An addition to my small yoga library

Latest yoga book for my collection: Shambhala Encyclopedia of Yoga

Build Your Yoga Library-

 From Daily Insight newsletter from Yoga Yournal

If you've been taking asana classes for a while, you've probably realized just how much there is to know about the practice of yoga. There's yoga philosophy, yoga history, Sanskrit, and seemingly a million different modern styles and lineages. So many other things have come together to make yoga what it is today that it's close to impossible to know it all. And with the recent rise in yoga's popularity, there are so many yoga books, CDs, and DVDs available that it can be overwhelming to start delving deeper into the yoga topics you yearn to know more about. Take heart: We've done the legwork for you.

Yoga teacher and scholar Richard Rosen has studied yoga—and collected books about yoga—for more than 20 years. He recommends that beginning students start with books such as B.K.S. Iyengar's The Tree of Yoga to get a crash course, that intermediate students reach for the Bhagavad Gita, and that more advanced students might appreciate the first known text about yoga, the Yoga Sutra. Thankfully, there's a book or video out there for every kind of yoga practitioner. Whether you're just starting or you're a seasoned practitioner, there's always room to grow.

Just because I like it!

I love advertisements from Kripalu because they choose multicultural and multi-size "models". Plus this is one of my favorite asanas.

Yoga in the park...where are you?

I was looking forward to yoga in the park this morning but I couldn’t find the park. After driving around for about 25 minutes, I had to give up the idea of practicing with a new group. Oh well, maybe next time.

The great kale

I am still flabbergasted at the $9.00 bag of kale at the studio. I found a recipe for kale chips on Vegetarian Times. No expensive ingredients, only kale, salt and olive oil. Packaging? Hardly. The studio is just trying to make a huge profit on kale chips.

My experiment says I can make my own kale ships for less than $1.00. Yes, less than $1.00. A bundle of kale costs .89 cents and I already have the salt and olive oil.

This article in the New York Times sums up kale and it's greatness. Kale sounds as powerful as blueberries when it comes to antioxidants. Go kale!

Fun filled Friday!

I started out with a yoga class at the rec. center. It was such a great class and the teacher, Linda, was awesome! After the class she came up and asked if I had any questions (I did) and she spent a few minutes explaining the chants, the six branches of yoga (a condensed version) and about the Texas Yoga Retreat (where she was an instructor for two years). I got a very good vibe from Linda and the class in general. Coincidently, she lives in Killeen! Small world.

After that I headed to southwest Austin for a foot massage at Yoga Yoga. It was heaven! Too bad the location is an hour drive from homeL. I’ll have to find something closer. They had a nice library of reading material. Bought a yoga dictionary, now I won’t be completely lost when I read articles.

Time for some lunch at Whole Foods. Sushi hit the spot. It was nice to be there when it was less crowded. I tasted kale for the first time and it was surprisingly tasty.  I tasted it prepared three different ways: sautéed in teriyaki sesame sauce, in a salad with spinach, strawberries and cashews, and mixed with avocado and onions.  Why the sudden interest in kale? Well, at the yoga studio I saw a bag of kale chips for sale: $9.00! What?!?! At this price I had to investigate this thing called kale.

The last stop was Book People. I only bought some incense but I know where I’ll be doing the majority of my Christmas shopping, (even though I hate the consumerism of the holiday, I do it for the family).

Eight hours later, I arrived back home. Pooped out! It was a night of TV for me, too tired to do much else.

Complete Guide to Home Yoga Practice

This morning I practiced with the DVD Complete Guide to Home Yoga Practice from Yoga Journal. I really enjoyed this DVD as it provided guidance to correct pose positioning, a modified version of the poses and the instructor had pleasant energy. It also included an interview with a doctor who explained the medical benefits of doing yoga and provided a commentary on each pose.

We went through the poses for sun salutations A and B. The instructor encouraged proper breathing and alignment. All and all I really liked this DVD!

Just because I like it!

From the September 2010 issue of Yoga Journal.