I hate yoga classes

Okay, we all know that’s not ENTIRELY true but I went to a new class this week and that’s always a crapshoot.

Let’s start with the fact that I teach. Rather, I have taught (it’s been about a year since I taught a yoga class) and did so for several years. That makes it hard to go to a lot of classes anyhow, just because I have to get my own head out of the way in order to focus. This was easier, by the way, BEFORE I taught.

So when we accept that, there’s the fact that I’m attending a beginning class. No big – just that the system requires it before I can take a different class. I can get something out of ANY class (benefits of having been a teacher) but beginning classes can be… twitchy.

Last but not least, a teacher with whom I have no experience. No word of mouth, just going in cold. Not the best way to start a new class, that’s all I’m saying.

We start Threading The Needle. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say – even though I’m not “supposed” to say it – that Threading the Needle is the worst fucking yoga move ever. Lots of people teach it. Hell, my TRAINING CENTER taught it. But if you look at it – if you watch someone DOING it – you will see what I mean. There’s no good safe way to explain this position without having your hands on someone (a physical impossibility in a decent sized class), it puts pressure on the neck, shoulders and back which could EASILY cause damage and – speaking ONLY for myself – it doesn’t do a damn thing for me. Nothing.

So yeah. Inauspicious start. Followed by standing and swinging arms as though it’s a stretch. Ugh. I was managing to let this go, honest, getting out of my head and focusing on my form. This is an instructor who does the class while teaching so I kind of shuddered when I saw some truly uncomfortable looking down dogs but HEY. NOT MY CLASS. I even mostly ignored the “breathe into your inner thighs” nonsense (albeit with a truly juvenile internal monologue that went something like “If I could do THAT I’d never leave the house! Heh! Heh! It’s the fuckin Catalina Wine Mixer!”).

I did my usual thing, modifying to what I needed and got decent muscle burn all the way through to savasana. I lay down, pulled my sweatshirt hood up, got comfortable and started to relax. And then I hear the instructor telling us to relax various parts of our bodies. “Relax your shins.”

I’M SORRY. WHAT? It’s a fucking BONE. It’s a SOLID STATE. It is IMPOSSIBLE TO RELAX A BONE. So that tweaked me. Then she continued through some other soft tissue and then back to cheekbones and TEETH. RELAX YOUR TEETH? WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT MEAN?

I do not know if she’s a new teacher or not. I didn’t ask and I’m kind of ascribing that status because it makes me want to grit my teeth less. This is the thing I think is wrong with yoga. Not that people do it in different ways or have different styles – I think that’s great – but this embracing idiotic woo-woo talk that doesn’t MAKE SENSE to the people you’re ostensibly TEACHING. Woo-woo, by the way, has NOTHING to do with spirituality and everything to do with new age bullshit. You can’t breathe into your inner thighs unless you a) have lungs in your legs or 2) are Cirque de Soliel flexible and if that’s the case I think we can all agree you ain’t BREATHING down there.

Talk about muscle movement and for CRIPE’S SAKE please talk about the CORRECT muscle (sorry lady, that wasn’t the I. T. band). Talk about using your breath to concentrate. Talk about ways to change the movements and change how the pose feels. Leave your woo-woo at home.

Religious knowledge

via Andrew Sullivan at The Daily Dish:

Read this first.

I would argue that you CAN be a believer but the very worst kind – someone who has chosen to take another’s interpretation of your religion and make it your own WITHOUT forethought and consideration. It invariably creates either a hypocrite (at worst) or a theological dichotomy (at best). For example, you can’t believe the Bible is the Word of God and then tell me you don’t believe in the Old Testament. You can’t say parts of the book are literal and then ignore others wholesale. You can’t claim your god is loving and then hold the Bible out as any truthful document. Not knowing what your religion teaches is what creates scorn in others who do not practice your religion and it’s what allows bad leaders to take advantage of it AND you.

Hatred festers in ignorance. If your faith is strong, it should be able to withstand some critical thinking. In fact, I’d argue that it MUST withstand some critical thinking – if only to keep assholes like Billy Graham, Pat Robertson and Bin Laden from turning what COULD be a positive thing into a weapon.

An actual yoga post- sort of!

I frequently get asked if there are DVDs and/or books that I’d recommend for new students (or even experienced students). I just got an email from Yoga Journal offering a discount on the DVDs I like best.

