Breath, Metabolism and a Peace of Mind!

Recently a girl I know asked me a question. She said: “My roommate and I decided to loose weight and started working out.  She started doing yoga and I am going to the gym. We do it regularly. My roommate’s lost weight. I’ve gained weight. Why? “

I always educate the world of the many benefits of yoga, but I definitely have a more psychological, emotional, spiritual bend on the practice, rather than strictly physiological, although I never miss a news announcement that shows latest research of how yoga helps anything from high blood pressure, to fertility, to cancer survivor rates…you name it. Today, I’ll focus on the physiology of yoga and specifically on the AWESOME benefits of the breath. 

Most people are completely unaware of their breath and don’t even know that there are better ways to breath, ways that lead to less stress, more energy, weight loss, low blood pressure and generally a healthy body. Yoga utilizes varieties of breathing techniques to give you that advantage in life. Deep diaphragmatic breathing is an integral part of every yoga practice. Most yoga styles incorporate the breath with the movements. A few, will instruct breathing separately from the movement. My personal preference, and from my observations, moving and breathing is better than move now – breath later. I will explain why in a minute. 

Deep diaphragmatic breath stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system and kick starts the relaxation response in your body – hence less stress. Drs. Brown and Gerbarg in a recent article in Current Psychiatry show how trained deep breathing can relieve trauma symptoms.  The sympathetic nervous system, which is stimulated in times of stress and anxiety, controls your fight or flight response, including spikes in cortisol and adrenaline that can be damaging when they persist too long, becoming responsible for conditions such as depression, anxiety, muscle tension and pain, insulin sensitivity, GI issues, insomnia, adrenal fatigue and cardio vascular disease, among scores of other conditions.

Deep diaphragmatic breathing is the fastest way to influence the nervous system.  Also, it increases oxygen in your blood stream. More oxygen = more active metabolism. More active metabolism = leaner body. 1 L of oxygen burns 5 calories. Which is why people exercise. When you exercise, your body demands more oxygen. Even after you finish exercising your body stays saturated with oxygen for a while which keeps you metabolism more active, continuing to burn calories. This is known as the “afterburn” effect. 

Now you can see why moving AND deep breathing is better than just moving and then deep breathing. When you combine the two, as in the way of yoga – you move, increasing the demand for oxygen and your deep breaths supply extra amount of oxygen. This results in high metabolism, which results in burning more calories even though you may be working only at the level of moderate intensity. Some forms of yoga are very active and intense. The effect there is even more pronounced because the intensity of your effort is directly correlated to the amount of oxygen consumed post exercise. Nevertheless, it’s the deep breathing that turns a gentle or moderate activity into a fat burning activity through stimulating your metabolism.  This also means that more intense practice will be more effective if combined with deep breathing. But that’s not all!!! 

Breathing is the “pump” for the lymphatic system – that’s the sewer system of your organism, the way the body transports and gets rid of toxins.  Your cells must have oxygen to survive moment to moment. They rely on a complex exchange between the circulatory system and the lymphatic system. Blood flow carries nutrients and oxygen to them, while the lymphatic system carries away destructive toxins. Proper breathing is the moderator of this exchange. More oxygen to in the blood stream = less toxins in the cells, to put it simply. But that’s not all either!!!

Pranayama is a whole practice of yoga on its own when one delves into various breathing exercises which have such an immediate and pronounced effect on your body/mind that only a few minutes per day can be of great benefit. Because of the profound mental, physical and energetic effects of some breathing practices, the supervision of a qualified instructor is necessary. So, don’t just do something because you read about it in a magazine. 

Curious about what it’s like to live life with energy and lightness in health and happiness, rather than stress, gloom and discomfort? Give yoga a try today. As always, remember the teacher has a lot to do with the outcome of your practice, so try a few and choose wisely. 

Happy breathing, all.

Valentina Petrova has been teaching yoga since 2001. She owns Holistic Movement Center in Morro Bay, CA where she teaches group classes and  advises people privately. For more info, or to book an appointment, call 805-909-1401, or visit the web at www.holisticmovementcenter.com.

