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The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat

2010-02-27T04:00:00.000-08:00

There is no doubt in my mind that the Olympics are a two week bag of emotions. The buildup to this event is huge for every athlete that participates and it is four years in the making. When their moment to compete finally comes, these athletes are literally “on the verge” of huge emotion. They have prepared themselves for the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat.

Olympic athletes or elite athletes of any sort voluntarily put themselves “at risk” to experience big emotion, scary emotion if you will. They certainly did not reach a high level of success because they played it safe.

Most of us play it safe in life. We will do just about anything to avoid the risk of feeling pain or the agony of defeat that we also shut ourselves off from the potential to experience the thrill of victory. Then we wonder why. Why doesn’t opportunity come my way? Why can’t I make more money? Why can’t I find my soul mate?

As with everything in life, there are two sides of the coin. When an athlete steps onto the field it is with the understanding that he or she may win or lose. They know that there are no guarantees. They are willing to risk it all to win with the understanding that they may not. It seems, however, that our society has tried to change the rules. We have been conditioned to want a guarantee of winning without experiencing any discomfort. On a whole, we are not willing to risk much but expect a lot in return. Life just doesn’t work that way and these past two weeks our Olympians have reminded us of that.

So once again, it comes back to our yoga mats. Patanjali, who wrote the yoga sutras thousands of years ago, said that every time we practice yoga you experience what he calls a “short life”. You will encounter the ecstasy and the disappointment that you may feel in your daily lives if you dare to. You face fear, doubt and joy. You feel the thrill of holding a challenging warrior pose and the agony of trembling in a balance pose.

As your practice becomes consistent, you will find the courage to risk experiencing deeper emotion both on and off the mat. You will learn to step toward discomfort more often than backing away from it. In a sense, when you practice hatha yoga, you are training for your own Olympic event, that being your daily life.

Intend to Rest

2010-02-10T03:40:00.000-08:00

One day about two years ago I surrendered. I was practicing Flow and I just let go! (Sorry, couldn’t resist the rhyme).

There I was on my mat, moving through my practice when all of a sudden the silliness of my controlling mind became crystal clear to me. I recognized in that moment that my habit of pushing my body in my asana practice had actually been draining my energy. In that moment, I chose to enjoy the practice and to allow myself to be refueled instead of drained.

Interestingly enough, pushing my body for many years had actually been counterproductive. When I finally let go and allowed my breath to guide me in and out of poses I found that was I able to get a good rest while on my mat. I found that by backing off a pose when I lost my rhythmic breathing, I was able to relax and find new places to play in the pose. The wonderful result of surrendering on my mat was that my practice deepened tenfold.

Almost all new yoga students will over-try and over-struggle in their practice. We start out wanting to “be good” at yoga. As I often say in class at Verge Yoga, there is nothing to achieve and there is no perfect pose. Of course, I know that when I say those words, most students are thinking, “yeh right, okay, whatever Cara”. Please trust me that it took me 10 years of committed practice to finally “get it”.

I recognize that it is paradoxical to intend to rest when you come to your “power yoga” practice and I also recognize that most yoga students come to the practice for the physical work out. The good news is that you can rest, sweat, strengthen and re-energize all at the same time!
So next time you step upon your yoga mat whether at Verge Yoga or somewhere else, set your intention to “rest” during your practice. Keenly observe yourself when you begin to force your way into a pose. If your breathing becomes labored or imbalanced then back off the pose physically until you find the precise place where the breathing is rhythmic and unforced.

Enjoy the ride and enjoy the most peaceful savasana you have ever had. Please let me know how you do.

Smile

2010-02-04T11:39:00.000-08:00

If we are not able to smile then the world will not have peace. ~ Thich Nat Hanh

I came upon this quote just a few days after the earthquake in Haiti. Just reading this master’s quote made me smile and reflect on how blessed my life is. Sure it was easy for me to smile as I sat in my cozy house in suburban Philadelphia. What about those around the world who were not reading in their cozy house? What about those in Haiti without homes? How do they manage to muster up a smile in the midst of their own poverty and tragedy?

While I don’t have the answer to that question, I believe that we find our ability to smile in hard times when we are filled with faith. Perhaps it is faith in God or in a higher power that assists us. Our faith is our foundation, it is the “rock upon which we build our house” as I referred to in my last blog entry.

My faith is strengthened from my daily practice which includes yoga, meditation and prayer. I believe that this foundation is built one day at a time and I mindfully prepare myself for those days to come when it may not be easy to smile.

For now I feel that I must continue to smile and to pray for those who are having trouble smiling themselves. In the words of the Great Buddhist Peace Prayer:

May all beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.
May all beings find happiness and the root of happiness.

Our smiles can help so keep smiling. :)

How Do I Help?

2010-01-24T07:35:00.000-08:00

The recent earthquake in Haiti has literally shaken me off my footing. The images and stories are almost too raw and too graphic for me to swallow. Personally, I am overwhelmed. Sure, the $100 sent to the Red Cross will help a bit. Of course, the daily prayers sent to those suffering around the globe and especially to those touched by this tragedy will help a bit. But honesty I am still left feeling “helpless”.

