Girls on the Run is a fun, interactive program for girls in 3rd – 5th grade that utilizes the power of running to prepare girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living. Empower girls to celebrate their bodies, honor their voices, recognize their gifts, and activate their power to make healthy choices for years to come!

As a coach, you’ll work with a 1-2 other coaches to guide a group of girls through an established, easy-to-follow curriculum that uses running games to teach healthy living lessons that develop the whole girl; her social, emotional and physical self. Together, explore issues like media awareness, nutrition, emotional health, positive communication, and community serve. Help empower the next generation of women by volunteering to coach this fall!

Find out more and fill out a coach application (accepted ona rolling basis until 8/27/10).

Check out our complete list of locations, including 26 groups at 22 locations this fall.

Questions? Contact Amber Swim, Program Coordinator, at: amber@girlsrun.org or 206-528-2118.

To our Fremont studio goers (and any of you Southporters who wanna come & play!):

As you may already know, Fremont is the place to be this weekend, as more than 100,000 spirited Solstice fans will descend upon us for the beloved Fremont Fair. We hope you cheer on the body painted bikers, marvel at the wildly adored art cars, and make time for a class at Maya as we welcome the season of light!

• Due to a schedule conflict with the parade this Saturday, we’re canceling our Prenatal Yoga class at our Fremont studio this week.
• Other than that, we’re sticking to our regular weekend schedule.
• For security purposes, we’ll be unlocking the door to our building 15 minutes prior to each class. Please plan accordingly.
• As parking will be a big challenge in Fremont this weekend, we encourage you to ride the bus, ride your bike, or carpool with a friend. If you drive, be sure to factor in some extra time for parking.

Here’s to a summer of warmth and wellness!

Sure, they can be “efficient” and even ”charming,” but let’s face it, folks:

Small spaces suck.

Whether you’re killing time in a cab on your way to an interview, feeling claustrophobic from your same ol’ view of the office cubicle farm, or fantasizing about punching a hole in the wall of your studio apartment just so you can have more space (What? I was feeling a bit closed in, people!), sometimes you just need to EXPAND.

In this short Daily Candy video, instructor Tara Stiles shows you how it’s done. (Trust me, the strange looks you’ll get from your cabbie will be well worth it.)

Guest blogger: Diane Allerdice

You name it and I’ve tried it to help my neck.

I’ve done traditional chiro, Network Spinal Analysis, manual body work, deep tissue massage, kinesthetics, pilates, yoga and last but not least, active release techniques (ART). All of the different types of treatment and exercise were awesome and provided a lot of relief, but none of them got me to feeling 100%. I had always wanted to try acupuncture, but like many things, didn’t get around to it.

I took advantage of the community acupuncture at Maya and gave it a whirl. WOW!! I’ve done three sessions and noticed so many differences in not only my body, but my being as well. Most people probably think it will only help internal issues, and not do what a chiropractor or massage therapist can do, but that is just not the case. It’s even improved my hand-eye coordination and breath control for playing the clarinet. It’s a great experience even if you don’t think you need it. You might be surprised at what you don’t realize your body is telling you!

Drop in for Community Acupuncture on Mondays & Wednesdays between 1:30 & 3:30 p.m. at Maya Fremont!

Photo credit: Wonderlane's Flickr stream

If I close my eyes tight enough, I can still:

• taste the masala chai dancing on my tastebuds
• smell the urban pollutants assaulting my lungs
• hear the Hindu bells and chants mesmerizing my conscience
• see the fingerless beggar asking for just a few rupees to make it through another night.

My husband and I just spent six weeks in India and Nepal. If you get a chance to go to either place, just pack your bags and don’t look back. (And don’t forget to throw in some extra TP and hand sanitizer. You’ll be soooo glad you did.)

