Blah, Blah, Blah Bikram Blog….. “Go Tell Nonna!”

Bikram Yoga is not for people who baby themselves, as it is a challenging practice that rewards the participant with many healthy benefits. I know that my Aunt Caroline would have appreciated this type of physical and mental discipline, so this months blog is in her honor.

Caroline Palma DeVale was my father’s oldest sibling and the last one to pass away. She died at the ripe old age of 101 this past June 27, 2018.

Right on my Birthday.

Not the best birthday present but I wonder if there is some significance there. While I love all my aunts and uncles, “Aunt Caroline” stood out as a mentor in my childhood and early adult years. She was a force not to be reckoned with in our family. Often spoken about as being too critical one always knew where they stood with her. There were no pretenses, no hidden agenda, only clarity. What you see is what you get.

I’m not sure if her significance in my life was because she was not afraid to speak her mind or if it was because she still looked amazing at 75 years old when her Christmas Card arrived with a picture of herself in a bathing suit modeling on a runway.

No Joke…….. she was modeling a bathing suit in a fashion show at SEVENTY -FIVE years old and looked amazing. I can only hope at 75 years old I look even half that good.

She was the eldest of four children and my father was the youngest. My Aunt got married at 18 years old, my father at 31. When my Aunts children were having children, my parents were having children, so my cousins were more like Aunts and Uncles, and my Aunt was more like a Grandma , or “Nonna” as we say in Italian.

I can still see the tiny match box-like cars that flew down Lake Shore Drive (LSD) in Chicago from my Aunts high rise building window . I can still hear the the ocean waves crashing during the night when I stayed at her beach home in Florida.

She was a woman before her times. Widowed at a very early age, she raised and educated three children as a single parent, and became a teacher and a real estate agent to support her family. She understood responsibility and accountability,balance and moderation more than anyone.

I spent many Spring Breaks in St. Pete’s Beach with “Nonna” and always had the same breakfast. One half of a grapefruit and one biscotti. The biscotti were so good and I always wanted another but it was never allowed. “ONE is enough” she would say. Everything in moderation.

I once helped her roll 8 pans of Manicotti for her Yacht Club members while I was vacationing there to earn my keep. She had my Father paint her sign for her rental building during his stay. There was no loafing with “Nonna.” I value the lesson of Accountability to this day.

Another fond memory was walking into her bedroom one morning only to find her on the floor doing abdominal crunches with weights in her hands. She was into fitness long before the fitness craze.

At my Aunts memorial, her grandchild, Bonita (my 2nd cousin, once removed as they say) got up to speak about her fond memories of “Nonna”. Like “Nonna” Bonita is a Teacher as well. She spoke of all the many things she learned from Nonna and how easy it was to talk to her about almost anything.

After switching from teaching the 6th grade class to the 3rd grade class, Bonita noticed a significant difference in the maturity level. The 3rd graders had to constantly tattle on one another and run and tell the teacher. Not wanting to be bogged down with the trivial, but wanting the children to be able to vent, Bonita wondered what Nonna would have done.

She then came up with an idea. She posted a portrait of “Nonna” in the Classroom and when the children ran to her with their stories she would say, “Go Tell Nonna”.

It was huge success and Bonita noticed lines forming everyday with the students whispering their thoughts to Nonna. This became a huge comfort for Bonita as her Grandmother’s spirit was still kept alive in her classroom.

I can’t help but wonder if this would work in my Yoga Studio. I’m not dealing with third graders 😉 , but lets face it, people like to gripe at any age: “IT’s too hot,” “It’s too cold,” “The humidity is too high,” “there’s not enough humidity,” I don’t like that teacher…… blah, blah, blah…………

Go Tell Nonna (just don’t expect to eat more than one biscotti a day.)

See you in the hot room!

