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Yoga Teacher Training – Week 4 Follow Up
I did it, guys!!! I am officially a Registered Yoga Teacher!
Friday was my final day in the 200-hour teacher training program at American Yoga School. I passed, got my diploma and I am officially a yoga teacher!! The 4th and final week is a bit of a blur to me, not only did we wrap up any remaining content that we needed to cover, but we also taught two public classes and reviewed a majority of content in preparation for the exams (philosophy and anatomy – both of which I aced, in case you were wondering. YAY!). There was lots of studying for the tests and prepping to teach our classes. We also worked together on creating a custom sequence, really breaking down the component parts of our peak pose and truly understanding what is needed to create a well-rounded class to physically prepare our students for whatever we are working them towards and to give them the best possible well-rounded experience. On top of these things, we also went over our personal Plan of Action, discussing at length what our next steps are as yoga teachers, towards our long term goals. It was a crazy but amazing final week!
Teaching Real Classes
Teaching two public classes in our final week at Naam Yoga Studio in Santa Monica, was an absolute dream come true for me and it truly made the entire experience feel that much more real. No words, no books and no lectures could ever prepare you for that feeling that you will get as a teacher, the first time you get in front of real students to teach! It is priceless! Though the classes were on the small side, I felt like it was an incredible gift to be able to stand in front of students that weren’t my fellow teacher trainees. This was one of the main things I was looking forward to experiencing in this program and was surprised to hear isn’t part of most yoga teacher training programs. On top of already feeling so fortunate to have the unique experience of teaching real students, I was so blessed to have two of my wonderful friends, Debbie and Nicola there for the first class, supporting me and my first time teaching publicly. What a gift to see familiar faces smiling back at me in support, during such an important day in my life! Debbie even made it out again, to the second class. What a friend!
With each class my nervousness lessened, I felt increasingly more at ease and I felt that I was exactly where I was supposed to be. I love those moments of clarity in life, where everything falls into place in a way that makes you know you have chosen the correct path for yourself. For the first class we taught, I was so honored and excited to teach the final segment of the hour long sequence, which meant I led the students through the peak pose of the sequence toward calming counterposes and into savasana. For my first time teaching, it was an incredibly moving, meaningful and powerful experience. One that moved me to tears while I the words “namaste” passed through my lips as I bowed towards my students. It was a moment in my life I will never forget!
Since the training has ended, I am currently doing a ton of work on my own, prepping towards teaching at a studio or publicly any way I can, as soon as I can. I am eager to get back in front of students, whether it be one, two or twenty – to once again be able to teach this amazing practice.
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Grain-free Tiramisu Double Chocolate Brownies – Gluten-free + Refined Sugar-free
Today’s guest post comes from the super lovely Rose of The Clean Dish and she is sharing this sweet but healthy valentines-day worthy recipe. I just adore this recipe and I cannot wait to make this myself.
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Hey there! My name is Rose; I am the author of The Clean Dish – a real food blog where you find grain free, gluten free and processed sugar free recipes! I am super excited to be guest posting for Beth today here at Tasty Yummies! I am a military wife and German national (I feel obliged to mention this so hopefully, you will forgive me any linguistic inaccuracies 🙂 ). I love fresh, locally sourced food and making things from scratch; nothing gives me more pleasure than to enjoy a home cooked meal with family and friends. Come visit me at the Clean Dish and see what I’ve been up to in my kitchen lately – I would love to have you 🙂
I had a hard time deciding whether I should bring you something sweet or savory! Right after Christmas, I didn’t even want to look at sweet stuff, not to mention make anything sweet but January has been a healthy month for me so far; I have recovered from my sugar overdose and this recipe I have for you is one I have been working on for a while so it’s time to get it out there!
These Tiramisu Double Chocolate Brownies Grain-free Tiramisu Double Chocolate BrowniesSpeaking of mascarpone; since I am a part time vegan (you know, I enjoy organic grade meat on occasions and would *never* give up cheese!!) I haven’t really made anything containing mascarpone in over 3 years – since I came to the US. And boy, was I shocked to find that 8oz of mascarpone cost $7 in this country!! That’s way too much, if I may say so. So I decided to compromise: I used equal parts mascarpone and cream cheese (instead of mascarpone only) with an amazing outcome: It tastes almost exactly like tiramisu cream except it’s a little firmer so it’s perfect for brownie frosting!
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Southwestern Quinoa Bites Recipe with Avocado Dipping Sauce – Gluten-free and Vegan
This month of guest-bloggers just keeps on going and bringing more and more of my favorite foodie ladies here to share amazing treats with you guys. Today, we have the amazingly talented Cara, of Fork & Beans, with us, sharing an incredible recipe that would be perfect for your Super Bowl party this weekend or heck for any occasion really and they are a super creative way to use up some of your leftover juice pulp!
