Yoga Props/Fitness Accessories and How We Use Them in The Heart and Soul Method.

Yoga props are one of the best ways to support your body in going deeper into each asana, or posture. They stabilize, bring the ground up to you, create a stronger bind, allow the body to release tension, create more heat for burning calories, align bones, more flexibility, soften the mind into balance, help reorganize optimal energy flow and the list goes on.

Below are yoga props and fitness accessories I use for The Heart and Soul Method. It’s best to use eco friendly, organic, natural products to help our planet whenever possible. Also included in this blog are the brands I use or recommend.

Blocks: Blocks are rectangular. They have 3 different heights. Some are made of cork, natural woods, styrofoam and rubber. I tend to stick with cork or natural woods with a little weight to them. I use them mostly under my hand(s) if I can’t touch the floor, squeeze between my thighs to contract muscles, sculpting the thighs and buttocks, and to prop up the forearms in Fitness Fusion Technique which helps in toning and tightening. Yoga blocks are multifaceted, indispensable ways to allow you to get the most out of your work out.

Straps: Yoga straps help you to move deeper into flexibility. If there is a bind you just can’t quite get such as linking your hands or grabbing your foot, the strap is the bridge so that you can still do the posture. By using the strap, you still get the tension in the muscles with the flexibility in letting go. Straps are, in a way, extending your arms. It’s imperative, however, that a micro bend in the elbow of your arm is there while using the strap or else you can run the risk of hyper-extension which puts too much stress on your joints. Hyper-extension doesn’t allow you to have skin in the game to build meaningful muscle for short term as well as long term that will create more ease and flow. Too much locking with hyper-extension is not healthy.

Bolsters: Bolsters are primarily used, like blocks, to bring the ground up to you, however they differ in the fact that they are larger, wider, softer, and oblong. Bolsters are like harder pillows used mostly in Restorative classes to create softening in your body. The support they provide give a signal to those areas of the body that it is okay to relax and open more into flexibility.

Yoga Blankets: Are the coziest. They are best used folded up width length to use similar as a block, but for more joint support. I also use them at the end of Shavasana to keep warm or over my shoulders in meditation.

Ankle Weights: I use 1.5lb ankle weights occasionally in class to help dissolve too many positive ions. It helps with grounding, anchoring, and downward energy flow towards the feet. Students can use them as they feel they need to, but I feel 1-2 classes a week is enough if you are doing 3-5 classes a week. See how you feel with them. The Bala Bangles are great or any 1-2lb ankle weight. Please do NOT use them on your wrists. Holding weights overhead is not good for long periods of time. Make sure to take ankle weights off during dance movement, upside down inversions like headstands, forearm stands where the feet are over the head. Also take them off for shavasana/meditation/breathwork.

Yoga Mats: I use EKO Manduka mats because of their recycled materials and the amazing feel/grip they have. If your joints need extra padding the 5mm option is best. They also have thinner mats as well in a variety of colors. Look for the EKO in the name. Jade mats are also comparable.

In the launch of The Heart and Soul Method App with Fitbudd on Google and Apple platforms, coming this July, you will be able to take Intermediate Classes (beginners can do intermediate for now, it will just be a bit more challenging, but you will get better. Sometimes it’s better just to be thrown in and then to adapt.) A new Basics class will be available as we go through out the season. I am talking of course of the physical practice of this method, not the spiritual growth. Spiritual growth just happens naturally with Heart and Soul Method at a safe pace. This is not a Spiritual Exercise Method. This is a physical exercise method that does and can yield other benefits.

The yoga props and fitness accessories are there to help you in sculpting into alignment which promotes weight-loss. I want you to know how to use them before starting your online or private session classes. Of course you will learn as you go in seeing how I use them in class as well.

How Therapeutics Are The Key To Longevity and Where To Find Them

“Just by telling your story (or even writing it) you begin to release it’s negative effects on your body”

~ Marcelle Pick

When I began dancing as a young girl, I felt I had discovered a new language. Over the years, I learned to express my emotions and feelings into the dance choreography through the connection of music and movement. Dancing was and still is a therapy for those brave enough to do it over a long period of study. When we dance, an inner child we have repressed in the deep recesses of our psyche seems to come out to play. To come out to be healed.

After being introduced to yoga in my early 20’s, I realized the therapeutic power of moving your body slightly under the melody of the music in an energetic flowing vinyasa form where deep belly breathing motivates the next movement. It was a deeper form of mind-body therapy. It was a way to tell my story on the mat through the breath, feeling my feelings, and being in-tune with the mind-body connection. Each asana (posture) in yoga was telling the story of my mind-body. Where it had been, where it is now, and where it wanted to go. It was expressing myself, and through THAT, the negativity within’ and around me began to become manageable. Pessimism transformed into practical optimism. Depression and anxiety into an authentic Merissa. I began to feel better about life in general. Everything became more sweet, beautiful and fun. Less worried. Less anxiety. The body, breath, music, and movement with asana was a deeper therapy then I had ever experienced or known.

Dance gave me the therapy of synchronized movement to music, expressing myself, telling my story through emotional feeling connection with the movement. Yoga Asana helped me to go deeper inside by moving with the breath slightly under the melody to a specific count. Of course this was my journey. There are so many ways we can move out of cynicism. To know how to bring balance back into yourself is such a gift.

How do you tell your story? How do you release the negative holds it has on your body transforming it into love. Our stories are beautiful and make us who we are, but when the pain can let go, then we find freedom to enjoy the stories that live within’ us, that make us who we are today.

As we become more psychic, and let’s face it, that’s what evolution is doing to us, whether we like it or not, and honestly, I liked it better when we just did good ol’ fashion talk therapy with close friends/loved ones, BUT, evolution is moving us to explore uncharted territory such as in our minds energy which involves psychic development as well as spiritual leveling up of antiquity. As we realize we need more self care more than ever to manage transformation, I see more and more people craving therapy. To move the negative holds from our body so that we CAN feel our feelings, our sense of self, and bring freedom in our minds and hearts to live meaningful lives. Not just be alone or a slave to someone else’s world 24/7. This is WHY America needs to check itself before it wrecks itself by adopting the concept of more time off for workers. So they can rest more, be with their families, and travel.

We are not meant to just serve, work, and compete. We are meant to have pleasure and take pleasure in seeing others feel pleasure or joy. To do that we need to really slow down, think, and let go. To partake in healthy therapeutics. Not doing that will perpetuate the stress complex American culture has become.

Therapeutics promote longevity. I could throw statistics at you saying a better diet will add this many years to your life while doing this will add this many years, but really, if it’s not nourishing your body now, alleviating stress, or breaking up the negativity, then why do it. One persons therapy is another persons nightmare. It needs to have a deep penetrating refreshment. We also need to realize that some therapies take awhile before we truly feel the beneficial impact. Heartbreak is not a therapy to me and shouldn’t happen often ( i.e gaslighting or purposely hurting others to up-level or situational trauma).

I want to share with you my go to therapies. I find the best ones bring me closer to the vibration of earth. The more physical realm frequencies. Deep infrared or bright flowing expansive clarity. In a wholistic approach, all therapies for all areas of our being, depending on what we need, are so important for longevity.

Body:

Exercise: Any exercise is better than none. Methods are good to devote yourself to or mix with other forms of exercise as long as they are on different days.

Massage/Sauna/Cold Plunges: My experience with Shiatsu at yoga teacher training was THE best feeling. The massage therapist goes deep into the places you hold emotional energy and releases it through forms of acupressure. But really any form of massage is so therapeutic. Hot and cold therapy is all the rage now and helps regulate your metabolic health through timed time in a sauna as well as in a cold plunge. Alternating heat and cold.

Making Love: Making love is very different then having sex. Making love is going slower, looking into each others eyes, feeling deep energetics, and wanting your partner to feel the best orgasm. It’s not a “fuck” and it’s not a 5 minute “let’s get off,” it probably needs to be at least 20 minutes and filled with deep affection if it’s a good nourishing therapy.

Hormone Therapy: Being in my early 40’s I have noticed a change. For the first time in my life, I don’t feel invincible. I’m all about aging gracefully and as we age we lose estrogen, we start to really feel like we are losing a huge part of our womanhood. Think of estrogen as that divine feminine feeling of vitality moving through you. As women age, studies are finding that premenopausal and menopausal women are needing and wanting estrogen supplementation through hormone therapy. It’s still a new concept as stated on the mindbodygreen podcast, but it’s a form of therapy for middle aged women to find relief for their changing bodies.

Mind:

Meditation: Even if for just 10 minutes a day, it can put things into perspective. Slowly working up to 30 minutes or even an hour a day. This is time for stillness, reflection, feeling emotions deeply, and being in touch with what flows within’ and around you. Vipassana meditation is such a life changing overhaul that I recommend to anyone to try at least once. It’s so hard at first, but you feel like you have so much vitality at the end of the 10 day/10 hour sittings.

Conversation: Talking vocally with someone you trust out loud at a medium volume in pleasant conversation, moves sound vibration through every part of you stimulating the nervous system. Although tied to ego, helps you to feel more alive. Ego is good when it has a reliable checks and balances. Your able to express yourself, share your thoughts and feelings, feel connected, and hopefully understood at some level. It works to help free the mind and heart. I feel kinder people have regular conversations in sharing their thoughts and feelings.

Reading: Nothing new, but reading is a form of being in deep meditation while the brain soaks up info like a sponge. Learning words, ideas, as well as ways to better your life, bring intrigue, hope, memorization, and imagination to life. It can set the mind into regulation.

Soul and Spirit:

Dancing: Works directly with spirit. Spirit can be the energy, the guides, and the feeling of something beyond moving with/through us. Dance is the movement of nature, of spirit in so many forms. When I dance, I feel one with god.

Any Religion with prayer: Praying to a higher god is so important. Acknowledging we are powerful within and of our prayer, yet ultimately, there is always a presence with a better design far greater than we could possibly comprehend in one lifetime. This brings joy because there is so much to learn, explore, and share with each other.

Singing: When I sing I feel the vibration of the universe run through me. Even if I’m off pitch, which happens often, yes, I’ll admit that, I feel like a bird soaring on the notes of love with a message. My soul is then stirred into a deep felt sense.

Ayuasca: Now I’ve never done psychedelics before, but if it’s similar to dreaming, and from what I’ve heard, a cathartic unearthing of your deepest imprints, repressions, past lives, and soul purposes unleashed. I feel it’s probably extremely therapeutic for your heart and third eye in particular. Helps to calm the nervous system healing deep samskaras or deep unhealthy habitual patterns. Probably best to do no more than once every 3 years or so, but again, I’ve never done it before.

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Other similar therapies like walking barefoot on the grass, being in nature recreationally, writing, and seeing a therapist or even shaman or energy healer can heal us. Even money therapy. Having more money can release large stress burdens on you and your family.

Checkin’ with yourself, what do I need to fill my cup up so I can be of better service to others? Maybe that might mean not serving others for a time or backing off or really listening to what they may need. We can’t help heal ourselves, others, or the oneness of our planet if we are all being vindictful, stressing each other out and disregarding our bodies. I’m all for having guilty pleasures, but it’s time for us to let each other get good nourishing sleep when we need it, and find time to rest and digest. Therapeutic practices do that. This is what will help is not only live longer lives, but also enjoy them in a deeper love of appreciation.

What’s The Love of Trying Got To Do With It.

As I look around the room in the advanced yoga class, all of the practitioners are in headstand. My breath shortens, perspiration beads begin to form on my forehead, I wipe the sweat off of my brow. Quietly I am intimidated. I say to myself, I just can’t do this. Anchoring down into my gumption, I muster up the courage, taking one step at a time towards getting my hips over my shoulders… “if only I could get my hips over my shoulders then I would be like them. I can participate in headstand like them… and be cool, like them.”

I finally manage to get my hips over my shoulders, trying to levetate up, by pulling my belly up and in. I squeeze my core like the teacher said, I’m pressing down on my forearms to get leverage. Trying, ugh trying, oh god… yet, not succeeding in moving into headstand. Sadly, feeling defeated once again, I rest back into childpose.

My whole life, since I was five years old, has been spent trying. It started at a young age in dance classes, then in musical theater, plays, yoga, and the hardest for me, singing. Hours failing again and again. With all of the trying and failing over the years, little successes, hear and there, added up. FINALLY my TRYING alchemy transformed over the years into BEING, BECOMING, and then TEACHING. What I tried and failed at for so many years eventually grew the fruit to harvest for today.

Ya see, the practice was the trying and the trying was the practice. Hours upon hours perfecting technique, studying lines, and making a fool of myself more times than I can count. The trying gave me the resilience and the strength to step forward into a new version of myself in which moved the needle a bit closer to what I wanted to accomplish. Every hour, every day, every crying session, every meditation, every visualization of my rich life, every prayer. Every little thing really did mean everything… all at once. Yet, also meant nothing because the fruit of my harvest was so out of reach.

Often times in this day and age we can get so bogged down by other people telling us we can’t do something or we don’t have permission or we are not fast or smart enough. Or this powerful force has me bound. In gods eyes, the benevolent force beyond all things, knows our true potential. THIS god can move mountains even in our weakest moments. It’s just a matter of letting go enough to let him/her, whatever gender you prefer, work their magic. It really does come down to preparation, practice, and presentation.

There are times when we do need to listen to the messages and stop trying. Perhaps the inner alchemy hasn’t matured and the trying will do more damage than good.

Perhaps we need to look at our goals from another perspective. Like in headstand or child’s pose. Taking the posture helps us to understand the psychology behind the physiology and visa versa. Whatever the case may be, the cocooned period of not trying, surrendering to not practicing that dance, that instrument, not running, just doing the art of nothing, can slingshot us in the future to that with which we desire in a new way.

I eventually was able to get into headstand over years of practice day in and day out. I made it to the advanced class being cool like all the prestige advanced practitioners… and we looked amazing, physically AND spiritually.

But, what I guess I want all of us to know is that it’s not about “nailing it”. We must find “the space between” child’s pose and headstand. The art of trying is the journey of fortitude, of resilience, of crying when it’s hard, being okay with looking foolish, or dumb, or not the most popular person in the room. Of course safety, and love, and blessings are wanted, but it’s okay to roll out your mat, do your best to flow through class, and be okay looking a little foolish, in the dance movement, in the asana, in the working through our feelings in each posture with the breath. It’s okay to be the slower one because there may be a huge purpose and/or pay off in the end. We will reap the fruits of the harvest.

Each class counts, the trying, the practicing, even if you don’t nail it. Even if it’s not in this life… you will never regret the trying.

Heart and Soul Method Wellness Lifestyle Foundations

I believe that when we have foundational pillars to live by that are strongly rooted within’ us, life can come from a place of balance. If we are knocked off our center through change or other forces within’ and around us, we can draw on one or more foundations to keep us functional in the middle of it all. We all have different foundations that keep us going. Here are mine and perhaps one, two, or maybe all of them will be the foundation to unlock more sustainable balanced joy in your life as well.

