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.

7 of 30

Nov/18/11 living room/2230/ 30min/video/ Kim

I'm not sure I should count this one as a practice? LOL!

I was in Child's pose for most of the video. It is funny, I learned a very good lesson today. It is important to make a date with your yoga mat. Otherwise, as I learned today, when doing home practice, there is always something to clean.

I do this with my art as well, my studio set up is in my living room and I tend to clean before getting to my art project.

Art and Yoga are one and the same for me. I must clear my mind before I'm able to get into my paintings or my yoga practice. If my head is busy, I clean.

When heading to a studio I leave the other stuff on the doorstep. I am much too tired to try and make sense of this.

I did get to my mat. I'm happy about that.

6 of 30

Nov/17/11 Yoga and Beyond Studio/noon/60min/Gord

Today was a great class Gord , as a Teacher, was incredible! I have never had him as a guide before and it was a wonderful session. It was a yin yang class and his voice was both energizing and calming. I was so busy listening to his words and q's that I had no time to let outside thoughts distract my practice. At the end of class it felt like I had dreamed the practice but felt all the physical benefits.

I started to read Meditations from the Mat a book by Rolf Gates and Katrina Kenison. I started the book the first day of my 30 day challenge and read one passage a day. Today's read was very insightful it starts with the quote "If you do what you did, you get what you got." It explains how there are two spiritual aspects to our practice. Non-attachment or renunciation ( vairagya) and practice ( abhyasa). I have started to feel the benifits of yoga practice in the short time I've been doing it. I feel more energy, I feel more compassion, I feel less stressed and excited for the day. I have even noticed I don't hit the snooze button. But this is only one aspect of my journey, with out renunciation how am I to grow spiritually. I need to work on both the physical and the inside stuff. Its the balance of both, that will make all this work.

As Gord said corpes pose ( savasana) is a way for us to take the hard work we did during the class. And be reborn to live off the mat. Savasana is a difficult pose. We spend a lot of time trying to perfect the ability to turn off our mind so we can be in the pose. I don't think this is renunciation I think when we turn off our busy mind we are avoiding the problem. It's all of our past moments, the ones we chose not to deal with catching up to us. That is because we were not living for that moment. What renunciation means is to acknowledge that business in our brain and remove it. As the book says, "The old behavior must be faced and renounced." The more we spend gardening our minds the more space there is for calmness and beautiful things we want. More time for us to view our present world with no attachments. Then we get to see the world as it really is. So next time you are in Corpse pose or have a moment to yourself, garden your mind, weed out the thoughts from the past or the future and start allowing space for the beautiful moments you're in to be planted.

As the reading states: “Once we take the first step of renunciation, our practice nourishes and sustains us as we are reborn. Practice without renunciation is avoidance. Renunciation without practice is not long-lived. Together, practice and renunciation make all our dreams possible.”

Have fun Gardening. :)

5 of 30

Nov/16/11 Yoga and Beyond Studio/0930/75min/Tara

Wow what an amazing day! I started with a yoga class and the rest of the day has been full of exciting wonderful events. When I say full, I really mean that. I couldn't have fit in anything else. The best part is I feel like I lived today. I don't feel stressed at all. Every moment today was a moment I was a part of and present for and was suppose to happen. It was a great day! The crazy part is that it's 10pm and I'm still full of energy and thinking clearly. I don't think I complained about one thing today! :)

Today's yoga class was 5 of my 30 day challenge. The instructor was sweet, strong and worked us hard today. I just turned off my mind and let her guide me. Something that stood out for me today was she asked us to close our eyes as much as we could. This is the first time I really trusted myself to be in the poses with my eyes closed. I felt strong and balanced, when I went into the pose with my eyes open it took me longer to feel comfortable. It was a great feeling to feel the pose instead of having a gaze point. Something I struggle with is where I should be looking when holding a pose.

