Tag: practice yoga

Yoga at Home for $2 a Month

December 21, 2009
Posted by Sharon
Leave a comment

There are a LOT of great reasons to practice yoga at home on your own:

1-You have work and/or family responsibilities that make it impossible to consistently get to a yoga class.  This may be especially true for new parents who are juggling jobs, childcare and EVERYTHING!

2-You travel often and wish you had a practice you could take with you on the road

3-It’s a great way to advance your practice and always do the poses and exercises that best support you in how you feel (if you’re calling the shots, then you don’t have to do any handstands if you don’t want to!).

4-If you are not feeling well, are injured or need a modified practice for any reason, you can learn how to do a practice that will help you feel better

5-You want to make yoga a part of everyday—a real part of your life and not just a class or workshop that you take every once in a while.

Many of my students ask me how to start a home practice and how to be consistent about practicing at home.  For them, and for you, I have designed a great home practice that can be done anywhere by anyone.  In just 10-minutes a day, you will feel a huge improvement in how you feel.  I am charging $24 for 12-months of home practice support.  Here are the details:

Yoga Matrika invites YOU to Make 2010 the Year
YOU Develop a Home Yoga Practice. 

We welcome everyone to become a part of this yoga-based resolution revolution!  You don’t have to live in Pittsburgh and we hope that EVERYONE will take advantage of this project that invites you to make yoga and meditation a part of EVERY day of your life in a gentle and flexible way.   This program is for yogis of all ages, experience levels and physical abilities. 

Here is how it works:

STEP 1:  Pay the fees for home practice or make a donation 

The cost for the basic home practice and one year of home yoga practice support is $24.  You can make a payment online at the bottom of this page.

 

STEP 2:  You will receive a BASIC HOME PRACTICE in the mail to the mailing address you provide when you make payment. 

This home practice will take most adults 10-15 minutes to complete.  Modifications for practice in a chair or lying down can be provided upon request. The home practice guide will include pictures and text that describe the poses and exercises.  If you ever have any questions, there will be support contact information provided in your WELCOME KIT.

 

STEP 3:  Every month, you will receive an e-mail newsletter that will provide an additional 5-10 minutes of practice ideas so that you can slowly expand the amount of time you are spending on your home practice through the 12-months of the program.

 

By the end of one year, you will have:

1-A basic home practice that you can do anytime and anywhere in 10-15 minutes.

2-Three different 1-hour long home practices that you can do:
    #1:  Home Practice for Low Back and Hips
    #2:  Home Practice for Stress Relief
    #3:  Home Practice to Relieve Tension in the Head, Neck and Shoulders

3-Home Yoga & Meditation practices for anywhere between 10-minutes and 1-hour so you will always have a plan for your home practice no matter how much or how little time you have. 

 

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER I SIGN-UP?

When you sign-up for home practice support, you will receive a Welcome Kit that will include the BASIC HOME PRACTICE.  The basic home practice is designed to take 10-15 minutes and includes some breathing practices, stretching and relaxation.  We suggest that you start by making a commitment to doing 10-minutes of yoga a day for 5-days per week.  It’s more important that you are consistent about practicing every day than the amount of time you spend every day. You will be amazed at how different you feel with just 10-minutes of practice! 

One month after you sign-up for the home practice support, you will begin to receive monthly e-mail newsletters that provide an additional 5-minutes to add on to your basic practice until you have an hour-long home practice with variations for low back and hip care, stress, and tension in head, neck and shoulders.  You will also receive yoga and meditation tips in every newsletter that will help inspire your practice and keep it fresh.  It is ALWAYS your choice how much or how little of the practice you do.  This practice is designed so that, no matter how much or how little time you have, you can always have a great plan for a 10-minute, 20-minute, 40-minute or hour long practice and everything in between.

You don’t need any special equipment or clothing to practice yoga at home.  It is suggested that you decide on a place for your practice and consistently use that place (it can be ANYWHERE that you have floor space—kitchen, hallway, ANYWHERE).  Many people find that it is helpful to have a yoga mat and to keep it within view so that you can just throw your mat down and practice when you have a few minutes. 