If you’ve ever traveled to a developing nation—and especially to an urban center within it—you know exactly what I mean when I say the words sensory overload. The sights, smells, and sheer number of people elbowing their way through the overcrowded, dusty streets is sometimes enough to make you want to: A) scream, B) cry, C) barf, D) do Yoga, or E) all of the above. In a town called Varanasi, I accomplished answer E, all in a single day. Not a proud day, but I can say with certainty that I’ve never needed Yoga more.

After long and windy journey through the town’s narrow and poorly marked streets, we finally arrived at our destination. I was bullish about finding this particular studio because it was the only one our Lonely Planet guide had recommended, after a warning to the effect of: “Be careful. Some of our contributors have reported that many of Varanasi’s ‘Yoga Centres’ are run out of the homes of untrained men with ‘wandering hands.’” Since getting groped was not on my travel itinerary, I was so thankful to find a trusted Yoga oasis where we could stretch, decompress, meditate, and let Yoga have its way with us.

True peace comes from within. I can never have too many reminders of that.

I admit that I was hesitant to start yoga. I am not inherently flexible, and I wasn’t born knowing how to do a downward dog (though I am pretty darn good at Savasana). This didn’t stop me from signing up for the Intro to Yoga Series, which I thought sounded not only like a good idea, but also a great deal. The best thing about an intro class is that everyone is a beginner, or at least needing a refresher course. You aren’t going in there with a bunch of trained yogis who know what they are doing. You are free to ask questions, and the pace is slower so that you can actually learn the proper placement. Also, the instructor is there to help, and because everyone is at the same place, if you don’t know what you are doing and the instructor is helping you, you aren’t taking away from other students. Often times there are a few people who need the same correction so you don’t feel like you are all alone.

I took Eza’s Intro to Yoga Series, and she was absolutely amazing. After the series finished, I began to take other classes at Maya, and because of taking that series I was able to easily adjust to more difficult classes. I even brought my boyfriend with me to a level I class (as he hasn’t done yoga before), and after he told me he was a little frustrated because he didn’t know what he was doing, and could I please tell him when the next Intro series was It isn’t that you cannot learn in a level I class, but it just makes it so much smoother if you take the intro series and learn the basics so you aren’t struggling.

I have been wanting to take a pilates class at Maya, but after taking the Intro to Yoga Series I know I should take the Pilates Essentials Intro Series before taking a level I class. I just found that extra teaching in the beginning to be invaluable, plus in all honesty it is so nice to take classes knowing you will only need minor adjustments (if any), rather than feeling like you are taking away time from all the other students.

If you are considering taking either of the Intro Series workshops I really recommend them. There is a new Intro to Yoga Series starting at the Maya Fremont location on Wednesday, May 5th, 2010 and the Southport Intro to Yoga Series begins on Thursday the 6th. Both start at 7:15P.M. and last until 8:15P.M. The cost is $60 for 4 classes (one class each week).

The Pilates Essentials Classes also begin next week, with the Fremont class starting on Tuesday, May 4th 2010 at 7:30P.M. lasting until 8:30P.M. and the Southport class on May 4th 2010 at 7:00P.M. lasting until 8:00P.M. The Pilates Essentials Series is also $60 for a 4 week workshop (4 consecutive Tuesdays).

To enroll for any of these workshops please click here. Do take advantage of the online enrollment if you can, classes often fill up well in advance!

Namaste!

~Marissa

We would like to start off this of by introducing a new staff member at Maya Whole Health Studio:

Tracy Wussow

Yoga became an integral part of Tracy’s life in 2003. Since then, she has practiced Power Vinyasa, Anusara Yoga and Viniyoga. Tracy loves broadening her yoga awareness by experiencing classes in other styles such as kundalini and hot yoga as well as studying yoga anatomy and philosophy. Tracy has studied prenatal yoga teacher training as well as completed teacher training with Shiva Rea. She is certified in CorePower’s 200-hour yoga teacher training. She enthusiastically shares her passion for yoga’s benefits to mind, body and spirit. In addition to practicing yoga as both a teacher and student, Tracy is a marketing professional, adjunct professor, and consultant. Tracy loves sharing her time with her husband, cat and yoga mat.

