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Dear Yogis and Friends,
I hope this finds you all happy, healthy and well.
Writing News: If you didn't catch my article on the newststands, please read it here. It's about local yogi Brock Cahill and his work in the Gulf, saving endangered sea turtles and other creatures from the horrors of BP's oil spill.
Yoga and Doula News: Want to work on your alignment while still getting a great workout and having fun? I've changed my Vinyasa Flow class at Yogis Anonymous from a Level 2/3 to a Level 2 (yay!).
Know any West Hollywood/Hollywood mamas who are pregnant? My Pre/Post Natal Classes, at City Yoga are great for mamas who like to move.
I've attended six births, now, as a Doula. What amazing experiences, every single one!
Turn Your Fear Upside Down:
Free Online Yoga (for a limited time!) If you can't catch my Yogis Anonymous classes in person,
Hope to see you on or off the yoga mat!
Blessings.
Live Happily!
Aria
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 Turn Your Fear Upside Down |
Inversions are a powerful part of our yoga practice.They benefit the immune and endocrine systems, regulate blood pressure and enhance thyroid function. However, many yogis dread inversions in a class setting because they don't know how to approach the poses properly, and they feel awkward when they fall. This workshop will move you past this resistance, teaching you to embrace inversions, to fall out of them safely and gracefully, and send you back to your practice not only confident in your technique, but eagerly looking forward to the next chance to be upside down. |
| Creating Beauty |
 Beauty: the experience of which often leads to feelings of attraction and emotional well-being.(Wikipedia)
What an incredible changes our world is undergoing. These last few weeks have brought about protests that have shaken the foundation of the Middle East. No one knows exactly what lies in the future, and yet we realize that something deeply primal is shifting within us. We are growing tired of the old paradigms. Our hearts and minds yearn for more power, a more truthful expression of ourselves.
During times of uncertainty, reading Gregg Braden's studies on how the earth processes our emotions is a powerful reminder for conscious action. If he is correct, then every time humanity feels joy and freedom, so does our planet. Every time humanity feels fear and depression, so does our planet. Amazing: the power of our emotions. And that's on a scientifically measurable level. imagine how many levels of reality our science can't yet measure? Imagine on how many of those levels are our emotions creating change?
It becomes crucial that we learn how to handle our emotions so that we can become conscious co-creators of our life experience. The Abraham-Hicks materials, are amazingly well written tools for this process. One of their key concepts is The Law of Attraction: we attract what we feel. The more we feel, the more we attract the same energy, and so on: it's an infinite feedback loop that is entirely controlled by our emotions. Problem is, most of us don't ever stop feeling in order to control it. We bounce from one huge emotion to another, letting the loop take on a life of its own.
In order to stop the cycle, we must first temporarily suspend our emotions so that we can analyze our feelings. This keeps us from plunging, head deep, into old habits and patterns. We learn how to release old, negative emotions-- like fear, anger, jealousy or regret. As we start to regain control over our emotions, we regain our control over our reactions to the world around us. And as we react less negatively, we start to live our lives more positively. Eventually, we shift our entire existence. All of the sudden, when deep change comes about it is not something to be feared, but rather an opportunity for a new cycle of growth.
With practice, this shift in emotional states becomes easier to achieve, and we begin to remember that all experience is merely experience. There is no hierarchy of feeling. Everything, quite simply, is. Life is one huge journey, and we are all connected on so many levels, to this experience.
May we all embrace Change: for within it, lives great Power. |
| Green Yoga Columnist Debra Silverman |
 When Things Come Undone
The other night, after dinner was over, my two sons and I lingered at the dining room table. We each took out some yarn and began working on our own projects, side by side. The house was dark but for the light over the table. The kids were making pompoms and chatting away with each other. I couldn't help sneaking glances at them as we worked and marveling at the simplicity of the moment. They live their lives at a great pitch of excitement; everything is the best thing ever or the worst thing possible. Their banter reflected this, and as I watched them my emotions ran the gamut from love to longing. Love for the pureness of them, and longing for this moment that I knew would be lost way too quickly. I saw them before me as little boys, then as teenagers, and then as grown men. And as my oldest wrapped more yarn around his project my mind swam with an array of stunningly diverse emotions ranging from rage to relief.
Two weeks ago I lost my job. I'd half expected it would happen, but when the reality hit me, when I actually got the news that I was being laid off, it was like being kicked in the stomach. I had to gasp for air, and then for the next couple of days I just couldn't concentrate. After ten years of carefully planning each working day -- the delicate balance of packing lunches, childcare, meetings and to-do lists -- the newly long, unformed days stretched out before me. Everything suddenly became free form and slightly chaotic. Suddenly, I was looking around me and failing to see anything at all.
It's difficult, to say the least, to move from precision to a swirling whirlpool of disorder. The week, an open space ahead of me; my list of goals for 2011 looming large in the face of the free time I now had. No place to be, no appointments to keep, nobody hammering me about deadlines or trying to make small talk. You'd think this would be a recipe for tranquility, but the change was totally chaotic. A cacophony of demands rang in my head, all self-imposed. I was so distracted that I let the faucet run while brushing my teeth.