There are yoga studios all around Philadelphia that have already had benefit classes to raise money for the relief effort in Haiti. I commend them for their effort. We are considering holding a benefit class at Verge Yoga. I know that it is a great way to raise money. A few years back, Verge Yoga raised a few thousand dollars in this manner for the relief effort for tsunami victims. Honestly, there is something tugging at my consciousness urging me do more. For some reason I am still resisting the obvious avenues to helping the millions of victims affected by this tragedy. As I said before, I am overwhelmed by totality of this tragedy.

The question I ask is how does one help a country that is lacking infrastructure and has been suffocated by corruption for years? There is nothing left in Haiti but a pile of rubble and many souls that suffer yet hope for literally a more stable future.

The only answer that comes to mind is that we need to start by helping to rebuild the foundation of Haiti. My Hatha yoga practice has taught me this truth. By building a strong stable base physically, emotionally and mentally through the practice of yoga, we the ground upon which we can expand upon.

In Matthew 7:24-27 Jesus says the following:
"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."

I believe that this is true on a yoga mat, in a family and in a nation. The Haitians have been living on a sandy foundation for too long and I pray that we can help them. The earth shaking beneath that small Caribbean island has exposed just how weak their foundation has been.

So my question to you all is how do we help Haiti build a stable foundation? Money, yes, is necessary. Prayers are necessary. An interim government led by perhaps the United Nations. I also believe, however, that setting a strong example is also necessary. We must solidify our own ground first before we can help others do so. Once again, it begins with us. It begins with taking personal responsibility for our state of being.

So I guess that I have sort of answered my own question. I am still, however, left overwhelmed. I would love any support that you could share with me. If you know of an organization that you believe can make a difference in building Haiti’s foundation, please let me know. Perhaps then the benefit class will make more sense to me. Perhaps it will help me feel less overwhelmed and more confident that we truly can make a difference.

Thank you.

National Champions!

2010-01-05T14:27:00.000-08:00

On December 18, 2009, the Villanova University Football team won the FSC National Football Championship. Since August these Wildcats have been fierce, focused and committed to each other. I am honored to have been able to train them this year. They are true yogis.

Villanova Football Heads to National Championship

2009-12-15T10:02:00.000-08:00

I have had the honor of training the Villanova University Football team for the past six seasons and this Friday, “my boys” as I like to call them, will be competing against Montana for the Division 1 FSC National Championship. I am an extremely proud strength coach/yoga teacher.

During the season, my boys play their games on Saturdays and train with me on Sundays. Every Sunday evening for the past four months, I have met the players (all 90 of them) in the Butler Annex which resides just 30 yards from one of the end zones in the Villanova Stadium. They shuffle into the annex and respectfully take their places at the top of their yoga mats. I guide them through a series of poses that challenge their strength and stability, I hold them accountable for their focus and I help them to reset their minds and bodies for the next game.

My messages to them have been simple ones:

Leave the past behind.
Breathe deeply.
Stay engaged in what you are asked to do.
You are stronger than you think you are so just stop thinking.
Be present.
Distraction will drain you.
Focus will fuel you.
One collective Villanova mind is undefeatable.

My boys are warriors.

Go Nova!

(Friday, December 18th ESPN2 8:00 pm)

This Day Will Never Come Again

2009-11-11T04:50:00.000-08:00

“This day will never come again” wrote Thomas Merton, Trappist Monk and writer. I heard my teacher Caroline Myss quote this the other day and it made the hair on my arms stand tall. It literally took my breath away. Merton’s words have been floating in my mind ever since.

I will never have the opportunity to experience this day again. When this day is over, it is over forever. If I truly understood the power behind these words, how would I change the way that I live?

The answer… I would see beyond the nonsense. I would live beyond the pettiness. I would savor the sunsets and the sunrise. I would drink the nectar of every moment. I would live fully on this day and in this moment.
My yoga practice helps me to make these “woulds” a reality. In each and every breath, I have the opportunity to live fully. In every pose, I can step beyond the judgments, doubts and petty thoughts. On my mat, I am learning to live fully and to savor the preciousness of the moment.

Recently, my husband and I lost a friend of many years to a terrible car accident. Suddenly, his life was extinguished. In a split second his children no longer had a father and his wife no longer had a husband. Had Steve lived his last day fully? I hope so.

Can you live this day fully? I hope so.

Can I live this day fully? Weel, I am going to give it my best shot.

Peace.

Why Practice?

2009-10-31T03:48:00.000-07:00

by Christy Mahoney,

When asked, most people say they practice to build a strong body. This amazing series of poses has comprehensively developed my body better than any sport or exercise I have ever known. Yet, if you ask me why I practice - I may pause before answering. In the pause I will make a decision about how much to say.

Do I tell you that this practice is all that I do and at 40 years old, I am in the best shape of my life? Do I mention that by doing this practice I have dropped from a size 12 to a size 4? (Believe it or not, that answer really seems to impress people.) I could get more personal and tell you I am going through a significant life transition and yoga grounds me. I could tell you a lot of things that are true, but they don’t explain why this full-time-working-single-mother-of-two spends so much of her precious time in a yoga studio!

The real reason I practice is because it strips away everything that doesn’t matter and shows me the truth about who I am. Not a sexy answer – I know. In fact, in most settings it is a pretty effective conversation stopper. That being said, it is why I find time to practice. Further – it is why I make time to teach.

