mac&cheese&peas

Yoga Teacher Training Weeks 21 & 22

Jun 152013

“As long as I am breathing, in my eyes, I am just beginning.”
― Criss Jami

Hi Yogis,

As my training comes to an end, I am realizing how it is really the beginning of a lifelong teaching journey. I can’t wait to start teaching, and even though it makes me nervous, and I still feel unprepared, I know I will never feel truly ready because I will always have more to learn. I love the above quote because it is a great reminder that we always have a chance to start over. Every time we step on to the mat, we get another opportunity to clear the slate and begin again. I know the same will be true with teaching, each class is an opportunity to start fresh, and help my students learn to tune in and just breathe.

The end of my training consists of each teacher trainee presenting a 45 minute class. It has been really rewarding to watch my fellow teacher-in-training grow into inspiring yoga teachers. Some have even began their own yoga businesses, such as Peace Fingers yoga and Callaloo yoga. In our last Sunday workshop we talked about creating a container so that the Universe can provide you with abundance. By creating a business, they have set up their containers, which will hopefully lead them to abundance. In some ways, I consider my blog a container since it let’s me share my thoughts. In the words of Soul sister Heather Waxman, “Feed the world in your own words.” I hope to feed the world with my words and with my yoga.

“When we are happy, we spread happiness, and when we are in pain, we spread suffering. If our aim is to alleviate the world’s suffering, we must begin with our own minds and bodies, we must do yoga.”

-Rolf gates

Five Facts Friday: Canadian Edition

Food, travel No Responses »

Jun 142013

Hello Lovely people,

I have been MIA on the blog front lately, and since I made a deal with myself never to apologize for not blogging I’m not going to apologize, so instead I will bring you a quick and hopefully entertaining blog post. I spent the majority of this week in Saskatoon, Canada on a business trip, and I discovered it’s quite the cute little town with lots of shopping, and delicious food to offer. So, I bring you five facts Friday Canada Edition:

Fact 1. When you ask for chocolate sprinkles (which was hard enough for me to say considering I am a New Englander and they are called “jimmies”) they give you these:

little chocolate candies that taste kinda like m&m minis. Those are not sprinkles!

Fact 2. You can find these in your local Canadian grocery store. Love them! I’ve spent many years just putting ketchup on my chips, and some Canadian genius had the smarts to combine the two.

Fact 3: Downton Abbey was actually filmed in Saksatoon, SK!

Ok, you got me, that’s not a fact. In fact, it’s a blatant lie. Saskatoon is home to a gorgeous hotel called the Delta Bessborough, which I though looked pretty similar to Downton Abbey.

Fact 4. Another popular flavor that I wish we had in the US is Dill Pickle everything. You can find Dill pickle flavored chips, popcorn, peanuts, sour cream dips, and cream cheese dips. It’s pretty good, and I think they might be on to something.

Fact 5. Saskatoon is pretty!

But I’m still nerdy. #foodscientist

Acro Yoga at The Breathing Room

Yoga 4 Responses »

May 252013

Have you ever tried something that you weren’t good at on the first try, and it made you really discouraged? That is just your ego talking, and I’m going to tell you why you shouldn’t listen to it. Nowadays, I LOVE trying new things, but I wasn’t always that way. When I was younger, I let my ego make the decisions, and I ended up spending a lot of time on the sidelines of various activities. I always preferred to watch instead of trying it. Since starting yoga, and just growing older and more confident, I began to feel a little more adventurous. But, whenever I tried something new, my ego would jump in and say things like “hey, this must not be your thing because you suck at it!” or “you should just stop trying, you are never going to be good at that.” It’s easy to listen to that voice, and to give up, but if you do that, you will never grow! You have to tell that voice that you appreciate it’s feedback, but you will have to agree to disagree. Once you stop listening to your inner debbie downer, you will start to grow, and really cool and fun things might happen like….

Acro Yoga!

This past Wednesday, I dragged CJ to his first ever yoga class which happened to be an Acro Yoga class called Thai and Fly held at the Breathing Room in Cambridge. Cj had no idea what to expect, and I didn’t either. I had never done acro yoga, but I saw one of my friend’s pictures from an acro yoga class on facebook, and it looked like a really fun way to bond with your significant other. I’ve tried to get CJ to do some basic acro stuff at home, but he always gets nervous that he’s going to drop me. I figured if I could convince him to take a class with me, he would feel a little more comfortable attempting some poses with a spotter.

