Sunday, July 31, 2011

choose love, face fear

Kathryn Budig talked a lot about 'Aim True' at the workshops I recently took from her. She had a big dry erase board in front of class that said:

CHOOSE LOVE:
HOPE 
EMBRACE
BELIEF
CONFIDENCE

FACE FEAR:
DOUBT
EXPECTATION 
DREAD

I've been trying to apply this all over the place in my life. Not just on my yoga mat, but everywhere throughout my life recently. On Friday, I went to a cute and tiny swimming hole in Washington and I saw these little boys jumping off a rock and into the water. My first thought was something like this: "Oh, that looks like fun! Wish I could do that, but I won't. I don't want to get wet, I don't want my mascara to run, the water looks cold, etc." I know this jump looks pretty puny in the video, but I was scared! I had all these questions running through my head like, I wonder how cold that water really is? Am I going to hit the bottom? Am I going to freak out if I don't hit the bottom? What if I can't find the surface again?! I decided to stop with the questions, put my Marie Claire magazine down and go for it. When I got to the top of the rock, I got really nervous but had one of those "I've come this far..." moments. After all, I did climb up the back side of a rock in a bathing suit with no shoes on and tell my husband I was going to do it. I couldn't chicken out now! So there, I did it. The water was cold and lots of it went up my nose, but it was fun! I only did it once but that was all I needed. In that moment, I had chosen love and faced fear. It's the small victories :)

I challenge you to start applying this concept to your own life. Start small. It might not be a big deal to anyone else, but maybe it is to you and be okay with that. Try a pose you wouldn't normally try, go places you've never been, eat things you've never eaten. Maybe after you've tried something you might realize you don't like it, but in the words of one of my all time favorite movie characters, "that's the way it goes, but don't forget, it goes the other way too."


LOVE

Friday, July 29, 2011

something new


If you haven't figured it out by now, I am obsessed with healthy smoothies. I discovered the green smoothie sometime last year, but only in the last couple of weeks have I been making one every day. I try to have it for breakfast, but sometimes it ends up being my lunch. I've been having lots of fun experimenting with new things, and last night I decided I'd mix things up a bit and toss a beet in there. I bought a bunch of fresh raw beets yesterday and boiled them for about 8 minutes last night to soften them up a bit and make them easier to peel. I'd like to have them completely raw, but remember- my blender is a dinosaur and I'm not sure it could handle that. After I prepared them, I stuck them in the fridge. Side note: I like to do as much prep as I can the night before, otherwise I spend quite some time in the morning peeling & chopping.

I was really excited to test out the new ingredient this morning. Another side note, I don't think I've ever eaten a beet in my life, but I've been feeling adventurous lately. Last night I noticed they were quite messy and smelled very earthy. So here's what I tossed into my blender this morning:
  • one beet
  • handful of spinach
  • 2 large collard greens
  • a banana
  • half an apple
  • handful of blueberries
  • two spoonfuls of plain nonfat yogurt
  • a splash or two of rice milk
  • 8 small strawberries
  • 1/4 avocado
Pretty delicious! It's a bit thicker than the others I've been making, but I don't think the beets changed the taste too drastically. The color, yes- but the taste is just a little bit more earthy than the smoothies I've made before. I will definitely be making more of these!

Thursday, July 28, 2011

eat fresh

In Portland, we're lucky to have lots of farmers markets around town! Shopping at farmers markets allows you to support local farmers while also supporting your own health (and wallet, it's cheaper than a grocery store!). I'm looking forward to loading up on lots of fresh fruits and vegetables at the one near my house today! To find a farmers market near you, check out www.localharvest.org.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

new playlist and schedule

  • FC Kahuna- Hayling
  • Kings Of Leon- Back Down South
  • Foster The People- Pumped Up Kicks
  • La Roux- In For The Kill (Skream Remix)
  • Awolnation- All I Need
  • Mumford & Sons- Awake My Soul
  • Beach House- Take Care
  • Mumford & Sons- After The Storm
  • Pink- Glitter In The Air
  • Mofro- The Sun Is Shining Down
  • Eleni Mandell- Miss Me
  • Beyonce- Halo (acoustic)
  • Krishna Das- Om Namah Shivayah
Here's my schedule through the first week of August:

