Author Archives: Krista
Yamas: A Practice for your Shadows
If you are reading this, you already know that yoga can change your life. It probably already has: it starts with a few warriors and a hip opener or two, and suddenly things start to feel…different. And not only physically: …
More DetailsSpring Cleaning With Stinging Nettles
Spring has sprung! People are getting ready for the bathing suit season by working out harder, eating healthier and detoxing. With beach bodies in mind, people are beginning the spring ritual of ridding the body of toxic build up. No …
More DetailsA Semperviva Beginner – Part 17
Master Teacher”. Hmmm. What does that mean exactly? I was curious to find out for myself, especially since this was going to be my first Yoga based workshop. Semperviva is the only studio in town that offers the depth and …
More DetailsMat Matters
A good Yoga mat can make all the difference to your practice. I’ve just recently learned this after slipping, gripping and struggling whilst trying to dip into a decent flow. I finally dug in and purchased a decent mat and …
More DetailsRealizing Presence
It’s quite common in the Yoga world to hear the instruction to ‘become present’. This is a very misleading instruction, as it implies that there has been a time in your life that you haven’t been present. If you think …
More DetailsA Semperviva Beginner – Part 16
Yoga Teacher Training; three words that were not part of my vocabulary until just a few short months ago. Three words that I think may forever change my life. There are 42 of us in the Spring session – forty …
More DetailsElevate Joy with Essential Oils
Part of the purpose of yoga is to increase joy in our lives and we can elevate this joy further with essential oils. I have heard more than one yoga instructor proclaim the “strange phenomena affecting yoga in Vancouver,” that …
More DetailsCleansing – The Real Deal
Ah, spring is here. The birds are chirping, the buds are blooming, the days are longer and a few YA’s at Semperviva and I are about to embark on a two week cleanse. We’ve gathered our kits, started a Facebook …
More DetailsThe Mysteries in the Throat
Have you ever had a lump in your throat? Have you ever carried one around with you until it got so heavy that you almost cried when the barista at the coffee shop got your order wrong? I have. The …
More DetailsA Semperviva Beginner – Part 15
Homeric Hymn 8 to Ares (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic B.C.) : “Ares, exceeding in strength, chariot-rider, golden-helmed, doughty in heart, shield-bearer, Saviour of cities, harnessed in bronze, strong of arm, unwearying, mighty with the spear…” … found peace and rejuvenation …
More DetailsBeing Mindful Off the Mat: How to Live Each Day More Mindfully
For those of us who do yoga regularly, we (ideally) get the benefits of mindfulness from our practice; increased openness, wisdom, acceptance, focus and concentration, and a sense of calm, to name a few. However, mindfulness practice doesn’t have to …
More DetailsBasking in Rarity
“On the approximation of 150,000 generations of human species, the probability of you being you accounts to 1 in 10^45,000. That’s ten to the power of forty-five thousand – an odd which exceeds the total of all known particles in …
More DetailsLet’s Talk Feelings
Whenever I approach my fiancé with this line, I watch him squirm a little. He’ll look left and right as if he’s ready to take the next bus outta this conversation. Granted, he tends to observe the world in black …
More DetailsFind that excited scared and dive in!
When I look back at my life, I see that all of the best things came from embracing change. Well, to be honest, not always embracing, but always allowing the change to happen in the end. Now, as I sit …
More DetailsA Semperviva Beginner – Part 14
Two Non Yogis walk into a studio. A Beginner Yogi, me, greets them, as they enter, and leads them to the class. The two Non Yogis, my friends Alexis and Aris, stand at the threshold and stare into the space. …
More DetailsLet’s step into the unknown together…
It seems that it was just yesterday I felt a need for a change because joy, vitality and happiness weren’t present in my life. Change what? I remember vividly what it felt like to not know. Not know what to …
More DetailsDigest This!
Many ancient schools of medicine believe that a digestive system that is imbalanced is the root of all disease. Signs of imbalanced digestion include bloating, gas, burping, IBS, constipation, allergies, depression, low energy, unclear thinking, skin issues – the list …
More DetailsManaging the Four Minds: The Yoga of Chocolate Cake
“Yoga philosophy IS yoga psychology,” James Bailey told us at his recent workshop at Semperviva. “Yoga is, after all, a study of the mind.” It is a huge, multifaceted study of the mind, so Bailey used a simple example to help …
More DetailsA Semperviva Beginner – Part 13
I returned to my home practice again this week and felt as though I’d been reacquainted with an old friend. I’d forgotten what a touchstone it’s been and how satisfying it can be to just practice with me, myself and …
More DetailsTurning into the Skid
About ten years ago, I was in a car accident. I was on a divided highway, going close to 100 km an hour, when I was cut off by someone who had missed their exit. I slammed on the breaks, …
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