Yoga with Sig

Thanks to the encouragement from my lovely daughter, I’ve started running again.  After breast cancer treatments and the ongoing medication I have to take, which causes painful joints, I decided to stop running. I was convinced it was no longer good for me. I had been an avid runner for over 25 years, but recently I convinced myself running would make my joints hurt. It turns out if I run and do yoga every day I feel really good.

My daughter is staying with us for the Covid 19 lock-down and she found a nifty little App to get us running. It’s called 5K Runner: Couch to 5K and is brilliantly designed to ease you back in. We completed our first (virtual) 5K race a few weeks ago and have graduated to the 10K App. All the stretching and strengthening one gets from yoga is the perfect compliment to the calorie burning and lower body toning achieved with running.  The best part of all is having a great running partner who I happen to love to pieces!

Namaste,

Sig

Teaching Zoom Yoga can be an adventure, especially with pets in the house.  Today I was teaching a friend in London when she spotted my dog Ginger taking her place on the mat behind me.  I have a few clients who don’t have pets and enjoy not only the yoga, but also a little facetime with my two silly cockapoos!  Thank goodness for Zoom and the many other platforms out there that are keeping us all connected.

I feel so hopeful for our world. Let us come out of this quarantine with a new sense of renewal and respect for mother earth and all the magnificent creatures we share her with. I can definitely do with less and would like to give more. We have been in awe of the many acts of kindness, the dedicated teachers, healthcare professionals, grocery store clerks, bus drivers, city workers, delivery drivers and all  the essential businesses and workers who are keeping things going. Lets pay it forward and start a new trend. Live with less, love more, take better care of our planet and give more time to the things that matter.  I know we can do it!

Namaste,
Sig

Aging gracefully is the goal and playing tennis can be the troll!  I am a big fan of the game and can’t imagine having to ever stop.  At the moment I play once a week for two hours. The next day will be absolutely brutal IF I don’t follow my two hour session with and hour of yoga.  Tennis is hard on the body and yoga is for sure the secret elixir for muscles and joints.

I like many types of yoga, but for after tennis I find a nice vinyasa flow class is the perfect mix.  What works for me may not speak to you so try a variety of styles and see what makes your body feel the best.  Nothing like a little yoga experiment to figure out what will make your body hum! One of my life goals is to be the old lady with excellent ball placement and surprisingly quick moves!

Cheers!

Sig

It has been ages since my last post and I’m happy to be back. The teen years were a challenge for my daughter and it is turning out to be true for my son as well.   Yoga and teaching goals had to be put on hold for a bit and focus shifted full time to family.  All is going well now and we have been learning a growing together as a family.   Also, we’ve moved back to the US!

Calm is not a word I would normally associate with the teenage years and believe me, it doesn’t always win out. However, thanks to the journey we’ve been on with our kids, calm has a more prominent presence.  One of my son’s mentors  pointed us in the direction of Eckhart Tolle’s, The Power of Now. If ever there was a book that speaks to me, this is the one! A big take away for me has been how I view my thoughts and the effect they can have.  Thinking is obviously a vital part of life, but when I started to really focus on what I was thinking, a lot of it was repetitive and not helpful.  Tolle points out that compulsive thinking is actually a form of addiction that keeps us living in the past and future instead of in the present.  Tolle talks a lot about the ego and how it takes away our ability to live in the moment. In order for the ego to survive it has to live in the past (look how great I was when…) or in the future (if only I was taller… had more money… then I will be happy), but seldom in the present.  My favorite thing to do now when I find myself laying in bed at night worrying or obsessing about something is to try to observe my thoughts as if they are not a part of me. To realize they are not facts and will pass.  It doesn’t always work, but the more I practice the better I get at quieting the mind and living in the moment.

Sorry for the ramble. Don’t know if it made a ton of sense, but it is a good book and has improved my sleep and lowered my anxiety levels.  Moving is never easy and thanks to the techniques I’ve been able to implement from The Power of Now, it was relatively stress free.  I would also highly recommend his second book, A New Earth.

I’m in the Harrison/Rye area of Westchester and I am looking forward to getting my yoga practice and nutrition goals back on track.

Cheers!

Sig

“Why does the mind habitually deny or resist the Now? Because it cannot function and remain in control without time, which is past and future, so it perceives the timeless Now as threatening. Time and mind are in fact inseparable.”  Eckhart Tolle

I don’t know what the weather has been like where you live, but here in London it has been cold, dark and dreary for months now. When I experienced my first winter in London it was a real shock.  The sun doesn’t come up until after 8:00 and in December it is dark by 3:30 in the afternoon. I found I was suddenly tired all the time, cranky and as it turns out completely low in vitamin D!  Vitamin D deficiency is a real problem in the UK and can affect your health and mood.  It can also be a problem if you live in an area with high pollution, spend a lot of time indoors, live in a big city where buildings block sunlight and often use sunscreen. It is best to take a supplement during the cold and dark months and make sure you are eating foods rich in vitamin D. Foods such as salmon, cheese, egg yolks and foods fortified with vitamin D, like milk, orange juice, soy milk and cereals. Proper levels of vitamin D will not only keep you healthy, it can also help with weight loss, fight off disease and boost your mood.    Your doctor will be able to give you a simple blood test to see where your levels are at and advise you on how much to supplement.

Another good way to boost your mood is with breathing exercises.  This is one of my favorites!

Find a seated position that is comfortable for you and sit up straight.  As you inhale and exhale, count your breath. Count silently in your head or use your fingers.  Here is a pattern to get you started, but there is no right or wrong so go ahead and experiment to find the right combination for you.

-Inhale 5, exhale 5 (5-6 rounds)

-Inhale 5, exhale 8 (5-6 rounds)

-Inhale 5, hold the breath for 5, exhale for 5 (5-6 rounds)

You may find this puts you in a meditative state and calms the mind.  Hopefully leaving you full of energy and with a clear head.   Give it a go and see where it takes you!

Going to your first yoga class can be nerve racking and even more so if you are the north side of flexible like me!   One of the first poses you’ll encounter is downward dog.  Often you will hear the instructor say things like: “press down through your hands, spin your elbows and shoulders away from your ears, pull your hips up, back and down, tighten your leg muscles and let your neck and head relax.”  That’s a lot of information for one pose!  Below is a simplified version that will  make it easier to follow and process the instructions. The only difference between downward dog and this practice pose is the stance. Instead of having your feet hip width apart they will be a in a wide stance. This will keep the weight out of your arms and shoulders and make it easier to concentrate on the instructions.   It is a great way to get the correct alignment.

Begin in a wide stance and your toes slightly turned in.

Next, place your hands on the mat and slowly walk them forward.

Place your hands shoulder width apart, arms and back should be straight.

This should feel good and there should not be a lot of pressure on your shoulders.  Now you can begin to get the feeling of what it is like to press through your hands and  rotate your shoulders away from your ears. Also practice tightening the muscles in your legs and pulling your hips upwards while pressing down with your heals.  When you’ve had enough, walk your hands back up to your feet and slowly roll up to standing.

Et voila, that is the beginning to a successful downward dog.  Practice this several times before going to class.  The instructions for a regular downward dog will make a lot more sense, I promise!

Cheers!

Sig

aka…thestiffyogini