Yoga News at Yogatic.

I’m just back from the Netherlands, where I taught a short yoga workshop to support my teacher Taetske Kleijn. She was celebrating the 10th year functioning of her center “Tsuki Meditation and Insight”. Taetske teaches the Clarity process, which Jeru Kabbal founded.

It was so great to meet up with most of the people that I spend three years with doing workshops, retreats and intensives. I’m so grateful to have had the time and opportunity to do this. This 3 year course, which has brought me more that I can put into words also inspired me to start Yogatic! .

I feel like telling you something about the clarity process, because its what motivates me everyday to be as clear and present as I can be.

The Clarity Process is a five-step set of workshops, intensives and processes that you can do by yourself.

The five steps towards Clarity are: (more…)

Hi everyone.

Update: We’ve been shortlisted for Best Videocaster!

We are all very exited that we are nominated for the Irish Web Awards 2008. Yogatic is longlisted in the category “best videocaster”.

I would like to thank everybody for all the support and attention we have got over the the past few months. The awards will be Saturday October the 11th in Dublin. For more info visit: http://awards.ie/webawards/

Hi everyone,

My first week back at teaching yoga after a long break. I’m glad to be getting back in the routine of the classes, hope my students are happy too after their first class of sun salutations, locusts, leg, arm and core work. They will probably feel the work tomorrow !

It’s interesting how happy I am to go back to the routine of working, after looking forward so much to the holidays. I think that no matter how nice it is to anticipate the days of having to do nothing, once you’re there it can also make you feel lost. So is it true what they say: can you attain freedom through discipline?

I’ve noticed myself I like the discipline. It serves me well. The discipline of arriving on my mat every day, no matter how I feel and just take it from there. The discipline to listen and accept my feelings, emotions, knowing that even though the feelings are real, to not believe in them, and possibly not act from them. The discipline of reminding myself that the reasons that I have those feelings and emotions, are not real anymore. Those reasons are usually long gone. The discipline of reminding myself of that, every time again and again. That now things are ok. To just observe and say the mantra ” this too shall pass”

All these things seem to come easier to me when I’m back in my daily routine. It helps me to remind myself of all I can do, to remain aware of what is really happening. And not believe in how my mind/ego interprets what is happening.

Anyway, just some thoughts.

Hope you all too, will experience, the freedom that routine and discipline can give you.

Esther

Hi everyone,

Over the last few day I got some nice comments about the photography on this website. They were made last spring by our good friend Ruud Voerman. He is a very talented Dutch photographer and has a studio in Lelystad, 45 minutes from Amsterdam,the Netherlands.

It was my first professional photo-shoot and that was very exciting. Ruud’s professional approach and his great sense of humor made me feel  comfortable and relaxed.

Ruud picked up photography only a few years ago and his work turned out very successful  almost right from the start.

To view a smashing gallery of his work please have a look at http://www.ruudvoerman.nl/

Thanks again Ruud!

Esther

Hi Everyone,

What a day when I saw the numbers going up with thousands at a time….. There I was, still half asleep sipping my green tea, Opening the youtube page to see did anything change, and seeing myself, on the opening page, being featured!!!

I just want to say to all my viewers, from youtube or the website, THANK YOU SO MUCH !!!! for all your views, comments (positive or not so), ratings and subscriptions. I’m delighted about this, its all new to me and seeing the numbers go up that much is very exciting! Please keep supporting me, I’m very grateful!

I got a lot of questions and comments about why do the Headstand. The headstand in itself is just a trick. A trick that you can also learn to do when you are serious about your practice (leaving out those who are lucky enough that they can just do anything with their body’s.) Besides a trick its a real pose as well with lots of real benefits that you can read up about if you click on Sirsasana. This one is done in a different way.

Anyhow, Thanks again. I hope I helped all of you with my last video about getting back in shape after the holidays, I made that one mostly for myself, having done not much more than some sunbathing in France the last 2 weeks….. Ouch.., and now I have to get back in shape to teach all my students again in a weeks time! Wish me luck,

XX

Esther

Being confronted with asthma in my close surroundings, I decided to have a closer look at it with regards to yoga.

