The Flow Tribe x Beyond Yoga Libis

Hop on to the FLOW blog to read all about the Wednesday Wellness Warriors series we launched last week at Beyond Yoga Libis :) Vlog link available here. Enjoy!

On Teaching

The past few weeks I have been busy studying and preparing a class presentation because I led two modules at the current Beyond Yoga teacher training. My section was on a BIG topic, Yoga Philosophy: Sutras by Patanjali and the Chakra System. 

Despite agreeing, I first felt inadequate and questioned myself. But as I mentally prepared by studying and put together a multi-media deck for the trainees, I fell in love all over again with being a yoga teacher. Of course, I am first a wife and a mother. But another purpose of mine is to teach and spread the light, ignite the spark that is within all of us.

Posted this a few days ago on my Facebook timeline. I thought it was inspiring. Happy Sunday!

“Truth is the same always. Whoever ponders it will get the same answer. Buddha got it. Patanjali got it. Jesus got it. Mohammed got it. The answer is the same, but the method of working it out may vary this way or that. (115)” -Swami Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras

Take Root Kale Chips

Someone stop me from eating! I've become a victim of eating this bag of Take Root Kale Mix Chips in one sitting. It's happened twice and I'm sure again and again if someone doesn't put a stop to this madness! Seriously good and healthy for you.

Grab a bag or two from your nearest Beyond Yoga studio. 

230p per bag of chips.

Gift Guide for Yogis!

Christmas is less than a month away and you're in a panic because you haven't sorted out your presents for your friends and family? Don't fret, here are awesome gift ideas perfect for stocking stuffers meant for your loved ones.

FLOW 2013 Gift Guide for every Yogi

Yes, we all know someone who's simply addicted to yoga. She constantly bombards your instagram feed with her poses spelled in sanskrit like ardha chandrasana or perhaps her latest accomplishment, koundinyasana II which looks pretty cool but have no clue what it is. She is slowly transitioning to a vegetarian diet so she chooses to eat more greens, fruits and has started making green smoothies for breakfast.

OM Yoga Mat Bag P500

Because she support businesses that give back, she'd be happy to know that this yoga mat bag not only has her fave symbol - OM (same as her tattoo on her back), but also donates part of proceeds to charity.

Dharma Yoga Mat Sprays P235 for 100ml

Since she attends daily yoga classes, you know she'll appreciate this all-natural yoga mat spray which doubles up as a hand sanitizer too!

Gargoyle Oil Pulling Tonic P280

You can just imagine it- every morning, she will detoxify her system by Oil Pulling while reading the latest articles on Yoga Journal online.

Peace Love Yoga Eco Tote Bag P295

She'll love using this eco tote to her yoga classes or as a grocery shopping bag coz you know - she frowns upon plastics and wants to save the world one bag at a time :)

Ujjayi Rejuvenating Soy Wax Candle & Moisturizer by Earthchild P230

A rejuvinating mix of Citrus and Mint to help set the mood for any sacred space. A must-have for meditation and asana practice!

Granola Girl P550

It's vegan and contains 78% organic ingredients. This crunchy, nutty, fruity and yummy breakfast (or snack!) will power up your yogi any time of the day!

All items available at the ONLINE FLOW SHOP. Email orders at flowsurfyogasamba@gmail.com

Yin Yoga Teacher Training March 2014

I simply adore Yin Yoga. It is like no other yoga form because instead of activating the muscles, you work with deeper layers of the body like the fascia tissue, joints and bones by holding the poses in a 'soft surrendering state' for at least 3 minutes and more. I find that it is beginner friendly because we use props like bolsters, blocks and blankets in most poses. It is extremely relaxing once you get the groove of it. And it has a very serene effect on the mind.

I have been practicing this style of yoga since I discovered it through my first ever class under Margo Lao back when Pulse Yoga studio still existed in Greenhills.

Margo Lao was the first ever Filipina certified in Yin Yoga. She also happens to be a strong Ashtanga teacher, certified as well with Antigravity at Beyond Yoga (my batchmate!) and is now a rockin' Raw Food Chef for her brand, Raw Food and Yoga. At 40, she's truly inspirational! I just want to be like her when the time comes :)

My Yin practice continued on with self-study; mostly of articles & videos of Paul Grilley, a book by Bernie Clark and whatever material I could get my hands on. I attended the Asia Yoga Conference to meet Victor Chng and Bernie Clark to attend workshops and until I pursued teacher training myself under Victor Chng in Singapore last year. Since then, I have been leading Yin Yoga classes at Beyond Yoga and at the FLOW Surf Yoga Samba Weekend Retreats.

