fitness: yoga resources

There is a good chance that I am off in the woods somewhere camping and hiking and exploring lakes while you read this. So instead of pretending that I am doing yoga right this minute, I am going to share some great yoga resources from my fellow bloggers.

Yoga Tips for Beginners from Campfire Chic.
4 Essential Yoga Poses for Hardcore Hikers.
Yoga 101 from Allyson Potrebka.
And Why You Should Take a Private Yoga Class from Allyson as well.
5 Yoga Poses to Practice First Thing in the Morning.
I like this what's in my yoga bag from Chalkboard Mag.

Hopefully these posts help you get on the mat! Unless you are like me and off camping somewhere without your mat, then maybe you can flow through a few poses near your campsite!

Any great yoga posts I missed? Leave them in the comments!

xoxo,
kat

fitness guest post from Allyson of allysonpotrebka.com

Hello Ramblers! I'm Allyson and I write a natural health and wellness blog you can read here. That's my space to talk about living a natural and healthy life through yoga, eating well and practicing self-love. I am a certified Hatha and Vinyasa Yoga Teacher and have been teaching for six months, although I have been practicing yoga for over five years. Kat has asked me to write a Yoga 101 for anyone interested in starting a practice but maybe you're a little confused when yogis start talking about vinyasa, hatha, savasana and prana.

The Different Types of Yoga

There are six basic types of yoga with hundreds of sub-styles so with enough persistence you should be able to find a class that you love. Let me explain the basic styles for you... (Ashtanga, as well as Kundalini, are not what I am trained in so this is a brief idea. I encourage you to educated yourself further if you are interested)

• Hatha - this is your basic yoga. This style is really for everybody and is especially good for beginners since it is gentle; poses are held for around 30 seconds. Look for classes that mention 'gentle flow,' 'beginner,' or 'stretch.'
• Vinyasa - this is a quicker moving style. A 'vinyasa' is a series of poses done in succession; generally downward facing dog, chaturanga, cobra, downward facing dog. This style is for people looking to increase their heart rate and have a bit of a workout while doing their body some good. Look for 'flow' or 'fit' classes.
• Yin - this style is very slow. Yin uses the same poses as Hatha and Vinyasa but holds each pose for up to five minutes. This style is perfect for someone who really wants to relax and unwind but not for children or teens as the intense stretching isn't good for growing bodies. Look for classes called 'restorative.'
• Ashtanga - this is the style that incorporates the eight limbs of yoga. In a class the poses are practiced in a specific series. The series may be practiced in some "flow" classes but generally the class description will mention 'ashtanga'
• Kundalini - this is the most spiritual style of class so it may not be the best fit for someone just looking to exercise. The word kundalini means 'coiled' and it is believed that our life force is coiled at the base of our spine and the practice is meant to uncoil this energy and release it into the body. These classes include chanting and singing, which other styles may not. Most classes will mention the word 'kundalini' in the description.
• Hot - like Hatha but done in a very hot room to encourage detoxification of the body through sweating and the poses are done faster and in a specific order. I actually don't recommend this style of yoga because the heat makes your muscles stretch easier, which can be good, but if you're unaware of your limits this can lead to pulling your muscles and pain. The high temperatures can also lead to heat stroke and other health issues. If you want to try hot yoga look for a studio that is very well ventilated because no one wants to breath in humid air full of everyones sweat and toxins. Because of the heat these classes don't have any prana in them.

Asana-what?

Yoga originated in India so a lot of the yoga lingo is in Sanskrit. If you've ever been to a class where the teacher uses the Sanskrit words it can be very confusing so I'll translate the most common ones.

• Asana - (ah-sah-nah) this is the Sanskrit would for pose. Every pose has this word in the name: savasana (corpse pose) , halasana (plow pose), vrksasana (tree pose). 
  
• Namaste - (nom-ah-stay) the most basic translation is 'The Light in me sees the Light in you.' Yoga teachers say this prayer at the end of class as a way of honoring their students. Feel free to say namaste in return or sit quietly; whichever you're comfortable with.
• Savasana - (shiv-ah-sah-nah or sahv-ah-sah-nah)  this is the pose that every class ends with. Sav means corpse so this is Corpse Pose. It is meant to allow your entire body and mind a few minutes of complete relaxation as well as let the energy (prana) you created settle into the body.
• Prana -(prah-nah) this means energy or life force. During a yoga class prana is created through moving with intention. Prana = good vibes!

I hope the helps you go into the world of yoga with a little more confidence. I know anytime we try something new it can seem a little scary, but I encourage you to try out yoga with an open mind and I guarantee you will find a practice you love.

fitness: new month, new goals

It's already been April for a week and I have yet to set any real fitness goal for myself. I have a hard time with setting fitness goals. I am not a fitness blogger by any definition but I enjoy writing about my goals and progress on here because it does help keep me motivated, which for me is that hardest part. Having a section on fitness on this blog helps me maintain my motivation and focus and to hopefully contribute to the community of those who have a focus on fitness in their life but aren't really fitness gurus, fitness isn't their whole life.

Lately, with yoga, I am having a problem with motivation. I am having a really hard time committing to the practice. I always talk myself out of doing yoga at home and the studio I love going to is a little bit of a drive for me so it is easy to make excuses. But when I do go, I love it. I've talked before about how much I love it and why. This month, I want to just focus on consistency. I want to focus on a consistent practice because it benefits me in so many ways. Instead of setting a physical goal for myself (like 10,000 steps last month) I am going to focus on making sure I practice yoga three times a week and that I am going to explore more about the benefits, principles, and foundation behind various styles of yoga.

