New Year

Every year, on this day, we are reminded that at anytime, we have an opportunity to re-do our lives, choose a better path and give up what we no longer need. 

I have gathered my favorite New Year resolution articles from my favorite websites. Perhaps you can get ideas on where to start. 

1. 10 ways to stop treating yourself 

http://www.marcandangel.com/2013/12/29/10-ways-to-stop-treating-yourself/

2. 14 Ways to Make 14 miraculous 

http://gabbyb.tv/vlogging/14-ways-to-make-14-miraculous?inf_contact_key=35428f950a9d56e152854c4b675bf91b46e4a9eba5fcb763a5e37ef0b7afb5b2

3. Forget setting goals, focus on this instead.

 (After reading this, think of the systems as your intention, see if makes sense that way).

http://m.entrepreneur.com/article/230333

4. 20 things to let go of before the new year (I really like this one)

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-11973/20-things-to-let-go-of-before-the-new-year.html

Other ideas:

- Take a jar, and decorate it. Call it the gratitude jar, karma jar, whatever. Write something you're thankful for every day and put it in the jar. See how beautiful it looks in Summer. Give it as a gift next year. 

- Make a list of 14 things that make you happy. For example, traveling, laughing with friends, doing yoga. Post this list somewhere visible and do those things as often as possible! 

- Don't get stuck on the things you DIDNT do. For example, I was supposed to get my license. And stop eating refined sugar.  These were two of my goals. I didn't get it a license, and although I cut down on sugar a lot, I still eat the occasional donut from Peter Pan. No excuses for myself, full accountability. But I want a car next year, and I need a license. And I'm traveling like 4 times next year to surf, therefore I will get my license, and will stop the sugar. But no need to beat myself up about it. It's a waste of time. 

What are you going to do better 2014? What are the ways you make resolutions? Please share. 

I wish that everyone has an amazing 2014!!!! 

Gratitude Meditation - Happy Thanksgiving!

Did you know that people that are grateful are generally happier, live longer and have healthier lives?  According to many studies, individuals that practiced gratitude exercises were generally in better moods,  suffered less headaches and colds, and had more positive attitudes overall.

Last year, during this time, I went through a hard break up, and my mom back home in Venezuela was very sick.  It was a very hard time for me and my family and I was struggling to remain optimistic.  I took refuge big time in meditation, and knowing the information I shared above,  I took a lot of time in one particular meditation which I am going to share below.

It is a very simple exercise that I now do every single morning as soon as I become conscious.  You can extend the meditation until your mood shifts to a better place, the length of it it depends on how you are feeling.  For example, I used to do this mediation for about 20 minutes at a time last year because I felt like crap, nowadays for about 5 minutes for I wake up mostly in a good mood.

My Gratitude Meditation: 

• Sit down or lay down and take a few moments to find your breath and shift your attention inward. Do this for about 20 breaths, until you feel focused and present.  
• If you're going through a particular hard time and can't focus, think of a place or a person that makes you happy (for me is my nephews), and focus on them, while you breath. This will help you focus.
• Once you have shifted your energy to a more positive place, take an inhale and say "I am thankful for ___________" and exhale while thinking of this particular person or thing. 
• Go through as many things as you can think of.  For example, your warm bed, the coffee waiting for you in the kitchen, your family, your job, your friends, your lover.  Nothing is too small or too big to be thankful for. 
• If there is one thing in particular you are extremely thankful for (for me this is where my sisters, my students and my closest friends come to the picture) spend some time there, picture them happy, and feel your gratitude extend all the way to them. 

I hope that everyone today has a chance to spend the day full of joy and gratitude. Happy Thanksgiving and Hanukkah everyone!

With Love,

P 

Happy Monday Reading

14 Tidbits to stir in your coffee when the sloth visits. 
(all taken from this great article)

#1. Spread kindness and love whenever you can. Reach out your fingertips and feel the energy flow. As you start sparking kindness it’ll lift the cloak of darkness. Love really is the answer.

