[melross1]

Having explored arm balances and inversions with Colleen, discuss when it is appropriate to incorporate them into a class. What is the class type? inversions and arm balances are not a fit for all classes. We need to start with the class type. A gentle flow class is not a good place for an arm balance nor is a beginner class. I would only offer them to a class that I know most or all of the students. I would say something like “if it’s in your practice” take the inversion. I personally do many arm balances and inversions but I still don’t think I would be comfortable teaching them. Maybe in the future, I’m afraid of someone getting hurt on my watch. If you don’t practice them and want to teach them, because you have a class that is very interested, be strong on you cueing, and ready to do hands on assists. Remind the students that there are props including the walls, know the pose well as far as how to walk someone into it.
Inversions are good for people who do not suffer from high blood pressure or migraines. They help the blood flow to the head and give energy. Why not take a 3:00 break and stand on your head?

[melross1]

Review the article and reflect on your time with Anne Reilly as well as the material presented. How do you feel about the study of anatomy now? I find anatomy very interesting. I love learning how the body works. I don’t know each muscle or bone, so I love that Kimberly pointed out that we don’t have to be Dr.’s. Where do you feel you are still lacking in knowledge related to the human body? There is so much to learn, I still want and need to learn and retain how many of the muscles are connected. Or maybe I should say how “common” injuries occur and how to prevent them and how to modify poses when someone says they have injuries. Anne gave examples of sore should blades. Chest openers would be something to offer. I would never have thought to offer that. I need to learn more of things like that example. But really love learning how the body works, so I plan to keep reading about it. How will you continue to increase your expertise in anatomy? Reading and studying the books we have. I plan to reach out to Anne as time allows. She is so amazing, I loved her class and how simply she put things out there. I was able to follow what she was teaching (as long as I don’t have to remember the names of the muscles).

Also comment on how this knowledge will impact your teaching.
This will help me when I am observing my class, to determine if I should offer modifications that I might not have thought to offer. Or to approach someone and softly offer a modification for them if I see something that they might not tell me about.

[melross1]

I love music with yoga, I think the type of music depends on the audience. For my Karma yoga I will use 60’s and Disney music because I know the students I will be teaching and they love 60’s music and Disney music to get ready to go. Classical, sea sounds, or very southing music I enjoy when I’m in class, the teach doesn’t have to speak over the music much, its not offensive.
I was recently in a class where the teacher just asked the class (it was a small class) what kind of music mood are you in and someone said Motown, everyone when that sounds fun. So she went on Spotify and played some Motown, whatever Spotify played. It was a fun class, shavasana was interesting when “I heard it through the grapevine” was playing. But I might even try that approach sometime just for fun.

[melross1]

This one I have been thinking about the most and the most challenging for me to answer. I like assists now, when I started my practice I did not. I felt like I was clunky and doing everything wrong I stayed in the back of the class. As I became more comfortable I wanted assists so my posture and poses were correct. My preference is verbal assists, there are only a couple of teacher that I am comfortable with hands on assists. Because of my personal story, I don’t know that I will every do hands on assists and if I do, they will be few and far between. During our discussion on Thursday, we don’t know everyone’s story or what they are feeling each day.
With all of that said, the one exception is if there is a special class or a new pose that is being taught that requires hands on assists and it is required or talked about from the beginning. For example learning to do inversions. I would hope that standing on ones head for the first time they would ask for help.

[melross1]

I normally practice first thing in the morning. I did a later morning class and a later evening class. The morning class gave me a lot of energy for the day. The only problem with it, I had to take time off work to make it happen. I would love to find a class close to my work place where I could take an early lunch and practice and then go back to renew my energy for the day. The evening class was not challenging to get to, and I was able to get into the poses much deeper. I realized that I was awake later because I had so much energy from the later workout. While I enjoyed the later workout, I need my sleep.
As a yoga teacher, I think it will be interesting and challenging at times to see the different people and energy. As I walk into my 6am classes the energy is very different there are only a few people that are like me who are morning people. Most are there with the “lets get this over with” attitude. The 9am people seem to have a good amount of happy energy the kids are off to school, they’ve had their coffee, they are ready to get the day started. The evening people are getting their workout on after a long day at work and again have a mix of energy. Most of the evening people seem to still have a little energy. I have a go with the flow type of personality so I think I will make it work well any time of day.

[melross1]

Where are you coming from as a yogi: scientist, mystic or athlete? I’m coming from an athlete. I love to run, and I believe I have a type A personality. I tend to be competitive. Through Yoga I’m learning to not always need to have the perfect pose or the “ta da”. Yoda is helping me be me and I am enough and I love me and I love being enough everyday. Some days I have to be reminded. How does knowing this help you cultivate your authentic voice as a teacher? This helps me see others who push themselves past their natural limits, I think this will help me remind people that our bodies are only made to do so much. And it’s ok even perfect being enough. How does it help you play to your strengths and understand your opportunities as a teacher? As a person who always pushes myself too far even to the point of injury, I can watch for others like myself who might push beyond their limits and help them learn what is too much and avoid injuries. As a type A person I hate it when I get injured and have to stop working out then I feel like I’ve had a huge set back. Even with injury I find a way to keep working out. I want to help others not be me.

