Bottoms Up

I am an inversion addict! I admit it. I understand and am committed to living in the awareness that yoga is more than a physical practice. For the most part, I endeavour to find balance between yang and yin in my practice and life, but some days life just happens, and I skip parts of my practice. However, it is rare for me to skip going upside down at least once during the day.

Why? What are the benefits? I could give you the generic list that can be easily found through Google. Instead, I’ll tell you my inversion journey and story. So, . . . . . here it is!

Heeding the Call

This year has been a year that has asked me to step up. The last few years have been about a journey to come back to myself and discover, possibly for the first time since I was a child, who I truly am. I love learning, I love to explore, and I am most comfortable (for the most part) in the background. But, something about this year told me that it was time to come forward, time to share and time to be seen. Maybe every year I am called to do different tasks and just never heard them before. Or maybe I have heard the calls in the past, but what was being asked just felt too scary at the time. For whatever reason, this year I heard the definite call and despite the fear, I have had the strength to follow through. 

There have been three things in the last few years that have made a huge difference in my life and my journey – yoga, breath work, and gratitude. I have now had the opportunity to share all three of these things and pass along the knowledge that was given and passed down to me. I have been honoured to witness the growth of our teacher trainees as I help to guide them deeper into the magical practice of yoga. I had the opportunity to share the power of breath work to educators at the Southeastern Alberta Teacher’s Convention. Finally, last night I shared the influence that gratitude has had on my life.  All of these things have challenged me, scared me and pushed me far outside of my comfort zone. Thank you to all of you who have been present for one or more of these offerings and thank you for giving me this space to share and be seen. If there is anything I can help you with in your journey or any more information you would like, do not hesitate to reach out ❤️         

Why Teacher Training

Yoga You4ia teacher trainers Roxanne & Salli
What yoga teachers do when they're not teaching at the studio . . . . . . have fun with yoga in other places!  

With just over a month until our teacher training at Yoga You4ia begins, I thought I would answer the question . . . . . Why take a yoga teacher training? I could give you all of the generic, general answers, but if you’re reading this, then I know that you have access to the internet and it’s easy for our friend Google to help you find those answers. Instead, I thought I’d share what motivated ME to do yoga teacher trainings.

Coming This Spring

I love being a student.  I love taking courses and going on retreats and taking trainings.  I love learning about new things and acquiring more knowledge, especially if it has anything to do with yoga, energy, or mental work.  However, 2017 has been asking me to step even more into the role of teacher and leader.  Yes, I have taught for many years in different forms, but opportunities have been showing up that are telling me it's time to really share all of the teachings and knowledge and skills that I have acquired over more than a decade that make up my personal practice.  It's with this awareness that I'm excited to share that I am partnering with Salli Siewert to offer a yoga teacher training this spring/summer.  

Sharing Is Caring

I am someone who has had a few different "lives" in regards to a career. I was reflecting on it today, and even though at times I felt a bit concerned about jumping around, there was always a common theme through all of my work. I am a teacher/instructor/facilitator/guide and all of my jobs involved this element. Growing up in a family of a couple generations of elementary school teachers, the last thing I EVER wanted to do was teach. I tried as hard as I could to not be a teacher, but the ironic thing I've learned along the way is that instructing is one of my strengths. Oh life . . . . sometimes you can be so funny!

Why I Do What I Do

One of the first classes I taught when I began teaching yoga was as a substitue teacher for an Ashtanga based class.  Prior to this, I had only taught a couple of Chakra karma classes at this particular studio in order to get experience and see if this “yoga teaching thing” was something I really wanted to do. When one of the students arrived, she saw me sitting behind the desk, asked if I was subbing and then said “You’re not doing any of that chakra stuff, are you?” (clearly not wanting to be involved in practicing any of that “chakra stuff").  First, I assured her that for an Ashtanga based class I would be teaching Ashtanga and that I had a strong background in this style of yoga.  After she was satisfied and had headed into the studio, I started to feel a bit offended.  She had been to one of my karma classes, didn’t she see how wonderful and holistic this practice is?  As I reflected further, I realized she had every right to this opinion.  Hadn’t I been to classes that didn’t resonate for me?  Hadn’t I tried different practices and teachers that I didn’t enjoy for whatever reason?  I had finally found my path.  I was discovering more and more what brought me to life, but it didn’t mean that it was everyone else’s path or that it would have the same effect on them. 

