We all need a little "Me Time"

Sometimes we all need a little “me time.”

I have a four-month-old daughter. I love her more than any words could describe.

I also love my partner and my cat.

But sometimes we all need a little “me” time.

As a breastfeeding mother, getting away for hours at a time can be tricky. An hour is just about the right amount of time to step away from my duties as a mama and clear my head.

For me, yoga class is the best place to do that.

Whether I spend an hour sweating it out in Jill’s flow class, an hour allowing my body to regenerate in Melissa’s restorative or an hour getting into my body’s connective tissues in Charity’s yin class, it’s my “me time,” and it’s wonderful.

How do you spend your “me time”?

Could you use a little more of it?

We wanted to take the opportunity to thank everyone who voted for Studio Bliss in The Montreal Mirrors Best of Montreal 2011. We won in three categories!

Best Spa (#1)

Best Massage Therapist (#1)

Our amazing massage therapists Julia Barila, Matthew Mackay, Joshua Brown and “a dozen or so others from Studio Bliss” were mentioned.

Best Yoga Studio (#2)…

But #1 as far as non-hot yoga studios go!

In conjunction with the Mirror’s Best in Montreal, Studio Bliss had its own raffle to encourage Bliss clients and students to vote.

Many completed the involved task of voting not just in the three categories we were hoping to win in, but in a minimum of 22 other categories in the competition.

Once completing the Mirror survey, clients and students gave us a heads up and their names were entered into a raffle for the chance to win 6 months of yoga and 6 massages at Studio Bliss! (Yeah, we thought it was pretty exciting too).

A big congratulations goes out to Julie Bernard, who took the time to vote for the Studio and was our lucky and, soon to be, more relaxed and healthy, winner.

A couple weeks ago, yoga instructor Mélissa Colleret began the class with crunches. It was just what my post-pregnancy body needed, but after three months of no yoga at all, I was definitely feeling the burn.

I decided I would make it out to Mélissa’s classes as often as possible. This includes her Tuesday night restorative classes which are absolutely delicious after the intense workout she takes the class through during the Monday afternoon Hatha Flow.

Yesterday I went to her Hatha Flow class again. I admittedly took a little rest in child’s pose part way through. I had worked up a sweat and could feel my heart pumping. But I took my rest with a smile on my face. Mélissa had dedicated yesterday afternoon’s class to gratitude.

Before we meditated, she explained how important it is to be grateful for everything we have. This is something that is so easily forgotten in our day to day lives. We get flustered and annoyed at loved ones so easily without stopping to think about how lucky we are that we have them in our lives.

She spoke about how annoying it is to get in a fender-bender. If we concentrate on the negativity, we will be very angry at what it will cost to repair the car. We will be furious at the amount of time it will take to go back and forth with the insurance companies.

But maybe we have lost sight of something very important–we are still alive. And we must be grateful for that.

At times during the Monday afternoon Hatha Flow class I felt a bit resentful of the teacher and how hard she was pushing us. But it was okay (she was okay with it too). I turned my frown upside down and thought about how grateful I was to be alive and healthy and able to feel the burn in my thighs, calves, abdomen…

Tonight I will restore my body at the 8:15 pm class.

Charity is a wonderful teacher and Yin is my favourite type of yoga. It’s the best way I’ve found to spend my Saturday nights. Seriously. Last week, just when I thought my favourite class couldn’t get any better, I was absolutely blown away by the singer that had come to Bliss to perform.

The first posture we did was “Dangling” yes, as it sounds, we were dangling while standing up. Eyes open or not, I couldn’t see what was happening at the front of the class. I thought the music was beautiful and got distracted trying to remember to ask Charity at the end of the class what it was she was playing.

But then I really concentrated on what I was listening to (Yeah, I know, I should have been focusing on my breathing, but I couldn’t help it!) All I could hear was was one voice and some ting tinging of the Tibetan singing bowls. The beautiful music I was hearing was not a recording made in a far-off land, but the work of a talented musician right there in the room with us!

Bliss often has live musicians come into the evening classes. Every artist who comes to perform is unique and special and brings something so wonderful and enriching our yoga practice.

