by Heather Robinson There is something in yoga practice, isn’t there, which brings us in touch with ourselves. It is a fascination often motivating us to practice – a positive action. So... Let’s take positive action with our practice of yoga. And what would that action look like? Finding my mat perhaps, being somewhere out of the normal hubbub of life – in a personal space, or in a group setting. A great place to … [Read more...]
Pranayama 101
by Mary Watson, My passion for Pranayam was fostered during a 3-year sojourn at the Sivananda Yoga Centre/Ashram in Henderson, Auckland, in the mid-1980s; over 34 years later, I still feel excited about it. To this day, the old tradition of unifying body, mind, and breath into one practice continues to teach me. Having the good fortune to learn from my teacher standing/sitting next to me for 3 years, sharing his then 47 years of practice, facilitated my understanding of the deeper … [Read more...]
5 Social Media Strategies for Yoga Teachers & Studios
by Travis Mattern, Fitness Education Online I’ll start this off by saying I am by no means a yoga expert! But, the good news for you, is that over the last five or so years my company, Fitness Education Online, has been helping fitness professionals build their Bootcamps and improve their social media presence through some simple hacks. So today I’m going to share with you 5 key strategies you can implement to improve your social media presence as a yoga teacher or studio. Don’t … [Read more...]
Trust in The Flow: How Reflection Can be a Tool for Yoga, Singing & Life in General
by Sarah Spence ‘Mindfulness’ is a buzz word these days. I ponder whether ‘reflection’ will join it, given that leadership teams in corporate organisations are now given journals to write in. Regardless, let’s celebrate that these kind of tools are making it to the mainstream. The quality of self-observation is key to both yoga, mindfulness and to managing the mind. I discovered reflection as a yogic tool when I showed up at a yoga ashram in Western Canada. I’d been attending Power … [Read more...]
Yoga, the Digestive Fire & Health
by Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Yoga Retreat Fire is a force of nature. It is used for survival, however, if it is over-activated it can destroy and if it is under activated it goes out. Often fire is associated with flames but this is only the most physical aspect of the fire element. In the yogic view, fire is a powerful and transformative energy existing in the macro cosmos and the micro cosmos. The digestive system is the inner fire within the physical body that sustains … [Read more...]
How to Find Your Niche & Make Your Yoga Teaching Career Sustainable
by Rebecca Harford, Adapted Yoga & Pilates As a businesswoman, teacher, mother, wife, friend and family member I have the responsibility and pleasure to support many people. In order to uphold this responsibility, I must be sustainable, along with my business as it supports our students, family and the families of our team. Being sustainable as a teacher means that you can share the best of your experience with your students. Being tired, hungry, cold and stressed does not become a … [Read more...]
A Non-Profit Model to Make Yoga Accessible & Affordable
By Sue Furey, Tauranga Yoga Centre An Iyengar yoga class in a small town hall, some 35 years ago, was my initiation into my relationship with a yoga practice and that exploration continues. I am grateful every day that I decided to try that class. Like many people’s experience of their first few classes, I had no preconceptions or expectations of yoga; all I knew was that when I left after 1.5 hours I felt way better on every level than I had before class. During a class I was able to … [Read more...]
The Transformative Practice of Yoga Mudras
by Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Yoga Retreat Whether consciously or unconsciously, the way we gesture or carry ourselves in physical attitudes throughout the day has the capacity to influence health, interactions, physiology and more. Using the body to express something or to communicate a feeling underlies many of our interactions in an unspoken way. Mudras, the ancient science of creating gestures with the hands, head or whole body, is a powerful and subtle yogic practice that is often … [Read more...]
On Ahimsa, Self-Reflection & Being a Dick
by Nicole Allan, Raw Yoga Yoga, like most things, was and is heavily influenced by the humans who learn it, teach it and live it. Over my years of learning, practicing and sharing yoga I believe that one of the most important things we can do, whether through yoga or ordinary everyday life, is to strive to be better humans. I believe this betterment happens through regular self-reflection. The amount of times I have been a complete dick in my life is hard to handle, let alone swallow. … [Read more...]
Life, Before and After iRest
by Una Hubbard I'll never forget my first encounter with iRest® founder - Richard Miller. I was in the Gold Coast at the first wave of teacher trainings to come to this part of the world, feeling very much out of my depth and wondering if I should even be there - I mean, who was I to think I could teach people to meditate? But there I was, and so was Richard Miller. I wasn't at all sure what to make of him, but I walked over and, with all my nervousness, the first thing I said was, … [Read more...]