James Walsh Yoga

Thursday, September 28, 2017 This will be the 3rd consecutive day that I've practiced in my new space. Physically, I'm feeling well. Mentally, I'm feeling well. Spiritually, I'm feeling well. I'm a bit "behind schedule", but I'm on my mat, at 6:18 AM, and ready to pray/meditate for 5 minutes before moving through my practice. I have a hoodie on, as today is the first chilly-ish morning in St. Louis. Thursday, September 28, 2017 (Part II) Had a great practice this morning, even though I wasn't quite feeling it. It's still be nothing but junk food for the past few days while I've moved into my new place, but I'll balance out here soon. I'm happy that I'm staying consistent in my practice. Namaste  

Wednesday, September 27, 2017 Woke up, for the third time, in my new space. This morning will be the 2nd practice I execute in my new space and, again, I have to say how much I am in love with my little screened in sun porch.  I currently have the door to the sunporch open with cool air, and the sounds of crickets creeping in. On a totally unrelated note, while I've been moving, I've been eating junk for dinner every night (sausage and pepperoni pizza, to be exact, covered in red pepper flakes, and dunked in ranch).  This causes me a little bit of stomach pain in the morning, but it makes me hit my mat a little harder; partially to "atone" for the food crimes I've committed the night before, and partially to help eliminate the dough and cheese mound that I consumed the night before. I'm still feeling motivated, upbeat, and focused.  I'll hit my mat at 6:00 AM, in 30 minutes. Wednesday, September 27, 2017 (Part II) I'm on my mat as I write thi...

Tuesday, September 26, 2017 I spent this past weekend moving and, just like when I started this blog, I'm in a new space, new apartment, and am looking forward to a new change in my life. I'm on my bed as I type this, getting geared up for my practice and meditation routine on my new sun porch!!!  My new place, on the 2nd story of a 4 family flat, has a screened in sun porch off of my bedroom; I'm literally able to open the door, let the quiet sounds of crickets/frogs come in, and enjoy my coffee while I sit and think. Physically, I'm feeling fairly well and fairly balanced; a little bloated and irregular digestion-wise, but that's to be expected (with all the moving around, I haven't had the time or inclination to cook properly, so Ive subsided on pizza for a while). Mentally, I'm feeling renewed and refreshed, and delighted with my new space.  I'm going to start my meditation/prayer routine shortly with an attitude of gratitude #trite #cliched. ...

Friday, September 22, 2017 Coffee machine acted up Wednesday morning.  Today, it's totally broke. :( Ah well, I'm having iced tea instead. It's not all  about the caffeine, but it is about the ritual I've got for myself every morning, and how I want a warm cup of something to have while my body, mind, and spirit thaw and start to gear up for my practice, and the day ahead. I'll hit my mat without it and see how I feel. Friday, September 22, 2017 (Part II) Not a great practice; not gonna lie.... I was not mentally focused, and my body was not "into it" this morning either. No big deal.  A practice is a practice.  It won't always be inspirational I'm delighted it's Friday, and I'm delighted thinking of the day I have ahead of me. Namaste

Thursday, September 21, 2017 I'm away from my laptop this morning, but I'm not away from my mat. I'm typing this introduction out on my iPhone for the first time. I woke at my usual 5:00 AM and, after an hour of coffee and sooooper deep yoga thoughts, I'm ready to hit my mat. Thursday, September 21, 2017 (Part II) Felt wonderful after my practice.  Even though I wasn't in my usual setting, away from my routine a little bit, I still had a wonderful practice.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017 When my routine gets shuffled around, for whatever reason, it can take a while to get back into the game. I'm speaking, specifically about yoga, but there's other routines that can quickly crumble if neglected for a while (work patterns, personal hygiene, sensible eating, etc.). I know that, a lot of my happiness and self-fulfillment comes from forming routines and patterns, and then sticking to them. It's 6:20 AM, a bit  behind schedule, and I'm going to meditate/pray and practice Pranayama and Dharana  for 5 minutes before beginning my Asanas and the rest of my physical practice. Wednesday, September 20, 2017 (Part II) Having just woke from Savasana, I'm feeling wonderful. Completed my full, modified Primary Series. Time to shower up, and take myself out into the world. Namaste

Went to Las Vegas for work last week.  Practiced on Thursday September 14 and Friday September 15 without posting. It's Tuesday, September 19 this morning, of the following week, and I'm feeling good about myself, even though my routine's been knocked around a little bit. My two practices in Las Vegas were wonderful, and are always a great way to help sort out any stress from traveling and drinking another towns food/water. Feeling productive and powerful so far this morning and will be hitting my may shortly. Part II I'm writing this on my mat, having just come out of Savasana. I procrastinated this morning and didn't hit my mat for meditation/prayer until 6:30 AM.  Had a wonderful, full, and complete practice, despite the late hour. I'm feeling grounded, whole, and steady and I'm looking forward to bringing this energy out into the world. Namaste