1.) An Exercise Method: This is number one. Wherever you go, you will have a practice you can do for at least an hour 3-5 times a week, that can keep you fit, move you into better health, and shift you into feeling balanced. It’s a discipline to keep you grounded in embodiment. An actual method that becomes a discipline. Yes you can do this with more spiritual mantras and meditations, but I find strengthening the body-mind connection while doing an embodied moving meditation keeps your whole system integrated and gets rid of free radicals attacking your system. It creates a buffer of health for all layers when done regularly. No matter what I go through in life, I practice Heart and Soul Method and Tracy Anderson Method (I do her method a few times a week for the weights. I them as I move into my 40’s). I feel I can buffer or process a lot while maintaining a level head. I control more of the channel I’m attuned to, with a gentle heart for myself and others.

2.) Learn How Your Body Processes Food and Information: Food is a denser form of light and information going into your system. Sometimes in order to put your system back into health, a greasy cheese burger (I recommend plant-based) and fries is better for you than a salad. Because sometimes I need to lower my vibration for well being. Of course in moderation. I’m not saying eat junk food whenever you want, what I am saying is know your system well. If I’m in low vibe, my meal can uplift me by adding a green juice. Strive for a primarily or all plant-based diet, then when things go rogue, you know how to soothe using plant medicine as a way to regulate. I’m vegan, but if I fall off the wagon a bit emotionally, I know that eating some cheese and olives with a little wine, will give me comfort. Or chocolate buttercups. Or a hearty pasta dish. Find a healthy nutritional way of eating that you can always come to for comfort, instead of bouncing all over the place to this diet and that diet etc. Read my blog on Food Concepts To Live By. A steady Exercise Method and Nutritional lifestyle is half of the battle for sustainable health.

3.) Who Is Your God?: We also need spiritual nutrition. We need the help of others spiritual support in order to do the things we want and to live the lifestyle we choose. I whole heartedly believe in that. I put God, omnipresent on a pedestal as being the energy in all things. As such, I treat everything around me as an expression of gods love. Not all of gods love perse loves me back in the way I would like to be loved, so I attune myself to the spirit that loves me for how I would desire to be loved. With respect, with integrity, with humor, with candor, with abundance, with wisdom, with generosity and sweetness. Then I attract more of that energy. When I know these things, if spirit or others come by that show me the opposite of that, I can humor it a bit, then “send it out with the laundry”. Pray to a god that loves and respects you, not tortures you mercilessly… don’t know how to do that? Go back to your exercise method and ask for gentle guidance on your mat during your moving meditation. I also go by the teachings of Jesus. There is a little devil in all of us, but I feel it can be used in a more moralistic way with healthy boundaries.

4.) Education and Learning: I love, love, love to read books and listen to podcasts. I love learning from others that respect me. I adore non-fiction and plays. I try to come to life as a beginner most of the time. I say “show me what I need to know right now”, it’s not always what I want to hear, but I get the messages to move forward in a direction that will support me. I don’t constantly want to be learning, but I do love it when I come across something that inspires me.

5.) Do Fun Things Often: Even if you don’t have much, fun things can be found. If nothing is fun or if you have done so many fun things nothing new is inspiring, go back to your exercise method on the mat and ask your god to lead you to fun again. Movies used to bring me a lot of joy, now that I have watched so many over 35 years… it’s just okay. It’s not as fun. I’m turning to books again, live theater, and traveling more to find more joy. Healthy sexual relations and self pleasure are fun. I used to go out with friends for conversation that brought me a lot of joy, then recently, it seemed more like a battle then a fun time out with a friend. So, i’m looking to find joy with myself, until I can find trusted friends again.

Having something to look forward to each day whether it’s a meal, a coffee, a good sleep cycle, a smile from someone, or a walk outside, it is crucial to feel a sense of pleasure.

Strength, Flow, and Balance Creates more Ease In Your Life

Heart and Soul Method is an exercise movement method built upon the foundations of 7 core body plexus classes. The 7 core body plexus classes develop strength, flow, and balance through 3 different modalities within each class: hatha vinyasa flow, dance movement, and fitness fusion technique.

Practitioners are encouraged to connect the body, breath, music, and movement together for all of the benefits of Heart and Soul Method. This is a well-being maintenance strategy to sustain the energy behind vitality and longevity throughout our lives, taking care of the physical, mental, and emotional layers of our human system. When we have an exercise method that is fun, playful, cathartic and nurturing, we can heal faster for better health.

By practicing heart and Soul Method in the studio or at home as a wellbeing foundational structure through out the week, other forms of exercise become easier. We are motivated to be more mobile. Health flourishes when we are more mobile. As we age, we need more things to maintain our health such as exercises in nature. Weights, skiing, biking, surfing, etc can be done more optimally with confidence when we have an exercise movement method as this foundation to sustain strength, flow, and balance. A 75 minute class 3-5 times a week can build confidence with more action sports as we age.

This is how I incorporate strength, flow, and balance into the Heart and Soul Method to meet you where you are at and where you would like to go:

Strength

Hatha Vinyasa Flow: Asanas use intrinsic equilibrium, which is a way of supporting the natural weight of the body with the natural pull of gravity so that just the right balance is present in mainting each Asana posture. With practice, your body attunes to this balance more quickly, activating the right muscles in each posture to build strength. Each posture is held no longer than 15 seconds which is about 5 medium ujjai breaths.

Dance Movement: Dance Movement is in-between dance dance and dance therapy which is why it is called dance movement. The strength is in learning the discipline within your system overtime on agility of mind, body, and spirit working together in space and time to act quickly on your feet. Precision, memory, coordination, and just learning to be playful with the dance is fun to learn. It’s cathartic expression within’ boundaries is also developing a great strength in emotional intelligence.

Fitness Fusion Technique: The strength in this modality is building and toning the muscles. Getting a little deeper than asanas as more tension is applied to the muscle for faster twitch movements. This creates a burning and conditioning. We then had a full range of motion to the movement to massage out the burning so that there isn’t too much inflammation. This is apart of the fusion. It produces long lean, toned muscles. This is only 5-10 minutes and sprinkled throughout each class.

Flow

Hatha Vinyasa Flow: Linking Ujjayi breath with movement at a moderate pace induces flow. When all elements are adequately synergized together, moving consciousness in, through, and around sushumna, or central channel of the body, we can feel a sense of ease in body, mind, and spirit. Movements become easier as the body loses rigid “shell” like energy, allowing a freer sense of self to emerge. We become more turned on to life, we become more joyful which attracts what is good for our wellbeing to thrive more often… because we feel more connected to the flow of life. The moving meditation of linking breath with asanas that reflect nature science, invokes flow. Practice overtime brings about more ease to life.

Dance Movement: As we attune to the body, breath, music, and movement, integrating those aspects, the ability to flow in dance with accuracy improves. We practice the same dance sequence choreography for a few months so practitioners can sharpen their dance skills. When you know something well, you create more of an ease and flow.

Fitness Fusion Technique: this modality is meant less for inducing flow, however, as your ability to regulate your system improves with the other modalities, as your ability to control your muscles improves, your fitness fusion movements will take on a more fluid quality because you have then broken through the mental constructs that create lapses in movement control.

Balance

Hatha Vinyasa Flow: One of the body plexus Heart and Soul Method classes is called Standing and Balancing. The body plexus located below the feet and in the Coccyx area of the spine assist in finding and maintaining our sense of balance. In this class we focus more on standing and balancing postures for this purpose. Everything learns to work together to balance in crow pose, tree pose, and sunrise to name a few asanas. Asanas help to absorb involuntary movement wobbles, falls, and tiredness, so that intrinsic equilibrium can be more felt. This creates a deeper sense of balance.

Dance Movement: Shifting from one dance move to the next, moving the feet in time with music developes more balance. The agility to hold your own frame, energy, and presence will improve an overall sense of balance.

Fitness Fusion Technique: In a lot of the movements there is a strong place of stability, especially in the core of the body, also known as center or the solar plexus. We develop stronger muscles to help maintain balance in doing various activities. Asana is good for this too as it strengthens the legs for optimal balance, but acute focus to particular muscle groups, developing the core of the body, is just as important.

All movement modalities within The Heart and Soul Method Classes improve strength, flow, and balance. They synergistically work together so the body learns how to regulate the system in all layers, in all body plexuses.

The Heart and Soul of Manageability

Manageability

As we move further into 2023, goals, plans, changing plans, stressors, learning new things, etc can become more and more chaotic. Although I do believe a little chaos is essential for productivity in life, that burning desire, the fuel that keeps us going, we can manage it better when we give each other more autonomy. What is autonomy exactly and how can we give it to each other? How can we cultivate it within’ ourselves?

Autonomy:

1. the right or condition of self-government.

2. (in Kantian moral philosophy) the capacity of an agent to act in accordance with objective moralityrather than under the influence of desires.

When we are in a sense of autonomy we can reflect, give understanding, hold a sense of compassion, do the right thing, hold a conversation, feel pain, but not blame it always on someone else, come up with solutions that help all involved. When we are not in autonomy, we can let our desires run the show, wanting to control everything, too angry, too jealous, to be better, to be first. We tend to be all over the place, to have that thing override our sense of morality. We can’t hold the expanded, grounded space of love to govern ourselves in a way that is sourced with a flow of discernment.

Sometimes we need to not be in autonomy. But what I have found is that the more we are in the space of autonomy we can think more clearly, feel better about our choices, more satisfied on a deeper level, people are happier to be around us, more things get done in less time, and relationships improve. Just think if we all gave each other more of THAT.

So what if we are stressed, overworked, driven by too many desires, overwhelmed, and all over the place. Not being in autonomy doesn’t mean we can’t manage things or have a good life, however, the more of it we have, the more it is a ripple affect of spreading it so that others have it too. When others have it too our world becomes more peaceful, we make better choices in how we parent, we are kinder, we lead more with our heart and soul instead of just doing things to be liked or to be better. It gives all of us a more safe, peaceful, enjoyable life… instead of cat clawing to the top.

To cultivate autonomy within’ ourselves we first need to learn to govern ourselves with more sobriety. I’m not saying sobriety in terms of you can’t have alcohol. I’m saying sobriety in terms of looking at how we affect things. Not with a tight grip, but with a gentle gaze. In heart and soul method the physical practice of hatha vinyasa flow integrates body, breath, music, and movement. The breathing in the postures for awhile gives space for reflection, observation, realization, discovery, and the mind can wonder if it needs to. This brings sobriety. Meditation, reading books, writing in a journal, safe meaningful intimate time with another person. All of this will help in cultivating a sense of self governance. Physical movement like yoga where you sit in a posture and breath for awhile seems to work the best, well, as long as the environment is one that allows practitioners to process their own thoughts and feelings. It’s not dictorial.

The other part of autonomy is morality. I’m not just talking on the outside and I’m not talking about being a goodie goodie two shoes either. That’s not realistic or standing in truth. When we lean into morality it gives us an extra super power because it strengthens our heart and soul. When these two are strengthened as we move into authenticity, our autonomy is strengthened, and therefore our world can become more manageable. It helps to bring a manageable chaos, more order. The Yamas and Niyamas are moral principles we can lean into practicing more. They are apart of the eight limbs of yoga. You can google it. Don’t we all feel better and are nicer  to people when we get things done. The house is cleaned, the kids are being themselves and we know how to parent them, dinner is planned, and schedules are set. This gives us all more of the capacity to extend our arms to help because we want to! We are not shoved into things through desperation, overwhelm, anger, or anxiety. Things just work.

In this country things have fallen apart morally which has made it hard for us to govern ourselves. I do feel to change that, we must change our operation system in the mind. Building more autonomy through the practices listed above will help do that. This is a huge part of wellbeing.

A movement practice with Heart and Soul Method, showing up on the mat 4-5 days a week, can bring such sweet sanctuary to a troubled mind. A more organized mind will make things seem more manageable and feel better. The core chakra classes of this method are essential to add to your tool box as everything I mentioned above. When I feel too much negativity, I go to my mat moving with the breath. The dance movement heals my emotional body.

Taking Heart and Soul Method sessions are a way to move you into a space of more balance, reflection, and a deeper love for yourself as well as others… it helps with the processing, doing different types of movement in one class that is backed not only by science but also by the beauty of art in dance movement. Your agility in mind, body, and spirit is improved, and that, feels good.

What is A One-on-One Heart and Soul Method Session with Merissa?

Why are one-on-one sessions worth it?

One-on-one sessions are a great way to learn more about exercise, nutrition, and how to improve your overall wellbeing. I customize each 90 minute session based on your intake form and our conversations. I mostly work with the physical practice and some meditation, breath work as I feel, the more spiritual alignment aspects naturally fall into place with moving through classes or the more spiritual aspects should be with an actual licensed spiritual coach. I am a certified yoga teacher with over 25 years of movement performance experience in various modalities. (Please see bio)

One-on-one sessions, with your permission, come with physical assists in each posture during class on the mat. Need more instruction on how to go deeper into dancer posture (natrajasana)?

My alignment cues and assists nurture your body into the posture so you can move everything into place, activate the right muscles, and breathe energy flow to maintain steady active relaxation for 20-30 secs (about 5 deep ujjai breaths) in that particular posture. This is how we train in most asanas. Over a short period of time, you will notice a huge difference. You learn the wisdom in your own body so that you can do it all by yourself. The dance movement and fitness fusion technique comes with instruction that meets you where you are in your practice. Dance movement is wonderful for moving stuck, negative energy feedback as well as PTSD.

Each one-on-one session comes with a 5 minute head, neck, and foot massage. The last 10 minutes of class are for savasana or final relaxation. Laying on your back, listening to soothing music will allow your body to recalibrate and process everything you have exercised during class. The massage and time to let go is so rewarding after a good workout. I personally find it such a joyful combination of doing a moderately-intensive class and then feeling all of the yummy endorphins in savasana at the end. A Heart and Soul Ayurvedic Elixir is also included with your session.

How to practice Heart and Soul Method. What is a private one-on-one session like with Merissa?

This is how I conduct a Heart and Soul Method private one-on-one session. Once the client intake form is filled out, than I take a snapshot of where you are at physically in your movement practice and how your doing with your energy flow. All levels are assessed. Then, after that, we schedule a class session or session(s). Sessions are usually 90 minutes. The class is 75 minutes. We chat before and after each session to check-in with each other or to answer any questions for about 15 minutes total. I tell my clients not to worry about being perfect as we are just exercising and doing something good for our overall well-being. There should be no agenda other than just the practical application and to have a good workout.

Beginners: If you are new to hatha vinyasa flow, since this is the majority of the class, we start with 6 basics classes. Each class builds upon the next, with the last basics class all about dance movement and fitness fusion technique fundamentals. You learn the basic curriculum so that you are set up for success to practice well.

