Happy Halloween from Bella and I

See you soon! And wish Anna luck on the marathon!

In One Section of Beth Israel Hospital, Some Patients Are Saying ‘Om,’ Not ‘Ah’

Hey, guys. I ran across this article in yesterday's Times and thought i'd pass it along... see you friday! -alyssa

"A foundation run by Donna Karan, creator of the “seven easy pieces” philosophy of women’s wardrobes and founder of the much-imitated DKNY line of clothing, has donated $850,000 for a yearlong experiment combining Eastern and Western healing methods at Beth Israel Medical Center. Instead of just letting a celebrated donor adopt a hospital wing, renovate it and have her name embossed on a plaque, the Karan-Beth Israel project will have a celebrated donor turn a hospital into a testing ground for a trendy, medically controversial notion: that yoga, meditation and aromatherapy can enhance regimens of chemotherapy and radiation."

link to full article:
In One Section of Beth Israel Hospital, Some Patients Are Saying 'Om,' Not 'Ah'

savasana variations with photos....

let's see how this works! over the next saturday and sunday sessions we will practice each of these savasana variations and we can take real-live photos of you in them and post photos so you can use these in your repertoire. ah the wonder! have a good week. see you on halloween! love, sarah

Cat yoga

Hi guys, thought you might appreciate this

photo (from http://icanhascheezburger.com/)

Patty

epiphanies/surrender/the eureka hunt

in lieu of our discussion on what it means to surrender - fascinating article about people who experience "profound" epiphanies in intense moments of surrender (and, in the case of this fireman, save their lives by doing so) - is it from a higher source? or merely something that is always within us that we tap into in moments of intense stress? lots of interesting questions...link is here: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/28/080728fa_fact_lehrer

Create your own cereal!!!

hi guys i thought this was a really cool idea--to create your own breakfast cereals! It's about the same price as at a grocery store, but more personalized and kinda like a video game too :) (link)

The time paradox

hi guys,

I listened to a nice podcast from "Science and the City" yesterday in which a renowned psychologist discusses different internal notions of time and how our perceptions of time (which can be discovered in individuals as young as toddlers) can shape our behavior and life decisions...i hope you enjoy it :) (link)

Nina

Yoga Butt

Hi, guys. After our class tonight on injuries (and my current injury) I was searching around for some info on the internet regarding "Yoga Butt" and I found this short little instruction/demonstration on how to try to protect ourselves from it. The instructor doesn't use the more accurate and technical terms we've been taught at Yoga Works (such as firming the outer hips, lowering the buttocks flesh down to the floor and drawing the front hip bones up, etc), but when she refers to engaging "the naval" or "the belly", hopefully we all know by now that is another way to explain some of the simple, counter and complementary actions we've been learning and practicing for the last couple of weeks.

My advice - heed the warnings because this injury is not so much painful as it is super annoying, although i'm thankful for the lesson it taught (or is in the process of teaching) me. :)

(scroll down the page to the you tube video).
http://www.elkrapidsyogastudio.com/2008/05/avoid-yoga-butt-injury.html

Enjoy your week and see you all on Friday!
Alyssa

YTT 200 Hour Program 4 Week Intensive Format Schedule

Hi Guys here is the schedule for the October Intensive:

regarding beginners--the list of things they dig in a teacher

hello you all! class was great today! i hope you feel like you had a well rounded and challenging weekend. pranayama, urdhva danurasana and then today...a big weekend, really.
here is the list i gathered from the students who acted as guinea pigs at the July weekend about working with beginners in the 300 hour programme. please be sure to blog any questions you have or feel free to email me any any any time: sarahbell1@mac.com
enjoy your Tuesday night anatomy session. introduction to Injury Management, i believe.
By the way, Chrissy and I think you are doing so very well. and we are all so lucky to have Christy and Paula both around to play the important roles of GLUE ( since they are essentially always present, thank you!) and assistant trainers. they have all kinds of experience, so be sure to ask of them! if they have the time, i know they will share whatever they have to share. ( see below: christy's blog about pranayama)

have a good week you all, and to those of you with the day off tomorrow: ENJOY. when you are teaching yoga you are not likely to have such holidays off--that's really when loads of people come to yoga!

take some rest,
yours, sarah

The Qualities Beginner Level Yoga Students
Appreciate Most in a Yoga Teacher
(From the YW Summer 2008, 300 hr. Training: Teaching Beginners Workshop)