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Beth. Oh Beth. My love story goes way back with this girl from almost the beginning of Fork & Beans. I adore her personality from behind the computer and in person–she is the kind of girl you want fighting on your team. It is of my upmost pleasure to be here with all her loyal readers–YOU–sharing this recipe today!
Over the past couple years I have become a huge lover of juicing. I even bought an Omega (which I LOVE) and I now make a tradition of going to the farmer’s market every Sunday to buy fresh produce to juice at home for the entire week. The thing about juicing, however, is that there is a ton of pulp left over from the vegetables. I always feel guilty about throwing it all away because there is still food to be eaten despite the fact that it is the leftover fiber of the vegetables and fruit. I just never really have known what to do with it (translation: I never put that much thought into it) That is, until now.
Now I am starting to get creative with all that extra fiber and beginning to throw it into everything I can think of. About a year ago I made these Italian Quinoa Bites which were a HUGE hit (and unbelievably good!) and it immediately hit me that the pulp would pair perfectly with a new-and-improved flavor. And trust, it so is! These make the perfect appetizers or even meal in and of itself. Read the rest of this entry »
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Grain-free Chinese Almond Cookies – Gluten-free, Paleo and Vegan
I am so excited to introduce you guys to a super-sweet lady today, Erin, of Texanerin Baking! Erin shares amazing healthy baked goods!! Though not all of her recipes are gluten-free, this girl sure knows her way around a mixer and an oven, because whenever she starts experimenting with almond flour and other gluten-free flours, the results are just incredible! You’d think she’s been doing this her whole life. I hope you enjoy this amazing grain-free cookie recipe she created today in honor of the Chinese New Year.
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Hi, everyone! I’m Erin and blog over at Texanerin Baking, which is all about healthier baked goods. I started off blogging about 100% whole grain recipes but then one day, I tried almond flour, just to see what it was like. Turns out that I love it and although I don’t have any dietary restrictions, I post quite a few grain-free recipes.
With the Chinese New Year coming up on the 31st, I thought it’d be fun to share these healthier grain-free Chinese almond cookies with you! Are they authentic? Probably not. But who really cares when they’re perfectly soft, chewy and awesomely delicious? 🙂
One of my favorite cookies growing up was my mother’s almond cookies. The recipe calls for all-purpose flour, Crisco and a load of white sugar. I’m sure I’d still enjoy them (although I don’t know if I could handle the Crisco), but then I’d eat 19 of them only to be depressed about it afterwards. That’s just how I roll with this kind of stuff. Read the rest of this entry »
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Yoga Teacher Training – Week 3 Follow Up
This past week can be summed up as an emotional roller coaster, of sorts. We started out week 3 by teaching our first-ever yoga sequence. A 20-minute section as part of an hour-long class, that we each taught to our fellow class-mates. I spent a good amount of time over the weekend prior, prepping, reading, fake teaching it to myself out loud. I felt nervous, but pretty well prepared. Then, I got in front of the room and I quickly realized that what makes sense in your head and to you as someone that has practicing yoga for over 7 years, may not always necessarily make sense when it comes out of your mouth! When you can look at a student and see that your instructions maybe aren’t as clear as what they could be and that they may not know exactly what you mean, it is certainly an eye-opening moment. One that I was glad to have in the safety of my fellow students and not in front of strangers. I was quickly forced to realize that order of instructions – stuff James always talks about, really IS important, and prioritizing the stability and pre-alignment BEFORE movement, etc. etc. – those tools are there for us as teachers, for a reason. All that stuff we had been learning, it all clicked, in that moment, while I was actually teaching for the first time. On one hand, as soon as I was done teaching, I felt really good and confident that it wasn’t too bad, that I learned from my mistakes and I didn’t mess up too badly. On the other, I felt beat up, humbled, overwhelmed, under-prepared, insecure and scared to have to watch it later and talk about it. It was a very interesting and eye-opening challenge for me.
The afternoon of our first time teaching, just when we were getting ready to watch the videos of ourselves, James gave us some really great advice about not picking ourselves apart, not stressing over the little things, our clothes, our body, our voice, our nervousness – but to really take this as an opportunity to learn from our mistakes, to look at ourselves objectively as teachers, and to take from it the things that we CAN change and need to change to be great teachers. Such powerful advice that I needed to hear and was so very happy I did, before he hit play. I took notes on what I needed to work on, where I still needed help in understanding the poses and the transitions and I told myself the next time would be even better.