Ciao`

Finding Dao

My Bikram Yoga Teacher would say, “Put your feet together so that your heels and toes are touching.” If you replied that you cannot do this, he would shout at you, “Yes you can – just do it.” He believes that bone structure can change and if you continuously correct yourself and aim for proper alignment, it WILL happen.

My Yin Yoga Teacher would say, “Bring your feet together with heels and toes touching as close as possible for you.” He would then show you a series of bones with internally and externally rotated joints that would make it difficult if not impossible to bring your feet perfectly together…ever. So he would leave you alone and intentionally acknowledge the imperfection as a forever.

So who is right?

Well… BOTH…in a way.

There are these two opposing concepts and then there is the DAO. The DAO is the center; it’s the middle ground; it’s the balance that is always present regardless of how far to the right or to the left we are at any given moment of any given day.

Where there is Yin there is Yang and where there is Yang there is Yin. Hence, the Yin Yang symbol showing a circle of the opposition within itself.

One cannot argue with natural bone structure right? If you are born with bone formation that deviates from proper alignment, someone yelling at you to put your feet perfectly together is not going to make it happen, correct? If this is your thought process your answer to the above question would make you lean Yinward, but consider this:

Orthodontic Braces work because of the pressure over a period of time to force Osteoclastic Activity (a fancy technical term for bone breaking down) and Osteoblastic Activity (a fancy technical term for bone rebuilding) to work in tandem . Yes, I’m drawing from my Dental Hygiene memory bank 😉

These opposite forces cause the pressure of the bands/brackets to break down the Cancellous bone in the jaw in front of the tooth that is moving in order for the tooth to occupy the now empty space. Simultaneously bone regeneration occurs in the space that the moved tooth leaves behind.

I had an adolescent friend in grade school that wore a back brace to straighten her spine after being diagnosed with Idiopathic Scoliosis- a condition she was born with. That coupled with exercises to strengthen the muscles around her spine helped her to restore better alignment. It was never perfect but significantly improved, and to the naked eye almost unnoticeable . It could only be detected via x-ray.

So here’s my take:

While I agree one cannot ignore natural birth defects or naturally occurring unevenness of the bones in one’s body, I do believe one can definitely improve the situation. Improvement doesn’t mean perfection. I don’t agree the end result will always be perfect or that assuming this while brow beating someone is prudent. However, since I do believe one can improve and this improvement can additionally help their overall health, to ignore the situation and chalk it up to it being a life sentence is equally counterproductive.

When I was in Bikram Yoga training Bikram Choudhury used this analogy: “If I hand you an iron rod would you be able to bend it in half?” Not unless you are Hercules right? He would go on to say,” what if you heated it to a high enough temperature to make it malleable?” We all know the answer to that or welding wouldn’t be successful.

Let’s take that example into the hot room. If you instruct a person who has one or both ankles externally rotated and you ask them to put their feet together so their heels and toes are touching, they would be able to do so for a second and then guess what? Their heels would stay touching and their toes would spread right back out. Over a period of time, in a heated room and with concentrated effort I believe the distance between the toes would improve greatly and maybe completely depending on the severity of the rotation in the first place. So constantly reminding one – gentle encouragement if you will – to strive to close their toes is definitely a good thing. Constant, repetitive instruction given in an encouraging, educational way is key.

Shouting at someone to do something they can’t physically or physiologically do is not going to help the situation , nor is completely ignoring it and allowing the malalignment to continue as if it was hopeless.

If you take this thought process in the hot room, all the better. There is no question that heat (like the iron rod example) as well as continuous repeated pressure (like the orthodontic example) will have favorable results. Understanding that this will be a process and not an overnight fix is key.

Heat strengthens our cardiovascular system and accelerates all of our health benefits, so if you are looking to improve alignment , lose weight , improve balance, or a host of other benefits ……….. Meet me in the Hot Room!! Together we will heal or bodies and our minds as we center ourself for a balanced lifestyle.

