Author: Love Yoga Studios

We’re teaching yoga to an incredibly cool group of baseball players – the Keizer Volcanoes. It’s a little awkward and challenging because … well because it’s 25 year old dudes and some of them are not there voluntarily. I’ll come back around to why.

BUT FIRST! If you’ve got stuff going on in your head that’s bringing you down or holding you back then the advice is generally to get out of your head.

Now, I’m obviously a proponent of YOGA but another way that I think most people can relate to easily and quickly getting completely out of their head is to GO SWIMMING.  When you’re swimming, as a beginner, you’re basically thinking of two things: BREATHING and NOT DROWNING!
And as you gain experience, your focus shifts to: breathing and challenging yourself.

Maybe you just want to swim a little further or maybe you want to learn the butterfly or do backflips off diving board. (maybe you want to travel more, change jobs, start a band or move to another state).

THIS IS WHY YOGA WORKS FOR ME. BECAUSE I DON’T HAVE A SWIMMING POOL.

As with swimming, when you begin practicing yoga, you’re usually thinking of two things: BREATHING and NOT FALLING OVER. (or looking silly, or farting, or hurting yourself).  BUT, As you gain experience, your focus shifts to breathing and challenging yourself.  Maybe you want to get IRON MAN STRONG or ZEN LEVEL RELAXED.

Lofty, but okay. Or, maybe you’d simply like to release tension and pain in your body so you can focus on other things. Like swimming!

PLUS, there’s a ton of other perks. Better balance, better sleep, lower blood pressure, stable joints and flowy movement that borders on . . . . exerciiiiiiise? There, I said it. Yoga can be exercise also.

And if you really get serious/good/advanced . . . you can practice anywhere, anytime, in any class and get exactly what you need.
(but that will take years of you giving me money to teach you all the mysterious secrets behind the practice. Don’t worry, I’m here for you). 

SEE, HERE’S THE PROBLEM:  Tension.
Not just any tension. EXCESS TENSION!

Because tension comes from a lot of places. It comes from your body being in the same place for long periods of time and it also comes from your mind being in the same place for long periods of time.  So yoga gets you moving your body in different ways and redirecting your mind in different ways.  TO RELEASE TENSION.

Sure you can get out of your head and distract yourself by watching another episode of Friends or The Office, maybe you have a couple of drinks or go shopping. But you’re probably still able to multi task, worry and think your own frightful thoughts during that time.

In the pool and on the mat, you don’t even know how much time has passed. You’re just in there, breathing . . . as if you’re life depended on it. (get it? lol)

So it’s a little awkward and challenging. So what? So is swimming. But I’ll bet that doesn’t keep you from going to the pool? Probably because you’ve taken a swimming lesson at some point in your life and feel like you know a little about what to expect.

SO TAKE A YOGA LESSON.
With ME, or any of our teachers. But whatever you do… DO NOT GOOGLE it. Trust me on this. Google searches pull the most extreme examples of everything.  Moms, have you ever googled ‘diaper rash solutions’? If not, don’t.

TO SUM IT UP, finally

Practicing consistently makes you physically stronger.
Feeling stronger gives you confidence.
Confidence is calming.
Calm creates clarity. (Ever get a great idea in the shower??).
Relaxation wins.
Get Strong and Calm.

BOOK YOUR YOGA LESSON or find out more, HERE

Ok, BACK TO BASEBALL: 

The Volcanoes are a class act. 100%. Even in their mandatory yoga sessions, they’re in it. They practice. Now I figured going in that yoga is probably not their thing. But they feel it. Head, shoulders, hips and toes. These guys are in the middle of a brutal schedule! 76 season games, 38 of them on the road!  They don’t really have a lot of time to be ‘in their head’ about anything.

But I bet they are. I bet they evaluate every pitch, every inning, every at bat, every win and every loss. So while, yoga might not be their thing… yet. I’m hoping to provide a few minutes of ‘something else’.  Something that feels strong, calm and relaxed with a little less tension and zero evaluation. But I think they enjoyed savasana…

GO VOLCANOES!  (Game tonight at 5:05pm).

