Posts in Calm
Grounded in Times of Transition

Appropriate, repetitive movement helps our bodies to let go of tension and the brain to release "feel good" chemicals. Mindfulness practices grow the parts of the brain associated with learning and self-compassion while depressing the fearful, protective and often unhelpful area. This class combines a useful asana sequence with mindfulness practices and relaxation techniques to help you become more calm and centered in times of change.

60 Minutes, CalmLisa Dumas
Yoga Nidra for Sleep

Support your body and mind to release the day and drift off into deep and restorative rest with this inspiring and relaxing guided meditation designed to help you fall asleep.

15 minutes, CalmLisa Dumas
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.

The Ultimate Practice for Sleep

In June's Workshop I offer a selection of practices to prepare your body for rest. Explore them as part of this 90 minute ritual, or sample the various skills I offer as part of your nightly routine. Expect to receive reflections to help you release lingering thoughts from the day, movement and stretches to release tension, a specific breath technique, a meditation, a relaxing self-massage and a yoga nidra to help you drift off to restorative sleep.

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.

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.

Emotional Freedom Technique

EFT, or "tapping" is an evidence-based technique that soothes obsessive thinking with a somatic interruption (the tapping of meridian points on the body) along with a cognitive skill to reframe worries and cultivate self-compassion. With continued use, you may experience more freedom from thoughts that create suffering.

The tapping protocol: Top of head, outer eyebrow, inner eyebrow, above the lip, the top of the chin, above the collarbones, sides of upper torso, below the breasts, wrists “karate chop”, tips of fingers and thumb.

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.