Pranalife - Asia's Blog

OrganicsLive.com recipe of the week: avocado grapefruit salad

Sun, 19 May 2013 20:28:00 GMT

Avocado & Grapefruit Salad

Ingredients

    1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
    1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
    1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
    3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    1/2 cup good olive oil
    4 ripe avocados
    2 large red grapefruit

Directions

Place mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a bowl & whisk vigorously.

Cut avocados in half, remove the pit (hack a heavier knife into the pit to 'grab' it, and then pull out), and carefully scoop the avocado meat out of the shells. Cut each half into 4 thick slices. Toss the avocado slices in the vinaigrette to prevent them from turning brown.

Peel off the grapefruit (remove all the white pith) and cut into segments.

Arrange the avocado and grapefruit onto a plate. Spoon the vinaigrette on top, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve.

OrganicsLive.com recipe of the week: zucchini, banana, and flaxseed muffins

Mon, 06 May 2013 20:12:00 GMT

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (teff or rice flower work well)
• 1/2 cup ground flaxseed
• 1 cup lightly packed light-brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely grated zucchini (from 1 large zucchini)
• 1/3 cup mashed ripe banana (from 1 large banana)
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a standard 12-muffin tray with olive oil.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, flaxseed, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add zucchini and banana and stir to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, egg, and vanilla. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and stir until combined (do not overmix).

3. Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Let muffins cool completely in pan on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.

Teacher Training & Workshops begin MAY 2013

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 19:02:00 GMT

Turn the yoga practice you love into an opportunity to express your unique talents, build confidence in your abilities, and connect with others who share your passion.

I will never forget YTT. It has contributed to massive changes in my life. I feel like you bridged this gap between my regular life to something beyond that.

~ Kimmi Luu, Pranalife YTT graduate

For all the people in the area who think you’re going to travel and it’s going to be a big deal, we have a treasure. We have a brilliant teacher here in Kitchener-Waterloo. You don’t need to go to Toronto.

~ Carolynne Willis, Pranalife YTT Graduate

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Meet our Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training Scholarship WINNERS!

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:50:00 GMT

WOW.

We are so impressed with the applications that came in for our Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training Scholarship. Thank you to every single person who took the time to tell us your story and what yoga teacher training will mean for you. It was humbling and inspiring to hear how so many people came to love yoga, and now want to share that love of yoga with others.

Our two winners for this training are Julie Stevenson and Sherryl Drury Tarnaske. Check out these summaries of their amazing stories, and how they plan to use their training to change the world:

Julie Stevenson

My father passed in February 2012 and my mother in December 2012. During this challenging period, I saw the lack of alternative therapies provided for those with chronic illness and chronic pain. How can a body heal or be well if it’s not moving?

Being in these environments day after day for hours on end reminded me of how yoga created this connection for me. Through the mind/body connection, it provides a chance to heal the body, make one more aware of how you use your body and most importantly - to listen to your body.

It is my hope that ... I can help people with chronic pain and chronic illness live healthier and more comfortable lives.

Sherryl Drury Tarnaske

My seven year old son, Owen, is a high functioning autistic child who sees and interacts with the world differently. He is challenged by things "average" people like us take for granted. To support his development we've started complimenting our Judo practice with yoga.

I have been keeping an eye out for a way to get my teacher training. I'd like to get more involved with the community and help other kids like my son.

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Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT

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Asia's Ashtanga Flow Classes @ Moksha Yoga Waterloo

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:06:00 GMT

Infuse your Ashtanga practice with extra energy!

Come to Waterloo's most beautiful yoga studio to infuse your practice with heat, laughter, and challenge. Each week we move through Ashtanga-inspired creative classes, integrating flexibility, endurance, balance, coordination, and strength in a rejuvenating total mind-body workout.

When: Fridays 4:30-6:00pm

Where: Moksha Yoga Waterloo (Map)

Sign in for this week's classes right now! (available a few days before each class)

Just Get Started, Right Now, Right Where You Are

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 13:23:00 GMT

It was -25 C for those entire ten days in January, 2003. A few months earlier I'd started studying with this fabulous yoga teacher, Jennifer Steed, when she said to me, "You should do my teacher training. I think you'd love it." I thought, Me? A yoga teacher? I'm not sure I'm ready for that. But there I was, mid-January in the freezing Calgary cold, walking into a house and an experience that would alter the course of my life.