This coming March - Beyond Yoga will be offering a 50 hours Yin Yoga Teacher Training with Jo Phee, one of the first certified Yin Yoga teachers in Asia. She was also a primary teaching assistant to Paul and Sarah Grilley for many years. She is registered as a Yoga Alliance E-RYT 500 trainer.

To sign up early (avail of the early bird rate!) or have any questions about the practice or the training, please email me at monica@igobeyondyoga.com

Yoga Practice for a Cause

Come to any Beyond Yoga branches for your donations in cash or kind! 

This coming Wednesday, all sales from Beyond Yoga will be donated to the victims of Typhoon Yolanda. Show up to practice to support those in need. It's a win-win situation! I'll be leading the 9am Yin Yoga class at Beyond Yoga QC branch so see you there!

Victor Chng: Yin + Yang Yoga

Victor Chng giving out Yin Yoga Teacher Training handouts in 2012

Having completed my Yin Yoga teacher training under Victor Chng last December in Singapore, I was somewhat more prepared physically and mentally for the advanced series of workshops offered at Beyond Yoga last weekend.

Competed 100-hours Yin Yoga Teacher Training

His workshop topics were: The Fundamentals of Yin-Yang Balance & Longevity, The Key Instruments Working in Our Body (Yand Instruments of Separation, Yin Instruments of Unification), Tao of Yoga- The Path of Intergration, Arising the Yang in The Body.

I have so many notes but here are some key insights I'd like to share with you-

- I learned about preservation of life from the Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, how we can enhance the capabilities of our body to extend our life forces, almost tap into immortality. Check out this article on a herbalist from China who died way past 100 years old!

- To look at the body at a wholistic perspective, that everything is connected within. In the East, when someone is ill, they support your whole immune system vs in the West, when someone is ill, they operate on just the organ which is malfunctioning.

- There is a time for everything! Timing is crucial. This is why we wake up at a certain time, eat at a certain time, sleep at a certain time. Respect your body's natural cycle and expect to live longer lives. Whenever we fight to stay awake (drinking caffeine, even) to work.. then we disrupt our natural cycle. See chart below and click on the website for interesting facts about each organ associated to emotions in the body.

To learn more visit http://www.astrodreamadvisor.com/Qi-Cycle.html

- Victor spoke a lot, too, on Pre-Natal and Post-Natal Chi. To summarize, here's an explanation below:

"It is said Chi applies to the human body in 2 ways; inherit Chi and acquired Chi. Inherit Chi is the energy we receive from our parents at the time of conception. Acquired Chi is the energy accumulated by the quality of life we choose to lead, the food we ingest, and the quality of air that we breathe. It is believed  the major cause of all disease stems from a blockage of Chi circulation. People become ill when either they cannot absorb enough Chi or the circulation in their body becomes blocked. Human beings cannot sustain a high quality of life by food and breathing alone. It is important to have a strong flow of Chi energy, as the most nutritious food would be of no use if our inner constitution were weak. In order to absorb and integrate the external universal energy we must learn to integrate and strengthen the fundamental life force within." -http://blog.universalhealingsystems.com/chi-energy/

- On trying to conceive (for couples who have fertility issues), ovulation happens when unification of body chi is strong. So, eating and sleeping on time is crucial for the body to pull in nutrients, hold energy within to sustain a seed and nourish a growing child within. IF, you persist...go to a fertility center and become successful on getting pregnant, make sure that you have changed your lifestyle or the quality of the seed will perish. Ex. the life span of the child will not be long or your child's health may not be as good.

- If an ill person is in a coma, NEVER ask that person to fight its natural state (for your own egoic reasons). Learn to respect the body's state of preservation.

I'll need to attend Dr. Kit's TCM classes to be able to explain further some of the concepts introduced and reminded during the workshops. For now, that's a lot to chew on!

A Samba-Zumba Baby Shower Party!

My yummymummy soul sister and super Sambista, Denise is 8 months pregnant. What do awesome friends do at this time - throw her a SURPRISE baby shower!

Captured in FLOW Boracay by Maika

Artist extraordinaire, Noelle Hilario gave the idea of using Samba/Brazil colors for the theme of the party. I suggested that we do a Zumba party so that everyone can have fun while working a sweat (always a good thing!) with everyone.

