30 Dr. Seuss Quotes for Yogis to Live By
Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so…get on your way!
Daily Yoga Practice — Sometimes Less Is More…
With life constantly on the move and not enough hours in the day, it can be tough to fit in an hour or more of yoga on a consistent basis. Unfortunately, a lot of us talk ourselves out of unrolling the mat if we don’t think we have time for a “long” yoga session. Twenty minutes just doesn’t seem like enough time to make much difference, does it?
To Take the Posture is the Purpose of the Practice
“These forms are not a means of obtaining the right state of mind. To take this posture itself is the purpose of our practice. When you have this posture, you have the right state of mind, so there is no need to try to attain some special state. When you try to attain something, your mind starts to wander about somewhere else. When you do not try to attain anything, you have your own body and mind right here.” ~Shunry Suzuki in Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind
Airplane Yoga for Holiday Travelers
Traveling during the upcoming holidays has its plusses and minuses. You know it will be great to see family and friends, but the enhanced airport security measures stress you out. Then there’s sitting in a safety-oriented airplane seat that was not built for comfort. With a few planning tips and yoga poses to do at the boarding gate and on the plane you can arrive feeling rejuvenated and refreshed.
Latest Blog Posts
7 Ways to Maintain a Home Yoga Practice
Getting going can be the hardest part. Some mornings, like today, I’ve been up late the night before, man oh man my mind is all over the place, and I’m convinced my body is telling me to go back to bed. “Don’t you think another hour’s sleep would benefit you more than meditation and asana?”
On days like this, I can spend almost a quarter of my allotted morning practice time just sitting on my mat, debating with myself. “Go back to bed; it’s okay.” “Don’t you get off your mat; you know how much better you’ll feel after you do this.” Then I sit and try to plan my flow, “Hey, at least I’m thinking about doing it.”
To Take the Posture is the Purpose of the Practice
“These forms are not a means of obtaining the right state of mind. To take this posture itself is the purpose of our practice. When you have this posture, you have the right state of mind, so there is no need to try to attain some special state. When you try to attain something, your mind starts to wander about somewhere else. When you do not try to attain anything, you have your own body and mind right here.” ~Shunry Suzuki in Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind
Overriding Lizard Brain: 5 Ways to Go Beyond Fear, Anger and Negativity
The mind has a way of taking control. Scientists and life coaches call our Amygdala—the region of our brain pretty much in charge of feelings of anxiety, fear, anger and negativity—our “lizard brain.” Why lizard brain? Because this area of our brain evolved a loooong time ago, back when our primal lizard-ish concerns were much more prevalent. This is why our biological stress response to, say, a looming deadline, is still as dramatic as it was when we were facing, say, a looming tiger.
The Evolution of a Yoga Blog…
Daily Cup of Yoga used to be my own little personal yoga blog universe. I remember the first week I started the blog and how excited I felt to have 20 people serendipitously happen upon it. I had no idea where they came from, but somehow people slowly started following the blog, linking up in the yoga blogosphere, and coming back for more. I didn’t really start the blog for social interaction though (I’m mostly an introvert)–I started it because I love yoga and wanted a place to talk about it…even if it was just to myself–but I’m not going to lie…it was kind of a thrilling to watch the blog grow over the years. And then Twitter came along, and Facebook, and then Tumblr, and then Pinterest, and man, it all started to steam roll and it was just so cool to link up with all these other yogis all over the world. I’m so grateful to all of you, whether old or new readers, who comment, link, share, and inspire me in so many amazing ways! THANK YOU!!
With that said, may I digress and perhaps mildly rant for a moment…
Relieve Pain with Yoga for Arthritis
Arthritis is more than occasional aches and pains. The condition is caused by inflammation of the joints and can lead to swelling, difficulty moving and severe pain. It can affect almost anyone, from children to the elderly, and may cause the simplest activities to become a challenge. Medications are often prescribed to relieve the pain and inflammation, but many health care providers now also recommend yoga for arthritis relief.
