Apr 22 2011
My mom does pilates, and I was wondering what the difference is between pilates and yoga. I found this really cool infographic that tells shows what’s different and what’s the same. Thank you to MindBodyGreen for this.
Apr 19 2011
Here are 8 reasons that kids should try yoga today.
I know a lot of these might seem like no-brainers, but they may be new to some people. Others might be new to you or reasons you haven’t thought of. Remember, when you need to get kids interested in doing something, especially something that will take work and practice, it’s important to find the reason that makes them WANT to do it. Maybe one of these reasons will get the kids in your life excited.
Apr 18 2011
Have you heard of a chakra? They are special parts in our bodies that keep us balanced. Okay, you know that crazy feeling you get when everything just seems to be wrong? Well, that could be because your chakras are out of whack. Yoga can help get things balanced again, and it will help if you know what chakras are connected to what parts of you.
These are the official names of the chakra, the location on your body where you will find it, and the sense it is connected to. If you can remember to think about these when you are feeling a little crazy or out of control you might be able to do some yoga that will help you get back in balance.
Apr 12 2011
Here are the top 10 reasons to teach the children in your life yoga.
Yoga is a great way for kids to do better in school, sports and at home. Stay tuned for more ways you can help the kids in your life learn to try yoga and to enjoy it!
Do you have any stories about yoga and kids, or how yoga has helped you? I’d love to hear them. Leave a comment here and I’ll be sure to respond.
Apr 08 2011
This is for all my visitors in the states. I thought this was pretty cool when I found it on www.MindBodyGreen.com and thought you might like it too. Let me know what your state is good at, and if you agree!
Mar 02 2011
Have you every heard of color therapy? I sure hadn’t…at least not until I read something about it online and started looking into it. It turns out that it’s really something people do. So I wanted to learn a little more about it, and I thought I’d tell you a little about what I learned.
Color therapy can help people with emotional issues as well as maybe physical issues. Now, some of this sounds like common sense. I know I like colors. And I know some colors make me happier than others. Like if I’m in a black room I won’t feel as happy as if I’m in a bright room. Bright colors just seem to make me happy. Since some of the stuff I found was a bit too technicalfor me I read through most of it and thought I would sum up what I found.
People can actually feel better or worse depending on what color room they are in, or what color glasses they are wearing, or what colors are around them. It’s actually very cool! You can visit this site and see a list of some of the more fun colors to work with. There are some pretty neat colors listed, and I’m going to start incorporating them into my yoga practice. I’m going to pay attention to the colors in my room, my yoga mat, even my yoga clothes. Geez, if this stuff works I’ll pay attention to all the colors around me!
Have you ever noticed a difference depending on what colors are around you? Let me know what makes you feel good, bad, or indifferent. Maybe we can make a rainbow!
Feb 28 2011
My mom is always talking about something called “optimism” and I try to listen, but I have to admit, sometimes I get bored and stop listening. But now she told me that March is National Optimism Month, so I decided I should probably figure out what this whole optimism thing is all about anyway.
Turns out, optimism is all about thinking good thoughts…being postive about stuff even when you don’t feel like it. Well geez Mom, I already do that! So now that I know what she’s talking about, I can tell you how to do it, and how to help the kids in your life practice optimism in their daily life. (I still don’t know why she doesn’t just say think good thoughts)
So, it can be really tough to think positive when you’re not feeling positive. Trust me, I know. I just had this really hard math test and it was sooooo hard to think I was going to do well since I didn’t feel like I would. But I tried and tried and ignored my feelings and just made myself think about doing well. It’s kind of hard sometimes, but there are things you can do, and help your children do, that will make a big difference over time.
Keep track of your thoughts – know what you’re thinking. Most of the time we don’t really pay attention to what we think about. In fact, we’ve all heard people say “I didn’t even think about it.” Well, they probably did but they just didn’t know it. They didn’t pay attention to what they were thinking. It’s really important, when you start to think positive, to pay attention to what you are thinking…after all, if you don’t pay attention how will you know if you’re thinking good stuff or not?
Change your thoughts – if you catch yourself thinking something negative, STOP IT! Right then…just stop it and change your thoughts. Tell yourself over and over the opposite of your bad thought. So, if you are thinking you’ll never get it right, stop yourself and say “I know I’ve got this” or “I rock at this” or something else over and over until the bad thought isn’t there anymore and the good thought is the only one you’re thinking.
Reward yourself – when you think good thoughts. It can be really tiring to always think good. It takes a lot of work sometimes, especially if you’re really used to thinking yucky thoughts. So, after you’ve been thinking good stuff for a while, have some ice cream, watch a movie, call a friend, or play a game. Better yet, relax in Savasana and tell yourself it’s because you’ve been so good. 