We also recommend that you take a minimum of 2-yoga classes a month with a qualified teacher at a studio in your area.  It’s a good idea to go to a class so that you can receive adjustments to your poses, be a part of a supportive yoga community and receive the benefits of an inspiring practice. You will learn new poses and new ideas and you can always incorporate what you like the most into your home practice.   Practicing on your own and practicing with a group is a very different experience.  It’s important to have both of these types of experiences in order to advance your practice AND to keep your home practice fresh and exciting.

Your 2010 home practice will also include reading the following two books:

1.  Reinventing the Body, Resurrecting the Soul
     by Deepak Chopra.  2009

2.  The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of 
    Happiness by Youngey Mingyur Rinpoche.  2007

Each monthly e-newsletter will include information from these texts to inspire your practice and to keep your practice engaged with yoga philosophy.

You don’t have to buy these books, but we think you’ll want to so you can read them again and again and again!—You can borrow them from the library, create a home practice group with friends and collectively own one set of the texts, etc.  If you do buy them and you have a local book shop, please order it through them or ask them to carry these titles.  If not, then the book titles are linked to information that will help you purchase them online.  If you live in or around the Pittsburgh Metro area, we recommend Joseph Beth Booksellers on the South Side.  They should have these books in stock for you or they can order them!

If you are interested, please go to  https://www.yogamatrika.com//practiceyoga-at-home/
for more details and to sign-up for home practice support.

Posted by Sharon Fennimore Rudyk
Owner and Director, Yoga Matrika

http://www.sharonrudykyoga.info
https://www.yogamatrika.com/
http://www.prenatalyogapittsburgh.com

Walking on Earth

July 2, 2009
Posted by Sharon
Leave a comment

There is a Chinese proverb that says that:

The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water, but to walk on the earth.

This is the same with a yoga practice.  Over time and with intelligent stretching practices, the body will open and become more flexible.  With practice, beginning yoga students advance in their alignment and ability to do a greater variety of poses.  It is truly beautiful to see an experienced yogi express the spirit of a pose with a deep and profound expression of grace.  Advanced students create a flowing meditation through soft and easy breath and the control of balance and energy through bandha work and reflection on the philosophy and science of yoga. 

While these are all beautiful reflections on the potential of yoga to create balance, ease and strength and grace, I see the miracle in the beginners.  It starts with the honesty of effort and the realisation when new students see that even by drawing their awareness to the breath, without changing anything at all, everything changes.  The miracle is not the perfect pose after years of training, the miracle is that moment that new students have when they realise that it is just being present in this moment that has the power to change the course of a life.  The miracle is not a one-armed handstand, it is standing in tadasana–mountain pose—with weight balanced across the feet and the head, heart and gut one on top of the other.

The Miracle of Standing on Earth Practice:

Take your shoes and socks off and allow your feet to breathe and soften into the floor beneath you.  Wiggle and spread your toes and feel the pressure of your feet on the earth and the earth on your feet.  Evaluate the distribution of your body weight accross your feet and see if you can move in a way that allows you to equally balance the weight of your body across the pinky toe, big toe and heel of the feet.  Press your inner ankles towards your outer ankles and roll your thigh bones back as you tuck your sitting bones underneath you.  Feel the lift of the navel and heart as you relax your shoulders down and away from your earlobes.  Stretch the crown of your head towards the sky and slightly bring your chin towards your heart as you relax your forehead, neck and jaw.

Breathe here in this place of where you stand.  Notice sensation in your feet, legs, belly, lower back, lungs, heart center, shoulders, arms and hands.  How do the bones of your face, neck and jaw feel?  There are no right or wrong answers.  It’s just what you feel right now.  Each and every time you do this exercise you will feel different.  It’s the miracle of standing on earth.

With affection,
Sharon Rudyk
Director, Yoga Matrika
A beautiful yoga studio community in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.