: )
Suzanne

p.s. all the info you’ll ever need about us starts here: Love Yoga Studios
p.p.s. Beginner classes start in September!

It doesn’t matter.
The process is the same.

Have you ever tried to tell a friend or family member how helpful yoga or meditation can be? We get asked all the time how it helps.  Here’s how:

(8 yoga practices at the bottom)

It doesn’t matter if you:

have trouble sleeping
feel anxious or depressed
get emotionally exhausted
have tight muscles that cause hip/back/knee pain
have chronic pain and stress
have frequent bouts of fear and doubt

It doesn’t matter what the circumstances.
Because everyone experiences stress and how you respond to stress impacts your entire system. 

If you love the rush of anger, pain and tension. Carry on.

But if you avoid uncomfortable things, get anxious for unexplainable reasons, are sick from lack of sleep or tired from dealing with tension and pain. Then it helps to know what’s happening in your body and how a little practice and focus could help!

I know, some people will say their situation is unique. A rare case. Doctors are baffled. You’ve tried everything. It’s different. You probably are unique and fascinating so no offense but years of medical research indicate that your nervous system is somewhat predictable. (and even if you are rare, relaxation is always recommended with prescriptions)

Here’s what IS the same: Your nervous system is agitated.

When your nervous system is agitated for any reason, it releases EXTRA boosts of cortisol and adrenaline to help you survive. Great! Survival is good.

But if you’re actually not in danger, then you’ve just launched onto the hormone hamster wheel of: ‘what just happened, what’s about to happen, oh no, how do I go back, stop it, go forward?!’   All. the. time.

The cause is not the issue just yet. This isn’t counseling, it’s retraining the stress response. Let’s take a look at the process.

AGITATION Happens.
REACTION Occurs.
FEAR causes Agitation.

Agitation happens
Focused response occurs
Peaceful feeling remains

Your nervous system needs a signal that’s everything’s okay. And I promise you this…simply saying CALM DOWN is NOT the answer.  In my 20s, if anyone told me to calm down, THAT ignited flames in my heart that wanted to set their hair on fire.
Of course I wanted to feel calm and peaceful!

But all I knew at the time was that I was usually uncomfortable, worried or afraid.  I would get short of breath for no reason. I would start sweating and feeling like I was going to pass out and my limbs would go numb and I couldn’t talk because I was trying not to vomit.  Yes, for some reason, my body was panicking. That was MY reaction, yours could be sleep issues, tension or pain.

Here’s why the circumstances don’t matter. 

If you’re nervous system is agitated, regardless of cause, it needs a new signal. Something to focus on. Here are some useful options I’ve gleaned over the years from the yoga practice.

1. Hold still. Really still.
2. Close your eyes
3. Exhale slower, more often.
4. Repeat something comforting to yourself
5. Get into flow state more often
6. Talk to someone
7. Walk barefoot outside
8. Smile (with all your facial muscles, then relax them)

* if you want more info or scientific evidence of these, just ask. 

These soothing moments create a few moments of peace.
And your system will remember that peaceful feeling.
An hour or so later it can still recall that peaceful feeling. 

That’s why you feel great for hours and days after a yoga or meditation session.

It’s like brushing your teeth.
You clean them every day, twice a day, floss, rinse, swish, cleanings. And you do this forever.
Consistently.  They don’t STAY clean and pearly, because … life.

Give your nervous system a rinse, a swish, a cleaning, every day, twice a day.
Consistently. It won’t stay smooth and pearly forever either, but at least twice a day it will feel calm and peaceful.

And unlike your teeth… your nervous system can store those peaceful feelings and reconnect with them when it needs to.

Your teeth can’t make themselves shiny again. 

Nobody can do this for you. We provide the space, the tips, the techniques, the encouragement.

You just have to brush consistently. 

Thanks for reading,

; )  Suzanne

p.s.

