Fall 2010 Retreat Highlights: It was a Yoga Miracle

• Beginning the day with a car rental pick up 'Um, excuse me sir, you want me to fit 3 people, 11 mats, 11 bolsters, blocks and straps in a Volkswagen beetle?'. Thankfully, we were given a larger car, at least where trunk space was concerned and got on the road. Not without first leaving the trunk open as we pulled away and then noticing that I had inadvertently popped the hood somewhere on the Harlem River Drive. Road trips are not without their bumps, right?
• Hot apple cider upon arrival at The Waterfall House. Thanks Chad!
• Tag team yoga with Jenny and Jimmy first night followed by the first of many amazing meals by Paco. Rain? What rain? 
• The. Hot. Tub.
• Waterfall hikes!
• No cell service! Eep!
• Saturday night Kirtan - Thanks Sarah for getting creative with the bouncy ball
• Paco
• Yoga photos for all! 
• Wood burning fires
• 5 amazing yoga classes
• Perfect Durga Puja to close the retreat

Thank you to everyone that made our first retreat wonderful!

  Save the Date! - Summer 2011 - Mid-June!

Meet the Teacher of the Month

Cari Friedman has been teaching at New York Yoga for many years and is currently teaching 4:45pm and a 6:30pm class on Fridays. Cari delivers an Anusara class that is both challenging and gentle all in one. Class is challenging because you will have an invigorating class, and probably get to practice your handstand, and gentle because she provides a supportive space for students to meet themselves on the mat and explore.

Cari will encourage you to find the good in all things. She teaches from a place that incorporates personal experience, fun and the Universal Principles of Alignment. She is a busy mom, devoted yogi and one of New York Yoga’s shining elite.

Cari, when did you first discover yoga?

When I was 21 – my best friend was becoming a teacher and I wanted to support her.

How long have you been teaching?

I have been teaching for 10 years; under Max Strom, in 2001, and experienced my first Anusara training with Jimmy & Ruthie Bernaert and Ellen Saltonstall, in 2001-2002.  I’ve continued to study with John Friend and other senior Anusara teachers since then.

What makes your class unique?

I encourage my students to step into their authenticity while offering humility, and playfulness.

What is your favorite pose to teach?

Handstand – because its one of the most exciting poses, its fun, it shakes you up. By taking you upside-down the pose makes you approach yourself. For most people it’s scary but that’s all in the mind. I like that handstand makes you step up to yourself and face that fear.

What is you favorite pose to practice?

No one pose.  Inversions are definitely a favorite, I like backbends because they are challenging and twists because they are healing and replenishing.

Best advice for beginners?

Remember that you are your own greatest teacher. Listen to how you feel and trust it. Do not be shy to ask questions and always state your concerns.

Best advice for more advanced yogis?

To stay humble and to always honor the beginner’s principle – remember you are always a student; always try to have a beginner’s mind.

What is your biggest yoga pet peeve?

I don’t think I have a pet peeve – but it’s always distracting when a mobile devise goes off in class.

How does teaching in an Anusara style influence your class?

When we open to the first principle “Open to Grace” we can open with a pause, a breath, to expand and find ourselves back to our most subtle and honest space.  From there we can apply the following Principles of Alignment to support us in coming back to our true nature. When we align to that nature through our bodies we empower & stabilize which encourages our freedom.  When we feel this from the inside out, we walk away remembering we are a part of something greater.

Has being a mom taught you anything new about yoga?

Being a mom is the ultimate yoga of patience and presence. Having a child makes you step up; as a mother you can’t be passive, you must participate and a child commands every second you have. You are alive, awake and as present as possible.

I have found that being a mom is one of the most incredible ways in which you can heal yourself. It has supported me in my own healing process as a woman – I have become a better person by having my daughter.

Surrender to Savasana

October - Pose of the Month

Changing seasons force us to adjust to different weather, schedules, clothing, et al. In our yoga practice and daily life, its important that we take the time to be still and accept the changes. Savasana, or Corpse Pose, allows us the time to physically and mentally accept all that is changing around us.