Another wonderful bit of advice that James has given us at multiple times in this training, that has really stuck with me in these first days of teaching and obviously will continue to as I carry on the road, is to look at each pose and the entire sequence, as a story. So, with each pose I am teaching, I now prepare by really breaking it down, asking myself what is the point of that story, what am I telling, what is it leading to? Knowing what is ahead in the sequence means that I can really focus on the fundamentals of that particular posture and what it has to do with the story, as a whole. That has made the clear understanding of the poses much more important, but in turn made it far easier for me to teach them. In the second round of teaching, after learning from my mistakes, I wasn’t hung up on memorizing the right words, instead I was able to find whatever words necessary to communicate the important fundamentals and pre-alignment of the current posture I was teaching, in a clear and concise way, to let the students know what they needed to know. It may sound more complicated than memorizing a script, but to me and my brain, far easier to relax and just give into the knowledge that is there already, just letting it come out in whatever words necessary – as long as the important parts are there and it is said in a correct order for the students to get into the pose, properly and safely.
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Yoga Teacher Training – FREE Beginner’s Yoga Class in Santa Monica 1/27 & 1/29
Hello there my Los Angeles-area friends, as many of you know I am in the middle of a yoga teacher training program this month, to finally become a registered yoga teacher. This coming week is our final week in our 200-hour training and this upcoming Friday – we graduate! As part of the curriculum, this upcoming Monday 1/27 and Wednesday 1/29 mornings – myself and my fellow classmates that are in the program with American Yoga School, will be teaching a FREE yoga class at a Naam Yoga LA in Santa Monica.We are looking for beginner students that would like to come to either or both of our hour-long classes next week, designed for students with little-to-no prior yoga experience, where we, as soon-to-be yoga teachers, will be working on honing our skills. There are limited spots, so it is pre-registration only. Your attendance as a student will play a HUGE role in our learning process and our growth as teachers, so it would mean the world to us to have you attend our class.
If you are in the LA area and can attend either the Monday, January 27th: 9am – 10am class or the Wednesday, January 29th: 9am – 10am class, please email me at tastyyummies{at}me.com to reserve a spot. Reservations are required so that we can make sure we have enough room and plenty of props. Again, this class is free/donation optional and is meant for beginners or those with a newer yoga practice.
Naam Yoga Studio is at 1231 4th street Santa Monica, CA
Whether or not you are able to attend, if know someone who might enjoy this, please feel free to share! Thank you!
*Above image courtesy of James Brown
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Kimchi Zen Salad in Avocado Shells – Gluten-free and Vegan
I am so excited to introduce you guys to Ella of Pure Ella today! I recently discovered Ella’s gorgeous website and I was instantly in love. Her gorgeous photos and recipes obviously caught my attention immediately, but her excitement for life and he sweet and positive outlook just sealed the deal for me. Today Ella is sharing a beautiful salad that has been drooling. I cannot wait to try this one.
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Lately I’ve had this insane craving for Kimchi! And I just had to have it!
I scoped around several stores in our area including Whole Foods and when I couldn’t find it myself I finally had to ask (in complete desperation) if they could help me find it!
After rechecking with several clerks I was delivered the news “We’re sold out!” (Ok, let’s expand on that exclamation mark!!!! I was completely shocked!) This was my third attempt and it’s like Kimchi has gone extinct! Or just got extremely popular! Maybe both?
“Oh no… but I’m pregnant!” It was no use. Kimchi was just a fantasy at that point. There was nothing I could do and no interest at that time to ferment cabbage for 3 weeks before I could get a bite!
Days went by and I gradually learned to stop whimpering the word “kimchi” with the fridge door open at lunchtime when preparing my lunch. I haven’t really given up but I wasn’t going to go crazy for fermented cabbage… or was I?
And then this happened: My sweet husband just walks in through the front door and hands over a jar of Kimchi to me! I jumped for joy and skipped all the way around the kitchen island to plant a big kiss on him! The guy doesn’t do flowers, but he does Kimchi and I was in Love! (with both of them ;))
The first and last time I had Kimchi before was on our last Summer trip to Montreal, when we enjoyed a stay at a great Asian restaurant in Montreal. I couldn’t get enough of this stuff. My husband didn’t get it. I loved it!
So what is Kimchi anyway? If you’re unfamiliar with the latest super-food – Kimchi is a spicy pickled (or fermented) cabbage that is traditionally from Korea. It has a flavour combination of spicy, sour and a little sweet depending on what variety you get.
It’s been a cultural dish in Korea for nearly 3,000 years so it’s a big part of their daily tradition. Even when taking pictures, people there say “Kimchi” not “cheese” when smiling for their pictures. Fun, right? 😉
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No-Bake Smore’s Energy Bites (Gluten Free and Vegan)
I seriously could write an entire post about my love for today’s guest blogger. Meg from Beard and Bonnet is not only one of my favorite gluten-free bloggers, but I am so incredibly lucky to have Meg as a neighbor and a close friend. My love for this lady cannot be explained in a simple intro to a blog post. I have to say, besides being away from my husband and my pets so much this month during yoga teacher training, it is almost as hard being away from Meg. We talk soo much throughout the day, through texts, on the phone or on a walk through the neighborhood. If you haven’t checked out Meg’s amazing site Beard and Bonnet before, I can tell you, it is chock full of creative gluten-free and vegetarian recipes and some of the most beautiful photography you have ever laid your eyes on, so after you check out this amazing treat, get on over there and check it out.