Wednesday, July 27
  • Murray Scholls 24- 5:45am
  • Clackamas 24- 11:00am
  • McLoughlin 24- 7:00pm
Thursday, July 28
  • Tualatin 24- 8:30am
  • Adidas- 5:30pm
  • Pearl 24- 7:30pm
Friday, July 29
  • Tanasbourne 24- 10:00am
Saturday, July 30
  • Hollywood 24- 7:00am
  • Pearl 24- 5:00pm
Sunday, July 31
  • Clogs N More- 9:00am
Monday, August 1
  • Clackamas 24- 11:00am
  • Downtown 24- 6:30pm
Tuesday, August 2
  • Tualatin 24- 8:30am
  • Adidas- 5:30pm
Wednesday, August 3
  • Clackamas 24- 11:00am
  • McLoughlin 24- 7:00pm
Thursday, August 4
  • Tualatin 24- 8:30am
  • Pearl 24- 11:00am
  • Adidas- 5:30pm
  • Pearl 24- 7:00pm
Friday, August 5
  • Tanasbourne 24- 10:00am
  • Beaverton 24- 12:00pm
Saturday, August 6
  • Hollywood 24- 7:00am
  • Beaverton 24- 9:30am

Sunday, July 24, 2011

sunday

a handstand hand from my sweet friend julia skerry


A few days ago, I posted a link on my facebook page to a lululemon blog called 'The Pursuit of Handstands'. It's a really great article, and if you haven't read it yet you can find it here.

Boy, can I relate to that article. When I was 22, my teacher suggested to me that I consider teacher training. I remember thinking she was crazy because I couldn't do a headstand, my heels didn't touch the floor in downward dog, and the list goes on. But this one excerpt from this blog pretty much sums it up: "I’ve realized that the discipline of a regular and consistent yoga practice is much more important and difficult than mastering one advanced pose." I'm happy to report that three years later, I can do a headstand. My heels can touch the floor in downward dog. I can do a lot of things now that I couldn't do before. But what difference does that make anyway? I certainly don't feel like a "better" yogi because of it, and the more I learn about yoga the more I realize I don't know about yoga. Here's another quote I love from the blog: “There are no final yoga poses. There is always something to learn, something new to explore, something we haven’t yet experienced.”

I used to think that when I could balance on my forearms I could call myself a yogi. Or when I could do a full hanumanasana I could call myself a yogi. Again, the list goes on. But after years of consistent practice, I think I'm finally starting to see the bigger picture. The fact that I unroll my mat everyday and practice with my heart and soul is what makes me a yogi. That goes for all of us. Never sell yourself short, don't give yourself limitations. You are limitless. Keep on keepin' on, friends! You can do anything.

Namaste.

Friday, July 22, 2011

mmm...

Green Smoothies: Round Two

I went to the produce market today in search of some more delicious things to add to my smoothies. I have never enjoyed cooking, nor would I in any way consider myself a 'foodie', so my food knowledge is very limited. When I eat fruit, I typically eat something like a banana, apple, strawberries or grapes. Give me a papaya and I'm not going to know what to do with it. Silly as that sounds, I have that relationship with many types of food. "Uhh, do I have to peel it? Cut it? How do I eat it?"

Now, with that being said, I do love to eat healthy things and always have. I just have a tendency to eat like a 5 year old- you know, I eat the same things over and over. If I'm on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich kick, I'm going to eat one every single day for months. (Don't judge me, I only use natural peanut butter and jelly, and a really good multi-grain or whole wheat bread). I've always said if I became super rich I would employ a chef to cook healthy, vegan/vegetarian food for me at every meal. Maybe one day?

The whole point of this blog is to share with you my love of the green smoothie. Super easy, nothing needs to be cooked (washed and maybe peeled, but definitely not cooked), and most importantly healthy and tasty. I got a little inspiration from Tiffany Cruikshank last night when she posted a photo of her smoothie from that morning. I asked her for the recipe and she listed off nearly a dozen things and followed it with, "I just buy tons of fruits and vegetables, whatever looks good, and throw it in my blender." An 'everything but the kitchen sink' type of thing. Easy enough! At the market today I shopped exactly like she said she does. I tossed tons of things into my basket- chard, spinach, strawberries, bananas, avocados, kale, plums, peaches, pears, etc. If it looked good, I bought it. I didn't even know what chard was, and still don't actually, but it was green and leafy so I tossed it in my blender with a bunch of other stuff. Tasted great! (And by the way, most of that stuff came from a local farm on Sauvie Island and came to a grand total of just $18).

