Yoga Pose: Monkey Pose (Hanumanasana)

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Monkey Pose/Full Split (Hanumanasana)

There are few ways to practice, you can always do your pose variations. Modified arms and hips with using props (block or rolled blanket/towel).

It is one of my favourite poses that I will practice it everyday. It makes me feel open and prepare my body into other poses for example Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, Standing Split, Eka Pada Koundinyasana II, kick up to handstand and many others.

Benefits:
-stretches the thighs, hamstrings, groins.
– stimulates the abdominal organs.

Happy practicing!

 

Namaste,

Carmen

SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE: A wonderful self employed lawyer sharing her experience

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If you had only one word to describe what yoga is to you, what would it be?

“One word to describe yoga is Compassion. I am 51 and a self employed lawyer. Since I have started this more regular yoga practice I feel much more confident about growing older. ”

“I can feel my body able to do things better now than when I was in my 30s and 40s.“

When did you start doing yoga and what makes you want to continue?

” I started practicing yoga with Carmen in April this year. Whilst I have been dabbling in yoga for many years I feel that I have only just started really learn yoga since finding Carmen’s classes. I have so much more to learn and every class takes me a tiny bit further on the journey.”

How often do you attend yoga classes?

“I like to attend classes at least three or four times a week when I am not out of town for work. I know that there are women in their 70s and even 80s who still practice yoga. I admire that tremendously and I want to be able to still practice yoga into my 80s if I am fortunate enough to still be here. I have been a very busy professional with all the usual stresses and pressures that come with that and with having a busy family. That kind of life ages us and makes us short tempered and too tired to enjoy all that we work for. Yoga has given me back my own sense of self and a feeling of wellness and peace.  I have learned that just one hour of yoga can cut through all the craziness of life and that 10 minutes of savasana is the best thing any woman can do for her self and her wellbeing.”

What is you next goal or challenge?

“I am not yet ready to claim that I can actually do a tripod headstand, but I know that I will be able to do it in the future. I have been in the pose near the wall and this was a milestone. It felt great. Carmen’s classes take us further than we think we can go. Her passion for inversion poses and her enthusiasm has changed my expectations of myself. My current goal is to master Bakasana. (I want to stand up on my surfboard – so bakasana will help with that too.)”

“Carmen is the strongest person I know. She has an amazing ability and it is inspiring to have her as a teacher.”

“Carmen is very encouraging. I feel I will never stop learning in her classes and I never want to stop learning.”

Would you like to share something with those who might be thinking about doing yoga in the near future?

“Classes from Love Life. Live Yoga offer something for each one of us, no one is under pressure yet there is always the invitation to go further.”
Susan O’Sullivan
Moore Park, QLD

The symphony of life: 5 ways to living in harmony

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“The rhythm of the body, the melody of the mind and the harmony of the soul create the symphony of life.”
~ B.K.S Iyengar

I always thought a beautiful life meant having the power to do what I want to do, when I want to do it. In reality it is so much more than that. It is a feeling that you need to create, and one that only you can create. It isn’t until our mind, body and soul are in perfect harmony, that we can experience true happiness.

I used to get upset and disappointed when things went wrong. I started blaming my outer world and finding excuses to make myself feel better. This blame however, is the exact opposite of harmony. Don’t look for the faults around you. Start looking inside you, for unhappiness is not created by events, but by the way you respond to them.

Here are few things that I have learned over the course of my life that I use daily as I work on improving myself to become the best version of myself that I can be.

1) Pause before you act

It is hard when anger and fear suddenly appear inside us. I have learned to pause and stop myself in any situation before I respond. I step out of the danger zone and do one thing that I know will make me feel better in that given moment. When I discovered yoga 8 years ago, it had a huge impact on my ability to control my emotions. It started brightening my mind and I felt less tense in my body. Practicing yoga was one of the things that taught me to pause and let go. When the positive side of me returns, I can rethink the situation and make a conscious choice of how to react. So, find one thing that helps you deflate anger and fear that makes you happier again before you react. The beauty of life is that we have the ability to choose. We are like stars in the universe and can decide in which direction we shine our light, and where we cast our shadows.

