barefoot works fall yoga retreat at prama institute

fall yoga retreat

I'm all set for our weekend in the mountains of NC. The theme for the weekend is "Learning to Balance the Inner & Outer World". The weekend will look like this:

Friday:

~Dinner 7:30 pm
~Discussion on what it means to balance the inner and outer world, yin yoga, intention setting for the weekend 8:30 pm

Saturday:

~Breakfast 8:00 am
~Vinyasa Yoga 10:00 am
~Lunch 12:00 pm
~Free Time 1:00 – 4:00 pm
~Balancing the Inner World- Exploring the chakras, chakra balancing, chakra meditation 4:00 – 6:00 pm
~Dinner 6:30 pm
~Self Care Tips & Techniques 7:30 pm
~Yoga Nidra 8:15 pm

Sunday:
~Salute the Sun 7:00 am
~Breakfast 8:30 am
~Balancing the Outer World- The ecology of Yoga 10:00 am
~Lunch 12:00 pm
~Closing 1:00 pm

The weekend will be sprinkled with all sorts of meditation, inspiring readings, and lots of opportunity to nurture among nature. I'm sure that I'll take plenty of photos to share if you can't be with us!

Classes will be held as scheduled at the studio. You'll find Liz teaching Saturday morning at 9:15 and Teresa Sunday morning at 10:30.

Wishing you could come along for a yoga retreat? Need some time to nurture yourself among fun and free spirited yogi's? Is sun, sand, sea, sweet folks, and loads of great yoga your idea of a good time? Consider coming along to our annual retreat to Maya Tulum.....a big slice of heaven.

sunrise

You can
die for it--
an idea,
or the world. People

have done so,
brilliantly,
letting
their small bodies be bound

to the stake,
creating
an unforgettable
fury of light. But

this morning,
climbing the familiar hills
in the familiar
fabric of dawn, I thought

of China,
and India
and Europe, and I thought
how the sun

blazes
for everyone just
so joyfully
as it rises

under the lashes
of my own eyes, and I thought
I am so many!
What is my name?

What is the name
of the deep breath I would take
over and over
for all of us? Call it

whatever you want, it is
happiness, it is another one
of the ways to enter
fire.

~ Mary Oliver ~

Last night I was speaking to my friend as we were both driving home, in opposite directions. All of a sudden the biggest, brightest sun came into view. I stopped mid sentence and said rather excitedly, "Do you see the sun!?" And of course she did. It was amazing and mesmerizing. And for just a moment I exclaimed how crazy, wonderful, and beautiful it was that it was "there" for all of us to see and. For all of us to enjoy.

That moment reminded me again how connected we all really are. And how when we see the sun, the moon and the stars, we should express thanks and gratitude for getting to be a part of this magnificent world.

seane corn on npr

I was so happy when a yogini emailed me last week and asked if I listened to Seane Corn on NPR the night before. Well I hadn't, but I did a search and found it. If you're interested in listening and learning about yoga (and life)from my yoga crush, click here to check it out. It's well worth the time. I promise.

professional yoga therapy

"Very often, understanding and practice do not go together. One student may be better able to understand, while another may have better skill in practice. In each case, he had to develop uniformity in skill and intelligence and use them harmoniously." ~B.K.S. Iyengar

I spend three full days at the studio soaking up loads of new yoga information, most specifically yoga as a form of therapy. Of course those of us that know and love yoga realize that it's so much more than "exercise". Irene wears a shirt to the studio that says somethings along the lines of, "Yoga is cheaper than going to therapy." Yoga is therapy for your mind, body, and spirit. It's good stuff.

This particular training is geared towards health care professionals. It's at the top of my list of "best trainings" that I've done. Ginger, our teacher was pretty fabulous...a kind and compassionate soul, very smart, and a wonderful yoga teacher.

One of the objectives is to develop a deeper understanding for applying yoga to general and clinical populations. There were lots of pyhsical therapists and nurses. A dentist and a couple people like myself with no health care credentials. My MS in Recreation and Park Adm. didn't quite make the cut! Luckily I had Tracy next to me the whole training and when I didn't get something, she quietly filled me in. And when she didn't understand the fifth chakra being deficient or excessive, I could quietly fill her in. With her physical anatomy knowledge and my energetic body knowledge, we might make the perfect yoga teacher. ;-)

Actually I was a little intimidated going into the training because I wasn't sure if I would feel lost. I realized that I know more about the body than I give myself credit for most of the time. So that was good!

Here's a little rundown of things covered and learned:
*We did case studies for developing a yoga class for special and general populations.
*Potential contraindications and precautions for patient and student populations.
*Learned biomechanics of yoga asanas (postures) and pranayama (breathing exercises).
*Mudra and chakra therapy (a fave)
*Studies of Bhagavad Gita (another fave)
*Studies of koshas and kleshas, how to identify, apply and how to treat "the whole person" (and one last fave).
*Much more. In fact, too much to write!