Green smoothies are perfect for the person who doesn't like to cook, doesn't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, and wants to be healthy. If you don't already drink these things- try it! You will not be disappointed.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

green smoothies

Holy goodness gracious, if there's one thing I can't get enough of right now it's green smoothies. I used to make them fairly regularly, that is until I thought I killed my blender (it's a dinosaur and I had been throwing ice in there- not good). Luckily it came back to life and so did my love for the amazing green smoothie. You don't have to have any specific recipe or exact measurements, you can just throw whatever you have together in a blender and make a deliciously uber-healthy treat. Your smoothie should be made up of about 40% leafy greens and 60% fresh fruit. Most recently I've been doing 2-3 stalks of kale, a peeled and sliced apple, 4-6 strawberries, 1/4 avocado, a splash of almond milk, a nice big spoonful of plain nonfat Greek yogurt, a banana and a little bit of agave nectar. I prefer mine at room temperature, but you can pour yours over ice (or toss ice in the blender if yours can handle it).
People who include green smoothies in their regular diets report the following:
* more energy
* less body aches and pain
* normalized blood sugar
* reduced or "cured" insomnia
* increased libido
* clearer thought
* better vision
* regular bowel movements
* less acne
* less illness
* easy weight loss
* reduced craving for coffee and caffeine



Yes, please!

Monday, July 18, 2011

the day after

After eight intense hours of yoga over the past three days, I was expecting to be incredibly sore today. Like 'I can't get out of bed' sore. Lucky for me, I'm actually feeling pretty good this morning. My body is aware that I spent eight hours twisting it and flipping it, but I'm feeling alright. Still feeling my yoga buzz, actually! I made sure to take really good care of myself throughout the weekend though, drinking plenty of water and getting plenty of rest. I already can't wait for next year when she comes back! In the mean time, I'm going to reactivate my yogaglo account so I can practice with her at home. And since I've done so much talking about Kathryn Budig, let me give share with you how you can catch up with her yourself.


You can also take online classes with her (and many other wonderful teachers) at www.yogaglo.com, and she writes for a ton of websites and publications. Even if you don't practice yoga, I still recommend checking her out. She posts a lot of great recipes and is just an all around great ball of inspiring and happy energy.  

If I haven't already made this clear, yes- I do love Kathryn Budig! :)

Sunday, July 17, 2011

yoga with kathryn: day three

Today was the last day in a series of workshops led by the fabulous Kathryn Budig at Yoga Pearl. Today's theme was love, and the workshop was appropriately titled 'All Is Full Of Love'. We did a lot of back bends. And I mean a lot. More back bends than I even considered physically possible before today. Three hours is a long time to practice yoga. Three hours of consecutive back bending- wow. I am surely going to be quite sore tomorrow, and probably even the day after that. But I feel amazing! And happy, oh so happy.

I learned so much this whole weekend, but I have to admit that today was my favorite. I love arm balances and inversions, but I love back bends even more because I'm good at them. I've always been a bit more bendy than strong, which is definitely something I've been working to balance out. One of the first things Kathryn had us do with hanumanasana (splits). Three times on each side. Here's the dialogue going on in my head: "Is she kidding? No, apparently she's serious. Okay. Just do it." On the third time, she had us fold forward and kiss our shin. Yikes! I'm so glad I've been spending so much time on this pose in recent months. In fact, as recently as six months ago hanumanasana was not a part of my practice. Why not? Well, because I couldn't do it. And in my own practice, I don't like doing things I can't do. I decided that was a pose I "wanted" one day, so I kept at it. I started incorporating it into my own practice, as well as into the classes that I teach on a daily basis. It wasn't too long before it was mine. You can do this with any pose. If you want it, practice it. But as Kathryn said today, it's like trying to hold a wet bar of soap. The tighter you try to squeeze, the more likely it is to slip out of your grip. "Don't stop wanting it, just stop obsessing over it."