Acro yoga is surprisingly hard, and it involves a lot of core and leg strength for the base, and lots of balance and upper body strength for the flyer. I am still sore three days later from the class! Acro yoga also involves trust, support, and a little bit of fearlessness. The class was broken up into groups of three, with one person as a base, one as a flyer, and the other as a spotter. It really helped having a spotter there because you could really be playful without having the risk of getting hurt.

Throughout the class, I was mostly a flyer, but I wanted to try being a base so I could understand how hard it was. Instead of trying to be a base for CJ, the teacher, Sandy, let me try to base her, which was super hard even though she was a small woman. It’s really hard to push somebody into the air using your legs and core, and if you have tight hamstrings like CJ and I both do, it’s really hard to straighten your legs to get into the full position. As you can see in the picture below, CJ has a little wedge under his hips to help with the tight hamstrings. After my failed first attempt at basing, I got a little discouraged, but it was a good learning experience, and from then on I could understand how hard the base’s job was.

We learned a couple different acro poses, and then we got to play around with them. The picture above is called throne, and it was by far the scariest, but most fun of the poses we tried that class. It involved tons of trust between CJ and I, and I couldn’t believe it when we got into the final pose. Look mom, no hands!

The best part of class for me was watching CJ get to be a flyer. It was so awesome. Sandy, the same small woman that was a flyer for me, was the base for CJ. It just goes to show you that in Acro yoga, size doesn’t really matter. I really wish I could have gotten a picture of CJ in the throne pose, but I missed the opportunity.

I don’t know if acro yoga will be making any more appearances in my near future, but I’m definitely glad I tried it. It was a fun activity for CJ and I, and an awesome way to explore some new, and playful ways of movement. If you live in the Boston area and want to check it out, the Breathing room has acro yoga every Wednesday night at 6pm for $20.

Thanks for taking the pictures, Sandy!

Yoga Teacher Training Weeks 18, 19, & 20

Yoga No Responses »

May 232013

“I became a teacher in the true sense when I recognized my teaching as a divine opportunity to be present at the birth of an individual’s authentic self.” – Rolf Gates from Meditations from the Mat.

Hi Yogi friends,

When I first read the above quote months ago at the beginning of my teacher training (or maybe even before it started) I got chills and it brought tears to my eyes. It was unlike any other perspective on teaching I had read about, and it just inspired me to the core. I knew if a sentence like that could evoke such a reaction in me, then it must be really important. I highlighted it in my Meditations from the Mat book, and I’ve gone back and read it a bunch of times throughout the training.

If yoga is the “union of body, mind, and spirit” then it makes sense that teaching yoga would be an opportunity to witness that connection. I never thought about that before, but it is so true, and so powerful. It’s why I’m so excited to get out there and teach, it’s why I want to inspire as many people as possible to try yoga, and it’s why I’m doing the teacher training in the first place, I just didn’t realize it.

As my training comes to a close, I’ve been thinking a lot about what I’ve learned. I’m so glad I did a six month training instead of a more intense one because I’ve had so much time to process everything. It’s also helped me slow down and be more patient. A few months ago I made a list of all the things yoga can bring into your life. That list included balance, focus, strength, compassion, patience (never my strong suit), and flexibility. Some of those things translate to the physical body, but they also translate to life in general. Yoga teaches us so many important lessons.

I’ve learned:

that my ego isn’t the boss of me
it’s more enjoyable to give than to receive
practicing compassion for my body has been crucial in my practice
arm balances are fun and not scary
I really like doing hands-on assists
every pose looks different on every body, and it’s not wrong or right
it’s important to breath deeply
patience truly is a virtue
the yoga community is a welcoming and beautiful place

Only a few more weeks of teacher training! What will I do will myself after it ends??

Namaste!

All-Star Workout at Fenway

training, weekends, workouts, Yoga 3 Responses »

May 232013

Hey Everyone!

This past weekend, I got invited to a super fun workout event held at the beautiful Fenway park. I brought along my most trusted sidekick, Tracy, and we got our butts kicked, Equinox style.

Even though the start time was early, I couldn’t pass up this opportunity to work out at Fenway with some of Boston’s best personal trainers from Equinox (Boston’s best health club). We were in for one Monstah workout, and they gave us the tank tops to prove it! (Don’t mind my tag sticking out!)

