Are you trying to conceive? Trying for a baby?

While nothing is a guarantee...
Are you familiar with Yin Yoga? I just received 'another' email this morning from a SUPER happy momma-to-be who will be leaving my Yin class to attend one of my  Prenatal classes and she is convinced that it was the Yin practice that made it happen after trying all sorts of ways.. (**And it happens all the time)

While I don't believe there are any actual studies, Yin Yoga DOES target the areas primarily from the navel to the knees and opens things up and lubricates things like never before and for conception and implantation to take place we need to be open. And relaxed. The practice removes stagnation and encourages Chi (prana) into the pelvic region in particular (reproductive organs) which is VERY healthy for the organs. And again, it's VERY relaxing and gives you more time to meditate and go within and connect with yourself on a deeper level increasing your body awareness even more than a more active yoga practice. And its the same hormones that 'get baby in there' as get baby 'out of there' if you know what I mean (nudge nudge wink wink;).
I can't recommend Yin Yoga enough for all sorts of reasons but if you are trying to conceive come to class and we'll do a special fertility flow anytime you like.

A brand new session of Yin Yoga starts up on Thursday at The Roundhouse at the corner of Davie St @ Pacific Blvd. Its super casual and all you need is to bring yourself.
To register go to www.roundhouse.ca or call 604-713-1800 (press 2)

Just realized all my current sessions are wrapping up! Register today if you can!

Daytime Yoga (Mixed levels) Mon & Wed 1230-2pm at Mount Pleasant

Mixed Levels Yoga Tues 730-9pm at The Roundhouse

Prenatal Yoga Wed 630-745pm at Mount Pleasant

Prenatal Yoga Tues & Thurs 545-715pm at The Roundhouse 

Baby and Me Yoga Mon 1045-12pm at Mount Pleasant

Baby and Me Yoga Thurs 1230-2pm at The Roundhouse
Yin Yoga Thursdays 730-845pm (generally goes til 9pm) at The Roundhouse

Mount Pleasant 604-257-3080 (press 2) 

Roundhouse 604-713-1800 (press 2)

life stressing you out? feeling stiff and achy? looking for balance?

Greet everyone you meet with a warm smile.

No matter how busy you are, 
don't rush enounters with co-workers, family and friends.
Speak softly. Listen attentively. 
Act as if every conversation you have 
is the most important thing on your mind today.
 Look your children and your partner in the eyes when they talk to you.
 Stroke the cat, caress the dog.
 Lavish love on every living being you meet. 
See how different you feel at the end of the day.

 ~ Sarah Ban Breathnach 



A sweet student of mine had an article published and she is a really great writer.

The article is by By Lisa Marie Sterr and it's on Page 7 of the Fall issue of the Networker

Lisa Marie is really talented and lovely and open and honest and I cherish our relationship very much. We go way back have shared many a yoga class together. She inspires me. She wrote this one evening after a yoga class with me and I am glad she shared it with me. I can certainly relate in a huge way to much of what she says. 

It’s nice that yoga is always there for us through challenging times AND happy times. *All we have to do it show up. 

It isn't always easy, but we always feel better for it on every level. That’s the promise of yoga.

Here it is: Sometimes help comes from the most unexpected places. I’ve been feeling so tormented lately; full of raw emotions. About an hour before leaving for my yoga class, I have the most intense cry. I am so sad. Yet somehow I manage to eat, put on my yoga clothes, and head out the door.

Entering the classroom, I notice the soft lighting. My yoga teacher says hi to me by name, and I feel like she’s happy to see me. I settle on a mat. As the class begins, I focus on breathing. Still, it is a struggle to stay present, since I’ve been floating away from my body so much lately. I tell myself it will be a victory if I can have even moments of being grounded.

In the quiet room, all I can hear is my teacher’s voice, the yoga music and the sound of people breathing. Everything else falls away. I focus on my body and on following the poses. My neglected body, so alienated and uninhabited, is now moving and stretching. I feel it freeze, as it has been doing so often lately. I take a moment to notice it, then start moving again.

In the “downward dog” pose, I push all my tension, all my feelings of being trapped, into my arms. In “warrior,” I stand tall and feel my feet rooting down. My vision sharpens and I am present in the room, for the first time in weeks. I twist and bend, feeling the rawness in my joints, the heat rushing through my body.

And then the reward: relaxation.

I relax into my teacher’s voice – a pleasant melody soothing all the discordant notes inside me; into the supports under my head and knees and the cushioning of the yoga mat beneath me. The floor is smooth and cool under my hands. It is safe here. For the first time in weeks, I can rest.

Fluid, juicy sensations float through me as I leave the class. I’m melty, like the most exquisite piece of chocolate, and also warm and tingly, like feeling really close to someone. My body has been craving this sooth- ing – which I found, not in a bag of cookies or in my therapy group, but at yoga. I found it inside my body, where I’ve been feeling so much torment. I don’t know how long it will last; the anguish may come flooding back tomorrow. But for now I revel, and rest, in the relief.

Nothing bonds women quite like pregnancy and new babies

My yoga classes (pre and post natal in particular) are very much about community building and thats what makes my life and my profession so very rich and rewarding. I get to witness first hand, new friendships among moms be formed in every single class. And many of these connections will be lifelong. Some of my sweet moms have a great meet up group going on and they all seem to be enjoying it greatly. 

If it interests you go to www.meetup.com and search "Vancouver moms to be". Click on the b&w pregnant belly (if its your first time you may have to make a free profile -only takes a sec). Some examples of meet up's are: Saturday morning social breakfast, Sunday a seawall walk and Monday a Thai lunch downtown.  One mom told me "I have found this group has answered a lot of questions for me and given me the added confidence to accept that my changes are normal and average …nothing to worry about."

Here is a FREE show pass to the Yoga Conference & Show next month!

 Workshops cost extra (and registration is on) but the show is HUGE as well, and there are free garden classes and loads of vendors. This is a weekend of community and celebration of yoga with something for everyone!  Absolutely everyone ♥ 

Print up this pass and I hope to see you there! For more info go HERE

Bittersweet October.

The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, perfect pause between the opposing miseries of summer and winter.  Carol Bishop Hipps

Social psychologist Amy Cuddy shows how standing in a posture of confidence, even when we don't feel confident -- can affect testosterone and cortisol levels in the brain

Fantastic talk! Fascinating, lovely and inspiring. I feel especially touched by this talk as I once suffered a brain injury in a car accident and had to start over again as well. I can totally relate. The climb back up isn't easy but you must persevere. And sometimes in this life you do have to fake it, until you become it, and what you do practice day in and day out, you become. The talk is 21 mins long. Sit back and enjoy xo