TOP SHELF // Zero Proof Recommendations

With Sober October around the corner I’m sharing some of my favorite zero proof beverages that I’ve been enjoying for the past 2+ years!

De Soi aperfifs

I’ve tried all of their flavors - my current flavor is Champignon Dreams. The adaptogenic ingredients : reishi mushrooms, passion flower and L-theanine.

Drink Joyous sparkling wine

The perfect swap for a champagne toast or mimosa.

Athletic Brew Beer

Add a cinnamon sugar rim to Dark & Groudy or an orange to Wit’s Peak and thank me later. Bonus! Their Two for the Trails program gives back up to $2M annually to protect and restore local hiking trails.

Optimist Drinks smokey

Enjoy the added smokey depth to a zero proof mezcal margarita.

Cedar Drinks classic

A simple swap for the classic gin and tonic with notes of juniper, coriander and rooibios makes this anything but boring.

Luluna Kombucha

Locally made in New England with refillable bottles and Boston farmers markets. I’ve been mixing up my flavors…my most recent fill - solar eclipse.

Whether you’ve given up alcohol completely, are sober curious, or simply taking a break for the night, I hope these recommendations serve as a helpful and mindful starting point for you to explore your options!

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Optimize your potential with sankalpa

We live in a society with constant pressure to perform. We set quarterly goals at work, new years resolutions, and intentions. If left unchecked the constant pressure to perform to meet the expectations of others will lead to burnout. One thing that is missing from all of these is understanding the importance of WHY?

“On this path you must first awaken your sankalpa shakti, the power of will and determination to overcome your resistance.” - Swami Rama

Yoga provides us a roadmap to look beyond external performance markers and begin to explore our personal potential. It provides a systematic process to remove ego as we settle into stillness and witness our truest, highest self. And from this experience we gain insight into what’s important, where we are headed and perhaps most importantly, why.

A sankalpa is declarative statement, resolution, or intention formed at the heart in which you vow to commit a specific goal. Translated from sanskrit :

san - concept or idea formed at the heart

kalpa - a way of proceeding

There are 4 types of sankalpas :

1. Dharma - life purpose.

2. Artha - material means (to fulfilling your purpose)

3. Kama - pleasure.

4. Moksha - freedom.

It’s great to have a lot of goals. But the truth is you can’t be working on everything all at once and expect to see sustainable results. By taking a step back and evaluating what season you’re in you can better determine the type of resolution is best fit to be as efficient as possible working with the wisdom of this particular season. Consider what you have going on for the next 6 months…

• Which of the 4 areas needs the most attention?

• What would be the best use of your time / what do you have the bandwidth for?

• What is your north star for (this season of) life?

I remember waking up one day after living in Boston for 4 years realizing I’d been so focused on pursuing my dharma (teaching) and artha (rent, groceries, this city is expensive!) that I had been completely neglecting kama (developing friendships + pursuing hobbies). That realization offered the opportunity to begin envisioning a more fulfilling, balanced life and I made the suddenly easy decision to stop teaching weekends. A few months in I was hosting friends for brunch at my apartment and planning a week long trip to one of my bucket list places - Joshua Tree.

When you know where you’re headed it will become easier to make the right choices to keep you on your path. This clear direction helps you be more efficient + effective in realizing your sankalpa as it eliminates decision fatigue and determines where to put your time, energy and resources.

4 tips for staying accountable to your sankalpa : 

1. Establish a daily practice that allows you to return (even if just for a moment) to your truest self.

2. Be specific - understand what it looks like, feels like.

3. Progression (Vinyasa krama) - wise progression. It’s not going to happen over night. Have a plan that progressively introduces this into your life in a way that will be sustainable for years to come. 

4. Write it down in present tense - as if it has already happened, as if it is already true. 

Further reading recommendations :

• Path of Fire and Light (Swami Rama)

• The Four Desires (Rod Stryker)

• Radiant Rest (Tracee Stanley)

How Performance is Impacted by Doshas.

How you experience the world is unique. We’re familiar with introverts and extroverts, star signs and enneagrams. So what is a doshas and how does it impact your performance?

Dosha is your energetic makeup that informs how you interact with the world around you. There are three doshas : vata, pitta and kapha. Each of us has a unique combination of all three, creating a personal energetic thumbprint. In developing an understanding of the doshas we can explore the impact of our environment. The spaces that we’ll thrive in, and even the places that we’ll crash and burn. That is if we choose to pay attention…

One of the biggest factors to not reaching reaching peak performance is burnout or mismanagement of energy input vs output.

