If you cannot tell - I am very excited! Andrew and I got a new car last night!! Woot woot! It is a 2015 Lexus ES 350. I know a Lexus sounds very fancy (because it is) but we were able to get a really good deal on it and had to drive all the way to Marin to get it. We traded in my Hot Tamale for Ms. Sexy Lexi! I know what you are thinking... Lexi is such an original name for a Lexus. This post is not about yoga, but I will say that the first thing I put in the new car... my yoga mat! Shockingly enough, Sexy Lexi got even prettier after that. :) Have a great day!

This past weekend, Andrew and I took our friend, David, down to Southern California to go to Magic Mountain for his birthday. He loves roller coasters so it was on his bucket list. Andrew's sister, Joy, and our good friend, Ben the Rocket Scientist, also joined us for the trip. You can probably tell by my facial expression in the picture below that roller coasters scare me. This picture was taken after already going on 2 terrifying coasters. The first one was called Tatsu. The seats you are in shift backwards so you get the impression of flying. Since everyone was very excited about the ride (except me), we ended up in the front row. Let's just say I was a blubbering mess! I was trying to take deep calming Ujjayi breaths as they were strapping us in, but all that was happening were tears welling up and my nose starting to run. Sigh... Let's just say I survived. It was not my favorite experience but I was proud of myself for doing it. Everyone thought I would not be going o

Recently, I couldn't help myself and bought a yoga magazine while I was in line at the grocery store. The focus for this particular issue is yoga injuries. I have been fortunate enough that I have not had any major yoga injuries. Rather, it was a major injury that got me into yoga. There are many reasons that could lead to a yoga related injury including: pushing oneself too hard - especially when an injury is already present, poor alignment, a teacher giving inaccurate cues, etc. I believe pushing oneself too hard is a HUGE reason yogis get hurt. When I first started doing yoga I was guilty of pushing myself too hard. Now that I have been practicing for almost 4 years I am more aware of my body's needs. Just like my guru, Kaycie, conveys to me, I try to convey to my students that "the ego is not your amigo!" I have only read 2 articles from the magazine but the main thing that struck me was this: Yoga is not about the asanas (postures) it is about the body. The a

If you checked out my Tayoga calendar you may have figured out that yoga is not my full time job. Besides being a Yoga Instructor I am also a Registered Dietitian (RD). The two go hand in hand quite nicely. I have been an RD since October 2011. Currently, I work at a skilled nursing facility which I enjoy. I wouldn't say I am passionate about my full time job like I am about yoga but I do enjoy it. I enjoy the people I work with and I enjoy meeting new people on a daily basis. One day I want to create a job that combines my dietetics degree with my passion for yoga...and maybe my passion for beer as well (in moderation of course!). What would your dream job be?

So I realized this morning that I have a problem. A yoga problem (if there is such a thing). Apparently, I have been teaching and going to classes so much that this morning instead of driving to work I started driving to my yoga studio! Whoops! I love yoga so much I started a class at work for the employees. Yoga makes me feel so good and I want to share it with others. Today will be the second Chair Tayoga class for all available employees from 10:30-10:45am. I realize it is only a 15 minute class but any yoga is better than none at all. Plus, I provide a brief shoulder massage with essential oils for those who have time. Everyone loved the class so much I decided to bring it back this week!  I am blessed to have found a passion in life and I hope you find one as well. Have a splendid week!

Friends are the family that you get to choose. It is so true. My friends have supported me throughout my yoga training and teaching. They understand it is my passion and is important to me. Several of them showed up for my first classes which made me feel supported (and nervous). Last night I subbed for a fellow teacher's 7pm class. Andrew and I had hung out with friends all weekend so I told them I had a couple extra classes I was teaching this week. There were 8 people total in the class and my close friends made up half of them. I felt the love. Two of those people can count on one hand how many times they have done yoga. This morning when I got to work I had a text from one of them telling me, "Nice job with class. Your confidence has improved and the move descriptions helped me follow along a little better than last time." ~Aaron Page I love bringing friends to classes and meeting new ones. Hope to see you at one of my classes in the future, friend! 12/22

This past Saturday Elevate Community Yoga hosted an additional training for its teachers which was on the softer side of yoga. This included Slow Flow, Gentle, Restorative, Yin, Chair and private sessions. It was a lot of information to pack in one day but I absolutely loved it. I took this training because I enjoy making people feel good. I never thought I would want to do private sessions but it is definitely a way to individualize and help heal one person at a time. Maybe down the road I'll start private session but I am definitely more comfortable in the group setting for now. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Chair Yoga training. I want to take this information and bring it to my workplace. I currently work at a Skilled Nursing Facility. This can be a very stressful environment to work in and my goal is to start hosting 15 minute chair yoga sessions for the employees. This will help with their physical and mental health. I've already announced it to the staff who seem very e