Hip Hop Yoga Music Mix

Yoga + Hip Hop = Power Flow Yoga Class

I've taken my two favorites and combined them together. I teach a wide variety of people each week and I try to cater my music to everyone's liking. I create a wide variety of yoga mixes and this is just one of the many.

I don't play lyrical hip hop in my Gainesville yoga classes ( as much as I want to) but I do play instrumental hip hop from great artists like A Tribe Called Quest, Beastie Boys, and Atmosphere mixed with some Afrobeat artists like Fela Kuti.

Good music mixes for yoga are hard to find, so I've taken artists' music I love and brought a whole new element of movement to it.

1 - Sabrosa - Beastie Boys
2 - The Woman With Tattooed Hands (instrumental) - Atmosphere
3 - Mama's Always on Stage (instrumental) - Arrested Development
4 - Jeun Ko Ku (Chop N' Quench) - Fela Kuti & the Africa 70
5 - Track Name Unknown - Mr. Mind
6 -Shambala - Beastie Boys
7 - Electric Relaxation (instrumental) - A Tribe Called Quest
8 - Lebanese Blonde - Thievery Corporation
9 - Party for the Fight to Write (instrumental) - Atmosphere
10 - Track Name Unknown - Nujabes
11 - Downtempo Track - From mrbluthc
12 - Downtempo Track - From mrbluthc

Still gonna keep the Gainesville community alive with some good tunes and hip hop yoga style...send me any suggestions my way.

Days 2 & 3 of Yoga for Detoxification

Day 2's menu consisted of:

Breakfast: Fruit smoothie made with blueberries, strawberry's, vanilla yogurt and apple juice (yummy)

Lunch: Fresh greens with veggies and organic basalmic dressing, left over quinoa with raw veggies, juice

Dinner: Black bean stew and salad

It was challenging to maintain this detox diet into day 3. I ate oatmeal for breakfast, and then went on a great bike ride with my friend Allie, owner of Allie Bags (who designs handmade yoga bags).

The bike ride had worked up such an appetite we went to The Swamp for some delicious Blue Moon (hey that's made of hops and barely right) and chips and salsa. And that's when I converted back to my regular diet of mostly healthy meals ;)

During the detox I would do a yoga practice. Day 2 I practiced in my studio space a vinyasa flow routine and it was wonderful release. I definitely noticed a difference in my body and mind from the detoxification. It was an experience and I look forward to trying it again, maybe once a month or something. Either way, it made me more conscious of what I consume.

Yoga Detox Diet: Getting Started with Day 1

Imagine your body full of petrochemicals and industrial toxins. These toxins come from pesticides, plastics, flame retardents, and heavy metals from the environment---you name it and you've probably consumed it at one point in time.

I recently returned from a 4 day snowboarding trip in West Virgina and a pit stop in Atlanta. My belly was full of delicious food the entire time and now I feel janky, toxic and over weight. When we travel, we consume alot of processed foods and fatty foods and I am I certainly feeling the effects.

I was reading the newest Yoga Journal and there's a detox article in there with a yoga practice and a yoga diet. I figured now was a good of time as any to give it a try. Some of the recipes have pretty lengthy ingredients so I may stray away and have something else for that meal, we'll see. As for the yoga practice, I'm incorporating the reccomended poses to squeeze the body of toxins in to my classes this week.

- High Lunge

- Parsvottanasana

- Utkanasana (Variation with a twist)

- Locust

- Reclined Twist

- Reclined Bound Angle

- Legs-up-the-wall

- Savasana

Day 1

Breakfast: (which I'm eating now) consists of cooked quinoa, a grain and some trasil mix with pistachios, pecans, cashews and dried cranberries. It's not very flavorful but it's edible. Water with lemon is my beverage.

Lunch: On the menu is herbal tea, Kitchari (which I may just pick up at the local health eatery in town) and steamed collards with Lemon Miso dressing.

Dinner: Bowl of mixed fruit, broccoli, kale, onions, chick peas sauteed in olive oil, and a baked sweet potato.

Snacks: Almond Milk, Fresh fruit, homemade fruit smoothie, baked beets (ick!), vegetable juices, oatmeal, raw carrots, celery, cucumbers, and radishes, salads with Lemon Miso dressing.

