The question I hear most about my classes is, "What is this Urban Groove about?"
Urban Groove is a VInyasa style yoga class, set to contemporary and sometimes unusual music choices. A recent playlist included:
Be the Change - MC Yogi
Meet Me Halfway - Black Eyes Peas
Jai Ho - from Slumdog
Little Wing - Sting
My World - 3 Doors Down
Yellow - Coldplay
A Little Less Conversation - Elvis Presley
Lil Love - Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Soul Education - Jamiroquai
Second Chance - Shinedown
Objection (Afro-Punk Version) - Shakira
Her Diamonds - Rob Thomas
The students enjoy suggesting music for the playlist, which turns each class into a DJ/ Yoga experience!
The Urban Groove class is held every Sunday from 4 - 5:15pm at Triangle Pilates' Stone Creek location.
Have a Yoga Story to Tell?
Has yoga helped you through a challenging event? Or has it changed you in some way?
Email Groovy Yogi atmailto:crys@groovyyogi.com with your stories about the role yoga has played in your life. We are looking to publish your stories in a future issue.
Rock-Climbing & Yoga: A Great Mix
One of my students, Rebecca L. (she has asked that her last name be withheld so that her rock-climbing buddies do not find out about what she called "a beginner's mistake"), recently faced hypothermia while rock-climbing. She told me that the techniques she learned in yoga saved her. Here is her story:
“I went climbing in Red Rocks, NV over Thanksgiving. The
forecast was for sunny weather (it's sunny about 355 days a year in Red Rocks)
with a high of 65. I expected it to be chilly for a little while in the
morning, but it is usually very warm in the sun even in cold weather."
"So, I'm a couple hundred feet up a climb by about 9:30 a.m., and it's still
cold (maybe mid 30's to low 40's), and the sun was too weak to warm anything
yet... and then clouds roll in. I start shivering so badly that I couldn't really
"lead" (be the first person climbing), so I am sitting still belaying
(holding the rope for) my partner for an hour or more at a time, with only 20
minutes or so of climbing in between - not enough to warm me up. I could barely
climb because my leg muscles were stiff from shivering, and I couldn't feel my
hands or feet. By 9:30, it is still really cold, with big black clouds in the
sky, and there were even flurries!
I was shivering out of control and my hands were going numb (not good when you
must hold your partner's ropes), and I started to feel a bit panicky after this
went on for a couple hours. I was feeling nauseated, then light headed. We were
not in a place where we could rappel down safely, so we had to go up.
So I thought of your Yin Yoga class were we were sitting still for long periods
of time (and where I was a little cold but no where near hypothermic). I
started concentrating on my breathing, and sort of willing energy (and blood)
into my extremities. I didn't try to stop shivering altogether b/c I figured it
was helping to keep me warm, but I was able to control it. I was able to calm
my mind and relax about the experience of being physically uncomfortable...as
physical discomfort and pain come from the body, but suffering - which is truly
dangerous when climbing - comes from the mind.
At any rate, the Yin Yoga techniques worked well enough to get me through over
5 hours of very cold belays and climbing until we could get up to a place where
we could rappel down....and also to focus enough mentally to do several long
rappels (the majority of climbing deaths happen due to errors on rappel!). The
sun never came out and I doubt it got much warmer than 40 degrees. . .
Actually, one thing I love about yoga is that it helps me be
relaxed about being in physically difficult/uncomfortable situations (both
"Yin" and "Yang" yoga). Or even, in some ways, emotionally
difficult situations too! I don't know if that's proper yogi thinking, but it
is true for me.”
Holiday Pendant Winner Announced
Audrey Hood won the Groovy Yogi Girl Pendant drawing held in November. Reportedly, she had a rough week and winning the pendant lifted her mood considerably!
"My Groovy Yogi charm is the perfect representation of my personal yoga practice - at different times it can be serious, meditative, restorative, or just plain fun!
When I wear the pendant I am reminded of the peace my practice brings, which is especially helpful when days are long and stressful. Thanks so much, Crys!"
New Pendants are On the Way!
Groovy Yogi has been hard at work.
Look for our new pendants in stores just in time for Valentine's Day. The new designs include a cool (and unisex) Peace pendant, a Romance pendant, and an homage to Spring.