As a teacher at Verge I have 75 minutes to guide you through your practice. My purpose is to cue alignment from the ground up, coach breath, reveal benefits, share personal experience and provide space for you to just be in the pose. This is my purpose and it is very challenging, but it is not my intention. My intention is to share the life changing power of this practice.

Did I really just say life changing? Sounds so dramatic, but that’s because it is! I believe we all have deep down fear that is incredibly powerful. Some of us have lived with the fear for such a long time, we actually think it’s a part of us. We do all these crazy things to avoid it. Almost instantly, and more profoundly over time, this avoidance changes who we are. It compromises our true self and we become only images of who we are meant to be. The avoidance begins a vicious cycle. We fear – we avoid – we are drained – we have no energy to face the fear – we avoid more intensely – we get more drained… Surviving this cycle is probably harder than facing the fear itself, but we don’t realize it. The cycle is so familiar we can’t see it. Even when we do notice it, we do not know another way. That is, until we practice.

In practice, we learn to let go. We turn our attention to breath. The breath points us towards Right Action. In my experience, the Right Action is usually pretty difficult (hence, the aforementioned fear.) Sometimes it is so powerful, all we can do is just face it, find our breath and stand in place. This is enough - we can take steps in time. I teach because I have experienced that when I quiet my mind and let go of control, there is a universal energy that becomes available to me. It is beyond my physical self yet it strengths me profoundly. To receive this energy we must surrender, only then can it strengthen & guide us to face the truth. I call this energy the power of the universe.

What you call it isn’t important to me. What is crucial to me is that when we let go, this energy is available and we find true courage. We can pause in the fear and wait for clarity. Once clear, we use our courage to take Right Action. This is what leads to happiness from the inside out, not because something good happened or something bad didn’t. We are happy because we are aligned with all that is real. We know who we are and who we are not. That knowledge is absolutely life changing, some might call it enlightenment.

So, how do these simple poses bring us back to the essence of ourselves? Ironically, I don’t know. Concepts swirl in my mind, but I do not definitively know the answer. Curiously, we are now where we began, “Why practice?” I’ll answer that question another… What would happen if you stripped away everything that doesn’t matter and faced the truth about yourself?

Come to practice – let’s find out together!

Seeking Balance When Recovering from an Overuse Injury

2009-10-23T10:42:00.000-07:00

By: Sarah Penning, DPT

Overuse injuries are the most common yet at times the most difficult injuries to rehab. It takes time, patience, hard work and the most challenging of all, rest from the activity that people often love. Runners, tennis players, swimmers, avid gym members and even those who practice yoga can be at risk for developing on overuse injury.

Recently I had the humbling experience of injuring my own shoulder while practicing yoga. As a physical therapist and strong proponent of yoga I was somewhat baffled by my injury. I thought to myself I have been taking yoga for almost 4 years and have never been injured. I consider myself strong, healthy and well-educated about injury prevention as a health care provider. Then I realized I was just like so many of my patients strong yet prone to injury secondary to imbalance.
Yoga has an over abundance of health benefits and has been around for over 5,000 years. Many have caught the “yoga bug” and swear by the physical and mental benefits of this practice. The Sanskrit word yoga does indeed translate to “union” or “to yoke or harness.”1 For many of us we find ourselves on our mat seeking union, seeking balance in our lives and in our bodies. Yet unbeknownst to us we may be putting our bodies in a vulnerable position if unaware of the muscle imbalances that often develop in yoga.

Muscle imbalances within the shoulder girdle often develop in yoga due to the extensive amount of push type exercises such as chaturanangas that most practices entail, without sufficient counter poses.2 When repeatedly transitioning from a high push-up to a low push-up position into upward facing dog, injuries such as tendonitis (inflammation of the tendon) and bursitis (inflammation of the bursa) can often develop as well as instability of the shoulder.

When in a plank position it requires much strength from the anterior muscles of the shoulder, such as the pectoralis major and minor, anterior deltoid and long head of the bicep tendon. These muscles must work in a static or isometric way to stabilize the anterior aspect of the shoulder girdle. When lowering from a high plank to a low plank position these muscles must then work eccentrically to control the decent of the body as these muscles lengthen. Finally when pushing the chest through to upward facing dog the triceps and muscles that lie between the shoulder blades must concentrically contract or shorten to attain this posture.

In many instances beginners taking a yoga class do not have the strength in the aforementioned muscle groups when quickly transitioning from the above positions. Commonly practitioners find the transition from low plank to upward facing dog the most challenging secondary to weakness in the triceps and inter-scapula muscles. This translates into poor body mechanics of the upper body and trunk. For example, when the shoulders drop lower than the hips in chaturananga this can impinge or inflame the muscles that lie in front of the shoulder through repetition of poor alignment when one struggles through a vinyasa.

After sustaining such a shoulder injury due to yoga people often report pain when lifting the arm overhead, out to the side or across the body. The pain is usually localized to the front or outside of the shoulder and these areas are also tender to touch. Lastly, reports of stiffness and or discomfort may be experienced in the front of the shoulder when efforts to stretch the front of the shoulder girdle are made.

