Fall/Winter 2014

AT A GLANCE

CLASS SCHEDULE

HOME PRACTICE

YOGA THERAPY

INSPIRATION

"...a clear and peaceful mind is the ground for joyful living." Swami Rama

GENTLE MOVEMENT + RESTORATIVE  YOGA WITH DONNA

e/o Tuesday

Sept 2, 16, 30, Oct 14, 28,

Nov 11, 25,

Dec 16

7:30-8:45 pm

Cost: $12 each

YOGA FOR LIFE WITH ANN

Sept 22

Oct 6-27

Nov 17

Dec 8

Mondays
6:30-8:00PM
Cost $15 each or $50 for all 4 in October
 

See class description in the body of this newsletter or on the website. 

Class size is limited to 12 so please pre-register.

Google Map link

SESSION
DISCOUNT

Refer a friend to the Yoga for Health class and, if they sign up, you will receive $20 toward your next class or private yoga session.

Share the beauty and breadth of yoga and, as always, I appreciate your continued support!

FEATURED

The Yoga of Food

What if I were to say to you, "I am on a diet?"  What would come to mind?  

What if a diet were a way of life, a way of being, perhaps even a philosophy? What if your eating or diet was informed by science, yet based on a model of abundance rather than deprivation, on an inner intelligence of what your body needs rather than external rules about what you should eat?

There are differences between diet as a way of life rather than diet for therapeutic applications (for instance, using diet to reverse an already existing condition such as heart disease). But either way, whether it's the state prior to disease or during disease, our choices (and an understanding of the root of those choices) make such profound effects at the level of the body, mind, and spirit. 

How do you determine your choices?  By the latest scientific discoveries? By the newest food product that looks good on the shelf? By an advertisement or your stress that might influence your unconscious choices? By the latest food pyramid? By the latest popular diet? By the latest nutritional data? By an inner and deeper sense of necessity? By a deeper sense of connection to self and others? By a clear, discriminative self-awareness?  

I am a big believer in what is sustainable, and "should" is not a sustainable model. When I work with people in the therapeutic practice of yoga, my underlying premise is what is sustainable so that we move from a model of deprivation and "shoulds" to a model that encourages a greater sense of inner and outer connection. What will help you connect more with yourself, and what can bring more joy into your life? 

So the yoga of food isn't just about what you eat or how mindfully you eat, but a complete, holistic practice that looks at nourishing you at all levels of your being – your body, your subtle vital energy, your intellect, your higher intelligence, and the more abstract level of joyfulness.  When you can create a life that supports you at all these levels, then the yoga of food really becomes a subcategory for the yoga of life.

Can we gradually begin to listen to what the body wants and needs and trust ourselves? What do I mean by the words "trust" and "listen"?  How do we learn to trust ourselves when we might have experiences feeling let down by ourselves?  We feel bored, we feel restless, we feel angry, we feel afraid, we desire some pleasure….and we often go to something to distract us from those feelings. Food is often the first choice and often anything will do.

Now, please don't get me wrong. To create this inner connection, you do not have to become a daily practitioner of yoga poses, breathing practices, or meditation to cultivate a deeper self-awareness. However, it's important to begin somewhere, and a nice place to begin is learning to quiet yourself enough to listen to and trust the body and mind. This way you can make choices that serve you. And as you begin to feel more inwardly connected, you can also begin to notice the difference between an authentic, what the body really longs for craving, rather than a desire for food that has a more complicated, psychological root. What motivates your hunger and eating? Are you hearing what your body is asking for or are you seeking some solace for your feelings of isolation, for instance? Ideally, we want to quiet ourselves enough that we can not only see what is at the root of our appetites and begin to address it at that level, but also quiet ourselves enough to hear what the body truly needs.  

We have a longstanding habit, and a world that encourages it, of distracting ourselves from and distrusting our inner voices. There is an ancient intelligence present inside you; it just speaks a bit more quietly yet much more sweetly and softly.  Start to learn to quiet yourself, listen to the whisper, and regain that trust.

Yours, in service,

KO

WHAT'S NEW

Schedule of Upcoming Classes

Good Space Yoga is offering a few new options this season: 

-Gentle Yoga + Restorative with Donna Cervelli will be held every other week on Tuesdays from 7:30-8:45pm. Please see the class schedule for dates.

-Ann Lapo's Yoga for Life monthly series will continue, but in October she will also be offering a 4 week session! Please see the class schedule for dates.

Please go to Good Space Yoga for a description of the classes, as well as the full weekly class schedule.

To see the September - October class schedule, go to:

http://goodspaceyoga.com/classes-yoga.html

"Like" us on Facebook! I post links to articles of interest, inspirational quotes, updates about events, and notes about various experiences. 

http://www.facebook.com/goodspaceyoga

SPECIAL OFFERINGS:

Meditation Group with K.O.

Monday, September 29

Thursdays,October 23, November 21

6:00-7:00 pm, Cost: $5 each

Are you challenged by keeping a regular home meditation practice? Do you feel like questions arise from practice that you don't understand? Come join like-minded people for a monthly gathering to support and nurture you in your journey of meditation. Our time together will include a discussion circle followed by 25 minutes of meditation together.

Gentle Movement + Restorative Yoga with Donna Cervelli
Tuesdays, September 2, 16, 30, Oct 14, 28, Nov 11, 25,

& Dec 16

7:30-8:45 pm, Cost: $12 each

A gentle movement class incorporating poses and breath practices to increase circulation and relieve tension, then restorative poses using props to allow for deep relaxation.

Yoga for Life Series Details:
Discover - Explore - Connect with Ann Lapo

UPCOMING WORKSHOPS OF INTEREST:

Yoga for Anxiety: Soothing the System and Cultivating Harmony with Kathy Ornish at the Himalayan Institutute in Honesdale, Pennsylvania

Friday - Sunday, September 19 - 21

See HI website for pricing info and registration.

http://yogainternational.com/events/view/yoga-for-anxiety1

Home Practice

Once per year I do a workshop at the Himalayan Institute on working with Anxiety. They now have two of my anxiety related videos on Yoga International's website that I would like to share with you. One is a practice and the other is a lecture. Enjoy the videos and perhaps you will join me at the workshop!

Remember, old practices, newsletters, and recipes can be found on my website's goodspaceyoga.com/homepractice webpage. Enjoy!

Video: Asana and Pranayama for Anxiety and Concentration

Video: Five Favorite Tools for Anxiety

Yoga Therapy

Special Offer: Sign-up for a 6-8 week class session and get your first yoga therapy session for a reduced price of $80 (regularly $120).

What is Yoga Therapy?

Yoga Therapy adapts and applies Yoga techniques and practices to help individuals who are facing physical or emotional challenges, or who want to expand their yoga/spiritual practice. It offers a personalized practice that empowers the individual to progress toward greater health by managing their condition, reducing symptoms, restoring balance, and facilitating healing on all levels of our being. My hope is to inspire and empower you toward greater clarity and healing.

Please see my Therapeutic Yoga webpage for more information.
 

Inspiration

We Should Talk About This Problem by Hafiz
(translated by Daniel Ladinsky)

There is a Beautiful Creature
Living in the hole you have dug.

So at night
I set fruit and grains
And little pots of wine and milk
Beside your soft mounds,

And I often sing.

But still, my dear,
You do not come out.

I have fallen in love with Someone
Who hides inside you.

We should talk about this problem -

Otherwise,

I will never leave you alone.