FitSugar

Ashtanga Yoga: Why Avoid Drinking Water?

FitSugar — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 09:30:00 PDT

If you've ever walked into an Ashtanga Yoga class, I'm sure you've noticed that it's warm in the room, but not even close to as hot as Bikram. The warmth helps your muscles to loosen up slightly, but the quick-paced and strength building vinyasas between poses is what really heats up your body. Think of it as creating an inner fire that heats your body from the inside out, which helps you loosen up tight muscles. It also makes you sweat a lot, which helps in detoxification.

Drinking water during the practice prevents that heat and puts that internal fire out. Not only that, but if you stop every 10 minutes to take a sip of water, you interrupt your breathing and the flow of the sequence, which in turn will disrupt the moving meditation you've got going on.

It is very important to drink 10-12 glasses of water throughout the day so that you are well hydrated by the time you arrive at class. If you've been drinking all day, you shouldn't need to drink during class, however, if you are feeling nauseous, overheated, or dizzy - definitely listen to your body and drink water if necessary.

Fit's Tips: Depending on the class you go to, some Ashtanga Yoga instructors are very strict about this, which I personally don't agree with. As an instructor myself, I trust that my students are better able to make decisions about their own bodies. If an instructor you take class from makes you feel uncomfortable about your need for water (or anything else for that matter), talk to them after class about it. I'm sure they'd want to know how you feel.

Source

Class Act: Mysore

FitSugar — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 03:30:00 PDT

If you're checking out classes at an Ashtanga yoga studio, you may come across a class called Mysore.

In a Mysore style yoga class, you lead yourself, following your own breath and a series of memorized poses, either First Series or Second Series. If you are an advanced practitioner, you may even do Third Series.

No one speaks - they only breathe. Sometimes the instructor may whisper to someone to give them help, but for the most part, there is only the ebb and flow of the breath. It's really powerful.

Want to know more about Mysore? Then

As you move at your own pace, moving from one pose to the next in First, Second, or Third series, the instructor walks around and adjusts or assists you. She or he may gently fix your shoulders or your hips in Warrior 1, they may press on you in Downward Dog (which feels so good), or they may help you drop back into Wheel pose from standing. The assists you get in a Mysore class really help you to improve your yoga practice tremendously.

The class is usually open for 2-3 hours, so people will walk in and start whenever they want. This may seem a little weird, but it's actually nice not to have the pressure of following the instructor's breath count. For me, it's easier to bring my awareness inward when everyone is doing their own thing.

The reason it's called Mysore, is because Mysore, India is where Sri K. Pattabhi Jois (the creator of Ashtanga Yoga) originally taught this practice. Traditionally, students would learn a pose and master it before moving on to the next pose in the series. That way, the student would memorize the entire sequence and would be able to practice them on their own.

Fit's Tips: If you can find a Mysore class or workshop, I highly recommend taking it. You'll learn a lot about your body and your personality. It will also help you to begin a home yoga practice, so you won't have to rely on going to a studio to do yoga. Since you've memorized an hour and a half of yoga postures, you can lead yourself in your own living room!

Rewind: Who Will Play Christian Grey?

Maggie Pehanick — Sat, 26 May 2012 03:05:00 PDT

Amid all the speculation about Fifty Shades of Grey casting, we offered some humble suggestions for the role of Christian. We're also wondering who should play Anastasia.
Meanwhile, Selena Gomez made a hilarious Fifty Shades parody for Funny or Die.
Everyone is abuzz about Leonardo DiCaprio's '20s role after seeing the trailer for The Great Gatsby and the intriguing pictures.
James Bond came back into our lives with the first trailer for Skyfall.
The first teasers for Anchorman 2 have us trapped in a glass case of emotion.
Everyone's got red eye in the new character posters for Breaking Dawn Part 2.
With wedding season on the brain, we recalled all our favorite bridal parties from the small and big screens and reminisced about One Tree Hill's many epic weddings.
Veep star Tony Hale talked to us about his hilarious role as Gary, the vice presidential aide.
May finales are finishing up, and this week alone we watched as Phillip Phillips won American Idol, Glee concluded its third season while Revenge wrapped up its first, and House ended its eight-season run.
The Cannes Film Festival is in full swing, and we got the scoop on Brad Pitt in Killing Them Softly, Gael García Bernal in No, the sleeper hit The Sapphires, and the highly anticipated On the Road starring Kristen Stewart.
The new True Blood characters have us stoked about the series's return.
With Moonrise Kingdom opening, we were reminded of all our favorite movies set at Summer camp.

Video: See Beyoncé Sing in Public For the First Time in Almost a Year!

