This summer will be busy for me for I’m honored to be part of twoYogaworks 300-hour teacher trainings. So if you want to take your practice and teaching to the next level, you have two options:
. one in Hazlet, New Jersey
. one in New York City
For more information and to apply, contact Lynn Lisella.

This is one of the majestic sunset sets I got to see last summer on the ferry on my way to Shelter Island. I’ve been lucky to teach on this Island for the past 9 years. I’ll be going this summer again to teach group classes and private sessions. So if you need a break from the city, come and practice with me every Saturday and Sunday at 9am at Shelter Island Yoga starting on June 20th.

Please check my website in the weeks to come for my updated schedule in the city.

My new French “Arrêt sur Asana” video is ready. I take a look at crow pose: Bakasana.
Watch it on Vimeo
or on the Esprit Yoga magazine website.

Don’t forget to ‘like” my Facebook page for updates and inspiration!!

A year full of harmony and understanding

I finally find the time to sit down and write my newsletter…
The holiday season is always such a hectic period and the year started strong. I’ve never really liked this season of the year for as a kid, my brother and I would spend Christmas away from my parents. They used to own a “pâtisserie” in France and my father was making everything from cakes, croissants, chocolates, to ice creams to savory dishes. I can sense what some of you are thinking: what a dream!! And yes, I loved it!! But as much as I was so happy to grow up surrounded by sugar, my brother and I never spent a Christmas with my parents for it was their busiest day of the year along with new year’s day.

But somehow the last few years, I started to get more into the Christmas spirit and I enjoy it a lot. I think what I like the most is the lights and the sense of warmth and coziness that holiday offers. We are so busy all the time that it feels so good to slow down and spend time with people we love.
For New Year’s eve, my husband and I also kept things quiet as we wanted to start the new year with clarity and intention. We went to the New York Insight meditationcenter from 9pm to 12.30am to welcome 2015 with meaning. I believe in the power of thoughts, how they affect our reality. And being able to spend this holiday meditating with like minded people was a blessing.

The week following the New Year, I asked my students to choose a word that would define 2015, that would be their theme for the year. Such a simple exercise but truly powerful. The word I chose is HARMONY. I will make 2015 a harmonious year at every level of my life and for the people who surround me.
Coming back to the power of our thoughts, I believe in setting an intention, in holding it clearly in your heart and mind so it can become a reality. Since January first, every time I felt an argument could arise, or I could be thrown off by a situation, I would remember that word: harmony. Right away I would stop the vicious cycle of my thoughts and my behavior would change.
In the yogic philosophy of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, that is referred to as the technique of “pratipaksha bhavanam” (sutras 2.33 and 2.34). It tells us to invite positive thoughts when negative thinking arises. This helps to eliminate the thoughts in our minds that we do not want and are not healthy for us.
Another way to control unwanted thoughts is to consider the principle of cause and effect. If thoughts are cause and experience is the effect, then we are asked to consider what the effects might be of our actions, thoughts and words. Will they be positive or negative?

Of course, as I chose the word harmony, little did I know that my country would be under attack and that over 2000 innocent people would be killed in Nigeria by Boko Haram. So where do we go from there?
I still believe more than ever that harmony, understanding and love are the answers. We need to understand that we are all the same and it’s only by coming together that we will create harmony. Love is always the answer. Let’s spread it every day even in the tiniest way, for it does make a difference.

“I strongly believe that love is the answer and that it can mend even the deepest unseen wounds. Love can heal, love can console, love can strengthen, and yes, love can make change.” Somaly Mam

I want to wish you a magical and peaceful year. May you be free from sufferings.
With Love,

SEASON
Autumn has arrived and along with it, wind and colder temperatures. Even though I can only be moved by how romantic and incredibly beautiful the turning colors of the leaves is; it is, by far, not my favorite season.
From my experience and my knowledge in Ayurveda (Indian medicine), Autumn has the power to weaken my being both physically and emotionally: dry skin, cracked lips, fatigue, stress and anxiety more pronounced…
Along the years, I learnt to notice these symptoms and to protect myself. One of the many benefits of practicing Yoga regularly is to be able to listen to ourself better, to be aware of our body and its needs.
Here are a few very simple gestures I do every day to take care of myself, keep me grounded and help me live better this season of transition:

. wearing warm clothes especially around the waist and the neck.

. eating/drinking warm foods and drinks. Hydrating and warming up from the inside is important to boost our metabolism. For example, if you have cereals with milk for breakfast, heat it up. Since I heat up my almond milk, I don’t have a feeling of dryness in my throat anymore when I teach my first class in the morning.

. not drinking any caffeinated drinks; they increase stress and anxiety. Two years ago, I stopped drinking coffee and tea for they were dehydrating me too much.

. drinking plenty of water but never iced or cold, always room temperature.

. keeping my skin hydrated with organic creams.

. going to bed early and sleeping long hours.

. no screen time for about an hour after waking up.

. practicing a lot of standing poses which center and ground oneself. They address the first chakra where our roots are located.

Have an easeful and healthy Autumn. Take good care of yourselves!!!