Sunday, June 5th, 10am – 1pm is the Therapeutic  Sequence with Jill  and Costa. You will learn how to give and receive a flying massage. This class is great for massage therapists, yogis, or anyone looking for a fun and challenging way to deeply stretch.

Sunday, June 12th, 10am – 1pm is the “Acrobatic Transitions” workshop  with Heidi, which will teach acroyogis ways to transition from position to position, exploring stability and awareness.

Self-proclaimed acroyoga junky Jill Campbell has been practicing Acro Yoga for four years and other types of yoga for more than a decade. Some of the things that attracted her to Acro Yoga?

• the possibilities
• the fluidity
• the continuity
• the creation
• the communication
• the connection

Jill says, “The only danger involved is the possibility of losing some of your fears and getting the acro addiction!”

You can come alone or with a partner. $65 for both courses if you register ahead of time, or you can pay $40 for a drop-in class.

Many of the benefits of massage alone are pretty awesome:
• Massage therapy relieves muscle strain and tension
• Decreases tension, pain and anxiety
• When you’re less anxious, you sleep better at night
• Massage can help with depression
• Reduces high blood pressure
• Helps rehabilitation after injury
• Helps to increase the mind-body connection
And the benefits of adding hot oil to the mix:
• Allows for deeper tissue and muscle relaxation
• Increased tension relief
• Great for your complexion
Now, add a final ingredient to this delicious recipe: Use hot essential aromatherapy oils in massage!
Studio Bliss is very excited to be offering Hot Oil Aromatherapy massage. You can upgrade your regular massage to include one of the following:
RELAXING

• Helps with Insomnia, depression-
• Calms & Relaxes the nervous system
• Helps with physical & emotional purification

Ingredients: Boulo (burch), Rose Wood, Red Mandarine and Neroli – Wintergreen, Rosewood and Mandarine

Ingredients: Peppermint, Bergamot, Lemon and Geranium

Ingredients: White Cedar, Basil, Ginger and Lavender and rosemary

A full body massage with Hot Aromatherapy Oil does sound even nicer than a regular  massage, doesn’t it?

Like a good spring cleaning of our homes, it’s also so important to give our bodies and our minds at least one great annual cleaning!

Herbal Detox Programs
There are a number of herbal detox products on the market, like the Wild Rose Herbal D-Tox Program. With this particular product, you take a mixture of herbal supplements for nearly two weeks while sticking to a list of foods that you are “allowed” to eat. The goal is to rid your body of toxins to increase your energy. Does it really work? It could be worth a shot!

Juice Fast
This type of fast is done over a short period of time (usually 1-3days). You consume only water and raw veggie and fruit juice. This type of fast leaves you taking in plenty of vitamins, but is certainly not the best choice for everyone. It can have side-effects like fainting and dizziness. If you’re going to give it a try, spring is the best time to go for it, just be sure to do some more research first.

Go for a SPA treatment
Studio Bliss offers a Vitality Body Wrap. This soy and cocoa body wrap exfoliates and hydrates the entire body while it detoxifies, activates, hydrates, stimulates, energizes, heals, soothes, revitalizes, softens and clarifies your skin tone.

Bliss’s INFRARED SAUNA has all kinds of benefits, from burning fat and alleviating pain to relieving stress and boosting the immune system. Oh, and lets not forget the sauna’s detoxifying properties! The deep penetration of the infrared rays into your body and the resonance with your body tissue cells ensure quick removal of body toxins. Your body’s natural sweat reaction in the infrared sauna ensures that your skin is deeply purified and that toxins find their way out efficiently.

Sweat it out
Without necessarily going to such extreme measures as herbal pills and fasting, adopting a regular exercise routine such as yoga (maybe give hot yoga a try?) or pilates, biking, rollerblading or jogging could be the way to go. Anything that gets our heart rates oing and helps us break a sweat will certainly help us on our way to detoxifying this spring!