So the fabulous plan was to invite Dee to a (fake) prenatal yoga class at Beyond Yoga. I even got another preggy mum to help me make her believe there really was a free trail session by a new foreign teacher that we are trying out (Thanks for playing along, Pam!)! Dee was so excited about the hoax, that I didn't have to worry until we were ALL running late. I had to let her know to come 30 minutes later than scheduled because the "fake prenatal yoga teacher" isn't ready yet.

This was the chaos minutes before Denise arrived! Crafternoon at Beyond Yoga studio!

I asked guests to bring their own vegetarian snack for the party. Noelle brought the Green Tea cake and cupcakes from Pipino, I brought my own green olive tapenade and cheese, Clarisse brought her own white bean dip and crackers, Devaki brought puto and Joyce brought donuts- this came in late so it isn't in the photo. (did you know Dunkin Donuts in Powerplant Mall does not use eggs...so it's actually vegetarian but not vegan since they use milk)

Look at the color coordinated Vegetarian spread: White, Yellow and Green Hues!

Yes, it was a success! Denise was genuinely surprised and fell for our plan :)

Happy Dee in Brasil color.

I have to thank the early birds...or at least those who came early enough for the SURPRISE!

Event styling by Noelle Hilario

Here we go! Zumba partttyyyyy time!

Florence Fling sponsored a prize for best Zumba dancer! Pau, our super fun Zumba-star teacher awarded Toni Bernardo for her groovy moves - she didn't miss a single beat!

Look at the stylish dress Toni won for herself (errr for her special someone?)

Visit Florence Fling at Crossings Shangri-la, Trinoma, Glorietta 

Zumba after glow with the whole group who came to celebrate Denise and her baby-in-tummy. We don't know the gender yet, that's another SURPRISE!!! :)

For Zumba or Yoga party inquiries at Beyond Yoga, please email inquire@igobeyondyoga.com and cc monica@igobeyondyoga.com. For event styling inquiries, you may contact Noelle Hilario at noellehilario@gmail.com Let's make your party, baby shower, wedding shower, any special event healthy and fun!

Sarah Powers in Manila

Beyond Yoga is thrilled to be bringing the founder of Insight Yoga to Manila this February! Sarah Powers has been an influential yoga and meditation teacher in the US since 1987. Her classes are a powerful weave of Yin Yoga poses (floor based poses to target the meridians of the body) with slow Yang poses that focus strongly on alignment from her Iyengar background.

"I think one of the main benefits (of yoga) is being more at home in our own skin. Whether we’re a large person, or very slight, and through the seasons of our lives- this body is our particular garden to take care of. And we start to have more respect and therefore more embodied dignity in the body. Rather than treating it like an object and comparing it to the ideal that we see in glamour magazines." -Sarah Powers

To know more about the upcoming weekend intensive, come join us for a free yin class by Dona Esteban on Jan 27 at Beyond Yoga Bonifacio High Street!

To register for Sarah Powers log on to http://www.igobeyondyoga.com/sarah-powers-workshop.html

Raw, Vegan & Crafty this October!

Beyond Yoga together with Breville is hosting a free Raw Food Demo with our lovely Asthangi, Margo Lao. Come drop by our gorgeous new studio at Bonifacio High Street!

***

Marie of Kitchen Revolution is an amazing vegetarian chef who can whip up really good & healthy meals. I was fortunate enough to get to hang with this really cool girl back when I was still living in Palawan where we had a picnic on the beach! Her Benefit Brunch menu looks really yummy PLUS you get to help animals, too!

To the animal lovers and the herbivores, the veg-curious and those who just happen to enjoy good food — take note! Here is a chance to fill your bellies with deliciousness while supporting a cause dear to my heart. Also if you haven’t been to any of my cooking classes and are curious, this is your chance to taste my food and see if healthy (vegan!) food can indeed taste pleasurable.

RSVP is much appreciated. Fake RSVP’s aren’t. Seating limited to 25. When you RSVP I will share with you the secret location.

This is in celebration of a couple of things:

1. Vegetarian awareness month
2. World Vegetarian Day (today)
3. My b-day
4. My vegetarian anniversary
5. A meal where everyone eats meat free is always something to celebrate 

***

I recently did an interview on Alessa Lanot. She is the brains behind Pipino & the cutest blog on the internet-  Life After Breakfast. She is is having her anniversary party on the same day! If you're into crafting & hop on to their Pino Makati branch ;)

Yoga is LOVE

Now, this is YOGALOVE

Yin Yoga Detox with Victor Chng

some of my favorite Yin Yoga poses :)

Over the long weekend, I immersed myself at Victor Chng's Yin Yoga intensive workshops at Beyond Yoga. I have met Victor and attended his classes at the Asia Yoga Conference in Hong Kong two years ago. His style is very different from that of Paul Grilley, Bernie Clark or Sarah Powers. Since he is Asian (Singaporean-Chinese), he is deeply influenced by Traditional Chinese Medicine and has integrated it with the Yin Yoga practice.

