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Southern Om News             Your Oasis in a Busy Day                  March 2016
In This Issue
Retail Return Policy
Monthly Charity Class
Perkville Rewards
Spring Mini Retreat with Silica
Bhakti Flow Yoga
Yin Yoga
How Yoga Made Me Look 10 Years Younger
Health Coaching Comes to SO
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Check out the all new MADE FOR YOGA line of clothing from Manduka!











 
Have you seen the new Alo items?  Wow!  Gorgeous new Airbrushed Capris & Leggings in white and peach python patterns and soft tanks and long sleeve tops that are perfect for Winter workouts!
 

Spring is in the air!  While we patiently (or not) await the first day of Spring on March 20, many of you may be starting to get that itch to spend more time outdoors or doing your spring cleaning indoors.  While it is the perfect time of year for those physical activities, why not consider a spring cleaning of the body and mind?  Is there something you are holding on to that you can let go of so that you can experience personal growth?  Think about the trees that you cut back in the fall and winter so they can bloom fully in the spring and summer.  Maybe you have something in your life that can be trimmed away to allow for growth and transformation....a fear, a habit, a relationship or even physical weight.  All of these things can be explored in your yoga practice this month!

And speaking of transformation, our current 40 Days to Personal Revolution group is closing in on the last couple weeks of their program and will celebrate Sunday, March 20. Many of these students just completed a 3-Day Fruit Fast and have been working hard to eat clean, meditate more often and practice yoga on a deeper level.  Please congratulate all of the students who completed the 40 Days program and be sure to ask them (or Sarah or Lindsay) how you can be transformed when the program returns this Fall!

Charity Flow Class THIS Friday night!
Our Friday night class has been super popular and this Friday is no exception - Athena is leading an upbeat and energetic Flow and all monies donated will go to the Blue Ridge High School Community Garden in honor of National Nutrition Month. Bring a friend, a yoga mat and cash or checks that will go directly to charity!

Spring Mini Retreat
Join Silica Larkin on Saturday, March 19 for her annual Spring Mini Retreat.  Perfectly timed to coincide with the Spring Equinox, you will be treated to aromatherapy, pranayama and gentle yoga.  Cost is $25 per person. No yoga experience required to enjoy this beautiful evening. Read more below, and sign up here.

There is a lot of information packed into this newsletter. Please take a few moments to read it through and feel free to always reach out to us with any questions or concerns you have.  We are so glad you are here.

Namaste-

Pace & Sarah  
Retail Return Policy

We love the fact that our boutique has become the go to place for high quality yoga and athletic wear in Greenville!  Please be aware that we have modified our return policy so that is more clear to our customers and friends.

Retail items in new and unused condition with all tags on may be returned within 30 days for a full refund. Only one return transaction per credit card receipt is permitted*.  
 
Thank you for your continued support!

*after the first return on a receipt, future return transactions will be for store credit only.
Monthly Charity Class Friday, March 11 at 6:45 pm with Athena Seay
Proceeds to benefit the Blue Ridge High School
 
Each Friday we offer a $5 Community Class and on the 2nd Friday of each month we give all the monies raised to a community cause.  This month's cause is the community garden at Blue Ridge High School. Suggested donation is $10.

"At Blue Ridge High, our Environmental Studies classes are taking a hands-on approach in studying our environment. We are currently in the processing of establishing school gardens, to learn about plants, agriculture, the nitrogen and carbon cycles, acid rain, water pollution, and native pollinators. Your donations will help support the buying of plants, garden equipment, gardening soil and composting supplies. The opportunity to go outside and have ownership of their own living plants is very motivating for high school students!"
- Emily Annas, Science Teacher


Please bring cash or checks!
Are you getting all the perks you deserve at Southern Om?

Do you know about Perkville?  This amazing incentive program allows you to earn points that you can put towards yoga, or anything in the boutique just by practicing yoga at Southern Om!  You can even earn points by referring friends or posting on social media about your experience at the studio.  Visit our  website  for more information!


It is easy to get started!  Shortly after your first visit to SO, you will receive an email from Perkville.   Open the email and register using the same email address you gave to SO. 