[melross1]

Yoga Sutra 2.35. “The more considerate one is, the more one simulates friendly feelings among all in one’s presence.” from The Heart of Yoga.
I’ve been told I’m a people pleaser, and I guess I am. I like to look at the good side of it, I know “Saying yes all of the time is out of balance”. But I like to be kind. It just feels right. The one thing that we can do for others and give to others always is a smile.
My mom always had a smile, when she passed away that’s what everyone remembered about her was her kindness toward others and her smile. No one talked about the material things she did or did not have, they just spoke of her kind heart. Her “small” memorial service here in Ohio had more than 70 people only 5 were family members. Because of her kind giving soul and spirit. If there is one thing in this world I want to be it’s considerate and friendly. When I leave this world I don’t want to be remembered for what I had but for a kind gesture, or a warmth I gave someone just by being kind.
If I can make a difference in one person’s life by being kind, I might have change their world and I hope I can make the world a better place if only for one person.

[melross1]

I am learning in so many ways. Kelly is such an energetic person. She is full of ideas that are outside of the box. She shared Mark Stephens sequence cards to help put together a class. In doing this, look for words or cues that are similar. The way she describes things is so clear, it makes sense in my mind. Taking her restorative class is also very inspiring, we are very much alike, we are high energy people it nice to see that with all that energy slowing down can be positive. Listening to her teaching and seeing her relate to her students and help each person on their level is so helpful. It makes me realize that each student is an individual and needs individual help or guidance. She has such great advice and guidance for where I can take my teaching for those with special needs and trauma. I look forward to getting to know her better and learning more from her such a wealth of knowledge!

[melross1]

Yes, I consider myself very spiritual. I have always used yoga as my time with God, my meditation is my time to listen to God and to let him know what’s going on with me. When we are quieting our minds, that is when I’m listening to the Lord. And when I find my mind chattering, I say silent prayers.
I’m finding myself more spiritual as I grow in my yoga practice, it helps me cope with daily struggles. It helps me be a more centered and kind person. I often had a short fuse, now I can let things roll. It take a lot to make me upset. I give that to yoga and I think yoga has brought me closer to God. Yoga has helped me leave a church that I wasn’t truly happy in, and wasn’t helping me grow or be the person I wanted to be. Yoga is making me the spiritual, loving, well rounded, more peaceful person I want to be. While I may never be perfect I feel calmer and more peaceful than when I sat in a church every Sunday. I feel like I know who I am and who I want to be.

I plan to open my class with quiet breathing and meditation. And cloth with something like may you and all beings be well and loved.

[melross1]

Pain may not be avoidable, but it is manageable. As the primary caregiver of parents who suffered from chronic pain I watched them both manage their pain with their minds. They were both in more pain than most of us could imagine or bear but they believed that a positive attitude could take them places that nothing else could. They left that with their children and grandchildren. A negative attitude will give you nothing but pain and suffering. I think yoga gives us that strength through a positive mind and attitude. We learn to leave the negative things behind us where they need to be or “let that shit go.”

When we meditate we clear our minds of everything. We open ourselves to the world and we let new things in, those new things should be pure, happy, and positive. Keeping the pain away. This doesn’t mean we will always be 100% pain free, it means our pain will be manageable an less. Maybe we can choose our pain, we can have our hearts hurt a little less. We can breath in love and breath out the ‘crap’ and just let it go. That’s where I’ve founds less pain. I still have fibromyalgia but the aches and pains are a little less because I don’t dwell on them as much. I think about the positives of the day and my life when I meditate. I still suffer from migraines and take daily meds, but my break thru meds are fewer because I practice self care more often. As a person I think self care including meditation, massages, yoga, journaling, just watching the sun rise and set or looking at the stars are all important in avoiding pain both mental and physical.

[melross1]

I am cleansing, it sounds so silly and simple but it’s refreshing. My food processor stopped working last night. I just threw it away. Found somethings in my closet that I haven’t worn in a while put them in a bag to donate when the truck comes on Monday. I have and my family has an over abundance of stuff, we don’t need or really want all this stuff. And it feels good to just let it go and be free of it. It seems so small. I threw away an oil this morning, sounds silly, this oil was something that was purchased over 20 years ago that we have been keeping just in case we might want to use it. Really!?!?! It felt great!
I’m also falling in love with me. No longer looking at all the things I do wrong or the flaws in myself or on my body. But rather when I start to, I stop and ask myself how I would react if someone talk to one of my daughters the way I talk to me? I have been so violent with myself. I am now treating myself with nonviolence and letting that spill out into the world and to others.

[melross1]

“Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.”

Yoga isn’t more than just physical, it’s spiritual and emotional. I’m finding myself- the true me. During a practice this week I didn’t set an intention rather one found me in the practice. While doing a pose that I normally don’t enjoy I left out the “ta-da” and the phrase came to me “I am enough” over the last couple days I truly believe I am enough. Yoga is a journey to the self, it make us grow and find pieces of ourselves that we aren’t looking for and those pieces are amazing they might be scary they might be a lot of things that’s why it’s a journey I might even call it an adventure.

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