We’ve all seen it : The athlete that gets injured right before the big game. The smartest student in the class needing to take a term off after anxiety takes over. Deeply passionate high performers are often at the highest risk of burnout because of their willingness to ignore signs + symptoms of stress until it’s too late.

This is where a yoga practice can have a huge impact!

When you are able to recognize how stress + tension is showing up for you physically, mentally and emotionally you can select practices that will help pacify these symptoms and return to homeostasis.

Step 01 : Identify signs + symptoms of burnout.

Step 02 : Determine which of the three doshas is presenting most imbalanced.

Step 03 : Implement pacifying practices such as asana (movement) + pranayama (breath work ) + meditation + lifestyle changes.

Step 04 : Return to center and continue pursuing your highest potential.

The 3 doshas : vata, pitta and kapha all have their unique strengths. For the purpose of understanding the potential of burnout mitigation the list below offers a brief glimpse into symptoms of stress and pacifying practices :

Vata -

• Symptoms : anxious, insomnia

• Pacifying practices : forward folds / twists + longer exhale

• Recommended classes : restorative + yoga nidra

Pitta -

• Symptoms : irritable, argumentative

• Pacifying practices : twists / some backbends + samavritti (equal breath)

• Recommended classes : hatha + iyengar

Kapha -

• Symptoms : over attached, lack of motivation

• Pacifying practices : laterals / backbends + longer inhale

• Recommended classes : dynamic vinyasa + ashtanga

The purpose of your yoga practice isn’t to get better at the practice. The purpose is to utilize the practice to mitigate burnout, reset to a state of balance and return to optimizing the potential of your life.

To more about developing a progressive personal practice here.

Personalize Your Practice : Who should you hire?

There are a few major factors to take into consideration when finding the right private yoga teacher for you .

1. What are your goals?

2. What are their credentials / experience?

3. What is your investment budget (time / money)?

GOALS : Many of us are introduced to the movement side of the practice, asana. However, the real magic comes from integrating the entire system of yoga to release physical, mental, and emotional tension that is holding us back from reaching and living out our highest potential. This integration takes us from where we are to where we want (need) to be.

My intake with new students includes a 15 minute consultation + comprehensive questionnaire and provides critical information to prescribe the most effective practices for my students. Some key questions / observations include :

• Where do you hold the most physical tension?

• What are your compensation patterns and why?

• Do you find it easier to hold at the top of your inhale or bottom of your exhale?

• What peak performance (or high stress) moments do you have coming up in the next 90 days?

• What is your reaction when asked to be still for 10 minutes?

Is there a clear roadmap for your time together?

CREDENTIALS / EXPERIENCE : I’m going to keep it real - “yoga instructors” are a dime a dozen these days. Running a yoga teacher training program is an excellent revenue stream for studios. Does graduating from a 200 hr yoga teacher training program mean you’re ready to start teaching? Not necessarily - let’s break it down.

200 RYT - successfully completed 200 hours of training. This is the minimum requirement to become a certified yoga teacher (per the Yoga Alliance).

500 RTY - successfully completed 500 hours of training.

200 eRYT - completed 200 hours of training + 1,000 teaching hours + 2 years of teaching experience.

500 eRYT - completed 500 hours of training + 2,000 teaching hours + taught a minimum of 4 years (since completing their first training).

Do they have the training + experience to take you from where you are to where you want to be efficiently?

INVESTMENT : When hiring a private yoga teacher you are investing both your time and money. It is important to consider your investment budget. Before you make the investment I highly recommend you do a vibe check! If the teacher has a public offering coming up soon take it. And while you’re there keep an eye out for their ability to help offer individualized variations, answer questions, etc.

Proximity : For many clients the ability to continue their routine while traveling is critical. Does this teacher offer in-person and virtual sessions?

Cadence : You get out what you put in. And consistency is key! How often would you like to practice / month?

Is this the right teacher for your during this season of your life?

Finding the right teacher for you may take time. Don’t be afraid to ask around! Word of mouth is the best referral out there.

Think I might be the right teacher for you? Do a vibe check in one of my upcoming workshops or group classes!

Then book your 15 minute complimentary virtual consultation here.

