My practice continues to develop and I have found a sense of grace and stability that has allowed me to fully enjoy some of my favorite poses like Natarajasana (Lord Dance Pose) and Adho Mukha Vrksasana (Handstand).  Poses like Dhanurasana (Bow Pose) and Pigeon that I find challenging, I see as opportunities to reflect and open into new heart energy.

So let play lead the way with this back bending sequence by Anusara yoga instructor Sianna Sherman.  Feel free to actively move in and out of the poses to the rhythm of your own personal breath.

In addition to using the chart below, here are some guidelines when making substitutions:

• Keep the ingredients in the same ethnic category.  For example, if you are making a Mexican dish without meat, substitute with black beans, pinto beans or hominy instead of mung beans or lentils.
• Substituting starches and proteins makes less of a difference in taste than spices and flavorings.
• Place complementary herbs, spices and flavorings together in your pantry.  For example, keep basil, parsley and oregano together to use when making an Italian dish.
• Keep staples such as flour, oils, beans and grains on hand.

View the whole article on Vegetarian Times

I discovered another great article about the amazing health benefits of making a yoga practice part of your life.

So roll out that mat and get started!

Yoga Journal Article: Count on Yoga: 38 Ways Yoga Keeps you Fit

Lemons are both purifying and nourishing, and they stimulate digestion.  I like to start my day with a glass of room temperature water and the juice of a lemon to reduce toxins.

Almonds are nourishing and life-supporting.  A handful of raw almonds daily can increase strength and energy.

Mung Beans are among the best legumes for their digestibility and health-giving qualities.  One of my favorite traditional Filipino dishes is a combination of mung beans, spinach, onions and tomatoes served with rice.

Ginger is often referred to as”the universal medicine” and promotes good digestion.  Dried ground ginger is more concentrated in its flavor and effects.

Juicy, Seasonal Fruits are both nutritive and purifying.  Choose ripe fruits in a variety of colors for maximum healing value.

Green, Leafy Vegetables are also both nutritive and purifying.  Their bitter flavor stimulates the liver, helps balance blood sugar and aids skin conditions.

Water is universally beneficial for everyone, promotes digestion and assists in virtually all healing.

Click here to see Full Yoga Journal Article

According to photographer Peter Menzel and his wife Faith D’Aluisio, their new book, What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets, is a display of daily diets that has gotten people thinking.

Their goal is to get readers to compare and contrast — to situate one’s personal diet.  How does your diet compare to the butter-rich 4,900 calorie diet of a Tibetan monk — or the scant 800 of a Maasai herder in Kenya?  One soda-guzzling subject decided to cut back after seeing the sheer quantity put before him. And “The Snacker Mom,” as Jill McTighe of Great Britain is called in the book, has been making a concerted effort to trim her binge diet of 12,300 calories.

I am always open to gaining a broader perspective on the seemingly complex subject of what we eat.  From a unique cultural context, Menzel and D’Aluisio expand on the idea that we are all unique in our biological needs, daily routines and cultural practices.  Therefore, our diets vary as much as people and cultures do.  It’s all about understanding our own needs and making better decisions for ourselves.

Listen to the story on All Things Considered

The international community has agreed that reproductive choice is a basic human right. But without access to relevant information and high-quality services, that right cannot be exercised.  (UNFPA)

Family planning is among the most effective tools for reducing maternal mortality. When women are counseled, educated, and provided with contraceptive options, they are more likely to delay childbearing, have fewer children, and reduce their risk for obstetrical complications. Nevertheless, up to 75 percent of all pregnancies worldwide are unplanned or unwanted, accounting for nearly 300,000 new pregnancies every day.

Many barriers limit women’s access to family planning methods, including gender inequality, myths, and lack of knowledge about available services. The greatest barrier for many women, particularly in poor communities, is lack of availability. Clinics are too far away, user fees are too high, and transportation costs are beyond their means. Making family planning available and affordable to the poor worldwide would reduce maternal deaths and injuries by at least 20 percent, saving the lives of more than 100,000 women every year.  (Partners in Health)

Below are some amazing organizations doing groundbreaking work in the area of family planning and reproductive health.

EngenderHealth

Family Health International

Marie Stopes International

Partners in Health

Planned Parenthood

UNFPA

World Health Organization

By supporting women’s health, we save lives and build stronger communities.

As Buddha said, impermanence is the nature of the human condition.  This is a truth we know in our minds but tend to resist in our hearts.  Change happens all around us, all the time, yet we long for the predictable, the consistent.  We want the reassurance that comes from things remaining the same.  Yoga philosophy offers an alternative to these tendencies.  It is to embrace the powerful truth: the power of living in the unchanging, eternal present.

We can even look to our yoga mat to watch the attachment pattern play itself out.  We often find ourselves attached to a never-ending process of “improvement” in our asanas. They do improve quickly at first—in the beginning, we are on a honeymoon of discovery; we grow by leaps and bounds in ability and understanding.  After a couple of decades, however, our poses change much less.  Oftentimes, we can no longer practice certain poses because of age or injury, yet we feel agitated because we assume that the poses of our youth should be the poses of our middle and old age.

What gives life its juice is the ability to mourn anything fully and simultaneously know it doesn’t ultimately matter.  In other words, we can live to the fullest when we recognize that our suffering is based not on the fact of impermanence but rather on our reaction to that impermanence.

Source: Yoga Journal

International Women’s Day (8 March) is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future.

“Gender equality and women’s empowerment are fundamental to the global mission of the United Nations to achieve equal rights and dignity for all… But equality for women and girls is also an economic and social imperative. Until women and girls are liberated from poverty and injustice, all our goals — peace, security, sustainable development — stand in jeopardy.”

