingly different, when looked at on a deeper level, actually tie us all together, and at the heart of it all, we are all the same. Everything comes down to perception.  No one man, is any better than any other, because we are all, essentially the same, just formed out of different sets of circumstances. 

The same is true with yoga. All the studios, all the varieties, how can any one studio claim that their way is better than the studio up the road? Better is the wrong word, in most cases. Different is much more accurate. Different, yet similar. 

Generally, yoga is thought to have six main branches. Six is a small number, when you consider that there are more than seven billion people in the world. 

I propose that yoga is one thing, a union, that can be achieved in many ways. If you were to invite the entire world to one destination, all seven billion people, not everybody would arrive at the same time.  Its also reasonable to believe that they would  not all journey through the same path.

I believe that there are many roads to enlightenment, perhaps even as many roads as there are people, and that no one person's road is any better than anybody else's. 

My yoga is my road, and its mine alone. Though others may influence the choices that I make along the way, ultimately I am responsible for the journey, and the directions and paths that I take on the way to my final destination. 

My Asana practice, is as unique as my journey. It is alive, breathing, moving, growing, and evolving. It changes from day to day, depending on my physical and mental health, and is as undefined as I am. Really, "it" is me. It is an expression of me, it becomes me, and it shapes me. I grow through my practice, and every day I witness my practice growing. There is a union. 

Another Journey Begins

Yesterday my mother and I went to our first yoga class. The goal is to go every Monday. I am very excited about finally starting classes, and even more excited that my mother has decided to join me on this journey.

My first class was not difficult, thanks to all the time and effort I have been putting into my practice over the past few years. In fact, I deeply enjoyed the simplicity of this class, basics, sun salutations, and familiar poses.

There's something relaxing about being in a class full of people moving in unison. Yoga class is about connections, not competitions.  Everybody leaves themselves open and exposed but nobody feels vulnerable. It's truly beautiful.

Leaving class, I had the blissful, tingling, feeling that only a long and focused practice can provide. Its a feeling I can't explain. I get drunk on yoga, high, but clear, calm, and collected.

It wasn't always like that. I can still remember a time when I felt completely overwhelmed, staggering, quivering, and wobbling along with my Shiva Rea Fluid Power DVD. Then practice was all about getting physical and shaping up my buns.

I was in over my head, that DVD was definitely not intended for a beginner, like me. There is a sharp contrast between how I felt after those early workouts and how I currently feel after a deeply focused practice. Relaxed is not a word that I ever would have used to describe my earliest workouts, worn out, maybe.

The beginning was the hardest part, keeping the momentum going, and pushing myself not to give up. I am eternally grateful for the positive yogis in my life, who always provided encouragement and advice, guiding my early journeys.

My mother is now in the  exact place where I once was. She has two choices, give up, or dive in and give it all she's got. I wish her only success, and hope to be a positive voice in her ear, just as my friends did for me, now that she is sitting on the edge of her very own yoga journey.

Downward Dog

Downward dog, an often under appreciated old friend. It's one of the first poses I learned, and even now, years into my practice, I keep fining new ways to rediscover it. So many different variations for all my different moods.

First Yoga Class

I'm so excited! My mother and I are examining the class schedule at our local yoga studio.

I've been doing yoga for years now and I've got a confession to make. "I've never taken a yoga class." 

Teachers are valuable, and if you have the opportunity to work with one, then definitely take it, but I don't feel like you have to go to a formal yoga class to practice yoga. 

If yoga really is my natural state - our natural state - then learning it should come naturally. I feel like my yoga journey is an intimate voyage with myself into learning my true, deeper, self. Do we really need someone to teach us how to be our natural selves? Though I do think going to class is a great way to accelerate your learning, I believe that with determination and persistence, you will still  eventually arrive at the same destination. 

Don't misunderstand what i am trying to say. I love, and respect, teachers. I am extremely grateful that we have people in this world who live to teach others. Someday, I also hope to join the teaching family. 

I'm just trying to say that times are hard and maybe you can't afford to take regular yoga classes, or you live in a small town where there aren't any yoga studios. There are many reasons that class might not be an option right now. Don't make excuses. Nothing should stop you from doing yoga or anything else you really want to do.

