Yoga in Rwanda Fundraiser
May 30, 2011
Yoga, as anyone with a regular practice can attest, is very powerful. We always get more out of it then what we put into it. The more we practice on the mat, the better life off the mat tastes and feels – it’s a wonderful ripple effect.
Annie Berube, a Westboro mother and yoga teacher, has spent the better part of the last year living in Rwanda with her family. She has also taken the opportunity to expand on her teachings by volunteering for Project Air, a not-for-profit organization that has implemented a unique program to help allay some of the trauma and mental health issues left in the wake of the 1994 Rwanda Genocide. Focusing on HIV+ women and their families, Project Air uses yoga to help genocide rape survivors manage the devastating effects of catastrophic sexual violence and HIV/AIDS. Please take a few minutes and listen to this.
Practice with Annie: Annie is visiting Ottawa this summer and Elation Centre is honoured to host a class wtih Annie, she will teach an all-levels class as taught in Rwanda to benefit Project Air.
- Date: Sunday, June 26th.
- Class Time: 2:00PM-3:15PM, sharing circle of experience from 3:15-4:00PM.
- You can join us for the yoga segment and the talk, just the yoga segment, or just the talk.
- Fee: This class is donation-based, suggested donation mimimum $20.00, cash only, no credit card payment. All funds go directly to Project Air (no middle man to pay) and will be used to expand the range of groups Project Air can serve, as well as provide food to the women and children it works with, to replace calories burned during its Yoga classes. Every little bit helps and $20.00 goes a long way.
- Pre-registration is required, by emailing registration@elationcentre.com
- Maximum 30 people, you can pay at the studio prior to the class to hold your spot
- Please pass the word along!
May this event be a huge success!
“Yoga has had such an impact on my life that when I heard about Project Air, and the work it’s doing with women and children in Rwanda, whose lives have been shattered by AIDS and by genocide, I had to support it. Using yoga to help treat trauma and rebuild damaged bodies and lives is a wonderful idea whose time has finally come. And Project Air really does heroic work. In fact, everyone should support it, especially now that it is taking its inspiring work into other troubled regions, like Eastern Congo.”- Madonna, singer and songwriter
Summer Solstice Yoga
May 27, 2011
Dear Friends,
I am inviting you to join me on Tuesday, June 21st, at 7:00PM for a 2 -hour class to celebrate summer sol (sun) stice (stand-still).
What to expect:
A bit of chanting – pranaayama – dynamic vinyasa to awaken inner fire – 20 minute shavasana and we close with an 11 minute meditation and a moment to set our Sankalpa (intention) using the mudra and mantras associated with the practice.
The cost is $25 and you need to pre-register (at the Centre or using our Online Registration System).
Pass the word along! Everyone with a vinyasa Yoga practice is welcome.
If you want more info, email me at sylvie@elationcentre.com.
Running Wrap-Up and Potato Salad
May 25, 2011
This is the week we finish up our Spring Run Class session, with many of our members participating in the National Capital Race Weekend. From our Learn to Run class completing their first 30 minute run, to our Run Faster participants fine tuning for their big race and our Saturday morning group ready to tackle the half-marathon, it has been a great season of training.
We send out a huge thank you to our coaches, Sherry Carson our speed demon, Deb Ozarko helping everyone run faster, Maria Fulford guiding our Beginners, Monja DeLuca cracking the whip at the Runner’s Boot Camp and Jean-Pierre Morin & Jeanette Steffler leading our Saturday morning Run Club; Elation Centre is blessed to have so many talented and dedicated coaches – Thanks to all of you!
A reminder that our Summer Run Session starts with the Learn to Run Faster #1 class on Wednesday June 1 and the LTR Faster #2 class on Tuesday June 7 and our very popular Trail Class on Thursday June 9, the Run Club is training for the Army Run half-marathon, the training schedule will be posted soon. You can check out the run class page for more details and you can register here.