Namaste`

Blah, Blah,Blah Bikram Blog….Lost in Translation on our Journey through Coachella Fest 2018

Bikram Yoga Palm Desert El Paseo welcomes our Festival Out of Town guests sporting their colorful wristbands during April every year. This year was no different in some respects yet very different on a personal level.

I personally hosted at my home a dear friend from New Zealand, Gordon, and his dear friend from London, Kayte, as they checked off Coachella Music and Arts Festival attendance from their bucket lists. The now famous event which is literally in my back yard (I can hear the music if I’m standing on my patio) and draws world wide attention has become quite the phenomenon.

Coachella Music Festival started in 1999 and after a rough start and a money loser, the passionate organizer mortgaged his house, got some ducks in order and gave it another go in 2001. This time with very different results.

In 2001 the Coachella Music Festival was a huge hit and the rest is history. It has received more attention with greater crowds attending every year. They even had to add a second weekend to accommodate the masses that descend on our valley specifically for this event yearly.

Living a stones throw away from the venue and dealing with crazy traffic and longer lines at my neighborhood grocery store and coffee shop, the Festival’s presence seemed more of a nuisance than anything. That is until Coachella Fest 2018 when I couldn’t help but be swept up by my guests enthusiasm.

In the 11th hour I obtained a wristband and special parking privileges near the event thanks to a dear friend of mine with connections. Armed with water and comfortable shoes the three of set out on our Journey.

It was truly a Journey, figuratively and literally as our swollen feet and numbs legs could attest. If you are not a walker, skip the fest. We laughed as we sat down on a bench for the first time and all groaned.

Truthfully, apart from the walking , the dust in the air and getting our “metal” water bottles confiscated at the entrance, Coachella Festival Weekend II, “Chella” as the locals say, was an amazing, magical experience that I will always treasure and never forget.

It brings new meaning to the phrase, ‘people watching’. If I didn’t see things with my own eyes I’m not sure I would have believed it. I am now enlightened that I no longer need to wear a top and that a bra solo is stand alone attire.
Maybe next year………………… 😉

The magnitude of the Venue, the Art and the kumbaya connection as the crowd sang, swayed and danced with some pretty awesome bands was truly an amazing vision. According to Kayte a festival enthusiast that has many festivals under her belt, ‘Chella’ was “thoroughly impressive.”

Additionally I could spend a memorable block of time with and be reunited with my 9 week study partner from Bikram Yoga Teacher Training 2011 and became fast friends with his additional guest, Kayte. Back in Bikram Yoga Teacher Training Gordon was always stealing my water during Bikram’s two hour, hotter than hades classes. At one point he handed me his water bottle and said, “ here, I”m returning the favor.” I immediately got the (7 year ongoing) joke and we both laughed leaving Kayte a tad confused.

The biggest laughs however came from the dialogue amongst our trio. Three English speaking people discovered something was definitely lost in translation. The accents, the slightly different variations of wording, slang and pronunciation had all three of us stating, ‘what?’ more often than you would think.

At one point I stated, “don’t we all speak English?” We all laughed. We would sometimes have to reword , rephrase or simply just explain. Yet all in all this trio did not skip a beat with the camaraderie.

Gordon was born in Germany, lived in London for a time and resides in New Zealand and his “english” has it’s own unique accent. Katye was born and raised in England and speaks, “Proper English” and myself well, American English with a “Chicago” accent so I’ve been told.

Is it “GAARage” or is it “GarAAHGE”? ( You know the place you park your car…. or is it a car park?) Is it Skeletal or is it SkelEEEtal?

In the end it doesn’t even matter. As we navigated through uncharted waters with our very first attendance of the Coachella Music and Arts Festival it was nothing short of Epic!

After two days my weary bones and stiff / sore muscles were screaming for a hot, sweaty Bikram Class. Nothing like the 90 minute full prescription to get the kinks out, detoxify the body from dust and soot and reenergize me “inside out , bones to skin, fingertips to toes!”