I'm also grateful for YouTube and all the amazing online yoga teachers. There are so many great free resources online. Its wonderful that there are people who have decided to put the time and effort into sharing knowledge and information over the internet without expecting anything in return. 

If it's all out there for free why would I want to pay to take a yoga class? I'll tell you why. There's only so much the Internet can teach you and though there is a tone of great free resources out there. Nothing compares to having somebody to give hands on, physical training. I look forward to receiving that personal level of help.

Though my close friends and family, would say that I am "no Yoga novice." I still plan on starting with very basic classes. That's right. I'm going to go to beginners yoga class, because there's nothing wrong with me revisiting my basics, and making sure I've got those down with accuracy. Doing the postures correctly is important, so as to avoid damage to the body.

Having an accurate, sustainable, practice is essential. We are only gifted one body, so taking care of it is a necessity,  because we have roughly one hundred years to live in it.  How do you want to live your one hundred years? Will you be sick and miserable or healthy and active? It doesn't seems like a real question, does it? Which of those 2 would you choose? 

I have a good general idea of what to expect from my first yoga class, but honestly it still feels like there will be surprises waiting for me there.  I look forward to being a room full of people moving in unison. I look for to seeing teaching in action, because that's where I hope to be someday.

Every now and then there's a part of me that gets nervous for no reason at all,  though I tell myself "You got this. This is your yoga  and the nobody will ever change that."

Everybody is different. Yoga can take you down many paths, just like life. Not everybody will take the same life path, so it makes since that so would yoga. Were all unique individuals. That's wonderful.

You know what? I like wearing makeup. I like waxing my legs. I have a man with definitely not into yoga. I do things my way, because I rather write my own book then follow someone else's.

Natural Body and Mind

Naturally we are kind forgiving loving. We have energy and are free of disease, sickness, and allergies. 

Naturally we are born perfect. Even most birth defects can be traced back to improper diet of the mother before and during pregnancy.

We start out pure, honest, free of greed, lust, or hatred. 

Have you ever watched a baby playing? Have you ever noticed how flexible and infants are? We all start out flexible but in today's modern society staying that way is not highly prioritized, neither is staying natural, true to ourselves, or being healthy. 

So why isn't this a priority? It's sad that as a society we are have grown to be so far from who and what we are meant to be. Instead of healthy, loving beings, we are a culture of sick, selfish, creatures.

Sick. . . Obesity, cancer, heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, high cholesterol just to name a few major killers of the world. The worse part is that all of these ailments are caused by the foods we eat, combined with a lack of exercise.  We have no one to blame for our woes.  

Its our job to learn how to care for our bodies, and not depend on other people to teach us how to care for ourselves, but knowledge, and continued growth seem to also be values lost in modern society. Instead of chasing continuous personal growth, we spend the majority of our time lost, climbing the corporate ladder, seeking to grow useless material wealth. 

This type of living is not only  self destructive, but socially perilous as well. 

I spent the past two years a deep in study, seeking answers to these modern woes, and sharing ny findings to all who would listen. 

Time Magazine - Alternative Medicine

This is a big deal. The first issue of Time magazine that I have ever purchased. I was really moved on a deep personal level when I saw this on our local Grocery store newsstand. We, as a society, are moving forward, and this - to me -  is proof.

 Its about Time.

Amazing Meditation

This thirty minute guided meditation is amazing, 

but you will need headphones to listen to it properly.

Watch "Kelly Howell - Healing Meditation {Guided}" on YouTube

A Short Time

Its been a few weeks since I published my last "real" blog. In the back of my mind there is this nagging voice, calling me lazy. Maybe the voice is right, but for the past week I have been searching for something meaningful to share. Lots of quick ideas have been bouncing around in my head, but nothing I could easily elaborate on.

I want these blogs to have meaning, and direction. I want them to help, inspire and educate people.

Eventually, this may take me in the direction of a video blog, or maybe I will just share written Asanas with photos, but I need to remain focused on the now.

In just a few weeks, I have learned many personal lessons:

I went without a real Asana practice for 3 days, and the negative effects of this were extremely aparent to me by the beginning of the 2nd day. I was tired, stiff, felt off balance mentally and physically just to name a few observations.

