“How many lessons of faith and beauty we should lose, if there were no winter in our year!” —Thomas Wentworth Higginson  As the days get darker earlier and stay frigid, many of us get moody and tired. Half of Americans suffer from seasonal affective disorder; many not officially diagnosed, more suffer from a lesser form known as the winter blues. Symptoms can start as early as September, but January is the peak month. Fortunately, there are ways to keep spirits high, from eating better to redoing your living space. Putting together a coalition of treatments in order to beat the doldrums of Winter will keep you upbeat and combating the cold months. MEDITATE TO BEAT STRESS Setting aside a few minutes each day to meditate reduceS stress levels. Focus on your breath or use guided meditation apps to help calm your mind. Practice deep breathing exercises to center yourself. Inhale deeply for a count of four, hold for four, and exhale for four. This simple technique can alleviate anxiety and tension. EXERCISE/YOGA IN THE MORNING The benefits of exercise are plentiful, but the time of day you work out also matters. Studies show that morning exercisers report better sleep, burn more calories throughout the day, and have lower blood pressure. GRATITUDE JOURNALING Keep a gratitude journal to remind yourself of the positive aspects of Winter. Write down things you appreciate about the season, no matter how small, to foster a sense of gratitude. FILL UP YOUR SOCIAL CALENDAR When it’s already dark and freezing by 5 pm, most people want to head home from work. But holing up is one of the worst things you can do for your mood. Research published in the Journal of Counseling Psychology showed that people who suffered from depression reported higher levels of well-being and satisfaction after positive social interactions. It’s likely that feeling a sense of belonging reduced depressive symptoms, the authors wrote. SEEK HELP If you find that the winter blues are severely affecting your daily life and well-being, consider seeking professional help. A mental health therapist or counselor can provide strategies tailored to your specific needs and may recommend therapies such as light therapy, which can be effective for SAD. Winter doesn’t have to be a season of gloom and low spirits. By incorporating mindfulness practices into your daily routine, you can enhance your mental well-being, alleviate the winter blues, and embrace the season with a sense of tranquility and inner peace. Mindfulness reminds us that even during the coldest months, the warmth of self-awareness can light our path to mental health and happiness. A PEEK INTO MENTORSHIP WITH VICYASA™... Many prospective teachers, graduates of teacher training(s) and a handful of you that have a desire just to dive deeper into the many aspects of a yoga practice and teaching yoga regularly have been impacted greatly by our bespoke mentoring program. Here are some of the key topics I have programmed into varying syllabuses: Inspiration, narratives and focused areas for classes/workshops
What if you're not a teacher and would like to prepare for training or enhance your ever-hungry-desire to absorb all things yoga? Holla' at me. Feel like your 200 hour training ended with you needing more questions answered? Want to expand on those teachings? Do you feel like there are areas of your teaching repertoire that need enhancing? Contact me for more info and enrollment. PRIVATES: ONE-TO-ONE WORK! If you want to set up any private sessions or events, please contact me through email. You can learn more about privates: CLICK HERE! SINGLE CLASSES We've added single class purchases to our on-demand offerings. How does it work? A $17 payment will give you access to a single pre-recorded class with Victor or anyone on his staff. The private link with unique access code will give you entry to that class, which you can load anytime you want. You'll have 24-hours of unlimited access to that class. No refunds, returns and you must use that class within 24-hours of receiving it before it expires. You can request a teacher on our on-demand options... featuring Demetra Kentrotas (@d_meetch), Leanne McDermott (@leannerays), Elinor Cohen (@elinorraerigby) and others. YOGA AT OHHHMMM LIVE VIRTUAL SCHEDULE: MONDAY: 1/20/2025 NO CLASSES TUESDAY: 1/21/2025 NO CLASSES WEDNESDAY: 1/22/2025 NO CLASSES THURSDAY: 1/23/2025 NO CLASSES FRIDAY: 1/24/2025 NO CLASSES SATURDAY: 1/25/2025 NO CLASSES SUNDAY: 1/26/2025 NO CLASSES *ALL CLASSES EST *SESSIONS 45/60 MINUTES *WAIVER STATEMENT: I understand that I must be in good physical health to participate in these classes, that my participation may cause an injury and that I should consult with my physician before I take a class. I am taking these classes at my own risk. I waive any claim for personal injury and any other damages that I may have against the school, studio and/or the teachers who are offering these classes. REGULAR RATES:
PAYMENT: VENMO -- @Vicyasa Paypal -- [email protected] NAMASTE, Victor Cotto www.YogaWithVictor.com Instagram: CottoVic Facebook: Yoga With Victor - Vicyasa™