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon

Many challenges to gender equality and women’s empowerment require urgent attention

• Little progress has been made on reducing maternal mortality rates.  Every year, 536,000 women and girls die as a result of complications during pregnancy, childbirth or following delivery, the overwhelming majority in developing countries. Most of these complications are largely preventable and treatable.

• Violence against women and girls is a global pandemic, with up to 70 per cent of women experiencing violence in their lifetime. The problem remains universal, with women and girls affected by violence in every region and every country.

• Access to labour markets and to decent work remains limited for women.  Women are more likely than men to have low-paid, low-status and vulnerable jobs, with limited or no social protection or basic rights.

• Serious challenges persist to women’s full and equal participation in senior decision-making positions. These include negative stereotypes about women’s leadership roles and potential, a lack of commitment by political parties and men leaders, inadequate funding and training for women candidates and government officials, and discriminatory selection processes in all sectors and at all levels.

• Women continue to be excluded from or seriously under-represented in peace negotiations, peacebuilding and disarmament processes.

Why do so many challenges remain?

• The prevalence of negative gender stereotypes based on societal beliefs and attitudes affects women and men and constrains their opportunities and choices. Stereotypical assumptions about women in the labour market lead to occupational segregation and a gender wage gap, while the stereotypical view of men as breadwinners limits their involvement in family life.

• Limited involvement on the part of men and boys restrains advances towards gender equality in all areas. Focusing attention on gender issues and building support for social change can only be achieved when men and boys are engaged, for instance, in measures to eliminate violence against women and overcome stereotypes.

• Women’s under-representation in decision-making positions in all sectors limits the incorporation of gender perspectives in public policies and programmes. For example, the absence of women in top positions in peace processes limits the attention given to gender in peace agreements.

• Violence against women represents an obstacle to progress in many sectors, including health, education and employment. Sexual violence at and on the way to school, for instance, is a major impediment to girls’ participation in education.

• Women continue to be responsible for most domestic and caregiving work. This unequal sharing of responsibilities negatively impacts their educational and employment opportunities, and limits their involvement in public life.

In order to progress, governments must give priority attention to addressing the challenges faced by women. It is not enough to adopt laws and policies; they have to be effectively implemented.  Measures to help ensure successful implementation include training public officials, raising women’s awareness of their legal rights, and allocating adequate resources.

Source: United Nations

For further information and resources on International Women’s Day 2010, visit:

International Women’s Day

United Nations

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The three doshas are: vata, pitta and kapha.

We are all made up of a unique combination of the three doshas.  Although we all have some of each, most of us are more of one or two.  This combination is your own personal blueprint, or prakriti (nature).  As you go through life, the balance of each of the three doshas constantly fluctuates depending on your diet, your environment, the time of year, your age, and many other factors.   Ayurveda can be seen as a system of energy management.  As you move in and out of balance, the doshas can affect your health, energy level and your mood.

Determine your dominant dosha by selecting the trait below that most applies to you.  (A) responses correspond to vata, (b) to pitta, and (c) to kapha.

Height

1. Tall or very short
2. Medium
3. Usually short, but can be tall and large

Frame

1. Thin, bony, good muscles
2. Moderate, developed
3. Large, well-built

Weight

1. Low; hard to hold weight
2. Moderate
3. Heavy; hard to lose weight

Skin Luster

1. Dull or dusky
2. Ruddy, lustrous
3. White or pale

Skin Texture

1. Dry, rough, thin
2. Warm, oily
3. Cold, damp, thick

Eyes

1. Small, nervous
2. Piercing, easily inflamed
3. Large, white

Hair

1. Dry, thin
2. Thin, oily
3. Thick, oily, wavy, lustrous

Teeth

1. Crooked, poorly formed
2. Moderate, bleeding gums
3. Large, well-formed

Nails

1. Rough, brittle
2. Soft, pink
3. Soft, white

Joints

1. Stiff, crack easily
2. Loose
3. Firm, large

Circulation

1. Poor, variable
2. Good
3. Moderate

Appetite

1. Variable, nervous
2. High, excessive
3. Moderate but constant

Thirst

1. Low, scanty
2. High
3. Moderate

Sweating

1. Scanty
2. Profuse but not enduring
3. Low to start but profuse

Stool

1. Hard or dry
2. Soft, loose
3. Normal

Urination

1. Scanty
2. Profuse, yellow
3. Moderate, clear

Sensitivities

1. Cold, dryness, wind
2. Heat, sunlight, fire
3. Cold, damp

Immune Function

1. Low, variable
2. Moderate, sensitive to heat
3. High

Disease Tendency

1. Pain, inflammation
2. Fever, edema
3. Congestion

Disease Type

1. Nervous
2. Blood, liver
3. Mucous, lungs

Activity

1. High, restless
2. Moderate
3. Low, moves slowly

Endurance

1. Poor, easily exhausted
2. Moderate but focused
3. High

Sleep

1. Poor, disturbed
2. Variable
3. Excessive

Dreams

1. Frequent, colorful
2. Moderate, romantic
3. Infrequent, disturbed

Memory

1. Quick but absent-minded
2. Sharp, clear
3. Slow but steady

Speech

1. Fast, frequent
2. Sharp, cutting
3. Slow, melodious

Temperament

1. Nervous, changeable
2. Motivated
3. Content, conservative

Positive Emotions

1. Adaptability
2. Courage
3. Love

Negative Emotions

1. Fear
2. Anger
3. Attachment

Faith

1. Variable, erratic
2. Strong, determined
3. Steady but slow to change

Totals

1. ____
2. ____
3. ____

Source: Yoga Journal