How digestion works

Infographic by Jackie Chow

(In under two minutes)




(Expanded version)

(University version)

Breathing, emotions, and back pain

Leslie Kaminoff talks a bit on the connection between breathing, emotions, and back pain.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

I found this simple and tasty recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread from Pickles and Honey.  I changed a couple of things based on what I had and I also used only half the sweetener.  It came out beautifully.  My last pumpkin bread was a bit and dense.  Not this time.

Here's what I look for in store bought chocolate (or carob) chips:

• absence of high fructose corn syrup or partially hydrogenated oils
• grain sweetened or unsweetened (sugar isn't always vegetarian, more below)
• dairy-free (milk, casein, whey, etc)

I had no idea that sugar isn't always vegetarian.  Here is a list of companies that do and do not use bone char.

The Ultimate Guide to Dairy-Free Milks

I have never made my own non-dairy milk, but with this amazing guide from Heather Crosby of YumUniverse anyone can give it a go.  Some possibilities include: almond, amaranth, brazil nut, brown rice, buckwheat, cashew, coconut, hazel nut, hemp seed, poppy seed...

Wondering about a vegan diet?

The Yoga Comics

Have you seen The Yoga Comics?  This new project created by Boonchu Tanti is all about the real-life humor that goes along with being an 8-limb householder.  Check out The Yoga Comics facebook page for new stories.  There might even be one by me in the near future :) Here are the first two comics with stories by Jessica Walden.

"Andrew does a daily puja that involves chanting and meditation. On this particular day, Andrew did his normal preparations, dressed himself in his doti, did his chanting, and then started to meditate, sitting in lotus, on our living room floor. Biscotti (the dog) thought he must want to play since he was sitting on the floor. So she grabbed her favorite toy, the rubber chicken, and placed it next to Andrew's knee. She waited. He meditated. She growled. He meditated. She picked up the rubber chicken and placed it ON his knee. He meditated. She barked loudly as if to say "stop your meditating and throw that damn rubber chicken, will ya!!" He meditated….

In the samadhi state, a man had become one with a dog.....he had even become one with the rubber chicken."

"I was doing self-practice and the kids were home and playing together. I was in the flow of my practice, very focused and serious. I was doing arm balances in Advanced A series. My 5 year old broke my serious focus by hollering from the bathroom 'Mom, can you come wipe me!'

There is an ancient saying: ... 'Before enlightenment, wipe bottoms; after enlightenment, wipe bottoms.'

ABOUT
Jessica Walden began a daily yoga practice in 1994 and, over the last 12 years, has made several trips to Mysore, India, to study with Guruji, Sharath, and Saraswati. She is married to Andrew Hillam and a happy mother of two boys and one chihuahua.

Weekend Edition #1

Eating to support your practice
Guy Donahaye
Ashtanga Yoga Shala NYC
http://bit.ly/VMCWpx


How to learn Ashtanga Yoga. Led class versus Mysore class?
Magnolia Zuniga
Mysore San Francisco
http://bit.ly/YMwMme


How to practice when hell’s freezing over
Angela Jamison
Ashtanga Yoga Ann Arbor
http://bit.ly/V4PXYP

The winds
Kate O'Donnell
Ashtanga 4 Life
http://bit.ly/14JDXiD


Food + Yoga
New segment on the blog on you guessed it, food!
http://bit.ly/VLoo4f


Check out
No Impact Man (book, movie, how-to's)
Vegucated (trailer, watch online)

Vegan Black Metal Chef

Who says being vegan is boring?

Recipe: The Liz Berry Smoothie

This is a thick, nutrient-rich smoothie inspired by one of my good friends...

Ingredients:

• Banana

• A few leaves of kale

• 1 handful of blueberries, cherries, or other berries (frozen is okay). Amounts vary (I usually measure by handfuls). 

Supplies:

• Blender (I recommend using a hand blender.  They are much easier to clean than a regular blender.)

• Cup

Directions:
Blend ingredients until smooth.  This is a thick smoothie for sure.  For a thinner smoothie, experiment with the ratios.

Nutrients:

• Bananas - potassium, dietary fiber, manganese, vitamin b6, vitamin c

• Kale - fiber, calcium, vitamin b6, magnesium, vitamin a, vitamin c, vitamin k, copper, potassium, iron, manganese, phosphorus

• Blueberries - dietary fiber, vitamin c, vitamin k, manganese

Create a pre-practice ritual aka jedi mind tricks by Elise Espat

Eventually it is possible that it won't matter. You'll wake up without any kind of encouragement and get on with it with ease and grace.  Perhaps you're even able to right now decide to turn the switch for complete and absolute engagement to the "on" position.  If so, now is the time to set it to "on" and leave it there.

As the senses contact the object of the senses, feelings of heat and cold, pain and pleasure occur, Arjuna.  These sensations come and go; they're impermanent.  Patiently endure them, great Prince.  -2.14 Bhagavad Gita, Swami Satchidananda

The restraint of the modifications of the mind-stuff is Yoga.  Then the Seer [Self] abides in His own nature.  At other times [the Self appears to] assume the forms of mental modifications. There are five kinds of mental modifications which are either painful or painless... -1.2-5 Yoga Sutras, Swami Satchidananda

Yes, with practice (which implies time, right?... a repeated effort?) all is coming.  But first, one has to actually practice.  Talking about it, having special clothes, reading interesting books, memorizing facts, a bit of previous experience, etc., don't count.

