Congrats to our 27 challengers who really got their yoga on!!  What a way to start a new year!

For those who missed out, we have decided to hold a special challenge from February 20th – March 20th.

Join the 30 Day Kickstart to Rejuvenation with Amanda!  Work with Amanda for 30 days on specifically cleansing and strengthening your blood leading into spring.

Included in this challenge:

-strengthening and rejuvenating tea blend to be consumed almost daily

-instruction and support for 4 days of fasting (1 day per week)

-2 Days grace

Price is $130 plus $50 deposit.

Amanda is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, having graduated in 2002.

She will be following your progress and offering weekly nutritional and lifestyle advice & tips to keep you motivated.

Image source: posterize / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

There was a time when ancient wisdom was kept in great secrecy and limited to masters. Devote followers would redeem tiny morsels of enlightening knowledge from their teachers, after completing arduous tasks and ascetic feats. Today everything has changed. The internet has made us all wise. Thousands of gurus post their wisdom in blog or video format on YouTube and voila, one can have their Self realized in a matter of minutes.

We also live in a time where the word Apocalypse has become forefront in our minds. We have arrived at 2012 and everyone is talking. Rather than fear a doomsday event, we can look deeper and find that the Greek root of the word means a full, divine revelation. These are days where the secrets are coming into the light for all to see; all knowledge becoming accessible; a time of great revealing after a long time of great forgetting!

So what does this have to do with SSHY and Ume’s Kitchen? A lot. The staff and teachers, here, are sharing what was once a very coveted and hidden knowledge: esoteric wisdom that reaches thousands of years into history. Yoga is old and hotter than ever. When you come out of the hot room, sweating and pondering the purpose of your birth, there sits a mysterious place called Ume’s Kitchen. Unfolding at a turtle’s pace, is Winnipeg’s most unique kitchen. While the rabbit nods off to sleep, Amanda Ing, the visionary owner of SSHY and Ume’s Kitchen, has been working hard behind the scenes, envisioning a place where the esoteric sciences can blossom in full view and the people of Winnipeg can now access what was once reserved for a very few.

We are coming up on 3 years of trial and error in creating something entirely new for the community. Coffee, juices, and the typical fanfare that appease the senses are not what this place is about. It goes much deeper and far reaching than that. Attempting to demystify and share the mysterious is not an easy undertaking. People like the comfort of their own knowing. What they do not know often scares them. We’ve had to rethink the vision many times but the dream is alive more than ever and is manifesting.

My first blog here, is more an invitation to patience and openness for what is unfolding: a blending of yoga, macrobiotics and ayurveda for all who want to experience the healing wonders of these ancient sciences with a modern twist.

We are going to kick off this apocalyptic year with open houses once a month AND one celebratory event per month such as Valentine’s Day (coming up on February 14^th!). Each open house will host talks, sharing and samples to introduce these esoteric philosophies with fun and friendly ease. Each celebratory day will include delicious ayurvedic and macrobiotic treats after class.

Amanda Ing (yoga, holistic nutrition), Kalee Mund (Ayurveda) and myself, Tannis Kohut (Macrobiotics and energy medicine) are looking forward to these events with much enthusiasm. We hope to see you Sunday,February 26^th and Sunday, March 18^th for our first open house days. Come and sweat, stretch, relax, listen, sample, chat, enjoy and experience the wonders of these ancient ways with us!  

Blessings along your path,

Tannis Kohut

Many of you have been hearing the word Ayurveda (ah-yer-vey-duh) being used in and around the studio over the last couple months and some of you may have been familiar with it before.  Many may not be aware of the connection and expansive history that Yoga and Ayurveda share.   

The two go hand in hand and are the ancient life disciplines that have been practiced in India for thousands of years. 

* Yoga is the science of union with the Divine, and Ayurveda is the science of life 

* Ayurveda is the healing side of Yoga, and Yoga is the spiritual tradition from which Ayurveda emerged 

* Through Yoga one prepares for a healthy mind and through Ayurveda one prepares for a healthy body 

* Yoga helps with enlightenment and Ayurveda helps with perfect health 

Yoga and Ayurveda originate from the Vedic traditions of India, and both are a means of gaining and maintaining better health.  

Yoga is a spiritual science of self-development and self-realization through a wide range of methods that span from physical postures, breathing exercises, mantra and meditation all based on the philosophy of living a natural life. 

Ayurveda is the traditional medicine of India and like yoga covers a wide array of health practices including diet, herbs, exercise, bodywork, detoxification programs and life-style management regimens that relate to our unique individual constitution and laws of nature. 