Summer Arm Balance Workshop

Find some balance and have some fun!  Join Maegan and I as we walk you through some foundation and alignment to help you take flight!  Contact myself, Maegan or Yoga You4ia for further details and to register. See you then!

Spring Begins Now (or close to now!)

10:30PM tonight in Medicine Hat marks the vernal equinox .  At this time, the sun will cross the equator and shed equal amounts of light on each hemisphere.  All over the world, day and night will be balanced to about 12 hours for each.  However, nothing stays balanced forever and after this time, we in the Northern Hemisphere will begin our journey towards the light. 

The vernal or spring equinox is also known here in the North as the official beginning of spring. Sunrises begin to get earlier, sunsets begin to come later and temperatures begin to rise. Energetically, this is a time of new life, new beginnings, optimism and hope.  To add to the celebration, this year will be the earliest arrival of spring (or the earliest spring equinox) since 1896! Looking for ways to mark this special occasion?  Here's three suggestions:

Embrace the Darkness

I’m an adult who is sometimes scared of the dark.  For as long as I can remember, I’ve had a recurring dream which (thankfully) doesn’t occur that often.  In my dream, I wake up in the exact spot I fell asleep, but I am in total darkness.  It doesn’t matter if I fell asleep in the middle of the day to have a nap.  When I wake up it is dark.  I don’t realize at first that these are dreams.  They are so vivid and lifelike, that I just think that I have simply woken from my slumber.  It isn’t the actual darkness that scares me, however.  In these dreams I am paralyzed - I can’t move, I can’t speak and I feel powerless.  At first, I’m confused.  My confusion soon turns to fear and then the realization that I am sleeping and if I can just wake up, I will be safe.  Unfortunately, the more I try to move and the more I try to use my voice, the deeper into the dream I go and the more difficult it is to wake myself up.  Because of these dreams, darkness (for me) has become associated with fear, uncertainty and powerlessness.

Curious?

If you have ever been to one of my yoga classes, you know that I love to give hands on assists.  I don't do this to correct you or to fix your pose or posture.  I do this to help you bring more awareness to an area of your body, to help you possibly create more space or to make you realize you could go deeper than you thought was possible.  Taking classes with teachers who gave me hands on assists totally changed my practice and opened me up.  I am taking my practice of hands on assisting a little bit further and have started my path of training in Thai Yoga Massage.  I currently have my Level 1 with plans for further training in the new year.



Another thing that is important for me to bring into the classes I teach is the energetic system of the body.  My background is in Chakra Yoga and when I plan classes, I often have some kind of energy line or centre that I am thinking of when I put my sequences together.  Reiki is a modality that works on increasing the energy flow within the body to help with healing and vitality.



If you are curious or are interested in either of these natural therapies, I will be at Yoga You4ia's 3rd Year Anniversary Party on January 2 offering FREE 15 minute sample sessions of Thai Yoga Massage or Reiki.  First come, first served.  There will be a sign up sheet at the studio on that day.  Even if you miss me, there will be other freebies including massages, classes and food!  It's shaping up to be a great day!!

If you have further questions or want to see the list of vendors and events, feel free to check out the Yoga You4ia 3rd Year Anniversary Facebook page

Who's In?

It's that time of year again.  Another changing of the seasons.  Come help us celebrate with 108 sun salutations.  I was just talking to someone today who was nervous to come to her first 108 sun salute event in September.  She is super stoked to do it again.  Whether you have done this practice before, or it is your first time it is always a new experience.  Need more details?  Connect with me to find out more.