My favorite pose today was the Camel pose AKA Ustrasana. I do find it very interesting that there is an animal ( downward facing Dog) or element ( tree) for most of the poses. So I did a little research on Camel pose. I like what I found out about Camels. I have never seen one but have heard from others that they are stubborn and will spit, so, watch out! lol I found out after some "Google exploration" that they have terrible vision but are great at navigating through the desert. I also learned that they will not under any circumstance carry more weight or unbalanced weight on a journey. The Camel will lay down and not move until the weight has been removed or re-balanced before it will go anywhere. Funny! Camel pose in yoga is a very challenging pose in that it has made me nauseous, dizzy, and weak. When I feel these symptoms all I want to do is lay down . Similar to the Camel and not move until those feelings go away. What I never realized before is I truly have to focus on my internal compass to get into the pose. I have to be balanced before I move into the pose. That way my body will be able to handle the journey into the pose. Otherwise I will feel sick and need to lay down.

Every day, in yoga and in life we are looking forward, " Goal setting" we are always looking and moving forward. I think the reason why so many of us(I'm not the only one) find the Camel pose so difficult is it turns our life upside down.

We are truly looking backwards and upside down. When we do this its so overwhelming that it creates symptoms like anxiety, nausea, weakness, dizziness and we forget to be curious and let the moment happen. We seize up, we close up, and our muscles tighten up pulling us forward. In order to really enjoy, to be like the camel we need to navigate from within. We need to start trusting what weight to carry and what is too much. We need to stop looking to the future or looking to our past for the answers. We need to let what we feel now to be ok. That is when we start to enjoy Ustrasana.

4 of 30

Nov/15/11 Yoga and Beyond Studio 1945/ 75min Ashley

It was a hard class, I wasn't feeling strong in my downward facing dog. I'm wondering if I'm doing the pose wrong? The back of my elbows were feeling shaky and weak.

I do remember when I first started to do yoga and I had so much trouble with my wrist hurting. I don't experience that anymore. I have also noticed that the numbness in my fingers when I wake up is gone. I'm very happy with that. That pain scared me a lot I would wake up with pain in my wrist and numbness in my fingers. After about an hour of moving the pain an numbness would go away. It had become a chronic condition that I inquired about it with my Family Doc. She said that my muscles in my shoulders and arms were unbalanced causing this pain. She believed because of the repetitiveness of labor type activities from my job I was having this muscle imbalance. She recommended massage, if massage didn't work we would have to look at other options. I did get massage and it helped. The massage therapist worked really hard to released the pressure that was effecting my nerves. Built up scar tissue etc. When my health benefits changed at work it didn't cover the massage and the issue came back.

I'm sure the yoga that I have been doing is balancing my muscles. Resolving the issue with my hands.

All in All a great very hard class. It was a flow class, The teacher did a very good. At first I was trying to keep up to all her q's and get into the pose's quickly. I was finding my balance was off and breathing was uncontrolled. I took child's pose and re-centered myself and decided to move into each pose slowly. To enjoy the movement and stretch. After that I had no problem keeping up. I stopped worrying about being behind and ended up in the same place.

Namaste
namaste is a simple act made by bringing together both palms of the hands before the heart, and lightly bowing the head. In the simplest of terms it is accepted as a humble greeting straight from the heart and reciprocated accordingly.

3 of 30

Nov/14/11 Yoga and Beyond Studio/Noon/60min/Ning

Today is 3 of 30 and I just finished a noon session at the Yoga and Beyond studio. I am still sick today runny nose, head is full of yuck. I was surprised at how excited I was to wake up and start the day. I had an excellent sleep and didn't even hit my snooze button. I was excited to get into the studio and have a yoga session.

Things were going great. I was energized and happy. When suddenly, someones cell phone started beeping. I decided not to let it bother me, they must have forgotten that they had left it on? I removed the thoughts from my head and continued with my practice. It went off again! This time it really bothered me. I was shocked that someone would have their cell phone in the studio space and especially that they didn't turn it off after it rang the first time!

I showed compassion and decided that maybe it was a Doc on call and they just wanted to get a practice in. They would be leaving soon and I returned to my practice. Nope not a Doc, not anyone on call. The cell phone continued to ring thoughout the rest of the practice. Each time I tried to refocus and continue on although, I noticed my back started to hurt. So I lay down to calm my thoughts and take a moment to relax.