Does yoga help when you suffer from asthma ?

After reading up about it on the net and of course drawing on my own knowledge about yoga I’ve come to the conclusion that yoga can definitely alleviate symptoms and sometimes prevent them. With a regular yoga practice and breathing exercises, after some time, it might be possible to diminish your intake of medication and who knows down the line stop taking them altogether. Always in accordance with your general practitioner of course.

To explain how yoga helps when you suffer from asthma (more…)

Patanjali is the author of the Yoga Sutras, the most revered to and sacred text written sometime in the third century before Christ, Patanjali describes the yoga philosophy in a series of 196 aphorisms.

Patanjali clearly describes 8 steps that you can follow so you can live in harmony.

All the limbs are connected and will help you to experience the ultimate truth.

The 8 limbs consists of the following:

• Yamas and Niyamas : These are 10 ethical precepts that allow us to be at peace with ourselves, family and community.
• Asanas : These are yoga postures, they help us to keep our body strong, flexible and relaxed.
• Pranayama : breathing practices, they help us to move prana, life force.
• Pratyahara : Drawing of ones attention to silence rather than towards things.
• Dharana : Focussing attention and cultivating inner perceptual awareness.
• Dhyana : Sustaining awareness under all conditions.
• Samadi : return of the mind into original silence.

Soon I’ll describe the Yamas and Niyamas.

What does having your period means for your yoga practice?

I think it really depends. Being on your menstrual cycle for many women means being somewhat low on energy. Honoring your body always sounds like a good idea, but what does that exactly mean? Is it the same as giving in to the bodies cravings, like taking it easy, doing nothing and just feeling the blues, giving in to the chocolate and sugar cravings?

I personally don’t think so. It is very possible that that is what you crave, but we’re not really honoring the body (more…)

Body image is the way we perceive our body, the way we feel about our body, the way we think about our body. All of the above have an effect on how we treat our body.

When you are happy with your body, you will most likely treat your body with respect, and because of that also do your yoga practice with respect, enjoying purely doing it, able to be in the moment while practicing.

However, if you suffer from a voice in your head telling you you’re too thin, too fat, not strong enough, not muscular enough, not the right curves or too much curves, not as beautiful, or flexible as the girl next to you, chances are your yoga practice will be a reflection of that body image.

The way you practice will most likely be that you push yourself too hard to get thinner, create more muscles, etcetera. Or your confidence will be so low you’re not looking for your edges at all, always staying well within the comfort zone, thus never challenging your body, also never discover your greatness, your abilities.

What I would like for everybody is to be aware of your motivations, your voices, your body image. So you are aware what drives you. Than you can change.

Set an intention for yourself to make peace with your body, accept it the way it is, realize that our cultural body image is not realistic and crushes everybody’s self confidence. How you feel matters most, not what you think someone else might think, you’ll never win that game. The most beautiful people are suffering from the most terrible body images, because they believe they are totally dependent on other peoples opinions.

When you love yourself, respect yourself you’ll treat yourself well, your body will find its natural balance and you will be beautiful, from the inside out.

Esther Ekhart

Some students report back to have had emotional releases after a class, or even during a class. I just want to let everybody know that that is a positive sign, comfortable or not.

During a yoga class, you are present to your body, a good teacher will help you to stay aware as to what is going on inside of you. This has an effect that your subconscious mind begins to feel safe, so your body will begin to relax and knots, tensions will release, sometimes an emotional release can be the result of that.

My advice is to stay present to everything you experience. Observe it and stay with your breath and the feeling. During life we spent most of our energy running away from, what we perceive, as uncomfortable feelings. In a yoga class you have an opportunity to practice a different approach and that is staying with it. Staying with it, remaining present will release whatever is going on so it can then move on, change, balance and eventually heal. You can than transfer this new approach into your daily life.

So welcome these releases in your practice, trust your practice, the safe space you create for yourself doing your practice.

Namaste,

Esther Ekhart