Bikram Yoga Decatur

We've posted some photos from the Afton Carraway Posture Workshop.

I haven't bought anything from them yet but I like the concept. If you buy anything from them, please let me know what you think.

Asana Green Yoga Clothing

Avaaz—meaning "voice" in several European, Middle Eastern and Asian languages—launched in 2007 with a simple democratic mission: organize citizens of all nations to close the gap between the world we have and the world most people everywhere want.

Avaaz empowers millions of people from all walks of life to take action on pressing issues of international concern, from global poverty to the crises in the Middle East to climate change. Our model of internet organising allows thousands of individual efforts, however small, to be rapidly combined into a powerful collective force. (Read about results on the Highlights page.)

Served in 14 languages by a four-continent professional team and volunteers across the planet, the Avaaz community takes action—signing petitions, funding ad campaigns, emailing and calling government figures, organizing "offline" protests and events—to ensure that the views and values of the world's people inform the decisions that affect us all.

AAVAZ.org

Eight years ago today! Heartfelt thanks to all our clients without whom we'd simply be a group of dramatic voices in an empty hot room.

Larger versions of this photo are available on Facebook and Me.com.

Silence doesn’t exist in the yoga room.

As a progressive small business owner I get invited to participate in some retail promotions that, on the surface, sound positive and worthy but have always left me wondering. Fellow Decatur yoga instructor Lisa Cohen speaks for me when she says,

I just think we have been duped as a society into donating a lot of time and money to hypocritical companies which are not only adding to the contributing factors of breast cancer, but also who have a conflict of interest and make their money by selling drugs to treat breast cancer. The focus and money needs to go to breast cancer..or make that just plain cancer prevention and corporations like Ford, major drug companies, and KFC should be seen for what they really are: profit driven giants whose intentions are simply misguided and possibly even harmful.

Read her rant.

Or, at least read this article which she links to...

update - Be sure to read the comments to this post for a more complete understanding of this issue.

Someone recently used the contact page to send me an email that began like this:

My name is Maura, I am trying to get to the teacher training in April. I am contacting different Bikram studios to ask for words of wisdom, encouragement and advice.

I'd be happy to share some of my experiences with you and even give you some advice but my email response to you was returned as undeliverable after three tries.

Good luck to you.

Just got this from someone I know...

A friend of mine is an OB/GYN and had gotten a new patient in. The nurse was looking over the chart and came to my friend quite upset that the previous doctor had written some "inappropriate" comments in the woman's chart. The comment read..."she is a hot yoga instructor".

In spite of the fact that we're not nutritionists, Bikram Yoga instructors are often asked for advice about eating and diet. It's true that our experience has given us lots of general information about the effects of certain foods and/or eating habits on our practice but it's also true that everybody's physiology and needs are unique and there is no single diet that applies to all.

Still, there is one suggestion I almost always give when asked anything related to food and diet and it is this: eat a variety of whole, healthy foods including an abundance of fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains and modest amounts of proteins such as meat and/or dairy. By "whole" I mean foods that are as close to their natural state as possible. The more processing a food has gone through the less value and the more detrimental effects it is likely to have.

It may be an unlikely source but Forbes magazine has published an article which closely matches my own perspective and includes some specific suggestions for what to eat.

The Healthiest Foods On Earth

We recently received the following email about a documentary that is being produced about Paramahansa Yogananda, author of "Autobiography of a Yogi." Bishnu Ghosh, Bikram's guru, was trained at the Ranchi School for Boys by his older brother, Paramahansa Yogananda, who later founded the Self-Realization Fellowship.

Message: Hi fellow Yogis! I have great news--Two award winning documentarians are making a film on the life of Paramahansa Yogananda, one of the first yogis to come to America from India. This story is not limited to Paramahansa Yogananda...we want to hear from you too!

How has yoga and meditation impacted your life--re: working with financial struggles, yearning for God, living a balanced life, eliminating pain, dealing with ambition, meeting your destiny... If you have Yogananda connections we would love to hear them too!

Our goal is to spread the word on the benefits of yoga and meditation to a wide audience and your stories can help. Please visit our facebook group Documentary of a Yogi or you can email your story at YoganandaDoc@gmail.com

More info at the Self Realization Fellowship web site.

(click the picture)

I recently received an email inquiry from someone asking if I thought Bikram Yoga would be recommended after a mastectomy. The short answer is yes — but, of course, always get your doctor’s approval first. We’ve had several clients who have had mastectomies. One of them even has a blog on the topic called, Field Guide to The One Step BPM for Young BRCA+ Previvors. It is obviously the work of a passionate and creative mind.

If you:

• are BRCA1 or BRCA2 positive
• have a family history of breast and/or ovarian cancers
• are a breast cancer previvor or survivor
• are considering preventative mastectomy
• are considering implant reconstruction
• are considering One Step reconstruction
• are considering surgery with Drs. A. Ashikari and C. Salzberg in Dobbs Ferry, NY
• are looking for details, pros and cons, straightforwardness
• want to see an example of someone’s progression through this procedure
• have questions about any of the above
• are recovering from any of the above
• are just curious to see what it’s all about...

….then this blog was intended for you. If you are curious to get a general picture of what this surgery is like, or if you have specific concerns about very particular aspects of preparation or recovery, then I hope this blog might benefit you. Maybe your friends, family, or significant other also have questions or concerns about this particular surgical method of risk management. If so, it’s also my desire that this blog might benefit them too.

Some of you will recognize one of our own in this photo used to illustrate a story about a Phish concert.