Hey Reader, I'm writing this from a Courtyard Marriott while my kids are still asleep. We're on our second day of driving halfway across the country for a month of vacation. Needless to say, roadtrip movement is different than at-home movement. It's a little shorter, for one. If circumstances were difference, I could swing down to the gym but I'm solo with my kids, so instead I'll stay here in my room and just do a standing yoga flow. Likely it will be 10 minutes of movement, tops. Quietly,...
11 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, One of my biggest pet peeves within the fitness community is the idea that doing a small amount of movement is sending a bad message. Specifically, there are lots of fitness pros out there -- some of whom I actually respect and whose work I appreciate -- who say that when we tell students it's ok to do less movement, we're doing them a disservice by not pushing them to workout at their full capacity. But the thing is, not everyone has the ability to move their bodies like that...
18 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, This has been a hell of a week. 2 weeks, really. I mean this personally, in that all 3 of my kids have been sick over the past 2 weeks and I inadvertently food poisoned myself right in the middle of all of that. I've also been soloparenting through the peak of the sickness. And it's also been a hell of a week for our country. For the world. Every morning I wake up wondering what fresh horrors I'll read about in the news. It feels overwhelming and scary and uncertain. I feel...
25 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, I'm coming to you from my couch today. The plague has struck my family, so we're laying low in between visits to the bathroom. It's super fun. Anyway, I haven't really moved my body today because even walking is exhausting. But if I had just a little more energy and less stomach instability, I'd do the movement practice that is featured on my YouTube channel this week. I've heard from a lot of people saying they want more movement practices that are chill and grounding, but still...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader, One of the backbends that I love teaching is camel pose. It's a fairly simple backbend and one that is relatively easy to add into a flow (unlike bow pose or wheel). To be clear, simple doesn't mean easy. But it is a more accessible backbend, one that is easier to modify than most of the other main backbends and still feel really good while you're doing it. This is handy, because like most backbends, it can sometimes be tricky to do camel pose without feeling discomfort or pain in...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, Community is so important. Building community has always been a fundamental part of my teaching. We are stronger and better together. Moving your body is important for lifelong health, but it's even better when you can get together with other folks and move together. And often, when you're surrounded by other people, they way you move your body is different than when you're on your own -- the power of the collective. This is what's so appealing about going to a studio and...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Hey Reader, For the past few weeks, I've been trying to revive my daily writing practice. I do write daily, but I'm talking about journaling. Writing that is for me and only me. The kind of writing that I do with a pen in a journal with actual paper. It's writing that I rarely share with the world because it is so deeply personal and also, kind of boring. I used to write everyday and then, my schedule changed. My life changed. The time that I used to dedicate to writing was used for something...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Hey Reader, I have to keep this quick because as we speak, 2 of my kids are turning one of our bathrooms into a mini spa. It's Mother's Day and they want to give me the spa treatment without even leaving the house. I'm just delighted that they cleaned their bathroom. If I'm honest, I'm not much a fan of Mother's Day. I love my mom and think she is wonderful (Hi, mom! Happy Mother's Day!) and I love being a mom. But I also wish that this care and kindness was extended to us for more than just...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, I have a very quick tip for you today. It has to do with vasisthasana, also sometimes known as side plank. Not sure what pose I'm talking about? It happens to be the exact pose illustrated in the image at the top of this email. Vasisthasana is one of my favorite poses. It's sometimes considered an arm balance, since you are balancing on one arm. And often, I hear folks complain about shoulder pain as a result on balancing on that one arm. The cool thing is that for many of those...
2 months ago • 2 min read