Back bends are challenging for a lot of people because you're opening your throat, heart and hips. We as humans tend to feel very vulnerable when back bending because of this. You have to be very comfortable with yourself in order to practice these intensely open postures, but as Kathryn said today, be yourself. Be comfortable with who you are, and let your light shine. By closing yourself off, you are doing the world a disservice. "Why would you do that? Don't be an asshole. SHINE!" Yes, she said that. And she's absolutely right. This reminds me of a favorite poem of mine by Marianne Williamson. Here it is:

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Amazing, right? And totally true. Let your light shine, and let it shine brightly. xoxo-Tami

Saturday, July 16, 2011

yoga with kathryn: day two

"Drop to your knees and give thanks that you can stand." -Irish Prayer

Kathryn started class today with this quote. Seemed fitting, since we were about to be standing on everything but our feet! The workshop was equal parts fun and hard work. Emphasis on the hard work!

We started out with handstand. First kicking, then from standing split, then bent-knee pike, then straight leg pike. Then transitioning from handstand to chaturanga- which with Kathryn's love and support I did! She talks a lot about fear in this workshop, and learning to let go. So often we have everything we need to physically achieve a posture, but fear holds us back. Do I physically have the strength to successfully transition from handstand to chaturanga? Yes. Am I afraid that without Kathryn standing behind me I'm going to face plant? Yes. Anyone who watches someone practice these advanced postures and thinks they're easy is dead wrong. The threat of a face plant is very real, and even though you don't have very far to go, it's still going to hurt. Watching Kathryn demonstrate the transition, I thought I would be able to nail it. Once I started to practice it on my own, I became very afraid! "But my face- it's so close to the ground!" After a few attempts, I sat in the middle of the room looking like a lost puppy. Kathryn looked over at me and all I could mutter was, "I'm scared." Last night, when talking about aiming true, she taught us that the only way to conquer fear is to move right through it. You can't get around it, you have to face it head on. So she stood behind me and had me come into a handstand. (Let me give you a little side note here. Kathryn describes this transition in a very funny way. The transition comes from your arms and upper body, not from the legs. She says the legs are like the kid at the park who doesn't want to go home, and the arms are the mom who says, 'no, come on, we're going!') So as she's telling me to bend my arms and melt my chest, I get scared and drop out, immediately bringing my legs down the the ground. I tried again. Same thing happened. There are 60 other people in the room and right now I'm hogging all of her attention. I ask her if I can try one more time and after she reassures me that I can do this, and that she will not let me face plant, she graciously says of course. I trusted her, much harder to do than it sounds being that I'm upside down and moving into unfamiliar territory, and I did it. She gave me a hard pat on the back when I landed and greeted me with a smile when I pulled through to up dog. I wanted to cry. She is amazing.

The realization that we can do anything we want is quite incredible. One of my favorite things about Kathryn is that she is so open about her journey. She told us today that in her teacher training, the class was instructed to kick into handstand at the wall. Everyone did it- except for her and one other person. Her teacher, Chuck Miller, came to her and assisted her into the pose. When she came out he said to her that she had everything that she physically needed to stand on her hands, but that she had to let go of the fear. I think that is so powerful, and so true. It is not enough to watch someone else do the pose and want it. No matter how badly you want it, you will never get it if you don't practice regularly. You've got to learn to fall before you can fly. You have to learn to take a literal leap of faith- and on or off your mat, taking a leap of faith can be terrifying.

Okay, now that being said, that doesn't mean that any Tom Dick or Harry can hop into a handstand as long as they aren't afraid. You do have to have that element of physical strength, and a deep sense of awareness and control of your body.

Getting back on track now, the yoga room was hot. And when you have 60 people exerting all kinds of physical energy, it makes it that much hotter. For the past few days I've had this yucky sinus issue and have been feeling kind of sub par. After the two hour class last night, waking up at 6:00 this morning to teach a class of my own, and putting forth every last bit of effort within me, I was tired by the end. Wait, tired was an understatement. Exhausted is more like it. After about two hours, as much as I wanted to learn more and try everything, I was beginning to fade. When Kathryn asked Krystyn if she still wanted to work on fallen angel, she said, "We can talk about it, but I am really tired! I hope I'm not the only one." She wasn't. In fact, I was glad that I wasn't the only one!


