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I spent the better part of last fall participating in 200-hour yoga teacher training. Prior to the spiritual and emotional journey I experienced during the training, my yoga practice was predominately asana (body position/poses).  The physical practice of yoga provided me with balance, a physical and emotional release of stress, great muscle tone, and an overall good feeling.

Throughout teacher training, and even now after graduating, my asana practice deepened immensely, both in the studio and in my home practice. In addition to helping me maintain physical strength, balance, and health, my now more mindful asana practice offers a strong sense of awareness – physical, emotional and spiritual awareness.

Holding a pose one or two breaths beyond what my physical body tells me is possible, forces me to focus inward, restoring awareness to my emotional and spiritual bodies. I tap into, and trust, my emotional and spitual energy as I hold steady in the pose, bringing awareness back to my body and how it reacts as I go deeper.

It is in this moment of heightened awareness on the mat that I experience the connection between my physical, emotional, and spiritual bodies. And it is with this greater sense of awareness that I aim to approach my life off the mat – with increased strength, improved alignment, and balance.

Two pieces from the Yoga Stripped Series {New}. Bright, colorful physical bodies done with pastels and the background deep and intense done with acrylic. Enjoy.

Yoga, Stripped Series - Gomukhasana (Pastels, Acrylic)

Yoga, Stripped Series - Parsvottanasana variation (Pastels, Acrylic)

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