How to Earn Points:
  • Earn 5 points automatically whenever you attend a class!
  • Earn 10 points when you post about us on Facebook!*
  • Earn 10 points when you Tweet about us!*
  • Earn 20 points by following us on Twitter!*
  • Earn 20 points if you refer a friend to our Intro Special**
  • Earn 30 points by writing a review on a popular website***  
 
Point Values:

150pts = $15 credit

250pts = $25 credit

500pts = $50 credit

 
You can use your credit towards anything in the Boutique, as well as yoga classes.

Spring 2016
Upcoming Workshops
Take Your Practice to the Next Level!
Spring Mini Retreat with Silica
Saturday, March 19
6:00-7:30 pm
 
Simple Seasonal Movement
Candles
Aromatherapy
Are you ready to invite the vital energy of spring and summer? Recharge those batteries with 'can't do it wrong' movements, breath work, uplifting music, and a custom seasonal aromatherapy blend. This joyful practice is inspired by traditional Indian medicine-Ayurveda- which gives seasonal prescriptions for well-being. After preparing the physical body, a relaxing guided meditation will bring clarity about your own personal intentions for the next few months.  SPACE IS LIMITED!

Register online or at the Front Desk. Cost is $25 per person.

Led by Silica Larkin.
Bhakti Flow Yoga
Saturday, April 9
6:00-8:30 p.m. with Erick Herlong
 

Bhakti flow combines aspects of love, compassion and healing with the grace of vinyasa flow yoga. This workshop will not only stretch your body and your breath but will also stretch your heart by inviting you to move beyond the physical aspects of the practice and experience the asanas on an emotional level. 

The workshop will begin with a short talk, which will introduce Bhakti yoga along with a theme. This theme will be woven throughout the workshop. We will then have a 90 minute asana practice with specially selected music which will enhance the theme and energy of the class. We will incorporate universal mantras through Kirtan (singing together) - at the close of the class. This workshop will challenge you to let go of anything in your life that feels stagnate, it will empower you to create the life you desire by asking you to embrace the truth of who you are. The workshop will seek to provide a space for you to explore your yoga practice on a deeper more personal level in an effort to encourage you to live your life to its highest potential.
 
Cost is $25.  You can pay online or at the Front Desk.
 
*NOTE - this workshop lasts until 8:30 pm.

Bring water, mat towel and yoga mat.
 
You can register online or at the Front Desk. Payment is due upon registration.

Led by Erick Herlong
YinYoga
Saturday, April 30
6:00-7:30 p.m. with Melissa Howard
 

Please join Melissa Howard for an hour and a half of Yin Yoga! In a Yin Yoga class, you will hold a pose for 3-5 minutes. When holding a pose for longer periods of time the practitioner is able to get into the deeper parts of the body, the Yin parts.

Tendons, ligaments, and joints are exercised, not stretched and the benefits of Yin are endless. Another benefit when exercising these yin parts, we also tap into the lines in the body, called meridians, that connect with the organs in the body. During this workshop we'll focus on the spine, forward folding, back bending, twisting, and side flexion, as well as the hips. This is a workshop you won't want to miss!

As good as it will be for the body, a Yin practice can be challenging for the mind, because we rest into the poses. You will be talked through each posture and gently guided from one pose to another with more yang like movements to help the the continuation of the blood flow to these yin-like places in the body. This will also help ease the mind when it seems to get mentally challenging! Sounds fun, yes?!
 
Cost is $20.  Bring a mat, towel and water.

You can register online or at the Front Desk. Payment is due upon registration.

Led by Melissa Howard
Health & Happiness Tips
Centered On Your Health
How Yoga Made Me Look 10 Years Younger
by Hope Knosher
Courtesy of Mindbodygreen.com
 
Photo Credit: Hope Knosher

I'm often told that I look younger than my 53 years, but this wasn't always the case. Before I started practicing yoga and let go of all that was binding me emotionally and physically into a tightly compacted ball, I looked and even acted much older. Those who knew me then can attest to the fact that I've changed. 

The picture on my driver's license from well over a decade ago was so bad I once almost didn't get through security at the airport. The picture was so bad that when I took my daughter to get her license a few years ago, the person at the desk saw mine and said, "We have to get you a new license with a new picture on it!"
The woman in that old picture wasn't me, or  at least she wasn't the person I am now.