Yoga and Ayurveda are two complementary systems of maintaining health and human development.  They were developed by the legendary rishis or holy men, who understood the laws of the universe and the inner workings of the cosmos that hold the key to transformation of the Self. 

Join Amanda, Tannis and myself for a little bit of extra love on Valentine’s Day. We will be delivering delicious food and beverages made with love onTuesday, February 14th following the 5pm & 7pm classes. 

The tasty Valentine's Day menu includes Wheat-free Chocolate Almond cookies, Macrobiotic Ume Papita Stuffed Rice Balls (What the heck are those you ask? Come on down & see for yourself!), and Tannis' Special Quenching Coconut Lassie Drink. There will also be a healthy Ayurvedic Mung Dahl meal for purchase if you would like to complete your day in a delicious & nutritious way. Cash only please.

I will also be here at SSHY for our upcoming monthly open house Sundays (First one - Sunday, Feb. 26th!) for questions on treatments (ayurvedic facials, body work, diet counselling etc.) or even to share a cup of delicious tea that I have prepared for you!  I will be involved in the April Yoga challenge which promises to be the first of it’s kind with a plethora of goodies built in to the challenge to help set you up for the best health you ‘ve felt in years!

Stay tuned for videos and monthly blogs from myself, Amanda and Tannis on recipes, treatments, and how to make ayurveda a part of your daily rountine and lifestyle. 

Sincerely,

Kalee Mund

Children's Bikram yoga classes are back!

Our kids hot yoga class was a great success last year, so we will be holding another round from February 5th - March 11th, 2012.

The details:

• For ages 5-10 yrs
• Sundays from 12:45-1:30pm
• Price is $36 plus tax for 6 weeks. Yoga mat is included. Or pay drop-in ($8 plus tax per class).

Space is limited, so call the studio (452-7412) or sign up at the front desk!

We are very excited to welcome Rositha, a certified reflexologist and alternative practitioner to the Stafford Street Hot Yoga family! Read on for more details about the wonderful healing coming to our Winnipeg hot yoga studio...

Message from Rositha, our new reflexologist

Happy New Year everyone!  This is the year for "changes".  One of the changes here at Stafford Street Hot Yoga is that I have joined the centre and am offering Reflexology, Thai Foot Massage and Flower Essence Consultations available on Mondays.  My name is Rositha and I am a Certified Reflexologist and a member of the Reflexology Association of Canada. I have been doing Reflexology for over 7 years and have also taken courses in Hand, Ear and Meridian Reflexology.  Reflexology relieves tension, improves circulation and helps promote the natural function of the related areas of the body through the application of pressure on reflexes in the foot.  I always think of Reflexology as an internal massage working on your organs, glands and various body parts.

The feet don't lie and if there is an imbalance in the body, it will show up in your feet. I also do Thai Foot Massage, which is similar to Reflexology but is more of a massage for the entire leg from the knee to the toes. It restores balance to the body/mind through the reflexes of the feet that are linked to the energy meridians.  It is a treatment for the lower legs and feet using massage, thumb-walking and a wooden stick to stimulate reflex points. It's very relaxing and good for circulation and moves stagnant energy from the body.  It is usually an hour and a half session.

My passion for the past 20 years is working with the flower and tree essences.  This is not essential oils, but vibrational energy medicine. There are no scents or smells, just the energetic life force of the flowers, trees, and herbs in the essences. We all have emotional "stuff" that we need to let go of and the essences are used to release the emotional and mental disharmony within us.  They are safe, non-addictive and will not interfere with medications.  They help support us emotionally in a safe, natural, holistic way.  Depending on your specific issues, a remedy bottle can be made up just for you and whatever it is you are going through and it's taken in water or on your tongue on a daily basis.  The essences have been around for over 80 years and are a great way to help us move through and support our emotions.  Particularly now, in 2012, we need to keep our own vibration high.

If you'd like to book an appointment with me on Mondays at Stafford Street Hot Yoga, please call me at 792-8723.

A Reflexology session is $45, Thai Foot Massage is $55 and a Flower Essence Consultation including the remedy bottle is $45.  All taxes are included.

For the month of January I am offering a discount of 10% on Reflexology and Thai Foot Massage. In addition, I have a yoga blend essence that is normally $20 a bottle and I will discount that 15%.

If you have any questions, please email me at rositha@mymts.net or check out my website www.rositha.ca