Shambhala Mountain Center

Today, with my lovely husband Jim, we decided to go on a day trip to a new and non-familiar place. We chose this Buddhist temple located west of Fort Collins (city about 1 hour north of Denver). It took us about 2.5 hours to get there, since we took a dirt road when we could have taken a highway to make it faster.

Such a peaceful place!!! I felt the energy the second we started hiking up the Stupa. It was calm, quiet, inviting. So nature inspired, so respectful and welcoming. There were people around working in their daily activities, and they were so friendly, smiling at us, letting us know we were accepted and not judged.

We lucked out having a nice day. Sort of cloudy, but not rainy as forecasted. It was perfect.

We hiked all the way up and lost my breath when I saw this big structure, so white and clean, so magnificent around the rustic and humble environment. It was just amazing.

We sat at the bottom of the main path and just took it all in, enjoyed the serene scenery, the birds chirping, the wind reminding us that we were not alone, but that we were all one. I felt such an immense happiness.

Then we went inside. We were alone in there, enjoying the design, the details on the walls, the different shrines and their meanings, the big Buddha sculpture watching over us, the pillows on the floor to sit and meditate, the silence filling the room and our hearts. So many things to take in consideration, to accept, to admire, to live...

We were there for quite some time, meditating, learning how to be with ourselves, opening our hearts to the unexpected and to the unknown. So magical, so special.

The smile on our faces on the way back to "downtown", as they call it, was not conscious, it was our souls talking back to us. Then in the shop, I felt a connection with a Dalai Lama book, "Living Wisdom with His Holiness, The Dalai Lama", it talks about his teachings, guiding you through his learning process in life. So I had to buy it.

I leave you with one of the many phrases that I felt close to in my heart:

"If we really want to be happy, we should understand that when we get angry, we are creating the causes for more of our own suffering. But, if we cultivate patience, we are creating the causes for more long-lasting and uninterrupted happiness. That is what we are really striving for."

Posturas: Utthita Trikonasana

Esta postura o asana, llamada comúnmente Triángulo, es una de mis favoritas. La manera en que mi cuerpo se elonga es impresionante, pero al mismo tiempo todos los músculos están trabajando lo que me hace sentir fuerte.

Utthita, término en sánscrito, significa extendido. Y se refiere a los brazos abiertos, uno hacia abajo perpendicular al mat y el otro hacia arriba, perpendicular al techo. Los brazos están abiertos, creando que el pecho y el corazón se abran de la misma manera.

La mejor manera para llegar a esta postura, es desde Virabhadrasana II o Guerrero II. Extiende la pierna que está doblada (al frente del mat), mueve las caderas hacia atrás y al mismo tiempo guía el torso hacia adelante con los dedos, mano y brazo delantero. Ese brazo que ayudó a mover el torso hacia adelante va hacia el mat, colocándolo en la parte de afuera del pie delantero. Si no eres muy flexible o si eres principiante, ocupa un bloque abajo de las yemas de los dedos para ayudar a subir el suelo hacia tí, creando mayor abertura en el pecho y en los brazos. Si no tienes un bloque, coloca tu mano en la pantorrilla.

El otro brazo está apuntando en dirección al techo. Las dos piernas están activas, con los músculos trabajando. Recuerda de doblar ligeramente la rodilla delantera, para evitar una lesión al hiperextenderla.

La idea de esta pose es de crear triángulos con el cuerpo, piernas, brazos. Por lo tanto, el torso tiene que estar paralelo al mat. Trae la mano del brazo que está extendido hacia el cielo hacia tus costillas superiores y revisa que no estén creando una curva, tienen que estar planas, creando una línea recta. Tu vista puede estar hacia el suelo, hacia un costado o hacia el techo, lo que sea más cómodo para tu cuello. Relaja los hombros y rótalos hacia atrás y abajo, creando una mayor abertura en el pecho y más espacio para crear una torsión.

El abdómen está trabajando, protegiendo la columna vertebral; los brazos están trabajando, elongando; en cada inhalación estira la espalda desde la corona de la cabeza, en la exhalación gira el hombro superior hacia atrás y el hombro inferior hacia adelante, para eventualmente tener una línea con los brazos y hombros.

Hay personas que son más abiertas de caderas y pueden rotarlas para abrirlas, pero no todos podemos, así es que no sientas frustración. Esa es la gracia de yoga, que trabajamos con nuestro cuerpo, con nuestras limitaciones, para llegar a nuestro potencial máximo, el cual cambia cada día, con nuevos desafíos y nuevos objetivos, permitiendo que esas limitaciones se minimicen hasta desaparecer.