When they "fix" me without embarrassing me!
Repeating/rephrasing the way their students are supposed to be standing/in a pose.
Having a calm voice.
Helping their students to visualize the overall feeling they are supposed to be having in a pose.
Reminding the class to breath.
Reminding the class to focus on where the strength of a pose comes from.
Being encouraging.
Being humorous.
Being compassionate and remembering that it can be hard in the beginning for new students. Without encouragement beginners can easily be discouraged before getting to achieve another level of yoga where they may find true pleasures of practicing yoga.
Guiding students into poses slowly.
Telling their students where to focus and what to focus on.
Telling their students what should be happening in their bodies when practicing yoga.
Encouraging their students to try and hold a pose for one more breath longer but also telling them to be happy where they are (whether they can hold the pose or not).
Taking ample time in Svasana!
Introducing themselves before class begins.
Explaining how to come into each pose successfully.
Adjusting their students according to each students individual needs.
Creating a lesson plan that flows easily from one pose to another.
Demonstrating the poses and also moving around the class to watch their students in the poses.
Being complimentary to individual students and the class as a whole.
Having a sense of humor in class.
Developing a theme for each class: hips, twists, shoulders or inversions.
Focusing on breathing/breath.
Reminding students to breath/Instructing where and when to breath in the pose.
It is important for the teachers of beginners to remember that sometimes it is as helpful to do what is wrong as it is to do what is right.
Giving instructions on how to to hold the pose and how/when to make adjustments to it; allowing the students to grow in to the pose.
Giving an explanation of “what is yoga?” in their class.
Discussing the importance of the mind/body connection in yoga.
Correcting the students breathing; teaching when to inhale and when to exhale/what to do with your body as you breath, such as to elongate or to lengthen the body.
Making contact with each individual student and providing hands on adjustments when a student ’s alignment is off.
Giving specific and detailed explanations and demonstrations of the postures in their authentic/correct alignment.
Showing their students modified poses that often utilize the wall, a bolster, a partner or whatever is necessary to help the body get into and out of the poses safely and successfully.
Giving an explanation of Svasana and teaching meditation/breathing techniques to the class.
It is always very encouraging when the teacher gives praise to their students for doing so well at the end of the yoga class.
I appreciate it when the teacher provides a couple of minutes at the end of the class for the students to ask questions.
I typically choose one yoga teacher’s classes over another’s based on their positive attitude, upbeat personality, ability to motivate their students and fun sense of humor.
Having the ability to modify each pose based on the20varying experience levels and physical abilities of the students in the class and suggesting different ways of doing a particular pose.
I really appreciate it when a teacher gives me one on one instruction, especially when they can see that I am struggling in a pose. I like the fact that they take the time to come to my mat to help me.
Giving their students easy to follow instructions.
Communicating instructions to the class with calmness and clarity.
Explaining the “how” and the “why” of a pose (when I learned why I lift my ribs in a pose, it makes more sense to me & I remember to do it next time).
Not being too spiritual in the beginning (when I first started yoga I had a few teachers that were a bit heavy to start off with- I thought it was kind of creepy, like yoga was “cultish”).
Using the English names and nicknames as well20as the Sanskrit names for the poses is very helpful. ( I still can’t remember all of the real names poses!)
Narrating/instructing the breath and how to get safely into and out of the poses.
Discussing the anatomy of the body.
Having a sense of joy.

Pranayama

Here are the classes I mentioned:
Brooke Meyers Pranayama Wednesdays 530-645
I have been studying with her for a few years- amazing.
IyengarNYC.Org
And I teach Restorative at Gildas Club on Houston Mondays 11-12. I usually teach some pranayama as well. Gildas was founded in honor of Gilda Radner and is a resource center for people affected be cancer. It is open to friends, family, and I can have guests come if you let me know ahead of time. All activities at Gildas are free.
GildasClubNYC.Org

Thanks for letting me learn from all of you. See you tommorow!

why zebras don't get ulcers

hi guys here's a link to the book Sanjay was talking about in class on Tuesday:

Blind Spot

hi guys,
Remember when Kara mentioned that we all have a blind spot? I dug up this blind-spot test which is really fun and kinda freaky, thought you might enjoy it :) (link)