Time To Let It GoAh, summer. My approach to summer is to spend the end of May and beginning of June in a panic to "get everything done" by the time school ends, turning me into an unfocused bull in a China shop. This year's "everything" list included getting the summer veggie garden fully running, researching native trees and shrubs and building a new bed with them, and making a YouTube yoga channel. Veggie garden (and a nosy rescue dog) pic featured below!  I have to admit, of the three projects, the YouTube channel was the most difficult - and I dug the native shrub garden bed during the drought when my clay soil was nearly baked to pottery level. Why? Technology wise, it was very simple. But I worked myself into such a mental block about videos because I didn't know the ins and outs of video production, and I didn't want to put out a product that wasn't EXCELLENT out of the gates. I was sure I needed to do more research, buy more gear, maybe take a class about making videos. I put obstacles galore in front of this project, and at the rate I was going, I was never going to actually meet this (many years old) goal. In the end, it was the act of service that got me going. We had to take a month long break from Chair Yoga at the library, and my students asked for a video so they could practice at home. Finally, I realized that my ego's need to be seen by others a certain way (in this case, being seen as an excellent yoga teacher and video maker) was getting in the way of actually bringing yoga practice to others, which is the point of teaching in the first place! I let go, and just went for it, allowing that I would not love the first videos I made. And I most definitely do NOT. However, I'm no longer in "analysis paralysis" and I am excited about the videos I want to make in the future. Thank you to my students for the inspiration, and to my teachers for years of yoga philosophy study that allows me to see when my ego and attachments are getting in the way of my own happiness! That's the story of my summer so far - settling into family activities, getting down and dirty in actual dirt, and overcoming some emotional obstacles. Hope your summer is going just as well so far! Building Strong Hips In March I did a series of blog posts featuring hip opener poses, and we worked on hip openers in my Riegel Ridge mat classes. Everybody loves hip openers! But it is not enough to stretch the hips, happy as they may be at the idea. So this summer in both chair and mat yoga, we will work on strengthening the hip flexors and extensors. What does that even mean? The hip flexors are the muscles that connect the hip/lower spine to the thigh bone which allows us to bring the leg forward, like the psoas and quadricep. The hip extensors move the leg behind the body, like the gluteals (your butt!) and hamstrings, and are important in walking, pushing off a step, and going from sit to stand. These sets of muscles are in a relationship because when one set is stretching, the other is contracting. We are going to have a fun month or two focusing on contracting these muscles to build strength and increase mobility in our daily activities! If you missed the hip opener practice and like the idea of deep stretches, you can find the blog posts on my website. CLICK HERE to check it out! Doing the YouTube Thing As mentioned in the diatribe above, I finally did it. Like legions of yoga teachers before me, I made a YouTube channel called @GroundedEarthYoga and began uploading videos. And like the practice of yoga itself, I have to assume you get better the more you do it. Let's just say these are not high quality productions, but I'm getting better at the process and have high hopes for the future! I recorded both a chair and mat version of the Joint Freeing Series, and a guided meditation. Please check them out, and do that whole thing where you "like" the video and "subscribe" to the channel, because that will make the videos more searchable through YouTube. Also, feel free to comment under the video itself, even if you don't like them! I won't be offended, and will likely agree with you. Connect to the videos right through these links! The mat practice is embedded below. Mat practice - https://youtu.be/CuWYITjH5zs Chair practice - https://youtu.be/0OmhoGixurs Meditation - https://youtu.be/iVTSVulUCoE FREE Library Chair Yoga Restarts Hello library friends! I missed you! We had a short break for vacation time but now that the kids are back to camp and summer school, Chair Yoga returns for a six week session.
Please register for this event directly to the Hunterdon County Library Headquarters by calling 908-788-1444 or CLICK HERE to register online. The main headquarters library branch is 314 NJ-12, Flemington, NJ 08822.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI want to share with you the yoga I practice, teach, and live. Archives
December 2023
Categories |
RSS Feed