PS...Some fun calorie burning facts, in case you care...

Energy expenditure and tables with a calorie calculator: http://www.brianmac.co.uk/energyexp.htm Also, there at the bottom in the extra info you can find other tools like ideal weight (which tells me i am on the lowest border), body type, and all kinds of other stuff.

Scientists have found out that the burning of carbohydrates during exercise is equivalent to 5.05 calories for every one liter of oxygen consumed. For fat it, is 4.73 calories per one liter of oxygen. They also found out that there is a greater production of carbon dioxide when carbohydrates are burned compared to when fat is burned. So, scientists can accurately determine how many calories come from carbohydrates and how many come from fat during a single session of exercise. In fitness textbooks, the figures are rounded off to 5 calories per one liter of oxygen.

Cardio Equipment
Most cardio machines (treadmill, bike, elliptical trainer, and rower) base their calorie burning formulas on a reference person who usually weighs 130 or 150 pounds. Unless you weigh exactly that much, the number being displayed on the console is slightly inaccurate. Here's how to make it more accurate.

Find out from the gym staff what the cardio machines calculations are based on. Let's assume its 130 pounds. Divide the number of calories burned by 130 pounds. Multiply the answer by your weight in pounds.

For example, the treadmill's display console says you burned 300 calories. Divide 300 calories by 130 pounds. The answer is 2.30 calories per pound. Multiply that by 120 pounds (your weight). The answer is 277 calories. 

Then, if you are feeling bad because that's all the calories you burned for one hour of walking, console yourself with the fact that you burned 277,000 physics calories. 

A calorie in physics is different from a calorie in nutrition. Doherty explains that one food calorie (which should technically be spelled with a capital C) is 1,000 times bigger than one physicist's calorie (spelled with a small c). In other words, a food calorie is actually a kilocalorie (Kcal). It is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celcius. Sometimes, the physics calorie is called a small calorie while the food calorie is called a big or large calorie. Whew! No wonder one website starts its definition of calories with an ice-breaker question: How many calories do you burn just trying to understand what a calorie is? 

So now you know that a cup of rice has 220,000 physics calories or in food terms, 220 Calories or 220 kilocalories.

Humbled and Grateful...

I do not have a problem with people dying - disease, or accidents or natural disasters. In a way. I think there are too many humans on this planet to sustain a healthy balance and that we prove this every day. I happen to think of humans as just another species and do not think that we should expect to continue as species indefinitely. So, actually, i am OK with the entire human race being wiped out in a flash by a meteor. Why? Because, I don't think we are entitled to life and we are definitely not entitled to life forever. We are just organisms on the face of a planet which is hurried through the Universe at 67,000 miles per hour to imminent destruction. These are the facts of life.

But there are other facts, which are equally present. The fact that suffering exists. The fact that the higher the nervous system, the more developed the brain, the more developed the ego, the deeper, stronger and inevitable the suffering. So, as humans we hold first place in being able to experience suffering. No other creatures on this planet can make themselves so miserable as we can. Mainly because no other creatures on this planet has the well cultivated egos that humans have. That being said, i have nothing but compassion for ALL beings but especially for the beings who experience the greatest suffering daily, hourly and by the minuted - humans.

Outside of being parasites on the face of the Earth, humans are also magicians and creators of the highest order. We are the only species who can imagine and manifest from that imagination. This is nothing short of amazing. This is Godly attribute. And what makes it more amazing is that we always, almost certainly fail to recognize that, so we devote our time and attention to building identities, acquiring things - beliefs and objects that will re-enforce those identities and then we spend a lot of time asserting those identities, fighting over our differences and defending our selves from folks who challenge our identity. Meanwhile, we are cooking delicious meals, creating art, inventing technology, raising kids and not even noticing.