The Step By Step series is a great introduction to yoga or even as a way to fine-tune your asana and breath practice. The coupon is 20% an individual DVD or something like 45% off for all three.  Enter coupon code SBS2 at checkout and click “Redeem Coupon” to receive your discount or call 1-800-I-DO-YOGA (436-9642).

I don’t plug a lot of yoga ‘stuff’ here, just the things I use and love myself. I highly recommend getting all three discs.

In related news, my recommendating for practicing with a DVD (whether you’ve practiced yoga previously or not) is to watch the DVD at LEAST once to make sure you’re familiar with the positions. If there’s anything that sounds confusing, make notes on a sheet of paper that you can keep next to your mat during practice. You should NOT be looking up at the DVD while you’re practicing – it’s bad for your body and negates all the good work you’re trying to do!

I know you won’t believe this

But there’s an actual yoga post coming soon. Shocking, right?

Mom’s home from the hospital and feeling well. She’s on pain meds, so no driving for her. I head north on Thursday for about a half day and then fly back home on Friday morning.

Also, I totally have to post about Medium, Chuck, and Heroes.

Michigan’s State of the State was tonight and it is pretty much what you’d expect – not good. The good news is that at least the pay of elected officials is being cut (although I noticed the applause was decidedly not widespread). I’m glad that we’ve moved but worried that we still have a house here.

Today’s list of errands

I went to the doctor for a physical and a thyroid function test (since Mom has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer). The P.A. (or NP) proceeded to tell me that I needed to do more weight bearing exercise and cardio because yoga provides neither. I politely corrected her. Please to not be telling me what yoga practice is, when you clearly do not a) practice or b) know anything about MY practice. I had already told her I’ve been teaching for almost three years. Yoga is ABSOLUTELY weight bearing and MY yoga provides cardio work as well. Suck it, lady. The RIGHT way to go about this is to ask how much weight-bearing and cardio my practice provides, not look at me like I’m daft and speak slowly.

In related annoyance, while HIPAA does not prevent my insurance company from providing me any and all information about my benefits over the phone – including my member ID number – apparently it prevents my prescription benefit manager (Caremark) from providing any helpful information at all. Thanks for nothing, Caremark. Love you long time.

While I’m home next week I’ve got to get my contact lenses fitted and get my medical records and breast films transferred out here. There’s a great cancer center with state of the art gadgetry about an hour away, so guess where I’LL be getting my annual boob squishing? So now I’m collecting medical release forms so that I can drop them in the mail and get all of that great stuff taken care of. Moving, gotta love it.

On the kind of funny side, she said, “Wow. So your family does the cancer thing.” Ayuh. Understatement.

My new haircut is rocking my (polka dotted) socks. I blew it dry this morning and didn’t even need to flat iron it. The stylist in Frisco was the first person who has ever addressed the whacked out cowlick on the right side that makes my hair curve differently. I wasn’t initially thrilled with having to drive an hour to get my hair cut but there wasn’t a SINGLE place open in town on Saturday. As I was THISCLOSE to taking out the scissors and chopping off the offending bits myself – a plan of action that I think we can ALL agree would be a mistake – I made an appointment and the drive. The salon was very nice and it was just the stylist and me.

The picture the day of the haircut is nice, but the TEST is a picture of the haircut after you’ve washed and dried it yourself.

While I have NOT assembled the pot rack, I DID pay all the bills. I have thus far sent it all through the Michian bank’s electronic system and all payments will clear by the time I’m back in town next week, so I can close the account for good. Yay!

I’m most of the way through book 8 and anticipate that I’ll get through a lot more tonight at work.

I have not packed a single thing and am thus far mostly unprepared for my trip back to MI. Go me.

It was a good day at work.

Of course, every day there has been a good day. I really enjoy the folks there and have liked getting to know new people in town.

I got an email today from a yoga teacher in Michigan. There’s a workshop the weekend that I’m going home to see my mom and I registered for a session on Sunday while she’s at church. I’m really looking forward to it, since my practice has slacked while I’m acclimating to the altitude. I’m just hoping a week away doesn’t mean I start all over when I come back.

