A guest post written by Emily Bradbury What a gift to just be. I’m so rarely just being in life. I’m always doing. All the “shoulds” and the “have to’s” fill my days, my weeks, my years. My work, my children, my health, my parents, my home. Sometimes it feels like an endless to-do list. This week, I could just BE. Do yoga when I felt like yoga. Sleep when I was tired. Surf when I was energetic. Swim when I was hot. Write when I felt creative. Sit and watch the sunrise when I felt quiet. Yoga, meditation, and breathing work. I’m analytical. I like to read, to learn. I believe all the exp ..read more

A guest post written by Emily Bradbury I’d booked the retreat. One week in Costa Rica with Dagmar Spremberg, a yoga instructor I’d first met twelve years prior and followed online ever since. Anamaya, where the retreat would be held looked amazing—a jungle paradise in the still relatively undeveloped town of Montezuma. The fresh, organic food, nearby surf, warm ocean, and Spark Your Life workshops, appealed directly to my soul.  But, what about the people? I’d be spending a week with a group of strangers. Would yoga retreat people feel like my people? Who goes on yoga retreats anyway ..read more

In the untamed landscape of Costa Rica I’ve had the privilege of teaching yoga to a diverse and wonderful community for more than 20 years. I was able to witness many transformations, even during a short time visit, because this practice is powerful especially when you’re immersed in nature. Yoga, to me, is more than just a practice; it’s a path to healing, transformation, and finding freedom from the unhealthy patterns that can often hold us back. The Power of Yoga: Beyond the Asanas Yoga, as many of us know, goes far beyond the physical postures or asanas. It’s a holistic practice that encom ..read more

The fastest way to improve your meditation practice is to see everything you do during the day as an opportunity to cultivate pristine awareness. Show up for life with eyes wide open! Show up for the small stuff especially. That’s where you want to fall asleep. It’s easy for the mind to wander when you feel bored by a small task. Meditation in action also known as mindfulness, is an opportunity to practice continuum awareness. To stay connected to the present moment, you want to turn every activity of the day into an opportunity to deepen your practice. Meditation is not just about sitting on ..read more

Guest Post written by Jillian Bright, author of the book “The Trouble With Wings”. I‘ll admit right away that I’m not writing this blog as someone who is an expert on commitment. 100% the opposite actually. I’m writing this as someone who struggled with commitment for the majority of my adult life, until very recently in fact. Commitment has been my “word of the year” for five years running now.  Yeah, five years. I’ve been choosing a word for about a decade now, but I play it a little differently.  Instead of choosing an energy I want to call in for a full calendar year, I choose a ..read more

Have you ever heard of SATYA – the yogic practice of Truthfulness? Imagine yourself coming home after a nice shopping day. You just spent 300$ on some gorgeous boots and you feel a bit guilty, but hey, it’s been a while since you treated yourself and so what, money needs to flow, right? Your partner watches you unpacking your boots and he/she looks at you with a smile and says, “Oh, these must have cost a fortune, right?“  Before you think you hear yourself answer, “Oh no, I got them on sale, they were the last pair and I only paid 100$ for them. Aren’t they gorgeous?” You notice a little ..read more

How are you feeling today? Do you recognize a sense of ease in your body? Does it feel light in your heart or warm in your belly?  We practice yoga to dive deeper into the asana poses. In the beginning it might be all about figuring out the shapes, we put a lot of effort into the poses, and as we deepen our practice we learn to refine our alignment. Yoga philosophy always talks about the balance of effort and ease. Too much effort will make a pose feel stagnant and not allow us to breathe deeply, so we can even risk injury. Too much ease will not engage muscles and not create a feeling of ..read more

Ever had a moment, a glimpse, an insight, and then you were too lazy to write it down? And the idea was forgotten when you finally wanted to remember and write it down?  Ever thought Oh, I will sure remember later to write it down, and then boom, when you sat down it was all gone. Vanished into thin air. Forever lost in the nirvana of brain data, although you thought it was so brilliant? Been there, done that? Yep, I’ve been there many times, but it wasn’t until I realized, through the practice of yoga for more than 20 years, the immense value of being present that my inner guidance was s ..read more

Do you believe things fall into place? Ever had a moment, a glimpse, an insight, and then you were too lazy to write it down? And the idea was forgotten when you finally wanted to remember and write it down?  Yes, I’ve been there many times, but I learned, through the practice of yoga over more than 20 years, the immense value of being present. When you are aware of these little glimpses and when you trust that there is synchronicity in life, you will be amazed at the magic which is at play ALL THE TIME for your benefit.  You Can Do It Yes, life wants to keep us busy. We spend so muc ..read more

Change is inevitable, but we all resist it. We rather stay stagnant or comfortable than feel alive. We long to have control, because it gives us a false sense of security. As yogis we learn to unravel our conditioning and our false sense of safety. Instead of looking for your happiness in the external world you can learn to shift your focus to your inside world. This is the only world you can control, because you can choose how to respond to life and its challenges. Will you allow life or people to make you smaller, close you down, or will you accept life as it is and still find beauty? When w ..read more