Roasted Potato and Bean Salad with Basil and Walnuts
On Saturday we had a potluck with our Run Club to celebrate our last long run before the NCM weekend and Jenn made an amazing salad, perfect for pre or post-race fuel. The recipe comes from Food and Drink Magazine and was a huge hit. Jenn tells us the secret ingredient is the basil, lots of it, and to get fresh green beans. I’m going to make a big bowl of this and eat away at it all weekend
Roasting potatoes instead of boiling them gives a new flavour spin to this classic summer salad. Toss the salad ingredients together just a few hours ahead of serving to preserve the vibrant green colour of the beans and basil vinaigrette. Use the freshest walnuts available – either California walnuts or ones in the shell.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs (1.5 kg) new red potatoes (about 16 to 20)
- 1/3 cup (75 mL) olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 3/4 cup (175 mL) walnut pieces
- 1 1/2 lbs (750 g) green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch (4-cm) lengths
- 6 green onions sliced
- 1 cup (250 mL) packed fresh basil
- 1/3 cup (75 mL) walnut or olive oil
- 1/4 cup (50 mL) white wine vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Scrub potatoes (do not peel) and cut each into 6 to 8 wedges. Place on a large heavy baking sheet. Drizzle with half of the olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast in oven, stirring occasionally, for 30 to 35 minutes or until tender. Let cool. Place in a large serving bowl.
- Meanwhile, place walnuts on a baking sheet and toast in oven for 5 to 7 minutes or until fragrant. Set aside.
- Cook beans in a large saucepan of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes or until just crisp-tender. Drain and rinse under cold water to chill. Drain well and wrap in a clean dry kitchen towel to absorb moisture. Add to potatoes along with onions.
- Purée basil, remaining olive oil, walnut oil, vinegar and garlic in a food processor until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Pour over potato mixture and toss to coat well. Sprinkle with walnuts.
Guest Post by Sarah Murray – Human Library
May 16, 2011
This blog is a simple opportunity to share with you what people in our community are doing to be of service and create positive shifts. It is written by Sarah Murray ( sitting in the middle of the front row with the beautiful red hair). A Teacher-Librarian, mother of three, yogini and yoga teacher in training, Sarah is educating, empowering, and enriching the lives of so many!
The first Human Library took place at Roskilde Festival 2000 in Denmark. Essentially, people volunteer to be ‘living books’ to be ‘read’ by other participants. The main goal of the exchange is to allow ‘readers’ to ‘take out’ their prejudice from the human library.
As the teacher-librarian at St. Joseph High School, in Barrhaven, I first learned about the human library at the OLA Super Conference earlier this year in Toronto. I wanted to celebrate Education Week by hosting a similar event. The event grew out of contacts that I have through family in the Ottawa Police force and at the Royal Ottawa Hospital. Jay and Joe offered to come with my cousin Sargent John Gibbons.
Jay and Joe were formerly homeless men, with serious drug and alcohol addictions that contributed to their ensuing life of crime. Brigitte came from the Royal Ottawa Client Empowerment Council where she advocates on behalf of people living with addictions. She shared her very moving story of abuse and cocaine addiction and her present conflicted relationship with her teenage daughter. Dan is a recent graduate of St. Joe’s. He shared his life as a gay teen and his recent contraction of HIV/AIDS virus. Liz works as an outreach teacher at Operation Come Home in the market that supports teen runaways. My aunt Maggie, a mental health nurse at the ROH, volunteered at the last minute to replace the book “Average Guy Living with Schizophrenia” who had a bad cold!
I was very reluctant to have media at the event because I wasn’t sure how it would unfold and was leery of having the intrusion interrupt the flow of conversation between the students and the books. However, my friend who is a
producer at CBC encouraged me to allow him to share the information with his friend Hallie Cotnam. I couldn’t believe that she would come all the way out to Barrhaven early Tuesday morning after the election and Osama news to cover
our little human library event.
Hallie followed a group of Grade 12 students as they moved from book to book recording their questions and the answers. Her news story and the interview with Kathleen Petty of Ottawa Morning really captured the essence of the day! Take the time to listen to her interview on CBC Radio.