After completing the basics classes, then we start to learn how to do a slower variation of the core chakra classes. The postures are easier, the dance movement is a little slower with beginner movements, and I don’t add too much intensity with the fitness fusion technique. This way, you can take your time exploring, getting to know the postures, and seeing how you feel in the different movement modalities.

Intermediate: If a client has done a form of vinyasa flow before or feels really comfortable with the asanas, then we move right into the core chakra classes at a moderate-intensity. I realize dance isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, so if they choose not to do the dance movement, then we take that section out. The fitness fusion technique and asanas together alone, are so well worth it. The first 3 classes I asses the practitioner, then, with their permission, flow with them as well as do hands on assists, which I am certified in professionally through The Jivamukti Method from New York. The flow alignment cues are incredible and will move an intermediate practitioner to an advanced practitioner when they are ready. I don’t mean this esoterically or spiritually. I mean, the mind-body connection. This isn’t shamanism, it is exercise movement. You may notice other improvements in your life, but that’s usually a by product from anything you do that is healthy for you.

Advanced: When a practitioner becomes more advanced we are really focusing on more alignment, muscle control, and more attention to detail. You know the postures and flow of the class, so now we lift up and out the ankles, we lift the knee to activate the thigh muscle, we hone in on where the gaze is while in a specific posture… where to release, where to squeeze, and precision. The postures are harder with longer hold times in portions of the class, the dance movement is harder with back turns etc, and the fitness fusion has more reps with more intensity accessing full range of motion, to tone and strengthen, yet not sacrificing flexibility. This will move you into better health on all or most layers of your being.

Once a practitioner is advanced, and they have done it for awhile, I encourage them to cut back to 3 times a week with the incorporation of a weight method (I have a few to recommend) 1-2 times a week. We then can work on voice, and full on dances. After they can do full on dances with great ease, then, well we just practice  to practice. I feel so good after my classes that this has been a life long staple in my life. I do encourage practitioners to try new things.

It took me 10 years to achieve advanced status in yoga. Then I fell out of it down to intermediate because of life changes. Your practice is always ebbing and flowing. So it’s good to take it seriously, but also to let go… create that balance because I have seen practitioners take things wayyyyyyy too seriously when it comes to yoga, exercise, things in general and it only drums up more fear, unhealthy competition, and anger. It’s a lose, lose situation for everyone involved. So I aim for classes to be fun, nurturing, and grounded.

With that said, I lovvvvve meeting new people who would like to learn Heart and Soul Method. Who genuinely want to have a better body-mind connection through movement. I do my best to create a warm, safe, inviting atmosphere.

For more information or to sign-up for one-on-one sessions, go to the wellness boutique tab.

Relationships and Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence is based on realizing that what is OUTSIDE of us is not more important than developing an internal, loving relationship compass of navigation INSIDE of us. Yes, we DO want material wealth, however, we have to ask ourselves, at what cost.

If we start by valuing other relationships as precious, then we can start from a place of sovereignty, realizing, this beginning seed grows with first ourselves. If we do not carry a deep understanding of ourselves in how to handle our emotions and interactions with others, how can we find the courage to allow the problems and challenges we may face in relationships to others resolve in a way that preserves those relationships…and…our sanity. We need to, first, feel worthy of  a great relationship to ourselves, extending it out to those that are close to us, then, perhaps, opening our heart more, to including a more expanded reach… to humanity in general as well as our planet. We cannot give healthy love from a dirty, volatile, evil empty cup. There must be balance. There must be boundaries. There must be rules for our dharma to be meaningful. Bullying to anyone is not emotional intelligence or building healthy relationships. It dirties the water… on the inside of each person who practices THAT black magic. And THAT is not desired. Even doing it to just one person with strong intentions to destroy them. It is a harsh truth, but IF we truly want emotional intelligence and healthy relationships for each other, it doesn’t come with a gun or humiliation.

Road maps to help strengthen my connection to myself have come from various endeavors along my life’s journey. When the golden rule does not work anymore and others have a darker agenda towards us, what and how do we protect ourselves as well as have relationships that respect, nurture, and give us pleasure to enjoy?

Each person is so unique, so, to answer this question, I am listing systems that have helped me to build, nurture, let go of, and deepen bonds, while creating a loving flow of good works.

I have learned to let go of many people, I have reunited with those I have let go of, and I have sustained relationships over decades. The emotional intelligence aspect is the willingness to discover, know your weaknesses, and to have the courage over fear to do the work to repair what was, or is, broken. If others do not wish to do that with you, at least you can do this with yourself as to, eventually, attract relationships that do respect you and your feelings. Those healthy relationships will then, protect your being on its path. And it’s not just about becoming a white tiger. There is heart and soul that come into play. A wellspring of love that flows to do the right thing. This is the core of planet Earth including America.

Developing a stronger relationship with Yourself:

1.) Chakra System In-Depth: Read the book Eastern Body, Western Mind. It is a gem of learning how our body, mind, and spirit develop through the ages. Learning how to govern your energy within’ your body physiologically and psychology with knowledge of the chakras is a total game changer of health in all ways. The aspects of ourselves are revealed. This can inform our intuition, our instinct depending on the situation. When we know this information, it can help to us to make more intelligent choices.

2.) Niyamas: The Niyamas are the 2nd limb from the Eight Limbs of Yoga. They are observances on how to govern ourselves towards virtue towards ourselves. Practicing them tends to bring more positive flow and overall feeling of love.

3.) Heart and Soul Method. Exercise In General: Movement meditation builds strength and flexibility while following the thread of the breath. A great book by psychologist Elaine Fox, Ph.D called Switch Craft talks about how mental agility can create better mental health. Exercise multi-tasking, switching from one movement to the next at various speeds as the mind focuses on one thing than another in curiosity, is what we do in dance movement. So finding the thread of ujjayi breath in hatha vinyasa, than mental agility flowing through the body at a faster pace with dance movement allows the wisdom of the body in different postures reveal new things… getting curious about that. This is active relaxation. The book Switch Craft goes into detail about how both physiology and psychology intertwine in dealing with life situations. Exercise in general opens channels, releases stress, and allows the rest and digest parasympathetic nervous system to regulate. Endorphins, which are peptides that activate opiate receptors give us that feel good feeling boosting mood and cognitive function. Heart and Soul Method brings all these aspects to the mat as a hybrid method based on classical forms of exercise that have been proven over centuries to work. I’ve added my nuances to it for a little something more.

4.) Creative Expression: I went about 4 months without doing any movement embodiment work to music and wanted to bury my head in the sand. Literally. The stress that crept in was a 10. Creative expression helps us get all of the negativity out. It gets us out of our heads creating a more positive function and flow. It’s true of exercise, it’s even more true of taking your authentic expression of energy and channeling it through a dance, singing a song, or through acting on stage. Until you’ve done it consistently for 6 months to see the changes, sometimes it’s hard to understand this concept. Your heart awakens, negativity leaves, and compassion flows. Journaling, meditation, poetry, and writing are a step, but motion, body involvement, embodiment movement working our whole being is something different. It’s adding another dimension. You have to do the work, the practice, to really feel it… to really know it. It’s not only cathartic, but also purifies the heart in a different way.

5.) Eight Limbs of Yoga: The Eight Limbs of yoga is what really taught me what deep embodiment is feels like. This ancient knowledge and practice are the foundations of yoga. Yoga within’ and of itself is a healthy practice. It’s The Who’s better mentality of some of the elite that can be soul splitting. But, really, there are those types of characters in all industries, within’ life in general. The eight limbs gives us a deeper embodied insight into how to navigate life’s waters. The Yoga Sutras by Patanjali layout the Eight Limbs in depth.

Developing a stronger relationship with Others:

1.) Team Sports, Events, Creative Groups: My fondest memories growing up, where I made the closest friends, was through doing group activities. Soccer, softball, dance, musical theater, yoga. Other options are learning how to play an instrument in a group, bowling league, knitting circles. All these places are wonderful ways to learn to work together as a team. Learn how to problem solve together or make a creative piece the best vision it is meant to be. If addiction is a struggle, 12 step programs are a great first start.

2.) Talk Therapy and Relationship Therapy: My ex-fiancé and I struggled with our relationship four years before we broke-up. We went to relationship therapy which greatly helped us. Ultimately we ended the relationship after trying everything we could because well, we just were not meant to be. Looking back now, I see why it was better for us not to be married. However, him and I have worked through our resentments by talking things out, to have the sweet privilege to stay close friends. He has helped me through some of the hardest times in my life. Because we both learned to listen to each other’s heart and talk about our deepest feelings, a great friendship has been saved. I know he will always be there for me and visa versa. This is the power of therapy. And of course for ourselves to help work through all forms of trauma.

3.) Yamas: They are observances on how to govern ourselves towards virtue to someone else. They are the 1st limb of yoga.

4.) Having a strong savings account: If our root chakra, which is in accordance to money, career, family, and tribe or group, and home life is weak, than we will not feel safe, seen, soothed, or secure. Our emotions and relationships, which are governed by other chakras above the root chakra, will not have a strong foundation to build on. Like a house, a good foundation must be set first. A strong savings account will just make every thing easier in body, mind, and spirit. Not for everyone, but most people who appreciate the value of that money and are generous human beings.

5.) Navigating the internal mind/body connection with at least one other being: As we quiet our minds, we can hear our higher self and the whispers of our guides. We all have other energies with us, other souls with us. You want at least one really badass ride or die angel or enlightened soul with you to help protect you. Perhaps groups. Perhaps even beyond that. Having friends from different dimensions who see you as a sovereign being will ensure a flow of spiritual energy, then, it is up to you to learn how to navigate those waters on your life’s journey. This is why having tools and strategies in body, mind, and spirit or body, breath, music, and movement are essential. Majority of us need this awareness. There are some that slip by, but, this is good for most people. Learn how to navigate mind/heart wisdom with at least one other person. These are gurus or leaders of sorts there to help wipe the darkness of trauma from our heart and soul. With consent.

Why practice Heart and Soul Method?

Heart and Soul Method is a movement method. It is a way to exercise. Sun, heating yoga asanas into dance movement into moon cooling postures into savasana, ending in tridoshic breathwork. Fitness Fusion is sprinkled in through out the class. It is practiced as a wellness maintenance regimen.

The therapeutic breath work while moving through hatha vinyasa flow  is a moving meditation. It also keeps inflammation in at bay while balancing the elements of our human system in deep penetrating vectors. This is why yoga is so powerful. Adding dance movement in the middle of class takes the movement meditation, then, to another level, exploding debris from our energy fields. An advanced class will do more of that then a beginning class. This keeps the mind on its toes, builds wisdom, and regulates energy control as well as flow. Just sitting in meditation cleansing with spirit does not work because we are made of flesh. A car will rust over time if it is not driven, oiled properly or maintained… the same for our bodies. Running is great, but is it creating strength AND flexibility? mmm, not really. Pounding joints on pavement and over working joints with weights is not building better health, it’s too much force on the system, which, overtime will wear out joints.

About 8 years ago, I was feeling really depressed, stagnant, and as if the dreams I had for my life would not be fulfilled. The motivation, inspiration, and wellbeing was not flowing through me to move forward on my path. For me, movement has always been a go to for healing and letting go of any negative feelings or stress. I grew up as a dancer, an actress, and yoga practitioner as well as teacher, so the studio space feels like a fun, safe, healthy place to me. It really does feel like home. Almost like a place of refuge where I always feel most like myself. My method reflects this passion as well as the blood, sweat, and tears I have put into it. The design yields results safe for the body over time. I’m 40 and dancing, moving like a 25 year old… it works. I have been practicing it for 10 years.

Creating this method, practicing it 4-5 times a week, pulled me out of the biggest storm of my entire life. The dark night of my soul was released through the body, breath, music, and movement within’ this method. It seems truly special to bring these three movement modalities together in particular in the vibe in which it is practiced on the mat in the studio. It is exercise, but it will also transform the negative stuck feeling into a more open, regenerative, flowing feeling which permeates more sweetness into our lives. This has been my experience and as I have seen with the groups of students/clients I have worked with on the West and East coasts.

What I love about having progressive level classes is that practitioners are challenged, but they also have a curriculum that can become familiar. Building a strong foundation in different movement modalities brings about a confidence within the different layers of our being. Learning over longer periods of time gives a much deeper, healthier result by learning to embody movement with our own presence. You have to do the work and practice to earn steady and consistent progression in this movement method. This is a better way.

Practicing Heart and Soul Method also is something fun to do with a friend. I always look forward to waking up and going to a yoga or movement or dance class in the morning. Approach it as a way to exercise, moving into better wellness. Other gems will be uncovered along the way.

Food Concepts To Live By

Over the years I have tried many food diet concepts. In my early college days, most left me feeling like I wasn’t receiving enough nutrition. Atkinson Diet, Cookie Diet (lol, yeah, really :/) , South Beach diet, and Keto have been detours, that helped me to learn what works and what doesn’t. I do believe fad diets CAN move a person in the direction of being able to sustain a whole food diet that is plant based with its trial and error approach. The body really has to be tuned to accept health and to maintain a truly wholesome food lifestyle. It takes time, it takes “what works for my body, what doesn’t work for my body type” discovery, and it takes the ability to want to feel good from nourishing ourselves with foods that are better for us. We may want it badly, but will our body wisdom allow us? We have to train it until it becomes natural. That timeline varies from one person to the next, so we take steps toward that freedom.

There have been many times, even after being vegan for 12 years, where I fell out of attunement. My life became increasingly stressful, to where I was vegan but my body needed more sugar as a way to stay “lit”. I “fell off of the wholesome wagon” so-to-speak. So vegan junk food crept in more. It really is about tuning the body to sustain a more healthy lifestyle. But how do we do that?

Below are food concepts I tried over the years that DO embody wholefoods, healthy, plant-based living without sactificing being able to go to the fair and have a funnel cake. As we know, exercise, spiritual nutrition, and food lifestyle nutrition go hand-in-hand. We must earn it by doing the work. I encourage you to incorporate these food concepts in one at a time. Work with one for a month, than move on to the next. Take longer if you need to depending on your stress levels. Soon, they will all come together naturally. Here they are in the order in which I learned about them.

Vegetarianism: What sparked my match to eliminate meat from my diet was my yoga practice. A yoga teacher I had been practicing from for a few months at 24hr fitness in Orange County, Ca, talked to us about how we purify the body through yoga and nutrition. She looked great and mentioned that not only was it kind for the animals, but also, helps getting inshape. At the time I was studying to be an actress in college, so this sparked my interest as I needed to find a diet I could stick to that would help me to keep the weight off. So I did just that, became vegetarian. You have to understand that before I transitioned to become vegetarian, I was failing at fad diets, eating meat inbetween like porkchops wrapped in bacon and stuffed with blue cheese. My boyfriend at the time ate meat, so I wanted to impress him with meals I knew he would love. To my suprise, as I became vegetarian, he slowly did as well before we moved in together.