My reading record so far in 2009 isn’t too bad, so I’m considering keeping track of the books here, with an impromptu review if I feel the need. I haven’t made up my mind as yet. I’ve officially used all my remaining book gift cards and I’m looking forward to all of them showing up. Some of these are books I’ve wanted for ages and several are by authors I love enough to buy in hardcover (with someone else’s money).  It would be amazing if some of them arrived before my road trip but I’m not holding my breath.

Now that I uploaded my pics and took care of Daily Leadville, I think I’m going to head to sleep.

The New Year begins with a BANG

I’ve got some temporary part-time employment, as of today. Even though it’s not permanent, I’m feeling pretty good about starting the new year with a job.

In yoga news, this is how I teach yoga. A friend sent me the article because I’m always talking about how yoga doesn’t have to be serious and how I love to hear people laugh in my classes. Part of the reason I use pop music is because it relaxes people – lets them know I’m not going to be going all Bhaghavad Gita on them – and they sing along. Singing along is my next favorite thing to laughter. I’m not sure what the yoga community is like in this area, which is why I’m not pursuing teaching immediately. My style may or may not mesh with the locale.

A lot of folks I know are doing the 365 meme, where you take a photo of yourself every day. My friend told me about another variation: 52 weeks with a self-portrait each week. I’m going to give it a shot, but my real meme this year is going to be the Daily Leadville photos. Each day I’ll post a photo from the area – not necessarily Leadville, but I’m going to try.  I’m going to use it as my way of documenting my new surroundings.

52 weeks - week one

Post-Christmas lack of ambition

Today we accomplished important task #1: putting me on  Spouse’s local bank account. That is pretty much all we did. We rented some movies, but have only watched one. Burn After Reading is an interesting and slightly bizarre film and totally worth watching just for Brad Pitt. I never thought I’d say that, but he’s just hilarious.

Up next: Hancock and Baby Mama.

Tomorrow: drive to Frisco and get my new driver’s license, as well as change over registration on vehicles and obtain Colorado plates.

When Mom and A left, they took the cold weather with them. Today was sunny and warm – 35 degrees. The snow on the roads has all melted, though it wasn’t enough to thaw all the rest of it. If you’ve looked at any of the photos, you’ll understand. Tomorrow is supposed to be just as sunny, though less warm. I’m very glad that I invested in good sunglasses.

I sent Mom home with an eclectic mix of music for her iPod. I’m interested to see how she’ll like it. Highlights included John Legend, Fergie, Adele, Rare Earth, The Eagles, The Beatles, Vampire Weekend, Gnarls Barkley, Sarah Harmer, and the Indigo Girls. There was a lot more, but I don’t recall everything.

My dad’s been on my mind a lot lately and it’s entirely possible that I’ll write about it tomorrow, but no promises.

I am looking forward to the house finally reaching ORDER and life returning to some semblance of a routine. As predicted, I’m a bit at a loss without my teaching schedule. Not only that, I’ve slacked on my own yoga practice for the last couple of weeks because of the acclimation. Someone sent me a yoga kick in the ass for Christmas, though, so I’m about to get back on the horse.

WTF H$liday Mix update

It is completed. It is excellent. It is not uploaded to imeem because I have been doing mover stuff all day and now have to cram for a Micro final tomorrow morning, right after I teach yoga tonight.

I have not had a nap; I have not cried. I cannot promise that one or both of these things will not happen later.

Okay, that’s melodramatic. I’m not going to cry unless Carly wants to watch P.S. I Love You.

Maybe when I start procrastinating later, I’ll upload.

The yoga of moving

I’m only half-kidding with the post title. Yogagrrl’s yoga of relocation consists mainly of neck stretches and deep breathing. Well, not TOO deep because of the dust and the dog hair. Even as I write, a very nice group of men is gathering up all the boxes I have packed, furniture I have dismantled, and things we previously agreed they’d pack and/or dismantle and moving it out into an enormous truck. But a Yogagrrl story is not complete without complications.

Last night, Shane came over to help motivate finish the last of my packing. If I’d thought kitchen packing was tedious, clearly I hadn’t given much thought to bathroom necessities. Ugh. WHY DO I HAVE SO MUCH LIPSTICK? At any rate, he used my computer, which meant I couldn’t access the internet, which meant that I packed (at least, right after yoga class). I packed, he wrote a paper. We both finished up at about 12:30 this morning. The movers are scheduled to arrive at 8:30.

