Dog Yoga
There is a small new trend in the yoga community, Dog Yoga. I guess it is true that all mammals can benefit from the relaxation and stress relief yoga brings. We wanted to share this with the Kulae Community. Let us know what you think. Comment below.
Facebook Giveaway 9-28-11 - Yoga Styles
Hey Fans, thanks for participating in another one of our Facebook Giveaways. This week we want to create a list of all known yoga styles. Please comment below with a yoga style, please do not list styles more than once. We will pick one of the commenters as our weekly winner. They will receive two of our brand new full length yoga towels. Our LAVA and BLUE STEEL! Thanks for playing. 
Yoga Teacher Training, Why can’t I practice what I learn?
Yoga Teacher Training, Why can’t I practice what I learn?
OK, this week is homework time. Besides at least a 100 pages of reading and 5 short essays, we are handed a real test: write a teaching script for Prasarita Padottanasana A. Now, this sounds easy, right? I’m thinking, piece of cake, I’ll whip that out in 30 mins. No prob. Well, I’ve been at it for 2 hours now and still not even close to finished. My teacher gave us a very good exercise to try and for those that have never taught before, I suggest you try it. Explain step by step to someone how to tie their shoes, and they can only do exactly what you say. For the full effect, I suggest trying this on a 4 or 5 year old, who hasn’t quite mastered the art of tying their shoes yet. Hilarious!
Besides the teaching script, I have really enjoyed reading the books, specifically The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, by Sri Swami Satchidananda. Particularly, passage 1.2:
Yogash chitta vritti nirodhah – The restraint of the modifications of the mind-stuff is Yoga.
It really is that simple, yet again hard to execute. We practice yoga in order to quiet the mind and find peace and calm. The goal then is to take this off the mat and into our everyday life. Boy, did I get a lesson in that this week. Last Friday I was out on my morning run, my mind racing about all the things I needed to do that day for work (check on new towel delivery, finish up a Yoga Journal ad, track down payments from customers…) and all of a sudden, boom! I’m down. I totally took a spill and whacked my knee. I was not concentrating on what I was doing. I didn’t notice the fact that the temperature had dropped 30 degrees from the night before, which meant both my body and the ground were not warmed up yet. I had to hobble home, with blood streaming down my leg. Now that made me stop and think; I was not in the moment, enjoying the run. Instead I hated the fact I was up so early running and making myself anxious thinking about all the stuff I had to do that day. I took something that should have been enjoyable and made it awful. I need to take what I learn on the mat out into the world. It is one thing to read and write about it, it is another to do. I thought I was supposed to be teaching others here, not myself?
Caitriona is President of Kulae. Check back each week to learn more about her teacher training adventure.
“thankfully the towels did make it in ok, check out our new colors!”
Yoga Teacher Training, Back to School Jitters.
Yoga Teacher Training, Back to School Jitters.
It was the morning of the first day of teacher training and I felt like a kid off to her first day of school. What will it be like? Will the other kids like me? Will I like them? I got everything ready the night before; books*, props, mat, towel, and brand new Kulae yoga mat bag (which thankfully fit everything!). I was excited, nervous, and curious all at once. I arrived at the studio, checked-in, and was asked for my homework. I reached into my yoga bag when panic set in – where was it? I felt so stupid; I had left my homework on my printer. OMG! I was stunned I forgot it and thought to myself, “way to make a great first impression Caitríona.” The assistant allowed me to email it later but I’d better get my act together!
Once the nerves calmed down and we begin to practice, I had an amazing first day. Who knew that if you engaged your quads and lifted your kneecaps, you can bend forward deeper into uttanasana? And why didn’t I know that if I pushed down into the floor, my bakasana (crow pose) would be sturdier? What was a challenge was teaching others. You find yourself standing in front of the person, grasping at words, but instead awkwardly attempting the pose and asking the person to copy you. I will definitely have to work on this, teaching is a challenge.
I also thought I would be sore after this weekend. That first evening, I wasn’t sore at all and thought this is a piece of cake. But the second day we start off with (as we do every day) a 2 to 3 hour practice. WOW, did I feel it then! My body was shaking a bit and I just couldn’t help laughing because I was so sore. But my teacher (Natasha Rizopoulos with Yoga Works) was correct, when I am in a pose and perfecting it, I don’t have time to be distracted with the outside world, and I am in the moment. I think the laugher was my body’s reaction. Even my muscles, although sore and shaky, were having fun.
*For this training, we were required to purchase the following books:
Heart of Yoga by Desikachar
Yoga, Mind, Body & Spirit by Donna Farhi
Light on Yoga by B.K.S. Iyengar
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by Sri Swami Satchidananda
The Concise Book of Muscles by Chris Jarmey
Caitriona is President of Kulae. Check back each week to learn more about her teacher training adventure.
New "The Bag" by Kulae