The all-star workout was held all around the stands at Fenway park. We were split up into groups, and then lead through a series of workouts. There were about 10 different segments including a yoga one (!), tabata, and other cardio and weight training exercises including rowing machines, sandbags, and medicine balls.

Since I am out of the “group fitness” element now, I struggled a little bit with the style of the workouts. It was a lot more intense then I am used to, but it’s definitely good to switch things up. I had a little trouble with the “drill sergeant” instructors. That just doesn’t motivate me anymore! I much prefer the yoga philosophy of listening to your body, and not pushing it past exhaustion. The All-Star trainers were having none of that, though! They wanted you to give it your all, and after an hour and a half of working out in the sun, I didn’t have too much energy left.

Of course our last segment of the workout was running up and down the stairs of a whole section of seating. I pushed through to the end, and soon enough, Tracy and I were enjoying fruit and smoothies in the sun on the standing room section of Fenway. A lovely end to a sweaty workout.

and of course I had to bust out a Dancer’s pose with the beautiful Fenway park as the backdrop!

Thanks for inviting me, JP! and thanks for hosting an awesome event, Equinox! Your members work hard, and it’s really inspiring!

Life Updates!

blogger, thoughts 8 Responses »

May 152013

On teaching yoga: I think I hit a milestone this weekend. I felt comfortable teaching in front of 10 people this past Sunday. I didn’t realize it until after I finished teaching my 5 poses, but I actually didn’t feel nervous while I was up there. I think what helped me was not standing in the front of the classroom awkwardly half-demoing poses, and instead, walking around, staying behind the students, and doing hands on assists. I’ll talk more about this in my YTT weekly update!

On Acupuncture: I haven’t talked about this for a while because I stopped going after 5 sessions. I got one needle in my hand that caused my nerve to become aggravated and it was very painful and disruptive to my job and my yoga practice. The acupuncturist didn’t hit the nerve, he just hit a sensitive area that became inflamed and caused the nerve to be unhappy. I was getting a zap, or jolt, when I moved my wrist in a certain direction. I couldn’t do certain things at work, and I couldn’t do arm balances (!!!!), so I called the acupuncturist to talk about it. He explained what had happened, and he told me that since yoga involves some much pressure on the wrists that I might need to take a break from yoga (!!!!). This was obviously not something I wanted to hear, so I decided to stop going until it got better (it’s fine now) but I realized it might not be worth the risk. I think my case is rare, and I know acupuncture helps so many people, but it’s just not for me right now. I would rather deal with weird stomach issues than have to deal with a painful zap sensation on my wrist.

On Learning to Drive a Standard: Still working on this one, but I am getting a lot more comfortable. I drove all the way to Charlestown this weekend, and I only stalled once, and only got beeped at twice. Vast improvement! CJ’s aunt suggested hanging a sign in the car that says “learning to drive a standard” and I’m thinking that’s not a bad idea!

On my Job: Still loving it! I still can’t believe how lucky I am sometimes. Developing new ice cream flavors is a dream job I never even dreamed of! I wish I could share more, but everything is confidential. Nerd Alert!

On Blogging: Can I blog about blogging?? Thanks so much for sticking with me through the changes my blog content has been going through. In order to stay authentic, I have to blog about what I am doing currently, and that so happens to be lots of yoga, and not so much running, races, cooking, or baking. I appreciative everyone who has continued to read MCP, and I hope you stick around for more exciting things in the future! Running might not return, but recipes definitely will!

On CJ: My Mom once asked me if everything was ok with me and CJ because she hadn’t seen much of him on the blog! Ha! So I feel like I should update you, and let you know what we are still doing good! Just signed our lease for another year! We are both super busy, but we make time for each other when we can, and I have a fun (for me) date planned for us later this month. It’s surprisingly hard to keep up the once monthly special dates! Sometimes It’s easier to have homemade pizza on the couch date night.

On life in general: I’ve been having the best year, and it’s only May! I’ve made my health and happiness a main priority. I still have bad days (we all do!) , and get into funks (like this past Saturday when I couldn’t peel myself off the couch), but I feel like I’ve found the tools to get myself back to center. One of those tools is…yoga! I believe that happiness is a choice, and health is definitely worth the extra effort. I’ve also realized the importance of mental health, spiritual health, and emotional health this year. In the past, my measure of health was my current jeans size and how I looked in a bathing suit. Now I care more about maintaining life balance, and emotional wellbeing. I read this blog and this blog for inspiration.

