ABDS

One morning, a friend and role model shared a brilliant insight with me. I'd already learned plenty of lessons from this person: how to organize your mind like a flowchart, be present and engaged with the people to whom you're speaking, how to create and live your dreams through writing down and pursuing goals. Today, she shared this simple phrase- "Always be doing something".

We are a beautiful blend of three things- mind, breath, and body. The gift of the mind is its ability to  visit the past to learn from our habits and history and imagine the future to dream and plan. The gift of the body is that it's always in the present. When you stub your toe, or make contact with another body through a hug or handshake, you are drawn back to right now.

This is the great secret of the poses you perform in class. We teachers keep you moving to keep you in the present. Plenty of activities in our society are designed to transport you to the past or future, to support you pretending you're somewhere else. Yoga is now. By setting the body in less common postures and choosing to be conscious of the breath, we become posted to the present. It is here, in this moment, that you can affect change and break the pattern of all old ways of being. Through linking the breath and the movement, you become the real organic you. No pesticides.

Always be doing something, whether it's everything or nothing.

K.I.S.,S.

One of the most profound things I've ever learned in my life was in my sophomore year acting class. We were learning the Stanislavsky method, which usually involves a lot of writing. Some of us weren't really getting it, even though we were writing pages and pages of character backstory. The teacher offered us this simple acronym - K.I.S.,S. - Keep It Simple, Student.

I often find my mind looking to make things more and more complex, whether it's designing a yoga class, giving someone else feedback, or telling a story. This tends to go along with the pace of the place where I live- New York City; here, we're always looking for the next new novelty. After teaching yoga classes packed with poses and varying verbiage for months, this acronym appeared on the shore of my memory.

Over the course of a week, I noticed minimalism everywhere I went: Apple ads on billboards, posture and gesture of CEOs and business leaders, acting performances in the Walking Dead, James Taylor songs, and the words of my yoga teachers.  Seeing and hearing the top people in their fields understanding what to say and what not to say, or what to gesture, and what not to gesture, brought me to the base idea that simplicity is sophisticated.

In my yoga class, we often explore what not to do before we get to what to do. My journey to simplicity has taken the same route. I've taught classes of complicated choreography with multifarious monologues only to realize the true goal had been forgotten- to be aware of the breath. In life, this is synonymous with doing something you don't enjoy for riches and fame, missing the simple delight of connecting with people you love.

This week, for homework, take time to sit and breathe. Take time to link up with your loves. Take time to K.I.S.,S.

Peace,
C

Stabilize your spring

As winter comes to a close, set your foundation for the warmer weather. Whether that means starting a new habit or releasing an old one, now is the best time to make it happen.

You could be doing it in your body: In all my vinyasa classes this week, we'll discover how to keep a tall torso in your movement practice. This isn't just for looking pretty, it's to train your body to find length in the center- your spine. Typically, we allow the weight of the ribs and shoulders to fall into the pelvis, pushing it into too much tilt forward (when you stick out your butt), or backward (when you tuck the tail through the legs). A tall torso means the S of the spine is more perpendicular to the ground, which also puts it more in harmony with gravity. To find this feeling, follow these steps. From standing:
1) Push down through feet.
2) Tuck tail through legs 2%, or just until you feel the low back lengthen out.
3) Engage core muscles and low ribs toward your back.
4) Pull up through center of head.

It's a lot to think about at first. After a few minutes of playing with it, you'll have programmed yourself a personal, portable fidget. Feel free to take this fidget out any time you're standing in line, waiting for a bus, walking about town, etc. Long spine = long life.

You could be connecting to your foundation in your mind. Direct your attention to the place where your low-rise jeans button would touch. This place goes by many names- the hara, svadhistana, center of gravity, dan tien. Find it by underlining your navel with your index finger, then counting four finger widths down. Close your eyes. Direct your inhales and exhales to the whole area around this space- the front, back, sides, and even middle that goes through your organs. Imagine this sphere growing larger with each successive breath. Use this fidget interchangeably with the first.

For a serious challenge, perform both fidgets simultaneously.

May you live a long life, with your tall torso connected to the core of your being.

See you on the field.

Warmly,
Corey