My car was very low on gas and, due to rearranging things for the movers, I couldn’t park in the garage. I went out to fill up and buy a gallon of milk. I locked the doors and drove to the store. I am going to have cereal and a good night’s sleep and never look at cardboard again. When I got home, I opened the garage door (the way I always do) and walked in to open the back door of the house (the way I always do) and discovered that – contrary to what I always do – I’d locked the back door.

Normally this wouldn’t be a problem except that last week I signed with a realtor and gave her the key off of my keychain. And the spare keys were in the house. And Carly was in Ann Arbor. So at 1am, I’m in my garage, desperately searching for some wire to pick the lock with (as though I could? I’m watching TOO MUCH crime drama) but of course I have been wildly efficient and packed the ENTIRE EFFING GARAGE. There is no wire to be found.

There is no locksmith to be found.

I call Shane and ask if I can bunk at his place on campus. Because I am old and lame. He asked if I could stop and get him a 2 liter of Diet Coke. I did. And my milk, because I didn’t want it to explode in my car. And I slept on his air mattress. Did I mention the movers were supposed to show up at 8:30? I got up at 5:30. At 6 am I called the realtor and asked if there was any chance she could come let me into my house with the key in the lock box. Luckily she has kids, was getting ready to take them to school, and I was kind of on the way.

I bought some light timers, stopped at McD’s for breakfast, called Carly to share what a colossal idiot I am, and then headed back to the house. At about 7:45 she arrived (my savior!) and I was able to brush my teeth and look mostly human by the time the movers showed up. Except that I hadn’t disconnected the tank from our gas grill and then had to hunt up the keys to the myriad toolboxes so that I could detach it. Then I had to scrape snow off of the patio furniture that we’re taking with us.

Then my modem stopped working when I moved the shelving it was sitting on.

It has not been a restful day. I am supposed to teach yoga at 7:30 tonight and am despairing of not getting a nap. The yoga of relocation is to curl up and die in a sleeping bag on the floor of my empty house.

To add insult to injury, I really really REALLY want Taco Bell and they do not deliver. CURSES!

Accomplishments, albeit dubious

I packed two additional boxes of food (no, I’m not done). I created my WTF H$lidays mix. I also ripped 3 mix CDs for my cross-country drive. Luckily my CR-V has a tape player and I’m armed with mix tapes from college. Fie on thee, bad radio reception!

Crippling my packing effort has been the usa network. Yesterday it was Bring it On and today, Stick It. I love those movies with most of my heart and, yes, I’m easily distracted.

Today Cheryl is coming over to pick up a spare bedroom set. In retrospect it was possibly a bad idea to get rid of it, what with (yanno) the spare bedrooms. On the other hand, we don’t have to move it and it’s not like we get that many overnight visitors anyhow.

I’m in the laundry proces, will pack the last of all clothing materials except what I need for the next four days, pack the food and bathroom necessities. I’ll tape up the remaining boxes and I think Shane is coming over to help me do a trial run on packing the car. With any luck, I’ll get to a yoga class tonight.

Speaking of yoga, I was doing side plank in a class the other night and noticed that my shoulders and arms are looking pretty ripped. Nice. I don’t generally notice my body from an aethetic standpoint (I’m more of a ‘function’ kind of girl) so it usually takes a pretty dramatic change/visual to grab my attention, but it was kind of cool. I don’t think my arms have gotten dramatically bigger/stronger, I just haven’t had occasion to look at myself in side plank for a while.

If you’re interested in yoga

But feel confused or intimidated – or you just aren’t sure how to practice on your own without a teacher – I’d highly recommend this special issue of Yoga Journal. It gives great descriptions of the asanas, some example ‘flows’ that you can work through on your own, and it talks about modification. Most importantly, it talks about inversions in terms of safety and strength, with none of the ‘reverse the flow of blood’ asshattery. You can order it from the site, either in hard copy or digital.

Frequently Asked Questions – How do you stay so thin?

I get asked this question on a pretty regular basis. It’s a weird question because almost everybody has food and/or body issues and it’s kind of uncomfortable for me to talk about – in part because I’m a thin person. There are also no simple answers to that question.

1. I am a small-boned person. If you don’t believe in big bones, the next time I’m with my sister I’ll get a picture of both of our hands side by side. Frame size is not an illusion. This is not a determining factor to weight, but I believe it plays a role.