So, I find here and there something i can do, like teach yoga, not eating anything with eyes, support the American Cancer Society...to perhaps alleviate some of the suffering, even though i know that suffering is nothing more than the experience of an ego who cannot accept the way things are. Pain is definite but suffering is optional - as we are told by the sages. If we reach a place in time when cancer, or other disease are no longer anyone's concern, we've solved our political dilemmas, or figured out how to build nuclear power plants that don't explode, it is likely that suffering will still exist because humans are masters at finding reasons to suffer.

At the end we shall all be returned to dust and it won't matter. Meanwhile, Ghandi and Mother Teresa showed us that helping people without judging them is a noble pursuit and makes a huge difference while we are around. Humbly, I try to learn from them and others and count my blessings every day because i realize that life is a bitter sweet phenomena, temporary, unreasonable, unfair and that it will never be reasonable and fair, because reasonable and fair are not adjectives that should be used with the word life. Life is consciousness manifested in form.

For me to live something dies every day. But does it? Consciousness is never born, and it never dies. "One man believes he is the slayer, another believes he is the slain. Both are ignorant." teaches the Bhagavad Gita. Chew on this for a while. Enlightenment is when one realizes this truth and after that....as the Zen folks would say "Chop wood. Carry water."

So, i choose to dwell on the marvel of being here and the opportunity to experience life as this form in this moment and look forward to crafting the next moment equally consciously.  I am grateful for the life forms that are "lost" everyday for this life form to continue it's temporal existence. I always ask "what should i be creating" knowing full well that the answer to this question would, at best, contain only a relative truth with relative significance that makes all the difference in this space-time reality of illusion. This heart beats the words of Ramana Maharshi: The World is unreal. Brahman only is real. The World is Brahman.

And tomorrow is another day and time for a cream cheese croissant, listening to birds, painting the bathroom, getting into arguments and wondering at the stupidity of politicians, why my phone battery only lasts a few hours, when will we finally have the teleport..."chop wood, carry water."

Yours truly....
Valentina Petrova. Call me if you want to know how things are :)))

Clean cut and color co-ordinated....

So, the Yoga Journal has a "talent search" which consists of sending your picture in a yoga pose and writing a paragraph about your self. Over 2000 people respond. Most of them with less then 5 years of yoga practice experience. A lot of them in postures they can't fit into but trying anyhow. People have to vote by clicking on 1 - 5 stars to show their vote. No telling of how many folks have voted for each person just by looking at each one, but we will be told who wins by the Yoga Journal staff at the end of the round.

This starts me thinking along these lines....

Folks flock to see the celebrity yoga teachers out there and the Yoga Journal apparently manufactures them - the prettiest face on a picture will get to be featured and as soon as that happens, this pretty face is now also a celebrity folks will flock to. No wonder i don't go to YJ conferences anymore. I am not into pretty faces who don't know much about yoga, teaching me what i can learn on my own from books and teachers who have earned the title.

You know how when you want to sell or rent your house, you have to make it "vanilla" so that essentially has no character. The idea is that since you don't know what a buyer may want, you don't want to turn someone away just because they don't like your color pallet. Well, yoga journal models are "vanilla." White background, color coordinated, perfectly representing the woman/man ratio of 70/30 and the white/ethnic ratio (which means mostly white, middle aged females) clean cut, smiling faces, no wrinkles and nice toe nails...

Last time i checked, all the yoga sages were on the scruffy side. Mad hair. Dark skin. Old (most of them). Skinny. Basically on the wild side of life and on the fringes of society. Probably stinky too, but since i never met one that i can remember, won't say anything about that. Those are the folks that left us the greatest teachings, the wisest of scriptures and coolest of practices. All we are going to leave is a hole in the Amazon forest where the trees to print the Yoga Journal's glossy advertising for things we do not need, came from.

Not that we should all aspire to cruffiness or stinkiness, but i find it hard to believe that there are no accomplished yoga figures out there that have more character than the Easter bunny. I mean, yoga is about building, or more accurately, unleashing your character in it's full potential. There's nothing "vanilla" about yoga and there can't be any because this practice gets deep down inside where the shadows lurk and churns your world upside down, if you let it (and you should). Is Ramana Maharshi vanilla? Is Gandhi vanilla? Is Yogananada vanilla? Is Krishnamurti vanilla? How about Aurobindo?

