Yoga is so much more of an inner experience rather than an outward expression. This inner transformation can be difficult to convey to folks, especially people unfamiliar with a full, rich yoga practice that goes beyond stretching your hamstrings. The practice is sacred—a communion among body, mind, and breath. A way to touch into and connect with something deeper—sometimes I like to call it Life with a capital L. For all of these reasons and more, I no longer take photographs of people during yoga.
Read moreThings I no longer do in yoga class, Part 2
I no longer say, “Namaste.” Why would this be? For the first thirteen and a half years of teaching, I would almost always close class with this Sanskrit term, sometimes followed by Gandhi's interpretation: "I honor the place in you where the entire Universe resides. A place of light, of love, of truth, of peace, of wisdom. I honor the place in you where when you are in that place, and I am in that place, there is only One of us."
Read moreThings I no longer do in yoga class, Part 1
I no longer say, "the fullest expression of the pose." In my teacher training over 15 years ago, this was common lingo (AKA the most "advanced" version of the pose). Oh wait, advanced is another word I have removed from my yoga teacher vocabulary for the most part.
Read moreRigged in your favor
How many times have I almost talked myself out of doing the thing? Back in 2007, I almost cancelled my yoga teacher training program in Austin, Texas. I thought it was insane to try teaching yoga in southwest Iowa, where we had just moved. My husband encouraged me to do it anyway, just to see.
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