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Eat, Pray, Love & my dream of going to Bali

Since watching this beautiful movie, I have been wanting to follow Julia Roberts’ foot steps and visit Bali. In March I’m finally making this dream reality with our upcoming yoga retreat.

Come and join me at the Love Live Live Yoga Retreat 2017 in Ubud, Bali, where for a total of 8 days and 7 nights we will be staying at one of Ubud’s most serene 5-star luxury resorts, located just minutes away from the famous monkey forest and down town Ubud. And with two yoga sessions each day, you are sure to escape your daily routine and find inner peace and balance.

If you would like to find out more about our upcoming retreat, click here: https://bundyyoga.com.au/product/ubud/

What was your favourite part of the movie? Let me know in the comments below :)

 

If you haven’t seen the movie, be sure to check it out! Here is the plot…

Eat Pray Love

Liz Gilbert (Julia Roberts) is a modern woman on a quest to marvel at and travel the world while rediscovering and reconnecting with her true inner self in Eat Pray Love. At a crossroads after a divorce, Gilbert takes a year-long sabbatical from her job and steps uncharacteristically out of her comfort zone, risking everything to change her life. In her wondrous and exotic travels, she experiences the simple pleasure of nourishment by eating in Italy; the power of prayer in India, and, finally and unexpectedly, the inner peace and balance of love in Bali. Based on an inspiring true story, Eat Pray Love proves that there really is more than one way to let yourself go and see the world.

Community Beach Yoga Session at Moore Park Beach – Video by Pluggas

Video Credit: Pluggas.com

 

Sabby & Fisch from Pluggas came along to capture this beautiful community yoga session at Moore Park Beach, Austalia. Yoga enthusiasts and people who have never done yoga before from Bundaberg, Bargara, Childers and surroundings all got together for the love of yoga.

Keen to try a yoga class at our Bundaberg Yoga Studio? Click below to claim your free $25 yoga gift card to use at any of our yoga classes, workshops and retreats!

 

YOGA GAZE

“Learning to apply the mind to the gaze helps release stress, by allowing you to focus on things that are helpful and healthy,” says Annie Carpenter from SmartFlow Yoga.

A drishti (view or gaze) is a specific focal point that is employed during meditation or while holding a yoga posture. The ancient yogis discovered that where our gaze is directed our attention naturally follows, and that the quality of our gazing is directly reflected in the quality of our mental thoughts. When the gaze is fixed on a single point the mind is diminished from being stimulated by all other external objects. And when the gaze is fixed on a single point within the body, our awareness draws inwards and the mind remains undisturbed by external stimuli. Thus, the use of a drishti allows the mind to focus and move into a deep state of concentration. And the constant application of drishti develops ekagraha, single-pointed focus, an essential yogic technique used to still the mind.
In yoga postures, a drishti is used to deepen the primary movement of the pose, as well as to keep the mind engaged and focused. To use a drishti while in a yoga pose, simply select the point where your gaze is naturally directed by the alignment of the posture. The use of drishtis in yoga postures is to be developed slowly over time. First one must develop and focus on the alignment of pose, then the breath, and then finally the drishti. Using a drishti is especially helpful if you are holding a posture for an extended period of time, and will be enormously helpful while practicing balancing poses.
The benefits of building that stamina, however, are huge. Cultivating drishti doesn’t just help in class; it has profound effects off the mat as well. Learning to apply the mind to the gaze helps release stress, by allowing you to focus on things that are helpful and healthy, says Annie Carpenter. “It lets us penetrate through delusion and begin to understand the nature of reality and who we are.”

Drishti Tips

As with many spiritual techniques, with drishti there is a danger of mistaking the technique for the goal. You should dedicate your use of the body (including the eyes) to transcending your identification with it. So when you look at an object during your practice, don’t focus on it with a hard gaze. Instead, use a soft gaze, looking through it toward a vision of cosmic unity. Soften your focus to send your attention beyond outer appearance to inner essence.

You should never force yourself to gaze in a way that strains your eyes, brain, or body. In many seated forward bends, for example, the gazing point may be the big toes. But many practitioners, at certain stages in their development, must take care not to create such an intense contraction of the back of the neck that this discomfort overwhelms all other awareness. Rather than forcing the gaze prematurely, you should allow it to develop naturally over time.