I hadn't drank in a long time and I had a few alcoholic beverages at over the weekend apparently my new pure body no longer has a tolerance for alcohol after having only a few drinks my stomach was in knots. I'll stick to the occasional glass of wine if anything at all.

I did my first hour long Asana the practice in complete silence. I shoved earplugs into my ears and listened to my breath alone. It was truly wonderful. Each breath cleansing my body.

Never, in my life have I been a spiritual person, but there is something unexplainable growing in my practices. Its a connection between something higher, and myself. I feel it. My mind, body, and "it" are swirling together. By the end of my practice I am filled with "good vibrations," complete relaxation, and clarity. Balanced. Complete. Free. Strong words that still don't do justice to the way I feel.

This journey is full of endless lessons and rewards. The only real question is, "what's next?" I am looking forward to many great discoveries along the way... life really is about the journey.

Dinner

Modification of the following recipe:

The Very Popular…Moni’s Quinoa Mac N’ Cheese | MoniMeals

Sitting at the Edge of My Mat

Sitting on my ankles at the edge of my mat. I breathe in, drawing a slow, controlled, breath through my nose. Exhale. My breath continues, steadily, bringing life to my muscles with my movements.

I move into Balasana, bringing my shoulders down towards floor. In this posture I humbly bow down, promising to give respect my body throughout my practice.

The next inhalation carries me to my knees. Before I am able to form a thought, I am arched backwards into Ustrasana, lifting blissfully, grateful for the multiple openings in my body. This pose is so liberating, that I continue enjoying it for several breaths, stretching deeper, and deeper.

Eventually, I feel the urge to continue further down to the floor towards Kapotāsana, a pose I have been working towards for a quite a while. Lately I have been coming very close and can see undeniable proof that, with reasonable effort, anything can be accomplished. Today, the Pigeon is my friend. Almost there, I can grasp my toes with the tips of my fingers. I stay reaching, respectively, towards this boundary, smiling because I know this one will be mine soon

.

I make my way out, stopping to revisit Ustrasana on my way into Cat and Cow. Flexing up and down, relaxing and releasing, with my breath.

As I sink through Kumbhakasana, flowing into Chaturanga Dandasana, I realize the Sanskrit pose names are dancing along in my head, mirroring my movements, replacing all other thoughts. 

I hold myself just inches off the floor, for a breath or two, before finally lifting into Downward Facing Dog, rolling over my toes on the way into the posture. Downward Dog, or Adho Mukha Svanasana, still comes to mind in plain English. It always feels so welcoming, like a friend saying, "Hello, welcome home. Its good to see you!" I move through several variations, stretching my legs, chest, and shoulders, before jumping my legs up for a forward fold. 

I squish my ear-buds firmly into my ears so that they don't fall out during the next sequence. The calm, acoustic, harmony helps to keep the tempo of my breath.

I close my eyes, lost both in music and in breath, allowing myself to plunge further into Uttanasana, before continuing on with several Sun Salutations.

For the next hour I find myself lost in a twisting, winding, free flowing, dance, moving in complete relaxation from one posture to the next.  

Before I know it, I am sinking from Halasana  into Savasana, listening to the last minutes of a captivating melody. A woman is singing, her voice radiant  in a foreign tongue, and though I do not understand her words, my body is singing right along with her, joyfully. 

Teachers

Being a teacher doesn't mean spending thousands of dollars on a fancy education. Being a teacher can be as simple as being a positive role model, and setting a good example.

Teachers must also not forget to be learners, because no matter how much you know, learning is endless. All of us are students in life, learning lessons every day.

Teaching is a wonderful way for us to give something positive back.All of us can be teachers. Just imagine how amazing the world could be if we had more teachers?

I have had the privilege of knowing some amazing teachers who have inspired and encouraged me in many unique ways.

Thank you to all those amazing teachers, who have helped to shape who I am.

Inspiration for your weekend

Happy Friday something to think about over the weekend.

"All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness the important thing is they should be part of our daily lives."

Dalai Lama

Different

Recently a lot of people have been commenting that there is something different about me. Most of them are not sure what has changed. Maybe its my hair, or that I am no longer caking my face over with pounds of makeup, but maybe there is more to it than that. I do feel different,  but for some reason it still surprises me that other people can tell is well.