It was in my teacher training that I learned the Ashtanga sequence. Yup, that's right: I hadn't studied Ashtanga before my training, though I had done many of the postures. It was in teacher training where I realized that yoga was a brilliant guiding philosophy and life art. It was in teacher training where I met an amazing community of yogis who would become lifelong friends and mentors, where I had realizations about myself and my practice that still resonate with me today, where I discovered pure joy in my practice for the first time, where I caught a glimpse of a future that looked meaningful, fun and fulfilling, and where I came to understand something fundamental to every success I've had since:

Jump when your heart says 'yes' even if you don't feel ready.

We rarely feel ready for big change. We're not wired that way. Our instincts help us survive, not thrive; risk freaks us out. But risk and change are what make us evolve. I'm willing to bet that many of the best things you've experienced in your life involved at least a little risk, a little faith, and a small step outside of your comfort zone.

Today I have a full-time, thriving yoga business I love. Every morning I spend 10 minutes in metta meditation, sending good vibes to the amazing people in my life and expressing my gratitude for being able to live my passion. Out of thousands of hours of teaching, my favourite piece of my passion is having created Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training. I've seen many Pranalife YTT grads go on to have great careers as teachers and change the course of their lives for the better. Nothing has been more rewarding than seeing the impact that the Pranalife YTT has had on so many people.

If you've been thinking about doing our training, I'm here to encourage you. Does it feel like too much to spend? I know that feeling. But you know what? You're worth the investment. Not sure you have the time? I know you can make time for the things that matter to you. Not sure you want to teach? Neither was I at first. There's no pressure to become a teacher when you're done, but there's no option to become one if you don't start.

Just get started, right now, where you are.

Namaste, and see you on the mat,

Asia
Pranalife Yoga Director & Teacher Training Creator

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Do You Fear More Than You Trust?

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 12:37:00 GMT

Asteya is yoga's principle of "not stealing". This isn't just swiping cash from a found wallet: Asteya addresses a deep fear you might hold that tells you that who you are is not enough. When you look at the world as something you have to take from rather than something you can give to, you're living without the benefits of asteya.

Practicing asteya means giving up the belief that you have to steal (time, attention, energy, ideas, friends, respect, reputation, trust, etc.) to survive. You don't. Even when times are tough, you have what you need; you just need to trust yourself.

"But you don't understand how [poor, hurt, vulnerable, desperate, inexperienced, insert fear here] I am!" Yes, I do. My life is mostly excellent these days, but it hasn't always been rosy. For years before I had the brilliant system of yoga to help me tap into my own strengths, I struggled with depression and a sense that my life was going nowhere. Pranalife Yoga has grown to be a vibrant business, but when I started it in 2006 I was making less than $500/mo, living in a friend's basement and surviving on oatmeal and miso soup while I learned the hard way what being an entrepreneur really meant. I've made mistakes. I've felt deep fear and insecurity. I've felt like I didn't have it in me, and I've certainly felt insistent about my 'need' to take, rather than confident in my ability to give.

When you're tempted to be smaller or justify an action you know isn't based in love, you're fearing the circumstance of the moment rather than trusting who you can be at any time. Can you, when it's hardest to do so, find a way to give instead?

Who are you when you are afraid? Who could you be if you weren't?

Asteya is a way to access the deep, rich resources that do reside within you. Pay attention to moments where you feel afraid, insecure, or doubtful. Ask yourself, "Do I feel a lack in me that I want to take from the world to fill? Can I find a lack in the world that I can give from myself to fill instead?"

The world needs the bigger, greater version of YOU, not a smaller, lesser rip-off.

Trust yourself and see how you can share your talents with the rest of us.

Get info on Pranalife Yoga classes, trainings, events and retreats. Plus: EXCLUSIVE giveaways, scholarhips for Yoga Teacher Training and FREE yoga classes.

We love to spoil our subscribers (can you tell?)

The #1 way to get further in your yoga practice (and your life)

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 07:06:00 GMT

Are you ready to take your yoga practice to a whole new level?

Do you want to learn how to clear your mind, stop suffering, and feel empowered in your life?

Would you love to connect to your deepest purpose and live at your full potential?

If you're curious, then you're ready:

It’s time.

If you want to connect what you practice on your yoga mat to how you live your life off of it, you have to understand the simple but profound principles of the yoga practice. Pranalife Yoga Intensives and Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) teach you how to use yoga to live well, whether you want to teach or not.

It’s not important whether you can do full lotus; it’s important that you want to feel more powerful physically, mentally, emotionally and energetically. This training is about becoming more physically fit, no question. It's also about becoming fit for life and, if you choose, fit to teach.

Living yoga takes training and mentorship to do right. Very few people take the opportunity to get that right foundation, but those who do are transformed. What you gain with Pranalife Yoga you'll have forever.

Pranalife Intensives and YTT will deepen your personal practice exponentially, and if you choose to teach you’ll be well-equipped and confident to build a vibrant, abundant career. As the lead instructor for Pranalife’s teacher training modules I know the value they hold as some of the most well-designed and wickedly fun courses available.

Take the first step - Go to our Yoga Teacher Training link to get more information about our upcoming modules.

Every adventure takes an initial leap of faith. Jump when your heart says 'yes' - it's the only way to fly.

“If you want to master something, teach it.” - Yogi Bhajan

About Pranalife Yoga

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 11:12:00 GMT

Prana [Sanskrit]: "life force," yoga's version of chi. The powerful, subtle energy that brings us all to life.

Pranalife Yoga was started in 2006 by Advanced Yoga Instructor Asia Nelson and has become one of Kitchener-Waterloo's best sources for yoga and yoga teacher training. Pranalife is for people who want to do more than go through the motions of life. We engage in living yoga - moving bodies, minds, and energy so you become fit to create the life you've always wanted.

Live Well

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 08:00:00 GMT

Spend five minutes every morning sending good vibes to others.

Live so you can look yourself in the eye for a full minute without feeling anything negative.

It IS hard work: don’t let that stop you. Become fit for it so it’s less hard and more enjoyable.

Let the quality of your experience be the measure of your success.

Look outside yourself for information, not answers. When you find something called ‘an answer’ it’s simply the experience of another.

Trust that who you are is greater than you may currently see; this is faith.

Stay focused on your goals and vision, even in the dark times; this is hope.

Work at feeling alive and engaged; this is love.

Trust. Have faith. Have hope. Live in love. It doesn’t have to look like anything that can be graded.

Why I Live Yoga (instead of just practicing it)

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:38:00 GMT

Yoga is, at its core, a deep-seated trust in one's self. ~ BKS Iyengar, yogi and guru

Yoga is more than moving, breathing, stretching or relaxing. It's a tao, a way to stop suffering and be free. I have found this to be both true and more valuable than I could have understood when I began my practice 14 years ago.

Before developing a complete yoga practice, I dramatized my life, living in all kinds of self-created stories. Before knowing the true power of yoga I often felt lost, angry, frightened, defensive and powerless. I roamed restlessly through my life unsatisfied, nursing old wounds and replaying older habits. I didn't know who I really was. Before I found yoga I was, in short, suffering.

But through yoga I began to create space for myself. In that space came a calm, centered sense of confidence. By finding balance between the forces of life I'm now able to access the power of all of them without being powerless to any.

Want to take your own yoga practice further? Sign up for our next Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training.

You Are Invincible [Asia's latest Elephant Journal article]

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 07:33:00 GMT

"Recognizing that we can handle what life throws at us with grace and strength means we can approach life with the intention to love more, harm less, let go, hang on and learn. That’s powerful. When we understand our invincibility, we cease to react; instead, we simply choose."

Read the full piece on Elephant Journal -

http://www.elephantjournal.com/2011/10/invincible--asia-nelson/

You never know when a Seane Corn is in your class

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 16:48:00 GMT

One of the toughest things about being a yoga instructor is that yoga is such an intensely personal process, it's difficult to know whether your students are tuning out or going through major shifts inside. Experienced teachers can read some of the signs - tightening or softening in the jaw, quality of the breath - but unless the student is willing to share what's happening, it's a bit like teaching to a room full of black boxes. A teacher can come to wonder whether their classes are really making a difference.

For years after I started practicing yoga I doubt I gave any indication that anything my instructors taught was landing. My body was tight and my sarcasm was sharp. I was driven to accomplish something physical in class without understanding that it was my mind and heart that needed to be worked on as much as my hamstrings and core. Yet there were moments where I would break open, get it, be inspired, change. In the midst of looking like I wasn't getting it at all in those classes, I was.

At this point in my teaching career I've learned to assume that, as Morpheus says to Neo in The Matrix, "Some of these people are not ready to be unplugged," but I know from my own experience that some are ready for what they can become through yoga, even if it doesn't seem so from the outside. Before every class I teach now, I take a breath and remember how grateful I am for those classes, those instructors, those moments where I came onto my mat a human mess and had the opportunity to experience the deep transformation that yoga brings. My dharma is effortless when I start from that place, because I know that someone about to devote an hour of their time to this practice could be on the cusp of a change that will forever alter their course, heal their wounds, open their eyes, or give them a sense of true peace and stillness. It is my passion and greatest reward to create moments of opportunity for people to be transformed through this practice.

Below is a video that expands on some of these thoughts, from Seane Corn, who is one of my favourite teachers and someone who has walked this path and guided me along it in the process. Enjoy and Namaste.

New York, Old Challenges

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 11:43:00 GMT

Just got back from a week in New York. Here’s a taste of how it went:

Went to a taping of Iron Chef America (cheers to the most delicious item in that kitchen, whose name rhymes with Heaven Crush, for getting us in, and for being an integral part of why the week was so good); ate some amazing food (so many places, but two words direct from Bob Blumer: Vai Spuntino. Go, and thank me later); spent coveted time with one of my longest-running soul mates and met a handful of new people I plan to love for a lifetime; enjoyed the heat of a Central Park meander in July; explored Brooklyn for the first time (if you love funky design go to Building on Bond, and thank me later), drank some smashingly good cocktails night after eventful night, my fav being a little ditty called Absinthe Minded (if you’re a cocktail connoisseur, hit Employees Only, and thank me later); and indulged in a handful of other pleasures that make NYC one of my favourite places on the planet. Oh, and then I ate a whole lot more food.

Before someone asks, yes I went to Eataly. I wanted to shoot myself in the eye. What a gong show. We got there at 7:17pm. We got the text telling us space was opening up and we could come on in at 10:04pm, at which point we’d already contentedly diverted to Otto Enoteca. I’m sure the new beer garden is amazing; I will enjoy it when it’s not so high on the NY Hot List.

So what of this vegan+yoga challenge you may ask? The yoga is easy, especially because I had my own apartment in Brooklyn with plenty of space for some salutations and warriors, but I won’t lie: I had a tad more than one cheat meal a day while on this trip. I did scope out some very good vegan/vegan-friendly joints - Sacred Chow being a fave - but more than once during the week I dove gleefully off the wagon and into steak tartar or Alaskan crab or ribs from Spice Market. Oh my, those ribs …

For me, going to New York and avoiding meat is like going to an art gallery and purposely averting my eyes from the Picassos. But also great food makes me very happy to be alive, and I need some of that these days. It has not been an easy year, which might be the understatement of the year, and NYC was a delicious reprieve from which I did not want to return. In fact, at JFK on my way home it took an invite to the Sky Lounge for a few drinks from a charming man named Scott to keep me from flat-out sulking. This year has been full of ‘taking my lumps’ and I wanted to taste la dolce vida instead in all its forms, even if just for a week.

That being said, after a few days I did find myself voluntarily wanting to get back to my vegan options. I do actually want to make the personal revolutions in my life that this site is about. It’s important, even more important than New York beef it seems. If you know me, you know that’s a pretty big deal for me to say.

So now I’m home and reality is once again setting in with a thud. Yet I am more contented than ever to chose a grapefruit over a cupcake. Let the revolution continue …

What I learned from going vegan for 30 days

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 07:42:00 GMT

Going vegan this month has been a refresher course in essentials. What can be pared away to get back to the very basics - of food, and of us? Eggs Florentine is a delicious development in flavours; simply enjoying steamed kale with a dash of salt reminded my taste buds what each of those two flavours were and what they were together. In the same vein, my life at 34 is a combination of sweet and bitter, well-cooked and raw. With so much of it stripped bare now on my plate and in my life, what have I tasted of each day’s essentials?

As always human, I had forgotten as of late the value of those simple experiences, the basic tastes of life. I was upset that my bread lacked butter, that my meat was not cooked just so as I like. I looked for a cook to blame. I felt sorry for myself when my wine ran dry.

As always human, I then began to remember the delicious simplicity of flavour, what can be tasted directly from its source like a berry freshly plucked on a summer’s walk. I have this year been struck with reminders that winter is always on its way. When I heard it I went silent. I appreciated. I recalibrated.

Fruits change in flavour depending on what stage of development they’re in. If they’re plucked too early, they’ll be sour; too late and they’ll have lost their flavour’s power. Still-sour, I rest in the sun now and wonder: will I ripen or rot? Do I die, or do I dare?

The value of going vegan

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 14:54:00 GMT

When asked by the myriad people who seem confounded that I would go vegan why I would make such a choice, I finally articulated my best, truest response this weekend:

Going vegan is like drilling deep and narrow instead of grazing shallow and broad. I focus on certain foods and I get creative learning how to enjoy them. Honing in on the healthiest segment of my diet helps me easily emphasize it when I’m back to eating an array of food.

Gutsy Yoga Challenge: I'm the one I've been waiting for

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 10:58:00 GMT

Day 3: I can officially blog with a clear conscience now that I’ve done my run + workout + yoga (originally planned for 7:10am but snoozed through). All felt awesome, I’m happy to report, but even better is what followed -

I did a brief seated meditation after yoga, and about halfway through I had a subtle, profound experience. I felt a connection to what meditators call my ‘third eye’. My mind instantly went quiet.

Meditation is a weird and often wandering path to insight, but I’ll give it this: It works.

So what did connecting to my third eye feel like? At first it resembled looking into the face of God. I felt myself seeking assurance that I would not be given up on, that I was worth the time and effort my enlightenment seems to be taking. Then it seemed to be the face of a ‘Divine Coach’, and I felt myself wanting confirmation that I have what it takes to make the team.

Then, as I stayed focused on my breath, observing, present, it ceased to matter whether I had Divine approval - from a God or a Coach of any sort. If I know I won’t give up on me, and if I trust I have what it takes to live the life I’m imagining, that’s all I’ll need.

“We Are the One’s We’ve Been Waiting For”

A Hopi Elder Speaks

“Where are you living?
What are you doing?
What are your relationships?
Are you in right relation?
Where is your water?
Know your garden.
It is time to speak your Truth.
Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside yourself for the leader.”

Then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said, “This could be a good time!”

“There is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are torn apart and will suffer greatly.

Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above water. And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.

The time for the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word struggle from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.

We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

— attributed to an unnamed Hopi elder

Hopi Nation
Oraibi, Arizona

New York, New Challenge

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 12:40:00 GMT

There's no denying it: I've done more than one cheat meal each day while in New York - oh my LORD the food is so amazing - and so will be adding another week onto my vegan challenge to make up for it. There you go, Holly, you won't be entirely on your own for August. ;)

I'm also going to remove the one day a week where I eat what I like b/c my daily cheat meal (which is still pretty healthy, just not strictly vegan) suffices to satisfy my concerns about getting the complete nutrients I need until I better understand how to do that as a vegan, and lets me stay 80-90% vegan through the process.

If there's one thing I'm learning when I stop eating in NYC and observe, it's that New Yorkers are good at getting to the point and getting what they want. I plan to be more New York from here on in, not just when making better vegan choices (I will name-drop Sacred Chow and One Lucky Duck here - go!) but making good choices, period. Whether it's veganism, getting that book written at last, deciding what my next five-year plan is, or just making my mind up about that guy - I'm at a point now where I just need to get doing the damn thing. There's a time to ponder and consider, and then there's just stalling. A lot of my life the past few months has been considering and healing, but it's been moving into stalling. Time to get'r done.

Speaking of which, this is my last whole day in NYC and I ain't spending it behind a computer. Lots of love to you all! Namaste.

Vegan in NYC

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 10:22:00 GMT

Last night I ate at chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Spice Market with three of my favourite people on the planet. Tomorrow I'll be in the audience for Iron Chef America. Wandering Chelsea Market and the Meat Packing District's beautiful pizza options ... oh lord, why on earth would I decide to go vegan when I knew I'd be in NYC for a week?

Because what better time to explore vegan options than in a city where you can get anything you want and some of the best chefs in the world can do it so well? So far I admit I've cheated a bit more than the one meal a day and I have finished off the occasional brunch or supper with a long-drawn esspresso, but overall New York is really a city teeming with fantastic vegan options and I'm excited to try them.

Talk about taking it to the next level. I will report back with any new, amazing vegan spots I find. So far all I can say is -

One. Lucky. Duck.

In more ways than one. ;)