I know I am not alone in this, but when I have gotten out of my habitual exercise program, for any number of reasons (a trip, extra work, having a cold, etc), I always feel a bit guilty. My reasons right now are as follows (confession time). I took a week long trip home to Texas to visit family and friends, and well there wasn’t much yoga or exercising going on while I was there. I took all of 1 walk with a tiny chihuahua, and we had to cut it short because I didn’t bring a bag and well, yeah. I looked around for something to help me (and to see if any neighbors saw it happen), and actually pondered pretending I didn’t notice myself. Instead I “borrowed” one of those neighborhood newspapers that was lying in someones driveway turning yellow, and used it to carry the little package back to my father’s house. This then prompted my father to tell me that “This is Texas, and we don’t pick up **** here.” Lovely. Ok, well so that was my exercise for the week. I even downloaded a free yoga video for my iphone to do before bed, but did I do it? Nope. When I returned I meant to get RIGHT back into the studio, but my 2 month package had expired, and well I suppose I have been a bit lazy lately and just not committed to it. Personal stress has also gotten in the way as I have some things going on with me (don’t we all?), and so it hasn’t been a priority. I sit here now knowing that this is all ridiculous. I know for a fact that yoga helps deal with stress, and that exercise is something that will really help my mental outlook. I have gone to green lake a few times, and being outdoors also helps, but there is just something magical about yoga.

Here’s the thing I have figured out about guilt. It is completely useless. So, instead of feeling guilty about being away from my yoga practice, on Monday I am going to go start anew. The Gentle Hatha Restorative Class is PERFECT for this. Jude will get me back on track, I just know it. I am also not going to chide myself, as that just puts my practice into a category of “duty” rather than “bliss”. I so much prefer bliss. If any of you can relate to this please know you aren’t alone. We all get sidetracked, but getting back on the whole health train should be something to look forward to, not something that nags at you. Just let that all go. There is no nagging in yoga!

To aid in my stress relief I am also going to schedule an appointment with Melissa Rosenberger for some acupuncture. She has 2 acupuncture clinics a week at Maya’s Fremont location, and I have been meaning to try this out. i have never done it before, but I know that acupuncture is great for bursitis (which I struggle with in my hips), and could also help my anxiety, stress, and IBS (yep, such a joy!). I am really looking forward to trying it out! My physician and my naturopath have both recommended it for me, so hopefully it will help!

I hope you all have a blissful weekend!

Namaste!

~Marissa

Affordable Care for the Community

I am now offering a low-cost community acupuncture clinic at the Fremont Maya.  Community clinics are a great way to experience acupuncture in a relaxing communal setting.  It is a model commonly used in China and has become more prevalent in the United States over the last few years as providers seek to find ways to make health care more affordable and accessible.

The community acupuncture clinic will be held in Maya’s beautiful yoga studio.  Come relax, take a break, and treat your body.  Acupuncture balances and builds the qi (prana), helps remove energy blocks that sometimes lead to pain, stiffness, stress, and fatigue, and is a great form of preventative care.  Acupuncture treatments are complimentary to a regular yoga routine as the goals of balance, fluidity of prana, and strength are supported by acupuncture as well.  I have noticed that acupuncture treatments induce a meditative state that feels similar to a deep savasana, and can be used to support and compliment the prana work done through yoga.

The Community Clinic will be drop-in only:

Mondays 1:30-4:00
Wednesdays 1:30-3:30

$35 cash or check payable to Melissa Rosenberger

For initial visits there is some paperwork to fill out so factor that into your planning.  Visits will be 45 minutes or longer depending on availability of space and individual preferences.

For more information contact me at:
info@melissarosenberger.com
206-331-5891

or visit my website:

www.melissarosenberger.com