 
 

The Dream Of Life – Alan Watts (Speech)

If you awaken from this illusion and you understand that black implies white, self implies other, life implies death (or shall I say death implies life?), you can feel yourself – not as a stranger in the world, not as something here on probation, not as something that has arrived here by fluke – but you can begin to feel your own existence as absolutely fundamental.

I am not trying to sell you on this idea in the sense of converting you to it, I want you to play with it; I want you to think of its possibilities, I am not trying to prove it. I am just putting it forward as a possibility of life to think about. So then, let’s suppose that you were able every night to dream any dream you wanted to

So then, let’s suppose that you were able every night to dream any dream you wanted to dream and that you could, for example, have the power within one night to dream 75 years of time or any length of time you wanted to have.

 And you would, naturally, as you began on this adventure of dreams, you would fulfill all your wishes. You would have every kind of pleasure during your sleep. And after several nights of 75 years of total pleasure each, you would say “Well, that was pretty great. But now let’s have a surprise. Let’s have a dream which isn’t under control, where something is gonna happen to me that I don’t know what it’s gonna be”. And you would dig that and would come out of that and you would say “Wow that was a close shave, wasn’t it?”.

Then you would get more and more adventurous and you would make further- and further out gambles to what you would dream. And finally, you would dream where you are now. You would dream the dream of living the life that you are actually living today.

 That would be within the infinite multiplicity of choices you would have. Of playing that you weren’t God. Because the whole nature of the godhead, according to this idea, is to play that he is not. So in this idea then, everybody is fundamentally the ultimate reality, not God in a politically kingly sense, but god in the sense of being the self, the deep-down basic whatever there is. And you are all that, only you are pretending you are not.

 
Credits:
Music: Goldmund – Threnody
Speech extract from “Out of your mind” by Alan Watts, courtesy of alanwatts.org

 

A Regular Yoga Practice Helps Strengthening Pelvic Floor Muscles

Certain yoga poses can be great to help strengthen the pelvic floor muscles.

It is important for both men and women to look after the Pelvic floor muscles. Strengthening our pelvic floor muscles will help us actively support your bladder and bowel. This improves bladder and bowel control and can reduce or stop leakage of urine and bowel motions. Like other muscles, we can train and keep our pelvic floor muscles strong with regular yoga practice.

Especially women after giving birth, woman’s pelvic floor muscles stretch from the base of her spine to her pubic bones. Inside her abdomen, these muscles support her bowel, bladder, and uterus. The pelvic floor muscles can become stretched and weakened by pregnancy, childbirth and age. Over time, weak pelvic floor muscles may lead to incontinence, or difficulty maintaining control of bowel and bladder movements. Further, a weak pelvic floor can cause pain in the lower back and pelvic area. Yoga poses, or asanas, increase circulation and stamina, which can help to strengthen the pelvic floor.

Root Locks

Root locks, or mula bandhas, should be the basis of any yoga pose in which you would like to strengthen pelvic floor muscles. Root locks can be incorporated into almost any yoga pose. To engage in root locks, you gently uplift your pelvic floor muscles by imagining that you are trying to stop the flow of urine and a bowel movement at the same time. While doing so, draw your tailbone downward. You will want to try not to contract your buttocks muscles but instead, engage your abdominal muscles. Regular practice of root locks can align your posture, strengthen your core muscles, and help to improve pelvic endurance.

Reclining Poses

There are several reclining yoga poses that can help to strengthen your pelvic floor. These include child’s poses, fish pose, spinal twists, cobra pose and lotus pose. While engaging in any of these poses, you will want to gently squeeze the pelvic floor muscles while stabilizing your lower back. Then inhale and exhale slowly for a few breaths, bringing awareness to your inner strength.

Standing Poses

Standing poses that incorporate pelvic floor strengthening include poses such as downward-facing dog, triangle pose, squatting pose, horse pose, and tree pose. Keep in mind that the resiliency of the pelvic muscles may be affected by the pull of gravity. Caution should be used with standing poses because there is a chance that sudden movements could cause or aggravate slipping of the uterus, or a prolapsed uterus. Talk to your doctor to find out whether standing yoga poses are right for you.

