Yoga with Lucy and Meditation with Deepak

The start to my weekend went like this; bright and early wake up on Saturday morning, before the sun was up in these English winter months.  I needed to get my body going after a slightly heavy meal on Friday evening so I chose a vigorous Sun Salutation practice with Lucy.  It is fast and fun, she includes lots of standing poses, just what I needed to get my circulation going as well as flush out any toxins and heaviness.  The video is filmed on the rocks by the sea in Cornwall, with the bright sun shining and waves crashing, what stunning imagery to start the imagination juices flowing.

Once I had completed my asana practice I moved onto a meditation with Deepak Chopra.  The Chopra Centre is currently running a 21 day meditation challenge for creating abundance, they post a new audio meditation each day for you to practice.  The centring thought for this day was ‘Everything I desire is within me’ and the Sanskrit mantra was ‘Ram…ram…ram…’  We are now on day 7 of the challenge, which I have taken on, and I am finding the short but very potent meditations are a fantastic way to start the day.  I have a mediation practice, however sometimes I wonder if I am doing it right or getting anywhere, so it is very refreshing to be guided by the awesome Deepak Chopra and having a clear focus for the practice.

I am practicing the lesson of putting that which nourishes me at the top of my priority list, which is I’m sure partly why we so often do our practice first thing in the morning, it is the most important thing we do in the day and it is from there that the rest of the day unfolds.

Read Full Post »

Life is right here, right now

This is something I most certainly need to contemplate at the moment!  Having been swept along by the vata season and doing a million and one things, with just as many possible outcomes and options, I am very much being drawn into the future and trying to work out what will happen.  In order to stay in action I have been doing exactly that – maybe being too much in action – busy, busy, busy!  If I am completely occupied (usually with work tasks) I can’t think about the future and what may happen and try to work it all out.  This is OK for a short time but, like any avoidance strategy, it can start to take over and create imbalance.

Moving through the hatha flow with Kirsty kept reminding me to be present, feel the body, stay with the sensations and at the same time not aim to be picture perfect, but accept what I bring to the mat today.  In this way each pose felt like a special gift to myself, I wanted to linger in the sensation and drink it in fully, rather than race through till it’s complete and already moving on to the next.

It is when life gets busy, stressful and you feel you may not have time for your practice, or your exercise, or your self care routine, then it is even more important to sanctify those parts of your day.  To keep filling yourself up, making yourself feel like you are worth it, to give you the best possible foundation for the day ahead at work, or give you the presence of mind you need to look after the kids on your own again.  I am still in the process of learning this too 🙂

Much love Gemma xxx

Read Full Post »

Don’t f**k about yoga!

This morning I decided to challenge myself with Jock’s 35 minute practice which is for intermediate and advanced students.  I know Jock is incredibly strong with a very advanced practice so I was ready for it!  The sequence started with extended side angle pose (utthita parsvakonasana) which is one of my challenge poses, so I tried not to grit my teeth as I moved into my uncomfortable version of the pose.  From here we swiftly moved onto pigeon pose (eka pada rajkapotasana) which can bring many yogis up against all kinds of resistance, me included.  As the practice continued I started to feel that maybe I was not quite as advanced as I thought 🙂  And my especially vata body at the moment, feeling dry with aches in the joints from the autumn season and from lack of adequate rest, was resisting in all kinds of ways!

As I continued with the practice, modifying the poses which I have not yet progressed to which is very good for reminding the ego of it’s place, I started to smile at the dive straight in, no chit chat and ‘don’t f**k about’ vibe to the practice – I love it!  Sometimes yoga in the west can get a little too sugary, lovey dovey and smoochie smoochie.  As much as I LOVE the nurturing aspects of yoga, it was certainly a fun change of pace to jump into this hardcore, super awesome practice with Jock.  Enjoy!

Read Full Post »

Bed time yoga with Rhoda – just what the doctor ordered

Rhoda’s voice is so sweet and light, it is the perfect encouragement to rinse out and wind down before bed.  The standing poses get all the nervous energy and toxins flushed out ready to fully absorb the relaxing benefits of the restorative forward bends.

She says at the start to take some breaths for yourself, remember to offer this time and energy and practice as a gift to yourself.  This was timely advice as I find when I get busy and a little overwhelmed with what is going on the first thing to slide is my time to take care of myself.  This just tells myself that I am not as important as this task or that project, which doesn’t reinforce that I am worthy and special.  I have learned the lesson time and time again that it is in trying times in which my practices and self care are the most imperative.  So this is me getting back on track with my self care and self love practices and feelings; also today I made myself the most spectacular smoked salmon, asparagus and goats cheese salad, booked a hair appointment for tomorrow and booked time with myself to do a mini spa and nails this week, all to reconnect with myself.  Just little things feel so good, and rather than expecting others to ‘make me feel good’ I can take responsibility for how I feel leaving me more space to love others rather than blame them.

A good day! xxx

Read Full Post »

Early morning vinyasa with Alexia

A perfect way to prepare for a busy day ahead by moving in every direction and flowing through a range of standing, seated and supine poses.  A very rounded 25 minute practice left me feeling balanced and energised – the cobwebs from my night’s sleep swept away.

Today is the first day at the Yoga Show and I am teaching a beginner flow class – which is quite scary as it will be my first class I have taught in London and at quite a big yoga event! I am also so excited to meet new yogis and learn about all the fun and fabulous projects which are going on in the yoga world.  I am prepared to be inspired and inspiring!

Read Full Post »

Fascinating intro to Ashtanga Vinyasa with Chris

This was completely perfect for me today – I have had such a long day setting up for the Yoga Show (woohoo!) and got home wanting to check in with my practice but physically and mentally completely drained.  Which is where Chris comes in…

An interesting and detailed intro to Ashtanga Vinyasa, as yoga teacher myself I learnt a lot!  It is so lovely to come back to the history and the oral teachings of yoga to remember how much more there is in addition to the asana practice.

Thank you Chris x

Read Full Post »

Flow with Alexia on the beach

So refreshing to practice and flow with Alexia on a very similar looking slightly grey day, of which are so fond here in the UK 🙂 A much needed wake and up and get moving encouragement from the ever energetic and motivating lady that she is.

I am just about to make my way to London to prepare for the Yoga Show this weekend and I will be continuing my 30 day challenge – probably mostly on my iPad which is so super handy.  I stay at my sisters so will try to time my practice so her housemates don’t have to clamber over the yogi on the floor on the way to get coffee in the morning!

Have a great day! xx

Read Full Post »

Flowing in the morning with Alexia

A balanced and energetic way to start the day with Alexia.  I have not practiced very much with Alexia in the flesh as she is based and teaches in London, however I found the start of her morning practice is very similar to mine – which is lovely!

It was a challenge to get up at 6am to practice before my morning class at 8am, but oh it was so worth it!  I love how vinyasa can start slowly getting you in the flow and then before you know it you are moving and breathing and opening up.  It also takes acceptance to really listen to your body in the morning with all it’s stiff areas and maybe even a few creaks!

I love Alexia’s light and bright voice which makes you feel like you can do anything and no amount of warriors is too many 🙂 Her very clear and concise alignment cues are so helpful to feel more space and grounding in the poses.  Having set my intention, as she suggests, not to take life so seriously, I am ready for my day and my week.

xx

Read Full Post »