Nature Is. Pure being. Sheer essence. And the great human paradox is that we are too. It’s our minds that get in the way of things. The Buddha spent a lot of time in nature and recognized this great spiritual truth. I walk or hike almost every day. It clears me out. It creates in me a spaciousness unexplainable — most of the time. Intentionality is key. We create mindfulness by not letting ourselves get caught up — in ourselves. Embodiment is an elusive concept, kinda like love and yoga. You know it’s real but words don’t accurately describe it. A walk in nature takes the same tone. When I’m outside moving my body, a lifeforce grander than I acts on my being. I feel energized and alive in ways unexplainable. If only I could write and hike at the same time — the things that would come out! The…

Did you know that all of your cells have ‘tone?’ Cellular tone is a documented, researched fact. When you were born, you grew out of one cell. That one cell became many ‘things.’ Each cell knows all of the other cells intimately and is constantly in communication with the whole. And yoga balances the tone in our bodies — through breath, movement and constant communication with the Earth. We have what is known as movement intelligence, and we grow it consciously through intention. What’s more, by using the body we program the mind.Kinda crazy, right? We live in a world that believes the mind controls all. It doesn’t. Quite the opposite, in fact. And let me share another well-kept secret (or possibly something you never thought about before): The nervous system only records. With our intentional movement, we inform the nervous system. We bring the body…

If you didn’t measure it, it didn’t happen. That’s the world we live in — steps we walk, food we eat, what we do. And most of it gets posted online via an app, or directly to social media. Work generally includes goals and objectives, and we receive performance evaluations (and raises) according to how we stack up against what we said we’d do. Grants are tied to deliverables. Measurement is a necessary part of work. But …. Most of us treat our personal lives like work — we record it all, and we share it with the world. Our health is tracked by any number of apps — daily movement, hours of sleep, water intake, the food we eat, how long we meditate. We writers track words on a page or the time we spend writing. Look how many of us share regularly on Medium! All of us are paying attention…

When navigating negative emotions, what takes over? Body or mind? Which came first? Where does all of our intelligence lie? I’m pondering these questions on my EmbodiYoga journey and I’d love for you to come along. I’m ashamed at how much I’ve ignored my body over the years — even still. I live in my mind more than I’d like but I’m thankful to be on this path, learning and directing my attention in ways I never have before. All emotion can be felt in the body but we almost never go there. Instead we … attach to thoughts, avoid or self soothe. An Inquiry Consider these five negative emotions. Take a deep breath. Read each one. Notice what each one feels like in your body. Worry is a future-projected thought pattern that traps us in a never-ending cycle. It asks what if? What then? Why? How…

Today I attempt to merge aspects of embodiment, the mind, and the concepts of EmbodiYoga with the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. If you are unfamiliar with the Yoga Sutras, specifically the 8 Limgs of Yoga, go here. I’m writing weekly about the 8 limbs too. It’s totally fine if you call me a yoga geek. I already know. Yoga nerd? So, we know that embodiment is direct perception of the body, and that EmbodiYoga takes it further by incorporating somatics, embryology and yoga into one discipline. I’m beginning to see it as an evolution of my yoga, as well as foundational as I incorporate basic yet profound aspects of the practice into my daily existence. I’m envious of yogis who can twist into beautiful shapes, stand on one hand and look pretty doing it, but yoga (to me) is much deeper than Instagram challenges.…

More Concepts on the EmbodiYoga Path Cueing is a huge part of effectively teaching yoga, but beyond that, my teacher Lisa Clark says, “cueing is a map of experience and language is important.”I couldn’t agree more, and it’s defintely an art. EmbodiYoga introduces us to a deeper language, one that speaks directly to the body. We live in a world that ignores the body, glorifies the mind. Speaking directly to the body is altogether different from anything we’ve experienced. Sure, yoga in general taps us into the body, but EmbodiYoga offers a direct experience of our being. Body time vs. nervous system time Opposite sensations. Body time is at the level of the body. It’s slower, more mindful. Nervous system time keeps us scattered. Our society is very much on nervous system time. It’s no wonder there is widespread disease related to stress. And EmbodiYoga…

Defining yoga in the West is a hard undertaking. It is many things and people go to classes for different reasons. Work your body to the point of exhaustion (and possibly bliss) in Power/Hot, connect with your breath and spirit in Vinyasa, and learn to actively rest in Restorative. Attend these and other styles to find different teachers — and perspectives on the practice. Yoga philosophy adds another interesting layer which is often missed or skimmed in many studio classes — though I believe it should be integrated, as yoga is thousands of years old and rich in history. You can use the 8 Limbs of Yoga as a jumping-off point if you’d like to go down that rabbit hole. I did many years ago and still can’t find my way out. Again, just one small layer of the complex web that is yoga. As a practitioner for…

You are crazy. Yep, I said it. Please don’t get mad at me for pointing out the obvious. I am crazy too. We are all crazy. All. of. us. The world is out of balance. Humanity has advanced beyond what anyone thought possible even fifty years ago. Science, technology. Amazing. But the collective mind has gone mad. We are ego-maniacs. We live in our heads 99.9% of our waking lives. It’s a sad reality. And until you are aware, you have no idea it’s happening. Think (no pun intended) for a moment. When is the last time you sat — without music, television, other words or distractions? Can you do it? What happens? Dialogue? A narrative? Lists? Thoughts of tomorrow? Yesterday? The brain is always in overdrive. And it doesn’t know how to stop. “Be here now,” is a phrase that simplifies the process of embodiment,…

We live in an ego-driven society. It wouldn’t be too far off to say we’re all crazy — delusional even. We believe ourselves to be one thing, but that thing is almost entirely an image created in our minds. Our true selves are beyond thought, beyond mental projections, habits, even our physical being-ness. In many cases and places in the Western world, it’s every man for himself. Professionally the majority are all about making money and achieving the American dream. Striving to do better and become better versions of ourselves isn’t a bad thing. Making money isn’t bad either. But as a collective, we’ve lost sight of ourselves and our place in the world, why we are on this planet at all. We are here to further our evolvement. We are here to serve others. We are here to make the world a better place. I’ve been on…