A Yoga Nidra for the Winter Season

Enjoy a supine meditation where you will be guided into deep relaxation for the body and mind and invited to explore imagery to help celebrate the return of the sun after the longest night of the year.

You are More Than Anxiety

Explore rhythmic movement, a specific breath technique and a seated awareness practice all known to soothe and balance the nervous system creating a state of inner calm and an acknowledgment of the parts of you that are not afraid.

Movement & Mindfulness, A Journey Through the Koshas

Utilize the yogic concept of the "koshas" (layers) to practice the art of mindfulness; the skill of witnessing the body, breath, mind and heart as a means of cultivating presence and ease within a full spectrum practice.

Vata Balancing

Ayurveda, the sister science of yoga, views anxiety/ over-worry as an imbalance of a quality called "vata". Related to air and ether, imbalanced vata creates turbulence, distraction and a lack of ground, while balanced vata enhances vitality, personal power and presence. Enjoy this gentle movement and breath experience to feel peacefully alive.

Ten Minutes to Calm

A slow and rhythmic flow through repetitive movements and the breath known to create a grounded flow in the body and mind.

Hips on the Floor

A 15 minute sequence to warm up, strengthen and stretch the hips from the ground. A stand alone experience for healthy hips or a wonderful way to prepare for more dynamic activity or to practice after movement like walking/biking or swimming if the hip area is aggravated.

Balance Through Breath and Movement

Whether you desire a sense of "balance" due to extreme weather, workload, worry or fatigue, the elements of this 60 minute practice are intended to help you feel more centered, grounded and present. Expect a breath technique and rhythmic, mellow movement to help "balance" energy, mind and body.

Calming the Overactive Mind/Body

Those of us with a more dominant fiery nature who have a hard time relaxing, or have a tendency not to stop until the point of exhaustion can become vulnerable to burnout as the weather heats up. Interestingly, many of us need stronger movement before we can truly relax. This is an example of a practice to help a busy mind and body finally take a break, cool down and replenish.

Balancing Fire with Water

In the summer season, hot weather can aggravate our bodies and minds exposing us to challenges like burnout, irritation and rigidity. This moderate class invites you to move with fluidity, encouraging a mindful, moving meditation to cool and calm.

Calm Concentration to Rest the Mind

The underpinnings of yoga include the philosophy of the Yoga Sutras, an old text that continues to inspire modern yogis. One of the suggestions for creating inner contentment is the cultivation of "dharana" the Sanskrit word for concentration. Explore techniques to support this skill within a complete, full body hatha practice.

Neck Support

A complete hatha class with focus on therapeutics for the neck to strengthen the muscles that support our heads and retain optimal alignment, helping to avoid upper back and neck pain. Includes a calming skill utilizing sound felt in the throat and neck.

Undieting, Nourishment for the Soul

In this bonus workshop, Holistic Nutritionist Lisa Kilgour joined me to share some of her wisdom about learning what is truly nourishing for each of us as unique individuals. This class begins in a chair with practices to relax and prepare your body for nourishment. Then, Lisa K. peeled back some of the food industry deceptions and taught us how to reconnect to our bodies as our best friends and allies in our health. I closed the class with a deeply restoring guided meditation intended to offer another level of nourishment for your mind, heart and soul. Find out more about working with Lisa KIlgour and getting her wonderful book, Undieting.

Nourishment Through True Presence

When was the last time you allowed yourself to just be? There are so many benefits to letting ourselves do nothing every once in a while, and be with what is. Here's a practice that guides you to presence through your senses throughout a rhythmic, engaging and strengthening flow. Learn to discern how to feel a balance of effort and ease and experience 75 minutes of mindfulness in motion.

Wrist- Free Strengthening

Sometimes our lives (and our yoga practices) can be hard on our wrists. Enjoy this sequence that shows you how you can strengthen the muscles of your arms without load, and how to care for your wrists and hands so they stay functional.

Member Request- Tight Hip Therapy

A 15 minute set of therapeutics for tending to tight external hip rotators (piriformis, gluteals) which often occur and can cause pain around the sacrum or in the deep buttocks. Try this program to keep the area mobilized, strong and flexible!

Rebuild & Restore Through Effort & Ease

One reason we may feel depleted is having to continue to take action to fulfill our responsibilities even when we may need rest. This necessary tendency can desensitize us to our energy levels and lead to burn out. The intention of this hatha flow is to re-sensitize yourself to how much energy you are expending by committing to work at 70-75 percent of your ability during the dynamic portion of this practice. The last third of this class is a series of restorative poses to further help us rebuild the energy we scatter through our lives every day.

Nourishment for Body, Energy and Sense of Self

A rebuilding gentle and abdominals- focused flow that invites you to receive restoration through awareness of your "center"- drawing breath, attention and physical strength to our "core" area that is symbolic of our personal power, boundaries and self-worth. Nourishing depletion of energy and motivation through movement, breath and present-centred focus.

Craft a Supportive Morning Routine (May Workshop)

In May's workshop, I offered you a bounty of ideas for helping you to start your day vibrant and tranquil.

We explored an exercise where we examine what we already do each morning, and where we could add in small new habits that can add up to big changes over time.

Workshop notes:

-New habit ideas from bed: Breathe into right side nostril/right side body to encourage a new day of energized activity, eye exercises, joint freeing. Cultivate a thought as your feet hit the floor, like: "May something wonderful happen today".

-Let the light in, a ritual while opening blinds, windows, standing joint freeing and shake off the night's sleep.

-5 essential yoga postures: Plank, Cobra (or Locust), Leg Lifts, Bridge Pose, Bow Pose (with modifications and options. Body Brushing

-Turning aspirations into reality through habit change (written exercise)

-Prana Nidra: a supine guided meditation intended to encourage presence, (the wellspring of vitality) and balance our energy.

Breathing Your Way to Balance

We begin with three brief breath techniques intended to calm a distracted mind, invigorate and increase focus. The breath leads a rhythmic flow through a full body strengthen and stretch. Closes with more gentle concentration and overall ease for mind, body and heart

Freedom and Fluidity for the Hips

A 30 minute movement and breath practice that focuses on creating mobility and strength for the hips while inviting an intention to increase the ability to experience pleasure through movement and go with the flow of life.