Yoga and Cancer

wow! what a conincidence. I came across this article today with details on how yoga helps cancer patients dealing with the disease. Great read!

http://crazysexylife.com/2011/benefits-of-yoga-and-mindfulness-for-people-with-cancer/

Yoga for eyes

Went to a Yoga therapy class last nite (I decided to go for a more relaxing class since I was still not 100% recovered from my flu)

and this is the 1st time I did yoga that targets my eye muscle.
The teacher asked us to look at different angles without moving our heads. Like you look to the right, and look to the left (not moving your head).

I found this exercise very beneficial to your eyes. Cos we used our eyes so much everyday (reading, staring at our monitors....), but we never give our eyes any pampering.

Therefore, I really think that this yoga exercise for eyes will definitely help with tired eyes!
I should definitely do it by myself everyday.

Sep 26
Yoga Therapy with Nuthan @ Pure Yoga CWB

Recovering

Sep 25
Just recovered from flu. well, like 88% recovered.
I decided to go to a Hatha class and see if it would make me feel better

It did. I sweat so much and I felt the toxin getting out of my skin.
Great feeling.

I hope I can be 100% recovered soon!

Hatha 1 @ Pure Yoga QB

something new

So blessed.

Had a really relaxing class today.

I always like having class with new teacher. I always get something new and different.

YOGA

Hatha 1 with Yoganidhi @ Pure yoga CWB

Sick...

I felt sick on Monday. But I still went for Hatha class.

I can still do most of the poses but definitely not an enjoyable experience.

But I was glad that the teacher correct some of my poses, and I hope I can work on that in the future.

Sep 19

Hatha Class with Nuthan @ Pure Yoga CWB

Trying out Satyanada Yoga

I really enjoyed my 1st Satyanada Yoga class with Kapil @ Pure yoga QB on Sunday.
He is a really good teacher. and I love this class as it dedicates time to chanting, which is something I really enjoy doing.
Physically, the class is not very tough, but definitely energizing.
Hope that I can wake up again next sunday to attend this class

great class!

Great class on Sep 14.
Lawrence is such a good teacher. He always pushes the students to go further. I always find myself doing a little more in his class. Like I can finally successfully do a lower plank (without knees touching the mat) ! YAY

What a surprise

What a surprise today. Practicing yoga with "Smell like teens spirit" as background music (music box version of course). Sounds weird, but feels awesome!

Hot Hour with Claudia @ Pure Yoga QB

Yogis not having enough impact on society??

I watched one youtube video regarding the no. of yogis in the world. The person in the video pointed out that there are around 18 million people out there practicing yoga. And he said it's surprisingly how little this big group of people has little impact on the world or society.

I don't know. At the end of the day, people practice yoga for so many different reasons. Some do it for health, some do it to lose weight, so do it for relaxation. And I believe it is absolutely okay to do yoga for whatever reason you have.

But with so many different reasons behind, it's hard to gather all these forces together to really "DO" something.

However, to me, I still think that yogis are having impact on the society, but maybe in a more subtle way.

To me, if all the yogis in the world can have one second of peace, or have a little more awareness of themselves during their practice, that's already a big contribution to the society. Cos all these little seconds of peaceful moment add up to a great amount of peace on earth already. Especially in this chaotic world, every little peaceful moment counts

Sep 12

Yoga - Hot Hour @ pure yoga CWB

Back to my mat

I went to Singapore for a meeting since last Tuesday

And I hadn't really practiced yoga since landing in Singapore.

I tried to do Sun salutations in my hotel room but I was feeling too tired....

Therefore, I am so happy today that I finally am able to go back to my mat.

Sep 11

Hot Hour with Margie @ pure yoga CWB

Walking meditation

I am not really doing walking meditation as taught by many great teachers.

All I have done is to be more mindful when I am walking back home. It's a really small distance (only a 5 mins walk), but I try to be more mindful of each step I make, and i also try to be more aware of the overall environment around me.

And it's a really funny experience cos you realize the road you pass by everyday suddenly feels a little different.

What's also different is that I am not thinking about reaching my destination. Instead, I am really taking time to pay attention to this whole walking process.

I am now really interested in joining a walking meditation retreat!

Sep 5

Yoga - Hatha 1 with Eswar @ pure yoga CWB

Like playing poker...

I really like this saying by Nitai at Pure CWB. He said in class, "Practicing is like playing poker, you work with the cards you have."

I find this teaching so true.

And this teaching does not only apply to yoga practice only.

In our daily life, we always tend to think about things that we don't have. We always imagine how we can do something better if we were given this or that....