5 Ways to Boost Your Intuition — and Why They Work
RANDOM RUN-INS WITH NOT-SO-RANDOM INSIGHTS
I was sick of being tired, and tired of being sick. I had scored my dream job—assistant editor at a top-earning Canadian magazine. Scratch that. It was all I’d dreamt it would be, it just didn’t feel like a dream. I wasn’t sleeping, wasn’t digesting food, wasn’t at ease, wasn’t happy. My anxiety was through the roof.
A Trip Down lululemon Lane
Believe it or not, I went to an actual lululemon store for the very first time yesterday. As the kind sales-folks at the Seattle Pacific Place store can attest, I probably tried on every piece of guys clothes they had in the store..twice. It was a little embarrassing and I’m not sure I’ve ever spent that much time in a dressing room, but I had a lot of time to burn, and I sure as heck wasn’t walking out of there with clothes that didn’t fit perfectly. Trust me though, time to burn in a lululemon store can be a dangerous thing. It’s not hard to find clothes that fit perfectly…
The Ethics of Eating
As unique beings we all have different hopes, fears, conditioning, expectations, and agendas around our health and our relationship to food and eating. Over the years of teaching and doing nutritional counseling, I have found it valuable to establish my own set of personal ethics in regards to my health and that of the planet.
In Memory of a Yogi ~ The Mahasamadhi of Paramahansa Yogananda
The writings of Paramahansa Yogananda have been a guide to me ever since I took up yoga more than 10 years ago. You may or may not know that March 7th marks the 60th anniversary of Paramahansa Yogananda’s mahasamadhi (a yogi’s final conscious exit from the body at the time of physical death). The spiritual legacy of Yogananda –– author of Autobiography of a Yogi, founder of Self-Realization Fellowship, and one of the preeminent spiritual figures of our time –– continues to flourish today, with evermore seekers internationally turning to the sacred science of yoga meditation.
Third Installment of the Overly Brief and Incomplete History of Yoga
Thanks for keeping the updates coming Alison! Click the graphic for full-size PDF. To compare this flowchart with the first two, click here and here. … [Read More...]
Hank Gets a Little Yoga Treatment from Yogi Victor on King of the Hill
I know this clip's a little old, but I love the heck out of this scene from King of the Hill. While Yogi Victor (Johnny Depp) is quite the crude yoga teacher, he clearly has Hank's best interests at heart... Who knows, Hank might even learn how to "breath through his feet" once he gets a tank-top. … [Read More...]
Leslie Kaminoff Shares His Two Cents on Whether Yoga Will Wreck Your Body
Here's the cover of the soon to be released book whose author recently set the yoga community's tail on fire with his New York Time's article, "How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body." While I'll reserve my response until I read the book, I thought I'd share Leslie Kaminoff's video response to the … [Read More...]
Revitalizing Home Practice Sequence
Hold the pose a little longer and enjoy some serious relaxation with a Yin Yoga practice from Yoga Journal. Related articles Gentle Flow Yoga with Kathryn Budig (dailycupofyoga.com) … [Read More...]
Yoga is to Running as Yin is to Yang
Many of us who love both running and yoga know how important it is to balance both activities in our lives. Not a simple thing to do since running and yoga require time and dedication to become proficient at either. Even those who practice a fairly vigorous form of yoga have likely learned from … [Read More...]
The Ultimate Sexy Yoga Battle
"It's Not Sexy, It's Yoga" vs. "It's Not Fitness, It's Life" Surely by now you've seen the original, if not minorly scandalous Equinox yoga video, featuring Briohny Smyth. Well, it's a great week for the yoga world now that humorist Michael A. Stusser ("The Dead Guy Interviews") takes his yoga … [Read More...]
Krishna Das ~ Chants of a Lifetime: Searching for a Heart of Gold (Wanderlust SPEAKEASY 2011)
As a long-time fan of Krishna Das, I really enjoyed hearing some of his story... Join Krishna Das (acknowledged as the Chant Master of American Yoga by the New York Times) as he shares how he entered into the practice of chanting and what it means to him today, as well as his relationship … [Read More...]
Book: Illustrated Light on Yoga by BKS Iyengar
A little free yoga knowledge right here. B.K.S. Iyengar: Light on Yoga … [Read More...]