Benefits of the pose include but are not limited to:

• Calms the brain and helps relieve stress and mild depression
• Relaxes the body
• Reduces headache, fatigue and insomnia
• Helps lower blood pressure

How to - 

1. Rotate your legs in and out, and then let them fall gently out to a neutral position

2. Let your arms fall alongside your body, slightly separated from the body, palms facing upwards.

3. Rotate the spine by turning your head from side to side to center it.

4. Then start stretching yourself out, as though someone is pulling your head away from your feet, your shoulders down and away from your neck, your legs down and away from your pelvis.

5. Breathe deeply and slowly from your abdomen.

6. Stay in this pose for 5 minutes for every 30 minutes of practice. To exit, first roll gently with an exhalation onto one side, preferably the right. Take 2 or 3 breaths. With another exhalation, press your hands against the floor and lift your torso, dragging your head slowly after. The head should always come up last.

Autumnal Equinox Midnight Hot Yoga

Join Rachel Page to say goodbye to Summer and welcome Autumn. The Autumnal Equinox is a time to restore balance and harmony in your life. This is a time of harvest, a time to count your blessings, and a time to set your goals for the coming season. While the day and night are equal, examine the light and dark within yourself to find balance. Let Rachel guide you through a challenging vinyasa sequence as you explore the changes in nature and season, and look inward to appreciate changes and goals within yourself.

Wednedsay, September 22nd, 11pm - 12:15am
@ New York Yoga HOT
132 E. 85th St, 2nd Floor

$15 Class
Included with unlimited memberships and class packages

Meet the Teacher of the Month

Meg Carlough can be found teaching her Gentle, Basic and All Level Vinyasa classes at New York Yoga’s York Ave studio. If you are really lucky, you may even get to hear her beautiful voice during class or catch her at a Kirtan event. Meg is also a director of New York Yoga’s 200 and 300 hour Teacher Training programs. You can join Meg for the next 300 hour Teacher Training this Fall - October 3rd through May 8th. She is also on the faculty of this Fall’s 200 hour Teacher Training.


In class, Meg believes students, new and advanced alike, can learn from the humility of approaching postures with a fresh focus each class. She encourages every student to look deeper, get in touch with their body, and to take each day as its own new practice.

Meg, when did you first discover yoga?
I first discovered yoga in 1999 after a very serious motorcycle accident. Yoga helped me rebuild strength and heal.

How long have you been teaching?
I have been teaching for six years now. I did my 200 and 300 hour certifications at New York Yoga – so I am 100% home grown.

What makes your class unique?
I encourage people to slow down and get honest about things. Instead of practicing on auto pilot, I encourage people to question themselves. I believe that knowing yourself better on the mat helps you know yourself better in the world.

What is your favorite pose to teach?
Downward dog – because it’s a whole body pose. There are so many things to explore in this posture; every time I come to it, I find something new. Downward dog is one of the most common but one of the most complex poses. Again, it’s so easy to be on auto pilot in class, this pose is a good place to check in and feel what’s going on.

What is your favorite pose to practice?
I really enjoy practicing drop backs because it requires your full attention. You could start standing and move to wheel and then back to standing for example. It is a practice of balance and back bending altogether, which encourages you to be really present and awake. I believe that’s what practice is.

Best advice for beginners?
Be honest about what your body needs. It is easy to fall into habit and do a pose just because you always do or think you have to. For example, if your back is screaming at you to take it easy, why would you push yourself to do full wheel? Be honest with yourself, any given day, any given practice.

Best advice for more advanced yogis?
Same advice! I would say this especially applies if a student is advanced because it gets harder to stay honest.

What is your biggest yoga pet peeve?
Habit or unconsciousness – in other words, thinking that your pose is perfect without taking time to really be aware. You will get more out of your practice if you check in with yourself and be humble – admit that poses are not perfect and try to be more present in the moment.

One reader asks: What makes your gentle, basic and all levels classes different?
I offer different variations depending on the difficulty level of the class, but I really teach to the people who are there for class that day, so variations depend on that too.

