Cross fingers!

I am excited. I’m sure I will panic tomorrow. I’m so grateful. I’m just everything. These times also bring new opportunities and challenges and it’s all coming quite quick. Boom. Do it, leave it. Yes, no. No time for „let me think about it“ or „next week“. Now or never.

I taught my first online yoga classes last week and even if all went very well, I have to admit, it’s also a bit scary as it’s new for me to perform in front of a camera. Hello comfort zone! Not to mention the lack of appropriate technical skills. No time to even think about that. Here’s the chance, take it or leave it. That simple.

I took the chance and I also said yes to the next one: Tomorrow I will teach a Mindfulness Session via live stream. Ok, what the f*** is the difference…. yep, now I know. Participants can see and hear me, but I won’t see them. What a shame! And a new challenge talking and demonstrating without seeing how participants are doing it. The reason seems that web sharing services won’t work for that many participants. Aha.

Alright, now the number: there will be 450 people invited. Phew. I mean, obviously, not everyone will attend, but anyhow. 450. Live. Not recorded. I’m already panicking. And so damn excited!
Please cross fingers for me, I really should deliver a good one, as the aim is to do it weekly!

Yummy workshop!

Deep dive into yourself – pure nourishment. It will be a very gentle and calm practice, where you will be guided into yourself. Releasing tension and allow the process of healing to start. No matter if physically, mentally or emotionally – all you have to do is let it happen.

We will start with Yin Yoga in combination with Reiki, the Japanese hands on healing method (read more about Reiki here) and we will finish with a beautiful Chakra healing, which comes as a guided meditation. I will take you through a beautiful visualization, which will not only be a deep relaxation, but also work on your chakras.

Mark your calendar on the 7th March, 4pm – 6:30pm! Sign up here, places are limited!

Concentration

My practice is different each day. While practicing the same series of postures, everything else differs. One day my body is soft and bendy, the other day stiff and kind of heavy and obviously, anything in between. My mind sometimes very focussed, sometimes distracted. Not to mention my mood…

These factors shouldn’t be underestimated, as they need to be managed. I have these moments when all of a sudden, I don’t have a clue where in my practice I am. What asana comes now? What did I just do? No idea. Or I notice, that I even missed some asanas out. 

Well, does it matter? It does! On a physical level we need a strong focus to challenge our body exactly the right way. No one needs injuries, right. On the other hand, we also don’t want to go through the practice on a low level, just doing some movements without meaning. Finally, our practice is supposed to help us going into a meditative state. For all this being possible, we have to take it serious and create the base for it. 

In Ashtanga Yoga, we use drishti, or focus point, as a tool to concentrate and guide our attention same time inwardly. Engaging the bandhas gives us balance and stability, while ujjayi breath creates the rhythm of our movements. 

There are these moments, when I loose connection and my mind jumps in, starting to wander. Not noticing it is exactly the point. I am not here, not in the moment, I’m not practicing properly. As soon as I bring my focus back to my breath, drishti and engage my bandhas, I’m back. Back on the mat, back in my practice. 

Practice properly yogis! Respect your body, your mind and your spirit, guide yourself with full awareness through your practice. No matter if you practice on your own or attend a class, always keep the connection to yourself!

Make your practice yours

There’s a change happening right now. Many of us are looking for more mindful, sustainable, and harmonious ways of living. Covered in concrete, we now start to value nature again and look for a way to reconnect. This doesn’t only mean to go for a walk in a forest or beach once in a while, it’s a longing inside, which is exactly about that: inside. Us. We lost ourselves in this over-active and busy lives; now is the time to step back from competition and stress.

I believe this change will also affect our yoga practice. We are more and more seeking for a quieter practice, rediscover our intuition and connect to ourselves. Same time bringing any new experiences and learnings into our every-day life, so it can work there too.

This is the start of a home practice. Leaving the stressful life aside to connect with our own nature. Learning to breathe again, to listen to our bodies, to feel, to understand. Instead of running from the office to make it in time to a class, why not practicing at home? It is a change, particularly if you are not living alone and the family is requesting your time. The right moment to claim some me-time. One hour and then you’ll be there for your family. Yes, it is possible and it will also change your family by respecting individual boundaries and resources.

Get a teacher for a one-to-one teaching from time to time, so you can set up your routine together and also to get aligned and adjusted. Step out of your routine and the crazy life – start looking for you. Understanding your body, your emotions, desires, and also your fears and doubts, by reconnecting to your nature. It is your practice, make it yours. 

Are you in Switzerland? I’m available for one to one teaching from end October – book your slot and experience the difference!

How do you treat yourself?

Do you know the situation when asking a doctor for help and all he does is looking at the problem, prescribes some medicine to treat it without searching  for the source, what’s causing the problem? And what else might be linked to it?

Don‘t do the same. Treat yourself as a whole, always, not only if issues arise. You are made of body, mind and spirit — everything is energy and everything is connected.

You can use essential oils to cure an issue, but no matter if you put them on your skin or take them internally, without working on your body and mind, it won’t help for long. 

Exercise your body, think the thoughts you want to think, be in stillness, love yourself. Treat your entire being, every single cell is working hard for you and only deserves the best in return!

