Namaste

1) Yoga enhances recovery - most vigorous sport activities generate lactic acid in muscle tissue.  If lactic acid is not removed properly, it can adversely affect performance in future training sessions or events.  Yoga exercises can help in the removal of lactic acid by gently circulating lactic acid out of muscle tissue and into the blood stream where it will make its' way to the liver for processing.   Yoga also has shown to improve sleep patterns. Proper rest and ample sleep are critical periods for an athlete's recovery process.

2) Yoga restores balance and can help reduce injury.  Many sport activities are dominant on one side of the body due to specific movements and joint loading.  This mechanical dominance can create musculoskeletal imbalances that can generate chronic injuries.  Yoga can be beneficial in reducing these tissue and joint imbalances. 

3) Yoga improves biomechanics and energy conservation.  Moving a joint requires energy.  The more tension one has around that joint, the more energy is required to facilitate that movement.  The goal of athletes is to have maximum performance with the most energy conservation.  Yoga exercises that improve flexibility and joint range of motion reduce muscle tension and enhance sport biomechanics.  This enhancement reduces the amount of energy needed for those movements, thus allowing an athlete to perform at higher levels and/or longer intervals.

4) Yoga improves body awareness and focus.  Yoga employs physical and mental exercises that deepen one's sense of body positioning and movement (proprioception).  Enhanced proprioceptive skills are crucial in the development and progression of athletic training.  Yoga's use of breathing and centering techniques can be valuable tools for event preparation, routine and skill visualization, as well as stress/anxiety reduction.

5) Yoga improves breathing function.  Yoga exercises, particularly pranayam exercises, have been shown to improve breathing mechanics and lung capacity.  Focused breathing exercises develop one's ability to maximize function of all breathing mechanisms (diaphragm and intercostal breathing).  Maximal lung health is vital for athlete's, especially for those who partake in aerobic-based sports and require efficient lungs to deliver sufficient oxygen uptake.

By Kreg Weiss

Medium Roast

Boutique Planning at the Coffee Shop

Much to my excitement, Jessie, the brains of this whole operation, and myself  are launching our Boutique in the New Year! Champagne indeed. 

What I'm wearing:

Angel Wing Blouse by Lilypad

Missionani Vest by Pronto

Tights from NastyGal

Boots by Steve Madden 

Jewelry by Local Crafters 

Thought Process

Spooked by claps of blackened clouds
midst bellows from blowing winds,
water waved to rock from rest
the sailor new to the sea;
who knew not then its treachery.

\Older now and wise in ways
that water wills to work,
to sailors new he doth now advise,
beyond benign water
wild waves do lurk.

\So plan ahead , to roundabout  storms
where water into waves reforms
to rock you from your rest,
when spooked by claps of blackened clouds
midst bellows from blowing winds. 

-John Burns

What I'm wearing:

Crochet Beanie by Proper Savages

V neck by Victoria Secret

Sunshades by Versace

Jewelry by Urban Nomad

Heels by Leah Veximier 

The Secret Garden

"If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden."

I believe that we were all meant to roam, to be curious, to want to step off the sidewalk from time to time. I just happen to cross the street for the thrill of leaving of the path. I think I've always been very connected to adventure that way, drawn by nature, growing up believing Pocahontas and always searching for the colors in the wind. But as time has passed, and I've grown older, I've learned to listen to the songs in the wind instead and use my paintbrush myself. I think it's the interpretation that we're all missing, and instead of racing around the world we're too busy sitting waiting for it to simply fall in our laps.

What I'm Wearing:

Flower Crown by 5th and Farmer

Lace Mumu by FreePeople

Jewlery by Urban Nomad

Shrimp Cocktail Polish by OPI

Crown of Thorns

   I stumbled upon She Lets Her Hair Down and I fell in love instantly and just had to try a variation of my own. While my hair isn't quite as long as the model demonstrating the braid crown, actually divided my hair down the center and made two pig tails that I wrapped up towards my temples and knotted together in the center to create a little twisty braid.

What I'm Wearing:

Native Dress by ProperSavages

Wedged Anklets by Jeffery Campbell

Turquoise Accessories by Swell