Success comes to him who is engaged in the practice. How can one get success without practice; for by merely reading books on Yoga, one can never get success.

Success cannot be attained by adopting a particular dress (Veṣa). It cannot be gained by telling tales. Practice alone is the means to success. This is true, there is no doubt.-2.67-68 Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Pancham Sinh

As someone who has tried every sort of scenario possible to avoid the inevitable early morning practice, I can honestly say that a daily morning Mysore practice is simply the most practical, peaceful, and healing situation I have ever experienced.  It just works. 

That said, it was not easy for me to establish...  Well, actually, it was really easy and simple.  Or at least it could have been had I been even slightly willing to give it a real chance.  For me, many things had to shift.  Each day I had to look at how I was investing all aspects of myself.  It was painful.  I had to make big and what felt like big choices and sacrifices in order to make it happen.

For a long time it was uncertain.  Each day had a question mark.  I had to write down that I would do it so that I could check it off my list.  I needed some sort of validation that I was making an effort.  This was also around the time when I didn't think it was important to have a morning ritual.

Slowly I started to notice glimpses of light shining through the darkness.  I moved toward it.  A regular morning routine started to form.  This regularity began to saturate everything else.

I've realized that it can be very helpful to do the exact same thing every single day.  That when things are simple we have lots of room for pleasant.

How to create a pre-practice ritual:

Close your eyes and spend some time daydreaming.
Imagine your teacher, another practitioner, someone you respect that is further along the path.  How do they wake up?  What do they do?  What is the environment like?  What sensations or associations does it bring?

Close your eyes and spend some more time daydreaming.
Imagine a person you love, respect, or care for deeply.  If you were creating a ritual and environment for them, how would you do it?

Insert yourself into the scenarios.
How does that feel?

Put it all together in a practical way.
Let's say you imagined waking up from a baby deer nuzzling your wittle nose.  Birds lifting you to your feet.  Cartoon flowers exploding from the floor with glitter shooting through the air.  You get the point.

You get on the internet and get yourself a deer poster.  You get an alarm clock that has nature sound options.  You get a flower bedspread and a glittery practice top.

Set out your clothes the night before.

Set up coffee/tea the night before.

An exceptional music playlist can be very helpful.

Basically, arrange everything the night before so that all you have to do is get out of bed and have the willpower to not turn around and get back in it.  Be strong!

Upcoming Local Cooking Classes to Consider

Annapurna School of Cooking
Website
Feb 9 Soup and Chapati
Feb 23 Baking
March 9 Spices
March 23 Spring Kitchari

The Ayurveda Institute
Website
March 1-3 Ayurvedic Cooking for Self-Healing

Local "Conference" Appendix

A few notes from our post-practice 1% Theory/Q and A on Sunday...

How long should I wait to eat after practice?
Your organs get a big massage each time you do your asana practice.  Try to be sensitive to what is really happening on the inside.  Are you eating out of habit or are you truly hungry?

Do I really have to shower before practice?  What if I don't smell?  Isn't that just wasting water?
You really ought to shower before practice.  If you feel guilty and that you are wasting water, the solution is simple -- become a vegetarian and better yet, vegan.

You can also help offset your pre-practice shower by using public transportation or riding your bicycle, using reusable grocery bags... The book and movie "No Impact Man" are pretty inspiring.  You might also find some good ideas here. 




Fear in practice?
As Sharath says, "No fear, no fun!"  :)



And anyway...

Is it weird that I am asymetrical?
Nope.

What should I focus on while I practice?
Pick one thing - God.  Or the tip of your nose, or your breathing, or a happy thought, or your bandhas, or the vinyasa count... Pick one thing, because it all comes back to the same thing, right? 

Ellen DeGeneres on being vegan

Because we are thinking about food...

Going vegetarian?

Here is a sweet video by Jonathan Mann and Ivory King that addresses some common questions...

Student Questions: I haven't been practicing... Should I come back?

Q: I haven't been practicing... With the holidays, and work, and life, and the cold weather I just stopped. Now I dread coming back because I think it will be too hard and also I am a little embarrassed and disappointed in myself. Should I come back?

A: Yes, of course you should come back to practice! Practice is effort toward steadiness of mind. Don't worry about completing some acrobatic feat. What is really interesting, really what it is about is just showing up. So okay, you got a little distracted. You can have a fresh start tomorrow. In terms of asanas, just start small and slowly do a little bit more each day, couple of days, weeks, or even months. It depends on how long you took off... No matter. It will probably take some time for things to feel natural again and to get into the daily rhythm and that is okay. While time off is not recommended, the good thing about it is that when you start practicing again you'll quickly realize why you missed it so much and it will probably be more difficult to let it go again when life gets stressful. No fearing, you come!