I'm not sure why someone after hearing their phone go off wouldn't turn it off? I'm not sure why they decided not to show the same respect the rest of the class had and not bring their phone into the studio space? I just feel bad for the person now. How are they to really relax and move deeper into their practice when they can't even put their cell phone away for 1 hr. Let this be a lesson: How are you going to connect to the world you're in, when you are living in a world where your cell phone is more important to you? LET it GO!

It is time to eat lunch, warm soup, on this snowy day. Take the dog for a walk. Then work a night shift.

2 of 30

Nov/13/11 Home living room/60min/Video Kim

I made it! Wow what a long day. So much happened I'm not even sure where to begin. Guess what? I did my own home yoga practice..... It was great I followed a video with Kim Weibe a yoga instructor here in Calgary. I did the 60 min video and it was challenging to say the least. It felt great I used my breath to warm my body up and even broke out in a sweat. I'm happy, happy, happy I was able to get to it.

So Day 2 of 30 is complete. I reached for a block today. I had a little help from my roommate. He was out for supper at one of my favorite restaurants. I asked if he could pick me up the the best War Won ton soup in the city and it was waiting for me when I was done my practice. It also came with a nice surprise, a fortune cookie. The cookie told me that something great was to come my way this time next week. That will be Day 9 of 30. So stay tuned to find out.

Till next time. TC loaded TC out!

1 of 30

Nov/12/11 Yoga and Beyond Studio/ 5pm/60min/ Ning

Well today is day 1 of my 30 day yoga challenge. I can tell you that I have never done anything like this before. So I am completely open minded to the journey. It was hard to come to class today though, as I am sick with a head cold and was home sick from work. I was all tucked away in my warm bed when my alarm went off to tell me to get up to go to yoga. This was a struggle, I went through the motions and was on my way. Traffic was terrible, every light was red. I was secretly hoping that I wouldn't make it on time and could turn around and hop back into my already warm bed. (After kicking the dog off my spot, I suppose he was just looking out for me and keeping that spot toasty warm.)

I park the car and see the door to the studio still open. "Hi Teresa!" Ahhhh! No turning back now, I've been spotted.

"Hi Ning." I put a smile on my face, take my shoes off and tuck them away on the shelf.
Ning is the owner of "Yoga and Beyond", the studio and I have a membership. It is a wonderful studio, I just wish there were later classes offered. Maybe someday that will happen, although, it also forces me to do home practices.

I scurry into the studio and sat on my mat.

Instantly feeling calm, NOW, happy I am here. I take a second to review how I'm feeling. I am feeling weak, but happy. I have a runny nose from my cold and I'm hoping I don't slip on the snot dripping onto my mat :) this makes me smile and Ning walks in to start class.
She starts with a review of the previous days workshop and follows up with some thoughts.

I love this studio for the openness and lightness of the classes she runs. Ning's class always feels so inviting to me, I feel connected to the room when she does something silly and I hear giggles around me. Maybe its because she is so open and shares her life with the class.
First downward dog, man! does it feel good. Everything is feeling good, everything is warming up. My breath is deep and flowing and I'm moving.

I'm always so humbled when I'm corrected by the instructor. It seems the pose that I think I have is the one I need correction for. The simple touch of a teachers hand can send my mind and body into a completely different place. It came time in class when Ning had her " yogi moment". She was explaining how using the blocks are an important part of yoga. It's important to have the block beside our mats. Many of us feel we are strong and don't need the block or off the mat a helping hand. What do we really accomplish by trying to do it all ourselves? The risk of getting hurt, feeling of frustration when we realized an extra hand would be nice. Time spent alone when we could be sharing the experience with another person. Not that we always need the block. Not that we are weak when we use the block. It makes us stronger, for asking and reaching for help. It is sometimes the hardest challenge. Letting your guard down, allowing yourself to be vulnerable. Opening yourself up to let someone in. But this is the only way I think to connect, to see we are all one. And in turn it allows you to be patient when others need a helping hand. It was a nice lesson to learn.

I am very excited for this 30 day journey.