One parent emailed the school as she was moved to tears by the coverage and was full of praise for a concept that allows students to have an authentic learning experience outside the strict guidelines of the curriculum!
As a result of a challenge proposed by Joe and Jay, the Grade 12′s are volunteering to spend the day at the Shepherd’s of Good Hope making sandwiches and serving lunch to patrons.
My yoga practice definitely helped me keep the event in perspective and to cope with the anxiety and worry I had about how it would unfold. See what can happen when you ‘breathe, smile and believe’! I am deeply grateful to the
‘living books’ who volunteered several hours of their time and made themselves completely vulnerable and open to the curiosity of young teens.
Total Core Solution #2
May 11, 2011
Due to the popularity of our Thursday night 7:00pm class, we have added class #2, Monday’s @ 12:00PM. If you are looking for a great workout over your lunch hour – this is it. Deb combines hard work with laughter and encouragement, the 60 minutes just flies by! Sylvie and I have been attending the new class and we love it. We hope to see you there.
Here is a great article by Deb to give us all a bit more insight into this amazing class that is the prefect compliment to your weekly Vinyasa Yoga practice.
Total Core Solution
Just what is a total core solution? Well, these days we seem to read a lot about core strength training, but it seems that many people don’t actually know what that means. There is still a misconception out there that this means strengthening the abdominal muscles. While this is true, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Core training goes well beyond that. Core strength could be called “torso” strength, because it has to do with all of the muscles – both large and small – from your armpits to your groin. These core muscles stabilize the spine, support the shoulders and hips, drive the arms and legs, and transfer force between the arms and legs.
Whether you’re running, practicing yoga or picking up your toddler, these ‘core’ muscles help keep your body stable and well balanced.
The Total Core Solution class taught at the Elation Centre is a strength based workout which utilizes body weight only and utilizes functional strength movements. Functional strength is one of the pillars of performance for everyone – from athletes to weekend warriors. Functional strength is specific strength training in which the movements relate to motions utilized in a given sport – and in everyday life. Each exercise engages the central core muscle complex along with muscles of primary focus, and many exercises include elements of instability to force continual neuromuscular balancing.
In this class we focus on the entire torso with a special focus on shoulder stability, chest opening and hip and glute strength. Of course, back and abs are included as well! Due to the demands of our 21st century technology driven lifestyle, we tend to spend a lot of time sitting – even if we do live an active lifestyle. Because of this, we all tend to have tight hip flexors and weak glutes – particularly glute medius. Our gluteal muscles are powerful muscles which, when working optimally, help us tremendously in everyday life. Everything from knee pain to low back issues can be dramatically reduced simply by strengthening the gluteal muscles properly.
In a nutshell, functional core strength training has many benefits including:
- Workouts that are more functional and that translate into daily life activities
- Improved performance in sports
- Reduction in the risk of injury
- Better ability to function each day
- Workouts that are interesting and challenge you in new and different ways
Adding more functional core strength training to your workouts is easy – and all you need is your own body weight. The Total Core Solution strength class is a solid hard workout in a light hearted atmosphere. We work hard – and we laugh. And you know what they say about laughter – not only is it the best medicine, but it’s a great core workout as well!
By Deb Ozarko, certified triathlon coach, personal trainer, functional training specialist, dedicated vegan athlete training for her first Ironman!
Jam-Packed Weekend
May 6, 2011
Last weekend was absolutely jam-packed and amazing, I was so busy representing Elation Centre in the press, giving presentations; also working with our Yoga Teachers in Training and enjoying being part of our Ottawa Community, it was a high-energy weekend and I loved it! Here are a few highlights:
- Food Demos on Saturday at the National Women’s Show and on Sunday at Ottawa’s VegFest
- Elation Yoga Teacher Training all weekend
- a 19km run on Saturday AM with our Elation Run Club as we train towards Race Weekend
- $20,000 raised for Team Molly (the team I was on) for CHEO at the CN Cycle, big party on Saturday night, big event on Sunday
- and great press for Elation Centre with an article in the Ottawa Citizen and in the April issue of iRun Magazine modelling Spring running fashions - WOW!