• If you’re pregnant, or know someone who is, email us and we’ll send you a free PDF with more specific information on practicing yoga and easing stress while pregnant.
• If you want to sleep better, or know someone who does, here’s a link to a free guided meditation. You’ll have to download the app and it’s totally worth it. It’s free.
• If you want info for the next Yoga for Anxiety class in September, email me: love@loveyogastudios.com

It’s the most often used phrase at the studio. Everyone talks about savasana. Sometimes they talk about one of Sabrina’s sassy, smart, southern sayings that both entertain and inform them with a subtle, mind blowing adjustment. But mostly it’s this,

‘During Savasana, I . . .

… actually may have drifted off
… had the best idea
… was more relaxed than I’ve ever been
… didn’t feel any pain
… remembered what I wanted to ask you!
… wasn’t quite asleep but not all here
… heard someone snoring, it might have been me
… had an epiphany about ‘something’
… felt so grounded and peaceful
… felt like I do after a massage
… forgot about my ________ problem.
… had no idea where I was
… _________________________________

There are so many I can’t remember them all!

Please send us YOUR ending to that statement.
to:  love@loveyogastudios.com

WHAT’S SAVASANA?

Savasana is the final 8 minutes of our yoga classes. It’s complete relaxation.

Holding still with maybe one or two shifts so that you can be as comfortable as possible doing absolutely nothing.

If you haven’t ever tried this before, you can definitely do this at home. Just hold still. Do nothing. No music, no tea, no petting the dog.

Eyes closed if possible. Or not.

There are no hard and fast rules other than to hold still as much as possible and just do nothing. We’ve got all kinds of explanations, benefits and results. But mostly it soothes your nervous system… which then makes everything else better.

I bet you don’t make it 3 minutes.  ; )

Feel free to let me know if I’m wrong. It happens occasionally.
: )

Suzanne

Here are 8 things your yoga teacher wants you to know:
(scroll to bottom for 8 brief things you might like to know)

1.  We are never critiquing your practice. When we walk around it’s to see if we can help you to feel strong, steady, relaxed and happy.  Ironically, walking toward you is often what makes you wobbly. It happens to us also. Still. Try to have fun practicing.

2.  You never need to put your heels on the ground in downward dog. (you know the saying, it’s the journey, not the destination? Case in point. More on why we might stop teaching down dog altogether in another post). It’s cool to have goals, just don’t be attached to the outcome… that’s stressful. 

3.  We actually do try to please all of you, all of the time, but we know some like it hot, cold, loud, quiet, fast, slow, strong, soft, fun, boring and  . . . well probably not boring, but you see where I was going with that? We do try. We have goals. But we try not to be too attached to the outcome, it’s stressful, see #2.

4.  We meditate daily. We don’t practice postures every day. It’s great if your body loves it. Just remember, the harder you are on anything, the faster you wear it out. (Bryan Kest). Be kind to your body. We move a lot every day . . . but hard core yoga postures every day? No.

**Here’s a link to a 21 day free meditation program that we started yesterday… you can still jump in. It’s created by Oprah and Deepak Chopra which at first I was little skeptical . . . but I’ve done 2 days so far and I really like it.  Let me know what you think if you try it?**

5.  There is an unspoken code of . . . practice in yoga: no shoes in the studio, don’t step on another’s mat; be on time, finish on time, clean space, don’t eat right before practicing, no cell phones (unless you’re on call and still trying to get your practice in, then kudos to you!), avoid strong sprays/perfumes/smoke because… we’re tryin’ to breathe in here, and less is always more, words matter, consistency is king and kindness rules. (who says rules anymore). 

6. Instructors put an average of about 3-4 hours into every class they teach, playlist aside. That’s another two. Possibly more if they’re new, less if they’ve been at it for a while. Over time it gets closer to an hour of prep: practicing, sequencing, processing, cleaning, prepping and then an hour to teach and the time after to hang out. We really care about this stuff. We want you to love it.