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"Breathe deeply, until sweet air extinguishes the burn of fear in your lungs and every breath is a beautiful refusal to become anything less than infinite."  Want to build heat in your practice? I got'yah! The practice of yoga, when given true care and awareness can help you build heat and it ignites a rise in heat to the body, invigorates your internal organs, activates muscles and gets your cardiovascular system excited. Step 1: True attention to the Breath: keep the breathing consistent, control your prana (upward rising energy) and apana (outward flow). Are you really focused on your breathing or are you more worried about the posture, aesthetic of the pose and the next pose rather than staying in tune with the inhale and exhale? When we don’t connect with our breathing, the joints and muscles will be rigid and then you cannot align physically on the mat to meet your needs. Step 2: Focus on your alignment: It is imperative for muscular development and advancement into structured poses to practice proper alignment that serves your body's needs. Instead of over-stretching, practicing the same variations without taking note of your spatial positioning and not being self-aware of mechanics, allow the muscles to engage around our skeletal structure and allow your alignment to help you create heat through fitting positioning in poses. Step 3: What are we eating or drinking pre-class, doing pre-class? Select your foods carefully, drink hot drinks, warm foods and avoid inflammatory foods and alcohol. A hot shower or warm bath prior to the practice is also recommended. When we don’t build enough heat, the joints and muscles will be rigid, and the progression of poses will seem disconnected. Internal heat is essential for preventing injuries and it helps create more ease in the deeper poses. Getting some of the cardio component with repetitions and standing flows also targets our most important muscle... the heart. As teachers & students we have to remember that in order for us to get into the middle and end postures safely, it requires effectively warming up the spine, shoulders, hips, and hamstrings from various angles. A PEEK INTO MENTORSHIP WITH VICYASA™... Many prospective teachers, graduates of teacher training(s) and a handful of you that have a desire just to dive deeper into the many aspects of a yoga practice and teaching yoga regularly have been impacted greatly by our bespoke mentoring program. Here are some of the key topics I have programmed into varying syllabuses:
What if you're not a teacher and would like to prepare for training or enhance your ever-hungry-desire to absorb all things yoga? Holla' at me. Feel like your 200 hour training ended with you needing more questions answered? Want to expand on those teachings? Do you feel like there are areas of your teaching repertoire that need enhancing? Contact me for more info and enrollment. PRIVATES: ONE-TO-ONE WORK! If you want to set up any private sessions or events, please contact me through email. You can learn more about privates: CLICK HERE! SINGLE CLASSES We've added single class purchases to our on-demand offerings. How does it work? A $17 payment will give you access to a single pre-recorded class with Victor or anyone on his staff. The private link with unique access code will give you entry to that class, which you can load anytime you want. You'll have 24-hours of unlimited access to that class. No refunds, returns and you must use that class within 24-hours of receiving it before it expires. You can request a teacher on our on-demand options... featuring Demetra Kentrotas (@d_meetch), Leanne McDermott (@leannerays), Elinor Cohen (@elinorraerigby) and others. YOGA AT OHHHMMM LIVE VIRTUAL SCHEDULE: MONDAY: 1/13/2025 NO CLASSES TUESDAY: 1/14/2025 NO CLASSES WEDNESDAY: 1/15/2025 NO CLASSES THURSDAY: 1/16/2025 NO CLASSES FRIDAY: 1/17/2025 NO CLASSES SATURDAY: 1/18/2025 NO CLASSES SUNDAY: 1/19/2025 NO CLASSES *ALL CLASSES EST *SESSIONS 45/60 MINUTES *WAIVER STATEMENT: I understand that I must be in good physical health to participate in these classes, that my participation may cause an injury and that I should consult with my physician before I take a class. I am taking these classes at my own risk. I waive any claim for personal injury and any other damages that I may have against the school, studio and/or the teachers who are offering these classes. REGULAR RATES:
PAYMENT: VENMO -- @Vicyasa Paypal -- [email protected] NAMASTE, Victor Cotto www.YogaWithVictor.com Instagram: CottoVic Facebook: Yoga With Victor - Vicyasa™ A Beginner’s Mindset. An Expert’s Trust: January Yoga  (This week's newsletter was composed by our dynamic on-demand teacher and full time writer Elinor Cohen. Check out her Instagram HERE and her amazingly empowering advanced & intermediate sessions on our on-demand archives.) With the hullabaloo of the holidays now behind us, the energy has shifted. This time of year is a bit of a paradox; while January 1 marks the start of a new calendar year, immediately following, there seems to be a rush to get back to the way things were. Resuming normalcy is on everyone’s mind , but at the same time, you may not really want to go back to the way things were. It’s a bit of a conundrum.
