Saturday, June 26, 2010

"No coffee, no ashtanga yoga"

Food/diet has not been discussed much at all, so I asked Richard about it. Yes, diet is important... diet is extremely important because it affects how you feel. 

But the reason he doesn't bring it up much? People become fanatic about it and quickly go to extremes (as a teacher, you have to be careful not to encourage this). 

Being vegetarian and eating “sattvic” foods feels good, but you also can’t tell people this - it’s something they have to come to on their own.

I then asked him if he drinks coffee. He smiled and said, “Of course. It’s part of the lineage.” And he quoted Sharath saying, “No coffee, no ashtanga yoga.”

Music to my ears!!! :)

7 comments:

  1. Hi Christina,

    I've loved reading all the posts about your training, but this post? This is the best one yet. No coffee, no ashtanga yoga. Joy!!!

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  2. Hey Asako!
    I know, I was SO happy to hear this too!

    Can't wait to see you back in philly! Feels like it's been so long since I've seen you :)

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  3. I am so happy that you posted this. It makes me crazy when a teacher overly stresses diet to a group that is already mindful and practicing with regularity. The more you practice (the BIG practice) the more you chose to support practice through food/drink/sleep.

    Hope to see you soon...come visit Providence!

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  4. Christina...I second everyone's posts: awesome post, and we miss you!

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  5. the hot dark wonderful smelly infusion

    + get up and go + tasty + lineage + some that know give +s

    - mind racing - dehydrating - wears off - mood swinging

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  6. Well, aren´t we all running with the ball because he repeated a quote by a teacher that we all respect? (coffee = ashtanga)

    I LOVE coffee but it impedes my practice in that i don´t sleep very well. But it enhances my presence in the academic classroom at 8am (awful schedule here in MX) after getting up at 5am to practice. The crash is terrible in the afternoon, and i´d love to give it up, but alas, the vicious cycle of trying to balance ourselves through stimulants.

    Christina, so grateful to you for sharing all of your insights with Richard!!

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