7. Yes, you might hear some strange sounds (try to be a grown up). Yes, you might feel silly trying to step forward from down dog (keep trying). Yes, you might drift off during savasana (enjoy your nap). Think how silly you look when you’re getting your hair done (curlers, highlights?), or when you’re running. (Have you seen your self running?) Or when you’re dancing . . . but you still do all those things. Maybe. (3 part beginner series coming soon to address more FAQ’s)

8. Most importantly… we practice because we too want a calm, courageous body and mindset so we’ll be more resilient and enthusiastic in our lives.  Not because we wanted a better down dog. (again, more on that later). ; )

8 things you might like to know: 

1. Love Yoga will be 8 years old on September 20th! (on my birthday! ; )
2. Sabrina use to be a 911 operator. For 12 years!
3. Brent did his first yoga training in Bali!
4. Aunnie was in the very first Love Yoga Teacher Training
6. Erin Yatsui has 3 Llamas in her family… Pema, Bernie and Sara.
7. Rachel is a music teacher and musician! Still waiting for her to play during class!
8. Amanda only wears tie dye ; ) and spends all her spare time near the ocean.
9. Erin Hanawalt has attended 911 classes at Love and has taught 365 classes at Love.

: )

Suzanne

p.s.  Thanks to all of you yesterday for being such good sports about our video projects. You can see snippets on Instagram later this week. www.instagram.com/loveyogastudio     I’ve mentioned how much we love Instragram right? Go follow us there, you’ll love it. You get to see so much more of us that way!

p.p.s. We’re giving away a free month of yoga when you refer someone to Love Yoga that becomes a member. If you have people that you’d like us to invite for you, you can either send them this link, or send us their email and we’ll invite them for you! www.loveyogastudios.com/intro-offer
This is our $20/20 days intro.  Almost 3 weeks to check it out! 

In case you’re new here or missed this . . .

We’ll be celebrating 8 years of Love with an 8-Limbs of Yoga retreat in Maui!   The details and prices are below but here’s what I’m most excited about.

My mom, Erin Yatsui and I get to hang out with you! Hanging out by the pool. Experiencing new and different yoga teachers from Lumeria and Lahaina. Enjoying the sunshine. Getting out in nature near the ocean. Tasting local gems like the Maui Kombucha Co., the Maui Cookie Company and aaRoots naked burritos!

In addition to kombucha, there’s also a coffee plantation and a vodka distillery so there’s a little something for everyone.  And there are 4 spots left!

(Scroll down for the FREE Coffee/Tea offer!)

This retreat will have plenty of soul nourishing activities like yoga, meditation and connection. Plus, equal opportunities for adventure and relaxation. Like snorkeling, SUP, hiking, biking and napping. 

We’ll be integrating concepts and activities that infuse each day with an example of how this practice makes every day more enjoyable… even after you leave paradise! ; )

DETAILS:

Dates: November 1-8, 2018.
The Retreat includes:

* A welcome gift box w/ a jade travel mat!
* 3 nights at Lumeria (all meals included)
* 4 nights at Hyatt Lahaina (breakfasts included)
* Daily yoga and meditation
* A tour of the stars on the rooftop
* Welcome dinner and farewell Lu’au
* Hiking, beach and exploring time
* Plenty of free-time for balance

**Additional optional activities will be available. Some guided, some on your own.

Rate per person: 
Single Occ. Your own room:(1 Bed)   $3,688
Double Occ. One room:(1 Bed)   $2,662
Double Occ. Shared Room:(2 Beds)  $2,863

To reserve a place on the tour, a $600 reservation deposit is required.

THE NEXT RETREAT SIGN UP GETS OUR HAWAIIAN COFFEE/TEA PACKAGE WITH FREE COFFEE /TEA ALL WEEK DURING THE RETREAT! 

Please feel free to call me, come visit or email with any questions!  We are creating an amazing experience for you. Time for you, practice for you, all about you. (and… yes… a little about me too! ; )

We have to give a final number to the resorts in August, so let us know now if you’re interested and will work out the details later.
Just Email me for the sign up link:  love@loveyogastudios.com

Mahalo,
: )
Suzanne
541-971-8244
love@loveyogastudios.com

Four words you never wanna hear from someone you’re in a rocky relationship with . . . or do you?

