Lesson Three: Learning to Be Present

     At the beginning of yoga class our teachers encourage us to let go of anything we were doing, thinking about, or  that happened before getting to class or is going to happen after class. they ask us to sit and bring our attention to our breath, to center, to become grounded, and to become present.

     It is so rare in our culture to truly be present. We are constantly on the go, thinking about the next thing we need to do. Coming to yoga class gives us a much needed escape from the constant go, go, go of our everyday lives. 

     Being present is often difficult when first starting we first start our practice of yoga.  Often we don't even know what it means to be present. Over time it gets easier and we notice how being present on our mat helps us to be present in our lives. 

     I challenge you to become aware of you thoughts while having a conversation with someone.  Are you thinking about the next thing you are going to say? Or are you being present and listening to what the person is saying? Try this and see how it feels to really be present in your conversations, how it feels to really listen. 

     This practice has helped my relationships on many levels. Don't we all want to be heard? I believe it starts with being truly listening and being present. In what ways has being present helped your relationships? 

Lesson Two From The Mat to Our Lives: Letting Go

   

       Aparigraha or non-grasping is one of the five Yamas, which are part of the eight limb path of yoga.  Aparigraha teaches us not to take more than what we need and not to hold onto things.  It teaches us our attachments and grasping on to things in our lives is a great generator of our own suffering.
     We become so attached to sensations, to people, to objects, and to outcomes when we lose or don't attain these things we react negatively.  These negative reactions we have then cause us to suffer.  In yoga we learn and practice how to let go, how to not grasp, and how to not take more than we need.
      Letting go our of desire for control, our desire for material possessions we don't need, and letting go of relationships that don't serve us.  Letting go our our judgements, fears, anger, blame, expectations and so much more.  It is truly amazing what happens when bring the practice of Aparigraha into our lives and let go.
     One of the things I have been working on letting go of is my need to feel in control and plan my future.  I am practicing living in the present moment and trying to do my best right now.  I don't have to worry about the future because what I am doing now will lead me down the right path to where I am suppose to be.
     What have you let go of and how has it made a difference in your life?

Why Yoga?

Why are so many people doing yoga?

     There are many benefits that come from the practice of yoga.  Everyone has their own reasons for coming to their mat.  I originally came to practice because of my job and needing to have a knowledge of what yoga is.  As my practice developed I came back to my mat to relieve pain in my body and de-stress and let go.  My time on the mat was for me and me only.
     As my practice has grown and evolved so have the reasons I come to the mat.  I come for peace, I come for stillness, I come for joy, I come for release, I come for energy, I come for strength.  I come to the mat because it makes me a better person.
     What brings you to your mat?

What Different Styles of Yoga Offer

     Over the last three weeks I have been fortunate enough to be able to devote this month to deepening my understanding of yoga and learning how to teach and share it with others.  I have been studying at Yoga Garden in San Francisco with an amazing group of people.  I have spent six days a week with them and we have grown quite close.  We have laughed, cried, fallen out of poses, and had physical and emotional breakthroughs together.  It has been quite an amazing journey and its not over yet!
     In this training I have been exposed to many different teaching styles and styles of yoga.   I am grateful Yoga Garden had a variety of teachers leading their 200 hour teacher training.  This has given me the opportunity to see what resonates with me, what feels right in my body, and what direction I wish to take my practice and my teaching.  This has taught me there is no right or wrong or one perfect way to practice or teach yoga.  Everyone is different so it only makes sense that different styles of yoga will resonate with each of us.
     I would encourage everyone, new yoga students and people with established yoga practices to try out different styles of yoga.  See what you enjoy, see what you are neutral towards, and see what you dislike.  Then I challenge you to look deeper into why you like or dislike a certain style.  Do you love Vinyasa because you are moving and sweating or do you dislike it because you don't get to hold a pose for very long? Do you love Yin because of the deep stretching and release or do you dislike it because you can't seem to relax and your mind is racing? Do you enjoy Iyengar because you gain a better understanding of alignment in the pose and explore how deep you can get into a pose or do you dislike it because you become impatient or want to do more poses in a class?
     I challenge you to dig deeper and find out why you are feeling these things.  In my own practice I found I gravitated toward more movement style classes because I didn't have to think.  When I took slower paced classes I had a hard time staying present.  I challenged myself to do the things that were harder for me and still try to find the same peace and presence I found in faster pace classes.  Going to more Yin and Iyengar classes taught me how to be in my body and how to still my mind.  These practices also helped me in my flow practice.  I had better alignment from practicing Iyengar and was more open because of practicing Yin.
     So go out there and find what is true for your body, your mind, and your practice! I would love to hear what works for you and any stories you have about finding what practices work for you!

Namaste
Ali

How I Got Here

Hi!
     My name is Ali Snapp and I grew up in Los Osos, Ca. A small beach town on the central coast.  I grew up playing sports and being very active.  I played soccer quite competitively for four year and ran track in high school.  Two broken feet, ruptured calf muscle, severe spinal lordosis, patella-femoral syndrom and three broken fingers later I got to the point where I could no longer do the things I was use to doing.  This was devastating. I didn't know how I could be active while dealing with these injuries and the healing of theses injuries. At one point it was difficult to walk very far and stand for extended periods of time.  So I did my best with the injuries I was dealing with.
     I found yoga in an odd way, through my job.  I was hired to work at a yoga studio and sell yoga memberships and help students find the right classes and guide them along in their yoga journey.  I had heard about yoga but had never tried it.  I was under the impression I needed to be flexible inorder to do yoga.  Therefore, I was very nervous about starting a practice.  I was blessed to have kind and understanding teachers from the beginning.   They put me at ease and taught me to accept where I am.  They told me yoga is a practice and every day will be different.
     This was a big shift for me as a former athlete.  I had to shift from the mentality of I want to win to a mentality of I am here.  I could not look at a pose like a soccer game or a race I wanted to win.  Yes a pose has a point of full extension but it can't be viewed the same as winning a race or a game.  I had to come to terms with the idea it may take me years to fully extend through a pose and I may never get there but that is not what it is about.  Furthermore, once I have attained full extension within a pose there is still more I can work in while I am holding the pose.  I had to come to realize yoga is about being present in the moment and accepting where you are and being ok with that.  Knowing that we are ok just the way we are.  Yoga is a journey not a destination.
     I am honored to share this journey with you and would enjoy and appreciate any comments or personal stories you would like to share.

Namaste