2. Yoga. I am a yoga instructor. You might imagine I do a lot of yoga. You would be right. I also jog from time to time, to mix it up. If you don’t mix it up, you get bored, you stop doing what you’re doing. Play basketball, go snowshoeing, try something outside of your comfort zone. Someone asked me today about running vs. walking. Running is harder on your joints. Check your heart rate – if you’re working aerobically in your target range, you don’t need to run. Want to get there without running but have maxed out your speed? Increase your incline.

3. Food. I’ve got a weird relationship with food – as does almost everyone I know. My relationship with food is definitely a determinant of my body shape/size.

• I’m really lucky that I’m not a stress eater. This is even more important if you had any idea what the last six years were like. I lost weight during my stressful situations. Most people (Spouse included) don’t do that. As far as I know you can’t teach it or change it. It is what it is, you just have to determine what you’re eating at that point.
• I don’t snack. I generally don’t eat unless I’m eating a meal. Sometimes the meal is small, sometimes it is large, but you don’t generally see me sitting around with a bag of pretzels on the couch and grazing. I say generally because yes, that totally does happen, it happened two weeks ago when I had a terrible pretzel yen and you can even ask Carly.
• I have an aversion to some pretty popular snack foods (potato chips, popcorn, candy) and am kind of a picky sweets eater. I only really like one kind of ice cream. I’ll eat other kinds, but I only really love one (mint chocolate chip) and you can only eat so much of one thing. This also applies to cookies.
• I eat in hella weird cycles. For example, when Spouse and I were dating he once (famously) said that he could eat pizza every single day and never get tired of it. About a year later, I got a pizza jones and we literally ate pizza every day for about a month right up until Spouse (who was not yet Spouse) said “I CAN’T EAT ANY MORE PIZZA!” The day lives in infamy. But then, once the cycle is over, I don’t eat whatever that thing is for like six months. It’s not always like that, but it’s frequently like that, and that’s part of the reason I stay physically active.
• One of my favorite books with regard to food and food relationships is The Yoga of Eating. I highly recommend it. It does not tell you what to eat, it tells you how to eat it. You might be surprised about the difference between the two. And if you’re looking to avoid fast food for a while (at least one year, in my case) pick up Fast Food Nation (the book, not the film). It will absolutely change how you think about food.

4. Genetics. More and more studies show that genetics plays a huge role in how we gain weight (and where). It’s not the only determining factor (e.g. my mother is always talking about how she needs to lose x pounds) but it definitely makes a difference. That’s not to say you don’t have any control (see previously given example) but you can be aware of your family history. You can take action.

The bottom line is that there’s no magic answer to weight loss. More than anything else, it requires lifestyle changes. Lifestyle changes are hard and people don’t want to make them. I don’t generally enjoy working out. Crazy, right?

I played sports when I was in school but when I went to college I got out of the habit. I was active, but not really active. And no one had ever talked to me about weight training. One of the things that started me with strength training was when Spouse-who-was-not-yet-Spouse was talking about triceps and I was all “Wtf?” He had me flex it, then pushed his finger RIGHT THROUGH MY MUSCLE to the bone. Lack of muscle would be more accurate. It grossed me out and I started lifting free weights. I did not love it and I didn’t do it on my own. Having a partner was key for me.

So then I got a job away from my workout partner and promptly went back to not working out. This continued into the first couple of years of marriage while I worked really high stress jobs. I bought a yoga book on the bargain rack at Barnes and Noble and started doing some stretches on my own. Eventually I went to an actual class and I got completely hooked. That’s all she wrote.

The more muscle you build, the more calories you burn, the more efficiently your body runs.

Weekend roundup – packing, Real Housewives, Psych, snow, et cetera

The vast majority of our work is done. The office is almost finished, and the kitchen is done. We have no dishes that are not paper or plastic. Fast food, here I come!

It is currently dumping a metric asston of snow on my area. Unlike Colorado, we do not get powder. The snow is wet, heavy, and in the process of freezing. I think everyone’s hoping for a snow day. I wouldn’t complain, but I think it’s unlikely.

I really enjoyed the yoga class I attended tonight. It was just the right amount of work and mindlessness. I worked up a really nice sweat and got really loose. Possibly I’ll work up another yoga post tomorrow.