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Hello again Tasty Yummies friends, it’s Meg here from Beard and Bonnet. I am so happy to be here with you again today while Beth is finishing up her yoga training.
I am the type of person that will schedule so many things into each day that I have little to no wiggle room for when life actually happens. You know, the inevitable last minute errand that pops up, or when your kid comes down with a cold and you’re suddenly tied to your house until they are no longer a walking petri dish. Yep, I am one of THOSE people. I am almost always in a full on dash to the next thing, and it’s not that I don’t want to enjoy every moment it’s that I want to enjoy all of the moments and then some. You know, I want to seize the day with a vengeance and never look back and say ‘I wish I had just made time to…’ please, tell me I am not the only person that lives like this! Read the rest of this entry »
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Collard Wrap with Briny Cashew Cream – Gluten-free and Vegan
I am very excited to introduce you guys to my talented and lovely friend, Kris, of 80twenty. Kris’ beautiful site is filled with delicious and creative recipes that celebrate the balance in life of good and good for you. Today Kris is sharing a recipe for super vibrant and beautiful, but simple-to-make Collard Wraps. I am really, really excited about this post, as I have recently become obsessed with making wraps with collard greens or Swiss chard.
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Like most of you, I love to cook. I am my happiest when I’m in the kitchen working on something to share with the people that I love. I spend most of my free time over at 80twenty dreaming up dishes that inspire people to eat well. Ironically though, one of my least favourite life tasks (along with doing the laundry) is preparing my lunch for the next day. I’m not sure if it’s a lack of creativity, my unwavering need for high quality food, or a desire for a little something special each day, but I put a lot of pressure on myself to come up with really good lunches that also happen to be quick, healthy, and super-tasty. I think I’ve cracked the lunch code with this one! This collard wrap with briny cashew cream provides some serious lunchtime satisfaction. It’s crunchy, creamy, nutty, and beautifully green in all sorts of ways. The best part about it is that it’s so versatile that it can be made differently each week.
For my base this time, I used black rice because lately I can’t get enough of it’s nutty flavour. But you can, of course, use whatever grain you have on hand. I then topped it with julienned vegetable noodles (shredded work just as well), some sprouts, and this cashew cream that you’re going to go insane for! But don’t feel limited by my suggestions. The beauty of this dish is that it can be made with whatever you have on hand. Don’t have radishes and carrots? Add leftover roasted squash or sweet potato. Don’t want to make the cashew cream? I mean, you’ll totally miss out, but avocado fits in nicely here. And the black rice is just a suggestion. Ultimately, this wrap is all about what you like. Sub in your favourite grain and vegetables, top with the briny cream sauce, and you’ve got a truly nutritious and delicious collard wrap made, just the way you like it. Read the rest of this entry »
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Masala Chai Squash Porridge – Gluten-free, Vegan and Paleo
I so happy to have my friend Leanne of Healthful Pursuit joining us today as our guest blogger, with this incredible porridge recipe that is not only vegan, paleo and gluten-free but also safe for the candida diet. Leanne is an amazing positive-energy, filled beauty of a woman, that I am so honored to have known now for many years. Now that we are both on the West Coast and each working on our yoga teacher trainings, I have a feeling there will be even more collaborations between the two of us. Take it away Leanne!
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I’ve made something for you.
Something that just about everyone in your life can enjoy no matter their food allergies, sensitivities or eating style.
Because I believe that it is possible for women to live a liberated life on a restricted diet.Vegan, paleo, gluten-free, candida diet, you name it, they can have this porridge and most of the recipes on my food blog, Healthful Pursuit.
So, preheat your oven, grab a squash, and let’s get making some porridge… masala chai style. Masala Chai Squash Porridge! Read the rest of this entry » -
The Kentucky Mojito
OK, so I might be wayyy too insanely excited about today’s guest blogger, my girl Gina from So…Let’s Hang Out. Lovely Miss Gina is just about the most magical, polar bear loving, super sweet lady you will ever meet. I am proud to have her as a friend and to bring her here to Tasty Yummies for the first time to share an incredible cocktail with you guys. I hope you enjoy.