Mantras

We hear this word so many times throughout our lives and some of us aren't really certain of what it means.
A Mantra is a word or a series of words, a thought, a prayer (but not the traditional religious prayer) that repited several times, outloud or in our minds, it links consciousness with energy, with purpose, with change.
A Mantra can be something so simple as "I Am", which includes all aspects of you, it reinforces your own self and it creates energy from within to grow as a person.
Some Mantras have the sound effect, where vibrations of certain vowels and syllables carry a particular ray of consciousness, changing us without even noticing it. Some Mantras have more energy than others, some are for specific purposes and personalities. That's why is so important that you do some research before commiting to a particular Mantra, that way you'll choose the one that you need for that specific moment or situation in your life.
I love to repeat this Mantra for Protection (see below); it clears karma, it removes obstacles, it cleanses your energy leaving you light and fresh. And it works, trust me. I've used it and it released me from all the negativity that I had absorved and that was dragging me down. It's in sanskrit, so I'm attaching a video with me chanting it, that way you will have a better idea of how to pronounce the words and how to meditate with it:

Ad Guray Namay
Jugad Guray Namay
Sat Guray Namay
Siri Guru Devay Namay

Ad Such
Jugad Such
Hay Bee Such
Nanuck O See Bee Such

Ad Such
Jugad Such
Hay Bei Such
Nanuck O See Bei Such

Chant this Mantra 7 times at once. You can chant it as many times during the day as it feels good. Enjoy it and notice the difference in your life!

Tasty (& healthy) Baked Ziti

So, I made this crazy pasta thing the other day and it ended up being pretty, pretty good.
I started putting more effort into cooking since I left my full time job back in September 2010, thank God for that!
My husband was thinking of some mac & cheese type of meal and I told him "great, I'll think of it". So, I grabbed ziti pasta that I had in my pantry, ground lean turkey from the freezer (it was ready to use in the fridge actually), half an onion, a whole red bell pepper, a few mushrooms, 3 garlic cloves (I like garlic, you can use less if you prefer), a big amount of parsley, tomato sauce, non-fat greek yogurt, whole wheat bread crumbs and parmesan cheese.
I used a little bit of OO (olive oil) in a pan and put the turkey in it. I smashed it with a wooden spoon so it would separate, added the onion finely chopped, added the bell pepper finely chopped, waited a little bit for the juices to mix together; then added the garlic finely chopped, waited a little more. You want to keep mixing and waiting, I do it that way, but remember, I'm not an expert, I just like to have fun.

Then I added the secret ingredient... My father in law, who is a proffesional chef (but works in sales, bummer) told us about this great Savory Spice Shop in Lowry Center (Quebec & 1st Ave), so we bought many spices prepped and ready to use in anything!! Going back to the ziti, I used the Southern Spain Pinchito, it has cumin, salt, roasted paprika, oregano, coriander, garlic (there we go again), turmeric, ginger, anise, fenugreek, saffron & cayene. Despite all the things it has, it's well balanced and it has a lot of flavor.
It might be good to mention that I don't eat hot spicy food, so don't think that because it has cayenne it is, it's not.
I added about 2 tablespoons of this spice mix to the pan and mixed together. Then added the mushrooms (sliced), the chopped parsley, 1/2 of a glass jar of the tomato sauce and about 2-3 tablespoons of greek yogurt. I let all this sit for a few minutes so the flavors would mix together. Meanwhile I boiled the ziti (no salt, no oil) to less that al dente.
When the pasta was ready, I placed it in the sauce mix (no water), tossed all together, then to an oven pan. I sprinkle the bread crumbs on top and the shredded parmesan cheese. To the oven for 10 minutes at 375º.
Isn't it easy??? You have to try it, it's healthy (no cream, just yogurt), balanced, yummy and low in salt (I cook that way, sorry).
You can serve it with a nice salad and accept compliments. Trust me, you will get a few.
Enjoy!!

Getting started

Hello Everyone!
 I'm not quiet familiar on how to begin a blog or what to write, or how to even write it. My main expectation is to reach to all those yoga lovers, wherever in the world you are, and share my passion for this ancient practice.
My thoughts are to share poses, classes, feedback I've received by students and teachers, healthy tips (food, workouts), podcasts, and more!!
You might even see me writing in Spanish once in a while. I don't think there is enough information or resources for yoga "en español"; besides, when you go to Mexico to your next yoga retreat, don't you wanna know what they say to you?
Yoga has been so kind to me, with my knees, with my stiff hamstringss, with my heart, with my back, with my spiritual side, with my relationships to others... so please, let me open my heart to you to say all that I have to say!
I hope I won't dissapoint you, or myself; but overall, I hope to blow your mind away.