Lauren Bradshaw — Fri, 25 May 2012 11:50:51 PDT

click here to watch live

Hysteria Director Tanya Wexler Talks Vibrators, Faking It, and Duck Sex

Tara Block — Fri, 25 May 2012 04:00:15 PDT

Don't be shy . . . It's time to talk sex toys! And Hysteria director Tanya Wexler is writing us a prescription for pleasure. Tanya's film - what she calls "the vibrator movie you can bring your mom to" - is in limited release and stars Hugh Dancy, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Rupert Everett. When working on a romantic comedy that centers around the invention of the vibrator, you end up with some entertaining and embarrassing situations along the way, and lucky for us, Tanya spilled all the hilariously dirty details. From teaming up with the film's partner Jimmyjane for a drive-by vibrator drop-off to a certain female Oscar-winner to trying unsuccessfully to get ducks to shag on command, Tanya was bursting with great stories from working on this very unconventional film. And while Tanya isn't ashamed to discuss the sexy subject matter of her latest film with us, the mother of four and her partner of 21 years did have a tricky challenge telling her preteen kids what her movie was about. (She eventually gave them the script and let them figure it out themselves!) Check out our interview with the fun-loving director now, and we dare you not to have a girl crush on her by the end!

TrèsSugar: What were some of the challenges to getting a movie made about vibrators?
Tanya Wexler: Getting the script right was tricky because if you just make a movie about the invention of the vibrator, it's actually a really short movie: you go "bzz" and it's done. And we had a kind of light romantic comedy. I say I made the vibrator movie you can bring your mom to. But some people wanted it to be raunchy or some people wanted it to be more serious and about feminism. People project a lot onto this movie of what they want, because there isn't a lot out there about vibrators and women's pleasure, and we still don't really deal with that topic very well, or we're overly antsy around it. And as a result, people have a lot of ideas of what the movie could and should be, and you can't please everyone. [laughs]

TS: Ha, good one.
TW: It's nonstop!

TS: Do you find sex toys inherently funny or something to be seriously celebrated?
TW: Yes!

TS: Both?
TW: Yes! Yes. I think they make me laugh, and I think that the inner kind of Beavis and Butt-head in all of us goes "[laugh]." You know, that inner 13-year-old, like, "Hahaha vibrator . . . " and yet they're awesome and fun.

TS: What shocked you the most when researching the movie?
TW: That ducks are the rapists of the bird world, and you'll see when you see the movie, because there's a little bit of questionable duck behavior - or awesome duck behavior - in the movie. It's totally a sidebar, but you cannot make ducks shag on command. I'm just saying.

TS: What about the whole history of hysteria being a medical condition?
TW: When I first heard the idea, I was like, "What do you mean it was invented in Victorian times?" I knew about hysteria, but the idea that the treatment was manual [British accent] massage deparaxism - which is what they called it - and, of course, the denial. The most shocking thing is the denial, that they didn't think it was sexual.

TS: Do you think they were really in denial?
TW: No, I don't think that some people were. My college roommate was with her high school boyfriend for two years and she had never had an orgasm. I think there's all kinds of denial, especially with women's sexuality. So the fact that there are young women today who haven't had an orgasm, whether self-induced - which is insane - or with a partner, then why wouldn't we think back then that women wouldn't know what orgasms were?

They would get a massage, and the doctor's saying, "Without a penis, this isn't sex, because sex is about procreation," so what is this? The best physical therapy you've ever had. So once you don't think of it as something other than what the doctor's supposed to do to cure your uncontrollable crying or uncontrollable laughter or whatever, then it's just an awesome muscle spasm. If you don't think women have their own inherent sexuality, then you're not thinking about it like that.

Keep reading for Tanya's thoughts on Fifty Shades and more!

Tessa and Tyrell's Lakeside Glamour Wedding

Tara Block — Thu, 24 May 2012 11:35:55 PDT

It's time to celebrate the most romantic season of the year with our first featured wedding! Each week we will be sharing an inspiring real wedding with insight from the bride on everything from the decor details to the honeymoon plans, as well as lots of gorgeous photos from the big day. Pin your favorites to take part in our Pinterest contest - you could win a romantic getaway! Kicking off the series is Tessa and Tyrell's glamorous Canadian wedding!

Tessa and Tyrell met as staff members at Camp Firwood in Bellingham, WA, and they tried unsuccessfully to keep the relationship from getting too serious due to all the family ties at the camp. Tessa says, "Since we both have lots of family that has worked at Firwood, our first conversation was about how we could never get married - otherwise all of the Camp Firwood staff would be related!" But just a year later, they began their two-year dating relationship. They were engaged for six months before tying the knot.

