Author: Love Yoga Studios

Which Side are YOU on?

ARE YOU MORE OF A SCROOGE/GRINCH?
OR DO YOU JINGLE BELL ROCK AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE ALL MONTH LONG?

And either way…. What’s your holiday strategy?

We have a few that might help. Check our Holiday Calendar below.

My strategy is to shop as little as possible except for myself and Charlie.

Eat as little as sugar as possible except for Mom’s Wreath Cookies. And Walk as often as humanly possible!

But Meditation is my absolute secret weapon for any and all kinds of hustle and bustle.

Did you know that Meditation has been or is being studied in almost every corner of the world?

Why? Because the medical and science industries love evidence and research… and the research they are uncovering is phenomenal!

The powerful impact of meditation is subtle and difficult to explain… but the MAGIC speaks for itself. Once you try it.

Elite Athletes, Neurosurgeons, and most Performers… practice some type of mindfulness in order to disengage their mind and let their body take over.

Nobody wants a Neurosurgeon getting distracted by his doubts mid surgery. We want those hands to flow with precision and ease.

Here are a few simple techniques to try it yourself and see….

1. Just stare at something and breathe. Seriously that’s it. For 60 seconds. Now you might not feel the magic right away… but do you feel your hair growing? No, you don’t. But little by little… every moment of every day… it’s growing and changing and before you know it… your bangs are out of control! That’s what meditation is like. Even a tiny bit every day will eventually change how you see yourself… and everything else. And every 60 seconds you add… adds more power!

(Meditators with decades of experience. consider themselves successful if they can keep their mind from wandering for 4 breaths… that’s almost 60 seconds).
You can do this too.

2. Close your eyes, but stay upright so you don’t drift off. Now this is more of a challenge because your mind is going to want you to do 1000 things immediately. Get a drink, use the bathroom, change the laundry, pull the car over… kidding… don’t try this in the car. But do see if you can challenge yourself to sit still with your eyes closed for 60 seconds at a time. The added benefit of staying upright and slightly alert is that your neurons will wander and that’s when brilliant ideas drop in.

3. Listen to a Guided Meditation. This is the easiest way to get started… and I might add the most enjoyable. Because it’s like having someone tell you a story. And as your mind wanders… it relaxes. And as it relaxes, it lets go of worries, fears and doubts and creates space for ideas, dreams and adventures. And who doesn’t want more of those??

So … If you don’t have a strategy, it’s possible that you’ll get caught up in the usual holiday traps.

But with a little meditation and a lot of LOVE Yoga… you can keep that peaceful, easy feeling all the way to Valentine’s Day! ; )

Come visit us and start creating the peace of mind you deserve.

Competitive-ish Challenges and Tiny Transformations

We’ve heard that old adage forever… but rarely do the things we do, have, love, use, give… happen in moderation. Which is why many of us have embraced the yogic lifestyle of
creating balance.

And how we do that is through all the tiny transformations that come from this practice. Hundreds, if not thousands of them… but I boil it down to about 16.

For the first time in my life… I feel the pressure of this constant barrage of imbalances. (It’s making me miss my blissfully unaware 70s).

I mean, Aren’t we all asking ourselves how much more of this we can take??

These Big life transformations have a way of altering our perceptions and leading us to re-evaluate our life choices. (I think it’s called Growth?). Big things like turning 40 or 50, (heck maybe even some of you turning 30 get this), losing a parent, empty nesting, moving, divorcing, marrying, losing or finding a dog, losing Tom Petty, a world wide catastrophe, and small business challenges during said catastrophe, etc.

And I realize this pales in comparison to my grandmother’s big life transformations – being born in the 20s. You know… things like War. Multiple wars, her husband dying of polio, being left with two small children, starting her own business, family fallout, the invention of the TV, the microwave, the internet… she loved playing scrabble on the internet. She went from drawing a line up the back of her leg with eyeliner (to look like she could afford nylons), to having a big screen, her own computer and facebook account.

So… regardless of how frustrating the world is right now, regardless of how many days we have left in this LOVESTRONG45 challenge (26!)… I continually encourage myself to keep going. Because challenging myself to keep going makes me stronger, smarter, braver and… healthier.

Everyone knows that being super healthy right now gives us better odds of feeling great and thriving in the midst of this chaos.
And it doesn’t have to be this LoveStrong challenge that does it.

You could make any of these TinyTransformations  anytime, to feel a huge impact on your health and wellness.

Everything from low energy and your mood to back pain, anxiety or sleep struggles.

I may not get all 7 dots, every single day in this challenge.. but as Michelle said… she ended up sticking with her Top 3 most important goals and to her and that’s been even more successful!  I love that.

So, I’ll keep going – I’ll draw lines on the back of my legs if I have to… because I LOVE this practice and feeling healthy enough to thrive in whatever chaos come our way.