Another asks: Why do I have enough flexibility to take a bind on one side of my body, but not on the other side?
We are all slightly asymmetrical. Chances are that you are doing something in day to day life to perpetuate imbalance. Practicing yoga is great for balance but we do spend most of our time off the mat – try to notice if you are doing something in your daily routine that focuses more on one side.

And lastly, what is your favorite thing to do besides yoga?
Anything puppy related! I love walking my bulldogs, Sheriff and Jelly in the park.

Open your heart with Ustrasana

September - Pose of the Month

As September begins, we prepare ourselves for the upcoming seasonal changes, first to Fall and then Winter. Ustrasana cultivates the patience we need to cope with these changes. It also allows us to tap into large resources of energy that we can tap into, like a camel taps into its large reserves of water when they are low.

Benefits of the pose include but are not limited to:

Alleviates constipation.
Relieves backache, rounded back and drooping shoulder.
Fully stretches the front of the body.
Regulates the thyroid gland.

How to -

1. Kneel on the floor with your knees hip width and thighs perpendicular to the floor.

2. Place your hands on your lower back, fingers pointing down. Use your hands to spread the back and lengthen down through your tail bone.

3. Inhale and lift your heart.

4. Lean back, keeping head in line with spine. *Beginners probably won't be able to drop straight back into this pose. Stay with hands on lower back, experiencing the heart opening.

5. Begin to move hands down backs of thighs towards ankles, left hand to left ankle, right hand to right ankle.

6. Stay in this pose anywhere from 30 seconds to a minute, maintaining a relaxed breath.

Meet the Teacher of the Month

Michael Gilbert is known for his Basic and All Levels classes at both New York Yoga and New York Yoga Hot.  He is also one of the Directors for New York Yoga’s Teacher Training program and the founder of Language of Intensity. Michael has guided many new yogis and teachers into the world of yoga through his alignment based classes and workshops.  Often, he can be heard encouraging students to “listen to your body” and to “check in, see how it feels” in order to help personalize the poses.

A firm believer in choice, he gives plenty of options or modifications during class; one of them is always “Smile. You’re doing yoga.”

Michael, when did you first discover yoga?

A friend took me to my first class in 1986 and I liked the calming affect yoga had on me. I also had some back pain at the time and realized after the fact that the yoga class had helped. I started teaching on and off that same year.

How long have you been teaching?

Twenty three years all together. I have been at New York Yoga for eight years now – I first got involved leading a workshop for the Teacher Training Program and after that started teaching a regular class.

What makes your class unique?

My aim in class is to get people to change their perspective. I also try not to take yoga too seriously.

What is your favorite pose to teach?

Revolve triangle. Because if there is one pose that alleviates the most conditions - knee pain, sciatica, back pain etc. - this is the pose. Revolve triangle opens up the outer edges of the body better than anything other pose.

What is you favorite pose to practice?

Halasana and shoulder stand – calms you down, gets rid of stress and restraint. I am always interested in inversions because they allow me to see world in a different way.

Best advice for beginners?

Always recognize that you have a choice. I find many beginners come to class and try to force themselves into everything or push to hard. So if you are new to yoga, remember that you have options and don’t over do it.

Best advice for more advanced yogis?

Focus on how a pose feels to your body versus what you think the perfect pose is.

What is your biggest yoga pet peeve?

My biggest pet peeve would have to be when students don’t stay for the whole class, because the person leaving early disturbs other students.

Our readers would like to know two things. What are you reading now?

101 Things I Learned in Architecture School by Matthew Frederick. Someone told me that it is a beautiful book on changing perception related to contradiction – so far that is very true.

And what is your guilty pleasure?

My kids. Not chocolate or sweets or anything like that – definitely my kids.

Well… and maybe red wine.

Michael is Directing the Fall 2010 Teacher Training with Jenny Gammello
and teaches 
Monday 11:00a-12:20p - Vinyasa Basics
Thursday 4:35p-5:50p - Vinyasa All Levels
Thursday 8:15p- 9:30p - 75 Min All Levels Hot Vinyasa
Sunday 9:50a-11:20a - Vinyasa Basics