June 2017 Yoga Newsletter
by Yoga Director Kristin Adair

Why Take Yoga Classes at MINT?

Yoga is exercise for your body, your mind and your spirit. Whether you like to sweat through a fiery flow class or relax into a more gentle class, by combining breath and mindfulness with physical poses (asanas), yoga classes at MINT offer a different kind of workout. All of our classes are taught by certified yoga teachers in a serene studio setting.

These are just a few of the proven benefits of yoga:

Increased flexibility and better posture. Yoga can help to improve range of motion, stretch your muscles to recover faster from exercise, strengthen your core, decrease chance of injury and much more.
Greater lung capacity. Deep breathing is a practice that can help train your lungs to work more effectively in your other endeavors, whether you’re running, cycling or swimming.
Reduced stress. Yoga can help to calm your mind and reduce anxiety. Yoga classes can also provide you with tools to use in stressful moments during your daily life.
Increased strength. During a typical class, you’ll do yoga poses that use every muscle in your body. and as you take classes more regularly, you’ll begin to see progress
It’s fun! Challenge yourself by playing with a cool pose you’ve never tried before or just enjoy some chill music with your flow.

Have You Tried….?

Forrest Yoga: This class offers a strong flowing practice that emphasizes deep breathing and core work to build strength and focus and release toxins from your body. (All levels welcome!)
Meditation Break: Try a short 20 minute mindfulness break before or after your workout. Studies have shown that meditation can improve concentration, decrease stress and anxiety, and help manage difficult emotions. No experience needed! (Beginners welcome!)
Happy Hour Flow: This brand new class is based on power vinyasa yoga, pairing a creative flow sequence with an energizing playlist to end your workday right. (All levels welcome!)
Sunrise Flow: Get on your mat first thing in the morning with a gentle warm up and energizing flow practice to greet the day with a supple mind and body. (All levels welcome!)
Yoga Fundamentals: A slower-paced class that offers beginners and experienced practitioners alike the opportunity to learn or review the basics, explore skillful alignment and focus on gentle stretching and relaxation. Also appropriate for yogis working with an injury or special condition. (Beginners welcome!)

Yoga Notes
New Yoga Mats! Watch for our brand new yoga mats, coming to our Dupont studio later this month.
MINTkids: Yoga for Movers, Tots & Tykes on summer break. Our kids class is taking a break for the summer, but we’ll be back with a new teacher and lots more yoga fun for the smallest MINT members in the fall!
Please share your feedback! If you take yoga classes at MINT on a regular basis, we would love to hear from you. Which classes are your favorites? What would you like more of? How can we make your experience on the mat a little more blissful? Stop by the front desk to leave your comments, share your feedback or review a class online or email me directly at kristinmintdc@gmail.com.

Yoga Explainer
Why do we say “Namaste” at the end of a yoga class?
“Nama means bow, as means I, and te means you. Therefore, namaste literally means ‘bow me you’ or ‘I bow to you.’ The gesture is an acknowledgment of the soul in one by the soul in another. The teacher initiates Namaste as a symbol of gratitude and respect toward her students and her own teachers and in return invites the students to connect with their lineage, thereby allowing the truth to flow—the truth that we are all one when we live from the heart.”
From Aadil Palkhivala, Yoga Journal magazine (Read more here)

My Favorite Yoga Pose
As a student of yoga for over 15 years and a teacher for more than 7 years, I’ve explored virtually all of the yoga poses that are commonly found in asana practices in the West. And as my regular students know, I have a lot of favorites! If I had to pick just one pose to bring along to the proverbial desert island, it would be Pigeon Pose.

The pose that we sometimes call “Sleeping Pigeon” or “Reclining Pigeon” is actually a variation of Eka Pada Rajakapotasana
(One-Legged King Pigeon Pose). I love this pose because no matter what kind of tension I’m holding on to—in my hips from sitting too much, in my shoulders and neck from a stressful week or in my mind from a long to-do list—Pigeon helps me release whatever I’ve brought to my mat with me that day. It’s also a great physical pose because it helps stretch and strengthen both the hip rotators (buttocks area) and the hip flexors (muscles that run along the front of your thighs/pelvis). Both of these areas are constricted when we sit too much but also can become tense from running, cycling and just living life!

If your hips are tight and you feel like Pigeon Pose in not for you, don’t worry… there are plenty of variations! Try resting your lifted hip onto a block or blanket, use a block to rest your forehead when you fold forward or try doing the pose on your back to begin to open your hips and work towards the full pose.