INSPIRATION

I couldn’t agree more with that quote and the urgency seems even more immediate with every day passing by.
Sometimes, I’m scared by how we got our priorities totally wrong. How we value money over kindness and compassion, how we worship some reality TV stars over understanding and supporting our community, how we destroy Mother Earth for the sake of making more money, how the food and pharmaceutical industries decide what we should eat and then feed us medicine instead of promoting a healthy lifestyle where food and movement are the medicine, how people who work everyday with passion and loyalty can barely make a living when others make in one day their yearly income, how we kill for the sake of religion or owning a piece of territory…
What has happened to us?
I think the answer lies in education.
Learning awareness, compassion, kindness, meditation, movement, nutrition, gardening, caring for our family is as important if not more important than any other subject studied in school.
And eventhough a lot has to be changed, I have FAITH for I see these topics being a concern for more and more people. I see parents educating theses values in their children, I see more interest in eastern philosophies and a will to change coming from people. And this gives me hope in a better future, not one where success is based on how much you make but how harmoniously can you live with one another while respecting the Earth.
We need to understand that we are all in this together and even the smallest action can benefit the other; for we are without a doubt, on a larger scale, ONE.

I’m filled with joy and enthusiasm as I’m about to go to Strasbourg, France for the 4th year in a row to teach the second session of a Yogaworks teacher training. I’m excited to see my students who chose to follow the wonderful path of Yoga.
I’m fully aware of the huge honor and the important responsibility that come with teaching a training.
Honor yes, for it is a privilege to be able to teach future teachers, to share their joys, their questions, their doubts, their fears. To see them evolve and transform during these 200 hours.
It is also an important responsibility for it is my duty to transmit to them some quality knowledge, to give them a solid base from which they will have the freedom to grow, to refine and to deepen their practice. Hence, continuing my education by taking workshops, trainings and deepening my personal practice is a key point to be able to teach trainings and any classes.
I’ve been teaching teacher trainings for Yogaworks for 6 years. The first level of training is 200 hours. The next level is 300 hours of training for a total of 500 hours. The number of hours has been decided by Yoga Alliance, organization supervising internationally the schools of yoga allowed to train students.
I have sometimes witnessed, from French people, a skepticism regarding these trainings.
How is it possible to become a Yoga teacher in 4 weeks?
Being French and used to long years of training based on theory (I have a master in Social Law. You see, studying law gets you anywhere!), I also have felt in the past this skepticism and questioning. That being said, these disappeared quickly.
Aside the Iyengar teacher trainings which last several years, almost all other trainings offered in the world are given under the 200-hour format. One exception is in France where the “Ecole Française de Yoga” trainings are given in 4 years.
I simply came to the conclusion that there are two different methods and outlooks. In the Sates, for instance, all the trainings are rather short for society focus on the practical, pragmatic aspect and on the experience gathered along the years. It is also implied that the training is the very first step on a beginner teacher’s path and he/she has the obligation to continue his/her education by taking workshops, trainings and, of course, by practicing.
In France, the society values theory and the latter, over many years. This school of thought is deeply anchored in the French mentality. Hence, when an other method is proposed, the judgment and the questions arise.
All I can say is, after having myself being trained in the States ( I’ve been living in New York for 14 years), I’m extremely grateful for the quality and the professionalism of the trainings I received both for the 200H and 300H levels. Since, I never stopped practicing and I’m always continuing my education to refine my skills and knowledge, to better understand this fascinating path of Yoga physically, energetically and spiritually.
Let’s not forget that these trainings are meant to be taken by advanced and disciplined practitioner.
Now being a trainer, I’m lucky to witness incredible transformations. The trainings help some find their calling and a few took a leap of faith and are now making a living out of teaching or opened their own yoga studio, others gained the confidence they needed to start teaching, others wanted to deepen their own practice and don’t want to become a teacher and others took it as another life experience.
Whatever your journey and your desires are, the training will give you a solid foundation to practice safely and better understand who you are physically as well as mentally. And it will show you the way to eventually teach if it is your calling.

As a yoga practitioner, I’ve experienced some pain, discomfort in my sacroiliac (SI) joints at times. Having a scoliosis (uneven spine and pelvis), I’m at greater risk to feel some sensitivity around this joint.

The SI joints have some mobility, a little give, but they are mainly joints of STABILITY.
For those of you who don’t have any anatomical knowledge, please stay with me, here are some more information.
A joint is where two bones meet. We have two SI joints: one on the right where the ilium (latin name for one side of the pelvis) and the sacrum meet and one one the left.
Around every joint, there are some ligaments. We can stretch them a little during our asana practice but if we overstretch them, they don’t go back to their regular length and the joints are becoming hypermobile. Think of a gum being stretched, once lengthened it won’t return to its original length.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that stretching is bad, I’m saying: it MUST be combined with STABILIZATION.

85% of women suffered or are suffering from SI pain compare to 15% of men. How unfair!
Here are some reasons. First, a woman’s pelvis is wider than a man’s so there is more torquing action happening just by its nature, the joint is also shallower in a woman’s pelvis hence less stable and finally, (as if it wasn’t enough!) the ligaments around the joints respond to the hormones changes (periods, pregnancy, menopause…).
If you are or have been pregnant, you most likely know what I’m talking about.

For a pain free SI joints, the well known yoga instructor, Judith Hanson Lasater, who is also a physical therapist, has a strong opinion on the subject: ALWAYS MOVE YOUR PELVIS AND YOUR SACRUM TOGETHER especially in twists and forward bends.
In other words, she encourages to let the pelvis turn with the spine in a twisting asana instead of keeping it leveled.
It does makes sense to me and my body for it creates the stability my SI joints are lacking. That being said, it may not work for you. I’d be happy to read your comments and feedback.

At the end of the day, I do believe an asana practice is an extremely personal and individual one depending on our structure, musculature, gender, age… What works for me may not work for you and vice versa.
Next time we are on our mat, let’s deeply tune in and listen to the signals our body is sending.
Yoga is the art of paying attention.