Thursday, September 7, 2017 Woke at my usual 5:00 AM and have been moving around, busying myself with everything but  a yoga practice. Laundry, cleaning, coffee, cooking, dishes, etc.; all have taken a precedent over this morning's practice. It's 7:11 AM now and I'm going to hit my mat for some meditation and, at least a few, Vinyasas. Thursday, September 7, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this on my mat having just come out of a mini-Savasana and a mini-Practice. I dedicated my usual 5 minutes of prayer/meditation on my mat, and then went through 2 Vinyasas, and a few other poses. Time to go out into the world. Namaste

Wednesday, September 6, 2017 Had a wonderful Labor Day Weekend with family, friends, and loved ones and didn't practice once. lol I woke yesterday morning (the first day back to work) not feeling 100% and I am still not feeling 100% today.  I slept in until past 6:30 AM this morning,  and I know that my body needs the extra care I'm showing to it. I am not going to force myself into a physical practice this morning but I may hit my mat for some meditation and reflection.

Wednesday, August 31, 2017 I woke at my usual 5:00 AM this morning and have lolly-gagged around for the past hour sipping coffee, bumming around on the interwebz, and giving myself an opportunity to thaw from my night's sleep.  This early part of my mornings is, by far, my favorite part of each day.  It's alone time that I get, away from any stress or complexity, that allows me to think about what I'm going to do today and how I'm going to approach what I'm responsible for. I'm physically sore from last night's Taekwondo practice, but will be hitting my mat here in a bit.  I may shake up my practice a little bit and put some new Asanas into the mix. Wednesday, August 31, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this on my mat having just come out of Savasana.  I had a great practice this morning and moved, in a focused way, through my full Vinyasa Series and into Padahstasana and Padanguthasana.  I ended with 1 upward bow, and1 bridge pose. I feel good having ...

Tuesday, August 29, 2017 Woke at my usual 5:00 AM this morning for my coffee and contemplation #strangerthings Today will mark my first practice since Saturday morning's instructor led class. I typically take Sunday's off (Saturday is traditionally the day of rest, however), and use that day to relax and let my body rest and repair itself.  That day of rest bled into Monday, however. Today, is Tuesday, and I'm looking forward to hitting my mat and sweating it out. Tuesday, August 29, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this on my mat, having just come out of Savasana. Today's practice was interesting. I understood that breath should be a 5 count inhale and a 5 count exhale.  From what I've been reading, it can be any count inhale, and any count exhale, as long as it matches pace, rhythm, and intensity. I incorporated this into today's physical practice, and realized that I was only truly inhaling/exhaling for a 4 count breath, not a 5 count.  While I ...

Saturday, August 26, 2017, I'm writing this on Sunday morning having had attended a class at Big Bend Yoga Center yesterday morning with 3 of my friends. I do not  ordinarily take classes and, rather, wake each morning and go to my mat with the knowledge I have of yoga (however lacking), and move through my practice by myself.  However, I believe that taking a class from an instructor every now and then is absolutely essential for adding variety, and keeping your practice dynamic and ever-growing. Yesterday's class, with the wonderful Michael Shabsin  (Attorney by day, Yoga instructor by night), was exactly that; dynamic, different, challenging, fulfilling, and re-energizing. The style of yoga that I practice is called  Ashtanga Yoga , sometimes referred to as "Vinyasa Flow" or "Ashtanga Vinyasa" yoga.  It follows a pre-determined sequence/pattern of movement and I typically don't allow for too much variation.  Ashtanga Yoga also puts emphasis on ...

Friday, August 25, 2017 It's 5:00 AM on a beautiful Friday morning.  TGIF is a ridiculous little saying but, while I enjoy all days of the week, work-days and non-work-days, it is nice to wake up and know that you've got a little 2 day vacation ahead of you. While I do like to keep busy and have game plans in mind, I do enjoy the relaxation of my weekends.  I do not  keep the weekends for chores or other things that I was, otherwise, too occupied to complete during the week.  My weekends are for sleeping in with no alarm (most times), extra coffee and contemplation time, reconnecting with family and friends, and spending longer than normal amounts of time in the kitchen making wonderful things to eat. I'm looking forward to this weekend, especially, because 3 of my friends are joining me tomorrow at Big Bend Yoga in downtown Webster Groves (a suburb of St. Louis). The wonderful Michael Shabsin will be leading tomorrow's class. For today, it's 6:01 AM and ...

Wednesday, August 24, 2017 Woke at my usual 5:00 AM and then slept for another 20 minutes.  No big deal. I'm feeling grounded, stable, and balanced, even before hitting my mat. To stay on schedule, I'll hit my mat in about 30/40 minutes. Wednesday, August 24, 2017 (Part II) I not only slept in this morning, I didn't hit my mat until 6:30 AM (30 minutes after my normal time).  I was productive, however, and used my coffee fueled morning motivation to tidy up around my place and take care of some chores that I'd been putting off for a while. When I finally did hit my mat, I began with my standard 5 minutes of prayer and meditation.  After that, I began my standard warmup.  I moved into my formal practice feeling wonderful; no aches and no sluggishness, as I felt yesterday. I finished with 3 beautiful Upward Bow poses and am writing this after having just come out of Savasana. I feel balanced, strong, beautiful, content, solid, gentle, and indestructible. ...