#2. Projections, my dear, are viral. Replaying the past will drown you. Get the bolt cutters and cut the chains of heaviness. Turn the emotional fanfare off and stop twitching at every little leaf that moves. Ground your inner wildebeest. Watch without attachment and let your mind settle into the quietness of an observer. The lake is a mirror and you are the image.
“Be not the slave of your own past. Plunge into the sublime seas, dive deep and swim far, so you shall come back with self-respect, with new power, with an advanced experience that shall explain and overlook the old.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

#3. Always seek real. Speak from you heart and walk around the steaming piles of bubbling bullshit. No one is going to save or rescue you from the demons you fight. Many are fighting their own generous life lessons which include heaven and hell. Be gentle. Be kind. Speak softly. It’s often louder than a roar.

#4. Be your own Sun and Moon. The Sun shines to keep you and every living thing alive. The Moon is the healing afterglow. You have both qualities within you. It’s a powerful alchemy and one you can tap into. You have the capabilities to catapult through space. Believe in the trajectory of your heartfelt intentions.

#5. Life isn’t about cruise control. You are the driver and not the passenger. Get lost. Get found. There will be triggers. Lots of them. Watch. Look. Listen. Learn. But don’t sit there stewing in the brew. Change lanes: Avoidance has a kinship with procrastination. The pile-up effect can be debilitating.

#6. Pull out your inner GPS, it is guided by your intuition. Set your compass to the four corners. Going one-way is incredibly boring.

#7. Declare a rapture of your senses and sip raindrops from your eyelashes. Walk your fingertips along each vertebrae. Watch each hair follicle dance in the quiver of your aliveness.
 She had to breathe in peace, for in peace she found the quiet solitude her heart had been aching for. In the moments between raindrops she let her focus dwell and the sound of silence comforted her more than an avalanche of superficial banter.

#8. Let it out. When you see the monstrous waves of anxiety pouring in, swim out further to sea and settle into the fear. The part where you panic and dread is exactly where you need to tread. It’s the painful parts you try to stuff down an endless rabbit hole. If the road gets blurry, pull over. Take a few exquisite deep breaths. Breathe in freshness and flush the rest into a cosmic portal of silky white feathers.

#9. Unstick yourself and dare to do what scares the hell out of you.
“And one has to understand that braveness is not the absence of fear but rather the strength to keep on going forward despite the fear.”~ Paulo Coelho

#10. Letting go is continuous. It’s not a one-time affair. It is a perpetual process of assimilation. Once one layer is shed, other one comes up. This is good because it means you are alive and well.

#11. Quiet times are essential. It is necessary to step out of the drama of meaningless dribble and part the rain from the drops and melt into the puddles. Solitude is like water. Drink it, create it with no regret.
I dip gratefully into the sunshine and sip dew from the grass. I befriend nature and listen to the messages. I fly to the tops of branches and feel the hum of a hummer fluttering in my heart. In the speed of light, I see the patches of shade and dance lightly. I catch a wisp of a spider’s web and dangle between the echo and the silence. It is here I find a moment to fill my heart with joy.

#12. Create a fire and ignite your inner flame. Laugh and dance to the rhythm of your joy and resonate the heat of your core creativity. Step outside of the normal and find your inner crazy. Reflect with gratitude the shifting kaleidoscope, is a part of YOU.
 “Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.” ~ Terry Tempest Williams

#13. Life is like a metaphorical handstand. At times, it can feel upside down, inverted and confusing until we kick up into the fear. Challenge yourself to balance the weight evenly by relaxing into the space of the unknown.
And above all….

#14. Choose to live life as a miracle, because it is.
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” ~ Albert Einstein

2 more classes for fall, Equinox and Yoga People

I am subbing for the beautiful Mika Oakes on Tuesdays and Fridays at Go Yoga, subbing tons at Equinox and also at Yoga people in Brooklyn heights. My updated schedule is below! 

Also, my retreat is HALF FULL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have a wonderful week everyone,

Xoxo

Are you looking to start doing yoga? Read this article.

