Practice to Change: New Year's Resolution

Hello!
Happy Winter to Spring! I know it's a little early to say "spring" but have we really had a winter here in Southern Oregon? I'm a winter sports kinda gal and have been a bit disappointed that we had almost a repeat of last year with low levels of snow.  Hopefully, in the next month we may get a little more to really enjoy skiing, snowshoeing or the like.

As a new year has begun and a new season is approaching, have you reassessed things in your life that you may want to revamp or change or just DO?  I know a lot of people say they don't make New Year's Resolutions, but secretly in their mind, I think they do. Are you one of those people? I used to be, but this year I said my resolutions out loud (to people) and have created a plan to follow-through with my resolutions. Number One:  be more organized.  Number Two:  run daily (setting my bar high)! But then there is this little thing (okay a big thing) called "follow-through."

Ah, follow-through, that's a tough one. I'm guilty of starting projects and not finishing them. Am I afraid that it won't turn out? That I'll be disappointed with the outcome? That the act of finishing something makes me feel sorta sad in a way? Well, something has to change because the way I currently do things in that I just don't finish them, isn't going to do anymore.

What is that saying? Oh yes, "if nothing changes, nothing changes." The definition of insanity.

The problem is I know this. I'm smart, I can think ahead, I'm capable….but….I'm not motivated. That's it! Deadlines are my friends when it comes to getting things done. When I know my mom is coming to visit months in advance, you bet I'm cleaning and organizing the guest room the day before she comes. I mean I only had months to do it, but hey the day before sounds just as good, right? NOPE! This behaviour creates stress, and undo stress as in coming undone.

So, I've created a deadline system for myself.  First, I realized I needed external help or support, if you will. So I joined a home organizational 14-challenge group through A Bowl Full of Lemons. Every week we are given a task to work on in an area/project of our home. We have one week to get it done and we can post before and after photos along the way…for moral support. Sounds great, right!?  Well, ahem, I've only completed one week (my pantry) out of the 5 weeks of the challenge.

Now, I'm thinking: "what is wrong with me?" I think I'm just too lazy to get started, but once I've started, watch out,  I don't stop until it's done. See my pantry below? I even painted it! That wasn't on the organizational list for the pantry-week. I loved my pantry so much I would open the doors and just stare at how great it looked. I even gave my boys the tutorial on how to keep it organized and the consequences if they didn't. <GRIN>

What I have found is that I'm a perfectionist. I didn't have to paint my pantry but I wanted something different. That's it, perfection. I have to have it perfect or I feel disappointed. Do you ever feel that way? I've created this cycle of starting but not finishing things because it may not be perfect. But then I realized it's a practice. Change happens when you repeatedly change your behavior. It doesn't happen overnight like we want it to. It's a practice.

This is where yoga comes into my life. It's a practice. We don't DO yoga, we PRACTICE yoga. And with our practice, comes acceptance, kindness, revelations, love, healing and ultimately... peace. Sigh, peace. That's really what I want in the end - that finished project will equal peace to my creative soul.  When I think of all of my unfinished projects, I have to remind myself that in this process of change I need to be kind to myself, accept myself, reveal myself, love myself, and the healing part will be that I actually finish what I start, creating harmony and peace.

Whew, that is therapeutic for me to write about. It can be hard to reveal parts of yourself that nobody really sees (except my husband). But you never know who is going through similar struggles or challenges and this concept of practice really applies to all areas of our life. As we strive to better ourselves, we need to be reminded that hey, we aren't alone and yes, we'll get there. Just keep going and moving forward, getting it done and moving on to the next great thing!

So with that I leave you with Number Two of my New Year's Resolution: Running Daily.  I joined a challenge at my gym in January and I ran 1-mile every day for that month! That was a big one because I dislike running. There were days that I wasn't "feeling it" but I did it anyway and I was never disappointed and I felt "perfect" for doing it!  I'm going to continue to run 4 days a week at least 1-mile through 2015!

Onward and upward to my practice of change and follow-through! Cheers!

Love and blessings to you,
Tina

Winter/Spring 2015 CLASS SCHEDULE:

Monday/Wednesday

12:10p Lunch Hour Yoga at Women's Fitness Company

5:45p Power Vinyasa  - Firehouse Dance Hall Studio

Tuesday/Thursday

8:00a Yoga Flow - Women's Fitness Company

Saturday

8:30a Power Vinyasa - Firehouse Dance Hall Studio

For more info. contact Tina Tonkin at 541-261-0135

End of the Year!

WOW! Really it's the end of 2014 pretty soon? Every year I say, "That was a fast year!" And every year they keep getting faster. Does that mean I'm not slowing down to enjoy the moment? Quite possibly.

