Yoga Teacher Training: Letting Go of Comparison

Yoga classes can be intimidating, but I am here to say, there is no such thing as being "good" at yoga. Well, at least, that's what I believe to be true. 

For the past two weeks, I have been thinking a lot about letting go of comparison as a means of truly growing in my own practice, both on and off the mat. During a difficult posture in a class, the instructor simply said, "Let go of comparison." It was such a small statement, but it has stuck with me. In a class setting, it is easy to let your mind (and eyes) stray and think things like, "Their dancer's pose is better than mine," or "Why haven't I been able to reach the same variation of the pose as my friend?" Comparison takes away from celebrating what you can do, what you have done, and what you will do. 

Yoga Teacher Training: Setting an Intention of Discipline

I am heading into my fourth week of teacher training and am taking some time to reflect on the first few weeks. We had week three off for the holiday and spent that week in a self-study, so I have really been thinking a lot about the first two weeks we spent together.

During the second week, we had a guest lecturer come in and speak about the history and philosophy of yoga. This lecture confirmed some things I already knew about the history of yoga, but also taught me a lot about yoga as a philosophical practice to be practiced in everyday life. I began practicing yoga a few years ago with my friend Dominique and continued to practice mostly for the physical aspects. About a year ago, I was taking a class with a teacher who was really focused on being present in the moment and that was the first time the mental component of yoga really clicked for me. It took a few years of my practicing to begin to unravel the mental and other non-physical benefits of practicing yoga, even then at a high level.

Yoga Teacher Training: Why I Chose CorePower Yoga

Friends! Tomorrow I begin Yoga Teacher Training at CorePower Yoga. I had been thinking about doing a yoga teacher training for a while, and now seemed like the perfect time to jump in. For those interested in the YTT journey, I will be sharing a blog here weekly about what I’m learning and other reflections.

In this first one, I am sharing about why I decided to do teacher training at CorePower. There are lots of teacher training programs out there and below are some guiding questions I used in deciding on a training. I began practicing at CorePower about a year ago and started going regularly in the past few months. Before that, I was practicing at 105f in Chicago, but I wanted to practice somewhere closer to where I lived, so I made the switch to CorePower. Now, onto teacher training considerations.

48 Hours in Miami

It is always a good idea to spend the weekend in Miami. Especially if it means escaping the Spring that can't decide if it wants to stick around in Chicago. This was a quick trip, but refreshing nonetheless. I got in just before midnight Thursday and took a 7am flight out Sunday, leaving me with 2 full days to soak up the sun. 

So, if you don't know this, Miami is a moderately expensive city, especially when it comes to food, so heading into this trip I was not keen on spending lots of money on a weekend wardrobe refresh. I bought some new items, but focused on what I already owned to put together these outfits. Not buying new clothes freed up some cash to do more fun things in Miami. 

Lululemon Wunder Under Review & Care Tips

If you read my last post, then you know representation in marketing and advertising has been on my mind lately. Now, you might be saying, why would you buy something from Lululemon if that's what you've been thinking about? Isn't their sizing so jacked up there's basically no difference between a 2 and a 10?? Isn't that a fat-shaming brand???

These are all totally legitimate questions. Lululemon's founder and former CEO certainly made some messed-up comments blaming design flaws on consumers' bodies back in 2013 - no good. Since then, the brand has done some major damage control (and product enhancements), including finding a new CEO. Yet, even that did not fix their problems as Lululemon has recently launched another search for a CEO after the body-shamer's successor engaged in "inappropriate workplace behavior." Certainly, a company with trouble, but we've all got problematic faves and have to continue to ask more of the places where we spend money.

I decided to take a stroll down Lululemon lane because it was a  of some of my favorite fit girls and I've never seen a woman's butt not look good in a pair of leggings from Lululemon. I recently started practicing yoga more regularly and as someone with a thing for activewear, I took this as an opportunity to dive into high-end yoga-wear. I was also curious about how these pants would fit a woman like me who has been thick before starting to lift and typically has issues finding pants that fit both my hips and waist.