Pilgrimage is competing in San Diego’s 10News A-List contest to be named Best Yoga Studio in the city. We hope you consider us your favorite studio around town, click on the A-List link posted here, and vote for us!

Drawn from the Bhagavad Gita, the above quote can be seamlessly applied to the physical practice of Hatha Yoga. So often we become overly focused on achieving the final form of a given pose: getting legs up in headstand, balancing steadily in warrior three, or finding flight in crow pose. The difficulty that certain postures present has great value as these challenges help to keep the practitioner’s mind strongly focused in the present moment.

At times though, we can develop an attachment to the final form of a posture that draws us into the ego and away from the simple work of yoga. The practice of keeping an evenness of mind through mellow poses and intense poses alike easily translates to life off the mat as we encounter wonderful days filled with happiness and good fortune, as well as days that involve loss, sadness, and disappointment.

In my life, I’ve found that moments of challenge often arise without warning and its in those moments that I’m most grateful for my yoga practice. Staying present in yoga class might not seem like an effort worth making on some days when your mind would rather float into a daydream. However, the efforts to stay present create an evenness of mind that is invaluable to support you through life’s joys as well as life’s hardships. –Michelle Laxton

On the other hand, yoga provides emotional, mental, and energetic benefits that help reduce anxiety created in our fast-paced, and oftentimes high-stress lives. Interestingly, to achieve the utmost physical benefits from your practice, students should focus on the non-physical elements of yoga. Our culture encourages the “no pain, no gain” mentality where pushing yourself to the edge of your physical capacity is the best way to exercise. However, ignoring signals from your brain to stop or ease off a particular posture or movement can lead to injury.

By linking to the breath, a yoga student learns to stay present, mindfully noting the body’s response to different poses and intensities of practice. By carefully minding your body’s needs, you keep yourself safe and can practice more consistently with fewer needed breaks to address fatigue and injuries. Further, staying focused in the now pulls the mind away from the thoughts that can create stress and stress-related ailments like insomnia. –Michelle Laxton

As it turned out, for the next two years yoga was my professional life and a bit of personal life as well as I was the manager and a teacher at Pilgrimage. I breathed yoga, both figuratively and literally. I had access to beautiful teachers and classes throughout the day. I would meditate with Sujantra on Tuesday evenings. I had my space, and my practice was a constant friend.

When I started on this 15-month travel journey with my husband Tom, I left that consistency behind.

During travel, I struggled to find my own practice without a studio and without the guidance of an instructor. I had also left my yoga mat in Buenos Aires, and struggled without that tool as well. I would try with a bath towel, or simply on grass, and both left me slipping and sliding. I tried various yoga studios and teachers, and outside of my first two months in Buenos Aires, I struggled to find a teacher and a studio that I connected with, that I believed in. Aside from some breathing exercises, my practice effectively took a break for two months.

And then I visited a friend who asked that we practice on her roof. I unrolled the two camping pads that we had been traveling with, walked up onto her terrace over looking the city of Cordoba, and practiced morning yoga. It felt so good. My body was tight, but it welcomed the movement, and the breath.

Since that morning, I’ve unrolled that trusty camping pad made out of foam, and regained my practice. In the hostels, I’ll practice in the morning in-between my bed and the bathroom. Or I’ll go outside in the chilly mountain air for more connection with nature.

My practice is not that long or in depth. I’ll take about five minutes standing, breathing, and finding my intention. I’ll move slowly, starting with five to ten sun salutations, feeling the connection to my breath and body. Perhaps that will be it, and I’ll join my hands at my heart and say ‘Namaste.’ Other days I’ll continue, playing with balance, twists, backbends, and inversions. I’ll let my body and breath lead the way, not feeling attachment to a length of time or specific asanas.

Even after my two month break, my body still knew the movements. My mind relished the pause. My breath took me deeper. My inner spirit knew the practice as well, and welcomed me back.

You can keep up with Blair’s travels at her blog www.tomandblair.com.

We’ve had amazing teachers leave San Diego to travel, to study, and to have new life adventures. At the same time, we’ve welcomed new teachers who have amazed us with not only their teaching skills, but also their warmth, grace, and ability to connect deeply to yoga and their students.

We’ve been in a constant state of change working to keep the studio running as smoothly as possible for our community. We began offering a reservation system for classes (which we no longer need in our big new space!), placing mat markers on the studio floor, and re-arranging the Welcome Area to be the most spacious and offer the most seating possible.

Now with our new home, we have room to stretch wide. Both inside the studio room and in the lounge area, students, teachers, and staff are comfortable waiting for class to begin or relaxing after class has ended. There’s lots of room to sit and chat with friends or just close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.

