Feelin' Hot Hot Hot

A few days ago, it was in the mid 90s. Yesterday, it was also in the mid 90s. At this very moment it is in fact 90 degrees. 

It's perfect hot yoga weather!

If that sounds crazy to you, well, don't knock it till you try it.

1. Hot yoga in the summer keeps you cool. When we practice in heat, our bodies adapt to the heat. That way, when we are outside at picnics or concerts and our friends are melting, we stay cool. (Trust me, I've heard about this new super-power from a bunch of takeyogis.)

2. Hot yoga helps you look awesome in a bathing suit. Yay! Traditionally, yoga is a path to enlightenment... but it still keeps you looking fit by toning every muscle in the body and promoting healthy digestion.

3. Yoga trains you for summer activities. Many of the injuries I hear about in the summer are from being standard outdoor activities. Whether you're playing sports, gardening, or surfing, your healthy yoga body will help you do it better. 

4. You are already warmed up. We heat the room to make class easier and safer. Warm muscles stretch better. In the winter, you can spend a big portion of class just thawing out from your day. In the summer, you start already thawed and ready to make flexibility gains. 

5. You have a yoga practice. Why stop now? In the summer you probably have more free time, and you certainly have more daylight hours. Treat yourself!

6. You can practice outside! Our Sunday 9:30am class is outside at Hartwood Acres behind the mansion. And, you can go to the One Whirl Yoga Festival next Saturday. We'll be there with a booth. Leigh Ann is teaching "Intro to Forrest Yoga" at 7:30am, and Mike, Becca, and Leigh Ann will be competing at The PA Regional Yoga Championships. Unlimited classes and workshops from 6am-6pm are just $35.

http://www.whirlmagazine.com/yogafest/


See you on the mat!

The Niyamas

The second limb of yoga is the niyamas, or self disclipline. Their practice can have a tremendous effect on your approach to class and to life. There are 5:

       Saucha – Cleanliness                                          

       Santosha – Contentment

       Tapas – Heat/Perseverance

       Svadhyaya – Self Study

       Ishvara pranidhana – Surrender

Saucha , or cleanliness, can be as mundane as showering, brushing your teeth, and using your neti pot regularly, but it can also be taken much further as the practice of maintaining clean and organized energy. We line up our mats in class in an organized way to promote the flow of energy in the room. We fold and stack our blankets neatly out of respect for the next yogi to encounter them. We work toward eating only foods that promote a healthy flow of energy in the body.

Santosha is the practice of contentment. It is a practice, in yoga, rather than a feeling that occurs when the stars align or we achieve our goals and dreams. We cannot control the world around us, only how we react to it. The practice of santosha is to react with a feeling of contentment. This is why we can practice yoga every day and, no matter what the poses look like, it is always good enough.

Tapas is a counterbalance to santosha. It is sometimes translated as fire, good for burning through dullness or the obstacles in our practice, but it is not the same as aggression. Instead, we burn through our obstacles with perseverance. This practice is more about getting on our mats consistently than about demonstrating advanced postures, though those may as a side effect of consistent practice.

Svadhyaya, or self study, is a constant part of yoga practice. In class we work to build awareness of the self  by paying attention to what we are feeling in postures physically, mentally, and emotionally. We begin with things like “my thigh is on fire in this Warrior II” and progress on to “my breath is less consistent today. What is causing that? Can I change it?”

Ishvara Pranidhana is surrender. Some say surrendering the fruits of our actions to God, others the surrender of the outcome of our actions. This is not to say that goals or achievements are wrong, but to recognize that the benefit of working toward a headstand, for example, may be the discipline, the awareness, the health that we create through our work.

The niyamas, like the yamas, are the practice of a lifetime. You can begin just by choosing one and setting it as your intention for class. Notice how it affects you. Take it off the mat and bring it home with you. See how it fits in your life.

See you on the mat!

The Yamas

Once you’ve been practicing yoga for a while, you will likely feel that there is more going on than just making shapes with your body. The practice tends to spread change across our lives, often in ways we never anticipated.

The poses we practice in class, called asana, are only one limb of the 8 limbed path of yoga. Yoga is different from “exercise” much because of the 8 limbs. They offer guidance for life, not just physical fitness. They are:

 

1.       Yamas - ethics

2.       Niyamas – self discipline

3.       Asana - postures

4.       Pranayama – breath control

5.       Pratyahara – sensory withdrawal

6.       Dharana - concentration

7.       Dhyana - meditation

8.       Samadhi – ecstasy

The yamas are the ethical guide. They are guidelines for our interactions with others and the world, but also with our selves. There are 5:

Ahimsa – non-harming

Satya – truth-speaking

Asteya – non-stealing

Brahmacharya - moderation

Aparigraha – non-possessiveness

Ahimsa is probably the most frequently discussed yama, and its practice is a part of all of yoga’s limbs and all aspects of life. We begin to practice ahimsa by paying attention to whether our actions are causing harm. It can be as simple as noticing which postures irritate your knees and modifying appropriately. Many yogis interpret ahimsa as requiring a vegetarian or vegan diet. Others say it is about choosing only foods that do not harm. It can be as big as noticing whether any of your personal habits are harming your family, your friends, and the Earth.

Satya is my own favorite yama. There is a special freedom in deciding to speak only truth. When we recognize that lying hurts both ourselves and others, we recognize also that there is no benefit to lying and thus no need to do so.