Before changing my lifestyle I was:

• chronically tired - sometimes drinking a pot of coffee or more in an 8 hour work day
• in love with candy and junk food
• anxious and easily over excited
• I stressed out over  stupid little things, that usually worked themselves out anyway
• obsessed with climbing the corporate ladder
• I had the tendency to worry over people pleasing 

Now:

• I have plenty of energy and stay up 2 hours later everyday, and have no need for coffee
• eating all natural organic foods, and no longer like the taset of junk food - fruit is candy
• I am calm, collected, clear, and enjoy to going with the flow
• I stop and think before I get stressed out over things quickly realizing things will be okay
• I wouldn't mind getting a raise are climbing up the ladder at work but I'm content where I am now.
• I don't feel like I have to prove myself to anyone

These lists really could go one and on. 

Just a few encouraging observations, that I thought I would share.

If you are thinking about taking the plunge into a deep yoga study and practice, what is stopping you? Just go for it. Its worth it. YOU are worth it!

Before you know it you will be reflecting on the positive changes yoga gas helped you to bring into your life.

Acro Dreams

I started Yoga because I wanted to have a good foundation for Partner Acrobatics. This is me and one of my closest friends, Tyrone Chuang, in April 2011. It was the first time I did Acro in front of a large audience. The intense one month long, last minute practice prompted me to take my yoga to the next level.

I was very pleased with this video at the time, but still saw room for improvement.

I am posting this because marks a major turning point in my life.  Hopefully I can get something more current up soon.

Journey to What is Natural

Today I would like to share a great quote.  The first time I came across this one I thought it was one of the cheesiest, but things change.  Now I recall it with fondness, and it might even be one of my favorites.

"You cannot do yoga.  Yoga is your natural state.  What you can do are yoga exercises, which may reveal to you where you are resisting your natural state". 

- Sharon Gannon (a founder of Jivamukti Yoga)

I don't even know how to explain it, this might be one of the truest quotes I've ever come across regarding yoga.

The yoga exercises  referred to in the quote are asanas, which you can do, but after practicing yoga as a whole, it becomes who you are, feeling natural, and then there is this realization, that its the way you were meant to be all along, or at least that is the best interpretation I can give. Even that sounds a little silly to me.

Like many things I have learned in my studies, this quote is just extremely difficult for me to explain. I'm not sure yoga is something you can explain, especially to somebody who's not there.

People tried explain lots of things to me early on in my yoga journey that, at the time, made almost no sense, but now, in reflection, I am finding that I understand completely.

The journey for knowledge is endless, and ever growing. 

Daily Inspirational Quote

“Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured.” ~ B.K.S. Iyengar

Making Real Changes

Taking my yoga practice "off the mat" has brought many positive changes into my life. One of the strongest lessons I have learned has to do with change. Of all the things you will find in life, the only thing that is, truly, guaranteed is change. 

Change is constant, so expect, and welcome it. The past is gone, so reflect on the past as if there is something to learn from it, knowing you can never return there. The future is beyond our control, but dreams and goals are good for the soul. Now might be all we have, so make it count, enjoy it. Live in this moment, for this moment. 

Making substantial changes in ones life is a gradual process which can only be achieved through true desire, drive, and dedication.

If a person doesn't truly care about changing, and they are not willing to work towards the goal of evolution, then real change becomes impossible.

Change is something that has to cone from within, and it has to be done for ones self. Change is not something that can be forced by a second party. So if you have any expectations or desires about changing anyone but yourself, drop them. Its a futile up hill battle with the odds stacked high against you.

Learning to talk the talk is easy for most, but learning to walk the walk is something that many people struggle with.

Unfortunately, I know so many people out there who are all talk. Seeing this often, it was easy for me to decided that I had no desire to be that way.

I started by reflecting on myself. Every time a thought would cross my mind that went against the teachings I was studying I would consciously stop, look at myself, and ask "why is it that I feel this way?"

When another party and was involved in the situation I tried to put myself into that person shoes and remind myself that didn't know what the persons motives were and it wasn't my place make assumptions.