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Firstly, I want to thank and virtually chest bump my friend Beth for letting me come over to her really pretty corner of the interweb today and sully you all with booze and tomfoolery. I think we can both agree that this lady is pretty tops! Like, if we were texting right now and you asked me, “how do you feel about Beth from Tasty Yummies?” I wouldn’t have enough Emojis to properly respond. I’d have to use all of them. But, I think I’d probably use the one that looks like tap dancing twins more than once, because it just feels right. There would be exclamation marks and goings-on about how this lady is for reals one of the loveliest friends and one heck of an inspiring blogger. Since this is still my fantasy text to her, I think I’d end it with these Emojis in the following order: donut, ramen noodles, panda bear, thumbs up, jazz hands, tap dancing twins, donut, donut, guy with mustache, camel, tap dancing twins, donut.
It’s so like me to write an entire paragraph of arguable nonsense without introducing myself. Hi there! *Waves enthusiastically*My name is Gina and I write over at So…Let’s Hang Out. It’s a whole lot of gluten-free recipes, the occasional drawing of animals in human clothes, and spontaneous dance party encouragement all doused in copious amounts of oversharing about how I learned for the hundredth time that cooking bacon without wearing pants is just not a good idea. Splatter. Bare thighs. No. Just, no.
I know we’re just getting to know each other (even though I’ve already talked about my penchant for not wearing pants—too soon?) so, why don’t we just do this thing over cocktails? That would probably be best.
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Yoga Teacher Training – Week 2 Follow Up
Hey friends!! I cannot believe I am already into week 2 of yoga teacher training. (Here is the follow-up of Week 1, in case you missed it.) These past two weeks have just flown by. I am officially at the halfway point! I cannot even believe it! On one hand, I totally don’t want this training to end, I am learning so much and I cannot wait to learn even more. I could honestly stay in this state forever, learning as much as I can about something I hold so dear to me. Of course, on the other hand, I cannot wait to for it to be over so I can get out into the world and start sharing all of this wonderful yoga knowledge with whoever wants to learn it.
This week, we had more lectures on anatomy, last week we talked in depth about muscles and connective tissue, we learned all about anatomical language, and we talked at great length about the spine and the core. This week we discussed the pelvis, the shoulders, wrists and hands, elbows, knees, feet and the other systems of the body – the nervous system, respiratory, circulatory and lymphatic.
Having had a mostly regular yoga practice for the last 7 years, really and truly understanding precisely how our bodies move in and benefit from asana – has been fascinating for me. Besides the movement and the obvious physical benefits, learning about the many ways the other systems of our bodies can also benefit from a regular yoga practice, it is both captivating and exciting for me, as I have truly made yoga part of my daily life and I want to be a very vocal advocate in sharing this with the rest of the world.
I have to say, I am honestly surprised just how much I am enjoying the anatomy part of the program. I was a bit afraid, as someone who never really excelled at science when I was in school, that I would have a very hard time learning and retaining this very linear, factual and information-based content. I think being able to learn it in the context of a yoga practice has truly made it so much easier for me to grasp. I am really proud of that.
Outside of the anatomy lessons and our daily morning practice, the philosophy and teaching methodology lectures and lessons have really been both educational and eye-opening, as well. As someone that admittedly used to doze off in many leacture-based classes in college – looking at the slowly ticking clock the whole time, I don’t even notice the minutes and hours melt away while I listen to someone I truly respect, teach me as much as he can about the entire experience of being a yoga teacher.
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Winter Citrus Salad – Gluten-free w/ Vegan Option
I have to admit, I was never really one of those people that freaked out about citrus, I have never cared much about orange juice or sitting down to eat an entire grapefruit. That was until we moved out here to Southern California. The citrus here is just amazing. The oranges, especially, are just incredible, unlike any I have ever tasted before. The fact that we have an orange tree here in our yard is just icing on the cake. Plus we’ve been getting adorable Satsuma tangerines in our CSA box each week. Read the rest of this entry »
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Creamy Kale Salad w/ Cracked Pepper Polenta Croutons – Gluten-free and Vegan
I so happy to have Sherrie of With Food + Love joining us today as our guest blogger, with an incredible, super-yummy looking gluten-free and vegan creamy kale salad with polenta croutons. Sherrie has been an absolute godsend this month while I am away at Yoga Teacher Training, helping me with all kinds of Tasty Yummies related tasks each day. So thank you, thank you, thank you Sherrie!!
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Hey guys – I’m Sherrie the girl behind the fresh vegetarian + naturally gluten-free food blog, With Food + Love. I’m both honored + excited to be guest posting today on Tasty Yummies. Beth is one of my most fave bloggers – like, ever, and I’m a pretty lucky to girl to call her both my colleague and my friend. Her style is simple, clean + honest; just the way I like it.
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Looking to Incorporate Yoga Into Your Life? Tips and Inspiration from Some of My Favorite Teachers.