This is a great article to read wether you're a seasoned yogi or a newbie considering starting a practice. 

http://www.returnyoga.org/2013/08/21/rage-fear-sadness-fatigue-and-yoga-the-yoga-of-darkness/

P.s. teaching at Equinox tonight at 7 (upper west) and 9 pm flow at Good Yoga Bushwick :) 

Jacob Kyle and Kat Colla at Good Yoga in Bushwick. 

15 things to give up to be happier

This is a fantastic article!

http://www.wakingtimes.com/2012/03/30/15-things-you-should-give-up-to-be-happy/

Happy Monday!

P 

Stand Up Paddle Yoga and schedule

Hi! 

Stand up paddle yoga in the rockaways has been a blast this summer! 

We have two more weeks! 

Also, I will be teaching 2 classes Good Yoga starting September.  Keep a look out for all the changes in my schedule. 

Enjoy the rest of the summer! 

With Love,

P 

Equinox!

I am officially a Yoga Teacher at Equinox as of today! So excited to be part of such an amazing gym! 

My schedule is packed for fall, come to my class! 

With love,

P 

Stand Up Paddle Yoga

We had an amazing time yesterday at the Rockaways doing some yoga (including headstands) and working with the tides to stay put. 

By the time we made it back to the beach it felt we had done 200 chaturangas and about 10 minutes in plank. 

A great day! 

Stand up paddle yoga this month

Hi!

I will be teaching a weekly stand up paddle class on 67th street in the Rockaways.

SUP Yoga is great for all level of yogis, and so fun to paddle out, all you need to know is how to swim! 

Please email me for details, classes get packed quickly!

With Love,

P

Free class at Lululemon Upper West Side

                        
Hi,

I will be teaching a free class at Lululemon Upper West Side (75th and Broadway), next Saturday, July 13 at 9:00 am.  I will also be doing a brunch after, so please email me if you want to come! 

Have a great day!

Love,

P

The Elephant In The Temple: The Real Problem (repost of a wonderful article)

The Elephant In The Temple: The Real Problem: Years ago, I heard a dharma talk by Gil Fronsdal that blew my mind.  It gave me a whole new way to relate to my life.  He discussed an an...

New Classes, Class Changes and Vacation!

Hello!

I hope everyone is enjoying the warm weather!  I sure am!

CLASS NEWS:

- NEW CLASS:  Sunday at 2:00 pm, Go Yoga, Beginner's level
- Thursday 8:15 pm open level class at Go Yoga is cancelled for Summer. 

Also, I am away this weekend, all my classes will be subbed.


With Love,

P

Protect your Knees while Practicing

I love running.  Sadly, I no longer run because my right knee is a mess.  I have a misalignment on my right leg, (weak IT band and hip adductors) so when I run my right knee collapses inward, creating a domino effect that causes a lot of pain on my right knee joint, quad, and hip.

Due to this injury, I practice yoga paying special attention to my right leg from toes to hip.  My experience with this injury has allowed me to come up with some basic tips to keep the knees healthy during my yoga practice:

• Never lock your knees.  Just like when you lift weights, there should always be a tiny micro-bend of the knees.  This engages the quadriceps muscles and keeps the leg mobile should you lose balance, and keeps the knee joint open.  In seated poses, such as in Paschimottanasana, a micro bend in the knee helps keep the stretch in the hamstring area, as opposed to the lower back.

• Spend extra time on your "tight side" If you've been practicing yoga for a bit, most likely you know which is your tight side.  For me is the left, since my right leg is weaker  (I have my injury on it).  I like to spend extra time in poses such as pigeon, and Janu Sirsasana, so I can breathe and release the muscle accordingly. 

• Strengthen more than stretch: Almost every standing pose will strengthen and stretch your upper leg muscles, which is essential to keep the knees happy.  Stretching is needed, but there is no need to spend too much time stretching the quads or hamstrings.  Your yoga practice is enough.

• Use props: Using a block during your back bend and forward fold sequences can strengthen your hip adductor  since it keeps the muscles active, keeping your knees aligned.  