Taking place outdoors at Tessa's family's home on Lake Okanagan in British Columbia, the wedding had a beautiful, nature-filled backdrop that didn't require much in the way of decor. "We didn't really have a theme for our wedding," Tessa says. "I just wanted it to be elegant. We chose to have it in the evening and have purple, charcoal, and black as our colors. We had lots of damask pattern in the dark colors, which I think helped us achieve the classy/sophisticated look that I wanted."

See more stunning photos of the wedding and learn more about how it came together now!

Photos by Glen Durrell Photography

What Did You Think of the Revenge Season Finale?

Maggie Pehanick — Thu, 24 May 2012 09:59:28 PDT

I'm still reeling from the first season finale of Revenge. Though I've been following the show since day one, my allegiance had slipped a little in the past few weeks because the plot seemed to be straying - until this week's episode. Color me happily surprised! At first, I thought the big shocker was when Amanda shows up . . . pregnant! I knew as soon as Victoria gets out of the limo and approaches the plane that something is amiss, then when the white-haired man shows up, I think we all knew that plane was going down. Then Charlotte overdoses, and in case that's not enough for you, Emily's mom is still alive! It's like a series of little brain bombs! Are you as impressed as I am with the way season one ends? Will you be tuning in next season?

Rewind: Fall TV Fever

Maggie Pehanick — Sat, 19 May 2012 03:05:00 PDT

We couldn't be more excited for Fall after the networks showed off all their new shows this week.
All the big networks - ABC , CBS, Fox, NBC, and The CW - also unveiled their new schedules.
Still confused about the fate of your favorite show? We've rounded up renewal and cancellation news about every show right here.
Before we start thinking about Fall, there are still finales happening, and we've got all the finale photos across every network in one convenient gallery.
Desperate Housewives ended its series on Sunday, while How I Met Your Mother sparked a debate about Barney's bride, everyone ended on a low note in Gossip Girl, and Grey's Anatomy shocked viewers in their respective season finales.
It's hard to say goodbye to Damon and the gang, so we rounded up The Vampire Diaries best moments from season three.
We got the inside scoop on the cast's hopes for season two of Once Upon a Time in interviews with Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Dallas, and Lana Parrilla.
We're so excited for the cul-de-sac crew after checking out the pics of a magical Cougar Town wedding.
On the silver screen, the new Magic Mike trailer came out, now with more stripping than ever! If that's not enough for you, then check out the scantily clad cast on the cover of Entertainment Weekly.
The trailer for The Words had us confused by Bradley Cooper, but not as confused as when we saw him sporting dreads in the trailer for Hit and Run.
Check out the first pictures of Ashton Kutcher as Steve Jobs.

Growing Through Arts' Music Series: Kid-Friendly or Are You Kidding?

Kate Stahl — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:56:42 PDT

We're all about exposing kids to fine arts, but is opera asking a bit too much? Not according to Growing Through Arts, a company founded by former pro dancer and Harvard grad Aleksandra Efimova, which creates educational children's books and toys. The company just launched its second series of books (the first focused on ballet), breaking down some seriously highbrow stuff for kids ages 2 to 6. Growing Through Arts' philosophy: exposing kids to the arts early will help develop creativity and imagination, confidence, leadership, memory, abstract thinking, discipline, focus, and preacademic skills.

The three music series books - The Peter and the Wolf Symphony, The Snow Maiden Opera, and Twist, A Musical - each include beautiful illustrations, a modern take on the classic opera, symphony, and musical tales, and questions designed for parents to ask their children to teach them moral lessons. You'll also find a glossary of terms that will teach kids words that are used in music class, the opera, and the symphony.

So what do you think? Could you get your 2-year-old amped about opera? Psyched about the symphony? Weigh in below!

Kristen Stewart Says She's "Dying to Make Another Movie With Rob"

Lauren Turner — Thu, 17 May 2012 08:45:36 PDT

Kristen Stewart talks working with Robert Pattinson again - Us Weekly
Adele's latest huge career milestone - HuffPost Entertainment
Lea Michele and Cory Monteith take their love to a hockey game - People
Tia Mowry drops out of her BET series - Hollywood Reporter
Why Cannes is even more important for Marion Cotillard this year - Lainey Gossip
Seems like stars can't get enough hot pink! - TooFab
Sean Penn and model Petra Nemcova are dating - Celebitchy
Is there a behind-the-scenes reason Kate Middleton isn't pregnant yet? - The Daily Beast
Get excited for Anchorman 2 with this teaser - BuzzFeed
Ashton Kutcher returns to Punk'd - The Insider
Sacha Baron Cohen's not the first guy to make a dictator movie - Rotten Tomatoes
Would 50 Cent be a good match for Sofia Vergara? - Wonderwall
Kenny Chesney's crazy workout routine - Lifeline Live
See Meryl Streep's daughter in her small-screen CW role - Zap2It
Russell Brand says he "still loves" Katy Perry - The Frisky