Oh, and by the way, I got a 92% on that math test! Yahoo!!!
Nov 25 2010
Do you ever get super frustrated and just want to scream? Oh my gosh…me too! There are some days where I could just yell at people. Usually, after I calm down I realize I was so mad because I was stressed or something, it’s not really about them, it’s more about me. Frustrating!
So, I found a way to breath to make myself feel better and calmer. And when I do it regularly, which I don’t always remember to do, I find that I am generally happier and mellower throughout the day. And by the way, I don’t get in trouble as much then either. Weird, right? I know.
What’s this special breathing you ask? It’s really simple. I kind of found it on my own, and then found out there’s an ancient way of breathing that’s kind of similar to what I do…but mine works too.
So you find a quiet place where you can get a few minutes to yourself. Sit comfortably and try to relax. You can close your eyes or not, that’s up to you. You breathe in really slowly…count to nine while you’re breathing in. I know it sounds like a lot, but trust me and try it. While you’re breathing in you think of all the nice stuff going on for you…the things that make you smile. This can be your family, a class you’re doing really good in, your little sister, whatever it is just make sure it makes you smile.
Then you breathe out while you count to nine. While you’re breathing out you think about all your anger leaving you. All your frustration, stress, overwhelm, whatever is making you feel icky, is all leaving your body when you breathe out.
Do this breathing in and out 5 more times. Make sure you are really doing the thinking and imagining part. It may make you feel silly, but after you get the hang of it you will totally notice the difference. You’ll feel a little mellower and get less mad. It’s uber cool! Try it and let me know what you think!
Nov 24 2010
Yes! Do you get headaches when you get stressed? Me too! I hate stress headaches. If I have a test coming up, if I’m getting in trouble a lot, if I’m worried about something…I’m telling you, I always get headaches! Well, there are several poses that I’ve found that make a big difference and help my headaches either go away or at least not be as bad.
Cow-Cat This is a great pose to release some of the tension in your back and shoulders. Start on the floor, on your hands and knees. Make sure your back is flat. This is called neutral position. As you take a breath in let your tummy drop to the floor and look way up to the ceiling. When your tummy is down toward the floor and you’re looking up, lay the tops of your feet flat on the floor. Hold that for just a second. Then breathe out and bring your tummy up to your spine, making your back super rounded. When you round your back also flex your feet and put your toes on the floor to stretch them too. Hold this one for just a second. Then repeat this cycle of neutral, cow then cat pose for several cycles.
Neck stretches Drop your head toward your chest, really feeling the stretch in the back of your neck. Do some slow neck rotations, to the side, then straight up (don’t let it drop back), to the other side and down again. Do five circles, then go the other way. It’s really important not to let your head drop back since what you’re trying to do is let your neck muscles stretch, and putting your head back might stretch your throat but not your neck.
Child’s Pose Go back to being on your hands and knees. Now sit back on your feet, leaving your hands stretched out in front of you. Lay your body down over your legs and, with your arms stretched out, you’ll feel a little stretch in your back, but mostly you’ll feel pretty relaxed.
Savasana As you know I loveSavasana! This is a really good one to do after all these stretches cause it let’s everything kind of relax for a minute. You lay on the floor on your back, keep your legs straight but relaxed, and your arms next to you and relaxed. You close your eyes and let your body rest into the floor. You will start to feel heavy but that’s good. It means your muscles are relaxing and re-setting is what I call it. Just hang out there for a few and enjoy the relaxed feeling.
After you do these poses I bet your headache feels a little better. Let me know if it works and if you found anything else that works too!
Nov 21 2010
Are you getting together with all your family for Thanksgiving this Thursday? Will you be hanging out with all your cousins and siblings? Or will you be the only kid around a bunch of grown ups? However your Thanksgiving is going to work, it’s bound to be more fun with yoga, right? But what does yoga have to do with Thanksgiving? Everything! Yoga relieves stress, and we know that grown ups are always stressed on Thanksgiving after cooking and cleaning all day.
Try playing a game of Yogi Says. This is a really simple game that you can play before or after eating, just adjust the game to how full everyone is.
Choose one person to be Yogi. Everyone else will face the Yogi and wait for directions. This game is played like Simon Says. Yogi will give directions, and either say “Yogi Says” or not, before the directions. The rule is that the rest of the players will do what they’re told by Yogi, but only if “Yogi says.” If it is just a direction, without “Yogi says” in front of it, then the group is not supposed to do the move. Anyone who does is disqualified.
So what is the rule for the Yogi? The directions have to be somewhat yoga related. Yogi can demonstrate any pose, even if “Yogi says” wasn’t included, but they do need to be yoga related.
Give this game a try. It’s probably one you haven’t played at Thanksgiving before, and you might be surprised at who’s willing to play it with you!
