Come with me to CorePower Yoga!

Outfit 1 – Shoes: c/o Earth Brands | Leggings: c/o Cory Vines | Top: c/o Cory Vines |

Mat: c/o Jade | Water Bottle: BKR

Outfit 2 – Leggings: Lululemon | Sports Bra: Gap

If you’ve been following Lake Shore Lady, you probably already know about my love for yoga. I’ve talked about it here, a littlehere– and all over Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You may have noticed that I’ve been posting about my practice a lot more recently, which is something I’ve wanted to do for a while. Turns out a recent collaboration with CorePower Yogawas exactly what I needed to get that ball rolling.

First of all, have you guys ever tried CorePower? They opened a location near my apartment and I quickly fell in love. I will admit that I can throw on my new favorite sneakers and be at the studio in less than 5 minutes – definitely lucked out on that! But even if you’re farther, the staff is incredibly knowledgeable and supportive; and they push me every time I step into class. I could never get on board with Bikram classes, but the heated vinyasa style classes are exactly what I want in a workout.

The rooms are still hot, so you sweat a lot – but the classes are always different. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like to know what I’m getting myself into when I walk in to class. I want to be FORCED to be in the moment, focus only on my breath and what the teacher leads me to next. Yoga is my time, without my phone, without social media, and without the need to worry about what happened before or what will happen after class.  There is something so liberating about that!

That focus on each moment is absolutely the reason why I’ve improved and why I have such a strong attachment to the practice. If you aren’t 100% committed in the room to each pose, if you’re worried you won’t be able to hold something, or that you can’t stretch as deeply as the person next to you – you’re never going to get anywhere! We walk around all day every day running around from meeting to meeting, comparing ourselves to other people, mentally checking through everything we need to do… it makes sense that it’s difficult to snap out of it. But just like anything, the more you practice, the easier it gets.

In addition to that, it’s important to keep in mind that yoga isn’t something you master or “complete.” Your practice is constantly evolving and poses might feel different each time you step on the mat. Especially for those people who might be new or intimidated, just remember that you’re learning. It takes time to figure out how the poses work in your body. I’ve been practicing for years and I still find new connections to the angles the pose is creating or the muscles it is meant to engage. Check out the pictures of my tripod headstand above – I’m always working to get my legs completely in line with the rest of my body, but it doesn’t always happen! Don’t get frustrated with yourself. Keep working and relish in the moments when it all comes together – like when your feet finally float up off the ground in side crow! Eeee!

Along with the benefits of mentally being present, CorePower focuses a great deal on strength and balance. There is a large emphasis on the core (hence the name) – everything comes from the strength of your center. I stress this because a lot of people think of yoga as a non-workout! They think you stretch and “om” and that’s about it. I want to take ALL of these people to a CorePower class and watch them get their butts kicked! (I’m only half kidding…) The Sculpt class, as well as the C2 and Fusion classes, all require an incredible amount of strength; and even though I leave class feeling tired and sweaty, I also feel so powerful!

Getting stronger has made me much more confident, in and out of the studio. Even if I’m overwhelmed, stressed or upset about something – if I can leave my workout feeling centered, powerful, and strong, then that will carry with me through the rest of my day.

Have I peaked your interest? If so, make sure you sign up for my newsletter, follow me on BlogLovin or keep an eye out on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. There might be a one month membership up for grabs soon J  In the meantime, do you have any questions for me? What would you like to see more of? Is there something that you’re struggling with in your practice? I’d love to hear!

 I’ll leave you with a quote that one of my teachers read in class recently. It really struck a chord with me and I hope you like it as much as I did: