Encouraging Connection

End of August Highlights

//  by 

Tuesday Classes

Toni will teach an in-studio All-Levels Flow at 6 PM or join Michele outdoors at the South Park at 7:15 PM for an All-Levels Flow. Livestream will be available only for the 7:15.

Barre Sampler this week!

Join Kelsey for a trial class of Barre at 10 AM on Saturday. There’s room for 6 of you, so register early. Use code TRYBARRE and it’s free!

Educators: Just for You!

Now through mid-September there’s an Unlimited Pass option for teachers as we head back to our learning stations. The pass begins at purchase and runs for one month; this includes all the classes on our regular schedule (including Barre when it begins).

Pose & Pour: September 3

Mark your calendar now for an evening on the White Shutter Winery hillside. No need to pre-register. This is likely our last of this event for the year.

New Schedule next week!

September will welcome back the 6:15 AM class on Wednesdays and add a Chair Yoga option on Tuesdays. With the addition of Barre, our studio will have evening classes 5 nights a week! Now’s the perfect time to commit to a regular practice and find a routine that fits your schedule.

Anticipate the Change of Seasons

Ayurveda, the Sister Science of Yoga (literally translated “the science of life”) is an ancient way of seeing the world. It uses ideas of opposite qualities (hot-cold, dry-wet, solid-spacious) to help identify ways to restore balance. Most often, Ayurveda can be used to help us decide what to take in to our lives and bodies through foods, media, and use of time.

Most years I take a week for an Ayurvedic “reset” to help me restore balance and prepare for a change in the seasons, mentally and physically. Every time I bring up this topic amongst friends or in the studio, I get a surge of interest. This year I will offer both a workshop that gives an overview of Ayurveda, the doshas, and how it can be a tool of restoring balance, paired with a guided reset experience for those interested. Details are coming your way soon, but for the moment, please email me if you have interest in participating in the workshop and/or the reset experience so I can begin to make preparations.

Sign up now
Powered by Vagaro Salon Software, Spa Software & Fitness Software

When You Walk in the Room

//  by 

A truth from both physicists and mystics: you change the energy of the room. When you walk in, things grow brighter or dimmer. You lift or you squash. You carry an energetic presence. The most dangerous belief is to think you have no influence at all.

I first noticed this when I would get the random, precious few days to myself in my home. Even when the dog was absent, I noticed a difference in the way my home felt. Or my early mornings, reading and sipping coffee. If even one other human awoke during my private time, my sense of the space was different.

In the Jewish tradition, a mezuzah hangs outside the door as a reminder of the divine presence. Some will touch it upon entering.

In the Catholic tradition, you’re invited to let your fingers grace the baptismal as a reminder of your own baptism, your place within the community and your own connection to the divine.

Entering a room can be a spiritual practice.

You don’t have to be Jewish or Catholic or have any religious affection to create a practice that reminds you of the Divine presence or your connection to others. You can also use your religious practice to expand your understanding and experience.

Brene Brown wrote about her practice as she learned from Toni Morrison:

Toni Morrison explained that it’s interesting to watch what happens when a child walks into a room. She asked, “Does your face light up?”

She explained, “When my children used to walk in the room when they were little, I looked at them to see if they had buckled their trousers or if their hair was combed or if their socks were up. You think your affection and your deep love is on display because you’re caring for them. It’s not. When they see you, they see the critical face. What’s wrong now?”

Her advice was simple, but paradigm-shifting for me. She said:

“Let your face speak what’s in your heart. When they walk in the room my face says I’m glad to see them. It’s just as small as that, you see?”

The break into a new school year is a fantastic time to begin new practices (#septemberisthenewjanuary) so perhaps you might find it fitting to create your own reminder of how you walk into a room.

Tall folks might use their automatic “ducking” through a doorway to remind them to reflect how they wish to take up space. Those more sentimental might let their fingers press into the breastbone as a “heart check.” Or maybe it’s just a big, deep breath as you turn the knob with a mantra that reminds you “I’m going to change the energy of this room.”

Maybe… just maybe… your spiritual practice becomes turning off your phone to say to yourself, “I’m going to be completely present here.”

However you decide to enter, however you greet those who arrive, just remember: you will change the experience. You change the energy of the room.

This is the first of a series of anticipated posts on remembering truths that will make the year a beautiful one.

Welcome, Barre!

//  by 

Welcome, Barre!

Since experiencing a Barre class several years ago, I’ve been on the hunt for a way to bring it into the studio. A friend who taught here in town moved on to new things; I was nearly signed up training three different times, but the scheduling didn’t work. Then I had a visit from my friend, Kelsey, and she revealed that she has been practicing at Pure Barre for years and was interested in taking a training and becoming a Barre teacher. I gave her some strong encouragement and within the month she completed her training with Barre Intensity at GoYoga! 

Barre isn’t a form of yoga, but rather it’s a form of movement that taps into some yoga poses and adds strong movement to smaller muscle groups that often get looked over in traditional workouts or gross motor movements like running and biking. And for yogis who are regularly tending to the act of lengthening our musculature, a practice such as Barre that aims to work those areas will help to keep us safe and strong. 

I’m super excited about this addition and you can anticipate seeing me in the classes! Barre classes will run on the same pricing and packaging as yoga and it’s already been added to your options for passholders and members – just sign up the way you would normally for a yoga class. 

Kelsey is going to give a sampler class on Saturday, August 29 at 10 AM. Try it out for free by using the discount code TRYBARRE at checkout. 

September Educator Special

//  by 

On sale from August 17-September 11

First there was the August Anticipation & Anxiety. What will this year be like? What is expected? How will we operate? And in the next few weeks we shift from planning to do the thing to actually doing the thing. 

Here’s one of the only truths I know about being around young people: They Feel What We Feel. Our emotions and energy are contagious. Raising babies taught me this at a physiological level. Have you ever tried to calm a crying child while angry? It’s like raking in a windstorm.

Teachers, administrators, and people in the school buildings: I want to cheer you on. I want to help. But, like, from a distance. If a regular yoga practice is what will ground you and keep you calm, remind you that the power of the mind & the openness of heart will shift your entire experience, and give you the strength and ease you need to navigate a school year in the midst of a pandemic, then I want to do what I can to help. 

I’ll be offering a special rate to educators on a month of UNLIMITED yoga at half price. Instead of $85, for $42 you can purchase a one-month pass for as many classes as you can make work in your schedule. Our fall schedule boasts classes 5 evenings a week, 2 on the weekends and an early morning option to start your midweek right. 

You can purchase your month of unlimited yoga online – the Teacher Unlimited Pass is available now and will expire one month from purchase date. It is only available to purchase until September 11, and all passes purchased at that time will get a full month of classes.

Sign up now
Powered by Vagaro Salon Software, Spa Software & Fitness Software

September Schedule

//  by 

What will be different about this fall? 

  • Evening classes Monday-Friday
  • The early morning Rise & Shine on Wednesdays returns!
  • Expanded options for Gentle Yoga – now Chair Yoga is an option for those who are more hesitant to get on the floor. 
  • Barre will begin after Labor Day to help diversify our intensity levels

Our teaching team has been working diligently to listen to your needs and help you find the style and pace of yoga that your body welcomes. While Slow Flow is taking a break as Traci gets her classroom back in order, you’ll see it again in the future! 

Upgrade your mat: It’s for the children

//  by 

Teachers are getting creative when it comes to outdoor learning and I’m seeing several post about getting old yoga mats for kids. Perhaps your mat has some age and served you for many, many practices and so you think to yourself, “well, I could give this one up and get a new one!”

Of course, you can saunter off to T.J. Maxx and pick one up, as I’ve also been known to do. OR, you can treat yourself to a really, really great mat.

If you’re leaning toward the second option, let me help persuade you to give yourself a little Surviving 2020 Treat: a sale!

Get 25% off Manduka mats currently in stock and 20% off any special order Manduka Mat through this Sunday!

Order or purchase your mat through Woven Yoga and save on retail pricing when you give your old mat to a local school. (And to make it easy, I’ll even collect them in the studio and save you a trip.)

So, you take the Manduka Mat Quiz to zoom into what type of mat works best for your body and your practice. Browse my in-stock selection and purchase for 25% off. You can take it with you at the time of purchase for immediate gratification.

If you’d rather pick out your favorite color or find a longer length, than take a look at the selection on the Manduka website and reach out to me to special order on Sunday, August 16. I’ll still give you 20% off the listed retail price (I cannot guarantee that I can honor online sale pricing) and have it in the studio before school starts.

To make it easy on you, you can leave your recycled mat at the studio and I’ll get it to a classroom heading outdoors this fall.

So go ahead and browse these beautiful, quality mats. It’s for the children.

Slow Flow

//  by 

August Addition: Slow Flow Yoga

Thursdays, 7 PM

For the 4 Thursdays in August catch an evening Slow Flow class at 7PM with Traci! This class takes a slower pace while still visiting various postures. It’s perfect for those who need to balance a frantic pace with a slower and more gentle approach.

Sign up now
Powered by Vagaro Salon Software, Spa Software & Fitness Software

Pose & Pour

//  by 

Thursday, August 13, 6:30 PM

Thursday, September 3, 6:30 PM

At White Shutter Winery & Brewery

Enjoy an hour of yoga on the hillside of White Shutter Winery & Brewery and your first pour of local wine or craft beer for only $15.

The yoga practice will be an all-levels flow; friendly to newbies but adaptable for those with a regular practice. Bring your friends and make it a much-needed evening of restoration and connection.

Advanced registration is available but not required. This outdoor space will accommodate us all spaciously.

Let’s Get Outside

//  by 

There’s a million reasons to enjoy a yoga practice outside right now. The gorgeous weather, the connection with the earth and the elements, the fresh air… and now, with our state and community needing to care a bit more care of one another, it provides space, safety and peace of mind. Friends have graciously offered their large, private outdoor space for us to practice whenever we wish, and I’m going to take them up on it.

Our next outdoor practices are:

Tuesday, August 11 at 7:15 PM: All-Levels Flow

Everyone currently registered for the All-Levels Flow are already taken care of. I’ve changed the class so that a greater number of participants can join us.

But what if it rains?

Well, the forecast says it won’t. But alas, we live in Ohio and that might change. The first 6 who have registered will get a spot in the studio. All other participants will be refunded.

I am asking that anyone who plans to come pre-registers so that I can communicate any changes easily.

This will be the first of our outdoor classes. Not all future classes will be outside – they will be announced ahead of time and noted in the online calendar.

Welcome to the South Park

Lovingly dubbed the “South Park” by nearby residents, the green space is the center of the homes on 7th, High and Pleasant View Drive. This will allow us to be out-of-doors with privacy – there are many trees to shield us from drivers-by. The kind souls at Simply Flooring & Fireplace said we are welcome to park near the back and the west side of the lot. You can also park on the grass on the other side of the parking lot behind Loose Family Furniture.

Sign up now
Powered by Vagaro Salon Software, Spa Software & Fitness Software

Studio News: June 14

//  by 

  • Returning from Survival Mode
  • This week: Pose & Pour
  • Coming soon: New teachers + new classes!
  • Seasonal Special pricing: Student passes for sale

My study of yoga, along with my work with Mind Body Health Associates, has taught me a lot about stress. We have two sides of our nervous system that is used in our management of stress, the part that keeps us alert and alive (sympathetic nervous system) and the part that keeps us whole and integrated (parasympathetic nervous system).

When our stress system is triggered, humans have a myriad of ways to deal, anything from Quarantine Baking to Netflix binging. What we need to know is that survival strategies serve us for a particular reason, so say a little Thank You to your body and brain. Survival is a perfectly good way to… survive. And what we’ve endured collectively has been something we’ve survived.

When we watch tigers in the wild (or, more accurately, as Dr. Peter Levine explains in Waking the Tiger), we can note particular behavior as it comes back from stressful, life-endangering situations. It shakes and moves its entire body. It licks their wounds and tends to its body. It nourishes itself with food and water. It falls into a deep sleep.

This transition from stress to relaxation can be a slow one, and often it needs to be quite purposeful to be effective. The best tools are already within: a slow exhale, a calm mind, and moving the body.

As we slowly shift out of our survival response, many of us might find our yoga practices to be leading us there. Eventually, we will recognize we are safe and can begin to relax, rest, and synthesize this experience to make us stronger and healthier.

For me, I’m just now feeling like I’m resuming “normal” and I notice how I’m finally able to start planning again. Did anyone else notice how calendars were worthless back in April? And not just in the day-to-day monotony, but in my brain’s lack of ability to think clearly about the future. With the studio now open and new activities coming onto the calendar, that part of my mind is finally coming online, too. I’m glad to be able to share with you again the hope of new events and classes in the studio. I look forward to seeing you again soon!

Pose & Pour

Wednesday, June 17, 6:30 PM

at White Shutter Winery & Brewery

Registration is available online but not required.

Gift Card Giveway!

Our universe is constantly being created and recreated – just look out into those fields full of green sprouts. As an act of remembering, I’m doing a gift card giveway this summer. Every time we’ve got a full class in the studio, we’ll celebrate. Each person in the class will get to pull a gift card out of the pile that gets you $5-$15 from our favorite downtown Upper Sandusky small businesses.

So grab a group of friends and show up together! Fill the room (which, right now, means just 6 people!)

New Teacher + Classes!

Longtime regular yogi, Toni Daughenbaugh, is joining Woven Yoga as an instructor beginning July 1. Toni recently finished her 200-hour certification and is looking forward to teaching Gentle Yoga twice a week: Mondays at 10 AM and Wednesdays at 4:30 PM.

Seasonal Special Pricing

Students, don’t forget: we’ve got a special deal for you during the summer. Enjoy 2 classes each week for $15 with this summer pass. Sign up now and dive into the regular class schedule.

Sign up now
Powered by Vagaro Salon Software, Spa Software & Fitness Software