Being vegetarian is completely eliminating meat out of your diet. Animal products such as eggs and dairy are still allowed. It really is a great way to eat to shed weight and still order things on the menu at restaurants. I’m vegan now, yet occassionally have cheese or cream in a desert if at a party etc. The key word is occasionally. Becoming vegetarian is a stepping stone to living a more wholesome lifestyle. It truly changes you in the many layers of what you attract and how you lead with your heart and soul. It is such a beautiful journey knowing you are saving animals lives everyday in every meal choice.

Vegan: Becoming vegan did not happen until 6 years later when I went to the Jivamukti Teacher Training in 2010. I had been flirting with the idea of this lifestyle since I started the JIvamukti Yoga Method in 2008. For two years I went to yoga classes 4-5 days a week listening to Jivamukti teachers talk about animal rights and how fun it was to learn to cook more compassionately. They had cooking classes, workshops, and documentary movie nights. It all was building up inside of me to want to open up a studio, become vegan, and live compassionately like the teachers I looked up to for so many years. So as I was encouraged to go to the Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training at the Rhinebeck, NY Omega Institute, so did I long to just make the switch to becoming vegan.

As luck would have it, The 21 day YTT intensive training had a gorgeous vegan buffet. I mean, just like, lasagna, tacos, salads with eclectic organic vegetables and fruits etc. The flavors were so robust…I longed to cook like that and show off to my boyfriend at the time, friends, and family. This is what lit the fire to finally live the life to become what I was there to teach. Fortunetly, I havn’t looked back since then. I have been vegan for 12 years now. It is a badge of honor I where that has stuck with me.

You must remember, however, that being vegan is a total lifestyle shift. It means buying vegan products, eliminating leather and fur, as well as having to go out of your way to find vegan restaurants. It takes resiliance as, in the beginning, people will test your faith in it or, even worse, tease you. You have to have conviction and wit to rebuttle their questions. There are several books I went by to arm myself with that left my meat eating opponants with a glazed look over their eyes… like they would say, “It says in the bible to eat meat. Our ancestors ate meat.” To them I simply say, “well our ancestors didn’t have Whole Foods and a thriving metropolis full of vegan options like Trader Joe’s that offers delicious vegan food sooo… when in Rome.” They went on with other questions, I went on with my witty answers. Then, they just nodded their heads in, “okay, I understand now”. So you do have to get resourceful for those conversations to help others understand.

These days it is easier as many stores as well as restaurants have embraced more vegan, cruelty free products, still, learning to read labels is a must. You learn to sniff out the bullshit because there are a lot of products that claim they are plant-based, yet have animal products within’ them. So the vegan name on the product is essential. And this is what I teach people in my diet transition course, how to navigate the waters of this new way of living. There are suppliments you have to take like B12, amino acids, making sure you are receiving whole foods nutrition. Which brings us to our next topic. Knowing I would need to nourish myself more with whole foods, it set me on a journey to learn more about micro/macro nutrients and where to get them.

Whole Foods: um, not the store, but actual Whole Foods. Lol. Foods that are not packaged or with additional ingredients or preservatives. So for example whole grain brown rice with a rainbow of vegetables and marinated tofu or watermelon salad with mint, strawberries, and blackberries with a squeeze of lime or lentil and walnuts in a taco seasoning with black beans, kale, pico, avocado, and a little vegan sour cream in tortillas. The key to a whole foods diet is that majority of the ingredients are homemade from scratch or very little ingredients. Adding sauces, vegan butter, oils, and seasonings to jazz up flavor is encouraged. Usually that will only account for 50 calories or less anyway. I still eat prepackaged meals if I’m busy and don’t have the time to cook from scratch. What I love to do is find easy meals, 30 minutes or less, that are whole foods based, vegan, organic, and gluten free as much as possible. I’m not always successful in every meal to do that, but it’s the standard I live by.

Organic: Most of us know by now that pesticides cause inflammation. If not organic, over time, you will notice the difference in your body. When I learned about the difference between conventional and organic, my mouth dropped. The taste alone is night and day. Organic just tastes better. Why? Because it’s not laden with all of the garbage they put on conventional produce. This is why most people who switch from a meat and dairy diet to a vegan organic, mostly gluten free diet, lose weight and feel better all around. Organic is more farm to table, natural, wholesome, and protects the essential micro nutrients we need from the soil. Pesticides kill off the biodiversity in the soils leaving them stripped of the additional mineral intake we are supposed to be getting from them. So, the more we buy organic, creating that demand, the more perhaps it can be made easier, less costly for farmers, to make that switch while also saving their soils. As of now, it is still costly to farmers to become an organic farm. We really need to lift those fees so that farmers who would like to become organic, can do so.

Eating with the Seasons: There is nothing better than curling up on the sofa on a cool autumn evening with a homemade bowl of pumpkin soup, crusty, crunchy bread, and a delicious glass red wine. It just feels sooo goood. It feels good because when it’s cold outside our bodies crave warmth. There is something primal about it. In the summer it is hot outside so naturally, we crave cooler, lighter meals like Watermelon Salad, fresh green juices, and eclectic salads. But it takes attention and care to eat seasonally.

There is this wonderful cooking show, which is definitely NOT vegan, called Barefoot Contessa. BUT, her show is what got me thinking about eating seasonally. And I loved watching it just for that. The way she cooked with warming spices, wholefoods, the way she described the ingredients… it all was so seasonal that I just wanted to jump through screen and have a meal with her. It brings us back to hearth and home when we take the time to buy things that are in season. It brings all of the senses to the table.

There was also a book I read, I can’t remember the name of it now, but it went on to talk about the 80/20 rule. In the fall/winter months, eat 80% cooked ingredients and 20% raw. In the Spring/Summer months, eat 80% raw and 20% cooked. Not always easy to follow this rule to a T, but it is a way to eat with the seasons as well as your digestive fire called Agni. Your digestive fire is cooled down in the winter, so a seasonal natural approach is to eat more cooked foods in the winter that preserve your digestive fire. Spicier foods can be helpful as well to create more heat for digestion. The opposite for the warmer months.

Buying produce that is in season is fun as well. Majority of the time we do have access to all fruits and vegetables through out the year, however, when you fine tune your sense to learn what is in season, usually you can find it organically grown and the flavors are more robust. It gives a little more of being in the moment, in the season, relishing what is coming in naturally.

Eating For Your Chakras: At the time, I was about 4 years deep into my vegan journey when I started thinking about how to eat for my chakras. I was struggling with my digestive fire and needed a better way to balance the elements in my body through my food. I came across a chakra elixir book which was a small little book that went into elixirs, potions, and tonics to balance the aspects or centers of each chakra. I felt like a little witch, concocting these potions that turned out to taste so unique, delicious, and herbal. I began to connect the physical yoga practices in my method with foods for the chakras to learn the deeper lessons of body alchemy.

This fascinated me so much I bought more books on chakras, food, and the body. I learned that denser foods for blood, bones, and grounding like red foods such as beets and root vegetables as well as protein and proper mineral intake were meant for those purposes. They were heartier, therefor more dense in relationship to the root chakra. Fats and orange foods for the second belly chakra, Svahisthana (Sanskrit), yellow and carbohydrates for the solar plexus chakra plus foods that are spicier etc.

At first you can be meticulous about it, then, it becomes second nature, bringing an additional knowledge to food prep and planning. I find that it has helped me to feel what my body needs more, taking more care into my meals. This is a wonderful way to heal using the power of plants.

SuperFoods: superfoods are foods that are packed with more nutritional density. Foods like adaptogens, which naturally relieve stress, fatigue, and anxiety. These foods go above and beyond. Foods like cocoa, ginseng, medicinal mushrooms, coconut oil, hemp seeds, chia seeds, aloe etc. They have more health benefits than most other foods and they are perfect to add into your favorite dishes. I started using chia seeds in my tofu scrambles to aid in circulation. Cooking with coconut oil instead of olive oil as it is more clean. Hemp seeds in salads. So little additions like that can make a huge impact.

Ayurveda: Is known as the sister science to yoga that is over 5,000 years old. A life science on how to take care for yourself and others using natural everyday practices in body and mind. Eating with the principles of Ayurveda can turn around health concerns in a matter of days. I’ll just touch on a few changes that made the most impact.

The first is drinking enough purified water in the morning, throughout the day, and before you go to bed. It really does help insulate you from stress and inflammation. It also keeps you glowing your beautiful chakra aura colors consistently, if your eating a rainbow of mostly fruits and vegetables. So, grab a few water containers you love and drink at least 8 8oz glasses per a day.

Next is learning to eat for the seasons based on your Agni, digestive fire condition. If you are not feeling a steady streaming of heat energy coming from your solar plexus region, then eating spicier foods, breath of fire pranayama, as well as sweaty exercise, can boost your metabolism, stoking that fire.

Eating at certain times of the day. The main thing for me was to have my biggest meal at lunch then having dinner before 7pm. This also helps with rhythms, weight gain, and overall feeling good. Eating too late leaves you feeling bloated which can also disrupt sleep cycles. Sometimes I have to eat late because of this or that, but these are the rules I try and live by.

Enzyme Factor: More live foods equals more clean energy in your system. If your in a thriving garden do you see fresh fruits and vegetables or do you see pizza boxes and burger king wrappers??? Lol, I know, I do junk food too when I’m just craving something greasy. But how often? I notice my complexion changed to a brighter glow when I started drinking more fresh organic juices and eating fresh fruit salads. I’m currently trying to incorporate more raw foods in the spring and summer months. Enzymes fight free radicals which cause aging, sickness, and death. So, boosting more raw foods will usher in a host of benefits.

Blue Zones, Mediterranean, and Theme Nights: I’m grouping these all together because they are similar in their content. They’ve have had an impact on my food choices, but not as much as the other concepts.

The Blue Zones Diet is from the book Blue Zones. The author, Dan Buettner, traveled to various cities all over the world that were considered blue zones to unlock the secrets in longevity. These cities become blue zones because studies have shown people are the happiest, healthiest, and live longer lives in these areas. The food choices people make in Blue Zones turns out to be mostly an extension of their agricultural in which they live. So mostly fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes. Some cities did include meat, but mostly lean meats like chicken and fish. They also included a lot of red wine, red wine vinegar, dark chocolate, and fermented foods. I started to incorporate more of these foods into my diet which ultimately gave me better blood flow circulation, better gut health, and relaxation. They key here is to learn to feel your food. Feel what your body needs and make a Whole Foods choice.

Mediterranean foods are similar to the Blue Zones diet. Because I’m vegan, falafel, hummus, olives, lemon, tomatoes, fresh pastas, cucumber and herbs in salads show up quite often in dishes I prepare. I love unique white wines, cavas, and bolder red wine with a long finish. herbs and ripe vegetables, homemade sauces give a strong vibe of the Mediterranean.

Theme Nights. My ex fiancé and I would have fun movie nights occasionally where we would pick a movie with a cultural theme and then make a spread of dishes of that country. So for example, The movie musical Mamma Mia! Is set in Greece. I made a Cucumber/Tomato salad with fresh herbs, homemade hummus with pita bread, falafel, and baklava for dessert with a fantastic white wine. It’s fun to jazz up movie nights or parties with themed vegan dishes. Makes it more exciting.

There are a few food concepts I left out, which I will touch on at another time. These are the major influences in the meals I prepare. Becoming vegan really has been such a blessing. It’s been a fun journey discovering all the ways to still enjoy favorite foods with a healthier twist.

Methods, Techniques, and Wisdom to Soothe Your Soul: 8 Limbs of Yoga

As I read these words from Gabby Bernstein’s new book Happy Days, “I have developed a toolbox of methods for self regulation and connection to my own inner being” I smile with a deep knowing of the profound journey that she has been on in walking the path towards authenticity. These words speak to my own heart as over the years, I too have found ways to bring myself back into balance with methods and techniques in body, breath, music, and movement. Some of these tools have come from ancient and modern yogic wisdom, while others have come from experiences on stage dancing, singing , acting, and life in general. In blogs to come I will be sharing tools, techniques, methods, and practices that have made me feel safe, seen, soothed, and secure. They are things I remember to myself if I feel overwhelmed, stressed, or out of sorts. In this blog, I briefly go over The Eight Limbs of Yoga, which was my very first introduction to navigating my journey to wholeness.

The Eight Limbs of Yoga: These are the foundations of yoga. Yoga is a journey to the self, through the self, to know more about the way things are in relationship to each other as well as in relationship to self. Everything is about relationship. By practicing these foundations, we can improve the depth of our relationships so that there is more ease and flow.

• 1.) Yamas: Moral/Ethical things we can do towards others. Leaning towards:

  Ahimsa: Non-harming to others as well as to yourself or non-violence.

  Satya: Truthfullness. Telling the truth knowing that sometimes white lies practice more ahimsa. Food for thought. Leaning towards telling the truth when appropriate.

  Astesya: Non-stealing. yeah, nuff said.

  Brahmacharya: Right use of energy. Sexual energy as well as creative energy. Boundaries. Right in action on all layers towards consent.

  Aparigraha: Greedlessness. Being generous if you have the means to do so will lead to health, wealth, and happiness.

• 2.) Niyamas: Moral/ethical things we can do towards ourselves. Leaning towards:

  Tapas: Austerity is building heat in the body. Being able to be firm in the mind of knowing. In truth with conviction.

  Saucha: Cleanliness. Keeping the body, mind and spirit clean. Through exercising, right diet, emotional wellness, developing discernment, looking and feeling free, but also, being okay with not being perfect.

  Svadyaya: Self-Study. When we see others as ourselves, than we can study ourselves, but also learn through observing others with the utmost compassion, grace, and loving kindness. Simply taking asana postures, moving in a moving meditaion, vinyasa flow with the breath can reveal secrets unseen. The universe is within’ us and also outside of us. It’s both. Meditaion, asana, other forms of self-study not associated with the yogic culture are helpful in learning what makes you happy. Learning your authentic realized self.

  Santosha: Contentment. When we are sthira, steady, and joyful, sukham, we are in contentment with all things good and bad. We learn to handle bad things with right action as well as wisdom. We can enjoy things with equanimity, not pushed or pulled too much to get more, more, more.

  Isvara Pranidhana: Surrender to the divine. This does not mean to just let someone rule your life. Higher powers can lead us astray. We need to take action from a place of discernment and wisdom. When we have that, it makes it easier to let go, surrender, and relax into our spiritual alignment. First, take action to find your spiritual alignment. Ask the divine, whoever that is for you, “What shall I do and where shall I go”, but also, keep one eye on what intuitively feels right with the circumstances of your life. Comfort is always best through our journey. Really, who wants to be uncomfortable most of the time.

• 3.) Asana: Keeping the body fit whilst purifying the many layers of our body, mind, and spirit. These are the physical postures of yoga. Asana translates to seat. Each posture is a seat of an aspect of nature or creation.

