In The Teacher Seat

Yesterday was my first day of teaching my training mates! I was super excited and a bit nervous. My perfectionist hat of course came on for a bit, leaving me worried that I would stumble on my words or forget a pose entirely. But once I began I really had a great time! It felt wonderful to be able to put all of the learning and hard work into action and I really believe that the more I teach the more comfortable and knowledgable I will be....and the more I can connect and share with my class which in the end is what I am really wanting!

There is just SO much a teacher can know, learn and share with her students...a constant ongoing of learning and sharing. I am excited to grow even more in my studies and language so that I can be an awesome teacher one day!

But for today I am very happy to say that I taught my first 90 min hot yoga class!

YEEHAW!!!!!

The Western Stampede

I will be honest there was a huge week during this training where I had a big stress out. We have been given a lot of information in a little amount of time and I was overwhelmed with how I would be able to remember it all and be able to teach a class after this 2 month training ended. All of the lectures we had taken only reinforced to me that yoga is a lifetime practice both as student and teacher. It wasn't until I met a DR of Sanskrit, who broke down the traditional yogi training in India, that I was finally able to breathe. It was very enlightening, so I shall share.

As we all know yoga was brought to the West from India in the early 1900's, with much hesitation from the East. Their feelings were that our western mind and culture were not shaped to support the important and honored tradition of yoga. Traditional yogi's were essential "chosen people" who sought out a teacher. This process of selecting/being chosen by a teacher was one that took much time and thought. Once the student-teacher pair were bonded they began their 11 year practice. I learned from this Sanskrit Dr that one of her Indian yogi friends practiced with his master for 11 years and in that 11 years he only did one pose the entire time. Upon questioning his master why he would not teach him any other pose, his reply was "anything you need to know about yoga, you will find here in this pose." His student admitted to Dr. Poole that though he many moments of irritation and frustration with his master, he had been more than right.

Finally on his final 12th year of study, his master asked his student to now teach him everything he knows. The cyclical role of student-teacher is very present in traditional yoga and is a beautiful reminder of how even if we sit in the seat of teacher we are always learning and being inspired by our students.

While sitting in this lecture, hearing this awesome and wise woman (who had practiced many years studying sanskrit, chanting, yoga in India) I big light bulb turned on in my mind. Why have I been going through this training assuming that in 2 months I will be this perfect teacher when it takes true yogi's 11 years of training to begin the process of teaching! My thought process only further supported India's thoughts on the Western mind perhaps making a mess out of yoga. How are we to know what to do with a long, patient, dedicated and committed 11 year learning when we are continued to learn and do as soon as possible, as quickly and efficiently as possible! Our "get it done now" mentality opposses everything that yoga represents.

Once I was informed of this great opposition of minds and worlds, I could finally give myself permission to just be where I am now: a beginner learning the tools to become a great teacher..one day! I must always come back to this remembering as I confront the competitive rush rush stampede mentality of the Western world. Rushing to be a great teacher with the most students in their class, with the biggest following, with the most classes out of all other teachers.....that mind set is not the yoga I wish to teach and is not the yoga I am practicing.

I wish to be inspiring, share healing energy, information and knowledge on how to use your body as a doorway to getting to know yourself more and towards healing your mind, body, spirit.

Thank you Dr. Poole for such a great awakening and reinspire my goal of taking a 3 month trip to Nepal and India!

Namaste!

Cadaver Lab

This so far may have been my most favorite part of my yoga teacher training. For those of you that know me, I am hyper aware of my body and have been known to be a bit of a hpochondriact at times. I was sure I would see the bodies, lose my breath and faint in the middle of the lab!

I won't lie it did take some adjustment. The smell of formaldehyde combined with the incredible sight of the human body, it's parts and bones were overwhelming at the beginning to say the least. But with the help of Dr. Todd (the owner of the lab and a genius in my book) we were able to break down the jobs of each part of the body, examine how how they function and their purpose. In doing so, it was easy to discover an incredible appreciate for our bodies. (I will spare you pictures for this post!!!)

I had no concept of how MANY jobs are bodies do on a daily basis just to get through a day! The digestive, respiratory, lymph system was incredible to me (how much goes on just to break down our lunches and breathe!) It made me very aware of how true the statement is: you are what you eat! One of the cadavers we saw had been a peripalegic and another had passed from lung cancer. It was a great example of how when something traumatic happens to your body or when disease exists how it can affect your entire bodily system.

We also explored bones, ligaments and joints. This was a great learning lesson on just how important proper alignment in yoga. Without it one cannot receive the benefits of the pose in addition to inviting injury. I.E. I had no idea that in plank bones if the eyes of your elbows are NOT facing each other then you are rotating your elbow joint out of its natural placement and can over time injure your joints. Alignment I learned, even more, is key! They don't say that for nothing...but in the lab you could actually see why and how poor alignment can be harmful to your body.

