The squat is more than just a yoga pose or leg exercise. It is a functional movement that can help with daily living and overall strength. It is easily modified and there are so many variations to add intensity or create more ease.
Rest will look different for all of us. For some, rest is as basic as taking a nap. For others, it may mean reading a good book, sitting in stillness, or reconnecting with close friends.
Our bodies are made to move and squatting is one of the most basic movements we learn as young toddlers but risk losing as we age. At the most basic level, we need to squat to sit down in a chair, get into a car, and use the toilet.
When I prepare a squat class in advance, I never tell my students where the practice is heading. If I reveal a week in advance that we were going to have a squat class next week, chances are there would be a good percentage of my students would not show up for that particular class.
The Covid pandemic has changed the world and has touched every individual in some way. We have been forced to alter the way we work, socialize, and how we schedule, and move about our basic days. It has forced us to slow down and spend more time in personal reflection. It has been equally devastating and freeing.
I can't recall ever being more relieved or happy to see the new year approach. (Well, ironically I was quite looking forward to 2020. It was going to be a big year personally with so many plans and adventures ready to go. Well, we all know how that turned out
As we enter into the deep winter of 2021, health has been a topic of conversation that has dominated the newsreels and our daily conversations since March 2020.
At some point, we have all received the well-meaning advice to “stay positive”. To view the glass as “half full” sometimes can feel like wishful thinking or “Pollyannaish”. And it can be difficult to find the motivation to stay positive when life becomes challenging.
As we move into October and when we traditionally join together to celebrate Thanksgiving; I have been contemplating ways to shift my idea of practicing gratitude beyond this one tradition and expand my feelings of gratitude, especially during these challenging times.
How does your practice change when you are experiencing a difficult period in your life? Does your practice disappear or do you lean in and become more intentional with when and how you practice?
If you have been a student at Creating Space Yoga Studio over the past 7 months, you will have watched from the front lines how we have had to pivot our business and accommodate the incredible changes that the world has faced together.
Fall is in the air and with the change of season, we have the opportunity to begin again, change what we want to change and take care of our needs in a new way. Here are a few self-care ideas to add to your month ahead.
It will be six months since we closed our studio doors to help fight the further spread of COVID-19. At the time, I honestly was looking forward to a few weeks off. I fully expected to be open again for the spring session. Nobody could have predicted what would follow in the months ahead.
Recently, I’ve been thinking about getting ready for a second spike in Covid 19 cases. Our first experience in March was sudden and shocking. Since then we’ve had lots of time to get a handle on this strange new world. Our numbers of Covid 19 cases are still quite low as I write this in August, but if it does happen again this Fall, I want to be ready. If it happens, I’d like to be as “hygge” or cozy, as possible.
Summer is coming to a close this month, so now is the time to take the opportunity to feed yourself and your soul with all those things that you love about summer. Living in Canada, we crave these summer months that are filled with sunshine, warmth, and longer days.
Sun Salutations (Surya Namaskar) originated as a series of prostrations to the sun. Traditionally it was practiced at dawn facing the sun as a way of welcoming the new day. This is still a lovely practice in our modern-day life.
We all know that a self-care practice is something that we should incorporate into our everyday living. But more often than not, our care comes at the expense of taking care of others. Often it just doesn’t occur to us to do something nice for ourselves or we simply don’t know what to do.
When we closed in March, I had no idea that we would still not be open this summer! For months, we have been anticipating the re-opening of businesses across Canada. I think it is safe to say, that most of us are relieved to see the slow opening across Ontario (especially of hair salons) but, we have yet to hear any news of the re-opening of yoga studios and gyms.
I am beginning to embrace the benefits of online yoga and how it can still be supportive and inspiring to all students. This is my shortlist of benefits that I see for our students…
Have you ever experienced a time in your life when things were just ok? You got through your days with relative normalcy. You had times of stress, pain, fatigue, and feelings of being “down”. But yet, things were not so bad that you were restricted from doing the things you wanted to do; or worse, you needed help. Maybe this way of being was “normal” for you.