• 4.) Pranayama: Breathing practices to help with overall well-being and to remove stuck places. This creates more space. This enhances our energetic body.

• 5.) Pratyahara: Sense Withdrawal. Pulling back the senses to gain more control over ones mind. For example, if you are an addict to something, than pulling back your senses to that which you are addicted to for a period of time until it could possibly be controlled. Like a 12 step program or if you eat too much, going on a diet plan. Meditating more. Turning to more spiritual practices are great for addicts. We all are addicted to something, which is fine… How do you feel and is it harming others? Harming yourself? Is there balance there? This limb can pull back the reigns of over sensory perception in a particular area. Being addicted to something is like a chariot driven by a master who doesn’t have the reins because he/she is going on a course that perhaps is too toxic. Only we can really free ourselves from harmful addictions despite outside help. Somethings are good to be addicted to, while others are really harming.

• 6.) Dharana: Concentration. If we sit in meditation and stare at a candle flame for a period of time, our eyes will begin to purify, meaning, the light of our soul will be seen more clearly with every meditation or gaze. This is why asana, the physical postures are ideal as well. You take an asana (which translates to seat) and you remain in that posture for a period of time. These days, usually the posture is held no more than 3-10 breaths or 5-10 minutes in restorative postures, however, in earlier forms of yoga, students were required to only master a few postures at a time and hold them for like 30 minutes or sometimes longer! Once they mastered those postures, their teacher would introduce 3 more and so on. These days we move faster as does the asana practice in a vinyasa flow format. However, honing the the Drishti, or gaze, in a posture while breathing will develop a firm mind and therefore deeper concentration. The key really is to learn to go in and out of concentration with ease. Somethings need their focus with a firm mind, while other times the mind needs to wonder, let go, and release into a carefree attitude. So for me, the idea of concentration is two fold. We need to be flexible to enjoy more of the fruits of our labor.

• 7.) Dhyana: Meditation. Need I say more. With developed concentration we can rest in the flow of meditaion, listening to the inside of the inside of the inside of things. As we move into stillness, our mind softens, quiets down, and the sweet lullabyes of our true nature come forth. The inside can be quite volitle…not going to sugar coat it like so many teachers do… it can be filled with our ego voice which screams loudly, enraged by just the thought of who we are on this planet, but on the flip side, it can also be filled with a sweetness as the smell of a gardena, or jasmine (my favorite flowers. You can add your favorite flower here). Falling inlove with the inside is a journey that requires tenacity, patience, virtue, integrity as well as letting go of all of the things you thought you knew to be true. Meditaiton can be with movement through a yoga class, while cleaning, while doing the dishes, it can be in every moment of your lives as you place a sweet awareness on things. The Shadow side can be learning black magic. It’s good to know for protection purposes, so i’m not against it, however, I do not recommended using it to bully someone or to hurt someone in which has no intention to harm you. I steer clear of this, but i’m being truthful in this post in saying it is out there, real, and people use it in malace. It’s not something to be worried about if you lead with a good heart intention to love others with compassion in my opinion. Remember, this is only my opinion. I do not speak for a collective in any way.

• 8.) Samadhi: This is freedom from illusion. A knowing. This isn’t an ultimate goal as it is more a journey of sorts. As we peel back the layers of, ehem, bullshit (pun intended), we begin to see how silly we were to even be hankered by such a constricting thought concept. Do I feel our journey to liberation should be a horror movie, no. Do I feel it should be mean and nasty filled with worry, no. I feel it should be easy breezy with a few things here and there to open us up to destructive patterns or to life lessons. Only once in awhile. Really, we can do good. Build good karma by following the yamas and niyamas, and move into automatic spritiual alignment where we attract easy breeziness because we resonate at that frequency. We have done the work. It was not stolen. Apologizing, paying reparations are a great way to move your life back into balance. This is what they do in the 12 step program after all. Why? because being humble to those that we have hurt intentionally, softens our hearts. It softens the energetic chord of tension as well as disease that was created between you and the other. Softening those chords or cutting them, creates freedom, liberation. You feel more free, more whole, more in-line with the universe, more worthy, more alive, and more joyful. Your relationships to people are better. You feel… Samadhi.

Anti-aging and Yoga

Anti-aging has been a topic for many years in magazines, books, talk shows, and in movies. Serums, exercise plans, lotions, and potions O’ my. Through out the ages women have been obsessed with finding ways to look and feel younger. To create a youthful glow. As the pandemic comes to more of a close, we seem to have accepted our flawed human selves with more candor, yet, the need to look our best for each other, still has a buzz amongst our culture. Aging is beautiful over the years and so are all of the beauty of wrinkles, however, looking 10-15 years younger never hurt anybody. Many times people think I’m 25 or 30 years old. When I reveal to them that I’m 40, their mouths drop. “Yup” I say, “it’s the yoga”. But even though I tell them this, they don’t seem eager to want to sign-up for yoga classes. Hmmm. This poses the question… why?

These days there is so much stigma surrounding yoga as an occult spiritual practice, and yes, certain studios do approach yoga in that way which can feel unsafe. I don’t do this for my brand/method of yoga. There are many studios who don’t as well. They approach it as a way to come back into balance and to maintain the balance amongst extremes. This is also a huge aspect of anti-aging. Finding the thread of balance in all relationships.

So, to reduce the stigma of yoga, whilst shedding light on anti-aging, below are the bones of the yoga practice. What it can truly do for you to promote longevity, anti-aging, and creating a more balanced lifestyle.

SACRED GEOMETRY: Sacred Geometry originates from the symbol of The Seed or Flower of Life. Within’ this symbol the representation of all sacred geometry mathematical patterns of nature, or creation, derive. It is said in the First forms of yoga Asana, which is hatha (Ha translates to sun and Tha translates to moon), 84 postures embody the very seeds of creation through the mathematical structures of the Fibronaci spiral into binary codes that exists within’ each aspect of creation. The geometry mathematics and energy flow of the postures themselves are in that seed/flower of life symbol. What this means is that the postures from the classical form of hatha, with the 84 postures, imbibe deeper healing, therapeutic energies that bring about more homeostasis or balance within’ our system than any other form of exercise because we are indeed, becoming more in-tune with nature. And nature, always strives to bring things back into balance. You can sit in an infrared sauna or workout in one all day. It may feel good for awhile, but overtime, it’s not that healthy because it’s promoting an extreme… a pressure cooker… not balance. That goes for negative mind cues as well. An extreme.

When we sit and breath in an asana, we are connecting to that aspect of nature on a deep cellular and spiritual level. So doing tree pose, finding that alignment, practicing it overtime will develop a knowledge of that aspect of nature. While we do many postures, only mastering one, will reveal secrets of yourself, others, life, creation etc. which will move you into an automatic spiritual flow.

What this has to do with anti-aging is that the asana postures, along with the breath, stimulate as well as repair nadis, or nerve plexuses… 72,000 in the body. This goes for meridians too. This bio genesis process removes debri or free radicals that damage cells promoting repair, by flooding these cells with more oxygen. Mitochondria, or master cells, that are in charge of many things, anti-aging in particular, are able to heal faster with this help from the yoga practice. This is why practicing yoga will indeed give you a more youthful glow.

TURNING UPSIDE DOWN: After I breath in headstand for 25 - 50 breaths I feel grounded, calm, and weights of negativity or stress are lifted off of my shoulders. A deep sense of active relaxation floods my system. This is what turning upside down does. The energy from the lower chakras that tend to be more therapeutic in nature like such as delta, alpha, and theta energy waves, are flowed into the upper chakras, which can be too stressed. Beta waves are the waves in which we use to think. They are important so we can control how we would like to do things, however, when they move too fast with too many “anomalies” (things that cause stress) trying to control while moving too fast, we often times can’t keep up. Chronic stress can develop. By turning upside down for 25-50 breaths or so (up to five minutes is usually a healthy time), than the more relaxing energy waves can sooth the chronic stress anomalies.

Turning upside down doesn’t mean you have to do a full inversion. You can do downward facing dog or place the crown of the head on the ground while on your hands and knees. The more you start to cancel out the stressy energy, you will be able to lose more anxiety which will enable you to take a deeper inversion. Baby steps are usually better in taking inversions than just throwing the body into a posture which, yeah great, maybe you got into the posture, however, how is your alignment? how is your breathing? did you take out a small child whilst getting into that inversion? but seriously, take it step by step adding one thing at a time. Arm placement, head placement, check in with your nerves, how is my breath, can I remain steady in the postures or should I do an easier version before trying this one so I don’t hurt myself or someone else… So, it’s a process.

The anti-aging aspect is flooding the system with more of the lower chakra energy waves that create a therapeutic biosphere. This also aids in bio-genesis, repairing master cells.

THE BREATH: Breath puts the control in our hands to regulate our nervous system. Breathing in and breathing out is like the pull of the moon with the waves of the ocean. The moon is what allows the oceans waves to breath in and to breath out so-to-speak. We are also made of 70% water, so churning our system, our water body, with the help of the breath as well as a movement meditation, alchematizes all of the elements to churn with more oxygen being introduced, moving stagnant toxic water. As we have learned, more oxygen helps fight free radicals that damage master mitochondria cells. So does this churning movement. Learning to breath properly is the basics to this churning process into better health.

How we breath is also very important. Breathing is actually more healthy than merging completely relying on spirit energy flow. Both are important, however, to lose so much control, relying on other energies than your your own breath, well, it can get too dicey. Knowing how to breath properly, embodying the breath, feeling your body, is so much more rewarding. Most of us breath in our chests. Too much air in the system, can inflame even more stress. To promote better gut health, alchematizing the lower chakra frequencies, breathing from the belly, is more ideal for balance. It drops our consciousness down to see things more as they are, not living in fantasy land all of the time. Dropping the breath into the belly also promotes clarity, focus, relaxation, and overall well-being.

There are so many breathing techniques that do various things. I have created a breathing technique series on my instagram under the video icon. Breathing for each chakra is a passion of mine. More videos to come. These are breathing practices I have learned from masters over my 19 years as a yogic practitioner. But really, a simple breathing in the nose for four counts and breathing out of the mouth for four counts 5 -10 times, can greatly shift you into a rest and digest mode. All of this brings a radiance, an effervescence to our biosphere, therefore our system, therefore more of the water element.

INTEGRATION: Integration is bringing things together to process and to embody. We have to be careful with integration because too much integration can catapult us into a state of being that is not healthy. It can get too extreme. Extremes are fun to touch on occasionally, but not to dwell in for long periods of time. Yoking the Sacred Geometry, the breath, the moving meditation, the music, and turning upside down creates a flowing alchemitized environment for refresh thats grounded. With practice overtime, other parts of our body are not slaves to bone or muscle loss, which happens as we age at an increased fast rate after 50 years old. Doing practices that build healthy lean muscles, promote weight-loss, reduce stress significantly, all are for our benefit. Yoga is king when it comes to bringing all of those aspects together. This is why millions of people practice this ancient modality that is thousands of years old. It has passed the test of time.

In Heart and Soul Method, we do dance movement to add another element to the practice, which is creative expression that imbibes cathartic movement. It’s deeply healing to many to move the body in a more dynamic way, promoting confidence, radiance, releasing pent-up emotions, and expanding our energy fields as a protection practice.

In conclusion, we still need and want the lotions and potions, however, one of the best ways to turn back time, is taken with you all of the time, where ever you go… your yoga practice. All you need is your yoga mat, your body, breath, music, and movement. The key to well-being is right there at your finger tips.

5 Morning Rituals For A Better Day

Morning rituals are a must these days. They help us to stay grounded, focused, and clear with a go to foundational structured routine. If our schedule changes, it’s a way we know well that we can come back to again and again. My personal morning rituals have changed over the years, however, this one I find functional, therapeutic, and energizing. I interweave these rituals into my morning along with other tasks that I need to do like feed my cat Gemma or get dressed etc. These five things will make such a difference.

Most of these rituals come from the sister science of yoga called Ayurveda, which dates back to 5,000 years or so. Ancient lifestyle techniques and nuances that DO make a huge difference. Little changes as well as the vinyasa krama of things, or the order in which we do things, have an impact. Drinking water before taking a shower, hydrates your system. Showers or bathing can be even more dyhydrating, according to The book Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom by Acharya Shunya, so, drinking 8-16oz before showering, makes a difference over time in regulating inflammation, stress etc. The key is to being steady and consistent over time.

1.) Stretch a little while in bed: open your arms up, yawn if you have to, lay on your back and twist to the right with arms overhead elongating the legs in the opposite direction then to the left. Any nook and cranny that feels like it needs a good stretch. This gently wakes up the body instead of just popping out of bed right away, going from a 1 to a 10, which is not good for our nervous system. Allow the stretches to be gentle and meaningful.

2.) Drinking Water: In Ayurveda, the sister science to yoga, drinking 8oz of room temperature or cool water when first waking up is best because we lose a lot of water when we sleep. If your mind is more awake or stressy then you would like it to be, you can also drink warm tea. Sometimes, I feel I need 16oz of water if my sleep wasn’t as deep. So at least 8oz. It’s also a good idea to rinse your mouth out a couple times before drinking your water as well or gargle. you can add a few lemon slices to aid in digestion or, sometimes I add a few drops of flower essence for clarity and focus. Flower essences aid in hormonal rebalancing if the mind is groggy. This will help with feeling more present and refreshed when coming out of a deep slumber.

3.) Face and Body Scrubbing: I like to use a face scrub as well as bodywash with a loofa that scrubs dead skin cells that accumulate. This keeps skin smooth, glowing, and refreshed. Skin is known as the largest organ of the body. Then of course, any other things you do in the shower that is needed for the day.

4.) Dry Brushing and Oiling: When coming out of the shower, I like to dry brush my skin. It is an ancient practice that brushes the dead skin cells off, stimulating lymph flow. This is detoxifying and motivates circulation. Start from your feet going up the front of your body, next your arms, then down the back of your body. You can google dry brushing for more instructions with more details. You can find dry brushes at wholefoods or online.

Oiling is OMAZING! Take a warming oil, like sesame oil, and rub it on your cerebellum, also in the areas around the backs of the ears. We hold a lot of stress in this area. Give the neck a nice massage as well. Game changer when it come to stress relief.

5.) Meditation Intentional Breathing: Meditating for at least 20 minutes a day is a must. If you can do an hour, that is ideal. Let’s start with 20 minutes. 10 minutes of ujjayi breathing while sitting in virasana (google virasana) is so transformative. This oceanic breath is therapeutic and stimulates all of the nerve plexuses known as chakras. You can learn how to do Ujjayi breathing on my Instagram under the series tab called breathing techniques. I then do Kabalabhati breathing, 3 rounds to cleanse my aura while also working the core ab muscles (video also under the same tab). Next, I meditate for 10 more minutes in silence, listening to what is coming through me as well as feeling any feelings that are coming up at the moment. If your mind has a lot of big emotions, you can journal as well. I dance my emotions out, so not a fan of journaling, but do it if there are lots of pent up emotions. Occasionally I will sing Sanskrit mantra which is the language of love and light. Next week I will post a few beloved mantras I do that are really powerful.