Photo by mahalie

When I was 31 weeks pregnant, I was hit hard one night with horrible lower back pain. I didn’t blame my 4lb. baby. I blamed the fact that I took almost a week off of doing yoga. Though I have no prior pregnancies with which to compare this one, I am convinced things went so smoothly for me because of my regular (almost daily) yoga practice.

But I got busy and let it slide. And my body (and mental health) suffered for it.

I needed a quick fix and was hoping a prenatal massage might help. The word “help” was an understatement. I booked a 60-minute massage with Nathalie and came out of there floating.

I entered into the peaceful, dimly-lit room and lay down on the table. It wasn’t one of the tables I had heard about, a hole cut in the centre for my belly. Instead, I was asked to lie on my left side. Only the parts of my body she was working on were exposed to the warm air. The rest of my body, covered in soft, dark fabric.

I was so cozy and comfy I imagined I was feeling exactly what my baby was at that moment.

Nathalie worked on my right side, then my left, making the lower back pain and the serious shoulder pain I’d been experiencing, disappear. She worked on my legs, feet, arms, hands and face.

Not only can prenatal massage alleviate the lower back pain that most women feel as their pregnancy progresses, it seriously helps to calm the mind and spirit.

At more than 7 months pregnant, reality was setting in and I was beginning to realize all I had to do in order to prepare for the biggest (albeit happiest!) change of my life. This can be stressful.

Like prenatal yoga, it’s important to have a massage done by someone who has been properly trained. A trained therapist not only knows which places to focus on to ease typical mama-to-be pains, but she knows which “buttons” not to push in order to bring on pre-term labour.

The hour passed by entirely too quickly, as it always does during a massage. Nathalie left me to take my time getting dressed and come out to the front desk.

I didn’t want to go. I wanted to stay forever lying down in the warm, dark comfort of the massage room. I wonder if that’s how all babies feel moments before entering our bright and noisy world?

Nadi Shodhana Pranayama

This is a cleansing breath that seems much more complicated than it actually is. It is great to help you control anxiety and stress. This breathing exercise promotes clear thinking and balances the left and right hemispheres.

I like to do it right before bed to ensure I have a more restful sleep, though it’s appropriate to do at any point during the day. It’s also great to do before a yoga session.

To practice Sweet Breath:

One round will look like this:

• Inhale through the left nostril
• Exhale through the right
• Inhale through the right
• Exhale through the left

Fold in your index and middle finger. (Vishnu Mudra) Place your thumb on your right nostril and your pinky and ring finger on your left. (Don’t plug your nose!) Take a nice breath with both nostrils.

Plug your right nostril with your thumb and steadily and slowly inhale through your left nostril.

Switch nostrils, closing the left nostril, exhaling through your right nostril while plugging your left with your pinky and ring finger.

Inhale through the right

Close the right

Inhale through the left nostril

Five rounds is a good starting point.

Happy sweet breathing!

It’s a great way to warm up!

Hot Stone Massage originates in Sweden. Swedish massage techniques are used during a Hot Stone Massage.

How does it work?

Before you get to your appointment at the massage studio, the smooth, volcanic rocks are heated and sterilized in boiling water.

You will be treated with Swedish massage, and the hot, oiled stones will be used to massage your body. The heat from the stones allows the muscles to release more quickly and thoroughly than they would if the heat wasn’t being applied.

The stones will be placed between your toes, on your belly, on your face, in your palms, and most commonly down your spine. This will help with energy flow in your entire body.

What are the benefits to receiving a Hot Stone Massage?

• Calms nervous system
• Alleviates stress
• Promotes a peaceful state from deep within
• Improves circulation
• Grounding and comforting
• Releases toxins

There are a number of conditions that can be treated with Hot Stone Massage.
• Stress
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Back Pain
• Arthritis
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Insomnia

If you have a health condition, you should always advise your doctor before getting this type of massage, and if you are pregnant, have varicose veins, high blood pressure or skin disease, this might not be your best massage option.

It’s important that the therapist knows if you are taking medications that could be affected by the heat of the massage.

There is a type of massage for everyone and you’re likely to find your perfect massage at Studio Bliss.

Most people, however, will greatly benefit from the warming, calming and soothing effects of the Hot Stone Massage.