JUICE CLEANSE & YOGA INTENSIVE

Every Spring I try to offer some kind of guided group opportunity for cleansing. I started this annual practice because I myself wanted to do a cleanse but did not want to feel isolated from the rest of the world for the week or like I had nobody to reach out to if I had questions or feelings to express. I did my first group cleanse in April of 2005 and I have led 7 groups since then, each one taking me deeper into my own practice and understanding of my body, as well as enhancing my knowledge and understanding of how to effectively lead the groups.

On May 1st, I will be teaming up with the amazing teachers at GOOD YOGA in Greenpoint to offer an incredible opportunity for a Spring juice cleanse and yoga intensive.

We'll hold a group workshop and then host cleanse focused yoga classes daily, with an opportunity to purchase fresh juice daily from Green Pirate.

The goal of the workshop is to educate people about the process of cleansing, how

to safely and effectively let go of unwanted toxins yet stay nourished, and to provide structure and support for a successful Spring cleansing experience.

GUIDED JUICE CLEANSE & YOGA WORKSHOP
MAY 1st, 2011 - May 8th, 2011
w/ Deborah C. Smith and partner studio, GoodYoga

$50.00 per person

Register for the workshop through GoodYoga.

Guided Cleanse Experience includes:
- 3 hour Cleanse plenary workshop on Sunday, May 1st, 2011 (mandatory)

- Nutrition and Cleanse Educational Materials
- Weekly menu plan (personalized during the workshop)

- Juicing tips and samples

- post-cleanse 30 minute individual follow-up sessions with Deborah (May 11^th- 18th)

**Yoga classes provided through Good Yoga not included in the cost of the workshop***

** Fresh Squeezed Juice is available for participants of the cleanse at a separate fee***

Please Email deborah@green-pirate.com with questions or visit http://www.goodyoganyc.com to find out about the yoga teachers and classes available.

*Pregnant women and anyone taking prescribed medications should consult their doctor before

embarking on a week-long detoxifying cleanse plan.

XOS (Hosh) Community Yoga

Join the Movement


There is a wonderful new yoga studio called XOS (pronounced Hosh) in my neighborhood, right on the border of Williamsburg and Greenpoint. It's a donation based studio, which means that while there is a suggested donation of $10 per class, you are welcome to pay what you can at the time of class. This opens up the opportunity to take a yoga class to so many more members of the community because they don't feel the pressure to have a "perfect experience in yoga class" or decide not to take class because they can't afford a $15 or $20 class.

It also makes newcomers to yoga feel more welcome. They can try out a class and find out if they like it without breaking the bank.

I have been going to XOS regularly now since January and I LOVE IT THERE~!!!!!! I feel safe exploring my practice under the guidance of caring teachers and I feel more connected to both my body and my community.

All of the teachers are volunteers and bring the highest intentions to their classes. I believe that because they are donating their services, they feel inspired to give their very best. It's not just a job for them, you can tell that they genuinely care about their students and the process of opening your heart and mind to being a happier, healthier human through yoga.

They offer all kinds of community based gatherings, chances to meet the teachers and other yogis that frequent the studio, online reading resources through their blog, feature a pose of the month, and in the Summer and Fall they offer classes in McCarren Park as well.

This past weekend XOS hosted a donation drive to support families and communities suffering from the recent tragedy in Japan. You can still donate money through their website here.

XOS is a great example of a pay it forward mentality in business. They offer their students the opportunity to feel the choice they are making when attending a class. It's not a fixed price. You pay what you wish, putting the responsibility on the "consumer" to fully understand the value of what they are experiencing, which in this case is a connection to your body, a chance to relieve stress, a community building effort, and increased energy and flexibility in your body. Pretty awesome.

Check out XOS for a class or email me and join me. I go at least 2ce a week either at 10 am or 6:30 pm depending on my schedule.

See you on the mat!

XOS YOGA
55 Nassau Avenue
(entrance on Guernsey St.)
closest subways
G (Nassau) and L (Bedford)
closest busses B62, B43 and B48
E-mail: info@hoshyoga.org
Phone: 718-599-YOGA(9642)

108 Days of Yoga

Tazima Davis (Compassionate Renegade), my holistic health coach from IIN challenged all of her clients to integrate yoga into their day, every single day for 108 days starting on 1/11/11. I read all of her e-mails and thought, "I could never pull that off, I'm way too busy". Then I read further and listened to her basic guidelines for what it meant to bring yoga, mindfulness and balance into a daily practice, and determined that I could definitely find time every day to spend 30 minutes in quiet or meditation, ideally on the mat, stretching and toning my physical body as well, but at very least, in a place of rest and inner calm, breathing deeply and steadily, and quieting the chatter in my mind. In fact, this is exactly what I need heading into this new year, a year of building strength.

Since January 11, I am proud to say I have met this challenge to very best of my ability and have done yoga for 14 days. I try to get over to HOSH yoga in my neighborhood where they have built a beautiful community studio, which is also pay-what-you-wish and run by volunteers, but I have also done some video tapes and downloads from the internet. On the one day that I could not actually get to a class, I made time to meditate on my train rides (believe it or not on the subway!) and at the end of my day when I was getting ready for bed, I still got on the mat for a bit and stretched while breathing deeply.

I never thought I would even make it this far, but so far the joy of taking that time for myself to turn inward and find the balance in my body has been such a gift that I am looking forward to it again every day.

The most significant thing that I have noticed is how busy my mind is and how long it takes me each class to find my breath and focus on being in the moment rather than leaping ahead to what I have to do next, or hanging onto an experience from my past.

I hope I can stick with it and that this begins to lessen as I go....

With compassion I invite you all to challenge yourselves to an exercise or activity that would help to balance your day and make you feel great, but may seem just a bit out of reach. Give
yourself the treat of realizing that there is so much that you CAN do... become inspired.

with love,
Deborah

Rock Your Own Asana!

Yoga means union. It is a balancing and integrating of your physical, mental and spiritual selves. The benefits of doing yoga are endless, but amongst them, stress relief is key.

Recently, I hosted a week long cleanse in my home, which included a group of 10 people, doing variations on a detox cleanse and practicing yoga as a group.

One of the most powerful things that I took away from this week-long journey was that I can practice yoga every single day, in my very own home.

We moved some furniture and pulled back the rug, put on some inspiring music and threw down our mats and there was our yoga studio!

Now, granted not every apartment will have large open spaces for this, but you don't really need much. Just a mat or a rug, instructions on how to properly do some of the poses, and some quiet time to do them!

There are some helpful resources on the internet that describe poses and the meaning of certain terms.
You can order videos or DVD's of your favorite instructors or find free classes online.

Here are some references that I have used in the past:

Yoga Journal

Yoga To Health (informational site)

Rodney Yee! (one of my favorites cuz he kicks my asana)

Lisa Kazmer! (my partner in crime for the cleanses in NYC)

While the ideal situation is to find a teacher you LOVE and who inspires and guides you to be at your best, you can also rock your own asana, right at home!!

Good luck, keep it balanced.

xo
Deborah