Gentle Yoga Class (Using the Wall as a Prop)

I've been incorporating more props, such as blocks, straps and blankets into my Gainesville gentle yoga class. But today, we used the wall, which in my opinion is one of the best props to use. People come to gentle yoga classes because that's the yoga they want. They may have back, neck or knee issues, or even recovering from surgery. Keep that in mind when you're teaching. Use props and get off your mat when teaching and remind your students to breathe.

Here is the gentle yoga class routine I taught this morning in case you'd like to teach it yourself. This routine is great for beginners and seniors. It's not a vigorous yoga class but a gentle, restorative, energizing class. Don't forget to remind your students to breathe.

And remember, it's not how yoga looks, but how it feels.

Floor Work
- Breath Awareness
- Sacral release (rock the the clock)
- Shoulder and upper body stretching
- Easy pose forward fold

Core Movement
- Cat/Cow spinal movements
- Side Gate
- Forward fold (hold elbows release tension)
- Surya Namaskar A (Sivanada style) (start with left leg back, repeat right, use blocks for lunges)

Wall Work
- Downward dog (walk hands up and down, legs out and in, play around with it, chest towards floor and pull arm pits in, engage arms into shoulder sockets)
- Warrior 3
- Forward Fold
-Chair (shoulders reach back, start with hands on hips, then raise arms by ears, extend through chest)
- Forward Fold
- Dancer (using strap around one ankle and wall for hand, play around with it, try a short dancer first then a long, extending through arms)
- Wide Legged Forward Fold

Floor Work
- Wide leg seated foward fold
- Pigeon on back (great alternative)
- Reclined twist
- Restorative Bridge (use block under sacram, palms face up, eyes close and practice breath awareness)

Yoga Nidra
- Svasana (corpse pose)
- I usually end my gentle classes with yoga nidra, which is yoga sleep. 1 hour of effective yoga nidra is equivalent to 4 hours of sleep. I recommend the Yoga Nidra book (Paperback)by Swami Satyananda Saraswati

Join me on Fridays from 8 - 9 AM for my Gainesville gentle yoga class at Haile Plantation. The cost is $15 for non member and $10 for members.

Anyone can do yoga. Explore the benefits and live a healthy life. Namaste.

Get your Valentine Partner Yoga at Sanctuary Yoga

Valentine's Day is just around the corner...looking for the perfect something for your friend or loved one?

On February 7th, from 1:00 PM - 3:30 PM, Sanctuary Yoga in Gainesville, FL will be having a Partner Yoga Workshop.

"Partner Yoga is a unique physical and spiritual practice that uses specific movements and poses (asanas) to focus the mind and increase strength, flexibility and stamina. Partners rely on each other’s support to keep correct body alignment, balance and concentration. Partner Yoga is uplifting, inspiring and delivers a diverse range of benefits to a wide range of people at all levels of yoga practice from beginners to advanced practitioners. Some knowledge of basic yoga postures is helpful but not necessary.Join Ann and Lori in this fun experience of using the support of a friend or loved one to take your practice to new understandings and depths."

You can register and find more details here: http://www.yogagainesville.com/workshops/

You can check out partner yoga here: http://tinyurl.com/ckkry8

If you just want to try yoga on your own, come to my yoga classes in Haile Plantation. (click on Yoga Classes)

Namaste.

The Meaning of OM

At the end of yoga class, sometimes even before, your teacher may lead everyone in chanting OM (aum).

What is Om?
Om is called the "Pranava," a Sanskrit word meaining life force (prana) and life-giver.

I encourage my students to participate in chanting Om, although its not required. Chanting OM is perfectly harmless and can be done regardless of your spiritual beliefs. It’s actually really satisfying sound to just let rip!

You should try it...don't be shy...one of the most importatnt things that yoga teaches us is not to place judgement on ourself or others.

Why do we "Om?"

You can meditate with the mantra Om, this is called “Om yoga”. Try it...repeat “om” in unison with your breath. The purpose of this is to become free from suffering and limitation. Om yoga is discussed in many sacred yoga and Hindu texts, such as the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, and Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras.

Some people find that the chanting of helps their breathing become more regular and slower. aiding in mental focus and relaxation, hence why yogis like to start or end their yoga practice by chanting Om.

“Om,”A Little Word but Powerful Meaning

There is a ton of information on the Web about the meaning behind Om. You may even notice is sounds similar to "home" and "amen" when you chant those words, comforting your the mind and soul.