Victor has been a Hatha Yoga practitioner for many years until he met Paul Grilley in 2005. He trained with Paul on Yin Yoga and Anatomy then with Sarah Powers afterwards. He continues to undergo continuous training with them. (as well as Scott Blossom of Shadow Yoga, I hear!)

Here are the workshops intensives that I joined and my thoughts & lessons from each :)

Freeing The Hips, Sacrum & Lower Back
I honestly did not have notes during this class because I forgot to bring my notebook :P But I did have an awesome practice and felt REALLY HOT afterwards. I asked a fellow classmate and she said she felt the same! Perhaps this brought about detox symptoms?

Class photo after the Hips, Sacrum & Lower Back Series

Yin Yoga & The Energy Body: An Introduction to the Therapeutic and Meridian Application

Modified Dragonfly using props

• There are 3 layers, levels or planes - the gross or the physical, the energetic (where we deal with emotions) and consciousness (at seed level). He says that people get sick when there is disconnection in one of the 3, when there isn't flow. For instance, you have a seed thought or dream of wanting to be a pilot but your actions doesn't translate to that...let's say you are working in a call center and you don't have the drive or initiative to do what it takes to go for your true calling. Or another example I can think of is when we constantly stop ourself from voicing out what we truly feel or truly want to say (seed level consciousness). Day in and out you are not living your truth. This will cause blockages and eventually will take its toll on you.
• "An emotional imbalance will lead to a disfunction of the organ." I've written about this here. Science and conventional medicine is finally accepting that we are connected..our thoughts and our emotions will lead to our realities. Remember this basic mantra, "Thoughts become things!" Have you see the movie, What The Bleep Do We Know?  Watch it to see the power of your thoughts shaping your reality!
• "We need to accept that we are beyond the physical" -now, this is a universal truth. Kabbalists have the same view. Our physical world only comprises of the 1% reality. We are just on the tip of the iceberg, you need to go deep (as yin does to connect to the energetic body!), there is still a whole new realm, the 99% reality!
• In Yin Yoga, we basically work on the main meridians of the body. Working on our limbs (arms & legs) provide energetic stimulation on our main body. Our main body is where our organs are which are our power outlets or main batteries. Hands & arm balances work on our hearts and lungs while our legs work to detoxify our liver, kidneys and spleen. 

From all the classes I took under Victor, I would have to say that this is my favorite. In my classes, I've always put emphasis on the body to energetically heal itself through Yin Yoga.

Here I am getting comfortable in Half Saddle

Improving Digestion as Key Towards Better Health

• I have to admit that I was initially confused during the lecture of this specific workshop because Victor primarily believes in a Traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic approach to food which uses a lot of cooked warm foods (as opposed to the raw vegan diet with a lot of fruits which is somewhat considered cold to the stomach). He says that you prepare/cook food to be easily digested so you cut into small pieces and put on fire.
• The stomach is in a central location, if it has no power, the circumference will have no power as well. The center has to regulate/monitor the other directions. Therefore, a good digestion will give you a very long life.
• 7-9am is when our stomach meridian is actively digesting food. It is when the dragon awakes. So we must eat our breakfast during this time or have food in the stomach by then. Have your lunch before 1pm. 12noon is ideal because our body clocks follow the energy of the sun :)
• NEVER have meals with an iced drink. In fact, maybe it's best that you never drink anything cold. When you do, you numb the stomach making you eat MORE :P This is why all the fastfood meals offer iced teas or softdrinks in the package, aha!
• Meridian of the stomach is the same as the beauty line for the...face!

Victor with the Yin Yoga teachers of Beyond Yoga

Detoxifying The Body - Working The Liver and The Gall Bladder Meridian

• The liver and gallbladder meridian line is found at the side of the breasts below the armpit region. Always include poses that release the sides.
• Detoxification depends on the quality of the liver. The liver only works when we are asleep. The liver's hours are between 11pm to 1am so if you are still awake, you are making the liver work extra hard to keep up with your body. You need to be in deep sleep in order for your liver to heal your body.
• The liver is responsible for solid waste, bowel movement.

