Day 254 Intention ~ Speak Clearly

Day 254 Intention ~ Speak Clearly

Sometimes when I get nervous, I start to talk fast and mumble. Today, I had to do a demo class for the senior center to try to encourage attendance for my class that is starting next week. I also started a new session at the community center. I still get a little nervous when teaching to new people. Although it's better than it used to be, I still sometimes catch myself releasing a nervous laugh, or mumbling through instructions, or saying the dreaded, "you know". 

Today, although with a couple moments of those reactions, I did my best to speak clearly and slowly. The reality is, the more relaxed I am as a teacher, the more relaxed the students will feel. That's when they can really start to open, not only physically, but emotionally. 

Til tomorrow...

Shanti, 

Marcia

Day 190 Intention ~ Don't Rush It

Day 190 Intention ~ Don't Rush It

Now that I am feeling re-inspired and creative, I want to do everything at once! The motivation is fantastic, but the reality is, rushing it will make the quality suffer. Taking the time to mindfully put things together in a calm, thought out way, is a much better path. 

Whether it is creating or doing something that you love, taking the time to put care into it makes it all the more special. You enjoy the process as well as the final outcome. 

It's the same way on our mats. When we are newer to the hatha, physical, yoga practice, we want to pop right up into wheel pose, forgetting that it's been 20 years since we've tried to move that way and it's much more difficult than it looks. But with care and mindful practice, we learn the steps as we build the strength and flexibility, and before long, coming up into that pose is not as daunting as it once was.

Have a minor injury in my shoulder girdle this past week has reminded me to take it step by step. Slow it down & not to rush it. 

All good things in all good time.

Til tomorrow...

Shanti, 

Marcia

Day 104 Intention ~ Slow Down

Day 104 Intention ~ Slow Down

I remember the first class I ever took with my teacher, Marni Task. At the time, I was pretty new to hot power vinyasa. Sure, I had done vinyasa in a room temperature setting, I had also practiced hot yoga, but Bikram, not in a flowing vinyasa. I found that I would often struggle to find ujjayi breath in these hot classes and would stumble and bumble my way through the poses as fast as I could. 

She came up to me and told me to slow down. And, guess what, it changed my practice. To this day I think of that when I am moving a little bit slower in class than the 20 year olds around me or when I am teaching and I see a student rushing through chatturanga, and upward facing dog. 

When you slow it down, you can feel your breath, heck, you can feel the pose. I have heard comments from different people who think moving more slowly is easier or more "beginner". Holding the poses longer is not easier in my book...I feel that it builds more strength and allows you to go deeper. 

It is beginner friendly because that newer student has a chance to get into the pose with more time, they also get to feel it in their bodies and make adjustments in alignment if needed. They get to find union between their breath and their body...connection...yoga. 

Today, 4 years after that first class, Marni reminded me (and the whole class) to slow it down again. This time coming out of savasana pose. As we all started to wiggle our fingers and toes ready to roll up and om...ready to move on to the rest of our day, she reminded us to slow it down, to move as if you are just learning how to use those muscles again. It was a nice reminder for that moment and for the rest of my day.

Til tomorrow...

Shanti,

Marcia