Why do people do yoga?

Well according to a random website I found (http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/info/why-practice-yoga.asp), here are a few reasons:

1. Yoga relaxes the body and the mind.
2. Yoga can help normalize body weight.
3. Yoga improves your resistance to disease.
4. Yoga increases your energy level and productivity.
5. Yoga leads to genuine inner contentment and self-actualization.

I don’t disagree with any of those, but I wanted to add a few other ideas. Here are some hypotheses, that me and a friend came up with on why yoga is increasing in popularity:

1. To be trendy. Yoga has been “in” for several years. This includes expensive memberships and fancy pants yoga clothes, and fancy pants yoga gear/equipment. I am amazed by how expensive some exercise clothes are. I am also amazed by how put together people often look at these yoga classes. They get all cleaned up, like I would if I was going on a big date! Although yoga does not want you to be competitive, my friend and I hypothesized that many folks enjoy competing against others and themselves.
2. To improve their performance or experience (wink wink, in other ways, not just improving their half marathon personal bests!).
3. Because you can see improvement fairly quickly in regards to these poses. Literally each time they are a bit easier.
4. To be touched – I personally love hands on adjustments or enhancements, when the instructor comes around and helps align you or gives you a mini massage….heaven. The power of human contact and touch!!!

My yoga history: So in previous posts I have mentioned that I am trying to get in to yoga. I have done yoga about 1-2x a year since I was 16, and never really got in to it, most of the time I would get discouraged that I can’t touch my toes, then I would hold my breathe for the full hour grimacing in pain and boredom….but not anymore my friends, times are a changing. Here are my favorite new moves all of which make me feel strong and calm (although, I don’t remember some of these being called these names?):

{Pics by

http://www.bing.com/browse?g=yoga_poses&qpvt=yoga+positions&FORM=SGEWEB }

1. Corpse Pose

  2.   Legs Up The Wall Pose

   3.   Lord of the Dance Pose – I am shockingly good at this one – woot woot!

   4.  Child’s Pose, I love being in a tiny ball. I want to see if I can fit in to a small box

    5. Wide Leg forward bend

   6.  Handstand (against a wall obvi)

You might notice several of them are pretty passive – hence why I love it, I am workin out while resting at the same time – WINNING!!

One day, I might just do some of these:

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So basically if I keep this up, I might be able to do some of these crazy poses. AAANDDD If public health does not work out, I could join cirque de soleil!

A couple questions for you?

Do you love or hate yoga (or somewhere in the middle) and why?

If you love yoga, what is your favorite pose?

Any great yoga DVD's out there?

So many great gifts

So my birthday is coming up – woot woot! I got 4 early gifts so far:
1) A free beverage to starbucks – I need to still use it, I am thinking iced chai…oh the good ole days
2) A 50% off massage or facial from my gym, Exhale Spa (read previous posts to get caught up!)
3) A bi-weekly membership to a fruit and vegetable delivery service. This was a surprise gift from Elliot. I am pretty pumped about this one, mainly because it allows me to be lazy and not battle traffic and annoying people in the grocery store. My first delivery arrived earlier this week. Between Elliot and I, we have almost polished off the bananas (organic, mind you!). I love gifts that allow me to be lazy. What else can I outsource?

{First order}

4) This awesome map from my parents, where you use a coin and scratch off the countries you have visited.
5) A beer bottle opener that you screw in to the wall from Marlboro. I have no idea why Marlboro keeps sending me ads and coupons, and for my b-day they decided to send me a bottle opener. First let me start with a few facts about Gaya
a. I have never smoked a cigarette…Ever. I can’t even remember a time I have touched a cigarette (other than candy ones when I was a kid). Now I have picked up cigarette buds but that is when I have participated in a trash/litter pickup (I was in an environmental club in h.s.).
b. I have opened less than 5 beers in my life, maybe less. I have no need for a permanent bottle opener on my wall
c. Even if I did have a need for a permananet bottle opener, I am too lazy to install it (read comment above and fruit and veggies)
d. I am in public health…nuff said
e. I find the word Marlboro hard to pronounce, so even if I did smoke, I would not smoke these - I could not even order them at a grocery store!

Literally, Marlboro people – where are you buying people’s names from. You might need to rethink your marketing strategy….

Happy early early bday to me!

Trying to stay cool

It is a lost cause for me to try to become cool (as in the cool kid on the block) – so this blog post is simply devoted to how to stay cool from a temperature perspective – which pretty much means – leave Atlanta in search of a body of water.  Here are a few summer highlights in my attempt to stay cool

1) Go to Callaway Gardens ‘Aqua Island’ – pretty much the most fun I have had in at least a year (this sounds like sad in writing).  I had to go to a leadership camp for work (really intense 1 week experience that I am still traumatized from).  One evening after training, a bunch of my colleagues and I went to Aqua Island – a bunch of connected bouncy things in the middle of the water. You paid 10 dollars and got to be a kid again.  It was straight up like wipeout – super exhausting and awesome.  I highly recommend going to Callaway’s man made beach this time of year (school is back in session so you can cuss as needed as you play – and because it is still hot). Of course being type A we had to have a competition - let's just say I am a weak link!!

