Yoga with Trish Stratus

Our guest blogger today is Trish Stratus. You may recognize her from her many Oxygen covers over the year, but now Trish has taken things in a new direction with Stratusphere Yoga studio located just outside of Toronto. She shares with us her personal experience with yoga and how it helped her step into a whole new world. Don't miss her moves below...

Yoga: It's Not All Lotus Flowers & Buddhas
Here are some things I love about my yoga practice: I love the rhythm of connecting my breath with my movement. I love that there is no right or wrong - every pose, no matter what variation you do, will still give you the same benefits. I love the yoga booty that comes with a regular practice. But the most valuable part of my yoga practice are those precious minutes where you get to spend some one-on-one time with the most important person in your life... YOU.

You know how it is... we never give ourselves permission to disconnect. I always say going to yoga class is like putting up my out-of-office email reply: "TRISH IS NOT AVAILABLE. SHE HAS STEPPED ONTO HER MAT AND IS CURRENTLY CONNECTING WITH HERSELF AND ALL THAT IS IMPORTANT TO HER. PLEASE TRY BACK IN 90 MINUTES WHEN SHE HAS RESET, IS MORE BALANCED AND FOCUSED, AND THUS WILL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO TACKLE ANYTHING YOU HAVE TO THROW AT HER. NAMASTE”.

I know the mental image of a professional wrestler probably doesn’t immediately conjure up images of lotus flowers and buddhas – and I must admit, it did take me awhile to unleash my inner zen. See, I was one of those people who thought “yoga’s not for me and it’s not a real workout.” Then I hit my first class and… it was really hard! This, as a pro athlete, was a tough pill to swallow. Usually, I score pretty high in the athletic department, so when the end of the class came and I could barely manage a chaturanga, my ego was slightly bruised. And, yes, I too secretly wondered what the heck a chaturanga was… turns out it’s just a yoga-push up. Clearly, my Sanskrit was a little rusty.

When I finally checked my ego at the door, it was a little easier to keep coming back to class. Plus, I couldn’t deny how great my body was feeling, and I was starting to rock those chaturangas. And the pleasant side-effect? Suddenly my crazy wrestling life no longer seemed so crazy. I was on the road traveling 300 days a year, being thrown around the ring four nights a week. When I started practicing yoga regularly my crazy schedule suddenly seemed more manageable, the body slams didn’t hurt as much, and I got less irked when the toilet seat was left up. I liked what yoga was doing to my body, but I loved what it was doing to my life.

Eight years later, I know that yoga will always be a part of my life. Whether I’m doing a strenuous 90 minute class, or taking a 5-minute breather to reflect, my “yoga practice” is whatever I need it to be. So go ahead… unleash your inner zen.

Check out these Stratusphere Yoga poses to help you get your zen on while you get your sweat on – the signature system I developed integrates strength training moves into a yoga flow to give you the best of both worlds.

ChairSquats:
1. Standing tall, bring your big toes together and your heels slightly apart.
2. Bend your knees as if you were about to sit in a chair.
3. Sweep your arms up above your head.
4. Keep palms facing each other or put them in prayer position.
5. Gaze at your thumbs.
6. Hold for 5 breaths.
7. After 5 breaths step your feet shoulder-width apart and do 10 squats.

PlankDogs:
1. From plank position, press your hips back into downward dog bringing your heels closer to the ground.
2. Then press forward to plank and repeat movement to complete a full plankdog.
3. Repeat these movements for 10 reps.
4. On your last rep remain in downward dog.
5. Hold for 5 breaths.