The first thing one should do if they are having shoulder pain is to seek medical attention from a physical therapist and or an orthopedic doctor. Physical therapists specialize in musculoskeletal injuries and can aid in determining a diagnosis so that appropriate treatment can be rendered.
As a physical therapist who is currently recovering from a shoulder injury and providing treatment to many with shoulder pain I believe strongly in the benefits of physical therapy and it’s ability to return athletes to their previous level of activity. When dealing with any person who presents with an overuse injury it is imperative that one determine what weaknesses reside. In many instances there is a commonality in the imbalances found within the shoulder girdle. Frequently patients will present with tightness and muscle bulk in the front of the shoulder which is countered by weakness and atrophy in the muscles in the back of the shoulder and in between the shoulder blades.

In the acute or early stages of a shoulder injury a physical therapist may use an array of various modalities, such as ultrasound, soft tissue massage and ice to decrease the inflammation. Ultrasound functions as a deep heater of the tissue and aids in fueling the healing process while massage helps to break down scar adhesions. Once the signs and symptoms of acuity have decreased a series of stretches and strengthening exercises for the shoulder are prescribed.

When a patient begins to engage in the process of rehabbing the shoulder education is key. As a physical therapist it is imperative to teach patients about their injury and why certain exercises are beneficial or counterproductive. Through sports specific training and education about modifications and safe form, physical therapists can equip people with the appropriate tools to return to the very activity that may have brought them through their doors. In simple terms physical therapy can act as a catalyst for people to achieve equinity and independence in maintaining balance.

The physical therapists at Bounce Back Physical Therapy have been rehabilitating clients with overuse injuries for many years earning a reputation for their individualized sports-specific training and commitment to quality of care. The therapists on staff are happy to conduct a free screening upon appointment for those who may be experiencing pain or are interested in learning about how physical therapy could benefit their body.

By: Sarah Penning, DPT
Bounce Back Physical Therapy
215 Sugartown Rd.
Wayne, PA 19087
http://www.bouncebackpt.com/

References:
Turlington, C. Living Yoga: Creating a Life Practice. NY, NY: Hyperion; 2002.
Yoga and Shoulder Injuries. 2009: 1-4. Available at http://www.acrocore.com/yoga-and-shoulder-injuries/ . Accessed March 3, 2009

No Rush. No Distractions.

2009-10-07T13:20:00.000-07:00

My oldest daughter turned 16 years old a few weeks ago and last Saturday morning she eagerly awaited her first driving lesson. Now I’ve been teaching for a long time but I never realized what a huge responsibility it would be to teach someone how to drive.

My husband took the first crack at it and brought her to a parking lot to go over the basics. After an hour or so, she wanted to take me around the block to show off her new skills. So I relinquished all control and allowed my baby girl to drive me around for a few minutes. After arriving safely back in the driveway she and I talked about the importance of being a safe driver and how she needed to take responsibility for her actions behind the wheel. I simply told her that as long as she was not in a rush to get anywhere and as long as she was not distracted, that she would be just fine.

Later that night I thought about what I had said. No rush, no distractions, everything will be just fine. No rush, no distractions. I realized that those simple words sum up what I say just about every day when I teach yoga. My teaching mantra is based on reminding Verge Yoga students to slow down and to pay attention.

In simple terms, mindfulness means paying attention on purpose. It means thinking, moving, speaking and acting in an unrushed and deliberate manner. We can practice mindfulness on our yoga mats, our meditation cushions, in our kitchens and in our cars. I was essentially teaching my daughter about being a mindful driver by using a few simple yet powerful principles. And as we all know, these principles can and should be applied to just about everything we do or don't do in life.

No rush. No distractions. Keep your eyes on the road, stay focused and everything will be just fine.

A Day in Space

2009-09-03T16:03:00.000-07:00

Today I experienced incredible spaciousness. My two daughters went off to high school this morning. They took the bus at 6:30 am and I picked them up after soccer practice at 4:30 pm. I was on my own for ten hours. During that time, I must have checked my on-line calendar at least four times just to be sure that I wasn’t missing an appointment or a phone call. There was a strange slowness about the day and I found myself floating in it.

Don’t be mistaken, I did have to teach and then work today but there was a sense of vastness surrounding the day that I have not experienced in a long time. Gone from my home office were the faint calls of, “Mom….Mom….where are you?” Absent from my agenda was the insane schedule of drop-offs and pick- ups that I scurried through all summer. There simply was just space. I have to tell you that I love space.

Our yoga practice creates space in our bodies. Our meditation practice creates space in our minds. We create such room in our lives anytime we are just present and in the moment. We can discover pockets of space in our lives if we just look for it. Perhaps it is those twenty minutes home from work or the quiet hour before dawn. Time spent in spaciousness can crack us open. It can help us feel more alive.

My day in space was spectacular. I am looking forward to more of it. The great news is that today is the first day of school and next summer is a long way away.

SnapGlowTV Shoot - Having a little fun!