In this month-long total immersion in my yoga practice, as I get my certification to teach yoga – there really isn’t much else on my brain besides just that. Yoga! I find whenever I mention yoga, either here or on my Facebook page, I tend to get a lot of the same questions from people about yoga, the practice, where to start and all that comes along with it. I know this is a nice long post, likely intimidating as a reader – but, I can promise you if you have been wanting to incorporate a regular yoga practice into your life and you just don’t know where to start, maybe you are a tad nervous to just jump right in, there are some amazing thoughts and tips here for you. If you have lost touch with your practice and you need some lovely inspiring reminders of what your yoga practice can do for you, read this. If you just want to know what some people see in it or why so many people are drawn to yoga, take this all in. Regardless of why you read this post, I can assure you, it will inspire you to get onto your mat, whether for the first time or after some time away.
I asked seven of my favorite yoga teachers, some from my past, some from my present, the following two questions:
– What advice can you give someone looking to start a regular yoga practice?
– How has a regular yoga practice changed your life?
James Brown – American Yoga School, Venice Beach, CA
What advice can you give someone looking to start a regular yoga practice?
First, I would say, “Congratulations!”
Start with a beginner class. You might stay at that level for two weeks or ten months or a few years or forever. But you will know, if you start there, if, when and why to move on. I’d also recommend that you look for a class that does not bill itself as “flow” for your first few classes. Start with classes that teach you the basics before flowing. Flow classes tend to be light on instruction.
Try different teachers and classes until you find one that works for you. If you don’t feel good about yourself at the end of the class, move on to another teacher or class. Know that there are many formats and styles of physical practice, and within any style, every teacher will be a bit different from every other one. No matter your physical ability, the teacher should be able to instruct you in a way that you feel that you are already successful. While fancy poses may take a long time to master, a good teacher makes it clear from the start that the level of the pose has nothing to do with the quality of the practice. I have met many beginners who were more advanced, because of their attitudes, than more seasoned practitioners who could do more impressive things with their bodies. Find a teacher who teaches the poses without making the poses themselves the focus.
Set achievable goals. You don’t have to start by going every day. I started with a once-a-week course and that was easy to manage, so I stuck to it and 20 years later I am still at it. And if you fall off the wagon, just get back on. The yoga will always wait for you. Give yourself plenty of time for it to really stick and to become part of your life.
How has a regular yoga practice changed your life?
I can’t really think of any ways that it has not improved my life. The most profound difference is that I am happy. I feel more connected to others and I am content with the imperfections in my life.
Less profoundly, I am aging differently from the generation that I watched age before me. I am almost 50 and my body is still getting more functional each year than it was the year before. I know that things have to turn around at some point, but the age when that happens still seems to be quite distant.
An interesting affect of yoga practice is that it gets me to make better decisions in the rest of my life, particularly with issues of health and diet. The physical practice I do has made it more clear to me how those things affect my body, so I make better choices.
Ramona Tamulinas – Yoga World Studio, Long Beach, CA
What advice can you give someone looking to start a regular yoga practice?
Beginning a yoga practice is a unique, personal experience. Some people decide to practice because of health reasons, physical reasons, emotional reasons, wanting to look like a hot yoga girl, it’s a good way to meet girls (yes, I have been told more than once that is why someone started), improving flexibility, your boyfriend/girlfriend says it’s a must if you want to keep dating… the list goes on and on.
I would recommmend exploring the studios in your area and try different teachers until a place and a teacher resonates with what you are seeking. Once you find that teacher, study with them in a class setting and if your bank account allows – book some private sessions. Private sessions allow you to feel secure and comfortable and they help your teacher know you better. It is most important that you found a place, a teacher who allows you to feel comfortable and at ease. I believe deeply in a practice that builds from the foundation of comfort and ease. Yoga, if you jive with it – leads you down a magnificent path of self transformation. Loving where you begin is therefore vital.
How has having a regular yoga practice changed your life?
To me yoga is more than asana. It is service and compassion to my community. Therefore my yoga practice has taught me to embrace my strengths which are being of service and compassionate.
Before yoga, and sometimes even since finding it, I felt I didn’t have a place. I felt out of place in so many social settings, in so many realms of popular culture I searced for a place to belong and I couldn’t find it. I have always been an introverted person and one who lead internally with my heart. In this crazy world that encourages the worldly and external – I often felt lost. When I found yoga, I was full of self-doubt and wanted to be anyone else but me. I remember telling my friend who took me, “I am already flexible and calm. I need to become tough and strong.” Well yoga did that. I can say practicing has allowed me to stay sweet, calm, and flexible but allowed me to embrace the strength and toughness inside me. In a way, yoga helped me find my inner rebel.
At times I stray from practice and I notice myself questioning this inner strength, but my inner strength would realize how important this wild practice supports me and encourage me back to wards it path, back to my mat, back to teaching, back to learning. It is vital toward my life as anything inside my physical being.
