As the weather begins to warm up, thoughts can start racing in our minds about how we need to start dieting or exercising more, to burn more calories, to make sure we are small enough for the summer, to fit into that bathing suit, or to wear shorts or a tank top and not be embarrassed of our bodies. We start to chase what we believe is the best “summer body”. Keep reading to find out why this whole concept is problematic, and how we can start to change the narrative to accept ourselves exactly as we are right now. Why are you trying to change your body in the first place? It is believed tha ..read more

Spring season is Kapha season and keeping this dosha in balance within your mind-body can be  challenging this time of year, but everyone can maintain balance with the Right attitude, the Right knowledge  & the Right self-care.  What does Kapha mean? Pronounced “kup-PA,” the ancient Ayurvedic texts consider this dosha of water & earth as the most  beautiful of the three. It’s expressed in the mind-body as the essence of physical & mental cohesion, so there’s  a sense of oneness & wholeness present in Kapha. This dosha governs the protection of your bon ..read more

Whether we like to admit it or not, the past two years have not been the easiest. Anxiety and depression have flooded our society as social interactions and physical human connections remain limited. To help us stay grounded amongst a sea of crazy news, politics, and events, it’s important to practice mindfulness and self-care. At the end of the day, we may not have immediate control over going to the job we dread or driving through the traffic that we can’t stand. However, we can control how we feel and react to those things. Through mindfulness practices, you can enhance your calm down your ..read more

For the first time in my life I exercise because I want to. Not because I “have to”. Exercise and yoga, and any form of physical movement makes me feel happy and strong, in my body and in my mind. That is why I do it. I no longer workout as a form of punishment because I ate too much guacamole last night, but because it genuinely makes me more sane and brings me joy. It hasn’t always been this way. How It Started For a majority of my adult life and all of my teenage years I wanted to be smaller. I wanted to take up less space and I wanted to look like those stick thin models you see in the ..read more

What is Wellbeing? Wellbeing is defined as ‘a positive physical, social and mental state’. In this article, we are focusing on mental wellbeing. Mental wellbeing does not have a single universal definition, but it does encompass several factors: The sense of feeling good about ourselves and being able to function well individually and/or even in relationships The ability to deal with the ups and downs of life, such as coping with various challenges and making the most of such opportunities The feeling of connection towards our community and surroundings Having control and freedom over our re ..read more

Staying centered is all the more important in difficult times. As many of us transition to working from home, we have to find new ways to maintain a sense of stability, stay healthy, and put our minds at ease. Fortunately, yoga can help us ticks all of those boxes. Here are 4 ways yoga can help keep you grounded and focused: 1. Yoga can help keep you active. Exercise boosts the immune system and can make you a bit more confident about your health. The World Health Organization recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity workouts and at least two muscle strengthening sessions per ..read more

The History of Transcendental Meditation Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (“Maharishi”) (1917-2008), is the founder of the Transcendental Meditation technique. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is the great teacher and sage from India who introduced the TM technique to the wider world. Maharishi began publicly teaching a Vedic-based meditation technique inspired by his teacher, a leading figure in the Vedic tradition, an ancient tradition of knowledge rooted in the sub-continent of India. What is Transcendental Meditation? Transcendental Meditation, also called TM, technique of meditation in which pr ..read more

What Is Trauma? Trauma can be described as anything that overwhelms our capacity to cope and respond. This can leave us feeling helpless, hopeless and out of control. An estimated 70 percent of adults in the United States have experienced a traumatic event at least once in their lives and about 13 million people have PTSD at any given time.The current stress of the COVID-19 pandemic and global racial tensions are adding to those numbers. These situations are creating a collective wave of trauma related symptoms with more and more of our population reporting feelings of fear, anxiety, and isola ..read more

Yoga Butt A few months ago I tuned into a yoga class over lunch and felt pretty significant pain afterward. I brushed it off at first but, before long, I could barely walk. I later learned that I had hamstring tendinopathy, also known as “yoga butt”. Hamstring tendinopathy is the most common yoga injury, yet I knew nothing about it until I was limping around the house. It wasn’t covered in yoga teacher training or talked about by any teacher in the ten years I have practiced. This article is meant to help you understand this common injury, what to do if you have it and how to prevent it befor ..read more

This is the second article in a series of 8. If you haven’t read about the yamas, please check it out before diving in here. Today we will discuss the second of the 8 limbs of yoga: Niyamas.  When we talk about yoga as asana (postures), we are only referring to one of 8 Limbs of Yoga. There are 7 other foundational pillars that make up the 8-fold-path and if we only focus on the postures,  we are ignoring 90% of the practice. In The Yoga Sutras, Patanjali states that each of the 8 limbs is equal to the others and necessary.  What Are the NIYAMAS? The niyamas are a guideline o ..read more