“Carmen Lee-Schneider – Koh Samui Yoga Retreat 2015”

carmen-lee-schneider-yoga2) Life is not all about me

live in the moment with the people who are here before you right now. We need to let go     of the idea that we are the sole protagonist and give others a chance to be the main character in our lives sometimes. Listen. Let them feel that you are there for them. I am still finding this very hard at times. We tend to purely focus on our own needs and the things that make us happy. But the moment we start focusing on the needs of others, miracles start to appear, because we are now creating precious moments together that make us feel whole again.

3) Disconnect to reconnect

I truly miss catching up with real people, face to face, and with eye-contact. I slowly realize that we are doing this less and less. But it takes time to nourish a friendship. When we get too busy, we rather send our friends emails, text messages or have a shallow chat on Facebook. We need to learn to step away from technology every now and then to look into peoples’ eyes and have a real conversation. A conversation where we use all our senses, our body language. When you have real conversations with your closest friends again, you will feel revitalized and more connected. If you are looking for more purpose in your life, start with creating more purposeful friendships.

4) Be open to change and question everything you do

Just because we believe it’s right, it doesn’t mean that it’s our best option. Think about the different outcomes you get when reacting to a certain situation in different ways. Expand your vision, look for new angles and greater opportunities. I find surprises and wisdom all around me. Don’t be afraid to try new things. New ways of thinking. Don’t expect new results, if you keep doing things the same way. Be bold and invite change. You can only grow. When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.

5) Never stop challenging yourself

Every day we have the opportunity to make small changes that allow us to become a better version of ourselves. Look at everything you do and consider eliminating one bad habit at a time that doesn’t benefit you. Replace these habits with new ones to fill the void and to avoid reacting in a subconscious way. Do something new every now and then, that will make you feel proud. Something that excites you.

After putting it off for a long time and a big push from my loving husband, I have finally decided to open my laptop and start writing this first blog post. English isn’t my first language, and I never considered explaining myself to others as a strength of mine. So why should I even bother to write? I used to say ‘no’ to anything that I had never done before. Until I started feeling a sense of disappointment inside me because of the lack of excitement in my life. I also felt I wasn’t only holding back myself, but also the people around me that I loved the most. So, here I am writing my first blog post from my heart.

We are solely responsible for creating the excitement in our lives that we all crave. It’s only through excitement that we find fulfillment and joy in life. Let’s push each other and keep rolling together to create the life that we have always been dreaming of.

It really is in our hands.

Namaste,

Carmen Lee-Schneider

The Connection Between Our Mind and Body.

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I have never been to any gymnastics or dance school. I have always been very sporty though because I wanted to keep my body fit (I could easily gain weight if I didn’t move enough). Until I discovered yoga. Besides getting my workout, I started feeling a sense of calm and peace. Lots of small miracles started showing up in my daily life and I gained so much focus in everything I do.
But I truly fell in love with yoga when I saw a beautiful yogi practicing at the park one day. It looked like magic to me when she was standing on her hands in the middle of the park, moving so gracefully.

It didn’t look like sport or a show for me. I could feel the connection between my mind and my body and the trust in myself.
The human body will keep exploring new possibilities and slowly erase all limitations if you just believe and trust in yourself.
Love your life.

Live yoga.

Being called mom is my greatest blessing

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Being a mother of two is the greatest accomplishment I could have ever dreamed of achieving. It is a very overwhelming work that has made me tired and, at the same time, so happy. I know how lucky I am to have my own children who are healthy and happy.

After becoming a mother, I have been learning about certain strengths I didn’t even know I had, and suddenly had to deal with fears I didn’t know existed. I want to be a strong mother for my children. I want to be the first person they think of when they need someone. But in order to really be there for them I need to stay healthy and happy. I will continue to love myself and keep doing what makes me happy. I am still learning and always will be. Our children learn more from what we are than what we teach them.

Yoga Mom Carmen Lee-Schneider

Doing what I love, it makes me a better mother and a better person. I have dreams and goals in life that I want to share with the people I love.

I have tried and failed at many things in life, but I will never stop giving 100% at being the best, strongest and most beautiful woman I can be.

Namaste,

Carmen

I am not perfect. So why do I still teach?

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I am not perfect. One of my weaknesses is that I am not good in socialising and dealing with people. Besides, English is my second language, quite often people get a different perspective of me because I can’t express myself very well. So why do I still want to teach?