I hope this Holiday Season finds you well and doing things that bring joy into your life! As we all know, our days can get by us without really appreciating all the good that has come into our day, our week, our lifetime. In the hustle and bustle of life we tend to focus the negative things instead of the positive.  I'd like to share a quick story about positive feedback.

Last week I kept getting compliments from my clients. They would stop me in the gym or studio and commend me for what I do and my teaching, etc. I was just really humbled by all of this positive feedback, coming out of the blue. It's always such an honor for me to have someone come up to me after class to tell me about their experience in class and how yoga has changed their life, etc. Such a great feeling for me!

Anyway, that same week I was training a new client. She was waiting for me when I walked into the gym. I introduce myself to her and she says to me, "Oh my goodness you are young! I thought I was getting an older trainer. Your picture on the wall makes you look old. I thought you were 60 years old! You really need to change that picture." (Taking a deep breath here…yes, she really said all of these things in one breath, it felt like, anyway!) I'm smiling as I type this because it is kind of funny when I'm enacting it out in my mind.

Okay, I do not like the picture that is up on the wall of me. So I will be changing that, however, I was a little speechless…to say the least…after she was done ranting about my looks. I just laughed it off and said well, "I don't like taking pictures of myself." We got through our appointment and she was really a nice young woman. She was 35 but looked younger, to me. HA How's that for ironic?

That night I go home and tell my husband my story and we laughed a bit, but I kept reflecting on her comments. Can I let this one negative scenario affect my positive comments I've had all week? Well, I could have but I didn't. I brushed it off.  I guess, I would never in a million years express myself the way she did to a friend, let alone a stranger. Maybe she is a "call them like I see them" type of personality. Which can be refreshing sometimes.  And do we really see ourselves as other see us? I'm pretty sure most of us do not.

With this story, I hope to promote Positive Feedback.  Let's focus on all that is positive in our life, seriously. If something negative pops into your day…TURN IT AROUND! If you look at the bigger picture…we really have more POSITIVES in our life than NEGATIVES.  I feel that negatives are there just to ground us to make us humble and remind us that we are, in the end, humans who seek love, kindness and acceptance.

With love and positive feedback,

Your Humbled Yoga Teacher and Practitioner -

Tina

DECEMBER CLASS SCHEDULE:

The studio will be

closed

December 20, December 24, December 27, and December 31st.

(We will have classes as scheduled on Monday, December 22)

Our regular class schedule will resume Saturday, January 2, 2015!

All right!  HERE IT GOES….ahem….

       H A P P  Y      N E W      Y E A R!!!!!

Cheers to peace in our world, love in our world, and joy in our world. Let's teach our children all of these, as they are our future. 

Love and light,

Tina

Seasons Change

Happy Fall Everyone!

It's hard to believe that October is here! My favorite season, FALL! My mother always said that the older you get the faster time flies, and yes, moms are always right - whether we want them to be or not.

Wolverine Lake, Palmer, Alaska:  Fall colors, picture from my mom's front porch.

Wolverine Lake, Palmer, Alaska: Fall picture from my mom's front porch.

September was my 8th Anniversary of the opening of The Chi Room.  EIGHT YEARS! Cheers to that accomplishment. I have all of you to thank for my success and I appreciate you all so much. Some of you have been practicing with me for 13 years, now. You've been a part of me transitioning, growing, finding my groove as an independent yoga teacher.  You all have been an important part of my growth along the way. Thank you!

The Chi Room, 2009: Great friends!

I would like to announce some changes happening this month. Starting Monday, October 13th, Monday and Wednesday's lunch hour class will be held at Women's Fitness Company off of Stevens and Biddle.  It will be the same time and days:  Monday/Wednesday 12:10 to 1:00 p.m. The drop- in fee will be $5 through a punch card. You also have the option to join the facility and have access to all of their classes and fitness equipment.  They have graciously offered to waive the enrollment fee for you if you decide to join. So you have a choice to keep paying as you do now or join the facility.  It's nice to have options.  The address is 549 Stevens St, Medford, phone number is 541-776-5200.

I am also teaching at Women's Fitness Company on Tuesday/Thursday at 8:00a.m. if you are interested in more yoga classes and earlier times!

I'm excited to be partnering with such an amazing facility and I appreciate all of your support! If you have questions, please let me know!

So here is the NEW SCHEDULE beginning OCTOBER 13:

Monday/Wednesday:

12:10 - 1:00p Lunch Hour Yoga (Women's Fitness Co.)

5:45p - 6:45p Power Vinyasa (The Chi Room Studio)

Tuesday/Thursday:

8:00a - 9:00a  Yoga Flow (Women's Fitness Co.)

Saturday:

8:30a Power Vinyasa (The Chi Room Studio)

Again, feel free to contact me with any questions! 