Incorporate these rituals into your morning for a day that will start you on a better foot. Feeling energized as well as relaxed going into your day is much better than a whirlwind of chaos. You are soo worth it my dear.

Healing with Dance Movement

When I first developed Heart and Soul Method, I didn’t know how people would respond to including Dance Movement as part of a Hatha vinyasa flow. The more I taught it to large classes at gyms, yoga studios, and in one-on-one sessions, the more I realized how fun and healing this combination together in one class was for people. Those that would never find themselves ever in a dance class came up to me, thanking me for giving them the opportunity to move their body in a way that they were afraid to before or had never had that chance. Overtime the students that came in more rigid, judgmental, and overly cautious, began to let down their guard. They seemed happier, more joyful, and in less pain with every class. This is the healing power of dance movement. Simply swaying the hips, extending the arms, memorizing choreography, can lead someone to what is possible in their mind and imagination.

I added dance movement to this method because I remembered as a child growing up going to dance class, feeling the music, moving in rhythm with my friends, and feeling a creative force of clean energetic love flow through me and I wanted to bring that feeling to others. Over the years, developing this gift of movement allowed me to work out my emotional turmoils. If I was feeling sad, angry, or overly emotional about something, I would turn to the dance floor to release these blocks out of the many layers of my body to feel renewed once again.

Although dance movement as apart of this method is not a dance class, the 10- 15 minutes of sequenced, repetitive dance movement choreography is time to move in a more dynamic way. A time to focus on coordination with all parts of the body with memorization to movement, a time to learn the sequences well so that it becomes fluid with the music. A time to enjoy learning how to gain control of your body through the dance movement.

When we refine all of these aspects of ourselves through this practice, bringing awareness to the many layers of our being, different parts of our brain are activated. Deep rooted traumas, fears, and grief, are uprooted as the awareness to those dormant parts of ourselves are brought to light, then released. Dance movement is dynamic movement that ushers in the clean energy that is called vitality. And this heals.

Dance movement then, as apart of a yoga class in this method, is a wellness modality. It is in the middle of a Hatha Vinyasa Flow as to nurture the student into slowly opening up the body for more dynamic movement, then to cool it down through yoga moon postures, to ease the body/mind back into a more calm state, ending in a long savasana (final relaxation at the end of class laying on your back). It is a way to move from darkness to light and to have fun doing it. As it is in a yoga class not a dance class, more of a ‘come as you are’ nurturing environment, helps students to feel more okay in there bodies no matter their size, ethnic background, race, or religion. My classes are for all who have the willingness to want to become healthy and to feel better with the compassion I give to them as my students.

It had become clear that with each chakra and it’s qualities, there was a music and a style of dance to go with it. The earth element is tribal about survival, so I incorporated hiphop and tribal influences to hiphop music. The water element is about sensuality and flow so moving the hips to passionate or sensual music seemed like a no brainer. The moon energy that domniates that part of the body goes well with reggae music as well with it’s laid back vibe. The fire element turned me to jazz with rock music, 80’s music, and todays best hits. While the air element of the heart reminded me of the gracefullness of ballet, lyrical, and modern dance to love songs or songs that open the heart through empowerment.

So, Heart and Soul Method is full of classes that are well designed with wellness modalities that create better overall wellbeing. Dance Movement with the different chakras is what truly makes this method unique, unlike any other methods or classes that can be found. I love it and I know you will too.

To sign-up for classes, personal wellness retreats, or teacher training, visit the yoga & wellness page for more details.

Chakra Classes and Their Design

What I love about the Heart and Soul Method classes is that they have a specific focus on one area of the body while also exercising the body as a whole. The specific focus on one area allows the students to see and feel where they are at in that specific energy center. Somedays are tighter than others. We then, focus the breath to loosen the tightened area, bringing our consciousness to it. The muscles in each area are toned with the therapeutic element of the breath which floods the chakra with fresh prana or life-force. Here are insights into my design of the chakra classes in a Hatha Vinyasa flowing form of which were brought together in 2013. The chakras are thousands of years old. They have much to teach us in healing as well as enjoying what is present (to learn more about this method as a whole, please see my previous blog: What Is The Heart and Soul Method?).

Muladhara Chakra (Root energy center): Standing and Balancing: Standing and Balancing postures build stability and strength while also learning about proper foot alignment in relationship to the knees and hips. As we age, how we exercise or move our body in the world, starts to show up in our posture amoung other areas. How we connect our hands and feet to the ground, or where they are placed in each posture, develops good or bad habits over time. Activating the muscles in these postures, with practice, will develop gorgeous yogi/dancer legs. Grounding postures which bring us closer to the earth with a neutral spine , allow us to find a sense of intrinsic equilibrium or active relaxation. We strive for this feeling in each posture to develop equanimity. This will bring about a healthy, balanced body and mind overtime, eradicating extreme mental illness.

Svadhisthana Chakra (Sacral & Belly energy center): Forward Folding and Hip Openers: Forward folding brings the belly in so that the energy can flow back and down toning this area. Energy flowing back and down out of the sacrum promotes a feeling of wellbeing, calm, and serenity. A sense of deep sacred connection from that center will help create pleasant relationships. This gently massages the lower belly through forward folding allowing more balance, feel good hormones to the brain as the intestinal area is known as our second feeling brain. When our gut has healthy microbes, we feel happy and more connected. When our gut has more harmful bacteria, we feel frustrated or hankered by emotions. Flooding this area with fresh oxygen from the breath, such as Ujjai breathing, tones the belly, the skin, and fights bad bacteria to produce a healthier gut. Hip openers are for stability, feeling more relaxed allowing a more sensual, sexually in-tune libido.

Manipura Chakra (Solar Plexus energy center): Twisting and Detoxing: When we twist from our solar plexus in the right way, it is like wringing out a dirty dish rag. The impurities flow out, polishing this energy center with fresh oxygen. Incorporating more clean energy to penetrate the organs in that specific area. We strengthen the core, ab area by pulling up and in as well as back and down towards the spine. Range of motion is improved in reaching behind you from twisting. In Heart and Soul Method’s dance movement, creative expression allows for a balanced sense of confidence and empowerment, NOT, ego takes all. Very important, to learn to pull up and in in the solar plexus as well as cinching the solar plexus towards center to shine forth, to move the toxic energy OUT, revealing a healthy confidence. Core strength stokes the digestive fire, Agni, regulating our metabolism.

Anahata Chakra (Heart energy center): Heart Openers and Back-bending: Back-bending energizes the spine to release a lot of emotional tension we hold in the shoulder as well as neck area. I have seen countless students who have come in with really tight upper backs with a lot of shoulder tension practice backbends and, within’ a few classes, its as if their hearts begin to melt. The burdens they had been carrying start to fall away, leaving more space between the ears and shoulders. Their shoulder blades drop which reveals a more open heart, Not protruding, but open. the ribs rest in alignment with the neutral pelvis. The heart openers we do in Fitness Fusion Technique, expand the arms from center, moving heart energy through out the whole body.

Upper Chakras: Arm Balances and Inversions: the Vishuddha (throat chakra), the Anja ( 3rd eye chakra), and the Sahasara (crown chakra) could be their own individual classes, which I sometimes do for private clients if they are really needing to open their voice or hone their intuition through visualization. The restorative class I offer is great for the whole body, but mostly for the the crown chakra, Sahasara. This class is about connecting with your intuition by learning your boundaries or edges. Listening to your own deep sacred inner voice. Bringing the 3rd eye to the ground in prostration of childs pose among other postures, will develop humility. Taking the time to place the hands and feet just right, shifting our consciousness in just the right place to balance upside down teaches the body, mind, and spirit how to work together in harmony to achieve a result. It WAKES UP dormant areas of our whole being to be unleashed into freedom. We learn then, to see the world from a different more playful, creative perspective.

Linking Movement with Breath: Most of us do not breath properly. In many gym like workouts, the breath is not regulated, leading to chaotic energy which causes imbalances. Being in synchronicity is not healthy over long periods of time in many aerobic like workouts as it does not develope discernment of listening to our own individual bodies, intuition, or cues. Pushing ourselves for the sake of the leader, which may very well hurt our bodies in the short term or long term, is counter culture to building sustainable health. In yoga, deep belly breathing, as well as breathing techniques, drop the breath down into the lower chakras, so as not to have too much trapped air in the upper chest causing panic attacks. Deep belly breathing flows us into a deeper connection to our heart and soul. A sacred knowing. It also regulates the Amygdala which governs our flight or fight response. Ujjayi breath, deep belly breathing in and out through the nose, four counts in and four counts out with the mouth closed, allows the para sympathetic nervous system to regulate more often. This is our sense of rest and digest, leaving a feeling of active relaxation. A gentle heat warms the body to help flush out toxins through the skin.

After blogs I include a video of a song that is on my playlists. Love this one by Lord Huron called Mine Forever.

Chakra Wheel Of Love & The 7 States Of Being

I’m almost finished with my book proposal for a book I’m hoping to put out into the world about my yoga method and ways to better one’s life through body, breath, music, and movement. I’m titling the book Heart and Soul: A Complete Wellness Lifestyle Design Guide In Ancient and Modern Wisdom: Body. Breath. Music. Movement. but that may change depending on a publisher or not.

In one of the chapters we explore The Chakra Wheel of Love and The Seven States of Being. I think this is really a fun way to do self discovery through journaling. Both work together to unlock a road map into clearer spiritual alignment. To find clarity, to have a trajectory or lay out of steps on how to fullfilll our greatest desires, and, to really live the wellness lifestyle of our dreams. We have to dig deep into self discovery of all these aspects of ourselves to see the whole picture so that we know how to move forward on our path. When we do, we can integrate and really manifest what we truly desire. The Chakra Wheel of Love and The 7 States of being are tools to place in your tool belt that can be done through life changes or alongside other methods of spiritual tools etc.

For those that are new to Chakra work, Chakras are local and non-local energy vortexes. They are physiological and psychological aspects of ourselves based on frequency, light, sound, places in the body, aura color, personality traits, how we relate to the inside and outside world, and encompass really all of who we are as a human being. It’s not about chasing rainbows, it’s about studying chakras, just like how an accupuncturist studies meridians of the body, to learn more about who each one of us is as a person and how everything around us is connected. It’s important to not get too heady or analytical about the Chakras, they are keys to help us unlock certain truths about ourselves, which, can be a fun self discovery. Understanding these relationships can help us to move with more clarity on our path beyond them. Going through the Chakra Wheel of Love may bring up different memories that trigger emotions. By feeling them deeply we can release them to see clearer.

This is how to work through The Chakra Wheel of Love for Self Discovery:

1.) First, open your journal or a notepad and make a list of each Chakra and it’s aspects. For example: Write down Root Chakra at the top of the page. Underneath that Title, list Finances as a subtopic. Write down the TRUTH about your finances, What your ultimate goal is for the future of your finances, then realistically, how you could make that goal happen. Finances will most likely be related to your career or job, so answer the same questions for your career or job as well. Do these same steps with the subtopic Family. Write Family as a subtopic under Root Chakra. Same questions: the truth, ultimate goal for the future, and realistically how you could make that goal happen. Do this for all of the Chakras and their subtopics. Try to speak from an honest place of your heart and soul. Be detailed and specific. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths to visualize, feel, and really get a good impression on what is the best thing for you to write down. Connect some emotional power to it. The clearer you are with what you want, what is honest for you, the clearer spirit, god, and the universe can help guide you to people, places, and things that can provide that for you. You can do a yoga class or breathing meditation (on my instagram).

2.) Once all Chakras are done, then I want you to do the same for the 7 States of Being which were divinely inspired to me while driving in my car. LOL, I know, what a place to receive such divine messages from spirit, nonetheless, the divine is funny like that sometimes. We receive messages in obscure ways. Just do the exercise for the states of being you feel you are in that you feel are blocking you from feeling better more often.

7 States Of Being:

You might be going through any of these states simultaneously or only one at this time. In either case, knowing your blocks, getting clear with how to move past them, and answering the questions like you did with The Chakra Wheel of Love, will be another step to building the wellness lifestyle you have always wanted for yourself and those you love most. Because when we do this work, it also helps our friends and family too.

1.) Deep Addiction: Being addicted to something unhealthy that harms others or yourself whether it is recognized or not. Do you have anything you may be unhealthily addicted? I eat waayyyy too much chocolate, but it’s a lighter addiction that is actually better for me. I’m talking about the deep deep stuff. How does that make you feel? Getting honest with it, books, support groups, and exercise, therapy, can help.

2.) Acknowledge Trauma: We really don’t know when we are functioning from a traumatized state whether it’s little stressors of trauma or big traumatic abuse situations until it is recognized. A lot of times when we start to do deep self discovery work, uncovering memories, do we then finally surrender and say, yes, I do need to do something about this trauma. This could be a blockage to feeling better and really living the life you have always wanted to live.

3.) Confused about Passion and/or Purpose: A lot of us are in this state. We work to make money to pay the bills. Most of the time, that feeling of joy is just not there. Most of us don’t quite know how to manage those stressors and emotions. Just going through the motions. We either don’t know what our passion and purpose is or we don’t think we are worthy of having it through self loathing or others tell us who are we to do that while we agree with them or feel defeated by them. It can feel like an uphill battle. Like a baby salmon swimming upstream to find home with bears and weather and environmental changes. The battle is real, yet, we still must discover, try, and read our timing (which will be in another blog and hopefully printed in my book soon). If you are prepared and know your timing… these are some of the secrets to success. What makes you feel alive. We must be realistic with holding the notion that sometimes spirit can get pretty creative inmakeing the Impossible possible. Keep an open mind.

4.) Motivational Stuckness: After COVID lockdowns, I had never knew what it felt like to feel so motivationally stuck. My whole life, I always knew where I was going. It was debilitatingly stagnant for me. I cried almost everyday because of it. Slowly with prayer, ideas, and inspiration, the right things came to me, to pull me out of my funk. I know what it is like to feel motivational stuckness. You can feel motivated in your body, yet stuck energetically in the mind and visa versa. Merging motivation from your higher self and lower self with hope, really is the key to unlock this stuckness. Some people like to move slower and sit around. I am not such a person. I love to be social, meet people, do fun things, and exercise. So to feel lethargic, well, me no likey. Going for walks and doing easy exercise methods are a great start.