Asteya encompasses the most obvious definition of non-stealing: not taking things that belong to others. It also includes not taking things that we do not need and not wasting what we do have, whether tangible or intangible.

Brahmacharya is most often translated as moderation now, but in classical translations it was “celibacy.” Nowadays it is usually interpreted as a general avoidance of excesses and being faithful and respectful within a monogamous relationship.

Aparigraha can be non-possessiveness or non-greed. This applies to material objects and intangible desires. This can be a tough one, but also simple. To quote the great Judith Hanson Lasater “Be happy with what you have.”

This is the briefest of descriptions of the yamas. There are whole books devoted to the discussion of the first 2 limbs of yoga. If you want to learn more, I highly recommend talking to your teachers or checking out the wealth of information available in books or articles online.

See you on the mat!

How often should I practice?

I am asked this question all the time. Just as there is no pose that works for every body, there is no practice schedule that works for every body. A good place to start is - as often as you can.

The more often you practice yoga, the easier it becomes.

If you take a class then come back a month later for another one, you are starting over again. If you come every week instead, you will remember a lot more.

What if you took 2 classes in one week? Now you’re on to something. There is less time for your body to tighten back up between classes, so you feel a little more flexible each time.

How about 3 classes? There is even less space between sessions, and thus less time for your body to tighten back up.

How much is too much? Most styles of yoga recommend either a daily practice or six days per week and one day of rest. There are yogis at takeyoga who drop in once per month and yogis who practice twice per day. My favorite answer: listen to your body.

How much is enough? Any time you can get to class, it’s worth it. Even if you are only coming once per month or once per season, that still means you are taking time to take care of your body and your self. It’s much easier to increase the frequency of your practice than to come back after years away.

See you on the mat!

Leigh Ann

take yoga 30 day challenge tips

Today is Day 1 of take yoga's 30 Day Challenge... take 30 yoga classes in 30 day.

Congratulations!! If you’ve started your 30 day challenge, you might notice that practicing yoga every day is…different. You are placing new demands upon your body and this means you’ll need to give it a little extra care in return. Here are  few suggestions from Leigh Ann Handel, our program director.

        
 Hydrate! It is very difficult to drink too much water. It’s possible, sure, but it’s tough. For a guideline for yourself, check out: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/water/NU00283. Bear in mind, if you are practicing hot yoga, you will need even more water than this. Make drinking water a part of your challenge.

Nourish. You are what you eat…really! Your body repairs itself using the nutrients you feed it. Would you rather be a potato chip or an carrot?  Nutritional needs vary from person to person, but anyone who is active should be sure to eat plenty of protein and yogis in particular need plenty of fiber and minerals, since we’re always detoxing. Something green, or orange, or yellow, or some other color of natural, unprocessed, fresh fruits, vegetables and grains everyday!

   

 Align. If you have an alignment question, please ask your teacher. The more you repeat something, the greater its effect on your body.

 Rest. This is different for everyone. Adequate rest could mean 9 hours of sleep per night or 5 hours. It could mean taking child’s pose for half a class or staying a few minutes for seated meditation after class. Choosing to rest is a sign of strength, not weakness.

Have fun, enjoy and pay attention to your body.

 Leigh Ann Handel, Program Director take yoga - glenshaw

Welcome to take yoga - allison park

       Welcome to the take yoga blog, I am Paul J. Stugart, founder and owner of take yoga.  My wife, Lisa, and I opened take yoga in January of 2010 in Glenshaw, PA.  Initially and for the last 2 years and 11 months, it was operated as V3 Yoga + Pilates, the V represented my wife and I (the V, because we met at VYGOR) the 3 represented our 3 exceptional children.

     Our purpose was to create a place where individuals could come to experience yoga for the first time and feel comfortable doing so.  We believed your "first experience" is the only experience that matters, and that one experience could determine and define your relationship with yoga for the rest of your life...  take yoga will make your first and your every experience and exceptional one.

After a little over 3 years, and hundreds of "first time" yoga students at our Glenshaw location,  take yoga will be bringing that "exceptional first and every experience" to Allison Park.  Our new facility located at 1701 Duncan Avenue, Allison Park will be opening early spring 2013, featuring 2 yoga rooms, Pilates room, reception and retail area, as well beautiful locker rooms.

take yoga will feature our 7 day FREE trial, the only studio to make it easy for new yoga students to try yoga for free.  We will offer upwards of 40+ classes per week including heated and room temperature classes in different styles such as vinyasa , forrest, and yin, as well kid yoga, and mat Pilates.  Our instructors will be available for private and semi private sessions in all levels of yoga, as well as private and semi private Pilates training utilizing the reformer, cadillac, chair, barrel and more.

If you have any questions or would like to sign up for a FREE 7 day trial, please contact us by phone or email. For contact info check out our website www.takeyogastudio.com, or create your own free account and sign yourself up for a FREE 7 day trial right from our website.


Thank you so much for you interest in take yoga, please subscribe to our weekly blog, it will include updates on the progression of the new studio opening, as well great stories and information from our program director at take yoga - Glenshaw, Leigh Ann Handel.

Thank You!
Paul & Lisa Stugart
Founder & Owner

V3 Yoga + Pilates is NOW "take yoga"

Current Location:
take yoga - Fox Chapel
3390 Saxonburg Blvd.
Glenshaw, PA 15116
phone: 412-767-5814

NEW LOCATION - COMING SOON
take yoga - Allison Park
1701 Duncan Avenue
Allison park, PA 15101
phone: 412-364-6477