Aerial Yoga

workouts, Yoga 6 Responses »

May 142013

Hello there,

This Sunday I had the opportunity to try out Aerial yoga at South Boston Yoga with one of my favorite Teachers, Andrea Isabelle Lucas. She posted a request on Facebook about a week ago, looking for people who wanted to try aerial yoga for free, while the class was being filmed for a internet reality show. I responded right away, and booked a spot in the class. The show it was being filmed for is called “Fit or Fad” and has and not yet been released, so I don’t have much info about it. Once the video comes out, I will share a link so you can all witness me embarrassing myself on camera.

I arrived at South Boston Yoga around 7:30. The class ended up starting 45 minutes late because they had to film some dialogue first with the host, but I guess that’s the price you pay for a free class! Eventually they let us in, and I was so excited to try the silks that I forgot all about the waiting!

For those who might not know, aerial yoga, sometimes called anti-gravity yoga, is a style of yoga using silk swings to bring you off the ground, and use gravity to deepen to poses, and the instability of the swing to build core strength. Watch this short video to learn more about aerial yoga.

The class started with some basic yoga warm-up moves on our mats, and then we started moving through some aerial yoga “sun salutations” which involved stepping up into the swing and using the swing under the knee to hold the body up in standing poses like warrior one and two. Some of the poses felt familiar, but there was a totally different element when using the fabric for support. I could definitely feel my core engaging. After we warmed up, we got to step all the way up into the swing and do some fun stuff.

This side plank-like move was surprisingly hard! Basically you have to hold all your body weight in one hand. I realized how fearless I have become when it comes to yoga. I used to be too scared to try “scary” poses like crow, or headstand, but now I practice them all the time. I think this opportunity for aerial yoga came at the right time because I am at the “I’ll try anything” stage of my practice. I was thinking that if I tried this out a year ago, I would have probably spent more time watching other people instead of trying it myself. Once I stopped being afraid of trying new things, my practice got a lot stronger. I guess it’s true what they say:

One of the coolest things about aerial yoga (besides the savasana, I’ll get to that in a minute) was that once you take the gravity out of certain poses, they become easier. Example A: Dancers pose with both arms reaching back and grabbing the foot. I am unable to do this pose right-side-up without the use of a strap. My foot feels miles away from my hands. When you try the pose upside down with the support of the fabric, miracles happen!

Now for the best part! For the final resting pose, aka savasana, we stretched out the fabric completely (it’s pretty wide!) and layed down inside like a cocoon. It was the most relaxing thing ever. You are completely covered from head to toe, and you feel totally weightless. Once you are all settled and comfortable, you cross your arms over your chest like a vampire, close your eyes, and feel the gentle swaying of the fabric.

It was amazing! I don’t know if I will try it again for a while, but only because I don’t like to miss my usual yoga classes. I have one for every day of the week now, except Fridays. Fridays are my rest days, or gentle home practice days.

Stay tuned for next week when Cj and I try acro yoga at the Breathing Room in Cambridge! (See, not that I’ve published this post, he can’t back out! muahahah)

Yoga Teacher Training, Week 17

Yoga 4 Responses »

May 072013

“Yoga is not about touching your toes, it’s about what you learn on the way down.” -Judith Lasate

Hello yogis and yoginis,

I learned so much this week in teacher training! We had our Sunday seminar on giving assists, and it was awesome. I really got a lot out of it, so I wanted to share that with you. If you are unfamiliar with yoga classes, teachers sometimes give adjustments, or assists, in poses to allow you to go deeper, or to correct alignment.

Assists are awesome to receive, and I look forward to getting them, but that wasn’t always the case. When I first started practicing, I just wanted the teacher to leave me alone, because I thought getting an assist meant I was doing the pose wrong. When you have a type-A personality, you can view the assists as corrections, and that is something your ego will not like. When I was new to yoga, I would make a silent prayer in hopes that the teacher would pass me by. I didn’t understand the motive behind the assist. As I dove deeper into my practice, I began to understand the power of a good assist. Now I’m practically screaming “pick me! pick me!” when the teacher is going around the room.