Then there’s the yoga practice. Each time you roll out your mat is a mini holiday hullabaloo. There’s an energetic shift that happens with the uncertainty of how your practice will go on any given day. Still, there’s trust. There’s a groove you embody once you get into a flow state, and that helps you feel like everything is alright. Normalcy has resumed. Oftentimes, what we do on the mat is a reflection of larger themes in our lives. If you’re straddling the line between wanting to dive into your New Year’s resolutions and craving a return to your routine, that’s perfectly normal. Perhaps you can find balance between the two by confronting this struggle on the mat. The challenge therein lies in this question: can you be both a beginner and an expert? The very nature of yoga suggests yes, although the term “expert” is never really used. But you can be a forever student while also trusting that you know what you’re doing. The trust is where the stability, the return to normalcy, comes in. The willingness to remain a student reflects your resolve to always be learning. Interestingly enough, newbie yogis and seasoned practitioners share several of the same priorities:
Here’s the truth: we are all always beginners and we are all always experts…in being ourselves. No one will ever be a better you than you. On the other hand, there will never come a time where you will know it all. Let that provide you both security (masked as routine) as well as opportunity (masked as uncertainty). That is the path of the beginner expert. A PEEK INTO MENTORSHIP WITH VICYASA™... Many prospective teachers, graduates of teacher training(s) and a handful of you that have a desire just to dive deeper into the many aspects of a yoga practice and teaching yoga regularly have been impacted greatly by our bespoke mentoring program. Here are some of the key topics I have programmed into varying syllabuses:
What if you're not a teacher and would like to prepare for training or enhance your ever-hungry-desire to absorb all things yoga? Holla' at me. Feel like your 200 hour training ended with you needing more questions answered? Want to expand on those teachings? Do you feel like there are areas of your teaching repertoire that need enhancing? Contact me for more info and enrollment. PRIVATES: ONE-TO-ONE WORK! If you want to set up any private sessions or events, please contact me through email. You can learn more about privates: CLICK HERE! SINGLE CLASSES We've added single class purchases to our on-demand offerings. How does it work? A $17 payment will give you access to a single pre-recorded class with Victor or anyone on his staff. The private link with unique access code will give you entry to that class, which you can load anytime you want. You'll have 24-hours of unlimited access to that class. No refunds, returns and you must use that class within 24-hours of receiving it before it expires. You can request a teacher on our on-demand options... featuring Demetra Kentrotas (@d_meetch), Leanne McDermott (@leannerays), Elinor Cohen (@elinorraerigby) and others. YOGA AT OHHHMMM LIVE VIRTUAL SCHEDULE: MONDAY: 1/6/2025 NO CLASSES TUESDAY: 1/7/2025 NO CLASSES WEDNESDAY: 1/8/2025 NO CLASSES THURSDAY: 1/9/2025 NO CLASSES FRIDAY: 1/10/2025 NO CLASSES SATURDAY: 1/11/2025 NO CLASSES SUNDAY: 1/12/2025 NO CLASSES *ALL CLASSES EST *SESSIONS 45/60 MINUTES *WAIVER STATEMENT: I understand that I must be in good physical health to participate in these classes, that my participation may cause an injury and that I should consult with my physician before I take a class. I am taking these classes at my own risk. I waive any claim for personal injury and any other damages that I may have against the school, studio and/or the teachers who are offering these classes. REGULAR RATES:
PAYMENT: VENMO -- @Vicyasa Paypal -- [email protected] NAMASTE, Victor Cotto www.YogaWithVictor.com Instagram: CottoVic Facebook: Yoga With Victor - Vicyasa™ |
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