2009-08-19T08:59:00.001-07:00

Seek Silence

2009-08-19T05:59:00.000-07:00

When enough of us learn how to become deeply and profoundly quiet, then the hysteria of the world will begin to subside. - Marianne Williamson

Every single day, we are bombarded with noise pollution. We have become so accustomed to noise, we’ve grown desensitized. If it’s not the T.V. or music, people chattering on their cell phones, horns honking and trucks backing up, it’s our alarm clocks; it’s our hairdryer; it’s the microwave alerting you that your dinner is ready. Excessive noise, like excesses of any kind, wreaks havoc on our nervous systems and on our psyches. By 5 or 6 o'clock, our ears are ringing, our heads throbbing, and we feel so weary, we collapse from mental exhaustion and auditory overload.

This week, find ways to experience silence. If you’re alone in the car, turn off the radio. If you are cooking, turn the T.V. off. Stop yourself first thing in the morning, when normally you might absent-mindedly switch on the news. Let the bird singing outside be the only sound to accompany your breakfast. And don't be afraid to be absolutely alone. Learning to live with periods - even pockets - of silence, will help to soothe frayed nerves and lighten your heart. You may find you experience moments of bliss, even as you cut the carrots or fold the laundry. It is during these small moments of breathtaking silence that we “hear” our soul force.

Erich Schiffman, author of Moving into Stillness, writes, "When you experience yourself in stillness, that is, when your mind is at its most focused, energetic, present, alive, relaxed and whole hearted state, you will "hear" the voice of God whispering in the depths of your being. You will recognize his voice as the voice of your soul. That voice speaks your deepest and most genuine desires."

Don’t believe it? Just try it. Find silence this week. Find it today. Find it in this very moment. Listen in stillness, and you may sense a profound serenity you’ve never imagined.

Speed Limit 35

2009-07-02T04:26:00.000-07:00

I am not sure exactly when this happened or why it did now upon my turning 45 years old but I recently realized that most drivers are not paying attention on the road. I included myself in that group until this past June. We drive too fast. We are unpredictable in our movements. We multitask. We are not present.

If you are already a safe driver then please ignore my group statement. I thank you for your safety on the road while I have been half asleep at the wheel.

What I have finally come to realize is that accidents happen when someone is not paying attention. In the blink of an eye a life or lives can be ruined. All it takes is one unpredictable move or accelerating through a yellow light. One time. That’s it.

There will always be drivers that are not paying attention and I don’t want to be that person. I’ve worked too hard in my practice of becoming more mindful to throw it away on a stupid cell phone call or song change.

This realization has overwhelmed me this past month. I have awoken, so to speak. I have slowed down. I am driving the speed limit and stopping at the Stop Sign not 5 feet in front of it. I am not taking cell phone calls in my car. I am trying to pay attention.

I often say in class at Verge that our yoga practice creates steadiness in the mind so that we can make conscious decisions. There is more mental space after a yoga practice. It is in that space that we find the time to move and speak more mindfully.

Perhaps I have slowed down enough in my yoga practice to recognize how I am moving out there on the roads. Perhaps turning 45 years old has helped me recognize the fragility of my life. Who knows? All I know is that I feel better more peaceful in the car. It is a new practice for me. I call it Mindfulness Driving.

Hopefully this blog will encourage you to observe your driving style. Perhaps you have always been safe. Maybe you need a little nudge. Like I said, I am not sure why this awakening happened now, I am just grateful that it did.

Peace.

Cara

The Power of Now

2009-06-23T11:47:00.000-07:00

Our minds are like muscles. At any given moment, we are either mentally weak and limp or mentally strong and focused. Like physical muscles, our minds can be trained to become stronger and more useful to us.

There is huge power in Mental Strength Training. When our minds are strong, stable and clear, we are “present” in what we are doing. When present, we are more peaceful and easier to be around. We learn to speak with clarity and conviction. When present, we connect deeply with others. We are able to influence and lead others from a deep and authentic state. From this powerful state of being, we have access to the tools needed to rally our team of co-workers around our message and vision.

When you feel stressed, recognize that you in a weakened state of mind. Stress is the result of too many thoughts barraging our minds at one time. Too much planning, worrying, and replaying stimulates the stress mechanism sending our nerves and emotions into a frenzy. Bottom line, when we are stressed, we have no power or influence.

The good news is that we can train our minds, our mental muscles, to become “stress-free”. With some practice, we learn to slow down our minds and clear away useless and repetitive thoughts. The result is that we rise above the level of stress and instead of just trying to manage it.

There are a few simple exercises in our Mental Strength Training Model:

1. Focus on the Breath
2. Observe Thought
3. Sit in Silence
4. Accept this Moment

When our minds are strong and focused we have access to great power and intuition. We just seem to know what to say and what to do. Mental Strength Training helps us become more fully engaged in the now. I am confident in saying that understanding the potential and power of being here now can change your lives just as it has mine.

Peace.

Cara

A Rose by any other Name

2009-05-27T08:32:00.000-07:00

You may have noticed over the past few weeks that we have changed the name of our yoga center to simply Verge Yoga.

While we opened our doors five years ago as Verge Power Yoga, the focus of our classes has since shifted from a faster-paced, more complicated practice to a yoga practice based on simplicity and mindfulness.

The shift of focus at Verge over the past few years has evolved naturally alongside the collective shift in global thinking from big, fast growth to simple, steady growth.

