Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Elsie's Yoga Podcast with my Sister

Coast Guard takes up a huge portion of my summer and it is nice to have Yoga classes available while at base. I have been practicing with John Friend, Elsie and P90X Yoga. Sometimes I practice on my own and some days I have people who join.

Today, my sister Ainsley joined the yoga train. I am lucky to be working with my sister. We decided to partake in one of Elsie's 75 minute yoga Podcast classes. A free yoga class while at base is AMAZING and it is nice to introduce Ainsley to different styles of Yoga. Ainsley struggled a little with the podcast cues because she is most familiar with Bikram. In general, a verbal class is tough for individuals who scarcely practice Yoga. It was nice showing Ainsley the postures in the comfort of our Coast Guard base. I really enjoy the verbal communication, because it helps me focus on the postures and gives me description ideas for when I am teaching Yoga.


Today, Ainsley almost completed the whole class. She only skipped savasana and part of pigeon (I skipped corpse, too). The laying still has yet to catch on for her! Quite often, I cannot focus on my Yoga practice, too. At first, savasana was really awkward for me and now I get so comfortable that I almost fall asleep... oops! During Elsie's class she started with a good amount of planks and chattorungas. I was struggling, because last night I did arms and back on the P90X video. My arms were heavy and exhausted. Elsie's class was tough but as I loosened-up, the postures felt manageable. Thanks Elsie!

Ainsley knows that she needs to stretch out and try Yoga but she has really been struggling with the classes that exceed an hour. Her attention runs thin and she cannot focus on the simple tasks. She has a similar back injury to mine and stretching seems to help her pain. P90X yoga was far to long for her, so she enjoyed a cookie/water break. I think a music filled class would best suit her. A playlist with Justin Bieber and Janet Jackson, perhaps?

Finally, I want to make a shout-out to my fiance who just finished writing the bar. CONGRATS! He is now off moving all our stuff to our new home in Lakeland, FL. Wish I could be there to help out! Love you Coop.

yours gingerly,

Cox Schnarr :)