Are you ready to bring pure, natural essential oils into your life? I would love to help you get started! Drop me a message or email me to get connected: live@tuneinyoga.com

Change is in the air

It’s time to make space. Time to let go. I will give up one of my weekly yoga classes from October and this wasn’t an easy decision. A very special group of yogis, many of them are with me since day one. We grew together and it was a journey! All of us learned a lot over the last years and it’s so beautiful to see the progress.

Letting go isn’t easy, but we can’t hold what isn’t meant to stay. Filled with gratitude, I’m sending a huge THANK YOU out – particularly to this group, but honestly to all yogis, that work so hard and are willing to take this path, the path to work on themselves.

So what now? I will continue to teach weekly classes and workshops in Zurich and on the weekend, either Saturday or Sunday in Winterthur (announced here and on FB).

My new focus will be on private classes, one to one or slightly opened up to max 3 yogis. This way we can go much deeper and and each class will be personalized on the individual needs. A different approach to physically and mentally lift my students to a higher level, and finally to move in step with them in the direction of achieving objectives. Are you interested to bring your practice to the next level? Let’s get in contact!

Otherwise, I’ll keep myself open for anything the universe will throw my way! Isn’t this the reason to let go? An outdated model has to be released and the space can be filled with something new. I will always honor this class, this chapter of my life. Thanks a mill to all the beautiful people who supported me! Let’s take the next step.

4 TIPS TO SLOW DOWN

Many times meditation has been a topic I wrote about, and in these times of intense stress, I won’t stop to point out how important it is to slow down and be in stillness.

Our minds tend to be overloaded, and many of us experience a constantly buzzing busy mind. Just ignoring this fact and allow the stress to manifest can lead to health issues. Stress can take a serious toll on your body on all levels, physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. This makes it so important to have breaks, clear the mind, calm down and be still. Your health needs a relaxed and calm starting place to function optimally.

Here comes meditation into play, as this is a great tool to calm down with effects on all levels. You don’t like it? Can’t do it? Give it a different name. Get behind the idea. It’s crucial to quieten your mind and be in stillness, no matter how you do it or how you call it. As an important note, it’s not about just getting rid of your thoughts. Even if shushing your many inner voices is the main goal, you should let them have their say, so you can discover the all-encompassing stillness. Allow thoughts to pop up, appreciate them and let them go. This is the whole exercise. Let’s repeat: it’s all about accepting the thoughts as they come up, and then releasing them. 

Sounds easy, but it only works if you stop judging yourself when your mind starts to wander. Sitting in stillness isn’t easy, so why don’t you start with this to help you stay focused and reel you back in if your mind gets too busy:

  1. Focus on your breath: Bring your attention to your breath. Let it go into your belly, long, slow deep inhales and full exhales. Whenever your mind starts to wander, bring your attention back to your breath. Again and again and again. Just that.
  2. Guided meditation: Use a guided meditation to focus on the voice your hear and following that voice, so your thoughts don’t have much space. You can use an app for this or check my meditations on YouTube – I will record more for you and upload there. Go with the voice that makes you feel calm and settled, otherwise it won’t work well.
  3. Start easy: just some minutes will do the job when you start. Slowly you might want to increase the time, but be gentle and allow yourself to get used to it!
  4. Practice regularly: Make it a regular practice and go for the same time each day. This way it becomes a habit and you can stick to it. Start once a day, maybe right after getting up in the morning or before sleep in the evening. When feeling comfortable with it, you might want to increase the duration and/or ad another short slot during the day.

Learning how to quiet your mind and have a regular practice can have a big impact on your life. And your health!

TiY goes YouTube

The fruits of the dynamics of last week 🙂

TUNEin:YOGA goes YouTube! My main video is already live (did you watch?) and I just uploaded a short meditation. Just some minutes to relax and unwind 🙏
The world runs faster and faster, the more important it is to have a break, to just stop and get quiet. Going on a mental journey is an excellent entry point into the world of meditation. It doesn’t has to be always long, whatever works for you that day, 5 min, 30 min or anything in-between. There’s a series of meditations planned – different lengths, a variation of topics, audio and yes, video will come too 🙂

Now, watch and listen, links below and stay tuned!

The TUNEin:YOGA video: https://youtu.be/_P8_7N2b69M
Short Meditation: https://youtu.be/E0Pm-ADFuuI

Videocredit Pasindu Madushan Photography

Freebie!

Yogis, I’ve got something for you!

Thought it’s time to get some free stuff your way 🙂

I make a start with a 20 minutes guided meditation for you – no matter if you’re new to meditation or an experienced meditator, get your download, sit down, enjoy!

All you have to do is send me a note and the download link is on its way. As it’s not an automated process (yet), bear with me if it takes a moment… you’ll get it darling. You can either get it via Dropbox (you will need the free app), otherwise I can send it directly to your inbox. You tell me.

Also let me know what you would like to get next for free – I might follow up with this! Just be aware, I won’t record any classes or tutorials, as I believe in one-2-one teaching. Videos can be great for input, but always practice with a teacher.

So beautiful, drop me a line and get your free meditation!