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      2) Natural Rock sliding – Elliot and I decided a few weeks ago to do a weekend away.  We went up to Clayton, GA to the Beechwood Inn (super charming inn with literally the best dinner I have eaten in years).  Clayton has all these wineries and antique shops and makes for a lovely weekend.  Best part – me sliding down a tiny natural rock slide and flipping out each time.  I loved it!!! Except for water getting in my nose each time and me worrying about the Naegleria, a microscopic ameba that can get in your nose and infect your brain (eeek!) - http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/naegleria/

 

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            {Pic - 2 from a winery, 2 from the Inn}

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      4) Shoot the hooch – also known as float down the Chattahoochee – this is an interesting one.  Tons of river operators have floating companies just outside of Atlanta, so you can rent inter-tubes and float down the river with your friends.  I use the term ‘River’ loosely.  I suggest drinking before you get there as the water is fairly dirty.  I am 98% sure we saw a guy going to the bathroom (use your imagination) – you also just see lots of trash.  That being said, with the right group it is quite fun. Be weary if the operator is too cheap, they might make you wait 2.75 hours in their parking lot before you get to go.  I did not get to take too many pics so I found some good ones online.  There is also a famous song by Alan Jackson about the river – to get you in the mood http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW5UEW2kYvc&ob=av2e (although I can’t imagine water skiing on this river?)

(this pic is from one of the nicer operations)

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{Pic from the bus ride - I have never been so glad to finally get on a bus!)

4)     4) Lake Allatoona and surrounding lakes.  So a few months ago, Elliot and I and my book club friends (and their partners), went and rented a pontoon boat on Lake Allatoona for the afternoon.  It was fairly cheap when you divided it by 4 couples and it was a super short drive from Atlanta. There were these coves called “cocktail coves” where all the cool fancy pants boats would drop anchor and all float near each other and play loud music.  We almost joined in on that fun, but noticed the pontoon might not fit in super well.  I will say at one point Elliot was waving to another boat (he realllllly loves waving at people and having them wave back) and the guy gave him the bird.  Elliot was pretty sad. So maybe this is not the most family friendly lake around. 


      {Pic of Elliot jumping off the boat trying to catch a frisbee --- makes me want a dog}
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       {Pic of the ladies going for a swim, I look like I am wearing a white shirt...I am not...I am just that pale!)

Country Music

So - a little background about me.  My parents are hippies (you obviously know that if you regularly follow my blog) and enjoy Celtic music and Enya and such (I also am a big Enya fan).  Sorry to disappoint, they are not the concert going drug using type hippies.  So in the 2nd grade we move to Oklahoma where county music is fairly popular (at least compared to Santa Cruz, California where we had been living).  I found country music to be fairly obnoxious and assumed it was just about trucks, heartbreak, and Jesus - all of these things were fine, but wrapped up together it was just too much for my ears to handle.  Then we move to NC - also a fair contingent of country music lovers.  Once again, I found this to be obnoxious. Then I move to Atlanta - an interesting music mix to say the least. A few of my close friends here were pretty big country fans, and once again, I had a distaste for the music....until one day I started loving it!!!

It all started after I got in to a car accident in Atlanta, and found that I became extra stressed while driving, it also happened because NPR was doing a fundraiser and interrupted their normal programming.  I accidently started listening to country and quickly began to like it!! For someone who had judged country music for so long, I found this new enjoyment of country music somewhat disconcerting and too hypocritical to deal with.  What had changed? Who am I? Why am I enjoying this?

So, obviously I had to do an analysis. I listened to the top 6 most popular country songs and did some light qualitative coding and grouping to find main topics....and this is what I found (in visuals):

http://winerecipes.blogspot.com/2008/04/honeysuckle-wine.html

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Source: weheartit.com via Gaya on Pinterest

So the songs had a couple focuses:

1)     Drinking – whiskey, tequila, wine, and a cold beer were mentioned…I am noticing a theme here

2)     Love – holding on to it and cherishing it, and losing it and missing it

3)     Partying – use your imagination

4)     Water – shores, boats, paradise

5)      Small towns and woods and truckss

So some of my stereotypes held true, but over all the themes were fairly diverse, and the lyrics actually make sense vs. a  lot of music now days is just a bunch of silly lines with a good beat.

So as I grapple with my new ‘like’ of country music – I wonder, what do I hate now that I will like in 5 years?? 