The main reason why I am teaching Yoga, although I don’t see myself as a Yoga guru, is that Yoga has had a huge impact on my lifestyle. It gave me a new purpose and ignited my passion for sharing Yoga with people who enjoy practicing with me. The best gift of teaching is to see how yoga transforms everyone around me. It is an amazing feeling and always puts a smile on my face.

I will never stop learning. I learn everyday, not only to improve my own practice but that of the people in my classes as well. I am confident enough to talk when teaching yoga in front of the class because I can talk through my body and guide people through my own experience of practising.

Everyone is searching for something different when practising yoga since we are all individuals and unique in our own ways. And that’s the beauty of Yoga. You can take what benefits you and incorporate it into your life.

I am not a Guru but I believe that through my passion and love for yoga, I can help you on your way to finding purpose and joy in your yoga practice. Coming together to practise together is a beautiful gift.

I can’t wait to share everything yoga taught me with you. See you on the mat soon.

Namaste,
Carmen

Just breathe

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“Breathe space into the parts of your soul that need healing. Breathe space into what really hurts. Breathe space into the tight spots, into the pain. Breathe into the grief, the frustration, the anger, the sadness, the fear… Breathe space into all of the layers you carry with you, layers created from the simple experience of being alive. Alive, and so much so that it leaves you vulnerable in world that sometimes breaks you open. A world that can shatters your heart into a million tiny little pieces. A world that’s full of wonders, but that also wounds. Breathe space into this. The good and the bad. And when all else fails and you don’t know how to pick yourself off the floor and you don’t know how to puzzle all the pieces of your heart back together and you don’t know if there will be a better tomorrow… Just breathe. Just breathe. Know that life turns upside down and shakes us from the inside for a reason. Just breathe. You are not alone.”
Written by Rachel B.

How yoga has changed my life

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One of the most important ways yoga has changed my life is my confidence has increased.
We work a lot on the navel center, the core area or third chakra, which builds our will power, confidence, and resolve.
Since I’ve been practicing yoga I’ve done a lot of things I’d never considered doing before, like getting up in front of a room full of people and teaching yoga in English which it is not my native language. I truly enjoy doing it because I’m surrounded by all the awesome people.
What I like about yoga is that there is no end to it, I constantly learn different things in each practice. I’m also finding the little peace for myself no matter what is going on outside of the four corners of my mat just feel the simple wonder of my body as I move.
I would like to share yoga with others and help them by teaching yoga. They can still have a workout and still have the mental benefits of yoga. I will keep on learning and growing as a teacher as well as a practitioner.

Namaste,
Carmen

Why do we need to pause?

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It’s the pause that brings realignment. It’s the pause that brings reflection. It’s the pause that brings refocus.

Life is like a wheel, always spinning. There’s always work coming in and piling up, making enough and more money, people and relationships to take care of, goals and dreams to catch, and never endless deadlines to be met.

And if we are not careful enough of our life, it can be crazy and get extremely busy, but we end up achieving very little. Have you ever had a moment where you seemed to be very busy, but surprisingly got very little done at the end of the day? Therefore, it’s important to not only calm down, but to take a pit stop to pause and reflect before continuing with the journey ahead.

Meanwhile, you can take the opportunity to relax and unwind, to evaluate what you have accomplished, to review your mistakes from the past and to examine your future plans.  Your body and mind will thank you, you will feel more refreshed and recharged to take on the world again!

It is a must to escape the rat race every now and then and jump off the hamster wheel. To step outside, get some air, and remind yourself who you are and where you want to go in life.

Namaste,

Carmen Lee-Schneider

Yoga doesn’t make me soft but makes me stronger everyday.

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Yoga is not just making me soft.
It makes me softer from the inside but stronger from the outside.
Sometimes we need to learn to pause, to feel our heart beat and listen to our body. Yoga is not just a physical workout, it helps us to deepen our connection between soul, mind and body. We learn when to stop and reconnect to ourselves again without distraction from the outside.
We learn to focus and listen to our inner self, which is guiding you into the right direction.
The body is not just a shelf, it’s yours. Don’t just focus on the physical appearance of you body but connect with it, feel it and create balance between body and mind.

namaste,

Carmen