This is one of my absolute favorite ways to wake up my diaphragm and get into a liberated, expansive, easeful breathing pattern. We breathe around 20,000 times each day, so we may as well maximize that automatic effort and make it as natural and full as possible, right? We get better at what we practice, and giving yourself this 5 minute reset could just work wonders for you. Too much time sitting at your desk? Driving in traffic? Emotional stress? Pregnant and baby's getting all up in your lung's business? Try the video below and practice with me! Post a comment or email me to share how it feels for you after making this part of your daily routine. You deserve it, and your lungs and posture will thank you. ;) Love, Cheri PS: My online program for pelvic health (and by now you've … [Read more...]
What is the Franklin Method?
Imagine being able to practice anywhere, anytime, no yoga mat required. What if you knew exactly how your body was designed to function, what you need moment to moment, and you could be your own trainer, teacher, best coach? What if you felt confident and felt exactly how you wanted to in your body? Although this is possible for any practitioner willing to embody their chosen modality - The Franklin Method is THE modality that teaches you to yourself. It enhances running, yoga, pilates, dance, daily chores, your drive to work - everything. When you change your mind, you change everything. Franklin Method is a self-generated, embodied, experiential practice - a movement modality to enliven and refine whatever else you practice. What I love about it is the … [Read more...]
EPIC: release your hips and shoulders!
EPIC We all want an epic life, and you're probably here because you'd like to include having epic fitness, an epic mindset and epic health. Today I'm sharing some nuggets from the Franklin Method that have changed my life and improved the lives (and bodies, fitness, etc) of many of my students and clients. The secret weapon? The Franklin Method! In the Franklin Method, we use a 4 step process to break down how we can move from the current state of our body to a better state - like we may notice tension in our lower back and if we take a few minutes to check in and DO something about it, we can experience a loose, open, and relaxed lower back instead. We create a new norm by practicing with this kind of awareness and skill. EPIC stands … [Read more...]
Insights for Teachers: Cues To Reconsider
Although at face value the article (that inspired me to write this post) is easy to read and the tips are concise, I actually disagree with the author on several points. Please let me clarify that I'm not merely going to share my opinion, but instead use biomechanics to back this up. Anatomy requires our attention, and if we are teaching yoga, we're teaching movement. Which means a shift from the right-wrong duality of how to cue and thinking into deeper discernment. Many teacher training programs teach you how to teach what and how to do it - I like to educate my students to understand why they're paying attention in a certain way, how their body moves and functions, and help them experience their power to influence outcomes. For example, you might ask yourself, "How, as a … [Read more...]
Breathing – Becoming – Embodied
"Now and again, it is necessary to seclude yourself among deep mountains and hidden valleys to restore your link to the source of life. Breathe in and let yourself soar to the ends of the universe; breathe out and bring the cosmos back inside. Next, breathe up all fecundity and vibrancy of the earth. Finally, blend the breath of heaven and the breath of earth with your own, becoming the Breath of Life itself." - Morihei Ueshiba When I contemplate breathing and eating and intimacy it's a conversation between beings, a communion of self with the external world, bringing parts of our environment and nourishment and lover into ourselves and a part of us being released back out into the atmosphere as we exhale, eliminate, separate from other and reconnect with Self. Reuniting. … [Read more...]
The Great Mystery – Getting To Know Your Pelvic Floor
So many women (and men, hey, guys – welcome) I've worked with over the past decade have had some form of pelvic floor challenge. Yet many of them couldn't – or wouldn't – name it and make it known. A different issue brings them to their first private session, and over time we unravel the story and clues in their body – and often end up right back at the center, the core. We end up discovering that the pelvic floor may be a causal piece in their puzzle. I'm happy to share my passion and expertise – and bring much needed lightness and humor to this area of our anatomy, health and lives. My certification and studies in The Franklin Method dramatically increased my own embodiment and performance, and has served me well in helping my clients with similar areas of concern. The pelvic … [Read more...]
The Difference Between Busy and Being
My work is increasingly bringing me into conversations with clients with long histories, stories of loss and grief, loneliness and dissociation, trauma, and now as adults - they deal with the ongoing complexity of things like pain, anxiety, insomnia, digestive issues, and more. And I love working with these people one on one, because the commitment and honesty I see from them is inspiring. To reconnect after years of neglect or pain, into the body, coming home to Self - It is often a rocky path that I'm glad to support. We celebrate a joyous homecoming. A new way of being with Self - which inevitably means a new way of being out in the world, and in relationship. Enter: Interoception, Embodiment and Body Intelligence Our bodies and brains are wildly intelligent - And we are wild … [Read more...]
3 Yoga Alignment Cues to Reconsider
For Yoga Teachers I recently read an article on Yoganonyomous that made me cringe a little. Although at face value the article was easy to read and the tips are concise, I actually disagree with the author on several points. Please let me clarify that I'm not merely going to share my opinion, but also use biomechanics to back this up. Anatomy requires our attention, and if we are teaching yoga, we're teaching movement. Which means a shift from right-wrong duality of how to cue and thinking into deeper discernment. Have you heard these cues before? 1) "Keep your front, bent knee at 90 degrees" for warrior and other wide standing poses 2) "Shoulders down and back at all times even with arms overhead" 3) "Inhale now - exhale" or breathing prescribed with certain … [Read more...]