So, all you yoga fans out there, what is your favorite style of yoga and why?

xoxo,
kat

fit february: i love yoga

These last two weeks were stressful. That may be an understatement. On Tuesday the boy had a doctors appointment, on Wednesday he met with a surgeon, and on Friday he had surgery. He is fine and it was a fairly routine procedure. But with all surgeries and procedures everything was very stressful and our daily lives changed completely for a few days.

So when his mom offered me two hours out of the house to go to a yoga class, I tried very hard not to jump up and down with excitement.

You see, yoga is one of my favorite things. Sometimes, I hate it. I really do. Sometimes, it takes everything within me to make myself go to a class but once I am there, I never regret it. With the other activities I do regularly (spin, climbing, and hiking) it is important to keep my muscles flexible and strong. For me, yoga builds my strength and increases my flexibility while participating in an activity that also acts as a form of meditation for me. Some people find yoga to be an incredibly spiritual activity. I wouldn't go as far to say that it is spiritual for me, but I am more centered after my yoga practice.

When I do yoga, especially when I take a class at a studio, I have the chance to focus on myself in a way that most other activities don't allow. So much focus in yoga is on the breath and being aware of your body, it gives me an opportunity to ground myself in a way that no other exercise does. While I talked about how spin classes make me invigorated, yoga grounds and centers me while making me feel stronger than ever.



Disclaimer: I am not a fitness expert and do not claim to be one. Everything stated above is my opinion, not advice, and you should always consult your doctor before starting a new fitness routine.

February is for Fitness

I hate and love the title to this post. I hate it because a part of me goes "uuuggghhhhh a blog about fitness, boooooooooooo." But I love it because I have started to look at fitness in a new way that works for me and is really invigorating. 

I always hated the idea of writing about fitness because (as with a lot of blogging) it seems vain and narcissistic. I am no expert and I don't have the need to write about a dramatic change in my life. But here I am, dedicating a month to the idea of fitness. Why? Because recently I have had a change in how I view fitness and working out. When I was working on graduate school and student teaching, my escape was the yoga studio, the climbing gym, or a spin class. I would go to the gym every now and then and leave feeling refreshed, invigorated, ready to face the challenges ahead, and most importantly I would feel grounded. It became like a reset button for me and I slowly began to realize that the reason I need fitness in my life is that it grounds me.

I was a very active kid. My family likes to joke that they used to have to run me around the block a few times to get me at a normal energy level. When I was in high school and college, I stayed away from everything physically active, I thought I was way too cool and artistic for all of that. I took dance classes but only because I had to for theater and I never gave my all to those classes. 

Now, as an adult, the hardest mental block for me to overcome is the idea that I need to change myself. I hate the idea of going to the gym to make sure I look a certain way and it has taken me far too long to realize that I need to work out because it makes me feel a certain way. It makes me feel like my best self. An hour in a spin class, a hour of yoga, an afternoon of the bike, or a day at the climbing gym - all of these things ease my stress, challenge me mentally and physically, and help me feel unstoppable. And that feeling radiates to everything else I do and want to accomplish.

So, my February is about five fitness classes a week (typically alternating yoga and spin since I am on a break from climbing right now) and one outdoor adventure (hike or bike ride.) My muscles are aching, but in a good way, and water has become my drug of choice. But here are some things around the web that are helping my February be Fitness February. 

Fitness Links: 

-Sometimes Sweet has created an instagram of her fitness life called @sometimessweaty

-Campfire Chic has done so many of the trips I want to do that just looking through her blog inspires me.

-I love Fabletics. I used to be a Target brand workout clothes kind of girl but once you upgrade, it's hard to go back. Here is there site and here is my referral link just in case you love it too and want to sign up! 

- The boy and I talk a lot about doing Tour de Foothills - this is the year I want to do it. 

What do you love about fitness? What do you hate about it? What inspires you?

xoxo,

kat 

things i love: prAna yoga mat

For Christmas, one of the best gifts I got was a new yoga mat. I did not realize what a difference it would make until I tried it in a couple of classes and I have to say: best. upgrade. ever.

(my old mat, I still love it and will use it a lot.) 

I had been using Gaiam mats for years (I still LOVE and use this bag from them). There is nothing bad about Gaiam mats, they come in a great variety of colors and designs and for most people they are perfect. In fact, I have a really cute Gaiam mat that I have used for years that I do not want to get rid of because it is super cute and it works well.

But I was having a problem with the mat being too thin for me, for most people this isn't a problem, but for me I was having an issue with joint pressure during certain poses and while it was easily fixed by layering another mat underneath...I always felt silly at the studio grabbing a mat to put under my....mat.

Then at Christmas, I got a prAna mat. I got the E.C.O. Mat and it is amazing. All my issues with joint pressure in poses are gone, the grip of the mat is incredible, and while it is heavier (because it is thicker) I don't mind carrying around the extra weight because the mat is just what I need.

The great thing is, if you are new to yoga, a lot of studios have mats you can use. I suggest doing this before investing in a mat. You might find that you prefer a thinner mat or you may find, that like me, you need a little extra padding.

xoxo,
kat