I think i sound like a broken record, but folks have to earn their teaching credentials, not just take a teacher training, or look good on a picture. I look good on a picture too but until you hear my voice, you have to idea who i am or if i am your cup of tea at all. Gymnasts look great on pictures in yoga posture, mainly because their bodies have been beaten into submission from an early age and not without the price of injuries, but they do look awesome in yoga postures. That's not the same as having a clue about yoga.

So, if you also got the "vote for your favorite" from the Yoga Journal, think about what you are really voting for. Next, think about what yoga is for you. Then think of who your teacher is/are. If you are after working out - the gym is very effective and less costly, not that there's anything wrong with working out, because you do that too while practicing yoga. If there's more to your practice than a work out, make sure your teacher is more then a pretty face, entertaining figure or sweat talking son of a preacher-man.
Just a suggestion....

Call me if you want to know how things really are :))
Namaste.

This life...know thy self!!

There used to be a time when I'd look in the mirror and be so absorbed in thoughts that I wouldn't even see my image there. The hair got brushed - yes i did see those early gray strands, which produced more thinking of the sort "Darn, why do i have to be just like my mother?" The teeth got brushed. The face got washed...the usual stuff. I just didn't see what was in the mirror, or who was in the mirror...

All those wonderful days living in Hawaii I notice the fragrance of the Plumeria tree in front of my window. I noticed the red headed cardinal skipping about from branch to branch. I noticed the smell and the sound of the rain drumming on the roof...I noticed the waterfalls off the Pali as i drove through, right after the rain. I noticed the deep green on the leafs and the mist on the tips of the mountains. The rainbows mauka and the waves makai...that's mountain side (mauka) and ocean side (makai)...I noticed so many things. The work load just to pay the bills. The school load just to get an education. The friends, the huli-huli chicken stands and the malasadas in front of Daiei supermarket, the colorful sarongs and puffy mumus of the local, the way the clouds make a hole right over Diamond Head...so many things.

I just didn't notice me. In all that beauty i managed to find my self depressed. In all that life I managed to write morbid stories. I forgot all about them but i just found them unpacking boxes from the past. It's been 13 years since I've left Hawaii for California, and yes, friends, it is a downgrade, but things can be a lot worse. There could be real snow out there, and this would be a major bummer. One should not live where the weather can kill you!

So, reading those things, at first i wondered where i got them from and who wrote them. There's a definite advantage of selectively remembering only about 20% of my life. It's not Alzheimer's. It's bliss. Anyhow. I red a few things and it sounded strangely familiar until the full details of that particular piece of broken heart, or lost soul, creativity floated up to the surface of my mind... and OMG - this was really me!

Anyhow...all that just to say one thing - Know Thy Self.  Here's why:

1) It seriously cuts down on the drama. Well, if you like drama, this will be a bummer for you, but then, if you really like drama, you'd never really want to Know Thy Self. You'd "know" a version of your self you like to display to the world and make everything that happens totally personal for that version of you. And in order to be convincing to others, you'd have to believe that this version of you IS you. Therefore, you will defend it. Hence, the drama.

2) Getting older is not that much fun. I know because i work with older folks and listen to them talk about their younger days and about all the body parts that just stopped working. I have wrinkles too, and apparently my face is starting to sag. Seriously? I mean, really?? Whatever! This body has a shelf life and an expiration date. You can either accept it and move on with other more important things to wonder about, than your own demise, or stew in the inevitability of degeneration, cellulite and indigestion. Which one would you rather do? Because, you know, all the plastic surgery in the world will not stop your liver from producing liver spots on your face....and no matter what, your hair is going to turn white and start falling off and everyone will be able to see your skull through it....what are you gonna do about it? Know Thy Self so that you can see through the illusion of aging and the inevitability of decay.