Pilgrimage of the Heart began as a gift shop and organically morphed into a yoga studio in response to our community’s requests for more meditation and yoga. As we move forward in our new home, we will continue to listen to your suggestions and work to meet your needs and hopes. Thank you for all that you’ve shared with us and for being the driving force in our flourishing and open yoga community. –Michelle Laxton

To sufficiently lose fat, one must keep their heart rate at approximately 55% to 65% of their max heart rate (MHR) . By keeping the heart rate in the range of 120 beats per minute for a duration of at least 20 minutes. This is known as the “fat burning zone”. The practice of Hot Yoga specifically targets the burning of fat storage, because the heart rate is maintanied at about 120 bpm for the duration of the yoga practice. The bodies primary way of maintaining energy for the yoga class is to utilize fat storage for energy, along with some carbohydrates and very little protein.

During the practice of Hot Yoga or a Vinyasa Flow class, there is continuous smooth movements, in a rhythmic style. You practice breathing deeply, which uses more lung capacity, and you never hold your breath. These are all key components to a good yoga practice, which is the reason why a person uses more of their fat storage for energy while practicing yoga compared to some other types of exercise’s.

Last week Gabriel Johnson, owner of Organiq Fitness(organiqfitness@gmail.com), tested out this theory. He wore a heart rate monitor for the duration of the 50min Hot Yoga class I taught at Pilgrimage of the Heart Yoga studio. The room temperature was set at 95 degrees F. The class consist of Sun Salutations, standing poses, balancing poses, backbends and arm balances. Connecting your breath with your movements in a moderate rhythmic flowing pace.

The results: Total Calories Burned 515 calories

Max Heart Rate 156bpm

Average HR 122bpm

As the results indicate, a great amount of calories were burned during the 50 minute class and his average heart rate was in the “fat burning zone” for the majority of the Hot Yoga class. By practicing a vigorous yoga class that elevates ones heart rate in the range of 120bpm, an individual will utilize there energy from there fat storage, which indicates Hot Yoga burns fat!

To learn more about Tyler and to read other blogs copy/paste web.me.com/tylerlavigne

Namaste

I particularly remember my struggle with Triangle pose (trikonasana). My legs felt incredibly tight and I had a hard time balancing while gazing towards my top hand. Given that my focus at the time was simply keeping up with everyone in class, I saw my fellow yogis with their bottom fingers balanced on the earth and wanted to do the same. As my hand reached the floor, my hips closed and I lost the openness that characterizes Triangle.

Many moons later, I still feel the urge to bring my fingers towards the floor. While I see this one expression of the posture as being the goal, I know this attachment doesn’t serve my practice. If you experience a similar feeling in Triangle, here are a couple suggestions to be more mindful about your alignment and less concerned with dropping your hand to the earth:

- Practice your triangle at home against a wall. Feel both hips connect to the wall and feel an equal degree of broadness through your back and chest. As you begin to lower your fingers, make sure to maintain this expansiveness. From here, you can see where your fingers rest on your leg when in proper alignment. Remember this spot on your leg so that when you’re in class you can adjust your hand accordingly.

- Another option is to close your eyes while upright, before lowering into your triangle. Feel your hips and chest open and focus on that openness as you lower your fingers. The moment you feel your hips start to close, lift your fingers higher until you regain that openness.

Only when expectations are released can you achieve the full benefit of the pose, physically, mentally, and spiritually.

–Michelle Laxton

If you sometimes find yourself with these worries and subsequent judgements, consider approaching social situations mindfully. Consider that your thoughts create your emotions, and your emotions inform your behaviors. By keeping your thoughts positive, you’ll find your criticisms and insecurities subside while treating yourself and others more kindly. –Michelle Laxton

However, the lead instructor in my training suggested that we not proselytize yoga, but instead wait to field questions from those persons who might be interested. He said that a person who is ready to make a change in his or her life will see the light and happiness in our hearts and approach us to inquire about that special spark.

Years later, I work and practice at Pilgrimage. Everyday I notice and smile at all the beautiful sparks around me. I am one of those lucky people who truly enjoys coming to work. The teachers spark, the students spark, and the staff sparks. Coming into the studio, it’s impossible not to absorb this light and feel more loved, more light. Students will often mention to me that Pilgrimage feels very “right” to them, as if they’d been brought here at just the right time in their lives.

I would have to agree as I feel the same way. Observing a busy Thursday night at the studio with students chatting after class and teachers welcoming new faces, I can be fairly certain that these sparks are contagious. –Michelle Laxton