Hope to see you in the hot room soon! I’ll be with there right with you down in the trenches with my “temporary” glitter tattoo that is not so temporary and is hanging on as the mark of a most remarkable weekend!

Namaste`

Blah, Blah, Blah….. Bikram Blog…..St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Bikram Yoga El Paseo started Thirty Day Charity Challenges years ago and picked a different charity or individual each time, so supporting a great cause is nothing new to our studio. This past week however, we had the privilege to get involved with one of the greatest fundraising charity events ever!

The fundraising efforts were for the benefit of Children suffering with Cancer at St. Jude’s Children’s Research hospital. It wasn’t only the children’s plight that captured our hearts but the selfless organizers of this amazing annual event that started as a golf Tournament and has not only grown in participants over the past eight years but in additional fun, fundraising activities to boot.

The event has become four days long. It’s filled with golf, amazing activities, parties, and the most interesting dynamic people one would ever want to meet, and a very special Actor that made it all happen.

Patrick Warburtin and his wife Cathy visited St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital for the first time in 2010. They were so impressed with the extraordinary level of patient care and research they witnessed that they knew they wanted to get involved with facilitating the Organization’s efforts in increasing pediatric cancer survival rates.

They teamed up with another St. Jude Charity fan, Clarke Rheney, (whose expertise lies in successfully running golf tournaments ) and together they created the Patrick Warburton Celebrity Golf Tournament for St. Jude Children ’s Research Hospital in March of 2011. Clarke is well know in our Valley particularly for his affiliation with both the Bob Hope Classic and the PGA Tour’s Career Builder Challenge.

In Patrick’s own words this event is truly a “win win,’ and what was most impressive to me was a conversation I had with Patrick regarding the direction of the funding. He told me a story of a charity tournament that he played in years ago that was run by a “Foundation.” All the Checks from the players, all the auction items , monetary donations etc went to the “Foundation” that later distributed the money to the stated charity. He was incensed when he learned that the charity only received 10%, and the “Foundation” a whopping 90%. He made it clear that they would never form of “Foundation” but rather that EVERY CHECK , EVERY DONATION is written DIRECTLY to St. Jude Children’s Hospital. The organizers receive nothing and all workers volunteer.

I had the amazing opportunity to get Bikram Yoga El Paseo involved in this years event. I donated yoga classes and a yoga tote bag to their auction and I donated my time on both days at the tournament with yoga mats in hand to provide the golfers with yoga stretches before they would tee off on one of the holes.

I met many givers there that donated their time, services and money to make the event a continued success. On the hole that I was stationed at alone, Morton’s Steak house generously provided delicious short rib sliders and Ahi for the players and Hangar 24 Brewery donated beer.

Since I was told that Morton’s steak house would be at the hole that I was assigned I brought a basket of floss to pass out to the players as well, and you can only imagine the laughing and jokes that were made. The Dental Hygienist in me never misses an opportunity to tell people to floss. I got the last laugh though, because after they ate the sliders the floss was no longer a joke but a well received gift many slipped into their pockets!

Also at our hole was Staff from St. Jude Children’s hospital and their dedication was truly heartwarming. I bonded with one of their fitness specialists and I was asked if Bikram Yoga El Paseo would be interested in their annual Yoga Challenge – “YOGA GIVES” in June. I didn’t hesitate to respond, YES!

We were a very small part in this years event and it left me wanting to learn more and to help more so I am thrilled to get myself and our Bikram Yoga El Paseo studio involved in their yoga program, so stay tuned and let me know if you want to be of service!

In the meantime , do yoga , be happy, floss daily and Namaste` soon in the hot room!

Private Individual / Group Lessons Available on and off site in addition to our studio classes: Bikram90/Bikram60/Hot Pilates/YIN – We got you covered – Complimentary movements to give you the greatest bang for your buck. No fluff just buff!! For Private lessons, please call Ann Marie @760/880-5455