It is as important as my heart, my brain, my blood, everything within me is supported by yoga. For me yoga lead me to the path of embracing my true self, my connection with the universe and my purpose. When I was a young girl the father of my church told me, “I want you to remember five words. I am beautiful, thank God.” He said “every time I see you I am going to wave with five finger to remind you”. He is gone now, but yoga has reminded me of that lesson everyday.
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Gluten Free Vegan Oatmeal Molasses Muffins
I am very excited to have Sarah of Sarah Bakes Gluten Free Treats joining us today as our guest blogger, with an amazing gluten-free recipe for a delicious breakfast treat.
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Good morning, Tasty Yummies readers! It’s a new day and a new year. Many of us are taking the time to make resolutions for 2014. We are thinking about how to change the way we are living. Changing the way we treat our bodies, by how much we exercise and what foods we eat. We know it’s the right thing to do to feel better, but it can be so hard to stick to the plan!
Even when we are trying to eat a healthy, balanced diet, we still need to do some baking once in awhile (I know I sure do). These gluten free vegan oatmeal molasses muffins are not too sweet and have a great texture. I’m happy to say they are low-fat and sweetened with both coconut sugar and molasses. The applesauce and banana make them super moist. I like to make a batch at the beginning of the week and I’m set. A great grab-n-go breakfast or yummy guilt-free snack! Read the rest of this entry »
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Yoga Teacher Training – Week 1 Follow Up
the beautiful light-filled space where our training is taking place, in Venice BeachThis post is quite hard for me to write. I meant to do it yesterday, but when I sat down to write it, my thoughts were absolutely spinning around in my head. The best word I can use to describe this past week, the first week of my 4 week long teacher training program, is overwhelmed. Not in a bad way at all, in a totally amazing, incredible way. I am overwhelmed with excitement – for all that I am learning and for the idea of being able to share something I love so much with others. Overwhelmed with gratitude – for being able to take part in this incredible program and for our amazing teacher, James, who is so knowledgable and excited about the practice, himself. And yes, if I am being totally honest, I am even overwhelmed by all of the stuff I am learning. There is just so much to learn and know.
One of the many reasons I chose the yoga teacher training program at American Yoga School, over the countless other programs offered here in Southern California, was the fact that the program was a month-long intensive. Monday through Friday for 4 weeks straight. Many yoga teacher training programs are offered on weekends, every other, once a month, etc – usually over a 6 month period. I think this type of program is obviously especially beneficial to hopeful yoga teachers who work full time jobs during the week, have kids or have other types of limitations that keep them from being able to do it Monday through Friday. I decided for me that I wanted to be completely immersed into a program. I hoped to be totally submerged in the content and to really dig deep into it all, being the only major thing I had to be focused on in that time. I wanted it to be all at once, I wanted to be able to give it my full and undivided attention so that I could get the most out of it. That said, it is a lot of information in a small amount of time. It is 8 to 9 hours of learning, every day. Plus, I have also been relistening to many of the lectures on my hour + drive to and from Venice Beach each day. Just before my day ends I go over my notes from the day and I journal before bed. I literally lay my head down on my pillow each night with body parts, muscle groups and Indian sanskrit words swimming around in my brain. It is intense!
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Lentil Mahkani with Potatoes and Spinach (Dal Aloo Palak Makhani) – Gluten-free and Vegan
Oh my gosh do I love Indian food. The unique flavors and spices are unlike any other cuisine and they instantly make me so happy. Although Indian food may be intimidating to some, I find that once you experiment and learn some of the foundational spices used, you can really very easily make many of your favorite dishes at home.
This particular classic Indian dish is one of my favorites when I order at restaurants and although it is traditionally a butter based tomato sauce with heavy cream, most places will substitute the coconut milk for the cream and leave out the butter, if you are dairy-free or vegan. The name Makhani isn’t exactly accurate without the butter, since Makhan literally means butter and we are leaving it out here, but for the sake of being an alternative to the traditional recipe, I kept the name the same. I personally think it is just as good this way, if not better.
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Finding a Home Yoga Practice plus a Video How-to: Ardha Visvamitrasana
Today I am super excited to have my good friend and one of my favorite yoga teachers, Kathleen Engelhardt, joining us here on Tasty Yummies with a wonderful guest post. I met Kathleen at East Meets West Yoga in Buffalo, I was lucky enough to practice with her regularly and her classes were always a bright spot in my week. Not only were Kathleen’s classes filled with amazing fun and challenging flows with some of my most favorite focused and well thought out sequences ever, but I always left her classes feeling even more excited about my practice, the work that I had done and all the work that lied ahead for me. I also always left feeling so much more connected to and grateful for the body I was given and the entire world outside of me. Kathleen has an energy as a teacher and an excitement for the practice that I can only hope I will one day embody myself and be lucky enough to share with my own future students. Kathleen was gracious enough to put together some great tips for starting and maintaining a home yoga practice plus she put together a wonderful video where breaks down a modification of one of my favorite poses, Visvamitrasana.