Personalize Your Practice : 2 major benefits

With studios and group classes on every corner yoga continues gaining mainstream attention, and rightfully so! In todays high paced world the benefits of reduced stress and increase mobility add immediate value to our quality of life. Many high performers find themselves spending an hour on their yoga mat in a group class. But what if I told you that dropping into a group class hardly scratch the surface of the potential of the practice and the impact it can have on your life?

Yoga is a systematic approach to pursuing your highest self, your highest potential, freedom. The practice as described in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali outlines an 8 folded path to the practice :

1. yamas - restraints

2. niyamas - observances

3. asana - posture

4. pranayama - breath control

5. pratyahara - withdrawal of the senses

6. dharana - concentration

7. dhyana - meditation

8. samadhi - freedom

This path has many forks in the road :

• Should my asana practice focus more on twists or lateral bends?

• Should I be developing my inhale or exhale?

• What technique turns my awareness inward as quickly as possible based on my unique distractions?

• What am I concentrating on?

• Why...?

There are 2 major benefits of a personalizing your practice :

1 // More efficient + effective.

I always wanted to run a half marathon, but every time I started to training with a generic plan I’d quit after the first week. It felt too far too soon and my back would lock up. Through the trusted guidance of my running coach (@runthisb) I was able to run my first mile. With progressively programmed mileage + rest days I was able to run 3 miles. With personalized speed work and cross training I eventually crossed the finish line, crushing my goal of 2 hours at 1 hour 49 minutes 47 seconds.

The personalization of your yoga practice takes you from where you are to where you want to go, as efficiently as possible.

• physically - asanas (postures) and their unique variations tailored to your goals / alignment develop stability + mobility.

• mentally - pranayama (breath work) practices balance your nervous system and move you from how you feeling to how you want (need) to feel.

• emotionally - specific meditation techniques move you in the direction of your highest potential.

2 // Higher return on investment.

I knew I needed to build strength in my glutes to reduce chronic back pain, but after years of taking group classes I still found myself grabbing the same set of dumbbells. Through personalized progressive programming from my physical therapist (@themethod.pt) I was able to increase my deadlift from 70 lbs to 215 lbs in 6 months. This investment increased my strength and decreased pain in a fraction of the time.

Time is money. Personalize a progressive practice plan that is aligned with your unique performance goals / schedule in mind.

So how do you personalize your practice? The good news is that you don’t need to figure it out on your own. The systematic wisdom of yoga has been passed down for thousands of years from teacher to teacher. Hire a trusted teacher to be your guide.

Not sure who to hire? I’ve outlined it for you in the next blog post here.

Grief is Personal

I sit in anticipation of grief around the corner, knowing that one of my greatest loves is taking her final lap. The emotional stress shows up in the obvious tears while other symptoms of the sadness linger beneath the surface. In-between quiet tears I find myself bantering with the woman known and loved by so many, my beloved GranEB. I’m sure I’ll have more to share on the lessons passed down and the legacy she’s left when the time finally comes, but for now I choose to communicate in-real-time the shift in my personal yoga practice to support my grief waves of grief / joy.

Grief is personal. The yoga tradition and sankhya philosophy introduce the three doshas (vata, pitta, kapha). The doshas provide a unique energetic blueprint we are born with that determine how we interact with the world. Your unique dosha(s) will influence your physical, mental and emotional response to grief. It has been quite fascinating living with my cousin during the shared experience of losing our last grandparent. While our circumstances are the same, our responses to how we process this goodbye are different.

Grief will demand our attention. And what I need to pay attention during this time to keep me centered will be unique. As a practitioner I look to my presenting symptoms:

• physical - low back pain, aching joints

• mental - anxiety, lack of mental focus

• behavioral - fatigue, restlessness, low appetite

Two years ago while experiencing the grief of heartache and a global pandemic my symptoms spiraled. With experience comes wisdom. Through deep personal work, studying of the practice and the support of my teachers I’ve developed the ability to recognize signs + symptoms before they snowball and adjust my practice to support my needs. My current presenting grief symptoms indicate a vata imbalance. Understanding this points me in the direction of kapha. Incorporating the stabilizing and restorative practices will help calm my nervous system and effectively reset. This will include personalizing my practice with more :

• warm baths + grounding foods

• twists + forward bends

• samvritti (1:1) and longer exhales (1:2)

• yoga nidra

Yoga is personal. As I walk this final lap with GranEB I will remain disciplined and consistent in my practice, remembering it is not designed to eliminate grief but to remain connected to the full spectrum of the experience - joy.