Inversions

Inversions, such as shoulder stand, headstand or handstand are the best poses to practice if you are looking to utilise gravity to your advantage. When held in proper alignment, inversions can help the pelvic organs to realign back to their proper places. Inversions also improve blood circulation throughout the body as blood flow is directed toward the heart and brain. This increases concentration, mental alertness, and awareness. If you are not prepared to do the full expression of inversion poses, you can use a wall for support.

Information credit Live Strong & Continence Foundation of Australia
Photo Credit Health Hints

Yoga Pose: UPWARD SALUTE ( URDHVA HASTASANA)

This Sanskrit phrase can be understood as “urdhva,” meaning raised, and “hasta,” meaning hand. This “raised hand” pose is a simple, standing yoga asana with both of the hands raised. I often just say Urdhva Hasta in the class. ;-)

When Urdhva Hastasana, a simple and easy yoga pose, is included in your daily yoga sessions, you will reap the following benefits:

  • Stretching and sculpting of your belly.
  • Enhancement your digestive processes and metabolism.
  • Definition, openness and flexibility of your shoulders and armpits.
  • Reduction of stress, anxiety and tension.

Enjoy the Raised Hands Pose while breathing smoothly, easily and deeply that your shoulders are free, open and healthy. Gently arch your back as much as feels comfortable and safe.

Extend your elbows fully and reach up through your pinkies so your thumbs turn slightly down toward the crown of your head. Making sure not to compress the back of your neck, tip your head back slightly and gaze at your thumbs.

See also How to Salute the Sun

Keeping your feet straight and firm with toes spread wide, don’t let your lower front ribs protrude forward. Bring your front ribs down (toward your pelvis) and in (toward your spine), and lengthen your tail bone toward the floor. Then lift your rib cage evenly away from your pelvis to stretch the circumference of your belly. Hold for a few breaths.

 

happy practicing!

 

Namaste,

Carmen Lee-Schneider

Have you noticed time passing faster as you get older?

Have you noticed time passing faster as you get older? However, it doesn’t have to be like that.there

There are ways to change your perception of time. The key is to slow down the pace of life while increasing the amount of new and unique experiences you have. When we keep going to the same places, doing the same things over and over, we don’t create distinct memories. As a result, time seems to fly by us as the monotone nature of your days simply merges into what seems like one and the same memory. As you travel more often, constantly stay open to learning new things and create unique experiences you will notice your perception of time slowing down.

Also, focus on positive past memories and try to live more in the present. Holding a positive perception of the future and envisioning a future full of hope and optimism will vastly increase your level of happiness. Learn to love yourself more and make time to meditate regularly. Time with yourself is very important to reflect, appreciate life more and plan your future.

Learn to appreciate each moment and use your time wisely. The time we have on this planet is limited.

Yoga helps us to slow down, live more in the moment and be more aware of what is happening around us. I would like to invite you to come along to one of our yoga sessions and experience it for yourself. To help you get started, head here to claim a free $25 gift card: https://bundyyoga.com.au/giftcard25

I hope to see you on the mat soon.

Namaste,

Carmen

Sun Salutation with Cat & Cow

A few rounds of sun salutations with Cat & Cow movement is to improves posture and balance, strengthens and stretches spine and neck, stretches hips, abdomen and back, increase coordination, massage and stimulates organs in the belly, creates emotional balance, relieves stress and clams the mind.
I created this sequence and love to use it for the warm up at the beginning of the class.

Happy practicing! ?

Namaste,
Carmen

2016 Yoga Teacher Training & Mentoring Program

After spending two months with this group of awesome folks, we are close to finishing this mentoring program. It is amazing to witness the progress of each individual and how far they have come.

There is no one teacher for everyone, but everyone of you can share your love of yoga with others. Everyone of you is so special and unique, we will never be the same but we will always have something to offer to the yoga community. Do what you love and share your passion and knowledge of yoga and inspire others.

“Not everyone can teach everything, but everyone can teach something. Teach what you love and people will come to you because of you.” ~Carmen Lee-Schneider

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