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Yoga Teacher Training Day 2: Chakras and the Spine

Welcome back! Last week I gave you some insight into my first day in yoga teacher training. This week, I hope to tell you a little bit about Day 2. I have to say, this was a very special day in my mind and I might not really be able to convey everything that happened.

I really do believe that some of the conversations on this day formed the beginnings of our true bond as a group. As such, I will be holding some things back. Again, some of these things are deeply personal, and I would never want to tell someone else’s story. That’s not what we’re here for. I will do my best to tell you about the day from my perspective while maintaining the integrity of the trust and openness being established in our group.

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Yoga Teacher Training Day 1: What Brings You Here?

Here we are! The purpose for which this blog was created. I just finished my first weekend of yoga teacher training, and I’m ready to try to share with you all a little bit about how that went. I have to say up front that there were moments that will not, perhaps, translate well to the written page. Nevertheless, I am full to bursting with gratitude and excitement, and I will do my best to make that come across here.

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Beginning a Yoga Practice (Part 4): Starting A Yoga Practice at Home

Welcome to the final post in my series on beginning a yoga practice. This week, we are taking a look at some resources for those who want to begin a yoga practice at home. If you want some more background information on yoga vocabulary, beginner poses, or what to expect at your first yoga class, click the links to check out the other posts in this series.

This post will be pretty heavy on the links. If you are getting started and checking out these resources, you may want to bookmark this page to make it easier to go back and find the YouTube channels and other apps and resources linked here. Let’s get started!

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Beginning a Yoga Practice (Part 3): Your First Yoga Class

First Yoga CLass

In my previous two posts, we’ve talked a lot about the language of yoga and some good poses to know when beginning a yoga practice. In this post, I’d like to talk about what you might expect when you attend your first yoga class.

First yoga class
If you don’t have a studio nearby, or don’t quite feel comfortable attending class just yet, don’t despair. I will have resources next week for those who want to begin their yoga practice at home. There’s no issue with being self-taught, and many people start their practice in the privacy of their own home. However, I can’t say enough about the benefits of working with a certified instructor in class.

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Beginning a Yoga Practice (Part 2): Beginner Yoga Poses

Beginner Yoga Pose: Side Angle

In my first post in this series, we talked a bit about the vocabulary of yoga and some of the most common Sanskrit words you will come across when beginning a yoga practice. I also included a few poses that corresponded to those Sanskrit words. In this post, I’d like to talk more about some beginner yoga poses you can start with to build your own practice.

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Beginning a Yoga Practice (Part 1): The Language of Yoga

Welcome to the first post in a new series about beginning a yoga practice. Friends and family who are thinking about beginning a yoga practice have asked me for tips on beginning a yoga practice ever since I decided to do yoga teacher training. Wondering how to get started? Then read on!

In this first post, I plan to go over some of the vocabulary you might hear when looking into getting started with yoga. I’ll also have a few pointers on the poses I address in this post. I’ll have even more poses for the beginning yogi next week, so be sure to subscribe and check back for more! Continue reading “Beginning a Yoga Practice (Part 1): The Language of Yoga”

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Teaching My First Yoga Class

Teaching my first yoga class

Why Not Dive In?

As I mentioned in my first post, encouragement from Angela at Main Street Yoga is one of the major reasons I decided to start yoga teacher training. I’m not sure I would have applied without her prodding. I didn’t feel ready, but her encouragement convinced me to try. Now here I am, just waiting for that first training weekend in April.

I should also mention that Angela is that teacher who is not only great with beginning students, but also knows what her established students are capable of doing. If she thinks she can push you just a little more, she will. I’m usually really grateful for the push, too. So, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised a few weeks ago when she asked me to sub for her at the end of March. That’s right. She wanted me to teach for her at the end of March. Training starts in April. So, I would be teaching my first yoga class a month before I start teacher training. Nothing like doing a cannonball into the pool! Continue reading “Teaching My First Yoga Class”

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Goal Posts and Goal Poses

I am obsessed with arm balances in my yoga practice. It started with Crow and Eight-Angle, and I’ve been deeply in love ever since. When I see a new one or a new variation on an old favorite, I have to try it as soon as possible. It isn’t unheard of for me to sneak back to the kitchen in the office where I work to try something out during my lunch break.

Arm balance
Playing around in Side Crow!

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Santosha

Santosha has become my secret mantra. I hear you already. “What the heck is Santosha? And why is it a secret? Are you going to regularly speak in tongues on this blog?” The short answers: It’s sanskrit, I just haven’t told anyone yet, and possibly. Let me explain.

When I do something, I do it 110%. Not because I am in competition with others. I compete with myself to be the best I know I can be. As you might imagine, in the most Type-A yogi you’ll ever meet. When I come across a new pose or variation, I have to try it as soon as humanly possible. If I don’t get it right away, I keep trying until I do. Once I do get it, I spend about half a second feeling satisfied and then start thinking of how I could do it better. I’m relentless with myself that way.

Upward-facing dog
I don’t even have room for all the ways I feel my simple upward-facing dog could be better.

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