Tomorrow is another three hour workshop for heart and hip openers, but tonight- ahhh tonight! I will rest on my couch :)

Friday, July 15, 2011

yoga with kathryn: day one

Let me start by giving you a little background in how I came to love Kathryn Budig. Remember when Snoop Dogg had his on reality show a few years ago? Yes, the rapper. One episode featured him going to see a doctor because he was stressed out. The doctor suggested he try acupuncture, but when he expressed his deep distaste for needles, he was redirected to a yoga class- Kathryn Budig's yoga class! The clip is hilarious, and if I can find it I will post it. But anyway, that's how I first discovered her. This was back when social media was far less popular. Facebook was unheard of and I had a myspace account. Here's what mine looked like...

ABOUT ME:
yoga-loving vegetarian.
WHO I'D LIKE TO MEET:
kathryn budig.

I found out who she was by googling 'yoga teacher on snoop dogg's fatherhood', found her website and learned that she is not much older than me, and she graduated from University of Virginia (Virginia, heeeeeeey!) before moving to Los Angeles. Sometime later I connected with her on Facebook and asked her to come to Portland. She wrote me back and told me she was actually in talks with a studio to come lead a few workshops, and several months later she was here, and of course I signed up. She is a delight.

Tonight I had the pleasure of taking her two hour 'Aim True' class and it was amazing, inspiring, challenging and fun. I met some new people, learned some new things, and left there feeling happier than I've felt all week. Oh, and not to mention I sweated, sweated, and sweated some more since the room was packed and the heat was cranked. My clothes were so sticky when I got home I literally had to peel them off.

Here's one big thing I took from tonight's class- Do not look at someone's practice with envy, for you do not know their story. It's as simple as that. Nobody just pops into these poses without practicing them for a long time, and it's important to create a balance between your practice and those people and things you love that have nothing to do with your practice. And if you want to get better at any particular pose, just practice it. Really, that's it! Just practice it. "Show up, but don't mark your calendar. Just keep showing up."

And with that, I'm off to bed. Have to be ready for day two: three hours of arm balances and inversions!

Namaste, friends <3

Monday, July 11, 2011

new playlist

  • Zero 7- This World
  • Mofro- The Sun Is Shining Down
  • Zero 7- Simple Things
  • Beirut- Scenic World
  • Beirut- Postcards From Italy
  • Mofro- Blackwater
  • Mofro- Everybody's
  • Mofro- Air
  • Massive Attack- Be Thankful For What You've Got
  • Massive Attack- Protection
  • Subway Bhaktis- Tibetan Tantra Tara

Friday, July 8, 2011

class schedule

Hi y'all! As some of you may already know, I recently quit my "day job" to further pursue my teaching career. Since yoga is my deepest passion and I've been teaching for more than three years now, it stopped making sense for me to put my energy anywhere else. I've been teaching a lot so far this summer, and I am loving it! I feel so grateful and blessed to be able to spend my days sharing yoga with so many wonderful and inspiring people all over Portland. Here's what my schedule looks like for the next ten days, hope to see you!

Saturday, July 9
Hollywood 24, 7:00am

Sunday, July 10
Clogs N More, 9:00am
Pearl 24, 5:30pm


Monday, July 11
Clackamas 24, 11:00am
Murray Scholls 24, 4:15pm

Tuesday, July 12
Tualatin 24, 8:30am
Adidas, 5:30pm
Tanasbourne 24, 7:30pm


Wednesday, July 13
Clackamas 24, 11:00am
McLoughlin 24, 7:00pm

Thursday, July 14
Tualatin 24, 8:30am
Beaverton 24, 10:30am
Adidas, 5:30pm
Pearl 24, 7:30pm


Friday, July 15
Tanasbourne 24, 10:00am
Beaverton 24, 12:00pm

Satuday, July 16
Hollywood 24, 7:00am

Sunday, July 17
Clogs N More, 9:00am


Monday, July 18
Clackamas 24, 11:00am