Anxiety Relief Training

Yoga for Anxiety
Tuesday, 9/14 @ 7:00pm

The only reason I teach this class is because Six years ago in the span of two weeks, 5 people came to the studio and told me they were there because of anxiety. I would have preferred to leave my experience with anxiety firmly in my past.

But since I had spent almost a decade in my 20s struggling with severe anxiety attacks, I knew how this practice could make a difference.  (And by the way, I was told this would be something I’d have to ‘manage’ for the rest of my life).

I haven’t had even an inkling of anxiety in over 23 years.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This year, I put everything I’ve learned online in a way that makes sense, is easy to access, simple to practice. And Fun!

Start with The LIVE workshop next Tuesday night!
In studio and/or on Zoom
Click here to Register or to see the Outline
16 spots available

Things you’ll discover for yourself:

     ~ Specific breathing patterns do different simple things
     ~ In some cases, it is actually physical, not mental
     ~ The magical (science) power of your exhale
     ~ How to test your Co2 tolerance
     ~ How to program your Reticular Activation System
     ~ Find Your Unique Flow Objective (UFO)
          and so much more ….


If you practice what’s covered in the workshop, that will be enough to feel significant relief. But if, like me, you want to learn more with 4 weekly practice sessions, personal training and more specific techniques, you can join the 4 week Anxiety Relief Training to really make an impact and retrain your system so you don’t have to think about this day to day.

Over 40 million people in the US struggle with severe anxiety. And that’s only counting those over 18. (I don’t know why but that’s the stats). Sadly, Only 30% will ever even seek treatment due to mental health stigmas. Let’s change that.

One breath at a time.

p.s.

If you participate fully, you can expect to:
1. Feel significantly better within the month but likely sooner.
We can establish a personal goal percentage
based on your lifestyle and schedule.
2. Leave with a simple, fun and unique practice plan for YOU.

3. Feel optimistic about your peaceful and courageous future

 

Meet Charlie Karma

I was given the most precious gift. An early birthday gift.

And in honor of National Dog’s Day, I’d like to introduce you to him today…

Meet Charlie Karma. (and a few of his sweet siblings!)

He has a puppy breath message for you. 

He’s going to be at the studio next week when we Re-Open on Wednesday, September 1st.

But you can’t just drop in.

You MUST sign up ahead of time because we only have 10 spots per class. (Click above on WALLA to sign in)

WHY?  State mandates. 

Charlie has a more URGENT message though….

Without you…. we can’t re-open.

Listen, Charlie, here…. I hope I’m not barking up the wrong tree here… but Suzanne’s chasing her tail a bit. I think she might be a little wound up. I suggested deep breathing.

But she offered to take all my siblings! I’ve been cooped up with 9 brothers and sisters and I was really hoping for a place of my own. But if she’s not able to teach yoga… she’s going to build little Air BnB units for dogs in her backyard!!! Do you KNOW how many puppies I’ll have to deal with? I heard her say each unit would have its own skylights? (seriously, I’m concerned).

Look here’s the bare bones: We all know that yoga has been proven to lower stress responses like barking, blood pressure, itching, inflammation and jumping anxiety.

We all also know that Suzanne was a slight germaphobe to begin with and that the studio is one of the cleanest places on the planet. (also why she hasn’t had a dog for 7 years).

Remember there is 2000 sq ft of tail waggin’ space, 3 doors – wide open escape routes, new air filters, air conditioning and fans.

And while I’m fairly small, there will be free PUPPY Therapy for the next few months!

There will also be shorter classes, potty breaks, limited spaces, fancy masks and lots of treats. I can’t wait to show off my savasana! I’ve got that doooowwwwnnn.

Plus they’re filming new classes every week for the online library. I hope I get my own Instagram! #charliekarma #LoveCharlie. Don’t steal that… I chewed up my phone and haven’t got a new one yet.

And please for the Love of God, Please take one of my siblings before she does!

 

Easy boy… okay, Suzanne here. Charlie’s right. We need you if this is going to work this time. I know we’ve been at this for a while. But it’s not sustainable without you. So please click above and sign into Walla. Sign up for classes and let us know you’re coming back. Or that you’re onboard online.

And if you’re really good, and don’t bitch about the masks I’ll bring treats for you too. ; )

As always, let me know if I can help with anything. Tech? Passes? Purchases?

(Click above on WALLA to sign in or message me for a personal phone tutorial)

LOOOOOOOK at these faces! I can’t even….

 

 

 

How Bold is your Soul?

Are you Bold enough to explore the woo woo parts of this world?

This young buck walked right past me today coming out of Peavy Arboretum. I know this isn’t a rare sighting. It wasn’t his presence, but his audacity, that was so rare. His juvenile naievete one might say. Orrrrr, a sign from my spirit animal some might say!

Because he sauntered right past me without a care in the world. And then as he walked away… he looked back!  (You know what that means right… Thanks Hallmark).