Who was she? A tightly wound, shut-down person whose light had been extinguished by the events of her life and how she was holding on to it all. Due to my inability to process and work through life events - a cancer diagnosis, my mother's death - things just continued to build until I hit a breaking point and knew something had to change.

Today, that version of me is nowhere to be found thanks to a regular yoga practice and a few other things that make me look and feel much younger than I am. Here are my tips:

1. Find a way to connect with yourself. 

This was my first and most transformative step.

After not being able to sleep, take a deep breath, or really feel anything, I visited a doctor who recommended I give yoga a try. And so I found myself in a studio for the first time, nervous and unsure of what to expect.
I knew that my current life wasn't working for me and that something needed to change, but what I didn't know was that "something" was me.

As I began a committed practice, I also began to connect with myself, and although it wasn't pretty (I cried during every class for a long time), I became aware of all I was holding on to.

It was only once I recognized this that the layers of emotional and physical baggage melted away, allowing me to move more freely and breathe more deeply to heal body, mind, and soul.

2. Let go of ideas about how things "should" be.

As I started to connect with myself, so, too, started the process of letting go of old holding patterns.

Recognizing and confronting the things that were dragging me down allowed me to forgive myself and others for things in my life that had been hurtful. I stopped trying to control my life and instead began to live from a more heart-centered and open place.

My appearance, expressions, and movements became softer. I was less affected by the inevitable bumps we all face and was more able to feel hopeful and happy.

Learning to let go of perfectionism is one of the most profound things I've ever done. It allowed me to be in the world with more ease, grace, and compassion for others and myself. Nothing is more true than the statement, "no one is perfect"; appreciate and accentuate your strengths, and learn to love the characteristics that aren't.

3. Throw rules out the window.

Make your own. Find what works for you and let it. Don't let anyone say you're "too old."

When I finally realized I didn't need to pay attention to what others told me was "right" or "wrong," it was huge. No long hair after 50? Knee-length skirts and dresses for women my age? Forget it ... life is too short not to do what feels good for you.

I stopped paying attention to what others told me I needed to look like. Only short hair over 50? Forget it! No skirts above your knees? I just bought a faux leather miniskirt, which I wore to dinner few a days ago. Life's too short not to make the most of it!

4. Always keep moving.
  
As we get older, our bodies start to dry out and get stiff if we don't keep them moving. Yoga and walking are my exercises of choice, but find something you love that works for you, and stick with it. In 10 years, you won't regret your boosted metabolism, bone density, and muscle mass; I promise.

5. Smile.

Before yoga came into my life, I rarely smiled because I was too caught up in my own misery. But when you smile, your body gets the message that you're happy and it responds in kind. If I am going to have lines on my face (and I do),  let them be smile lines!

We can't go back and change the past, but we can choose how we move forward. By choosing what feels good and healthy for you (not what others tell you is good and healthy), you can slow down or even turn back the clock on aging by getting and staying in tune with your body.

Read more here.
Southern Om Introduces Health Coaching Services

We are very excited about a new service at Southern Om! Sarah Beattie, a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and a Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, is now providing one-on-one individual health counseling!  

Sarah is excited to share her knowledge with Southern Om students and friends who are looking to live a healthier and happier lifestyle.  The focus of her program is helping clients meet their individual health goals understanding that primary food (your relationships, career and physical activity) is just as important as secondary food - what you are actually putting into your body.  

Together, Sarah and her clients will explore dietary theories and work to establish realistic goals for improving health and happiness in all areas of their life.

Benefits of health coaching include:
  • Two 50-minute sessions per month
  • One-on-one individual counseling around primary and secondary food
  • Personalized goal setting
  • Accountability towards reaching your goals
  • Grocery store tours and pantry evaluations
  • Ongoing support in between sessions
  • Recipes, food samples, books
  • A fun, supportive environment
  • And much more!
If this is a service you are interested in, please visit
her website for more information. Sarah is offering complimentar y health history consultations for all Southern Om students.  You can arrang e your time by emailing sarah@southernom.com.
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Namaste,


Southern Om Hot Yoga

  phone: 864-329-1114