Smart Yogini

I’ve had a great summer off which included lots of teaching yoga!

It has been such a great experience and wonderful honour to be able to share the joys of yoga that have come into my life.

I will be teaching a progressive course starting in a few weeks.  It will provide each student with the tools and education to adapt their yoga practice to suit their individual needs.  The course combines deep, conscious breathing, powerful flowing movements and meticulous alignment to bring the transformational power of yoga to each practitioner.

To register please go to: https://pbregister.vancouver.ca/safari_activitybrowse.htm choose the Kitsilano Community Centre and Yoga from the drop down menus.  Click SmartYoga to register.

If you have any questions or are looking for more info please email me kate@smartyogini.com!

I have attached the poster for the course for you to see.

Hope to see some of you there soon!
Thanks,

Kate

Hello All,

I will be teaching a progressive yoga course in the fall.

I have been apprenticing with Jesse Enright for almost 3 years now and he has asked me to take over his Level 1 course.

What:  SmartYoga Level 1 Progressive Course

SmartYoga combines deep, conscious breath work, powerful flowing movements and meticulous alignment.  It is designed to be both a structured daily routine and a means by which students can understand and adapt the practice of Yoga to meet their specific needs.

SmartYoga emphasizes anatomical education to instill in students a love and respect for the amazing design of the human body.

Each class will begin with sitting, breathing, a short series of preparatory exercises and a brief discussion on theory and anatomy. The majority of the class will be spent in the learning and practice of the SmartYoga posture sequences.
Subjects covered include:

- Breath/Pranayama
- Preparatory exercises
- Sun Salutations
- Standing Postures
- Hip Openers
- Backbends
- Inversions
- Meditation

Why: A sequential/progressive class structure provides a greatly accelerated and more fertile learning environment for both the student and instructor. Instead of “starting from scratch” as is often the case in the drop-in class model, each session builds and expands on what has been covered in proceeding lessons. Perhaps the most valuable asset of a sequential/progressive approach is that it allows a relationship to form between teacher and student. This is the foundation of an authentic yoga practice and gives the dedicated student the in depth and individual attention they deserve.

When: Sundays 7-8:30pm September 13 - Dec 6 (no class Oct 11)

Where: Kitsilano Community Centre 2690 Larch St

Cost: 12weeks @ $159

Registration through KCC 604-257-6976

http://vancouver.ca/parks/cc/kitsilano/index.htm

If anyone has questions please feel free to email me Kate@smartyogini.com.

Why Dry Brush?

Dry brushing is a premium detoxification method of the skin and lymphatic system. The skin is the largest cleansing organ in the body and takes care of a quarter of the body’s detox requirements each day. Dry skin brushing stimulates the organs of detoxification through massage. It has a whole bunch of benefits. The superficial ones include: removing cellulite, tightening the skin to prevent premature aging, and removing dead skins layers! The deeper benefits of the dry brush technique are the improvements to lymphatic function. It strengthens the immune system, stimulates hormone producing glands, and stimulates circulation.

Why do I Care About the Lymph System?

Transports transport important molecules to be cleansed by the lymphatic organs (spleen, thymus gland, lymph nodes, liver, and tonsils.) These important molecules include: fat soluble vitamins like A, D, E and K, foreign particles and microorganisms. As a Microbiologist I know that if the lymph system is not flowing properly then the immune system does not get a chance to kill invading foreign particles and microorganisms. This includes cancerous cells.

The lymphatic system does not have a system to drain its fluid. A good comparison is the circulatory system. The heart pumps the blood around our body to pick up Oxygen at the lungs, deposit it at our tissues and organs, and goes back for more. As long as the heart keeps pumping the blood moves around. And when it doesn’t we aren’t alive! Pretty important function! The lymph system doesn’t have a heart to pump its fluid around the body. It relies on external factors. A major external factor that moves lymph fluid is skeletal muscle contraction, or exercise! Vinyasa Yoga is an excellent modality to move lymph fluid since its movements contract alternating muscle groups allowing for optimal lymph circulation.

And of course a great compliment to daily exercise is a regular dry brush to keep the lymph system flowing!

What is a Dry Brush and where can I find one?

A dry brush is a brush made of dense stiff bristles. They can be found at any health store and grocery stores like Whole Foods Markets and Capers.

How to Dry Brush?

The lymphatic fluid only flows in one direction which is towards the heart, so it is important to brush in the same direction. If we brushed away from the heart it puts extra pressure on the valves within the veins and lymphatic vessels and can results in ruptured vessels and varicose veins. We sure do not want any of that! So make sure to dry brush up the legs, arms and body towards the heart. The back is the exception to the rule. Brush from the neck down towards the low back. Try to use long sweeping strokes. This can be a little uncomfortable at first though. I started with short light strokes and have worked up to long harder ones.

Always dry brush before you bathe to wash away any impurities from the skin after a good dry brushing session.

For my personal demonstration of the dry brush I give my body every morning click here.

For a chart on where the lymph nodes of the body are located click here.

Image from www.lymphoma.org

For a chart on the direction of proper dry brushing click here.

Image from www.ibeautytip.com

LOTUS Posture

I have had some questions through my YouTube channel about how to do a “proper” lotus posture. I took some time thinking about how I wanted to address this question and recently went to a “Yoga and the Knee” workshop with my teacher. I absorbed three hours of knee anatomy and common problems stemming from a lack of alignment in yoga postures.

In the video attached I show you how to approach Lotus in a safe manner. The actions of the ankles and the flexibility of the hips are the keys to the pose. If either one isn’t ready then the knee absorbs any rotation and can cause some major life long injuries.

I hope that you find my video informative and can take the concepts to your practice and apply to all seated postures. The knee is at a higher risk for excessive torsion when bent, so keep that in mind through pigeon and virasana.

Listen to your body! Pain is the alarm to prevent you from injury!

Here is the video! Lotus

The Manduka Mat

I have gone through and tried many different yoga mats and absolutely hands down there is one that beats them all and that is the Black Manduka Mat. It is black, super thick, and super grippy! The only downside is that it is super heavy and about $120, but it will last you a lifetime!

There are less expensive Manduka mats that I have used for traveling that have worked just as well. For my home practice I always use the Cadillac Black Mat.

Then there are all the other mats out there. I have found most of these to be slippery and wear out quite quickely if you have a regular practice. In the long run getting a high quality mat will save you time and money in the long run. I’m always excited to practice on my favorite mat!

To see me on the mat I use check this out!