Here are some of the writings about Om from ancient writings that helped form yoga traditions:

Om is the root of all sounds. Every other sound is contained in That, and It is used to take one beyond all sound. - Sri Anandamovi Ma

The Self is of the nature of the Syllable Om…Meditate on Om as the Self - Mandukya Upanishad 1.8.12, 2.2.3

God’s voice is Om –Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 1:27

Good Every Day Advice

From http://www.inspirationpeak.com/ this is great advice:

Sometimes we feel that we've got to climb a mountain or raise a monument to leave our mark on the world. What we fail to recognize is that often we make a difference simply by existing, by handling what life gives us. Maybe the way we deal with our challenges and our rewards inspires someone else to achieve worthwhile things in their own life.

Blaine Lee
Inspirational Author and Speaker

Macho Men Do Yoga

Listen up accident and injury prone athletes, real men do yoga...macho men... strong or weak, ripped or scrawny, young and old, flexible or inflexible, to lose weight, reduce stress and much more. In fact, before yoga was Westernized in India, only men were allowed to practice yoga. There's even a book about real men doing yoga where athletes share how much yoga has benefited their focus, strength and reduce muscle sprain.

And guess what fellas? Flexibility is not a requirement for yoga, but breathing and having an open mind is. Practice yoga poses for men before you go to a yoga class and you may feel more comfortable in a group class environment.

If your having back pain from yard work, headaches from your wife/girlfriend, foot pain from uncomfortable golf shoes, road rage from rush hour traffic, forgetfulness, hangovers from too much tailgating, stress from work or school, then try some yoga recommendations from Men's Health Yoga Center.

Gainesville sports teams, including the University of Florida Gator football, basketball and soccer teams would benefit immensely by incorporating athlete yoga (at least once a week) into their sports conditioning. Yoga will improve a player's flexibility, mindset and reduce injury. As I continue to eagerly await for Gator Football Coach Urban Meyer and Gator Basketball Coach Billy Donovan to book me to teach yoga for UF athletes, I'll continue to emphasize how important it is for men to try yoga and stick to it. You have my garuntee that yoga will only bring you better health and well being for the New Year.

Good luck to the Gators this upcoming week too! It's great to be a Florida Gator! Chomp chomp chomp! Beat OU!

Bring Positive Intentions with Yoga

Each and every day we create a sankalpa and embed it in our body and mind, whether we realize it or not. "Sankalpa" is sanskrit and it means "will, purpose, or determination." To make a sankalpa is to set an intention—very similar to a New Year's resolution. Every thought, intention and determination you make, whether positive or negative is bound to come true. Sankalpa's are often stated mentally to yourself during yoga nidra as well, such as "I am experiencing vibrant health" or "I am experiencing peace in my life."

I read in Yoga Journal "While a resolution often zeros in on a perceived negative aspect of ourselves (as in, "I want to lose weight, so no more chocolate chip cookies or ice cream or cheese"), a sankalpa explores what's behind the thought or feeling ("I crave chocolate chip cookies or ice cream or cheese when I'm feeling stressed or sad. I will set an intention to become conscious of this craving and allow my feelings to arise and pass, rather than fill up on fats")."

State your intention for the New Year with exploring the benefits of yoga. Begin your year healthy, happy and motivated with yoga in Gainesville.

Starting Monday, January 5 there is a new Haile Plantation yoga class schedule.

You can find the schedule on my Gainesville Yoga web site. I teach three classes a week at the Haile Plantation Fitness center; a gentle yoga class, power yoga class and beginners yoga class.

In addition to my private yoga instruction with Lavanya Yoga, I will also be teaching at Zen Fitness, a new fitness center in Gainesville, Florida. I expect to have the schedule of classes posted soon.

Try Yoga for the New Year 2009

Yoga for the New Year 2009 can benefit you both mentally and physically. The physical benefits of yoga includes weight-loss, toned muscles, increased flexibility and detoxification. The mental benefits include reduced stress, calm mind, awareness and peace. Try yoga classes in Gainesville or even start by getting a yoga DVD or yoga book for beginners.

May peace fill all the empty spaces around you And in you, may contentment answer all your wishes. May comfort be yours, warm and soft like a sigh. And may the coming year show you that every day is really a first day, a new year. Let abundance be your constant companion, so that you have much to share. May mirth be near you always, like a lamp shining brightly on the many paths you travel. May you be true love. Author Unknown But Very Much Appreciated! Five Beautiful Poems To Read On New Years Day