All and all an awesome experience. I highly recommend it to anyone. It will give you a great respect and appreciation for all that your body does for you.

Digging Deep, Keep Breathing

I'm feeling a little more than overwhelmed lately. I am still loving the yoga training but combined with working full time (we just got our new class last week and this year we have the younger kiddos who aren't even two yet!!!)...it's been an adjustment to say the least. Our school is also under going some changes that have been adding to my stress.

It's frustrating to me that I haven't been able to give this yoga training the attention, time, and energy that I want to so that I can learn as much as possible. But you can only do your best with what you got right? I am working hard to stay positive and know that everything will turn out exactly as its meant to....trust, Michaela.

I am very excited to have an awesome trip to NYC planned in Sept!!! That will be my light at the end of this tunnel!!!

Breaaaaaaaaaaatttttttthiiiiiinnnnnng

You know those moments in your life where you are just filled with gratitude for everything you have. When your focus is more on how GREAT your life is rather than what is missing, what you still want in your life, and why you aren't where you thought you should be? Man, it feels great!!!!

I've been feeling pretty grateful lately about life in general... even about my apartment! For those of you that don't know, I dislike my apartment and only have 7 more months to go before hopefully renting or buying a place that is more my style (with hopefully a backyard for The Rudsters.) My apartment can get me in a really bad mood sometimes and yesterday when both our toilet AND kitchen sink broke I surprised myself by my calm, cool and collected reaction.

Sitting on this tiny concrete balcony, I'm grateful for this time here. Even though the community pond and waterfall are falling apart and in desperate need of repair, the sound it makes is pretty and relaxing. We have met lots of "interesting" people at our complex's "doggie park" and even if our place is falling apart at the seams at least it is OUR place. I know we will look back at this time, laugh and be even MORE grateful of our new and improved home.

Perspective is key. Patience and gratitude for the small things. Appreciating where you are and knowing you won't be there forever. I need to write this down so I can remember this when I'm feeling LESS grateful.

Happy 4th everyone!!!!

Congrats!!!!!!

A big congrats to one of my favorite women in the world on her engagement to her awesome fiance, Tony! Connie has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know and I am so happy that she has found someone that can give her as much love as she gives to everyone and the world. I am very excited to have Tony as a new friend as well.

Congrats dear friends, can't wait for the wedding!!!

The 2nd Yama: SATYA -TRUTHFULNESS

How are you showing up in your life? Are you a person who lives their life with awareness and authenticity. Do you know what is true for you and make choices from that space or do you do and say things to gain acceptance, esteem or out of fear that following your truth will hurt someone you love?

How are you showing up to others? Are you seen as someone that is trustworthy, a confidante or as a person that uses others situations as a platform to create gossip and drama.

Satya (sah-tee-yah) is the 2nd yama. Truthfulness is the focus in this yama and is dedicated to helping us remain aware of speaking and living from our truth no matter what. It the responsibility of the yogi to dedicate their practice and life to the pursuit of truth.

It is believed that in telling the truth and living from that space you begin to walk a path of honesty, purpose, integrity and authenticity. When we are real with ourselves and others there are no surprises. We then become more in tuned with our personal truth and feel a deeper sense of purpose in our life. Simultaneously, by living our truth we serve as a mirror to others. Many times those that are not ready or too afraid to live their truth will reject ours. However, let this not stop you. By staying with your truth (no matter what) you open up possibilities in someone else and the world at large. Hopefully those rejecting your truth will come around and accept yours and deepen their relationship with their own. But that is their journey, not yours.

The lesson also here is to "be real rather than nice." When you are real and living from a place of integrity and truth, rather than living from dishonesty, others will know what to expect from you. They will respect and love you more for it. Telling others what they want to hear in order for them to like you, feel better, to create and keep drama in your life, or to escape responsibility by trying to get what you want from someone else serves no good to anyone. This yama additionally re-enforces the belief that when speaking your truth your words are not weapons used to hurt another but expressed in a way that is grounded, honest, authentic, and loving.

Ways this can show up on your mat: Being honest with yourself about how you are feeling on any given day and adapting your practice to that. Telling yourself the truth that you maybe aren't in alignment in a specific pose and are going too deep for ego's sake and should back off, get stronger and then play with depth etc etc

Ways this can show up in your life: Gossiping to create drama and excitement in your life, not being honest to yourself and living from your truth, not being honest with another in an attempt to have them like you/get what you want from them/out of fear/, escaping responsibility, taking what is not yours and so much more!

There is no god higher than truth. ~Mahatma Gandhi

Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth.-Thoreau