3) Finally, and MOST importantly, Know Thy Self so that you can be of use to others and you can manifest that which you are here to GIVE. There isn't anything more sad than the face of a selfish person knowing that he or she is running out of time and scramming to make meaning out of this blink of an eye existence. "Me," "Myself" and "I" are not your best buddies! Looking back at nothing but your self and your problems and concerns over a 50, 60, 70 year period is not just boring, but down right depressing!

That's just my opinion. I've earned it because i started out like all other forms of life in Bulgaria with nothing but "Me," "Myself" and "I" to play with and with plenty of examples of how well this works out on the long run. I had one example on the other side of the spectrum - my maternal grandmother. She was so selfless and so giving that we kids knew exactly how to get what we wanted! She died making dinner for my uncle, who shortly after that kicked my grandfather out of the apartment where they were living and where she made that last supper.

I've earned this opinion the hard way through loss and through error and through drama and, dear God, I hope I've paid up all that karma from when i was a bad person on the wrong side of the street. But in my defense, I wasn't bad, i was just hanging out with bad people and giving them smart ideas on how to do their bad things...which is why at one point in my life i was thinking I'd make a great lawyer. Anyhow...

Know Thy Self because it is the only door to self fulfillment, to lasting happiness and a better world for all beings.
Know Thy Self because it is the only thing you'd ever really know. Everything else is pure speculation.
Know Thy Self because no one else will ever really know you.

The shortest way to knowing your self is...the way of yoga and meditation. Don't fool yourself otherwise. There are folks out there who have been going to therapy for 20 years, or more and still have the same "issues." That's not to say that therapy can't be effective. Yes, it can. But therapy with yoga is definitely effective, and for many people yoga and meditation is their therapy. Even for a few therapists i know...

That's all folks.... See you on the mat! Call me if you need someone to tell you how things are without beating around the bush :)))

Spring is upon us....

It's a rainy day and the coldest temperatures in a 30 year history, and yet, there's no mistake that Spring is slowly taking over. Just look upon the blossoms on the trees and the fragile, green sprouts of grasses and flowers and you will know it. Look at the longer days, the nice light and the impulses within to do things, to go out, clean up, get organize, have fun! Yep. It's Spring.

Yoga and Ayurveda offer plenty of suggestions for a balanced life, one of which is "live with the seasons!" We are organisms and just like all other organisms we are affected by the way of Nature. We feel things on a basic level, despite our busy lives and crazy schedules.

Spring is especially interesting as it is associated with the birth of life and newness. It is associated with blossoming of potential. We get creative, fall in love, plant the garden, look forward to summer vacations and fun. In Bhagavad Gita, Krishna explains his attributes as: "I am the Soul in the body, the Mind in the senses, the Eagle among birds, the Lion among animals. Among all the trees, I am the sacred Bodhi tree, and of the seasons, I am Spring."

Me too. I am Spring! I've had about 11,000 projects that i want to do all equally. Right Now. I am the gardener. I am the mushroom picker. I am the dancer again, the writer, the home decorator...I am making an exotic brew of herbs and spices to match the season....

According to ayurveda, coming out of the winter we are heavy on Kapha dosha - that's the state perdominated by the water and earth elements. It's cold, heavy, stagnant, sleepy just like what we are suppose to be while we hibernate. It builds in us through the winter until by the beginning of spring it accounts for fatigue, dullness, congestion and gaining of weight. When the spring hits the hills, all that water and congestion starts running out and results in colds and runny noses.

The quality of Spring is warm, moist and gentle. It's this warmth that pulls all that excess water out of your system. So, let it run and help it along.

So, what's in my tea??? Fresh ginger, cinnamon, pippali, clove, black pepper and lots of honey :))

There are many herbs and spices you can use to flavor your spring drinks and meals. Changing what you eat, according to the season will mean that you give up the oily, heavy foods and go wild and crazy with some green leafies. Sour and salty foods increase kapha, so I'd stay away from them. Even sweet can increase kapha, but if you are an obviously strong vata (air & ether predominating element constitutions) then you'd keep the sweet in moderation and strictly natural, of course.

Avoid ice cream and cold or icy drinks.