As I often say in class, our practice reflects the way in which we live. If we continue to move quickly on our mats, we will continue to move quickly in our lives. As we learn to practice yoga with precision and mindfulness, we will learn to move through our days more consciously.

So, as Shakespeare famously wrote, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Our change of name to Verge Yoga is a subtle shift of perception. Our classes remain just as "sweet"... simple, mindful and powerful. As always, it is our intention to offer you a community in which you can unblock, unfold and unleash your power and innate wisdom.

To tweet or not to tweet...

2009-04-17T13:17:00.000-07:00

that is the question.

So I’ve been hearing about Twitter for the past few months and I just couldn’t wrap my arms around it. First of all, why would anyone want to broadcast their daily routine and thoughts out to the world? My first opinion of Twitter without having ever gone on to the site was that it was another ego-based, self indulgent application.

Last week, with some prodding from my techie husband, I joined the world of Twitters. I sheepishly posted a short profile (see below) and my first “tweet”. (basically just a text message to my followers of which I had none)

Then, through some simple searches, I found a couple of interesting folks out there to follow, Lance Armstrong, Tony Robbins, Steven Covey and Time Magazine. And I waited.

The tweets started coming in. I received a quote from Steven Covey, some current events from Time, a reflection from Lance Armstrong about his ride that day in Aspen. Pretty cool, I thought. Connection and union, isn’t that what yoga is about? And so I posted another innocent tweet and hit send.

Within 48 hours I had 15 followers. Included were people from the around the globe that I never met and couple that I know. Again, pretty cool.

Still not completely sold on it, I spent some time on a recent hike pondering how to use this application not as a way to tell people about my fairly uneventful life but rather to connect with yoga students from Verge Power Yoga and beyond. What would I want to share with others?

Well, in class, I often talk about “bridging” your yoga practice to your daily life. I call it, Yoga off the Mat 101. There are so many rich opportunities in our daily lives to practice yoga so why not name them? Why not talk about them? Why not “tweet” them?

I know that my challenges are probably your challenges. Your moments of glory are probably my moments of glory. Let’s connect and tweet about it!

You follow me and I’ll follow you. Yoga off the Mat 101! I realize that there can only be good that comes from connecting with yogis around the world.

So check out www.twitter.com and follow me @caraverge (that’s my id)

Peace.

Cara Bradley, soccer mom, yoga teacher, trying to keep the ball in the air every day.

Simple and Steady

2009-03-26T14:13:00.000-07:00

I always seem to get “gung-ho” at this time of the year. I get so excited for the transition into spring that I often exhaust myself. I am quick to put the winter clothes away, get the rake to the yard and throw open every window in the house even when it is still 40 degrees outside.

This year I am trying a new approach. I intend to apply my yoga practice to my life and try to gracefully transition into the spring season. Honestly, I don’t have the energy to exhaust myself anymore. (I think that is a good sign.)

For the past month or so my intention on my mat has been to be “simple and steady”. During practice, this intention reminds me to slow down and to move deliberately. It reminds me to be content with whatever pose is offered and to then transition gracefully into the next pose. By focusing on the simplicity of the movements, I’ve experienced more space in my body and my mind.

Now, applying this to my real yoga practice, my non-Verge life, will be more challenging. Simple and Steady. One project at a time. One step at a time. One moment at a time.

Wish me luck.

Glimpsing the Grandeur

2009-03-05T04:33:00.000-08:00

Most of our energy goes into upholding our importance. If we were capable of losing some of that importance, two extraordinary things would happen to us. One, we would free our energy from trying to maintain the illusory idea of our grandeur; and two, we would provide ourselves with enough energy to catch a glimpse of the actual grandeur of the universe. ~ Carlos Casteneda

There have been moments while teaching this past month when I have been reminded of Casteneda's powerful quote. In those moments, I dropped into a place where I felt that I was able to "glimpse the grandeur of the universe". The grandeur seemed to reside in the collective energy of the students in the class. It was their focus, their commitment to their practices and their sweet breath that joined together to help hold a moment in time for me. I froze for that moment it took my breath away.

It was in those precious unforeseen moments that I felt a surge of courage to step out of my own importance. I dropped my role as "yoga teacher" and in so doing, I simply became a guide of breath and movement. And it was then that the universe took over and time stood still. I stood still in awe of the pureness of the moment.

We talk about being present in every class at Verge Power Yoga. We remind each other of the task at hand, the mental strength building and the cultivating of mindfulness. We mention the perils of being ego-centric, too chatty or too mentally busy. Yet we continue to create more stories to carry around with us 24/7.

But, as I have experience this month, it may not be until we stand still in a moment bathed in grace that we recognize how small we really are when stuck in our own importance. It may not be until we drop who we think we are that we can actually be still and glimpse that true self. And, it is during that very same moment that we can glimpse the grandeur of how large we can be when we drop our stories.

I continue to wrap my arms around this quote. While I still have much work to do, I am learning that the more I can drop my story, the more I can lose my own sense of importance and the more I will have the “energy to catch a glimpse of the actual grandeur of the universe". Let me tell you, it is so worth the ride.

And the journey continues…

Peace.