Well… we’re not in a rocky relationship, you and I.  In fact, Love Yoga teachers, guests and neighbors all get along swimmingly! ( ? )

However, even with a great relationship, we want to do our very best to keep all the lines of communication going.

So here’s why I brought it up:  (and if you currently follow us on social and get our emails and practice every week, you won’t need to continue reading. Just stop right here and get to class. ; )

THREE GLITCHY THINGS HAPPENED THIS PAST WEEK

1. Someone emailed me yesterday asking about a vineyard event we did 5 years ago… they someone stumbled upon a very old post.  Which made wonder . . . what happens to all those posts?  Yep, I know.  Everything you ever put on the internet is still out there somewhere. Even if the information is no longer current.  It did make me think we should try the vineyard yoga again. 
2. Someone who’s been coming to the studio for a very long time didn’t know that we offer kids yoga. We do it once a month and in August we’re having a local author kids book signing as well! (Aug. 18th at Noon)
3. Numerous people have asked me how our Maui trip was?  We haven’t gone yet. It’s in November. 2018.
   Maui Nov. 1-8th, Relaxation Retreat, 4 spots left.  Sunset yoga and snorkeling anyone? 

So I thought it was worth a note to let you know how and where we communicate best if you’re wanting to know what’s coming up, who’s teaching, where we’re going and how to get the most out of your membership and your practice.

SO HERE’S THE BASICS:

1. We post most often on Instagram and Instagram stories because it’s so quick and easy to do. 
2. We share most of the Instagram posts to Facebook
   SOCIAL MEDIA WARNING:
   Instagram and FB don’t always let you see our posts. If you haven’t engaged somehow with the posts (liking, commenting or sharing), they will stop showing you our posts because FB is protecting you from things you’re not interested in.  Thanks FB.
3. We email a couple of times of week… sometimes every other week. Sometimes it’s about something coming up but more recently I’m writing more to let you know how yoga has helped us, our guests and how it can help in many situations.
4. Occasionally we post a Blog Post on our website.  I simply forget that’s there most of the time. The emails I’ve been sending could be blog posts and if the topic is ‘bloggable’, I’ll try to remember to post it there too.

COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN  – DRIVES ME INSANE  (Led Zeppelin 1969)
https://youtu.be/3EH7QMVnSRI
Suddenly this song popped into my head, thought I’d share it because I LOVE Led Zeppelin.

So if you’re reading this from our website because you follow our blog…. Thank you.
But I highly suggest you also sign up for our emails or follow us on Instagram for the latest and most current info.

Thanks!
: )

Suzanne 

** All April 1st Classes are happening as regularly scheduled: 9:30am flow, 1pm Nidra, 6pm Restorative.  **

Below is the main excerpt from our weekly Love Note. Click here to see our full Love Note with class and workshop announcements.

This Love Note Newsletter is a little different because in the past week I’ve had 7 different conversations (SEVEN!) around this concept of Living the Dream and Following your Bliss. So I thought instead of telling you about all the wonderful things coming up at Love…(scroll to the bottom)… I’d share my thoughts on this, and a few other relevant quotes … because it has in fact had a lot to do with the reason we have Love Yoga today.  I now look back and see that the desire to believe in that possibility is largely what drove me to keep searching.

Follow Your Bliss . . .

and other seemingly cliché pieces of life advice I’ve thoroughly investigated

1. Follow your Bliss
2. Go with your gut
3. Don’t stop Believin’
4.  Do what you Love
5. Live your Dream
6. see below

People tell me all the time how lucky i am to be ‘doing what I love’. And in my mind I immediately ask myself . . .  Am I really though?  Of course I am… living the dream.  I’m self employed. I make my own schedule. I practice yoga for a living. I meet and connect with the most amazing people every single day. Much of my work can be done from my phone, my house, a coffee shop, my car, the coast.

