Is it hot in here or is it just me?
If you’ve ever met die-hard Bikram Yoga fans, you’ll understand why yoga looks like a cult. Bikram fans sweat for 90 minutes a day in rooms heated to 105°F, and they suffer through an entire class just so they can reach the “high” that comes afterwards. Bikram yoga is not unique in its cult-like appeal. Other forms of yoga have tinges of the extremism and addiction that turns off many people thinking about trying yoga. But unlike chanting, exercising in extreme heat can cause severe damage, either by acute heat stroke, or more chronic imbalances in the body’s ability to regulate itself. In a...
read moreA Letter from the Underground: Beware of Yoga Extremism
After months of deliberation, I have finally decided to speak out against extremism in the yoga world. If you are reading this, then my message has successfully made it to the internet. Tonight, I will be going underground and living out of an unmarked Volkswagen bus in the Pacific Northwest. I hope my message will empower some of you to speak out against the obsessive and excessive forms of yoga that threaten to destroy our unity and peace. The Terrible Toos Yoga extremists see the world as black and white, or sometimes just black or white. This can show up as: too much yoga too little...
read moreBring yoga into the workplace to combat stress
Stress in the workplace, along with new employee orientation and coworkers who drink too much at holiday parties, is one of the downsides of working. Most employees reluctantly accept stress as “part of the job.” Left unattended, though, workplace stress can lead to increased illness and injury. Dealing with workplace conditions can help alleviate some of the stress, but employees also need ways in which to manage the stress on their own. Yoga is an excellent tool that can be easily implemented in any workplace to help employees relax, focus and improve their overall health. Various surveys...
read moreBoost your ego with yoga practice
We gathered Sunday morning for a session with a visiting yoga teacher. We sat expectantly on our mats, waiting for his words of wisdom, the spiritual nectar that would nourish our souls. He laid out the guidelines for our practice: You may be overwhelmed with emotions — crying, laughing, ecstasy — this is normal, don’t be afraid. If you need to go to the bathroom, raise your hand so you can be escorted safely — in your spiritual bliss, you might accidentally wander into the street. After that introduction, I anxiously eyed the doorway on the other side of the yoga room. I...
read moreMom, Can I Go Outside and Exercise…I Mean…Play?
When I was a child, exercise was never a planned activity. My friends wouldn’t call me up and say, “Man, spelling class was a real bear today. Mrs. Hammond was riding me all through the adjectives. Let’s hit the gym, I need a good workout to blow off some steam.” We would just go to the park and play ball, ride our bikes to get where we needed to go, or spend hours hiking through the woods with no particular destination in mind. Sometimes we were like cats, sitting perfectly still in the sunshine, then–BAM!–we took off running across the playground. There was no need to change...
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Stop Waiting – Read the New Short Story Now