Anyone who has spent time with me will tell you that I'm obsessed with water. To find myself so distracted that I was letting it run freely down the drain was clearly an indication of my frame of mind. And ironic, too, since my intention for this month's newsletter was to write a piece about my fixation with water. I wanted to share some stories of the beautiful moments I encountered during my year-long travels through Southeast Asia where I frequently watched people haul water, wait for the water truck, or bathe from buckets of rain water warmed by the sunshine. The words wouldn't flow through the chaos, but one image kept popping up - vibrant, intensely beautiful, and ultimately inspiring: women in the desert of Rajasthan India walking to the well for water. Imagine an explosion of painfully vibrant color against the brown desert background, then a line snaking from a village to the well. Despite the desperate conditions I saw around me, the procession always left me breathless. Clearly, the visual beauty belied a certain hardship that I couldn't truly begin to fathom; however, the well seemed to offer the gathering of women a respite from the daily hustle. It couldn't have been pleasant to have to haul water, to make the procuring of water such a huge part of their day, but these women seemed to find something worthwhile in the community at the well. There was always a lot of laughter.
I don't know what job I'll have next or when I'll have it. For a type-A planner, this sudden change is about as chaotic as life gets. And like any good type-A person, I've immediately begun seeking out the life lesson that this moment is supposed to teach. I suspect I'm not going to have a huge "ah-ha" moment, but that the lessons will come slowly and more simply. The other night at the table my baby may have taught me the first one when he simply noted we were having a crafting circle, the three of us together. No rush to do anything else, no overwhelming exhaustion, just the simple act of making things side-by-side to remind me of all the beauty yet to be had.
Debra Silverman is a mom, writer and environmentalist who lives in West L.A. with her husband and two lovely boys. |
| Anuloma Viloma: Alternate Nostril Breath |
 Fun Pranayama Science: Every hour or so, the body tends to favor one side and breathe more heavily in and out of one nostril. This is part of the body's natural functioning. This natural cycle balances out the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems. When our body becomes stressed, this natural cycle falls out of alignment. The greater amount of time the body is in mis-alignment, the greater our chances of weakening our immune system. Anuloma Vilma is an easy, safe way of bringing the body back into alignment. Once the breath is balanced, the bodies' systems fall back into balance.
Please find a quiet spot where you can sit, undisturbed, for 3-5 minutes. Sit comfortably, with your spine supported by either sitting cross legged on a folded up blanked, block or pillow, or by sitting, spine erect, in a chair.
Take a d e e p inhale, lengthening out the front and back bodies, feeling the inhale rise all the way up towards the chest, spread across the collarbones, and then feeling the exhale lengthen your tailbone down, lift the crown of your head up, and relax your shoulderblades away from your ears. Repeat 3x.
With your right thumb, gently plug your right nostril. Breathe in through just the left nostril. Count your inhale, inhaling up to 5, 10 or 20.
Using your ring finger, gently plug your left nostril and hold the breath.
(Skip this part if you are pregnant or have high blood pressure. NEVER hold your breath if you're pregnant. Consult your doctor before holding your breath if you have high blood pressure.) Both nostrils now plugged, hold your breath for the same count as you inhaled (either 5, 10 or 20.)
Lift your right thumb and exhale out through the right nostril. Try and exhale for the same count (5, 10 or 20.)
Keep your right thumb lifted, and inhale through the right nostril for a count of 5, 10 or 20. You'll notice that your inhales will become more powerful than your exhales. This is normal.
Gently plug your right nostril with your right thumband hold the breath for the same count. (skip this part if your are pregnant or have high blood pressure.)
Release your ring finger and exhale out your left nostril for a count of 5, 10 or 20.
You've now completed one cycle. (inhaled once through the right, and once through the left.)
Do this for 3-5 rounds to begin with. As you become more comfortable, you can increase the length of time that you spend with this breath.
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| Structure & Flow is now LlVE and ONLINE |
Structure & Flow.
Aria's classes at Yogis Anonymous are now a Level 2. Learn the foundations of alignment while getting your workout. Explore inversions, arm balances and backbends, with no prior experience necessary.Balance out your hard work with deep, yummy stretches to strengthen and relax the muscles you just worked.
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| Doula Services |
 I have attended six births: two homebirths and four hospital births, one of them a C-section. I love being a doula and am available to help you and your friends through the birth process.
I completed my training in 2010 and am working on my certification for DONA, the Doula Association of North America. I am apprenticing with Elizabeth Bachner, LM, CPM, L.aC., DASC Midwife of the Year 2008, and owner of GracefulBirthing. |
| Prenatal Yoga at City Yoga |
Aria's Pre/Post Natal classes at City Yoga offer an safe, supporting environment for you to challenge your body in a conscious manner, preparing your body for labor and birth.
My style of prenatal classes is designed for mamas who want to move. If you strive to maintain a strong, fit and active pregnancy, you greatly increase your chances of having an easier labor. |
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