Cara

Just Press the Pause Button

2009-02-13T14:56:00.000-08:00

I just finished a fantastic book called, Radical Acceptance, by Tara Brach. This book and teacher was highly recommended by my meditation teacher Scott McBride of ClearLight Meditation. I take his suggestions very seriously.

One of the quotes that impacted me so greatly from the book was the following: "The sacred pause is the gateway to the path of awakening."

I was thrilled to read that since I have been working "the pause" in my classes for the past few months. I’ve found that it is a pause not a movement that allows me to directly experience myself and my connection to others. I’ve found that it is the pause at the end of the exhale or the peak of the inhale when I feel most alive. In meditation, I find that it is the pause and space between thoughts that allows me to feel the penetration of the divine.

Since my surgery in November, my life has become more “pause” and less speed. I really like the way that it feels. My intention to keep strengthening my ability to pause in my life as my foot heals and I begin to move around in the world more easily. It is so easy to go back to sleep.

As a teacher, I've been offering many more pauses in my classes. We can pause in high plank or in child’s pose. We can pause at the end of an inhale or exhale. As we strengthen our ability to pause on our yoga mats, we will begin to practice pausing in our lives.

We can learn to pause before we speak or react. That is where the good stuff starts to happen. Pausing and becoming more mindful of our words and actions is a life changing practice for sure.

I invite you to start small. Trying pausing your mind by taking a few deep breaths at red lights or while waiting for your emails to download.

The pause is, as Tara Brach wrote, the gateway to the path of awakening. That is enough to get me to press that pause button in every area of my life.

Peace.

Cara

Peend trying it.

Lean into the Sharp Points

2009-01-17T11:34:00.000-08:00

Zen masters advise us to “lean into the sharp points” and to practice walking the “razor’s edge”. Ride the rollercoaster of life with your eyes wide open and your arms thrown up in the air, they say. Let go. Jump out of the nest. Surrender to the moment. Just be with “what is”, right?
Here’s the problem. It is our natural instinct is to run from pain. It's in our genetic code to avoid uncomfortable situations. We don’t want to feel uneasy. We spend our lives trying to escape from painful moments. We don’t want to walk the razor’s edge and we certainly don’t want to lean into any sharp points!

Over the past several years, I have experienced a universal truth that the divine works in paradox. What seems big is really small and what seems small is really big. What we want to do we shouldn’t do, and the places that scare us are exactly the places we need to go. “Even if every inch of our being wants to run in the opposite direction, we stay here,” writes Pema Chödrön “There is no other way to enter the sacred world… It’s all raw material for waking up. We can use everything that occurs to show us where we are asleep and how we can wake up completely, utterly, without reservations.”

The practice of Zen and the practice of yoga train us to stand in the center of our lives with our eyes wide opened. No matter what comes up, we learn to stay with “what is”. In order to live large we need to fully see, touch, smell and taste every morsel of fear, anger and disappointment. “When we protect ourselves so we won’t feel pain, that protection becomes like armor, like armor that imprisons the softness of the heart”, writes Chödrön. Overtime, the armor gets thick and heavy. We become separated from others and we close down. Leaning into the sharp points is simply about penetrating the armor that surrounds our heart. And in so doing, writes Chödrön, “the armor begins to fall apart and we find that we can breathe deeply and relax.

Once again, our yoga mats provide us with the perfect setting to practice this. Every down dog and every up dog is raw material for waking up. Every deep breath can help to dissolve the armor that surrounds our heart. Every time we lean into the sharp points we break down the barriers that separate us from the world. In this openness, we discover the awakened heart, or what the Buddhists call the bodhichitta,.

Over these next few weeks during your yoga practice, try to lean into the sharp points and you may just discover a pure, uncensored state of joy and connection. So throw your hands up in the air, keep your eyes wide open and get ready for the ride of your life.

Abandon All Hope

2009-01-09T14:52:00.000-08:00

Over the past several years, I have immersed myself in Buddhist teachings. What an incredible journey inward it has been. There has been one teaching in particular, however, that I don’t think I fully understood… until now. That is to abandon hope.

In her book, When Things Fall Apart, Pema Chodron wrote:

If we’re willing to give up hope that insecurity and pain can be exterminated, then we can have the courage to relax with the groundlessness of our situation. This is the first step
on the path.

My western mind and my sort of type “A” personality has always twisted and turned around the notion of not hoping, not improving or not striving… until now.

I have had my leg cast on for over seven weeks. As I continue to practice the Stationary Sequence, my poses continue to be extremely modified and simple. There is not much that I can do to change that. I cannot heal my foot any faster and I cannot take off the cast. For the past few weeks, I have abandoned the hope that I would soon be able to balance on my left foot or take a deep Warrior 2. It’s not happening anytime soon. I have had to “relax with the groundlessness of my situation”. I have had to learn to let go. This has been a tremendous gift.

Chodron continues:

Hope and fear come from feeling that we lack something; they come from a sense of poverty. We can’t simply relax with ourselves. We hold on to hope, and hope robs us of the present moment.

In abandoning hope in my yoga practice, I have relaxed with my body, my left foot and my black cast. Since I wasn’t so busy fixing myself, I have allowed myself to hang out in the present moment and observe. Wow. I have really felt my poses perhaps for the first time in my life.

