Winter Newsletter 2022
Updates - what’s going on with Libby Ramsey Leads?
COMING SOON! The Fall 2023 Retreat at Sage Lodge in Pray, Montana will open for registration March 31. Interested? Email Libby!
IN STUDIO & ON ZOOM! Did you know that Libby’s studio, Dancing Dogs Yoga Greensboro, is still offering one live zoom class per day? You can often catch Libby teaching the in studio & on zoom Saturday 8:30am class - sign up in advance and join here wherever you are!
Yoga Off The Mat - Drishti.
We were only slightly scared and intimidated. Day 3 on the ranch and it was Elizabeth’s and my chance to take our adventurous sons on a mountain biking excursion. Nevermind that their dads had taken them on a trail with a jump called “collarbone” on the first day. This one was an an all levels outing, just like my power yoga studio….but imagine hot power yoga surrounded by cacti on either side of your yoga mat! As we’re about to head to the trails, David, our guide, gave us his #1 piece of advice: “Set your eyes on where you DO want to go, not where you don’t want to go. If you start looking at the cactus off the trail, that is where you’re going to go! Keep your focus right ahead of you on the trail.” Its all yoga, isn’t it? Way to go, David. In the 5 Pillars of Baptiste Yoga, Drishti is THE FIRST ONE. Without a singular focus, you’ll find yourself physically all over your yoga mat, mentally distracted, and ungrounded. A common tendency for newer yoga practitioners is eyes darting all over the room, watching neighbors, worry about what their pose looks like, etc. While you may not fall into a cactus, consider using the pillar of Drishti to calm and ground your pose and your whole practice, in addition to your way of being. Where in your life off of your yoga mat, and off of your mountain biking trail, could this work for you? Consider that wherever you’re facing the greatest challenges, worry, or work right now could use this piece of advice on Drishti to calm, ground, presence, and focus. Try it somewhere on AND off your mat this week!
Pose of the Month
Revolved triangle pose was lovingly named “picking up sticks in the yard pose” by one of my yogis a few years ago - and it made so much sense to me! It is true that the bending and twisting action of this pose really taps into a lot of places where we carry tension and tightness including your low back, quadrus lumborum, psoas, hips, hamstrings, calves, and more. It is one of my favorite poses because I think there is something for everyone. I want to highlight 3 elements of this pose where you might be able to find some empowerment and growth: 1) no caving in! Lengthen your spine out as much as possible and engage your core before folding down towards your forward leg. 2) this is one of the best poses for a block under your lower hand. Put it on whatever height you need to be able to use the block for leverage to then lift and twist deeper. 3) don’t forget your back leg. Sometimes a student has SO much going on, they default into lifting up the back heel and turning their whole entire body. Instead, make sure you energetically press back through your back leg to drive that hip forward, and twist from your belly instead of your feet. Enjoy!