I also am learning to focus on meaningful conversation - Not speaking unless what I have to say is of some benefit to the situation. Sometimes this is still difficult for me. I have to consciously tell myself stop and think before I speak, and then ask myself, "is there any point to releasing this information.

Day by day and one step at a time, these changes are getting easier. I am happy in the here and now, but I am looking forward to the future, and seeing where my evolution will take me.

Quote of the Day

“Remain calm, serene, always in command of yourself. You will then find out how easy it is to get along.”

― Paramahansa Yogananda

The longer I work this into my life more true it becomes, and the easier it is to act this way.

A Journey Into Healthy Eating

Switching from junk food to an all natural and organic diet was not something that happened overnight. It was definitely something that happened gradually.

The change began with a vegetarian diet that I started in order to shed my winter weight before my 23rd birthday in the spring. It was only supposed to be for a few months, but on my birthday I made a discovery that would change the way I look at food forever.  

My birthday party was full of barbecue, ribs, burgers, and hot dogs. I had been looking forward to sinking my teeth into some juicy, red meat the entire time I was going without, but as I sunk my teeth into that first, long anticipated, juicy, bite, I quickly realized that it was not good as I remembered. Not only was the meat not as tasty as I had hoped, but almost instantly I felt sluggish, and weighed down. I never felt that after eating fruits and veggies. So went back onto the the all vegetarian diet and continued on it for one more year.

Going vegetarian forced me to rethink my eating habits.  There were less choices at first. It was no longer easy to hit up the fast food drive through and get a deep fried chicken sandwich on the way to work.

In no time I stopped going to drive troughs all together. Eventually I decided to add meat back into my diet, on occasion, in small servings. I also cut back largely on the amount of dairy products I was consuming. 

You know how on your birthday, people like to ask you, "Do you feel any older?" My twenty fifth birthday, or is my grandmother put it, "turning a quarter of a century old,"  was the first birthday in my life where I actually felt like the most genuine response to that question was actually one hundred percent, "Yes."

Maybe, it was the realization that I was only five years shy of thirty, realizing it seemed that only yesterday that I had turned twenty. Where did I hope to be by the time I was thirty? Maybe I felt as if I hadn't accomplished enough in most recent years, or that I had stopped moving  forward. Life is all about progression, and evolution. Perhaps I was behind?

This past year I have found many things, and made many changes. I set out on a quest for knowledge, driven by the desire for Sauca (purity) I focused my energy on basic yoga teachings, fitness, and nutrition. I scooped up every fitness magazine I could get my hands on, read online forums, and began watching every food documentary that I could find on Netflix. 

The first documentary to really shake my perception was Fat Sick and Nearly Dead. I felt like I had stumbled upon a gold mine of information. It all should have been so simple, but its easy to miss out on the way we are supposed to eat. Many of us are so sick, and we don't even realize that all we have to do is fix our diets, and we can become healthy again. 

I started to really think about over the counter vitamins. Most grocery stores have an entire isle dedicated to nutrition supplements these days, it didn't seem natural. Why so many pills? There was a time that people lived long and healthy lives, without over the counter help. Then the answer slapped me in the face. We, as modern people of the world, do not know how to eat properly. If somebody is eating right they should have no need to buy vitamins by the truckload at the super market

As I began to study the nutrients in specific foods, so that I could better stock my kitchen, I came across, yet another amazing documentary, Food Matters. Hippocrates, the founder of modern medicine, said "Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food." I believe he would be appalled if he were here to see the way we utilize health care today. 

Many of the documentaries, and sites refrence Dr Max Gerson, who was able to cure almost every type of cancer, as well as many other chronic ailments and deseases in the 1940's using  an organic, unprocessed diet.He didn't use drugs, or radiation. He cured people WITH FOOD.

 It is illegal  to treat cancer in The United States using the Gerson Therapy, but his daughter, Charlotte Gerson, is still spreading the good word, and saving lives at the Gerson Health Center in Tijuana Mexico.

 Dr Gerson died in 1959, after completing his master work, A Cancer Therapy: Results of 50 cases, for the 2nd time. (The first time he completed the book, it mysteriously vanished.)

Click this link to watch The Gerson Miracle Documentary and find out more about Gerson's natural Miracle therapy.

