Integration Series

"The Integration Series is where it all begins. This is where you step out of the world and into yourself, where you come out of your head and into your body." -Baron Baptiste, Baptiste Yoga


Exhale, Child's Pose (Balasana). Bring your big toes to touch. Set your knees as wide as is comfortable. Slide your hands forward and nestle your forehead into the mat.

-Allow your hips to sink towards your heels
-Soften your shoulders
-Reach out through your fingers

Take 3 cleansing breaths. Begin to cultivate Ujjaii Breathing. 

Inhale, Neutral Tabletop (exhale). Shift your weight forward. Rise onto all fours.

-Stack your hips over your knees, your shoulders over your wrists
-Draw your navel in
-Create one line of energy from your tailbone through the crown of your head

Inhale, Cow Pose (Bitilasana). Dip your belly downward. Gaze forward.

-Tilt your pelvis forward
-Draw your shoulders down and away from your ears
-Open your chest

Exhale, Cat Pose (Marjaryasana). Lift and round your spine. Pin your chin to your chest.

-Tilt your tailbone inward
-Hollow the space through your belly
-Push the earth away

Take several rounds of Cat/Cow.

Inhale, Neutral Tabletop. 

Exhale, Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Tuck your toes under. Pike your hips up and back.

-Melt your heels into the floor
-Pull your navel up and in
-Widen and press into all ten fingers

Inhale, High Plank (Dandasana). Shift your weight forward into the top of a push up.

-Create one line of energy from your heels through the crown of your head
-Engage your core
-Breathe into the space behind your heart

-Exhale, slowly lower your body to the ground. Exhale your stale breath.-

Inhale, Baby Cobra (Bhujangasana). Press the tops of your feet into the mat. Zip your legs together. Peel your chest away from the mat. Hover your hands.

-Strengthen through the thighs
-Lengthen the back of your neck
-Gaze is down

-Exhale, release.-

Inhale, Full Cobra (Bhujangasana). Lift your chest off of the ground. Push into the ground to straighten your arms.

-Engage your quadriceps
-Roll your shoulders down and back
-Gaze forward

-Exhale, release.-

Inhale, Neutral Tabletop.

Exhale, Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). 

Inhale, gaze forward

Exhale, Ragdoll (Uttanasana). Step your feet behind each wrist. Fold forward at the hips.

-Shift your weight onto the front of your feet
-Hang your head heavy
-Allow your arms to dangle

Options: Option to grab either elbow. Sway your torso side to side. Shake your head yes and no.

-Take several deep breaths. Toe-heel your feet to touch. Inhale, slowly unraveling your spine to stand.-

Exhale, Standing At Attention (Samasthiti). 

-Ground into all four corners of your feet
-Roll shoulder blades back and down
-Hands in prayer at heart center
-Close your eyes

"You're going to forget how to talk."

I’m not a shy person. I don’t often get nervous or tongue-tied. But one thing that has always been intimidating is speaking in front of a crowd. There isn’t much I could think of that is scarier than a group of people staring at you while you’re standing in front of them alone. Well… guess what? Guiding a group through a yoga class is not any easier. In fact, not only are you speaking to them, you’re instructing them to do things! They are waiting on you for the next cue, the next movement. They are depending on you to know your shit. And that’s pretty scary.

To be honest, it all seemed so simple. I know the postures. I know what comes next and what I have to do to get there. But when you have to explain that to someone else, to cut out all the fluff and command someone in simple terms and phrases, it is HARD!  You have to link the breath to the pose and direct them. The first thing our Teacher Trainer, Christina, said was, “You’re going to forget how to talk.” She wasn’t lying. It was almost funny, to hear ourselves fumble over words, to completely forget the sequence we’ve done a thousand times. Trying to think of synonyms for words like we are in the 6^th grade. It was also frustrating. To fidget and laugh nervously to keep from beating myself up for not being able to get it. It hasn’t been easy. 

But it’s getting there. Entering week 4 of training, it’s very slowly coming to me and coming out of me. It’s an awesome feeling for me and the rest of the group when we can stand up and guide each other in breath and movement. I feel we have a long way to go, but we are getting there. 

A New Family

Week one down! We spent the first day getting to know one another a little better. The older I get, the more introverted I become.  So I'm not usually a fan of  the "getting to know your neighbor" type of stuff. All the more reason to try something new, right? The only other person I know is my comadre, Tess, who is also taking this training with me. It's really nice to have someone there to share this with. But this time, I will be forever grateful for not only being able to hear all of their stories, but for what their stories gave me. It gave me reassurance that I was exactly where I needed to be. 

There are about 15 of us in the class, all women. Every single person has an amazing story to tell. Some with families, some here in San Diego all by themselves. One is grieving the loss of a child, while another is growing a little life inside of her. Each person from a different background, some even from different countries. No two people have the same story, or the same life. We are all so completely DIFFERENT. It's crazy how our entire group has very little in common other than that we are all taking this training together. Yoga led us here. And it unites us. 

For the remaining 9 weeks, I am going to be spending more time with these women than I will with anyone else. I will be sharing this journey with a group of passionate, strong individuals and it's pretty exciting. We are all part of the Reach Yoga family now.  

Here We Go

Today is the first day. The first official day of Yoga Teacher Training. For the next ten weeks, my life will be: work, yoga, sleep, repeat. I need 200 hours of instruction and practice to be certified. No more weekends, no more sleeping in. There will be late nights and lots of sweaty yoga clothes. But I have never been more excited. For a while I have felt like I've been at a stand still. Like I wasn't really doing something worthwhile. Yoga has changed that for me. I feel purpose. I feel progress. I feel passion. 

I almost backed out, because of some unexpected changes in my life. I cried over it. I didn't want to give it up. But I didn't want to have to deal with anything other than classes for the next ten weeks. Not to mention the financial responsibility of this endeavor. I wanted this to be priority. Lucky for me, the man in my life won't let me accept anything but what's best for me. Between sniffling on the phone with him, he tells me, "You aren't going to give this up. This is what you want." How do I argue with that? I hate it when he is right. I love it when he is right. 

So... here we go.