I also want to know what you used to hate that now you like (excluding guacamole and greek yogurt!)

Exhale

So a few months ago I joined this super posh gym in midtown, called Exhale. Unfortunately for me, I had a horrible softball injury (a sprained hand…right hand....mind you!) and was not able to use the membership for like a month while I healed and recovered (both emotionally and physically).  I know people who know me must be thinking “Gaya playing softball, that is weird” – they would be right, it was not a good fit at all.  The good news is that I am good now and back to the gym and off the field.

Top 10 reasons I love my gym:

1)      Cucumber water

2)      Trail mix  - the good kind

3)      Nice towels for you to use

4)      Very clean equipment

5)      Free easy parking

6)      The locker rooms have a sauna, hamman, fancy robes to use, and awesome rain showers with free razors, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, mouthwash etc. (You know I love “free” stuff)

{Pic of the hammam = turkish bath}

7)      The classes are pretty awesome – although on the hard side. They have spinning, yoga (several types, including crazy crazy cirque de soleil type freak stuff), and these core classes, according to the website are “based on Lotte Berk Method fundamentals, Pilates, and 50 years of combined fitness expertise, to achieve a strong, athletic, flexible, and youthful body”

{Here is a pic of studio}



 {Here is their signature logo - a butt ---- uhhhh, hysterical, minus the fact my key chain scan card has this pic on it also - like I really want to look at this perfect butt, and then go work out....maybe it inspires some people - I just find it ridiculous right next to my Kroger discount card}

8)     The instructors learn your name

9)     People are fairly friendly. There is a funny mix of folks here though!

10)   They have a little boutique, where I bought hot diggity dog- a toy dog that you heat up in the microwave that smells like lavender and you wrap him around your neck.  I guess it is second best thing since Elliot is still anti-dog.

{Here is a pic of hot-diggity dog}

Ohhh and I love how there are these cool hammocks outside – nice place to recover and get some fresh air. 

In a future blog post I will tell you all about me becoming a yogi.

The final rose....and final lessons learned from The Bachelorette!

Sisters being protective = cute/ sisters being crazy and judgmental = not cute

Being rationale does not mean judging someone after chatting with them for 15 minutes

People are crazy

People are allowed to be wrong – that is part of life and learning

Bad moments are a part of life

Bad TV can be really good

People look good in professional suits – but on the beach it might be too hot

Waterproof mascara is key

If you break up with someone, don’t make them take a long boat ride and flight to get home

I am so glad my engagement was not on national TV

Don’t have bangs if you are going to play with them

Gaya's top 10 things I love in my phone

Top 10 favorite things in my phone (Droid Incredible):

1) I have this android app called push ups, it is pretty low tech, but it has you enter your goal of how many continuous push ups you want to do, and develops a plan to get you there. Then it gives you a series to do each day. My goal is to be able to do 50 continuous push ups - aka watch out - gaya's getting cut!

2) GPS on the phone - this is obvious, but I love it. Atlanta is crazy and there are always 100 ways to get somewhere, and this handy feature on my phone let's me check traffic.

3) Endomondo - is a running app - I used to love this one, then I started to get worried someone could see how slow I was running (some people's endomondo shows up on facebook).  I don't need all those random friends knowing it takes me forever to run a mile.  But in theory it is cool, it shows where you are on the GPS and your pace.

4) Lookout phone app - let's me GPS my phone to see where it is - aka answers the question "did I leave my phone at work, or is it here burried in my purse."  You can also log on online from anywhere and disable your phone if needed ($), or send out a loud siren to help you find it.

5) Zillow - have you ever driven by a house for sale (and of course it is out of the brochures), and thought "I wonder how much that house is?", well Zillow looks at where you are (gps feature), and sees what homes are for sale, and links you to the MLS data.

6) Discount websites like Scoutmob and Sparkquest - no need to buy anything, nor do you have to clip coupons!

7) Mint.com - the app and the website.  I love this site - however, be warned, it is scary.  It helps you track all your finances from all your financial institutions (investments, checking, work 401k, credit card, another credit card), it tracks your spending and sends you an email when you have gone over your budget....scary when you get the email mid-month saying "you are over your budget for groceries..." (EEEK - I will blog on this in the future- my need to buy insane amounts of groceries).

8) Facebook and google+ of course - no need to explain this one!

9) Calorie counter - in theory this is cool. However, of the 200+ days I have had this app, I have only entered my food maybe 5 times.  Standard food diary- but neat barcode scanner, so after I eat a yogurt, I can scan the cup, and it will pop up in to the food diary - pretty snazzy

10) Most importantly, I have lots of phone number of friends and family, most of which I need to call and catch up with.

Do: Use technology to help make life easier

Don't: Be the crazy person always on your phone, scrolling through facebook and not looking up to say hello.

ohh - and I love my flashlight app!