YYoga

Preet, the CEO & Founder of OrganicLives, wants to share his 'special smoothie' recipe with all of his friends at YYoga! With amino acid-rich hemp seed, nutrient-rich bananas, and sprouted almond milk, this smoothie is guaranteed to be one of the best ways to help you recover from any workout.

Here are the Victoria Day class schedule adjustments for Monday May 21st. Please feel free to check our schedule online before coming to class, and have a great break!

When YYoga Kitsilano opens its doors mid-June, our South Granville center will evolve into a home base for YYoga Teacher Training programs and workshops!

A picture's worth a thousand words! 

Kitsilano is one of Vancouver's most unique, friendly and beautiful communities and now we want to know what you love most about it. Share a photo that expresses what you love about Kitsilano on our Kitsilano Facebook page wall and you'll be entered to win a 12 month membershipwith mat & towel service, a $1,558 value!

I was feeling fairly lethargic after a rather gluttonous holiday (who can say no to shortbread?! I know I can’t). My naturopath suggested that I do a 21-day cleanse – no wheat, no sugar, no dairy. I am, quite possibly, the least creative chef on the planet, so a highly restrictive cleanse was off the table (literally…).

Fear trickled down my back; my hiking boots too loud on the asphalt.  I tried to hurry but all the streets looked the same.  I needed to find the path.  I needed to find it now.  I turned the map around again, searching for a street sign.  My heart pounded against my backpack as the walked alone through the streets of Pamplona, Spain.

Thanks to our community, we have helped raise $13,200 in donations to date for Inspire Health through the sale of F Cancer bracelets.

We've adjusted our schedules for the Easter weekend and the below classes have been cancelled, please feel free to check our schedule online before coming to class, and spread some Easter love!

We're excited to be an official studio partner of Wanderlust Festival in 2012. Wanderlust just announced a 4th festival to take place in Canada this summer. Tickets are on sale now! Check out more information below. 

The following article was submitted by a member of our community. If you have a story you'd like to tell, please email news@yyoga.ca.

I had the pleasure recently of taking part in a wonderful two hour meditation workshop led by  Chris Brandt. Along with all the usual magic that comes with participating in group meditation and learning new meditative techniques, I had the added joy of experiencing it with Elle Basten, the person I credit with starting me down my current meditative path and helping me to heal and grow through Yin.

On Wednesday, March 28th from 10:00am - 12:00pm, our Twitter feed is getting taken over by Dr. Marissa Marciano, YYoga wellness practitioner! Ask your wellness related questions to @YYoga using the hashtag#YYogaWellness.

Thank you to those who exercised their creativity for BC Children's Hospital by submitting artwork for the cover of Listen to Understand Vol. II!

From January 4 to March 31, 2012, all money raised from our by donation classes will benefit The Canadian Society for Mucopolysaccharide & Related Diseases Inc. (MPS Society), who are committed to providing support to individuals & families affected with MPS & related diseases, educating medical professionals and the general public about MPS, and raising funds for research.

In the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali presents the practice of Svadhyaya, or self-study, as a primary component of the yoga practice. This practice of deepening self-awareness can be a valuable tool in the process of setting – and keeping – New Year’s Resolutions.

Happy, healthy holidays! Click to download a copy of our Holiday Schedules [PDF]!

Due to our Staff Recognition Party on Saturday, December 17th, we are cancelling the following classes, thank you for your understanding:

Highgate

6pm - flow 'by donation'
7pm - power
7:15pm - Yin
8:30pm - Hot

Flow Wellness

6-7:30pm Flow
6:45pm Pilates
7:45pm Hot Yin
…

One One Day this September 24th, participants of 1 School 1 Day will come together for an hour of motion to support education in Ethiopia.

We’ve partnered with Grouse Mountain to offer complimentary yoga at the top of the Grind every Saturday from August 6 - September 10!

Whether you hike to the top or arrive by Skyride, experience the breathtaking views during this 30 minute, outdoor class.

Aside from the dedication to our own personal practice, wouldn’t you agree that what draws you to the mat may often be the people around you?

All of those who create what we are, whether it is a teacher, a student, or even a stranger, regardless of who it may be that paints a smile on your heart, we should celebrate all who encompass our communities of like-minded, open-hearted people, for after all, what would life be without friends?

Thanks to the generosity of YYoga members, the Excellence in Child's Health Fund at BC Children's Hospital received a cheque for $4,356 this month that will go towards supporting the most critical health needs of children in BC today.

With a continued investment in research, education and care, the Child's Health Fund is making progress in their …

"Thoughtful consumption and how we leave the Earth and its resources for future souls is a mindful yogic principle of karmic consciousness, and this translates as ahimsa, or non-injury." Sonja Picard

In keeping with Valentine's Day, The Double Lotus Heart symbolizes the relationship of the divine eternal couple, Sitaram. The lotus represents the unfolding of possibilities, purity and eternal renewal.

We know many yogis practice thoughtful consumption in their every day lives. It can be tough to remain mindful of this around holidays like Valentine's Day - when giving gifts is a way of expressing appreciation for your loved one.

We have the perfect opportunity for you to not only win your loved one a gorgeous Double Lotus Heart necklace from The Sonja Picard Collection (valued at $200), but to give a gift that shares the concept of 'seva', or service. This concept is highly valued at The Sonja Picard Collection (SPC) and their Karma Yoga Jewelry line forwards 100% of net proceeds to one of five not-for-profit organizations yearly. 

Intention is a frequent word in yoga classes, in spiritual study, and especially at the beginning of a new year. But what is it?

Throughout the class she intuited, as yoga instructors often magically do, exactly when our minds were wandering. Then she would remind us of our intention: Breathe.

The first time I heard a YYoga instructor ask, in class, “What is your intention today?” I remember thinking: I’m here. I’ve got my water. I can do a decent camel, but inversions scare the crap out of me, and, yes, I have a difficult relationship with chair pose. There’s more?

I didn’t really know what intention meant. It felt complicated.

Thinking about intention released an instant, potatoey cloud from my Pandora’s box of bad and uglies: my secret fantasy about becoming that girl on the other mat (the one with the dragon tattoo/incredible half-moon pose/insert-enviable-attribute here), my desire to be a better person (read: you’re not good enough yet), help the world (you’re not doing enough), be more successful (what about that novel?).

Like dominos, each thought knocked hard on the edge of the next: lose weight, make more money, behave more appropriately when cut off in traffic.

Then I heard the instructor’s voice, as if through a fine mist: “Intention,” she said, “can be as simple as a word: Breathe.”

Thursday, January 27th those who brought you 'Listen to Understand vol. I' will be performing live at the Jazz Cellar in Vancouver! Join your your YYoga teachers, guest service personnel, wellness practitioners, and base camp administrators to raise money for the Excellence in Child's Health Fund at BC Children's Hospital.

'Listen to Understand' …

You may have noticed 'By Donation' classes on you centers schedule. These classes donate all proceeds to a charity of choice for that particular month.

"Off The Mat and Into The World uses the power of yoga to inspire conscious, sustainable activism and to ignite grass roots social change. We see yogis everywhere taking their yoga off the mat into the world. "