Incorporate more bitter, pungent and astringent foods, such as onions, radishes, chili, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, celery, okra, sprouts, spinach, yellow split peas, red lentils, garbanzo beans. Use fewer dairy products, especially in the morning. Ghee is OK but only in small amounts. Seafood, lobster and duck are not a good idea during Spring season (and in general, if you care about life in more than just a food kind of way.) Fresh juices are great, especially apple, pomegranate and berries.

Start waking up early. Go for walks, do yoga, dance, build things, plant things...do things. Don't nap in the middle of the day. If you practice yoga, make it harder! More movement, more Sun Salutations, more energy, more heat, more standing postures, more back bands. It helps move that kapha.

It's a great time to start learning new things. Your mind is ready after being half awake through the winter and hankering down, concerned with survival, heavy on oily foods, not enough light and not enough motivation to do anything of consequence.

Those of you coming to my Spring retreats you get a healthy dose of all the right yoga stuff. We eat well and we do tons of stuff. That's why Spring retreats are fun, productive and enriching. (For the next Spring Retreat in March, check this link: http://holisticmovementcenter.com/Spring2011.htm)

Cleanses are also productive during changes in the seasons. So, this will be a good time for one. Right around the equinox. Clean up from inside and from the outside. Kiyoko will lead you through a Chakra cleansing workshop and Narayni is putting together a Spring Equinox and Renewal Workshop where she will tell you about herbs and aromas and yoga postures...For those of you in the area, keep you eyes open for the information in the newsletters and Facebook and always check our website.

If you need help figuring out what to do with your self, call me and I will help you put a little program together that you can follow for a few weeks as you transition with Nature.

Cheers all. Happy Spring right around the corner....

Valentina
valentinap@holisticmovementcenter.com
(805)909-1401

Yoga – the practice, the teacher, the outcome….

Those of you practicing yoga for a while, already know that there are different styles and ways to practice yoga, that each teacher is his/her own flavor and the results you get form one class to another may vary dramatically. Yoga is showing up these days not only in yoga studios and gyms, but neighborhood lawns, and private living rooms, garages, the beach… There seems to be an abundance of yoga teachers, and there are always folks who are willing to try anything, and even more folks who are willing to sacrifice anything to save a buck.

This leads us to a peculiar situation where we have all this wonderful research coming out of many of the leading universities in America, as well as the medical establishment, who point to the incredible benefits of yoga – physically, psychologically and even spiritually, and at the same time people who say “I tried yoga, I got hurt. No thanks.” We get news of yoga teachers improperly using their position to take advantage of their students. Others, even committing unthinkable acts of violence, like murder and rape. Yoga seems to be main stream, main news, main controversy and mainly remains a mystery to this day.

Here are a few words from my more than a decade of teaching experience and even more than that, of practicing. Hope this is helpful to all.

First – let us start with the practice itself. Yoga is a very personal journey to becoming a healthier, happier, more compassionate human being. Through the varieties of practices it offers, one can address the whole mind – body system and develop mindfulness. This keeps everything from your bones, to your heart, immune system, brain and every organ, tissue, vessel and so on, healthy. It also gives the person an opportunity to learn about their mental, emotional environment, habits, hang-ups, dreams, inspirations, strengths and weaknesses. One, then, has the opportunity to let go of things and develop a different outlook, attitude and overall predisposition. So, one is liberated from the habitual accumulation of negativity, stress and drama and free to explore the freedom of being at ease with whatever comes. 

Second – let us see the role of the teacher. While yoga is a personal journey, because ultimately everyone of us does the work for our selves, the teacher matters. The teacher is one of your first gateways to the practice. One can read a book and get an idea of what is to be done, but the teacher is there to sort of guide you in the way in which it should work well for you. It “should” indeed, not that it actually “will.” For a teacher to be effective, he or she should know what they are doing. Doesn’t every yoga teacher know what they are doing? The sad answer is “No.”