The truth is - all these thoughts are meaningless. We should just work with what we have. Why waste the time and energy to think about what we don't have? Why don't we think about how we can do better with the resources we already have on hand?

I really need to remind me about this.

Sep 4

Yoga - Hatha 1 with Nitai@ Pure Yoga CWB

Don't think too much

Sometimes, I think that you don't really need to think too much about how benefits yoga can give you. Just do it because you like it, and the benefits with come (thinking about it or not)

Sep 2

Yoga - Hatha 1 with Margie @ pure yoga CWB

Yoga in the dark?

Although it's really a personal practice, when you are in a class environment, I find it really hard not to compare with others. Especially the open on the mat next to you is just so flexible....
I know that there's a concert called "concert in the dark" and the musicans are playing in total darkness.
Will "Yoga in the Dark" help work? Maybe that will really help us focus? I just wonder....

Aug 31
Yoga - Gentle Flow with Margie @ Pure Yoga CWB

Fight or Flight

A day full of stress.

And by coincidence (or not?), my yoga class today started with a story by teacher Kapil on "Fight or Flight"

He said that it's an inborn nature for people to either fight or flight when we are facing danger. However, in the modern world, it is actually very rare that we bump into real danger.

But we still have this "flight or fight" body reaction (getting tense....etc.) unconsciously when our ego (or image) is kind of threaten. And he said this is totally meaningless as there is actually no real danger we are facing. It's only the ego we are facing.

So true. Why stress out? It's not a matter of life or death

Aug 29

Yoga - Warm and Relaxing Stretch with Kapil @ Pure Yoga CWB

Listen to your body

I realize that doing yoga does help you get more aware of your own body.
There are some days when you don't feel as energetic or flexible,


And today is one of my bad days.


Thanks to my teacher who reminds us that we need to listen to your body and just take it easy. I still try to do all the poses, but when I don't feel good, I just relax a little bit.


I guess that also applies to daily life. When we don't feel good, we should take it easy. Instead of waking ourselves up by drinking coffee or even Red Bull, maybe all we need to a good night sleep.


Aug 28

Yoga - Hot Hour @ Pure Yoga Quarry Bay (Vagish)

Yoga Sutra

I was listening to Geshe Michael Roach's lecture on Yoga Sutra online.
http://www.theknowledgebase.com/browse/products.php?product=Love-and-the-Yoga-Sutra-%282011%2C-Singapore%2C-Geshe-Michael-Roach%29


This lecture is really quite interesting and inspirational.
I am not going to go into details about this Sutra (Cos if you are interested, it's really better to listen to the original teaching)


I really like the idea that when we ourselves are having problems, and negative emotions start to arise, instead of thinking about ourselves, pray for others' happiness.


I think this practice can be quite powerful as it reminds you not to be self centered. Usually, when you feel unhappy, you can't get out from the sadness as all you can focus on is yourself.
And God knows that this will only intensify your unhappiness.


Instead, if we can learn to shift our focus to others, we will stop thinking about ourselves at least for a short moment. And eventually, you can be closer to the "selflessness" stage as described in Buddhism.


Aug 26


Yoga - Hot Hatha Class with Margie @ Pure Yoga CWB


Meditation - the Yoga Sutra by Geshe Michael Roach

Peacefulness off the mat

Life is getting a bit hectic again.
I realize that I still cannot really bring my practice off the mat. The peacefulness I experience on the mat seems to be staying on the mat only. I really wish I can develop the awareness needed to bring this peaceful feeling into my daily life.
After all, that's the ultimate goal, isn't it?


Aug 25

Yoga - Hot class with Annie @ Pure Yoga CWB
I really enjoy how I can stretch more in a hot room, although I don't like how my sweat make it slippery to actually hold my pose.

My 1st Entry!!

After I started practicing Yoga again in June, I wanted to keep a journal of my yoga/ meditation journey. Basically, I would like to simply keep a record of my practice (as a tool to keep me practicing everyday :P)

At first, I thought about keeping the journal private, I want to just write all my thoughts in a small notebook.

As a yoga beginner, I think I probably have more frustration to share than real practice tips or advice.

But I guess there are so many beginners out there, who are also on their way in discovering yoga and meditation. So I hope that someone (finger-crossed) might find a little bit of inspiration from my own journey.

I will also try to share articles and videos on Yoga /Meditation that I find interesting.

AUG 24

Yoga - 1 hr practice Warm and relaxing stretch with Jasmine @ Pure Yoga Qarry Bay
All the poses are simple, but if you put your heart into it, it can still be a very deep practice

Meditation - Follow Eoin Finn's Wed meditation (manifesting)
- "Why bob around when you can surf?" Eion asked.
Mmmm...probably will take me some time figure out what it means.....