5.) Hitting A Social Media Wall: So the numbers are just not there, the followers, the friends, they say you are not liked or accepted. Too slow or x, y, and z. Every time you try to do something about it, your just shut down again, and a again, and again and again. Nothing is never good enough. It’s easy to really take it personally, feeling defeated by it all. I’ve been in this position myself and still in it to a degree. If your desire is to be more social, whether it’s on social media online or in-person, one thing is for sure, you have to at least try to build your confidence levels. Vision Boarding is great for this, which we go over later on in this blog. People feel an attracted energy around you, and if it isn’t there, then we must start at getting clear with all of the things we want to attract in our lives. Then the vision boarding, then going to do things that we love, even if its sitting at a bar by ourselves with a cocktail or joining group activities. I started, after lockdowns, a new writing online course because i wasn’t feeling ready to speak to people yet, but I knew I wanted to feel connected and feel good again. My writing course’s facebook group, participating in that, gave me such a boost. After that I joined an online exercise method using light weights to go along with my Heart and Soul Method during the week. I felt EVEN BETTER! Next, I bought books written by people who inspired me, finally, I got up the confidence to go to a bar, sit and have a meal by myself. My energy started to feel better and I began to meet new friends. Step by step, many inspired people say this, small right actions toward a goal works. There are other ways to get numbers on Instagram for an audience sake. I don’t cover this in this blog, but you can find many courses to build your audience and email lists.

Balancing Crystal Balls: This is a doozey. This is like trying to be super mom or dad. It feels like the little red engine that could trying to get its way up the hill to do it all. There really is no shame in that at all. Learning how to balance work, career, family life, and adventure can be like 3 full time jobs. This is why this state is called Balancing Crystal Balls, because we are trying to not drop the delicate balls that are suspended in the air. Yes, to accomplish the things we wish to accomplish in life, we do need an ease and flow. Which is why practice makes perfect. Getting our Chakra Wheel of Love support systems by: mapping out a realistic plan, knowledge, self discovery, vision boarding, prayers, and our tools in our tool belt in order as our go to’s, will help us to sharpen our intuition and to get clear. If a ball is dropped, how do I pick myself back up? Do I get a coffee or do I drink tea or wine? Sometimes picking yourself up means laying in bed crying for months at a time or sometimes it means just having some good sex or a tropical vacation with Mai Tais and a really hot guy. Do IT, If it will move you through the stuckness so that the shattered crystal ball can be put back together and juggled once again. Eventually, you will move into the next golden state that everyone aspires to which is Automatic Flow of Spiritual Alignment.

Automatic Flow of Spiritual Alignment: This of course is everyone’s favorite state. Your higher self is vibing with your lower self as one and the divine agree’s or your protected by something beyond...the energies that be. It’s in good company to help each other get there. Really, we all can be in this state if we all were a little more compassionate. This is easy breezy. Everything is going right in our lives, we know how to tether the negative forces that be, we know our balance, trajectory path, and are prepared. Life flows with spiritual alignment, good things, and people to support us when we need them. We know how to handle problems well. Our wellness lifestyle is on it’s course. Dreams are being met and blessings are being bestowed. We may still want things we don’t have yet, but we feel like we know how to get there. Things just automatically protect us. Things just workout in an ebb and flow of grace. If life throws us lemons, yes, we know how to feel our feelings, process, and make delicious lemonade.

We all are in any one or more of these states. Once you are done with the self discovery work or what we like to say in Yogic Sanskrit terms as Svadyaya, meaning self study, then it’s time to make a Vision Board.

Vision Boarding: Vision Boarding gets a bad wrap sometimes because it seems kiddish or not a grown-up thing to do, however, statistics tell us otherwise. Forbes Magazine says, “Eighty-two percent of small business owners that used a vision board from the get-go reported that they have accomplished more than half the goals they included on that board.” The article also goes on to say that the more detailed and emotionally connected someone is to the pictures on their vision board, the more likely they will be able to manifest them in real life.

I once watched an interview on GaiamTV about a man who made all of his dreams come true. He was a painter and led spiritual retreats. He said, the key is to create for awhile, or pray, or say a mantra, holding the vision, emotionally connect to it deeply, he said and then, let it go, let it go all the while keeping the flicker of that vision in your heart. When I heard that advice, It changed the way I went about doing things. I then, started to notice that the things I desired most started to come to me… almost like a boommarang. So having a Vision Board of what you workshopped with The Chakra Wheel of Love and The 7 States of Being, with your the specific desired outcomes or goals is a huge creative force. After do that, step back and sit with it, letting the divine that be, work its magic. Seeing the pictures everyday will keep that flicker smoldering in the back of your mind.

An easy way to create a Vision Board is to go onto Pinterest and to start finding pictures that reflect those desired outcomes. Print them out, cut them out, and pin them to a cork board. Magazines, newspapers, anything else that you emotionally connect to as a desired outcome. You CAN”T make anyone marry you and things like that, BUT, maybe you will find someone even better that carries that same vibe that would bring just as much joy. Journal your progress.

If and when my book is published, I will include more action steps to realizing your best life with The Chakra Wheel of Love among other techniques I use. In the meantime, if you have a comment, question, or would like to share your progress about this blog, please leave a comment below. I would love to hear if this blog helped you on your journey.

Going Back To The Land: Operation Earth

As we move forward into 2022, most of us have realized that stress and inflammation are on the rise. The term ON FIRE is cute, butttt… do we really want to be literally on fire??? The more connected it seems we become, the more it seems we take on others mental well-being. Really now is the time to heed the advice: Go to the land. Recently I have been listening into a seer/healer’s podcasts that I know who is more connected to his intuition than I am, who can see further out in time. This is what he says: We need to learn to balance and go to the land. Of course I weigh all advice with my own sense of intuition and knowing. This makes sooo much sense to me at this time. I too am feeling “under pressure” to be more…be more with having less…Is this healthy? Is it necessary really?

When it seems faster is better, meta is favored, caffeinated is cool, celebrity is king, algorithms are acted upon without reflection, and rumors are click bait, my body feels this deep urge to counter balance all of this with connecting to the earth and water elements. To help tame that fire, reduce inflammation, to hydrate, and penetrate into a deeper sleep in the evenings for a stronger sense of healing. Below are therapuetic ways in which to bring in these grounding, energizing, and rebalancing aspects to feel better. as to gain some perspective… what is actually necessary? Because when we feel good, and those we are around feel good, we all can feel better together. The ba da da drum kick prank trick is cute for the collective, but is it hurting those you love to compensate for not feeling well?

Ways in which to connect to the lower chakras Earth, Water elements by calming the heart and mind:

Mud therapy and Massage: Mud therapy has been around since the 17th century to promote hydration to the body, increase circulation, reduce inflammation, heal arthritis, promote weight loss and many other benefits. The best mud therapy comes from the sea filled with primarily Humic acid, minerals, organic material of decaying plants and small microscopic sea animals. You can do mud facial masks, body wraps and baths at home or at a local spa. Massage most of us know as a wonderful way to feel touch from a professional massage therapist. Deep tissue, Shiatsu, and Hot Stone Massage penetrate into the muscles which move toxins out through the skin and relieve pent up stress. This brings the body, mind, soul, and spirit into homeostasis.

Nature: We hear this again and again, yet, we don’t do it. I am one of those people. I used to love being in nature until I became an entreprenuer and found myself on a mat, computer, or phone most of the time. Being in nature is a way to unplug. However, It really does take commitment, just like starting an exercise method or a new eating plan. It feels sooo good to connect to the land because, well, of course, more oxygen from the trees, but also there is a specific frequency the earth emits that promotes healing. A grounding healing frequency that takes all of the “crazy” energies around you and nullifies them, putting them into an order of hydrational balance. This is why it feels sooo good to put our feet in the grass or lay down on the earth. It takes 20-30 minutes for your body to discharge inflammation and to relieve pain by simply laying or sitting on the grass. Do this 3 or 4 times a week, and you will greatly reduce the risks of diseases caused by inflammation. This is why I do headstands and inversions in yoga class too because it has similar affects.

Infrared: Infrared saunas are expensive and hard to come by. You usually have to join a gym or a spa membership or pay thousands of dollars to put one in your home. Higher Dose is a brand that offers a blanket wrap and a yoga like mat inexpensively. Both reorganize chaos in the body lowering stress, reduce inflammation, and help the body move into homeostasis so that the body can heal with the penetrating infrared frequencies. 30-40 minutes a day or every other day or as needed is a therapy to have at your fingertips while meditating or watching a movie etc.

Float Tanks: These are so cool looking. They look like little pods. They are filled with water, have healing music if you wish, and light therapy to induce what we call in Yoga lingo Pratyahara. Pratyahara translates from Sanskrit to English as sense withdrawal. As your floating in the float tank, ears submerged in water, pitch black or with color therapy, all of your senses can just, shut off. ahhhh. With sensory overload these days, it is a wonderful way to promote more silence, stillness, and recovery. You can find float tanks in wellness centers, spas and special float tank businesses. They are thousands of dollars to buy one for your home.

Camp Fires and Palo Santo: Here in the Sacred Appalachian Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina, camp fires of cedar are burned quite regularly. One whiff of this intoxicating smoke, and i am flooded with the nostalgia of my childhood filled with camping, s’mores, and family togetherness. This smell just feels like home to me. It also gets me focused, grounded and in touch with the land very quickly. Palo Santo also can have that same affect. Palo Santo is what many healers as well as Shaman use to clear someones aura and energetic blueprint by smoking it all around the body while breathing it all in deeply several times. An at home version of this is simple. Buy several Palo Santo wood sticks at your local health wellness store, light the tip of it, and breath it in deeply. Leave it to burn like you would incense. This smell is extremely intoxicatingly healing in a good way. A much better option over sage. Smells better than sage while having the same clearing benefits.

Exercises with Ujjai Breathing: When I fell in-love with the vinyasa yoga physical practice of exercise, a lot of it was because of the feeling Ujjai breath gave me. Ujjai breath is deep belly breathing. Four counts on an inhale with mouth closed and four counts on an exhale with mouth closed. It is therapeutic in it’s own right by stimulating the water element of the second chakra with the organs and feel good hormones.. Learning to breath Ujjai breath while flowing in a vinyasa yoga class is your mind on weed, but in a healthy way so that you feel energized and calm at the same time. It really is life changing. Learn to do it through out a 75 minute vinyasa flow yoga class and you will see what I mean…

Eating Therapeutic foods: Yes there is that word again therapeutic. Foods that nourish the soul, comfort foods that are hearty, brothy, and medicinal, are steam baths in a bowl. I love to cook with organic vegetables from the farmers market with fragrant spices from different countries. Healing soups of our ancestors as well as classics we all know and love. Tea is wonderful before bed or on a cold wintery day as well as warmed almond milk with some cinnamon and cardemom for calming a stressful mind. Foods that promote healing that are medicinal in their right will bring you back to the land.

Sex and Intimacy: Unfortunately, when my ex-fiance and I broke up 8 years ago, my love life tanked. Like sex a couple times a year and that was it. Going without sex regularly after having it 4 times a week or when I wanted it, was, well a trip to the Himalayas. I literally felt like I was cast out into a cave somewhere with too much spiritual energy surging through me at all times. It’s wonderful to be in-touch with spirit, it’s even more wonderful to have an omazing orgasm from a hot guy or love of your life and to share those feelings with someone you admire. There is nothing else in this world far greater than finding someone you trust to share your whole self with that honors your body and soul. This connection, if done in a place that is built on trust, is one of the best healers.

Reading and Writing: Curling up with a good book and a favorite beverage is one of my go to’s for sure. Nothing says relaxing than the words of Deepak Chopra. Reading and writing helps the mind calm, focus, process and stream the flow through the body for more rest. When I read and write I feel inspired. It is soo nourishing for the senses to be still and take in information or to share it with the world.

There are so many other ways to connect to the land, but these are my favorite. Many of which you can do in your own home if you can’t peel away for a hike. Try at least two or three and see how your wellbeing shifts which affects everyone around you. Remember it’s not just all about what is the most popular thing on twitter. I am focusing on my heart and soul, reflecting, processing, slowing down, and feeling into what is the right thing to do.

Healing Mantras from Krishna Das. This is the song of devotion called the Hanuman Chalisa:

What Is Heart and Soul Method?

These days there are soo many ways in which to exercise, from hitting the gym, to new fitness hybrid methods, to yoga, running, sports… the list goes on. It’s hard to know where to begin if you havn’t figured out the magical recipe that has worked for you, and, to boot, works through all life’s changes….wheww

When I first came to yoga, I got fit by dancing and waiting tables in College. I didn’t really have a tried and true therapeutic mind body exercise plan at the time, that I could fall back on, a plan to really know “this is my workout go to,” incase there was one of these main life shifts that, these days, seem to be happening a lot faster. Through out my life I have tried many combinations, from running, to dancing, to Pilates, to the gym with weights, to of course, yoga. Nothing, on it’s own really got me that complete feeling that I needed with the results I was wanting for my body. Soooo, about 7 years ago, as luck would have it, that all changed.

I had had a reaeaaaallllly, I mean epicccc awful week back in 2013/14. I was living with my parents, nursing a debilitating break-up with my ex-fiance, my ex-yoga community, and my ex-mentor… and losing my wellness center. Pretty much all at once. All of this happened within’ the same month more or less. Needless to say, I was broken, bruised, and needed a safe place to nurture myself back into health with a good frame of mind for my future. After all of this, this particular week was bad. A bunch of feelings I had repressed all welled up to the surface to be unleashed. I turned to my yoga mat for comfort and to surrender in prayer.

On this particular day, I was flowing through my yoga class after a deep prayer meditation, when I saw, very clearly in my minds eye, the blueprint for Heart and Soul Method and how to put it all together. Wheewww. Quite exciting at the time. Hope began to creep in, finally. Finally… I wanted to lose more weight with more cardio in a yoga class and I wanted to feel the upbeat energy from dance, but dance in a way that was easy for students to pick-up and not too taxing on the body, that gave the benefits of creative expression, precision, synchronicity with the music I loved, and release. I also wanted more toning in the accessory muscles, targeting those harder to reach areas in the arms, butt, abs, and thighs. Doing classes with the aspects of each chakra I thought would be fun and a way to meet students needs. “I feel my hips are really tight today, hmmm, I will take the Svadhisthana Chakra Class, hip opening and forward folding, to perhaps bring some relief,” was dialogue I wanted my students to have in choosing classes. Or, “My back is locked up, I think an Anahata class today would energize my spine and open my chest area.”

While practicing my method over the next few months, not only did my mood dramatically lift, but my body was increasingly looking and feeling healthier. I felt wittier, I felt sexier, I felt smarter, and I felt less stressed. I also lost 10 pounds in one month by doing this method 4-5 times a week. It was a total package in one class with complimentary modalities. I needed to share this with the world!

Over the years, Heart and Soul Method has been taught to many students on the West Coast and East Coasts with nothing but great things to say about it. Of course there are people who do it half ass, but hey, i’ve been there with certain workout regimens where after a few months I realize, “this is not for me”. There have also been other students who have taken this method seriously and have gotten the results they have desired again and again. I feel in my whole being, that I have found a beautiful practice that gives me the results I desire in an integrated design that harnesses the power, beauty, and wisdom of Yoga, Dance Movement, and Fitness Fusion Technique. And the only way, people are really going to see, feel, and touch the gems of this method, is by practicing it for extended periods of time. I always say, give it 6 months, then, make judgements.