• Look outside the yoga mat, into the gym:  Foam rollers are amazing for your knees.  If your knees are bothering you, try using one and rolling your upper legs (never your kneecap) on a foam roller.  Stay in painful locations until the area feels better.

• Lastly, embrace whatever is happening with your knees!  The knees are a very fragile joint, so treat your knees with extra love. Fighting what you feel will not fix the problem.  Listen attentively and work with it.

With Love,

P 

Backbend safety

I have been practicing vigorous yoga for a long time.  Ashtanga, Power, Jivamukti, you name it, I've tried it.  For so long, my focus was on the pose itself, the way it looks, the way its supposed to be.

Then my hamstrings ripped.

Parsvottanasana and Paschimottanasana all of a sudden became so difficult.  Never having a problem with props, I was that student with blankets, blocks and straps all over the place.  My practice shifted completely and the awareness and connection I felt to my body was immense. The injury is how my true connection to asana happened. 

So that was a lesson in disguise.

Now, 12 years of practice later,  4 years after my injury, I have started to have chronic lower back pain.  I know it's my spine for I can feel it. 

I was always very back bendy (my very first post on this blog is me doing full wheel in a pool).  I can do all the back bend poses, including king pigeon.  But I always felt tension in my lower back.  I didn't listen though...

King pigeon (photo from thereisonlydo in tumblr)

Now I have this pain.  I know it's from my practice, for I feel it badly after I practice.  My tight hamstrings are for sure part of it as well.  Bottom line, back bends no longer feel good.

So I have tweaked my back bend practice, and the way I teach it.  

Here are some tips to keep your back bend practice healthy and pain free that have worked for me:

• Never going into full wheel.  To get your back bend on, try camel pose, or bridge pose.  
• Staying in supported bridge pose during the entire back bend practice (use a block under the sacrum)
• Instead of going into twists after the back bends, lay down completely for 10 breaths.  This time allows the spine to return to a neutral spine.  After the 10 breaths, going for the twists if needed.

I have started to include all these back bend options in my classes, including skipping back bends all together.

Listening to your body is why we practice. So listen carefully to your spine, muscles and bones. And never, ever do something that feels strange. 

With Love,

P

Searching for freedom

This is a wonderful read about simple ways to lift your consciousness.  Enjoy!

Love,

P 

New Spot!

I have wonderful news!

I am now going to be subbing classes at Greenhouse Holistic in Williamsburg!  I am very excited to be a part of this awesome community.

Please check my schedule below for classes I will be subbing, for this calendar is always updated.

With Love,

P

Hyde Yoga Spring Line is Out!

Visit Hyde Yoga's website to see the new Spring 2013 line!

Spring?

Spring is supposed to be here, right?  Let's hope it makes its way soon!

I wanted my classes this week to be based on a lymphatic system flush, in preparation for the upcoming allergy season, strengthening the immune system.  But the coldness and wetness of winter remain here, so what to do?  I am going to mix some energizing poses with a flush of the lymphatic system.  The energy of the core, our solar plexus, and a powerful flush of toxins out of the body, create a class that will energize and clean the body at once. Giving us the last push to make it through this coldish week.

What will we focus on, in a nut shell are arm balances, with a focus on the knees by the armpits (a concentration of lymph nodes live in the armpits) and hip openers to help release the lymphatic system our of our hip area, the second area where there is a high concentration of lymph nodes in the body.  The heat of the body, the moving of blood, will create a cozy environment for this class.

Hope to see you!

With love,

P

Class added to schedule

Hi!

I have added a Vinyasa level 1 class to my schedule! On Thursdays at 1:00 pm, naam yoga.

Hope to see you!

Love,

P

Twisting our way into spring

Last week during my classes, I asked students to begin to think about things they are looking to mentally remove (emotions) in preparation for a "mental spring cleaning session,"   We worked on shoulders (where most of our everyday emotions and stress live) and hips (where we deposit whatever we can't let go of, our emotional storage unit).

