Yoga
The Sanskrit word yoga quite literally means union, or to connect. Yoga is form of moving meditation, a means of consciously connecting breath to body, body to mind, and mind to spirit. Yoga creates connection not only in our physical body, but in all aspects of our daily life. While in the West we are mainly familiar with yoga as physical exercise, yoga is also a deeply spiritual and mental practice. In yoga, we learn to be conscious of and deliberate with every movement and to infuse awareness and breath into every muscle. With consistent practice, yoga will not only improve your physical health but also lead to a more expansive and harmonious life.
Yoga does not expect us to flee from the world and retire into the Himalayas. It assures us: The refuge you seek, you will never find in the outside world. It is within you. Leave the stormy world of the senses behind you, raise your consciousness to the central point of your being and realize that here alone is the force, here alone is the peace, here alone is the refuge you are seeking.
Physical Benefits
Yoga is known to produce a plethora of health benefits; including (but not limited to) improved flexibility, more balance, greater strength, increased energy, better respiration, reduced blood pressure, weight loss, and more. Unlike many other forms of exercise, yoga begins to produce these benefits almost immediately, and its effects carry both on and off the mat.
Yoga postures, also known as asanas, promote the free flow of energy throughout the nervous system and assist in the release of toxins from the body. Asanas suffuse fresh blood into the joints and organs, flushing out waste products and supplying the tissues with oxygen-rich blood. Yoga also stimulates the body’s circulatory and lymphatic systems, cleansing and nourishing the body from the inside out. Recent studies have shown that yoga has clinically-significant benefits (minus the side effects) for a wide array of medical conditions; from diabetes, to high blood pressure, to physical injury, and even stroke.
“Yoga is profoundly effective self-care.”
- Trista Thorp
Mental/Emotional Benefits
Asanas are more than just a series of physical postures; they are also exercises through which we learn to cultivate concentration and awareness. Yoga helps us become conscious of areas of tension and stored emotion in the body, providing a safe opportunity to feel and release them. When we experience difficult emotions, the chemical residue left over from the “fight or flight” response often accumulates and gets trapped in the body’s muscles, organs, and muscle tissues. Through the physical poses, we can gain a new level of emotional freedom not possible in other forms of therapy.
Yoga also teaches us to develop intense focus, or drishti, that carries off the mat and into our daily lives. We learn to relax in the face of challenge, find ease in the most uncomfortable of circumstances, and stay committed to our intention even when life threatens to bring us down. We learn to observe the habits of the mind and respond from a place of centered poise. Eventually, the physical postures become a practice for our daily lives both on and off the mat.
Yoga with Trista
Trista’s teaching style is an eclectic blend of the best of many different traditions. Her classes feature a well-rounded balance of asana, pranayama, and meditation. Whether you are coming to your mat for a heart-pumping workout, a deeply restorative stretch session, or to deepen your spiritual practice, Trista’s classes combine gentle encouragement with an energizing pace that leaves students feeling enlivened, empowered, and at ease. Her diverse background and extensive training makes for unique and personalized classes specific to students’ unique and evolving needs.
Trista’s background includes training with such teachers as Shiva Rea, Ana Forrest, Bryan Kest, Tim Miller, John Friend, and others. She is the former owner of The Yoga Sanctuary in Venice Beach, California, a locally-adored studio that was named winner of LA Magazine’s “Best of LA” in 2002. Trista has been a certified yoga instructor since 1999, and most recently completed the Chopra Center’s Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga module in 2008.
Trista teaches weekly classes at the Chopra Center for Wellbeing in Carlsbad, California, and offers private sessions to students around the world. Private sessions can be held at her gorgeous ocean-front property in Solana Beach, California — which offers meditation paths, coi ponds and steps leading down the bluff directly the water’s edge.
Contact Trista Thorp Today!
To schedule your private or group coaching sessions, please fill out the contact form. For long distance clients, Trista can travel directly to your home or business, and she even teaches classes through Skype sessions.