14 of 30

Nov 29/ Sayulita/ Mexico/ 0730am/ 30 min/ Self

I woke up super stiff this morning. My neck was sore and my legs were tight. I jumped out of bed and started my sun salutation. It felt so good, I just kept going. I needed a warm up before my early morning surf session. Even though I was feeling stiff when I woke up, after warming up my body with yoga I was feeling really good.

My surf session was incredible! We headed into the bigger waves today, where all the good surfers go. It was scary, but great to have Beto at my side. He explained where to be, what the waves were doing and told me I was ready for them. It's pretty funny, I thought I was a relaxed person? I picture myself as someone that remains calm in stressful situations, but I kept hearing Beto say, "Relax, focus on your breathing, feel where you are on your board and look at where you are with the wave." I kept thinking to myself. . . 'Do I look like I'm stressing out?' LOL

It's true, as soon as I started to do the things Beto said, my movements were slow and purposeful. I wasn't splashing the water and I could move gracefully. It's not about how many waves you catch. Its about HOW you catch the wave that's good for you.

This lesson continues to come up in my life, in yoga, in surfing, in whatever. It's important to be in the moment, that way you can do it right. Just remember, these are the situations in life. If you're SMILING you're doing it right for you.

Teresa, smiling through life moments. :)

13 of 30

Nov 28th / Sayulita/ Mexico/ 2000pm/ 30min /tcthatsme


I did it! First yoga at home session with no video, no instruction, just me and the tile floor. I forgot my mat in Calgary, I had planned to bring it. But my session was amazing. I did a full half hour and could have done more. It was wonderful to listen to my breath and move my body. I felt great in each movement and pose. I didn't have one thought enter my head. I was exactly where I was.

Now, I'm going to drink a well deserved beer, LOL (not until I finish my water). I'm on vacation, so, I'm off to lay in a hammock and read a book. It's going to be an easy night. I'm waking up early to do a sunrise surfing session and I can't wait. I think I will start the day with a few sun salutations to warm my body up and set my mind right for a sweet surf session.

Namasta

12 of 30

Nov 28th/2011 Sayulita/ Mexico 0830am/ 90min /Erik

It's been 4 days since my last yoga practice. I'm a little upset about this as I was looking forward to the 30 day challenge. Today was an amazing day for me though, as I learned many things about Mexico and myself.

I went to a studio in Sayulita called Paraiso. My instructor was Erik and I was feeling rushed when I arrived, but here, in Mexico, I was the first one to arrive. Man, I was happy to be back on my mat. When the class started I realized how good I have it at home in Ning's studio. The level of instructors and connection I feel to the studio run very deep in my heart at Beyond Yoga. I went through the poses and quickly came to focus on the things I had learned at Beyond Yoga. I did feel bad at the end of our physical practice as the instructor wanted to stay and meditate but by this point my mind was all ready to surf. I wanted to meet with my instructor and get in the water, so once again, I felt in a rush to leave. I will do a home practice today in my hotel room and see that I don't rush it.

Today, I woke up in Sayulita, Mexico (I arrived here Nov. 26th) for my first instructed surf lesson with Beto http://www.sayulitasurfcamps.com. I'm very happy with the instruction. Beto is so passionate about teaching more than just a surf lesson. He wants to teach the surf life, even more so about Sayulita Life. He took the time to teach me about the things he grew up with. I learned so many things. I learned how to watch waves, how to watch other surfers. I learned how to fall, I learned how to deal with many of the fears I am faced with when surfing. I learned how not to rush, to see the things around me. I learned to be on my board. Just like how to be present on my yoga mat.

So many things have brought me here this time. The choices I have made in the past year have helped to create the perfect conditions for me to deal with these moments. I remember surfing in Costa Rica and the experience was not the same. I was not balanced, I was not healthy and because of that I was not able to surf. My dedication and the direction I have gone this last year have set me up for perfect success. I am healthy, I am strong, I am open and focused, I can feel and be present in the moment. These are the elements needed to surf. To sit and be patient for the wave to come. To feel the right speed and set yourself up. To be confident and to take your moment, the moment when the wave and you are in balance. To breathe, to root yourself to your board and to have fun! Remember to smile on the wave.

Cheers. Teresa

11 of 30

Nov 22/11 Yoga and Beyond Studio noon/ 60min/ Ning

I'm so tired right now but I'm making this a prioity to write. It's really important for me to keep these journal entries for my 30 day Challenge. I am excited to read through them at the end and see the changes.I went to the studio today and it felt great! Ning is such a good teacher, I value her lessons. Today we spent a lot of time learning about getting into the pose. This was a very good lesson for me. It's not always about how the pose looks. It's about how you get there. This is very similar to life. We can try all we want to look like the Smith's across the street. But in the end, it's about how we get to that place. It's about the steps you take, and about taking the time to ponder whether or not we took the right step. If you don't set yourself up with mindful movements it could all come crashing down. When getting into a pose it's important to have your foundation strong and in line. Each flow of moment into the next movement needs to be slow and feel right. When you have this feeling of balance in your body the pose will be right for you. Once you get to this point, looking at the next persons mat and the pose that they are in becomes the furthest thing from your mind. You start to value where you are at that moment.I spend a lot of time dreaming of the end result. Where I am in my life. What I picture my life to be like and sometimes, I rush to get there. I'm sure I have even hurt people during these times. I know that I have made rushed decisions because I could only see my side. I'm learning slowly that the journey is the whole purpose. Each positive decision you make is the success.

