by Tara Stiles | Apr 17, 2013 | Blog
Question Lately I've noticed that while I thought I was a really happy person, I am much quicker to point out the negative rather than the positive. I make fun of others (not to their face) a LOT more often than I'd like, just to be funny. I feel a lot less optimistic than I used to. How can yoga help? I'll admit I don't practice every single day. When I do, my ankle hurts from a recent break, so it's not for very long. Any ideas? Thank you so much! You all are so great! See, I… 
by Tara Stiles | Apr 16, 2013 | Blog
Question When I was four, I began practicing performance Shotokan Karate. I stopped after 10 years, then started gaining weight. As a teen I began going to the gym, and started another 10 years of pushing and forcing. More recently, I've been a running addict, alongside some pretty "violent" working out and healthy eating. I've noticed everything can be violent and self-attacking, even healthy eating. Now I'm practicing yoga, while trying to eat healthy and recover from pushing against myself. The problem is, I dont see my life without Karate or very hard work. What should I… by Tara Stiles | Apr 8, 2013 | Blog
Question Do I need a guru to advance in yoga? I feel like yoga is my me time. I like that! But when I look around the yoga world, all I see is religious icons and guru photos. Am I missing something? Answer You can bounce from guru to guru, study ancient languages, and read old textbooks. You can also go right to the source: you, discovering you, inventing your own life. Either way, when you're ready, there you'll be, patiently waiting for you. According to Yoga Journal, "The guru-disciple relationship is at the very core of… 
by Tara Stiles | Apr 7, 2013 | Blog
Question I've been trying to get into handstands for years. I keep on jumping up, and keep on falling right back down. I just can't stay up! What's wrong with me? Answer You might believe that when something isn't happening in your yoga, your body is failing you. You might believe that when something isn't happening in your life, you're failing your self. That's one way to look at things. Here's another. It might be that your body is miraculously, wonderfully, capably doing exactly what you need right now. Your body is the perfect expression of your… by Tara Stiles | Apr 2, 2013 | Blog
Question Does Strala focus on spirituality, or is it all physical? Answer All moments are spiritual, so no moment is more spiritual than another. No aspect is more spirit or more body or more anything. We're all single, connected, whole human beings, not disjointed collections of minds, bodies, and spirits. We are what we are, all the time, ours to experience. Feeling into our selves and connecting inward is spiritual. Talking about philosophy and history of yoga, to me, is at best an intellectual pursuit. Talking isn't spiritual. You're spiritual. You're a spirit. When you feel you,…