Maybe this is what my Buddhist teachers have been saying. At some point, we need to just let go of the need to push, tweak and fix ourselves. We need to let go of the hope that a teacher, an assist or a fancy pose will “improve” us. We should relax with ourselves now, with all of our issues and experience the poses of our lives. I am learning that at some point we need to abandon hope, let go of the control handles and cruise for a bit.

Perhaps I can learn to do this in my life “off the mat”. Perhaps I don’t always have to fix things, improve things or have things be perfect. Perhaps I can abandon the hope that something or someone out there will “fix” me. Perhaps then, I can start experiencing my life more fully.

Peace.

One Step at a Time

2008-12-18T13:42:00.000-08:00

It has been over four weeks since my surgery. I cannot believe that I have been hobbling around on one leg for over a month. With still a long haul in front of me, I am learning to not look ahead too often but to take one day at a time.

By far, the most profound lesson I have learned so far during this time is that there is a wonderful sense of peace in my life when I slow down and take one step at a time. At this point in my recovery, my work and family life almost resembles that of pre-surgery days. However, there are many obstacles in the way of my living at my pre-surgery pace. In other words, I have to slow down and show up for every step that I take or I might just find myself on the floor in a tangle of crutches.

In the past month, my life has been broken down into micro-movements. For example, when getting a glass of water, I must break my movements down as follows: Lean right, balance, reach for the glass, re-balance, reach for the faucet, fill the glass, steady yourself, now drink.

The crazy thing is that I find myself naming these small steps in my mind. Step down the stair, balance, crutches down, foot down, balance. This practice has helped me stay to present and focused during the most basic movements of life.

This mental exercise (which some may think borders on compulsive behavior!) has profoundly shifted my yoga practice and my teaching. One step at a time. One breath at a time. There is no rush. Move slowly and precisely.

One step at a time. One breath at a time. Slow and steady. That is mindfulness. And in mindfulness there is space. And in that space, we find peace.

Cara

My Left Foot - Part 3: The Wonderful Stationary Sequence

2008-11-30T12:43:00.000-08:00

This morning I practiced yoga for the first time since my surgery. I used the template of our Stationary Sequence and modified poses according to what I could and could not do. It was down right fun. I used a stool for most of the standing poses and was able to move through most of the floor poses without too much fuss. Words cannot explain how tremendously wonderful it felt for me to move my body after two weeks of being literally “stationary”.

We often tell out students at Verge Power Yoga that there is a pose for everyone in our Stationary Sequence. Our teachers are more than happy to modify poses for our students prior to class or even during our classes.

We have students practicing at Verge with hip, knee and shoulder replacements. We have students with spinal fusions and chronic low back issues. We have students with rods, plates, screws and more! If you have been off your mat due to an injury or illness, please email me at cara@vergepoweryoga.com and I will personally help you modify the Stationary Sequence so that you can return to practice.

The beauty of the Stationary Sequence practice (or any practice for that matter) is that we can all be doing the same pose but at the same time, all look a bit different. Bottom line is that our yoga practice should serve us individually and based on what we bring into the center with us on any given day, i.e. headache, busy mind, tight hamstrings, etc.

My modified practice this morning served me in a big way. I felt cleansed physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. It was a perfect practice because I did the best that I could do with what was available to me today which is very different than where I was two weeks ago. I rested in savasana feeling grateful to be amongst the physically mobile population again.

I return to teaching tomorrow and cannot wait to see everyone. I’ll continue to practice at home for a few more days and then move my stool to Verge for classes there. . You’ll be seeing me “blissed out” in a modified pose in our Stationary classes by the end of the week.

Until then… Peace.

Cara

My Left Foot - Part 2: Learning to Listen

2008-11-28T14:26:00.000-08:00

Our bodies are truly amazing instruments. And the healing process is flat out a phenomenal experience. I am 10 days out of surgery and, if I listen carefully, my body will tell me what and how much I can do on a day to day basis. And, what I am able to do right now is not a lot.

I can honestly say that I have just about surrendered to my body’s advice to rest a lot and drink a lot. I fully believe that our bodies need an abundance of rest in order to heal. I am learning that there is no substitution for quality rest and there are no short cuts.

The few times I have pushed myself by doing too much in the past ten days, I have paid the price with throbbing and pain in my left foot. I have learned the hard way that I cannot fool my body by squeezing in one more activity or one more phone call. In the past, I could ignore the physical signals that whispered to me when it was time to stop pushing. Right now, my body is in full charge and will scream at me when it is time to stop and rest. I think that I am actually learning to really listen to my body.

Listening is an incredibly important skill to develop. We are asked to listen in school, at work, to our kids, to our spouses. But do we really listen? I know that I don’t always listen when I should be. I think that I am listening but I’m really not. There are times during my yoga practice when I don’t listen to my body. There are times when I don’t listen to the teacher (yes, it is true). There are times when I don’t listen to my kids or my husband!

But now, due to this surgery, I’ve been forced to listen carefully. I will need to continue to listen carefully in order to facilitate healing. If I don’t listen, I feel physical pain. If I do listen, I let go and allow myself to rest and heal.

In many ways, this surgery has been a gift. I have a feeling that my improved listening skills will be one of the most special gifts of all.

Thank you for reading and listening to my story.

Peace. Cara