Nag Throwback

#TBT to the first real Yoga Nag post, August 27, 2013. See text below. They began tumbling out of me after the Do One Pose A Day blogs on #elephantjournal, even before I really knew of hashtags or #yogaeverydamnday, or had discovered Instagram. I still stand by the blogs and the idea, even if my daily posts are becoming a little erratic. 

Practice your yoga. It matters. For all of us.

Love and nagging,
Daisy, aka YogaNag
http://www.YogaNag.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

August 27, 2013
Nag-A-Day

Do yoga. Today.
Start with one pose. Build thoughtfully. Breathe deeply. 6-10 full but unforced breaths.
See where it takes you…. Another pose. Or the grocery store.
Both are good. You have done some yoga. Some is better than none.

From my mat to yours,
Yoga Nag

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Seat Warmer

The moment I get up…. (and yes, this is my desk.)
…but he always shares so sweetly. Thanks Charlie.

Do yoga. Today. Everyday.

Peace and puppy snuggles,
Daisy, aka Yoga Nag

http://www.YogaNag.com
#yogadog #yogapuppy #yoga #yogaeverydamnday #classplanning #yogabiz #yogateacher #mydesk

Saturday Workshop


Hi friends,
I am teaching a very sweet and small yoga workshop this weekend at Grace Studio in downtown Silver Spring. Give yourself some loving kindness in the form of a very well-rounded Saturday afternoon (1:30-3pm) practice, which will include: a brief, centering meditation, turning attention to the breath; a challenging, full-body vinyasa flow, integrating breath with movement; some important restorative work; and a deliciously-full Savasana. Join me and prepare to feel inspired, peaceful, and restored. Sounds pretty good, right? 🙏

Peace and Practice,
Yoga Nag
http://www.YogaNag.com

#Yoga #workshop #vinyasa #flow #restoration #savasana.

Kitchen Yoga



Love me some kitchen yoga. Love this #Vasistasana variation. Feels like sunshine.

What do you practice in your kitchen?

Do #yoga. Today. Everyday.

Practice and pause,
Yoga Nag
http://www.YogaNag.com
#yogaeverydamnday #kitchenyoga

Easy Seat


Easing back into it. Seated flow feels sweet after spring break time away from home and practice.

Do #yoga. Today. Everyday. 

Practice and pause,
Yoga Nag
http://www.YogaNag.com

#yogaeveydamnday #easyseat #easypose #sukhasana #seatedflow

Transitions

snow to sun

From snow to sunshine, back to home life after a “spring” break away. It already feels a bit of a scurry, including a lot of yoga (see slight change in weekly class schedule and upcoming workshops).  But I am very grateful for the warm sun today, as well as the fun, family time, and relaxation in the cold Canadian snow.

Happy Monday friends.  Happy transitioning back into all of it.

Do yoga. Today. Everyday.

Peace and pauses,
Daisy, aka Yoga Nag
http://www.YogaNag.com
#yogaeverydamnday #yoga #monday #monttremblant #spring

Upcoming Workshop–THIS FRIDAY

Happy Hour Indeed: Strong Flow. Deep Rest.
with Lika Elwood & Daisy Whittemore

January 30,  6:30-8:00 p.m.
Grace, Silver Spring, MD

This evening practice strikes a sweet balance of power and play, movement & stillness, strength & relaxation, leaving you refreshed, and at peace. Lika will lead an engaging vinyasa flow encouraging students to find both the power and the play in their practice. We will work hard. And play hard. Daisy will follow with a guided savasana, known as Yoga Nidra (or yogic sleep), a form of meditation that leads awareness though various levels of mental process settling the nervous system and cultivating an inner sanctuary of well-being, calmness, and clarity. It is a great way to kick off your weekend.

Join us!

flow and rest

This workshop will also be offered again on February 27 & March 27.

Yoga Nag’s Upcoming Workshops

Hi Yogis,

There are lots of fun WORKSHOPS with me on the horizon.  See current plans and links at http://www.YogaNag.com or below. I would love to see you!

Peace and pauses, all around,
Daisy, aka Yoga Nag

Happy Hour Indeed:  Strong Flow. Deep Rest. 
with Lika Elwood & Daisy Whittemore
Last Fridays of the month: January 30, February 27 & March 27, 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Grace,  Silver Spring, MD

This evening practice strikes a sweet balance of power and play, movement & stillness, strength & relaxation, leaving you refreshed, and at peace. Lika will lead an engaging vinyasa flow encouraging students to find both the power and the play in their practice. We will work hard. And play hard. Daisy will follow with a guided savasana, known as Yoga Nidra (or yogic sleep), a form of meditation that leads awareness though various levels of mental process settling the nervous system and cultivating an inner sanctuary of well-being, calmness, and clarity. It is a great way to kick off your weekend.
Cost: $25 per person per class.  Sign up here.

A Midwinter Night’s Dream: Candlelit Yoga and Meditation,
with Tom Forhan and Daisy Whittemore
Friday, Feb 6: 7:30 – 9:30 PM
Willow Street Yoga Center, Silver Spring, MD

Feeling creaky and stuck in the wintertime? Tired of the chill and the dark? Join Daisy and Tom for a Friday night candlelit practice, starting with a smooth, warming flow followed by a meditation that will bring light into your heart. Geared to students who have completed at least one session of Yoga I.
Cost: $30 per person. Sign up here.

Yoga Playtime: Backbends Made More Fun (with two Yogis who aren’t big fans)!
with Lika Elwood and Daisy Whittemore
Sunday, March 29: 2 – 4pm
extendYoga, North Bethesda, MD

Do backbends bum you out or make you nervous?  Do you always opt for bridge pose when it’s time for backbends in class?  Is it hard for you to press up into wheel?  Or maybe you just want to learn more about how to make your backbends better?

Join Lika and Daisy—two yogis who don’t claim backbends as their favorites—for a playful workshop to make better friends with backbends in your practice. We will help you understand and work on what parts of you that need opening, and what parts of you need strengthening.  We’ll explore why it’s important to tap into the not-so-favorite poses and why/how they can help your practice in general.  We also hope to bring a little more levity to your backbend practice, both in body and spirit. It will actually be fun.  We promise.  Join us!

All levels welcome.
Cost: $30 per person (pre-registration required).  Sign up here.

Flowing into Sweet Stillness 
w/Lika Elwood and Daisy Whittemore
Sunday, May 3: 2-4pm
extendYoga, North Bethesda, MD

This nourishing practice strikes a beautiful balance of power and play, movement and stillness, strength and relaxation, leaving you refreshed and at peace. Lika will lead an energizing, challenging and grounding vinyasa flow, encouraging students to find both the power and the play in their practice. Daisy will follow with a guided savasana, known as Yoga Nidra (or yogic sleep), a form of meditation that leads awareness though various levels of mental process, settling the nervous system and cultivating an inner sanctuary of well-being, calmness, and clarity.  Join us!
Cost: $30 per person (pre-registration required). Sign up here.

 

NagADay

bolster love

Monday Mellow with a smart hand made bolster.  Super thrifty wisdom from a good friend and yoga teacher–Kathy Baird–who  taught me how to create a yoga bolster out of recycled goods: old yoga pants and an old yoga mat.  Brilliant.

See Kathy’s video: 

Or go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M4QYNQxzzw

Do yoga. Today.  Everyday.

Peace and pauses,
Yoga Nag
http://www.YogaNag.com

#practice #yogaeverydamnday #restorativeyoga #savasana #bolster

NagADay–Why I Am Turning the Camera Off When I Practice

camera off

You may or may not have noticed that this Nag took some unannounced, yet very grateful, gratitude-filled days off. The truth is I was finding my nagging to be not only a drag and a drain, but it was driving my practice, instead of the other way around. I was practicing to Nag. Ewwwww. This is not good. This is an awful admission. But it is true. And it was becoming apparent even in my posts.

From the beginning into my Yoga Nag world, I knew that nagging was good encouragement for my own practice. I couldn’t exactly nag others to practice if I wasn’t practicing as well. It had partly selfish intentions. Yet, it was different. My practice would lead me to something I wanted to share, some nugget of wisdom that had landed, whether a pose, an action in my body, a thought, a struggle, work in progress, a thread of something making sense for the first time or a reminder of something I already knew. Then I would take a picture, trying to capture a piece of what I was doing, and in this process, I hoped I would encourage others to practice.  Yet, something somewhere changed. It happened slowly, camera eking into my practice earlier and earlier. It is a no brainer that this isn’t good for your practice. Yet, there I was, multi-tasking, practicing, nagging, and even working out lesson plans all at the same time.  I got a little lost.

I am not against visuals or pictures of yoga. Obviously. I love them. But if those visuals become the focus of the practice, e.g., the practice becomes a photo shoot, and the deep dive into yourself and breathing in this moment, yes, this one, right here and right now, then, well, the photos are getting in the way.

So, I am working my way back to basics, creating a separation of church (my practice) and state (YogaNag.com). I haven’t figured it all out yet. But I am shining the light of my awareness, as well as my intention, on recalibrating.  Leaving the camera off during my entire practice is an easy step. Duh. I know. Yet, I don’t think I am alone in needing to do this….  Then, later, after I have practiced, I can strike a pose that captures what I am feeling or working on.

This is my commitment to myself and to you.

Continuing on… Camera off.  I practice. First. For me. For my body. For my heart. For my mind. For my soul. And then, I share some small part of that practice with all of you, in my very small hope and wish that it encourages you to practice. For your body. For your heart. For your mind. For your soul.

Do yoga. Today. Every day.

Peace and practice,

Yoga Nag

http://www.YogaNag .com

#yoga   #yogaeverydamnday

#practiceeverydamnday

#nocamera #nophotosplease #practicewithoutpictures