I spent 35 years in various fields searching for ‘my thing’.  Do you know how many people told me… ‘not everyone has a thing’. Or, ‘stop trying so hard and just enjoy life’.  Or, ‘you’re never gonna be happy with the way things are.’ Or, ‘Albany is never going to support a yoga business’. Or my favorite…. ‘What’s the big deal about yoga anyway… it’s just fancy stretching’. ; )

Deep down, I knew. I knew I wasn’t here to sell advertising, insurance, melamine or mortgages. ( or rainbow vacuums, discovery toys or insect repellent ).

When I first discovered yoga – thankfully it wasn’t a completely woo woo, chakra cleansing, mantra chanting, sage burning experience or I’d have run for the hills. (all of which I’m semi okay with now ; ) (We’re all about the frankincense!)  No, this yoga was simple, sensible and I could do it.

It was an immediate sense of calm along with the surprising relief of chronic neck pain. I was intrigued by the subtle sense of spirituality and the gradual and complete elimination of anxiety. I could hear myself think and I slept all night for the first time in years.

The longer I practice, the less I need to. I don’t mean that I don’t need to practice.  I mean that if I don’t practice every single day… I don’t lose those feelings. I still get on my mat almost every day for one reason. I care about myself.

I want to connect to that calm feeling. I want to hold still and be quiet and hear myself sort things out. That’s my meditation. And that’s when all the good ideas show up.  Things like softer floors, colorful curtains, Portland yoga tours, yoga nidra classes, Tee Shirt ideas, training activities, workshops, writing this newsletter, holiday campaigns, 70s playlists, LOVE stickers and more!

It’s also the space that helps me sort out running the business. It’s SO much harder than I expected. This ‘living my dream’ also includes balancing books, consistent scheduling, maintaining marketing, insurance, certifications and regulations. Writing this newsletter, making payroll, taxes and giving up all the security that comes with a job like benefits, vacation time and a paycheck.

So to clarify… I’m not specifically LIVING MY DREAM or FOLLOWING MY BLISS.  But clichés or not, all five quotes have had a tremendous impact on me.

I AM GOING WITH MY GUT that yoga can help everyone as I’ve seen it happen with myself and many, many, many of you. I have never felt this happy, this healthy, this strong and this brave. I care about this on a level so deep that I know I will NEVER STOP BELIEVING that I am suppose to be providing space, conversation, exploration and healing that comes with this practice.

And # 6:  DON’T GO IT ALONE. If it weren’t for our amazing Love Crew, ALL of you, Some incredible support and encouragement… we wouldn’t have made it past the first ‘Namaste.’

So yes, I found my thing. My passion, my purpose, my people. And it doesn’t matter if I’m  loving what I’m doing every second… because I care so much more about what it’s becoming.

But to be honest… if I were truly DOING WHAT I LOVE . . . I’d be this generation’s Dr. Seuss.

You matter to me
You really do
You matter to me
And I matter to you
We matter, we two
We really do
I matter to me and
You matter to You.

I breathe slow
Wherever I go
It keeps me strong and smart
It frees my mind
from things unkind
so I can follow my heart

And what about this 8 minutes or less thing??
CLARITY IN 8 MINUTES OR LESS . . .

Clarity comes in the quietest or least distracted moments. When you’re brain is not embroiled in problem solving or planning.  When you’re showering, vacuuming, fishing, running, painting, knitting, writing, meditating, etc.  When you let go of trying to ‘figure things out’ and put yourself in a state of flow…. often while doing something you enjoy that takes all your concentration.

In that state… focus on just one thing. Ask yourself ONE question.  ‘What do I want?’, ‘Who am I?’, ‘What now?’.

Usually the complicated part of this… is that it takes about 8 minutes to get your mind to quiet and your nervous system to relax.  This is when you can completely focus. Figure out for you…. what are you willing to do for 8 minutes to get your mind into a state of flow.

Do that. And then listen closely.  Read more…