Now that I have gotten older, just turned 40 years young. Yay! I have realized that I do need some weight classes through out the week. Yes, I have tried adding weights to my method, which, only left me with a headache. Through trial and error, I have realized that weights and yoga do NOT go together in one class. It firms up the mind too quickly as both together are too powerful in one class. I feel they must be done independently of one another. Sacred Geometry is the basis of Yoga Asana (the postures) which is very powerful on a cellular level as it’s foundations draw from the Fibonacci Spiral, the mathematical codes that make up all things. To sit and breath in a posture for even 5 breaths, is one of the most powerful ways to lose weight. This is why it is so therapeutic. Naturally, adding weights to a sacred geometry therapeutic practice is too taxing on the delicate Aura when working with mind, body, and spirit. Luckily, I have found a wonderful weight method that I love to do through out the week. A seperate class I do 30 minutes on days I do Heart and Soul Yoga Method and a 60 minute class on days I do not do yoga. This is really adding that little extra intensive boost. At 40, I now feel like I have FINALLY found my perfect combination that can go with me as I age!

Each person is soo beautifully, uniquely different, and I want my readers to know that you don’t have to have it alllll figured out right now. That is the wonderment of life. Let life reveal it’s self to you as you go. One eye on the present and one eye on the future. Allow the past to stay or let go as needed. Below are the benefits of a yoga class and it’s offerings along with the benefits of a Heart and Soul Method class and it’s offerings. I want you to know the difference between the two along with what to expect. Both are needed. Both are transformative in beautiful ways. With 19 years experience in yoga, 9 years as a yoga teacher, and 25 years in voice/movement/dance/stage experience, I know my craft well.

YOGA: Yoga is a mind, body, and spirit integrative practice of bringing a practitioner into a deeper union with themselves, others, and the world around them. There are many forms of yoga, some more spiritual, some more physical, some more mindful, and some more integrative. You can find many different styles. Power Yoga is more physical, Kundalini is more spiritual in the way it is presented, Prana Flow is more tribal in nature, yin yoga is more of a feminine form, Jivamukti is integrative leaning toward more spiritual, where as restorative yoga is more about well, restoring the physical body using props. Yes mind, body, spirit are allll one, yes, really all spirit, BUT the way the styles’ classes are presented and the teachers ethics of each style are all very different. From going to classes for about 19 years, this is what I know to be true.

Each of these classes usually has breathing techniques, using yoga props, and has a flow or feeling to the class that makes it unique. Benefits in all yoga classes include but not limited to: more balance to imbalance, better digestion, better sleep, relief from hormonal imbalances such as depression, anxiety, bipolar, and chronic fatigue. It clears the mind, opens the heart, and releases stuck energy to reveal better health in all areas of body, mind, and spirit.

HEART AND SOUL METHOD (tm):

YOGA: This method is considered Hatha Vinyasa Flow. Hatha translates to sun and moon. So there are postures that create more heat, radiance, strength, and power and there are moon postures that create more grounding, flexibility, going inward, and has a cooling surrendered feel. Hatha is an early form of yoga that dates back thousands of years as sun and moon postures were developed by reishi yogis near the forests and rivers of India 5,000 years ago. Vinyasa, is more of a modern evolution of yoga. Here is what came up on Amazon: “Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga is a style of yoga as exercise popularized by K. Pattabhi Jois during the 20th century, often promoted as a modern-day form of classical Indian yoga. He claimed to have learnt the system from his teacher, Tirumalai Krishnamacharya. The style is energetic, synchronizing breath with movements” In Vinyasa, postures are linked with breath and movement in a flowing form.

In my method, we hold the postures for 5 to 10 breaths like in Hatha with sun and moon postures as well as flow the movements with breath like in vinyasa flow. The postures mainly come from these two yoga styles.

DANCE MOVEMENT: Designed for each chakra, the music and style of dance reflect the aspects of that particular chakra. It is not considered “DANCE CARDIO” which is more of an aerobic form these days associated with gyms and fitness methods. DANCE MOVEMENT is movements you would find in a dance class that are practiced in a repetitive dance sequence to music. It’s easier to pick-up and to do in the middle of a 75 minute yoga class as the peak posture or highlight of the class to bring about creative expression, more confidence, better precision, range of motion, more cardio, openness, boundaries from the choreography, and more fun once you learn to yoke the movement with the music. Most dance sequences are at a moderate pace with some being a little faster or slower depending on the song or class. We practice the dance sequence twice with the song, so about 10-15 minutes. There is no workshopping the class or going over dance movements. By coming to class and practicing on the mat, the student gets better. Their body will attune to the synchronicity. After class (a student can ask questions about anything related to class) or in workshops, we break down the dance movements. There are also videos found in the media section of this website… coming soon. Online Studio will be up and running soon. Stay tuned for that.

FITNESS FUSION TECHNIQUE: I honor Joseph Pilates and his divine work. I have practiced PILATES on and off for about a year as well as researched his work, this method of fitness, and have watched his documentary. The fusion comes from the inspiration of PILATES MAT CLASSES with finding your center, balance points, and muscles worked in movements along with yoga postures, dance technique movements, and faster repitition of that which is characterized by fitness in general. The FITNESS FUSION TECHNIQUE movements I do have yielded me a flatter more toned abdominal area, a more toned butt, stronger toned arms, and creating more of an elasticity in pulling the skin tighter to the muscles. It’s only 5-10 minutes of a class, but gets results along with the combination of yoga and dance movement. 600 -900 Calories are burned depending on what level the class is beginner, intermediate, or advanced.

SOOOO with all that said, this really is a unique Method that I havn’t seen anywhere else over the past 7 years and feel it deserves it’s rightful place along with other great exercise methods. It is an evolution of yoga, yet honoring it’s classical roots. Add this method to your running routine, your gym routine, your weight method, or dance classes. It’s great for dancers as well of course! 4-5 times a week!

Wherever you are, whether you know what you love in exercise or are a beginner in the exercising area of life or going through a life change, this practice has kept me balanced and energized for 7 years and counting. I know it will for you too. Men… it’s not just for women.

Lakshmi Wellness Plan

Over the past couple of years I have been putting bits and pieces together of a book that I can hopefully get published someday. A book filled with all my knowledge of health, wellness, and a few other things. Compiling, researching, and writing. Although I don’t have much of a following or large enough platform as of now, it feels good to try and plant seeds. Seeds of growth, seeds of change, and maybe even seeds of success.

Here is a little snippet of one of the wellness plans that I offer. Feel free to incorporate these tips and this outline into your current lifestyle. It is a great addition for self improvement in any lifestyle that you are currently leading. Sometimes we want to live a certain lifestyle, yet feel we do not have the resources to “make it happen”. It takes massive courage to take that first step for the life that is desired. I know that a few years ago I felt broken and beaten up by life. The Lakshmi Wellness Plan is one of the tools I used to get me back on track to what was important to me. It started with getting back into a routine earning decent income, then, moving on into refining my food choices again, and finally, once I felt better with my diet, getting back to my yoga practice. These stepping stones were the slingshot to then, doing more activities, repairing relationships that had broken down etc. Most importantly forgiveness, gratefulness, and graciousness…annnd some red lipstick ;) This wellness plan turned everything around 180 degrees. I know it will for you as well if you take it seriously, sticking to these tips.

For the full Lakshmi Wellness Plan, or your choice of a few other Wellness Plans I put together (depending on your goals), you can sign-up for The Personal Luxury Retreat, The Weight-loss and Well-being Program, or The Vegan/Vegetarian Transition Course. All of these services include a Wellness plan of your choice whether your goal is Beauty, more Athletic Muscle Building, or ready for a Super Detox Weight-loss Plan. A new future, a refined lifestyle, desires fulfilled is only a click away. I’m ready to get you started.

Please enjoy sweet friends,

Love,

Merissa

The Lakshmi Wellness Plan

Lakshmi is known as the deity that embodies health, wealth, prosperity, and fertility in Eastern Indian culture. Mantras and song sung to Lakshmi is said to invoke a stronger hold of her presence within’ and around you, permeating your aura. The more devoted one is to invoking this essence of her presence overtime, it is proven, more abundance will bestow itself upon you…from my experience. Lakshmi travels on a pink lotus flower with the element of water all around, emanating the fragrance of good fortune.

Following this wellness plan will help to enhance your presence with this beauty that flows from the inside out. For to really be one with Lakshmi, we must purify our hearts first with kind thoughts, words, and deeds. This of course is only one aspect of ourselves. There are many other aspects of ourselves, tools in which we use to get to where we need to go. This plan is potent in developing the presence of Lakshmi. But we also must remember that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder. Behold yourself as beautiful every moment, and you will be. Even if, clearly, you need a shower…

Follow this plan for one month, 5 days a week if possible, to build a habitual knowledge of pattern so that eating, lifestyle environment, and behavior of The Lakshmi Wellness Plan becomes second nature. This way, if you do get off track, or would then like to loosen this plan up a bit, it will be easier to come back to it again and again if need be. Here is a general outline.

Food Lifestyle:

• Breakfast - Medium

• Lunch - Large

• Dinner - Small

• Snack only when necessary

• Drink mostly tea. Coffee only a couple of times a week (only when absolutely necessary)

• Vegan/Plant-based meals to practice loving kindness to animals and our planet. This helps our planet, those who do not have access to fresh water and food, and softens the stress factor when done properly. (I do have other plans for vegetarians and those that eat meat as well. I didn’t leave you out!).

• Learn how to feel your food. Cook with feeling not a recipe. Learn to use your intuition of alchemy as to what right amounts make the recipe work.

• Desserts are okay in moderation

• Wine/Beer okay in moderation. Think 4 to 5 glasses a week.

• Add Ayurveda tips (My favorite book for this is Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom by Acharya Shunya)

• Take CBD or do acupuncture regularly for chronic stress.

• All organic as much as possible. (Try not to get fanatical about it. Do what you can)

• Gluten Free as much as possible. (Again, don’t get in a rage over it :)

• Lots of wholefoods: fresh vegetables, fruits, grains, smoothies, salads, nuts, vegan cheeses, vegan amino acids, vitamin B12, chia seeds, organic multi-vitamin. Get all your macro and micro nutrients.

• Drink lots of water with minerals in it. Not all water that is purified or filtered is good drinking water. Make sure it has good minerality content or that you are getting minerals from other sources.

• 1/3 your body weight of protein. Sometimes a little less, sometimes a little more depending on activities or if you are pregnant.

Beauty Activities

• Get a haircut and color you love

• Mani/Peti/waxes or shave appropriately

• Sunless spray tans

• Pick out clothes that make you feel good about yourself. If you don’t have any, go to the thrift store. There were times when that is what I had to do. Some of the best pieces in my wardrobe, that I receive the most compliments on, are in fact, from goodwill. THERE, I said it!

• Facial masks once or twice a week. Acure is my favorite brand for just about everything.

• Neti pot (occasionally)/dry brushing everyday/apply body lotion everyday

• 3 step facial routine: face cleanse, toner, and day lotion

• Light make-up or make-up for the occasion

• Light appropriate jewelry

• Do your hair so that it looks washed and tamed, unless it’s like a grunge day

• Take baths with sea salts, essential oils, and flowers. Listen to some romantic music like Josh Groban.

• I like to spray my body with Rose water after towel drying off. Then you can leave it at that or add a complimentary lotion.

• Put a little essential oil at your touch points behind the ears, heart chakra, wrists etc

• Remember, most importantly, to be okay if things are not perfect, exactly to your liking or anyone elses liking. We can get stressed by trying too hard to be beautiful. Relax and have fun with it.

• Face each challenge or fear with discernment.

Activities

• Yoga

• Dance

• Pilates

• Mantra/Prayer/Meditation

• Reading Scripture

• Reading on things that bring you joy

• Hiking or getting out into nature

• playing an instrument

• Practicing forgiveness in meditation, letting your mind deeply connect with all of your senses to that in which it is drawn to…

• Going to the theater

• Cleaning

• Surfing

• Gardening

• Painting

• Conversations with friends and family. Light-hearted and deeply meaningful. Laugh often.

• Doing something unexpected for a friend or lover or family member (get creative. Do something that you know THEY would love. Generosity)

• Volunteer within’ your community to help those less fortunate.

• Find strong, healthy support systems that will be there for you through thick and through thin.

• Practice the Yamas and Niyamas of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, but with discernment… and try not to get caught up in the perfection trap.

• Learn to use your instinctual intuition as opposed to what others would like to dictate to you. It is a dance between control and surrender to have the ability to meet your desires and follow your path with grace. Be patient as all is coming.

Sample Day Plan

• 6:30am - Shower

• 7 am - Meditation - Om shri Maha-Lakshmyai Namah. Translation by Jivamukti Chant Book (Lakshmi is the bountiful provider. She is beauty. All wealth, prosperity and good fortune comes from her. She is Shakti of Narayan. Her arms are always open and generous.) Sing or chant 20 times a day.

• 7:30am - 60min. to 90min. yoga/fitness/exercise class

• 9 am - Medium Breakfast (Tofu Scramble or Avo. toast or chia seed oatmeal with fruit)

• 10 am - Rinse off, get dressed, ready for the day

• Work, activities on the list, attending to your children etc.

• 1pm - Large Lunch (healthy sandwich with lots of veggies or veggie beyond burger with fries or salad or Large salad with tofu or pasta like pesto).

• 2pm - Go for a walk or take a light nap or power nap if needed.

• 3pm - Snack (Handful of nuts and a piece of fruit or an energy/protein bar or smoothie or fresh organic juice)

• 3:30pm - Work, activities on the list, attending to children.

• 6:00pm - Light Dinner (Salad with tofu, soup, capprese salad, brown rice and veggie bowl, Ramen and veggies, tacos)

• 7pm - Meditation

• 7:30pm - Watch a movie or read a book or take a bath. A cup of warm almond milk with cardamom or herbal tea with a little almond or soy milk aids in digestion. You can also sip it while in meditation. Find a clean, quiet, place where you can just be still and be. No children at this time…

• 10pm - 11pm Lights out. Sleepy time. Get a good nights rest. There is AWAKE with stress, there is AWAKE in a yoga nidra dream like relaxation state, and then there is a deep, deep sleep with source. It’s good to have a combination of both of the last two. Dreaming is good to detox abstract thoughts that anchor within the body/mind complex. No beta waves. Mostly theta and delta waves.

This is just a general sample of timing. You can adjust to work with your schedule. With regular work hours, kids, play dates and such, this is probably a day plan for a day off, however, you can incorporate Lakshmi Wellness tips into your normal work schedule. Do what you can with what you got. Most importantly, be GRATEFUL for everything that you may have. It keeps the heart and soul young, filled with vitality!