I am still thinking of bringing back the 10:00a Yoga Fusion class on Saturdays if there is enough interest.  I will run it as a four week class and you pay for the four weeks. There will be 4-5 Saturdays each month (depending on the month) and you pay for the 4-5 Saturdays whether you can make it our not. There would be no refund. The cost would be $35 for the month.  How does that sound? Let me know through email or Facebook and we can plan to start up soon!

As always, the light within me honors the light within you. 

Blessings to you!

Tina Tonkin

Me, 2003: This was a photo shoot I did right before I did my first fitness competition. Glad I took pictures to remember what I looked like back then! : )

Reflection/Labor Day Week(end) Schedule

Hello Friends,

It was our last yoga in the park class this morning. What a beautiful morning!

I decided to ride my bike to the park and I am so glad I did. I'm not typically a morning person and I can be slow-going in the morning, but I thought before I know it the season will be changing and it will be cold and rainy, so get your tush going and get out there. AHHH, what a gift! It was such  a gorgeous ride along Bear Creek with the fresh morning salty air and the warm sun on my body. Other bikers, joggers, walkers all saying "good morning" as we passed.

I showed up at the park with my fellow yogis and yoginis ready to practice. Shelley brought her iPad and played great music. There was a slight breeze with birds chirping and the sky was so blue. The time passed so quickly that I just wanted to bask in the glow of our practice a bit longer. The glow is still with me as I type this passage.

On the ride home, I felt so grateful and my heart was full. Getting out in nature really renews my spirit and clears my mind and allows for positive things to transpire throughout my day. I hope that you find time to get out do something that lifts you and creates balance within your day. You won't regret it.

As I approach my 8th year anniversary of the opening of The Chi Room, I'm reminded what a great community we have created within our practice and outside of our practice. I appreciate all of you who have come through the doors and all of you who have continued your practice with me. Thank you!

Please note the studio schedule for Labor Day Weekend:

August 25, Monday Classes (studio)

12:10p Lunch Hour Yoga

5:45p Power Vinyasa

NO CLASSES:  August 27 through September 1

Classes resume Wednesday, September 3

12:10p Lunch Hour Yoga

5:45p Power Vinyasa

See you on the mat and in life!
xo Tina

What? Almost August?!

Smiling Chi Room Yogis and Yoginis (2013)

It's hard to believe August is almost upon us. Where did June and July go? Seeing back to school stuff and fall decor out in the stores already, reminds me that time ticks to quickly; I have to stand still for a moment to make sure I am not missing out on anything important.

How about you? Are you having a  wonderful summer, doing fun things and being present in the moments of your life? I hope the answer is a big fat YES!

As the month of August sweeps by, I will be in and out of the studio throughout the month.  Below is my class line-up for August:

August 1 - 10  NO CLASSES

I will be visiting my sister in Idaho and taking some yoga training! ; P

Classes On-going August 11 through August 25th: 

Monday/Wednesday (Studio)

12:10p Lunch Hour Yoga

5:45p Power Vinyasa

Saturday (Bear Creek Park Amphitheater)

8:30a Power Vinyasa

August 27 - September 1 NO CLASSES Labor Day Weekend

This will be my last holiday before school starts and for the rest of the year! Yikes!

Note that some of the classes will be at the Bear Creek Park amphitheater, off of Highland Drive, Medford. I will be revisiting the schedule for September and adding more classes back in. I hope to be adding a whole new fitness class! Stay tuned!

In the meantime, I look forward to practicing yoga with you in the next month! I hope you find time to put yoga, or any form of exercise, at the top of your list of things to do for yourself. You are worth it!

Cheers to you and your breathing space!
Tina xo

Schedule Change

Hi Yoga Friends,

Due to low participation, I've decided to cancel both Saturday yoga classes at the studio beginning Saturday, August 2, 2014.

However, I will continue to teach the 8:30 a.m. class at Bear Creek Park for the month of August. All are welcome to participate. Regular class prices will apply.

I will revisit the schedule in September and will add Saturday classes back in if there is enough interest.
I'm also taking a look at cancelling the lunch hour classes, too, as attendance is also low. Please check back for updates.

It's hard to believe that September will be 8 years since I started The Chi Room. My deepest gratitude goes out to all who have supported me through these past 8 years. Your friendship, patronage, and love have always lifted me up to continue with my passion.

Thank you!
Tina

AUGUST YOGA SCHEDULE (effective August 2, 2014):

Monday/Wednesday

12:10 Lunch Hour Yoga (studio)

5:45p Power Vinyasa (studio)

Saturday

8:30a Power Vinyasa (Bear Creek Park)

Fourth of July Schedule

CLASS SCHEDULE for the FOURTH of JULY WEEKEND

Wednesday, July 2 CLOSED-No Classes
Saturday, July 5 CLOSED-No Classes

Our regular class schedule will resume Monday, July 7th!

HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!