Radha

  

Almost 15 years ago I was given this book for a birthday present from a yoga teacher who I’ve mentioned before in a previous post. She presented it to me for my 25th birthday and probably knew that I was a searching soul. 

The book sat on my bedstand in my tiny apartment, through moves and boxes, shelves and piles. If you’ve been following me on Twitter lately you might have picked up on my extreme cleaning binge where I donated over 80 books this past holiday season and have been going through some sort of ‘search’or ‘cleanse’ or – I don’t know what. 

But I didn’t purge this book. I’ve finally picked it up and started reading it, along with about three others, in the wee hours of the early morning. It is written about a woman’s pilgrimage to India in the mid 1950’s. It’s still meaningful, and perhaps with today’s extreme popularity and push for yoga and meditation, even more so today. 

My personality is such that I will probably always be searching, likely another 15 years from now. And so, as I continue to clean, search, read and maybe even meditate, this one will stay on the shelf. 

Thank you for the gift Yasmine. 

Namaste. 

More Yakking About Yoga

Last week I promised to discuss some of the types of yoga I have experienced in different classes. While I am by no means an expert or trained in yoga, I have tried many different styles to see what I like best.

One of the reasons for this is because I have found some yoga classes make me dizzy. These are mainly the classes that focus solely on Vinyasa or ‘Flow’ style. Too much ‘down dog’ and my head is down for the count! I’ve tried going before or after eating and keeping to classes that are not too warm but it doesn’t matter.

Vinyasa style can be described best here:

http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/fitness/exercises/what-is-vinyasa-yoga.html

These classes are excellent if you are looking for an active, energizing style yoga class. They will lengthen and strengthen, wake you up and keep you toned.

The next type of class that I have tried is Hatha yoga. This can be best described on this link:

http://yoga.about.com/od/typesofyoga/a/hatha.htm

I personally prefer yoga classes that focus on holding poses for extended periods of time, finding that balance between breath and challenging your body and extending certain muscles. Many of these classes are also considered restorative or ‘yin’ yoga because they focus on releasing stress and tension in the body. Many of the poses are floor poses with less focus on standing or downward dog.

Then come classes which offer a combination of different types of yoga, such as ‘yin/yang,’ ‘stress release,’ or any number of classes where instructors may combine styles to fit the needs of their students, the time of day the class is offered and so on. These types of classes are my personal favourite, such as one I take called ‘Stress Release,’ or another I take on Sunday afternoons called ‘Sundae Yoga’ which is a mixed style geared towards preparing for the week ahead.

There are also more specialized classes of yoga that can be found. Yoga for kids, pre and postnatal, yoga for seniors, yoga for back injuries, yoga for women. The list goes on. If you are looking for a certain class I would encourage you to research your needs further to find out what works for you.

Regardless of what style of yoga you try, find something that works for you and that you enjoy. That are so many options available through studios, dvd’s, community centres, and even online. Yoga is more accessible that it has ever been before.

You may think that a little bit of stretching and relaxation is not much of a work out. But as my yoga teacher used to say during her classes many years ago, “your body will say, thank you for working me!”

And it will. Namaste.

A few online resources and studios in my city I think are just great:

http://www.myyogaonline.com
Access to thousands of online yoga classes and videos for only $10.95 USD/month. A great resource!

http://www.yogapassion.ca
A great little yoga studio in west YYC!

http://www.yogamandala.ca
I have never been to this studio but have taken classes with a couple of the instructors from there who are wonderful.

http://www.yogawithsara.ca
An awesome yoga teacher! She has a lovely video available for purchase on this site as well. While it is largely in the Vinyasa flow style I enjoy it!

http://www.westsiderec.com
This recreation centre offers a diverse mix of pre-registered yoga classes.

http://www.chapters.indigo.ca

Yoga Zone  http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/entertainment/dvd/yoga-zone-ultimate-collection-6/741952615392-item.html?ikwid=yoga+zone&ikwsec=Home&gcs_requestid=0CIjxh63RmbwCFVTt5wodKhMAAA

This DVD was recommended to me by the teacher who instructs the stress release class I take. While I don’t own the video she said there are many similarities between the class and DVD. I often find purchasing online to be much cheaper than in store.

Good luck and enjoy!