Archive for the ‘Kripalu Yoga’ Category

Tips for Letting Go of Stress

Tuesday, November 8th, 2011

By: Jim Whiting, CIHH Kripalu Yoga and Meditation Instructor

Allow Change

Ever try to capture a moment and put it in a bottle, or try to stop the seasons from changing? It just can’t be done. The simple truth is that everything of this world is subject to change. Change is the only constant. You are subject to change. Your body changes, your circumstances change. You are quite literally not the same person you were a year ago, physically, emotionally or in your life circumstances. With all this change we have the choice of moving with the flow of change or resisting it.

Letting attachment go

To allow change requires letting go. Letting go of our attachments of wanting things to stay the same. Letting go of our mental constructs of how we believe things should be. Our homes, automobiles, lifestyles, even our loved ones. We want them to stay the same. We create memories, positive impressions of events in space and time. We personalize them and identify ourselves with these past impressions. We come to believe that these past impressions are somehow better than whatever is happening now.

Learn to Trust

Change can be scary and the uncertainty of unknown outcomes in our life can be frightening. Now imagine letting go of the fear of the unknown. Letting the change flow, letting life become a joyous celebration of change. No fear, no attachment to a past that is gone forever. Honor the moment, the memory of it, by letting it go. Think of how much energy it takes to hold up all these attachments, beliefs. Imagine having all that energy at your disposal. Imagine letting things be as they are and letting the change just flow. Imagine then becoming the change that moves through your life. Consider your relationships, do you put those closest to you in a holding pattern, not wanting them to change? Imagine all the energy you would have to place somewhere creative, somewhere loving. Imagine how would it change your life, change the world, by becoming the change.

Maybe all it really takes is letting go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What Moves Your Heart?

Friday, February 11th, 2011

By: Jim Whiting, Certified Kirpalu Yoga Instructor at the Center
Often we hear the expression “Home is where the heart is”. These are wise words that ring with truth. With Valentine’s Day just around the corner I can’t help but wonder if we wouldn’t be better served by asking ourselves what moves our hearts? Is it a lover’s embrace, is it family, job, money? Consider the term “heartfelt”- Without the heart being actively involved in our motivations and undertakings, we are acting only out of habit or necessity. The heart is able to move nations, mountains and elevate the soul. Nothing that rouses us to great heights can occur without full engagement of our hearts. As you move through this Valentine’s Day and go through your daily tasks take a moment to notice if your heart is involved or if are you moving unconsciously through your routine. See if you can engage your heart and elevate what seems mundane to be purposeful and inspired .

The Season of Abundance

Wednesday, December 8th, 2010

By Jim Whiting, Certified Kripalu Yoga Instructor and Meditation Teacher

The holiday season has become synonymous with abundance, starting with the festive meal of Thanksgiving, the many gifts of Christmas, and the lavish celebration of New Year Eve. All of these are certainly forms of abundance. But, without the abundance that resides within, all material forms that we manifest in our lives are meaningless.
During these festive seasons, take a moment to look within and ask yourself; what does abundance mean to me? Is it in the form of family, relationships, in the form of love, or does it simply reside in how much we possess? Material abundance can mask a deeper feeling of scarcity, that without material wealth we are venerable and weak. We need to gather things around us to make us feel complete, to show others we are as good, or better. Once we have gathered what we want, we need to protect it, keep it safe. We buy into the belief of ownership and become attached.

Abundance is a form of energy and like all energy must move or it will create sickness in mind or body. When we become attached, we try to ignore it, or deny that this law applies. One way to keep abundance in your life and allow it to move at the same time is the act of charity, to give. Give some of that abundance you’ve stored up away and create room for more. The more you are attached to it, the more energy you will move, the bigger the space you create for more in your life. As children we concern ourselves with what we will get. As adults we grow into the realization, it’s really about what we give. That is the spirit of the season, the lesson of Karma, and the law of abundance.

Have a happy and  healthy  holiday season!

“Be the Change You Want to See in the World”-Mohandas Gandhi

Tuesday, September 28th, 2010

By: Jim Whiting, Certified Kripalu Yoga Instructor and Meditation Teacher at the Center

The seasons are shifting and more change is on the horizon. To resist change is to invite suffering, to surrender to change is to open ourselves to endless possibility.
Change comes from within and the ground has been worked, and the seeds are always being harvested in the now. Our yoga mats are out and the meditation is moving into deep silence. The forward motion of our internal change continues, just as the summer becomes the fall.
   See you on the mat.
             Jai,
   Jim Whiting

Why Yoga Makes You Feel Better

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010

By Jim Whiting, Kripalu Yoga Instructor
Everyone knows stretching and exercise are healthy ways to feel better and to get into shape. After a yoga class you feel better than when you came. This is because of something called the parasympathetic nervous system. When we do yoga, we activate the parasympathetic nervous system through stretching and breathing. The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for slowing down our bodies through muscle relaxation, calming the mind, and results in better digestion, better immunity, lower blood pressure and lower heart rate.

While vigorous yoga is great for stretching the muscles, it doesn’t do much for engaging the parasympathetic nervous system. Holding postures longer, slow focused breaths, breathing into stretches and making breathing as important apart of your yoga practice as the movement, will ensure you activate the parasympathetic nervous system.

All of the Kripalu yoga classes offered here at the Center for Integrative Health and Healing focus on breathing and breathing techniques to engage the parasympathetic nervous system and bring us into a deeper place of healing.

So, the next time you leave a yoga class feeling so much better, thank your parasympathetic nervous system.

Namaste.

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