Here are a few notes sprinkled about my manual and notebook....open for interpretation as you see fit. :-)

*You can't judge the good from the bad. What seems like bad (at the time) could end up being the best thing that's ever happened to you.
*Have mercy on your body. Love it, don't judge it.
*Adversity is good. Suffering is good. It's these places, these dark times that allow for growth, hopefully making us more wise, which we can then share and teach others.
*It's not the "person" that hurts us. It's their own struggle, the war they are waging within themselves that hurt us.
*We never fully perfect ourselves. Trying to do so is a waste of time and causes unnecessary pain and suffering.
*Yoga invites you to go beyond the five senses

A second yin yoga class begins tonight with none other than the wonderfully talented, Sarah Frank (I feel like I should be opening a curtain and she should walk on through)! It's tonight, 7:30 - 8:30 and will be a great class! Please join in!

Lastly, a happy birthday shout out to my little Lexie!!! That's her with me pictured above, crossing the KY River on the ferry.

Happy, Happy Fall!!

i believe in all that has never yet been spoken

I believe in all that has never yet been spoken.
I want to free what waits within me
so that what no one has dared to wish for

may for once spring clear
without my contriving.

If this is arrogant, God, forgive me,
but this is what I need to say.
May what I do flow from me like a river,
no forcing and no holding back,
the way it is with children.

Then in these swelling and ebbing currents,
these deepening tides moving out, returning,
I will sing you as no one ever has,

streaming through widening channels
into the open sea.

Rainer Maria Rilke

I've read these words over and over today. Before I taught class, shared them at the end of class, before I typed this, and even as I type them I am moved by the sheer power and beauty of it.

May what you choose to do today
flow from you like a river,
no forcing and no holding back,
the way it is with children.

*A reminder that we will not be having yoga class this Saturday or Sunday as we'll be hosting a Professional Yoga Therapy training all weekend long.

barefoot works voted best yoga class in lexington!

This past Saturday my friend and I are leaving Kroger and out of the corner of my eye I see the "Best of Lexington" issue by Ace Weekly sitting on a wire shelf. I had to pick up some almonds for the health fair and we were on our way to see "The Women" at the Movie Tavern.

I flipped through the pages and under the Health and Fitness section, for Best Yoga Class.....was my baby, Barefoot Works!! Rated as #1!!

So of course I was a thrilled yogini. All sorts of hootin' and hollerin'. Big smiles. Happy Day.

Thank you for voting for Barefoot Works. I know that we have the absolute best, most loyal, most appreciative, most happy, most wonderful yogis and yoginis that frequent Barefoot Works. I'm always so happy to see you walk through the door and consider it a honor to share yoga with you.

May your day be filled with joy and abundance!

this weekend

My box has gotten some TLC this morning....oil changed, tires rotated, wipers exchanged, and gassed up, ready to go to Cincinnati today for a yoga workshop and time spent with yoga friends.

I'll make my way back down to Lexington in the morning and have a fun meeting with the teachers of BW. We'll review a first draft of the teacher handbook, flyers for each to promote their classes, record a couple short clips of them teaching for our youtube page, and chat about classes and studio offerings over brunch at Panera.

I've got some things to finish up in preparation for a health fair I'll be at Sunday. So I'll be spending some time at my computer and at kinkos tomorrow also. Dinner with our fave couple friend will be a treat.

Sunday I'll be representing BW at a holistic health fair here in town. Come out and visit. I'll be there from noon to 5:00 and you get loads on good info, mingle with others, eat free Indian food, and learn about yoga, herbology, meditation, acupuncture and more. Hope to see you there!

Maybe you can find some time to sit under a tree and do some coloring like my cute nieces! Have a bright and shiny weekend sweet ones!

fall wear

Could there have been a better day to be gifted with a PINK hat and scarf?!

courage

It takes a lot of courage
to release the familiar
and seemingly secure,
to embrace the new.
But there is no real security
in what is no longer meaningful.
There is more security in the
adventurous and exciting,
for in movement there is life,
and in change
there is power.

Alan Cohen

todays perks

Today's perks of owning your own business...
~You wake when you want, take refreshing walks on beautiful mornings like the one we had today, practice yoga & meditation, and not feel guilty about spending nearly two hours devoted to your mental and physical wellness.
~You get to enjoy a leisure breakfast outside on your porch instead of grabbing a cup of coffee and racing to the office.
~You get to carry your backpack to main & maple, sit by a big window with the sun streaming through, enjoy a mocha jo, and do work that you enjoy.
~You get to watch the season opener (didn't even know this one) of Oprah where she has the Olympic medalists on and do work between commercials of course ;-)

Not all of us desire to own a business but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that we do desire moments of happiness and the occasional perk. I imagine that all of us can achieve both.