Here’s a common scenario – a person starts doing yoga, takes a few classes, gets infected by the mystery and next thing you know they want to be a yoga teacher. All one has to do is call a few yoga studio and find a teacher training, pay a sizable price and a few weeks or a month later, emerge a “qualified yoga teacher.” Now contrast this to the way things used to be back when yoga was still in the caves of India where you would have had to follow your master for years and listen to everything he said, lectured and did so that you can collect the wisdom and the practice - one crumb at the time. Meanwhile, you were suppose to endure hardships, learn to serve others, let go of your attachments, commit and indefinite amount of time to the process and be willing to live a life in the fringes of society.

These days yoga teachers are celebrities, akin to movie starts. In the olden days, every bit of wisdom that came out of a yoga mouth was earned through experience and distilled in the fire of the practice until it is every bit embodied. Now, a yoga teacher plays rock & roll music in class that highlights our very attachments and faulty ideas about love and life. Now, a yoga teacher wears Prana or Lululemon or whatever brand of expensive clothing is out there, promotes the latest herbal supplements, special yoga shoes, or mat wipes…Yoga teachers mechanically repeat bits and pieces of wisdom found in books and movies and somehow can’t find a way to translate them into their own lives. Yoga studios make great money from yoga teacher trainings and so they are willing to take anyone who has the time and the money to commit to the process. The teachers, teaching the new comers are themselves, often questionably worthy of the role. So, the blind leads the blind…and the masses go to yoga classes wondering what happened to the promise of enlightenment, health and wellness.

So, my advice to every yoga student that leaves my Intro To Yoga series is – please shop around for your yoga teacher. Ask for qualifications. Try a few classes. Don’t take everything you hear for granted.  Ask questions. Try to get a sense for what this or that teacher is really like.

Third - know why you are doing yoga. If you are trying to rehab an injury you will have to be more selective of the teacher’s skills, the level of class or the environment to you go to vs if you are just working out.  If yoga is part of a stress reduction effort, or a part of your spiritual journey, or a combination of all these and more…you will have to be more selective with your teachers and environment. Yoga studios generally attract better teachers than gyms. Mainly because yoga studios, generally, are owned by people who love yoga, so the focus is different. Generally! Not always. Some gyms have good yoga teachers too.  Generally, folks who teach at home are teaching at home because the yoga studios and the gyms prefer not to have them. Generally, not always….so, you have to do the work of fining good yoga teachers. Generally, someone with more years of teaching experience will have more to offer, but sometimes, some new teachers are real gems. Ask of the person’s background. Ask of the person’s personal practice. Ask for references. Ask for credentials.  Try classes and teachers until you find what feels right, works right and is right for you. Feel free to go to more than one yoga teacher. One can be good at one thing and another can be good at another thing. You are not enslaved to your yoga teacher and I know some want you to feel that way so you can just follow them around – yoga teachers have egos and need money too, just like everyone else.

Find a class that serves your needs. Not all yoga classes are the same. Your needs may change on daily basis. You may have to attend several classes a week and they can all be different and with different teachers.  Feel free to experiment at home once in a while. Yoga is about self empowerment. You should not be totally dependent on your yoga teacher. What will happen if your yoga teacher does not show up one day? Will your yoga practice be doomed? This is one more reason to know more than one good teacher.

Cost should not be your sole consideration when you decide where to take yoga. Price often reflects quality. Have you tried to buy a BMW for the price of a Kia? Good luck. The smooth ride, the safety features, the impeachable mechanics are not cheap and the reason is because it takes years to develop that kind of standard and performance. If you want real cheap, you can go for a golf cart, but you won’t be able to travel very far or very comfortably.  Same with yoga classes – the class may be cheap, but the trip to the chiropractor’s office, or worse, the doctor’s office is not.

Accept that sometimes, even with the greatest of intentions and the greatest of teachers, things can happen – no one is immuned to injury. But if you chose your teacher well, go slow and at your own pace, do not compete with yourself or others, listen to your body, ask good questions and practice regularly, your chances of an injury are slim to none. In all those years of yoga practice I have NEVER had a yoga injury….except ones, when I was trying to go into a handstand from a cartwheel..one too many times.  My arms got tired and I fell on my right shoulder, dislocating my collarbone….So, use good judgment in everything you do.