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Hi, my name is Kathleen. I am a mom, a vinyasa yoga instructor and I am also a physical therapy student. I’m currently on a leave from school to be home with my 2 year old daughter and 5 month old son and I am so incredibly grateful for yoga and everything that it has brought into my life! We all encounter daily obstacles. For me, being home with my kids requires tremendous patience and attention (as well as a strong stomach, as there are copious amounts of spit up, poop and weird crusties pretty much all the time) and my yoga practice equips me with the armor that I need to be a compassionate and loving mother, wife and person. My daily yoga practice can range from 45 minutes to a whopping 90 minutes (if the stars align and my kids nap well). Whether short and sweet or long in duration, my practice offers me the time and space to simply observe the state of my mind and body on a given day. My post today on the fabulous Tasty Yummies blog is going to be about self- practice. As opposed to taking class at a studio, gym or online, a self-practice is, as the name implies, practicing alone and relying on your inner teacher (aka intuition) as your guide. I want to talk about my personal experience with self- practice and its value in my life. I will give some tips for how to get started and a few cautions to consider. I have also included a short video breaking down an intermediate posture that might be familiar to you if you have practiced in the past or might be a thing to aspire to if you are just getting started.
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50 Gluten-free Curry Recipes
Hello Tasty Yummies readers, its Meg from Beard and Bonnet here! I am happy to be filling in for Beth today while she is fulfilling her dream of becoming a yoga instructor. Way to go Beth, I am so incredibly proud of you.
Confession: curry is my current obsession. I’m not really picky when it comes to eating curry; I like Thai curries, Indian Curry, Red, Green, and Yellow Curry. I love it all, I love it a lot, and I know that Beth does, too. So today I decided to hit up a few of our blogging buddies and round up 50 delicious gluten-free curry recipes to share with you.
There is a little something for everyone in this round up; there are even a few recipes for gluten-free Naan and Sweet Curry Brown Sugar Popcorn. Oh yeah, and even though I write a gluten-free vegetarian blog I know that Beth occasionally posts recipes with meat so I figured what the heck, I’ll even throw in a few of those!
Do you have a favorite curry recipe?
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One Simple Change: Surprisingly Easy Ways to Transform Your Life + Giveaway
Hey friends, I am super excited to have my friend Winnie Abramson of Healthy Green Kitchen joining us today to talk about her brand new book, One Simple Change: Surprisingly Easy Ways to Transform Your Life. I started reading this amazing book during the holiday break and although I haven’t finished it completely yet, as I am really trying to take it slow, take it all in and implement as much of it as I can into my own life, I already cannot recommend it enough! Winnie did an incredible job creating an easy to read, easy to implement list of 50 simple, but permanent healthy changes we can bring to our lives to improve our everyday well-being. From age-old culinary wisdom to green living tips, cutting-edge nutrition information, and 15 simple and easy recipes. You can take in the entire book at once and dive right into all the changes, you could work through the tips week by week or just dip in and out of the book at will. Either way, you will be left inspired to be the best you can after even just a few pages of reading.
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I am so honored Beth invited me to guest post here on Tasty Yummies. She asked me to share a bit about why I wrote my new book One Simple Change. I was happy to oblige!
When it comes to matters of health, our society is pretty obsessed with the concept of quick fixes. There’s also a great deal of pressure out there to take various eating and lifestyle practices to extremes. I understand the temptation to jump on the latest diet, exercise, etc. bandwagon (especially at this time of year), I really do…heck I’ve done that myself in the past.
My inspiration for writing One Simple Change, however, was to provide a different way of doing things…I wanted to pave an alternative health and happiness path, if you will. When I was younger, I dealt with disordered eating and over exercising and I ended up miserable with a host of health problems as a result. Now I live a life that’s balanced and full of joy (and at 43 years old, I have never been healthier or happier): I wanted to share how I got to where I am today, and that’s why I wrote this book.
Much of One Simple Change is indeed based on my experiences making changes in my own life. But it’s also heavily influenced by what I learned in naturopathic medical school (and practice) and my recommendations are backed by scientific research (the book is heavily referenced). The book is a compilation of 50 small, sustainable ways you can transform your diet, adjust your lifestyle, and overhaul your attitude in order to benefit your health and well-being. A good portion of the book is also meant to inspire readers to live greener, a topic about which I am passionate.
Small changes can really add up. And when you take things slow and change only one thing at a time, the changes are more likely to stick! I hope you’ll check out the book, and give my “method” a try.
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GIVEAWAY:
Winnie so graciously offered to send one lucky reader a copy of One Simple Change: Surprisingly Easy Ways to Transform Your Life. Use the Widget below to enter now.
**This post contains affiliate links.