This week, I (and probably every other yoga teacher in the west) will be working on twists for a detox class, in preparation for Spring.   Spring; new beginnings, blossoming, more sunlight.  We release what no longer serves us so that we can make space for new, bright beginnings.  The idea is to make space for the new energy that spring will bring upon us.

The fun part of this week's will be where will be working from; we will be moving from a different dimension.  Rather than looking at our bodies as flesh, bones, energy body, chakras, we will be using our bodies as a vehicle that carries our organs.

Our organs, these divisions of our physical body, get so much benefit from our asana practice.  They get squeezed, receive new blood, and we become aware of where they are, feeling their presence and use.  During twists, we can forget to make space for them.  Our spleen to the left of the rib cage, our liver to the right, our diaphgram, kidneys, they all need to have space to allow the twists to happen.  In this week's practice, we will allow the organs to co-inhabit with us during our yoga practice, rather than let them get in the way.

Also, please look into the smiling at your organs meditation.  Where we direct our awareness to a place in our body, our prana follows.  This meditation is also a base for this week's asana practice.

Join me!

With love,

P 

Hyde Yoga Spring Collection

I did a little modeling gig for Hyde Yoga and I you can see me in their spring collection catalog, website and marketing stuff.  Not only was the photoshoot very fun, but the collection is AWESOME, in beautiful colors and amazing fits.  I will be rocking their entire collection, I love it all!

With Love,

P 

Class change at Go Yoga

My classes at Go Yoga are now Intermediate level instead of Beginner level on Both Tuesday and Thursday at 8:15 pm. 

Hope to see you!

Love,

P

On Change

This is a great article on dealing with change. Enjoy.


http://tinybuddha.com/blog/4-lessons-on-embracing-a-life-change/

Back on full schedule

I am back from a beautiful vacation in Puerto Rico. I relaxed, surfed, hung out with beautiful friends and met new ones. It was a blissful week!

But now I am back in the grind teaching everyday!

This week, we will focus on our hips. When it's so cold outside, we sit all day, watch tv, relax during long periods if time . Our hips become so tight, holding the cold of winter within them. Warming and opening the hip area warms our entire body from the inside out.

Our hips also are located by the sacral chakra, or svadisthana chakra. This powerful energy center is responsible for our emotional identity; Self-esteem and self worth. To open the hips with an intention to unlock your doubts lets your asana practice become a form of increasing your self worth and self respect. It is to give yourself love!

So come and practice.

With love,

P

New Classes

Hope everyone is having a great winter!

I have added three new classes to my schedule.  I will now be teaching at Naam Yoga Upper West Side for three delicious lunch yoga!  2 alignment based, one open level flow.   My schedule has been updated below.  Here is the schedule of Naam Yoga!

Please note that I am away next week for a well deserved surfing vacation in Rincon, Puerto Rico!  So classes will resume next Sunday.

Please email me with questions and for free passes to my class!

Big hugs,

Patricia

Playlist

My current playlist is so good!! Stay warm everyone.  Hope to see you soon!

Earth- Garth Stevenson
Come Back- Frances Cone
Evening Kitchen- Band of Horses, Spotify Sessions
Gabriel- Lamb
Ganesha- Nirvana Meditation Orchestra
Khajuraho- Chinmaya Dunster
Coming Home- Chinmaya Dunster
Dawn- Garth Stevenson
Bhaj Man Mere- Nirinjan Kaur
Aum- Lex van Someren
Any Other Name- Thomas Newman

Safety within the mat

Many times, before beginning class, I make this statement:

"Take a moment to create a sacred space within your mat" 

What exactly does this mean?

Feeling a sense of safety goes way beyond using props.  It's about taking a moment to create a space that is inviting.  A place that feels as an extension of who we are and we feel comfortable being ourselves.

Our mat, like the relationships in our lives, or like our homes, are places in which we own it to ourselves to be free, to feel 100 percent safe.  Honoring where we are at that moment, without any shame or thought, is crucial.

It takes way longer than a few moments to create this safety place.  It takes full awareness and practice.

What area of your life are you trying to make sacred?

Love,

P