yoga on the road: pit stop

oh my, where do I begin...

Last week was quite the eventful week. I've been on the road about 3 months, now, and I was starting to really miss my family - so since I was only a few hours away for a change, I decided to stop by home in between events. Sunday night, I hit the road about 9 pm after the event in Lisle. This put me home close to 2 am. I was exhausted, but so glad to be home.

It turns out, I am really lucky I arrived at such a ridiculous hour. About ten minutes after we got to my parent's house, we rushed my dad to the hospital. He had a TIA, which is basically a warning sign for a major stroke. My dad was fortunate to be awake and respond to this feedback from his body, before something even more serious occurred. After several tests at the hospital on Monday, we learned that his left carotid artery was almost completely blocked and he needed surgery to prevent having a stroke. Unfortunately, heart disease runs in our family, so this was not the first procedure my dad had experienced to keep his heart and arteries functioning properly. That doesn't make it less scary, though, trust me. He is doing ok, now. Doing great, in fact. He is back home and ready to swing a golf club in no time. Thank you so much for all your thoughts and prayers last week - they worked :)

This experience with my dad made me realize how important good health is to me...working for Kashi has made a permanent impact on my life. I am learning so much about nutrition, overall health and how to maintain a healthy lifestyle . I was raised eating healthy foods and was already very health conscious, but there were some grey areas here and there. Not anymore. There is no way I could go back to pretending I don't have the knowledge to live healthy. There is no excuse. In fact, its really not that hard to maintain. You start to feel good, all the time. You have lots of energy, so staying active is no problem. When you give your body the right type of fuel, things just work better. It makes perfect sense. If you already do all of this, good for you. I am truly grateful that you take interest in your health. If you don't, please start. And, if you need help, I would be happy to help in any way possible.

Living a healthy lifestyle is part of yoga. When you practice yoga, your awareness increases. You not only start thinking about how to move and breathe simultaneously, you start to think about your actions and even your words. The awareness is contagious, really. You start to stop and think, rather than just doing. Its a beautiful thing. I could go on and on about how yoga effects your life, but its really something you have to experience. If you are looking for the first step to good health, just do yoga. It works, I promise.

After a few days of much needed quality time with my family (and pup), I was back on the road. Saturday afternoon I flew to Indianapolis to join back up with my crew. I was happy to arrive in enough time to meet up with Janet, Amanda and Sean for dinner that night. Janet and Amanda have been coming to my class for a long time. Back home, we made a tradition out of going to dinner after class every week. When I told them I took the job with Kashi, they assured me they would make a road trip and come visit. They held true to their word and met me in Indy. It was so much fun to catch up with them and "play" yoga :)

Saturday night, we met at a place called Harry & Izzy's, downtown Indianapolis. They told me they had a surprise before sushi and it would be the best thing I ever had. I knew this had to be good. Turns out, Harry & Izzy's has a signature shrimp cocktail that will make you cry your eyes out, then want more. It's the sauce... they make it in house and shred their own horseradish right before serving it. It was incredible - in a good/bad way. Lots of fun. After a few tears, we went to get sushi across the street. We had a blast catching up and telling stories. I am so glad they came to visit.

Our event in Indy was at a tennis championship. Apparently, there were some pretty big names there, but I wouldn't know the difference. I don't follow tennis. Anyway, my friends came to practice yoga for a bit, before hitting the road to go back home. I showed them a few fun new tricks I've picked up on the road and we played around in my yoga tent for a while - we were upside down most of the time, as you can see in the photos. Amanda's husband, Sean, even braved a handstand in the middle of the room. It was a lot of fun. I can't wait to practice with them again soon.

Even though I love being on the road, it is so great to have visitors on tour. It feels like I get a little taste of home, even though I am gone. Plus, I get to share this experience with people who are not on tour....which is always fun. Life on the road...sure does keep things interesting.

I am on vacation next week, for a whole week! Pretty ironic that I spend my vacation days at home, now. A few months ago, the term "vacation" had a completely different meaning. I hope to see as many friends and family as possible, while I am back home. I am teaching the Thursday 6pm class at my studio (Southtown Yoga). I hope to see lots of my St. Louis yogi friends at class.

This week we are in Michigan at a huge art fair. We are definitely feeling the Midwest heat and humidity. Keep your fingers crossed that I don't melt, while teaching yoga :) Think cold thoughts...

Until next time....