A practice that begins with a breath technique intended to restore depleted energy, followed by a fluid sequence of asana meant to be approached with effort and ease. The experience closes with guided imagery to continue to rebuild and nourish.
This practice invites you to question habitual stories you tell yourself with specific questions designed to soften self-loathing tendencies. It features a breath technique that symbolizes linking the heart to the mind and movements that strengthen the upper back, countering rounded shoulders, allowing us to feel more "open" at the chest and maybe even open at the heart.
This 30 minute yoga nidra (yogic sleep) is an experience of guided, deep relaxation. Throughout, your body will be invited to the restoring experience of sleep, while the mind rests, yet is still awake. You will be guided to notice areas of the body, the breath and various imagery to help you sink into a state of profound rest. Yoga nidra is known to support the healing of stress, anxiety, depression, sleep issues and hormonal imbalances.
Here are three more ideas for tiny, easy habits that you could connect to activities you already do each day. This week, I offer inspirations for shower time, the moments we spend waiting and a quick pre-meal ritual that can turn eating into a sacred moment of gratitude.
Many come to yoga to create stronger bodies, which is one of the many benefits of the physical practice. However, we soon discover that we also strengthen our ability to question our habitual thoughts, hold broader perspectives and cultivate more compassion for ourselves and others. This 60 minute practice strengthens weak areas of the body where we often feel discomfort (neck, upper back, core, glutes) while offering a breath visualization and inspiration to strengthen our kinder inner voice.
Small practices to help you let go of one activity before shifting into another are threaded through this 45 minute mellow practice intended to release the tension of the day and past events to arrive back in the present moment, refreshed and renewed.
Throughout the month of May, I will be offering simple, accessible ideas to add to your daily routine to help you stay connected to your wellness goals, even in tiny ways. Watch this resource page each Monday this month for a new short video inviting you to sample small habits that can add up to big results.
A calming, grounding 60 minute therapeutic hatha practice that intends to connect you to the undercurrent of peace that exists within us no matter what is happening around us. Expect to explore mindfulness and presence throughout mellow movement and breath and relax deeply with a guided meditation.
A practice that focuses on three of our "centers", our heart center, power center (abdomen) and the concept of a center of peace within. Sample a breath technique that visualizes placing peace in "the heart" throughout a physical sequence that seeks to stabilize the power center while creating freedom for the shoulders and making space for “the heart”.
A short practice including a breath technique, mantra and grounding, gentle movements to reconnect with the present moment and an undercurrent of tranquility within resistance to change.
A 60 minute therapeutic hatha sequence beginning with a breath visualization intended to clear the mind, followed by a concept to help with presence, acceptance and contentment and a flow that can contribute to greater freedom in the low back and hips.
This 20 minute practice offers a technique to shift the mind away from habitual morning thinking to inspiration, presence and thoughts that welcome you wholly to a new day. You'll receive a poem to promote a more expansive mindset and a joint freeing sequence matched with breath and ideas to awaken while cultivating a kinder inner morning landscape.
A 90 minute experience featuring alternative ideas to bring into your mornings to counter habitual thoughts and feelings.
-An inspirational reading to encourage new thoughts and feelings. I shared the classic poem, The Guest House by Rumi. (text to follow)
-Focus enhancing breath to support the body and mind
-The "welcoming" of intentions during a joint freeing series
-Morning movements to promote energy and refreshment
-A guided meditation utilizing the imagination to help actualize your intentions.
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.
A 60 minute breath and movement experience that invites you to sensitize yourself to the felt sense of your body, a practice that cultivates presence, the doorway to healing.
A movement practice intended to uplift and cultivate self-compassion when you’re spending a lot of time with yourself, or, to foster a more loving connection with yourself.
When you need to take your time and ease into movement, a 60 minute therapeutic practice beginning on the floor, warming joints and muscles before slowly inviting you into a flow.
Welcome to a 75 minute class from a Toronto government-sanctioned quarantine hotel! This moderate hatha sequence is designed around mindful movement in time with full inhales and complete exhales. Slow strength, stretch and breath for calming refreshment.
A micro practice featuring an easy breath technique to soothe critical thinking along with self-inquiry to cultivate self-compassion when you need it.
An antidote to stiffness due to sitting, feeling low or stuck, this standing micro practice frees the joints, warms the muscles and re-energizes.
A quick breath technique and set of movements to energize the body and remind the brain to take in the sweetness of life a little more often.