Ultimately, you determine the outcome of your practice because it is YOU, who finds the teacher, chooses the practice and chooses to practice.

Happy yoga days, friends!

Valentina Petrova is a yoga teacher & personal adviser. She owns Holistic Movement Center in Morro Bay, CA where she teaches group and one-on-one sessions. She’s the host of “Yoga for Life” TV program on Ch. 2, Charter. Call 805-909-1401, or visit the web at www.holisticmovementcenter.com for more information.

Strengthen relationships for longer, healthier life

This one, straight out of Harvard Medical School.....

Each January, most of us make a list of New Year’s resolutions — maybe we want to strengthen our bodies, or our resolve to eat better, or the determination to quit smoking. As it turns out, strengthening your social relationships may be an effort worth adding to your list of New Year’s resolutions — for the good of your health.
Social connections like these not only give us pleasure, they also influence our long-term health in ways every bit as powerful as adequate sleep, a good diet, and not smoking. Dozens of studies have shown that people who have satisfying relationships with family, friends, and their community are happier, have fewer health problems, and live longer.

Conversely, a relative lack of social ties is associated with depression and later-life cognitive decline, as well as with increased mortality. One study, which examined data from more than 309,000 people, found that lack of strong relationships increased the risk of premature death from all causes by 50% — an effect on mortality risk roughly comparable to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day, and greater than obesity and physical inactivity.

What makes social connections healthful
Scientists are investigating the biological and behavioral factors that account for the health benefits of connecting with others. For example, they’ve found that it helps relieve harmful levels of stress, which can adversely affect coronary arteries, gut function, insulin regulation, and the immune system. Another line of research suggests that caring behaviors trigger the release of stress-reducing hormones.

Research has also identified a range of activities that qualify as social support, from offers of help or advice to expressions of affection. In addition, evidence suggests that the life-enhancing effects of social support extend to giver as well as to receiver.

All of this is encouraging news because caring involvement with others may be one of the easiest health strategies to access. It’s inexpensive, it requires no special equipment or regimen, and we can engage in it in many ways.

What counts
The quality of our relationships matters. For example, one study found that midlife women who were in highly satisfying marriages and marital-type relationships had a lower risk for cardiovascular disease compared with those in less satisfying marriages. Other studies have linked disappointing or negative interactions with family and friends with poorer health. One intriguing line of research has found signs of reduced immunity in couples during especially hostile marital spats.

Having a network of important relationships can also make a difference. A large Swedish study of people ages 75 and over concluded that dementia risk was lowest in those with a variety of satisfying contacts with friends and relatives.

Strengthening ties
For many of us, the recent holidays meant family gatherings, getting together with friends, and participating in special religious, community, and workplace activities. Such occasions are an opportunity to check in with each other, exchange ideas, and perhaps lend a supportive ear or shoulder. Now is a good time to strengthen your ties throughout the years to come.  Here are some ways to start:

• Focus on your most meaningful relationships.
• Choose activities to do together that are most likely to bring joy to you and the people you care about.
• Delegate or discard tasks that eat into your time, or do them together with family or friends. 

What does yoga have to do with this? 
As you nurture your self, learn about your self, accept your self and grow, your become the kind of person to nurture, learn, accept and grow with others. You become the kind of person you'd actually want to hang out with, so others, naturally, want to hang out with you. 


Through yoga we learn to be present and observant - two mindfulness skills that are integral to any and all relationships.


Through yoga we learn how to be patient. We learn gratitude for the way things are. We learn about our limits, our challenges and what works best for us. This knowledge is a good place to stand on as we interact with others. 


Yoga keeps this body healthy, so we can enjoy life more fully, manage the stress of full time jobs, be able to take care of our loved ones. 


Basically, in my humble opinion, any yoga is better than no yoga, and any relationship is better when one has yoga in their lives.
Cheers.