With all my new found information, its hard to imagine going back to eating chemically engineered, gmo, super processed, Frankenstein foods. WOULD YOU EAT POISON JUST BECAUSE SOMEBODY TOLD YOU IT WAS SAFE? Do you?

I cant even rationalize paying for empty foods, that contain little to no nutrition. When did people forget, that we eat to nourish our bodies, not just fill our bellies? 

I hope to ease myself into a mostly raw vegetarian diet in the next few months, because the more I learn, the more I feel that it is the healthiest path, and if I really want my body to be a temple, then I should start to really treat it as one.

Sauca - keeping the temple clean. Is your body your temple?

My Journey into Yoga

My Introduction to Yoga

I only began doing yoga about three years ago. I wanted a "yoga booty," tight core, and open hips.  Though it was no spiritual quest, and I was not making an attempt at changing my life, there were many gradual changes, unknown to me, that began with that very first (sloppy) downward dog..

My first goal, splits and handstand, were high considering I was nowhere close to attaining either one of them, but "reach for the stars and even if you miss, you'll end up on the moon." Right?

Now, almost three years down the line, I still haven't completely mastered either technique, but I am getting pretty close. I learned that progress is not only measured by the skills one acquires, but the effort and progress that comes out of a dedicated practice. Also, different people advance at different rates, so using other people as a point of reference is not always helpful. .

Before beginning my yoga journey I never would've claimed to be fit. I wasn't even a healthy eater. Fast food dollar menus and I never made it a point to work out. The starvation diet was always easier then working out and eating healthy.

For most of my earlier yoga adventures I continued on that same path. I felt no need to change the way I was eating or the way I treated my body if I was becoming more flexible and getting skinnier and stronger. Eventually, that gave way to a new found respect for my body and it was no longer logical to be working so hard on my body only to ruin it with garbage food, and neglect. Finally my choices were starting to become healthier.

 (Side note - now that I work out, and eat healthy foods, not only am I fifteen pounds lighter, and a constant weight, I eat all day, every two hours, and never think about if what I eat is going to land on my butt or gut.)

Luckily for me, I have a few good yoga teacher friends, who are always very helpful anytime I have questions.

Eventually my questions lead to a conversation about yoga teacher training. I was surprised and encouraged upon learning how easy it is to become a certified yoga teacher. The idea of making a living doing something I love filled me with excitement. However, I realized, I was not yet quite ready to take on this task.

I still have a lot of class material to learn before I consider myself ready to teach other people. There are also some physical goals I still would like to reach, before I even think about starting teacher training. I am, actually thinking about doing some business classes in the meantime while I continue to prepare myself physically, and mentally. Anything worth doing is worth doing right. This is something I care about so I don't want to do it half assed.

So I begin to study. I read things online. I download free yoga books to my phone. I looked up YouTube videos, and started to learn about the teachings of yoga. I learned about the Yamas and Niyamas. I studied  chakras, and The Eight Limbs Of Yoga, anything I could find. I was thirsty for knowledge.

Someone very close to me once said, "Don't speak about it. Be about it." Wise words that many cannot live by, or choose not to live by. I am no better than anyone else, and often found myself guilty of this, what was I going to do to change it? I realized that if I wanted to become a good teacher it would be necessary for me to be a good example as well.

The teachings of yoga are good ones and I was unable to find any reason not to apply these things into my day to day life:

Being understanding, and tolerating, honesty with ourselves as well as others, avoiding endless chattering with no clear purpose, not coveting things we do not have, and appreciating what we DO have, eating healthy natural foods, looking at yourself before judging others, what purpose, surrendering. The list goes on.

All of these things seemed very positive, and reasonable, to me. If there was a reason not to attempt undertaking them in my day to day life, I couldn't see it, so  I decided that was going to "be about it."

Recently I took some time off from Asanas  to complete a month long, four day a week, endurance and bodybuilding course. Needless to say I was more than a little bit excited to get back into yoga.

In my off time I still tried to keep my mind open and focused on my goals. I abstained from junk food, and eased myself into an all natural, mostly organic, diet.

Back into Asanas for a month now, and I'm ready to grab life, and yoga, by the balls.

LETS DO THIS THING!