Maybe we get up earlier to do a few sun salutations.
Maybe we turn the radio off and enjoy the ride to work....who says New Circle Rd. can't have its moments of tranquility? ;-)
Maybe we enjoy lunch outside, maybe even a park.
Maybe we could compliment our partner, our boss, the clerk at the store. Understanding that it feels good to help others in feeling good.
And when all else fails enjoy a sliver of chocolate or a few mindless minutes surfing the web.
That always perks me up...

How about you? What are some perks you've enjoyed recently?

barefoot works b-day party!

barefoot works celebrates two years of yoga!

Yippy another great year of yoga for BW here in Lexington

!

Over the past year we've taught yoga to more than 3000 Lexingtonians....if there is such a word.

As our classes have grown we've had to make a few changes at the studio, such as expanding the cork floor to the front door. Yes there was a time (like this time last year) that it wasn't like this. I hear people joking (but maybe your not ;-)that soon we'll have to bust a wall down or expand to the parking lot!

We've also been out in the community sharing yoga in places like Bluegrass Regional, St. Joseph Hospital, VA, Jessamine Co.Public Schools, Joesph Beth, Stars Camp participants, and Breast Cancer Survivors groups.

We started and completed Lexington's first 200 hour yoga teacher training registered with Yoga Alliance.

We've grown from a teaching staff of two to five, adding more knowledge, more personaliyy, and more joy to the classes at BW.

We traveled back to my favorite place for our annual yoga retreat, Maya Tulum for a week of sand, sun, fun, and lots of yoga and massage of course.

I personally traveled to San Francisco for a Yoga Journal Conf. to practice with Seane, Shiva and Sharon. I did a training for thai yoga massage and later this month another yoga therapy training.

It's enough to make me feel very happy to live this life and of course to share it all with you.

Thank you for your support.
Thank you for your kindness.
Thank you for choosing Barefoot Works.
I know that there are only 24 hours in any given day and I'm always thankful that you choose to spend a chunk of your time at Barefoot Works.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.
From the very bottom of my heart.

So please come out tonight at 7:00 and celebrate with us at Barefoot Works. It'll be an evening for playful partner yoga, yummy vegetarian treats, and hanging out with other great yogi's! I hope to see you tonight!
Namaste.

commitment

The idea of commitment has been on my mind the last couple days and we briefly chatted about it this morning at the 9:15 vinyasa class. A super sweet yogini asked me about my yoga practice and I explained to her that I typically do an asana practice each day. Some days it's longer, some days it's shorter. It depends on how much time and energy I have. But I have made the commitment to get on my mat, even on those days that I don't want to. Taking the time to practice is a commitment that I've made to myself.

Yesterday morning I started my day with my early morning walk and instead of making my way straight to my yoga room I got sidetracked by a couple of things I (thought I) had to do. After finsihing the tasks I almost blew my yoga practice off. Instead I rationalized spending at least 10-15 minutes on the mat and see what happened. And just as I imagined the 15 minutes quickly faded to 30, then 45.

While I was practicing a variation of half moon pose, I could literally feel myself not commiting to the posture....mentally or physically. I felt like I was on shaky ground. And after just a little bit of reflection I realized it was because I was not commiting to the posture. I wasn't sure of myself, my legs, or my ability to find a sense of balance.

I released back into triangle pose, affirmed my commitment to the pose and went straight into it, made the bind I had so desperately tried for just moments earlier. The second time around I was sure of myself and my ability to find ease in the pose. And I can confidently say that my mind and the commitment made all the difference.

Later upon more reflection (I reflect a lot, just ask Andy ;-)I realized that when I've set a clear intention, followed by a firm commitment, all the things/ideas/goals/jobs presented themselves.

Of course, like all things in life we can't simply state a commitment and expect it to happen without the much needed work that's involved. I doubt that you'd commit to practice handstand without a wall and not do the work involved to practice the pose with success.

So set your intention.
Make the commitment.
Follow it up with the work involved.

What areas of your life to do need to make a much needed commitment?
Is in on the yoga mat, at your job, in your relationships, your habits, etc.?

september playlist

Click here to check out the playlist for the month.
And lyrics of my fave new song for the month:

PREFACE

Life comes swiftly
At you suddenly
Takes you by surprise

Unexpected
Seems so hectic
No time to decide

Leave your conflict, leave your strife
Bring an open mind
Try your luck and roll the dice
Win more than a grand prize

Come and join me
Gather quickly
Brace yourself for this

Life’s a mystery
Still worth living
It’s what you make of it.

It's Di Johnston. Click here to hear the whole tune!

Come out this evening to practice AND listen to great music. I hope to see you here!