Okay, perhaps he was checking traffic… but we see what we want to see right? (here’s the ‘shoulder glance’ video – you tell me.

So I took it as a sign. My spirit animal encouraging me to BE BOLD. GET OUTSIDE. SAUNTER without a care in the world. It was like a pat on the back from Mother Nature telling me… we’re all connected. Keep going.

I may jest about the spiritual energy of the universe because, as many of you know, I took every precaution opening up a yoga studio in the grass seed capital of the world. Beginning with Farmer Yoga (you know who you are).

But that’s been my clever plan all along. To lure you in with my nerdy/neuro/anatomical approach so I could eventually talk about the CHAKRAS, Energetic flow and Old Souls.

Last weekend was more of a CRASH COURSE on the Chakras so we definitely have more to explore!

Why Should you care about the Chakras? 

Well first, you should care more about yourself, your body, your mind and your spirit than anything or anyone else. Please don’t misinterpret that. I didn’t say forsake everyone else and throw them to the wolves. I’m saying care more about YOU than you usually do.

CARE MORE ABOUT YOU
THAN YOU USUALLY DO.

Because if this practice has taught me anything… It’s that if MY energy is fun-loving, joyful, good and strong… it raises the energy around me. I’ve been seeing it work like magic over the past year. (Magic and Science go hand in hand and if you don’t believe that, just explain to me then exactly how and why we’re here?)

I’ll wait.

We study the Chakras as a lighthearted way to
focus on different aspects of our energy
.
But hey, don’t take my word for it.
If you’re already a fun-loving, lighthearted, happy, healthy,
human being… than maybe you might consider sharing YOUR magic!

At all Curious? Jenny is bringing the Chakra series into Wednesday night Restorative yoga so you’ll hear a little more there.
And we hope to have more of these delightfully energetic conversations with you… and your spirit animals! ; )
In the meantime, please keep the energy flowing!
Much love,
Suzanne

How do you get through something SO big?

If you know me at all, you know I love my acronyms.
PFEs, BFDs, and now PLT. (explained below)

Because of my own PLT, I feel a little unstoppable right now.

The way I see it, for me, I’ve lived through 3 levels of Mental Capacity:
Coping, Surviving & Thriving.

  • I spent many years full of anxiety and just coping.
  • Then I learned to let go of the past, keep going…
    and getting through things – surviving.
  • And in a pinch with the pandemic, I used every bit of training I’ve ever had to switch gears quickly, let go of what was, keep going forward and start thriving.  (Yes, there were low moments of chaos and confusion- but I’ve let those go ; )

Overall, my PLT and my yoga practice helped me thrive when I could have easily folded.

I now have a business that survived 2020. We have a growing community of returning and new yoga enthusiasts that seem genuinely interested in the practice for their own mental toughness, not just their planks.

If you had told me two years ago that I would have to find a way to get through an upcoming global pandemic, lose most of my business, learn completely new skills via midnight, YouTube, crash courses and do all this isolated from others, I would have told you that I was most definitely not prepared for that, nor did I have the mental capacity to survive that.

However…… Fortunately for me, I have had decades of PLT for just such a challenge.

And you probably did too if you’re reading this.

I’m talking about Personal Life Training. (PLT)

PLT is real Life experiences of getting through challenging things. Things like school, divorce, relocation, parenting, job loss, challenging relationships, financial concerns, health challenges and more!

(Notice I never use the words problem, struggle or trouble. Because for me that feels harder). But ‘Challenge’ feels like someone told me No and I’m determined to prove them wrong. Immature? Perhaps. Does it work? I’m still here. (humble shrug) ; )

I have spent decades practicing yoga – and I’m not talking about tree pose. I’m talking about breathing slow, to calm my nerves so I can think clearly and respond well in challenging situations. Like a car accident, a sleepless night, losing family, menopause or a pandemic.

I still have to practice letting some things go, being kind instead of sarcastic and truly going with the flow. But it’s so much easier than it was even just a few years ago. Because I train. I practice. And I hang out with others who do the same.  It helps.

Do you cope, survive or thrive in most cases? Are you prepared for whatever comes your way? My guess is yes – to some degree – because we ALL know that what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger, right?  But you can stack the deck in your favor with a little training.

Come train with us and fine tune your PFE (Pleasant Facial Expression) and your BFD (Big fancy dismount – when you topple out of tree pose).

Our Summer Splash Pass is the absolute best way to jumpstart your Summer and start training with Love. And our Fall Yoga Training is the best way to hang with others who love this practice. (Teaching not required to hang out – check out the 100 hour option)

What’s going on at LOVE?

Here’s a little update on what’s been happening at Love and where we’re headed.
We’ve been figuring things out as we re-open and seeing how it goes.

THIS is WHY we practice.

Because when eveything is changing on a day to day basis, as it has the last few months/year, we know how hard it is to keep our balance.
But we’re back on the mats and we’re balancing . . . and we’re here for you too.