Recipes from the Weekend’s Activities
Deb Gleason of Wellness Warrior Coaching, and I presented together on Saturday and Sunday, making Vegan Pizza with an amazing non-dairy cheese product called Daiya. We also made a delicious salad with a nutrient-packed dressing, a Green Smoothie (video here), Deb’s Quick Quesadilla’s and our famous Elation Endurance Curry.The pizza as mentioned was made with Daiya Cheese, a great dairy-free alternative for anyone following a vegan diet and for so many people who are lactose-intolerant. Daiya cheese melts beautifully and tastes great, both Deb and I are addicted! Here are a few recipes:
Vegan Pizza with Red Peppers and Spinach
- 1 President’s Choice Multigrain thin crust pizza shell
- 1/2 cup Organic Tomato Sauce
- 1 red pepper chopped
- Handful of baby spinach
- 1 cup of Daiya Cheese
Spread the tomato sauce on the pizza shell and cover with spinach. Add chopped red pepper and sprinkle with Daiya Cheese to cover the entire pizza. Bake for 10 minutes
Enjoy!
Deb’s Quick Quesadillas
- 1 15oz can Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)
- 1/2 cup salsa
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 cup Daiya Cheese
- 4 whole grain tortillas
Drain and rinse garbanzo beans and pour them into a bowl. Mash beans slightly with a potato masher. Add salsa, cilantro, lemon juice, chili powder and stir together. Spoon 1/4 of mixture onto each tortilla covering half of the tortilla. Sprinkle with Daiya Cheese and fold in half. Place in a heated frying pan and cook on med heat until both sides are toasted and cheese has melted.
Protein-Packed Salad Dressing
Inspired by Krista from our Elation Yoga Teacher Training Program
- 1 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp Dulse Flakes or dash of sea salt
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- handful of chopped cilantro
- 2-3 green onions (white and green parts) minced
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (packed with B vitamins and tastes like Parmesan cheese)
Process in a blender until smooth, add more salt to taste. Will keep 7-10 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator
Video for Green Smoothie
May 6, 2011
Most of the ingredients for our Elation Green Smoothie can be found at your local grocery store. I usually shop at the Superstore in Westboro where there is a pretty good Natural Value section for health oriented products, you can get flax oil, flax seed and hemp seed as well. For the extras like coconut water, wheat grass, sunflower sprouts etc. I go to either Natural Food Pantry in Westboro, Herb and Sprice on Wellington St or Rainbow Foods on Richmond Rd. If you don’t have all the extra add-in’s, don’t worry as long as you add some green veggies to your fruit – kale or spinach and celery and cucumber (even a bit), and some flax or hemp, you’re on your way!
This smoothie will power you up, keep you full and refuel tired muscles after a workout.
Celebrate – Mother’s Day
May 2, 2011
Mother’s Day Class: Sunday May 8th, come and celebrate at our 6:30pm $5.00 class. All the proceeds raised will be donated to iSisters, a local charity near and dear to our hearts, connecting women in need with technology through mentoring. As the women in the iSisters program, learn and grow, they in turn inspire other women including their daughters, what a beautiful cycle.
We hope to see you at class, treat your Mom or treat your daughter! Or simply come and celebrate all moms! All welcome!
Words of Wisdom: There are so many titles that we identify with in life; examples include gender, age, nationality, education, and profession. Whatever title we may feel we need to live by and honour, none seems more important then the almighty title of MOM.
Many of us feel that before anything, we are mothers and with passion we nurture our aspiration to raise intelligent, athletic, musical, well-traveled, caring, and issue-less people.
What I find so interesting is that, as a mother, I know how much mothers care. Yet, as a daughter, I sometimes forget how much my own mother cares.
This mother’s day, let her know you know.
Happy Mother’s Day!