Studio time again tomorrow, then Mexico.

10 of 30

Nov 21/11 Livingroom, 22oohrs/60min/random video

Boo! :( I didn't make it to the studio today. The reason? I didn't make it a priority.

I did have a great session at home. I'm really enjoying this random yoga video and I am starting to be very comfortable with practicing at home. Just a few days ago when I was doing yoga in my living room, I was battling getting to my mat. Now, when I go to my mat I'm not thinking about what needs to be cleaned or what I'm going to make for my lunch.

Today, my fav pose was dancer's pose ( Nataraja). I felt really strong and balanced in this pose.

9 of 30

Nov 20/11 Living room 1830hr/ 60min/ random video

Today has been a big day. I started at 0530am (more like 0430, which is when I woke up), with only a few hours of sleep! It is now 0122am, the next day and I'm still awake. I had a typical day at work, though, I did make an effort to say, “Thank you!” to everyone that did something nice for me today. It felt really great because it was nice to see that things people didn't feel needed thanking for, (part of who they are or them being polite) was appreciated. My partner at work told me I was silly but secretly he enjoyed the good energy of the day.

I rushed home, changed into my yoga gear and put on a random yoga video to start my practice. I had fun. I just enjoyed the movement and really focused on my breath. It energized me. I was so tired (when I got home from my 12 hr shift) but as soon as I rooted my toes into my mat for the first mountain pose I felt great and alive.

I met up with a good, long time friend tonight for a pint. It was wonderful to see him. We have a funny, very complicated past but I can say that he is a solid friend. He has been very patient with me in the last few years and I have helped him also. It is nice that we both bring something to the friendship. In the last few years we have never been balanced at the same time. Tonight we were both balanced and it was great. Hanging out like old friends, just being kids, just being ourselves, just enjoying the moment.

Part of our recent history has been about some jealousy on my behalf. He has always been there as my solid friend. About a year and half ago I noticed the there was a shift in the time he spent with me. A big part is that he was secret about where he was spending his time. This bothered me as our relationship had always been the brutally honest type. I put two and two together(finally), realizing he had a new friend in his life and was spending the time with her. Not that we were in a romantic relationship but I still felt like she was stealing him away. In retrospect, I ended up pushing him away. Every time we would hang out I would close up, not want to hear about what was going on in his life, ultimately pushing him closer to the other person.

Tonight, I feel like I understand abhyasa, or practice. Abhyasa refers not only to yogic practice but also to the attitude with which a practice is approached. See, my friend and I had developed a friendship after we both experienced trauma in our lives. We both made a pact to help each other find our true selves and to support the other person. We made a pact to be that sounding board for each other. When a life situation came up we would say, "Is this you, is this what you want, is this what makes YOU happy, is this WHO YOU ARE?" The best part of this pact was that there was no judgement on what the decision was, just to let the other person talk it out. I am so proud of my friend. Over the past 4 years I have seen him develop into the person he wanted to be. I have seen that he is living the life that brings him peace. There are still things he wants to work on and things that will come up in his life, but he is committed unconditionally to who he is.

I realized this in myself tonight as well. It would have been very easy to have hung out forever just like the old days. But he was in a particular situation that required him to be a good friend to this other girl. I could have very easily drifted back into the old me and felt hurt and jealous and closed up. Maybe even tried to convince him to hang out with me longer.

Because of my practice, I'm learning to let go, I'm learning to be present NOW! I'm learning to see the world as it really is. This allows me compassion, and openness so my friend could do what he needed to do for his own self discovery. Through this act I feel so happy. I feel a healthy heart. I am excited to have experienced this amazing life lesson for what is really is. There are no voices pulling my mind in different directions, trying to tell me that I did the wrong thing, or trying to work out other scenarios.

That is what happened, those were the decisions I made and I'm happy with them. I'm happy because I used the skills from my mat in my life. I was present and saw life as it really is.

Even though these home practices have been great, I'm excited to get into the studio tomorrow.

Namaste

8 of 30

Nov 19/11 Living room 0600hrs/30min/Kim

I woke up early to do a yoga session and it felt great. I'm having a lot of fun with home practice. I think my struggles of yesterday with not having the support of others at the studio is falling away. Today I feel that I'm here, on my mat, and I'm going to make it the best.

I got called in today for overtime and took it, even though I had everything ready to go riding. Another one of the things that make me smile:) I love snowboarding soooo much.

Before I found yoga, I found peace when I was in the mountains snowboarding. There is something so magical about the air and the beauty of the landscape. I feel a kind of freedom when taking on mother nature, understanding how dangerous and large she is. I respect nature so much and feel a deep connection to it when I'm riding. I feel very lucky to have that passion and to have discovered one of them in this life.

I'm sad that I didn't go todaybut instead decided to do an overtime shift so that I could put some money towards a car.

Off to work I go.