On to the TV!

Real Housewives of Atlanta Reunion. Oh. My. God. It was CRAZY. The very best part was when Dwight came out and called them all “Très, très, très de classe.” I almost fell off my couch. It was brilliant. From NeNe calling Kim a hooker and a racist, to Kim claiming she had cancer and then saying she didn’t have cancer and then claming she never claimed she had cancer, it was sixteen kinds of reality TV trainwreck (if the train was carrying cars full of gunpowder). It was wild and I’m really hoping they do something with this show for another season.

Psych had another holiday episode! I love this show. It’s the funny version of The Mentalist, although it was around before the mentalist. The chemistry in the cast is fantastic, Dule Hill is a comic genius, and the storyline did not disappoint. The show is consistently funny and sweet. Love it.

Criminal Minds was fantastic this week. I generally think it’s fantastic, but it was a very cool exploration of first impressions, dating, and breaking out of your own awkward shell. That, plus serial killers! It’s another cast with great chemistry and solid crime plotting.

Bones was delightful, as ever. Love the Brennan/Dad interaction (with a side of Booth).

The Mentalist continues to be fantastic. I think the part I like most is Simon Baker. The character he plays has suffered an awful tragedy but they show him as a regular guy. He’s not swallowed up by his tragedy, he still enjoys life and has a sense of humor. His history is his history and influences his actions, but he’s not some morose lump. He gets along, as people do.

Grey’s Anatomy. I’m not sure WTF is going on there, but this whole Denny/Izzy thing is just creepy and icky. It’s too bad, because her storyline with Alex was starting to be interesting and now she’s a whacko and he’s going to get the shaft again. Also, sex with dead dudes = creepy. On top of that, her dead dude is a stalker. Worst kind of dead dude, ever.

Magazines – going green

With the holidays coming up, it makes sense to talk about low cost and environmentally friendly gifts. I know, “Magazines? What?” But magazines are usually (not always) $20 or less for a year’s subscription. AND they CAN be environmentaly friendly!

There are a few magazines that I read regularly. Not surprisingly, most of them are yoga magazines. They’ve all got good information and I’m the kind of person who wants to hang on to them. I’m also the kind of person who has great intentions about cutting out the articles or recipes that I want to keep (so I can get rid of the rest of the magazine) and never quite gets around to doing it.

Last year I discovered Zinio. com. It’s a fantastic website that offers magazines in digital content. You can choose to download them or read them from the Zinio website. Either way, they’re not stacking up in piles next to your end table. The best thing is that you can read them forever. If there’s an article you want, you can print it out. You only end up with the paper you want, rather than being stuck with a whole magazine to discard. 

I’m lazy. I know I’m lazy. And this site is brilliant for me. My two personal recs: Yoga Journal and Women’s Health.

Yoga Journal (which I also link in my sidebar) provides a lot of great information and insight from several different teachers. I don’t love all their advertising (a common complaint of people who aren’t fans) but I also only look at the advertising if I’m LOOKING for something. I skip all ads and go right to the articles I want. Having this in e-format is fantastic because you can print out the information about asanas, or their ‘master class’ and save what you like. It is not my favorite yoga magazine (see: Yoga + Joyful Living) but it’s a close second.

I didn’t get into Women’s Health until Spouse started reading Men’s Health. Men’s Health has great articles about fitness and diet with an upbeat and pro-health/anti-negative message. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Women’s Health does the same thing but is tailored to the specific concerns of women. It’s not just Men’s Health for Women. I love their recipes. Their articles are about lifestyle change and positive attitudes. You’ll be hard pressed to find a single negative word in each issue. And they’re full of REALLY PRACTICAL tips that you can actually use. In almost every issue there’s a 15-minute workout feature (or something like that) with an emphasis on correct form (a personal tweak of mine). It does a great job of covering everything – diet, health, beauty, fitness, sex, and relationships – and makes it feel like you’re talking to your best (smartest) girlfriends about it. It’s not gossipy, just educational. The recipes are great and you can also find workouts and workout playlists at their website (which is also awesome). Not only that, it manages to be ENTERTAINING. Loves it.

If you were only going to choose one of these magazines, I’d go with Women’s Health. Their most recent issue has quite a lot of yoga info in it and overall I think it translates better to general workouts.