I’ve worked one-on-one with a couple of my friends, and I’ve tried giving some assists, (especially in savasana) but other than that, I don’t have much experience. Before the 6 hour seminar this weekend, we had discussed assists a little bit, and we learned a few good ones, but we didn’t go very deep. On Sunday, we had plenty of time to apply our anatomical knowledge in order to give an effective assist. It was so helpful, and now I feel prepared to assist a class for another teacher, or do assists in my own class someday.

Touch is powerful, and we all need it. Incorporating touch through the form of assisting is definitely something I want to explore as a new teacher. It was awesome to hear how everyone felt about giving and getting the assists. One of the words someone threw out there was ‘supported.” The assists made her feel supported. Not one person said that the assists were bothersome. That was good to hear because me, along with some other students felt a little unsure about how long to stay with one student, how much pressure to use, etc. We also talked about how some students may be triggered by touch, and it is important to read the signs and know when to back off. Overall, most students will be open to assists, and will come to enjoy them.

It’s really cool to be able to help someone come deeper into a pose. I know that when I am getting an assist in class, I try to remember the action the teacher is using, so I can use it in a later class. I feel like the assists stay with you, and serve as a reminder for certain alignment points in poses. Phew, that was a little bit of a brain dump! Thanks for sticking with me! Now, I really can’t wait to get my hands on some of my friends to try out these assists… any takers???

Namaste!

Blogger Brunch at Bar 10, Westin Copley

blogger, Brunch, Champagne, Restaurants No Responses »

May 052013

One of the perks of writing a blog is occasionally being invited to try really fun restaurants. This weekend, I got to attend a blogger brunch held at Bar 10 in the Westin Copley Hotel. Fancy! This event as organized by Jen from Boston Bachelorette, and the lovely people at Bar 10 were generous enough to provide brunch and cocktails for 15 Boston area bloggers. It was a fun event with a great group of young ladies.

Back Row from left, Tracy from Tracy Nutrition, Jodi from Jodibeansblog.com, Kerrie from Urban Foodie Finds, Stellina from My Yogurt Addiction, Jane from Corn in the USA, Jilian from Big City, Lil Kitchen, Front row from right, Jen from Boston Bachelorette, Stacey from Sweat, Savor, and Smile, and Me Smile

They started us all off with a complimentary champagne drink with pineapple and raspberries. It was nice and refreshing, and a great way to kick off the tasty meal to come. Nothing like a lil bubbly on a sunny spring day in Boston!

We were able to chose our meals from their amazing brunch menu, which is home to the famous Green Monster Omelette. All of their choices looked amazing, but I went with the Crab Cake eggs benedict, and a Pom Fizz cocktail.

I liked how the menu was labeled “brunch bites” and “brunch sips” so girly and cute. In my opinion, brunch is just about the girliest thing there is. I was thinking about that episode from “How I Met Your Mother” when this happened:

Anyways, when the food arrived, the table grew silent (after a frenzy of photo taking) as we ate our meals. Everything looked so tasty, and my crab cake eggs benedict was amazing. I loved the little tomato garnish, I always appreciate an effort to make food look pretty.

I’m so glad I got to spend Saturday morning with some of my favorite blogging friends, delicious food and drink, and a beautiful restaurant that graciously served us all. The staff at Bar 10 really went above and beyond. They even brought out some dishes from the brunch menu that no one ordered, just so we could try everything! I definitely appreciate good service like that!

If you are looking for a fun place to get brunch, or a cute date spot (hint hint, CJ!) check out Bar 10! Thanks again for having us, Bar 10! I look forward to my next visit.

Photoshoot with Caroline Winn Photography

Photography, Yoga 2 Responses »

May 042013

Hello! Happy Saturday! I promised to share more of my photoshoot pictures, so here they are! These were all taken at Breakheart reservation by the lovely and talented Caroline Winn. It was a perfect day with a perfect background (and gorgeous lighting), and I am so happy with how they came out. I did the shoot to have some professional pictures for when I am done with teacher training and looking for yoga jobs. I can’t believe that will all be happening in the next few months. Eeek.

Caroline’s Website, Blog, Facebook page. Be sure to check her out, she is a gifted photographer.

Yes, this is me. haha. Everyone that has seen this picture so far has asked that question.

LOVE this one. I feel like the little mermaid. Who knew she was a yogi??

Also, LOVE this one. It reminds me of how important it is to just surrender all your “stuff” to the mat, so you can clear space within your body and mind.

What do you think?

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