Victor Chng c/o Jane 

Tao of Yoga - The Foundation of Integration

• The state of TAO is when the Yin and Yang energies are balanced. Victor promotes both a Yin and Yang practice because we need both.
• In nature (as in life), everything goes through phases: a stage of expansion and contraction. There are really just 2 seasons- summer and winter. Autumn and spring are merely transitions.

Some Yang poses after our Yin

with Victor Chng after Tao workshop

Finale dinner for Victor Chng at People's Palace

If you have been practicing Yin Yoga regularly and are interested in pursuing teacher training in Singapore this December 8 onwards, please check out http://www.yinyogainasia.com/100hr_tt.php for more details :)

Beyond Yoga regularly offers Yin Yoga classes in Quezon City and soon at The Fort as well! Check out their website at www.igobeyondyoga.com

Even in the city, we FLOW.

Last August 4, was FLOW IN THE CITY at Beyond Yoga studio in Tomas Morato. It was a full day FLOW affair organized by the women behind Flow:SurfYogaSamba Weekend Retreats- Denise Gonzales-Bernardo, Monica Eleazar-Manzano and Noelle Hilario. “We wanted to bring the FLOW experience to people who are unable to leave work or family for out of town retreats which we offer 2-3 times a year”, Noelle says. “This is also a chance for regular retreat participants to get together for a reunion party”, adds in Monica.

The activities for the day included Neuro-Linguistic Program (NLP) talk by PJ Lanot, Antigravity Yoga by Monica Eleazar-Manzano, Zumba by Sharon Yu, Inner Dance by Pi Villaraza and a Green Smoothie workshop by Imee Contreras of Sunshine Daydream.

For the NLP workshop headed by PJ Lanot, the participants did communicative exercises with the use of personality and modality mirroring.  These are essential tools in dealing with others at work and at home.

Everyone was so excited to learn the art of flight from the Antigravity Yoga class by Monica Eleazar-Manzano. 

They all learned how to get into inversions like Back-belt Spider Man and Booty Wrap Monkey while enjoying the anatomical, therapeutic & hormonal benefits of being upside-down!

“We absolutely love heart thumping activities so we invited Zumba certified dance guru, Sharon Yu, to conduct a Zumba Party class”, Denise says. It was one-full hour of non-stop Zumba fun- which included lots of dancing, sweat and calories burned! MIO Watch Philippines representative, Ferdinand Aguila joined the class and measured the calories burned with his watch and awarded one lucky participant after the class! 

Participants had unlimited supply of Lightwater and Vitamin Boost to replenish lost vitamins and minerals from all the dancing and sweating.

Pi Villaraza of Bahay Kalipay, Palawan facilitated the Inner Dance process, which brings the concept of FLOW into spiritual form. In this healing modality, we embrace the fact that we are essentially all energy, all vibration. Transformation takes place when we ‘flow’ from one’s birth purpose, Villaraza states.

Imee Contreras and Toni Bernardo of Sunshine Daydream Live Foods gave a short demo on the benefits of the raw food diet and how to integrate this into our everyday fast-paced lives. Simply by adding some green leafy vegetables to a fruit smoothie, we are taking in lots of live enzymes that can do wonders for our health! 

All participants were given Goody bags filled with Goody ouchless accessories and other goodies by sponsors; Browhaus gift certificates, Mio Watch gift certificates, Lightwater and Vitaminboost bottles to keep us hydrated all through out the day, Moringana capsules and tea packs for an immunity boost.

Those who registered and came early were also given a set of gift certificates, earrings and rings from ENVY, gift certificates from STRIP and Nail Rituals organic foot and hand spa gift certificates which was given out by PBA-star Renren Ritualo, himself.

After a long day of workshops and activities, we had a fabulous feast sponsored by Kashmir Indian Restaurant and Dimsum & Dumplings. All the ingredients used for the vegetarian siomai and siopao are 80-90% organic plus fresh herbs and seasonal vegetables are used in food preparation as well. Kashmir Restaurant, Manila's oldest fine dining Indian restaurant, brought some good-ol Indian pica-picas: vegetarian samosas, pakoras and potato tikkis.

ANC’s Green Living TV crew with host Paolo Abrera were also present the whole day to cover the event.

To catch other more exciting event from FLOW, visit their sites:

www.flowsurfyogasamba.com

www.facebook.com/flowsurfyogasamba

www.twitter.com/surfyogasamba

www.flowsurfyogasamba.multiply.com

Instagram flowsurfyogasamba