Wednesday, August 23, 2017 Woke at my usual 5:00 AM feeling ver well.  I practiced yoga in the AM yesterday, and went to taekwondo in the PM last night, but, despite that stretching and tearing of muscles, I don't feel too sore this morning. My back, and fronts of my hips are the only two areas that feel like they need to be warmed up gently.  I'll hit the mat in about 30 minutes to sweat it out. Wednesday, August 23, 2017 (Part II) I was not  feeling motivated to hit my mat this morning.  I procrastinated for as long as I could before changing into my yoga clothes and walking into the space where I practice.  While I had zero motivation, I did go through my entire modified Primary series, which makes me proud. Physically, I felt slow, stodgy, and sluggish.  I've felt that way before, and I typically push through it gently, but with determination.  I don't feel too  much different, now that I've practiced, but I do feel more accomplished, ...

Tuesday, August 22, 2017 Woke at my usual 5:00 AM this morning for coffee and contemplation.  I haven't practiced since last Thursday, and I spent my weekend out of town on a camping/float trip so, needless to say, I'm sore all over and my mat is going to feel exceptionally good when I hit it. I'm at the beginning of another body detox; after a weekend of food/wine/etc., I'm easing myself back into a healthy lifestyle; for me, that almost exclusively means a healthy and balanced diet. I'll finish my coffee in a minute and hit my mat to sweat it out. Tuesday, August 22, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this after coming out of Savasana, still on my mat. I'm feeling wonderful from the physical strain/sweat of the practice (there's still plenty of garbage left in me that I'll need to sweat/work out over the next few days), and I'm delighted with how my body cooperated with what I was guiding it to do. Mentally, I'm feeling good as well.  I...

Thursday, August 17, 2017 Woke again at my usual 5:00 AM for coffee and contemplation. Time for prayers and meditations, a warm-up, and then some bro-ga Thursday, August 17, 2017 (Part II) Even though I woke at my usual 5:00 AM this morning, which gives me plenty of time to thaw from my night's sleep and organize my thoughts, I didn't think I'd hit the mat, for some reason. I'm delighted I did, as always, and feel wonderful after my full modified Primary Series practice. Backbends are essential.  That's my thought for the day.  They're magnificent and triumphant and reverse the flow of time and age (figuratively, of course). I feel balanced and wonderful and am looking forward to bringing this peace out into the world to share with others. Namaste

Wednesday, August 16, 2017 Woke at my usual 5:00AM this morning for coffee and contemplation.  #strangerthings I haven't practiced since last Friday as I spend my weekends breaking routine, and having a 2 day mini-vacation with my family, friends, and loved ones; that mini-vacation bled into Monday and Tuesday morning. The fact that I didn't practice with diligence for awhile would have upset a younger version of myself.  Now, I believe that, whatever I'm doing at that moment, is what I'm meant to be doing at that moment (hippie-dippie, I know), and that I shouldn't beat myself up if I'm relaxing, taking care of myself through rest, or spending my time with a loved one.  Family, friends, and loved ones are exceptionally important in one's life. I'm going to hit my mat in a few minutes, and sweat it out....... Wednesday, August 16, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this on my mat, having just come out of Savasana. I had an exceptional practice th...

Friday, August 11, 2017 Woke up at my usual 5:00 AM. Feeling good, but not great yet.  I'm going to try and change that, and view the challenges that I know I'll face today with fire inside me to burn through them.  I believe it's natural to cower from challenges (professional and personal).  While it's natural, I believe you can turn up the heat on things and view challenges in a way that makes you want to engage them head on.  When tackled this way, they can be dismantled bit by bit and are nowhere near  the size and shape you originally thought they were. 30 more minutes of coffee and contemplation (#strangerthings) and then I'm hitting my mat. Friday, August 11, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this on my mat, covered in sweat for some reason (I didn't think it was any hotter in my apartment or outside than it has been in the past few days). Had a great practice which was slower and more focused than Wednesday's quick/energetic practice.  Today...

Wednesday, August 9, 2017 Woke up at my usual 5:00 AM.  It is not 6:15 AM and I'm lolly-gagging about, procrastinating before getting onto my mat. Mornings are my favorite time of day, and I want to extend them as much as possible. I'm already feeling supported, strong, and proud.  It's time ( past  time) to hit my mat. Wednesday, August 9, 2017 (Part II) I'm writing this on my mat still having just come out of Savasana. Today's practice was remarkable. I meditated/prayed, as always, to start to give shape to myself, and to provide a template for what I wanted to be today.  Honest/Hardworking/Kind/Beautiful/Humble.  That's typically the shape I try and give myself. After that, I moved into my warm up (rolling on a curved back...bent-knee-forward bends...gentle backbends, etc.), and then I moved into my practice. I began my formalized routine a bit later than I usually do (around 6:20 AM or so), so wasn't going to do my full modified Ashtanga ...