Spotlight: YOGA MOXI

by iana velez | Jul 29, 2024 | ARTICLES, FRONT PAGE POSTS, TRAVEL

Spotlight: YOGA MOXI

By: iana velez

PROFILES

Did you know Yoga Love magazine is available for free at partner studios and festivals thanks to our amazing community and other small business owners like Michele Carrión Yopps founder of the Yoga Moxi app! We asked Michele to share more about starting a small business, her personal yoga/meditation practice and some thoughts on JOY.

What inspired you to start your own business?
The Yoga Moxi app was created based on how I felt when I was a newer yoga teacher ten years ago. There was so much information, knowledge and skills acquired, and an app that provided more of a “road map” on how to use and apply the information would have been immensely helpful.

What is the most popular feature on your app?
Currently, yoga teachers have provided the most feedback on the “Timers”. There are three different Timers that help keep a practice on track to not go over/under the specified class time. The Hatha Timer allows a yoga teacher to set up a class time, and also allows to set up smaller segments within a class. (i.e. Opening = 2 minutes, Centering = 5 minutes, Warm Up = 8 minutes, etc.) The Yin Timer is specific to a Yin Yoga class setup including class time, number of poses, and how much time to spend on each side. The Yoga Nidra Timer can be set up for any amount of time for your practice. The intention is to keep yoga teachers on time – with a Timer created for their specific needs.

What is the best advice someone gave you when you started your business?
The best advice came after the Yoga Moxi app was created…be sure to have solid legal agreements and get app insurance. Both are for more peace-of-mind, and to minimize potential financial loss.

What is the best advice you would give another person who wanted to start their own small business?
Be sure to have solid legal agreements and insurance (according to the designated business industry). Do not rely on generic anything from the internet. This applies to any business.

Do you have a personal yoga/meditation practice? How has it helped you?
For the past few years, I have focused on a morning meditation before starting the day. It allows me to connect with my breathing and focus on myself fully for a few minutes. My yoga practice has changed over the years, and currently I work on an at-home practice two times per week. (For about 20 minutes) The practice is more of a “freestyle” where I center prior to start, and allow the body to dictate how to move.

Share your favorite yoga/wellness social media/web accounts that inspire you?
The majority of accounts that provide inspiration involve positive “quotes” from famous and not-so-famous people. I also enjoy the Yoga Love Magazine account and all the reels regarding “Joy”. There are so many iterations, and the majority really do inspire joy and a smile. (Thank You!)

The theme of our current issue is JOY, how do you inspire joy in your life and those around you?
Hopefully I provide some joy to those around me by smiling when I greet them or interact with them. For my friends and family, the hope is to inspire joy by holding space when needed, and sharing something that makes them truly smile or laugh – like a good experience we shared.

Spotlight: MEXICO

by iana velez | Jul 13, 2024 | ARTICLES, FRONT PAGE POSTS, TRAVEL

Spotlight: MEXICO

By: iana velez

TRAVEL

Mexico lindo y querido! After living 15 years in NY I’m back to my homeland, and it has been a beautiful comeback, this time to the very special tropical area of Mexico, Riviera Maya. It’s full of incredible beaches and nature, but what I find even more special are the “cenotes.” In Maya, “hoyo de agua,” these natural water caves are pure magic, unique in the world, mayas considered them portals to the underworld and sacred source of life. It’s worth the trip just to visit these beautiful natural pools and caves.

We chose Cenote Minotauro, a small but very pretty cenote with Mariel and Adriana, two amazing yoguis devoted to the learning and teachings of yoga based in Mexico. Mariel recently opened a yoga studio built around an old and majestic Kopo tree, hence the name “Kopo Yoga.” She had a dream the studio was to be created there, and the universe conspired to make it a reality. Today, it’s a space for community and yoga practice—you can’t miss it if you come to Playa del Carmen.
Miriam Castillo
@miriamcastilloart

“Joy to me is connection, to yourself, to people, to nature, most importantly to a sense of belonging to something greater than life. To the magic of existing and living on this earth. Once you realize that it exists within, all the time, joy appears instantly, not in the future plans, or big dreams, but in any moment you decide to feel it. It is there as long as you are breathing.”
Adriana Zavala
@adryzav

“How does joy feel? The gentle yet powerful freedom of being able to love what IS. The effervescent trust in whatever is arising at this present moment, beyond expectations and uncertainty. The wholehearted contentment of accepting and embracing life as it unravels… and smiling because we are able to experience it all by being ALIVE.”
Mariel Chapoy
@marielchapoy

“I define joy as an opportunity to see things with the divine grace of a simple smile. To look into the eyes of others, to look at the sky and the stars. To know that I am alive as I feel my heart beating, and to share and laugh with others. To dance, to dream and to remember that every moment in this life is filled with the presence of God.”

BEHIND THE SCENES VIDEO

Adriana Zavala

Miriam

Mariel

Spotlight: Joy & Travel

by iana velez | Jul 6, 2024 | ARTICLES, FRONT PAGE POSTS, TRAVEL

Spotlight: Joy & Travel

By: iana velez

TRAVEL

For many people, a yoga retreat can be an opportunity to focus on your practice, meet some new friends and travel to a beautiful location. If you’ve ever enjoyed attending a retreat and thought “hey, I’d like to plan a yoga retreat” then read on! We asked some amazing yoga teachers who lead retreats all over the world for some advice on planning retreats and how they find joy!

Kelly Kamm

Kellykammyoga.com
@kellykammyoga

How far in advance do you plan your retreats?
I usually host 3 retreats per year I tend to plan about a year in advance, but I find that most people sign up about 6 months prior. I typically plan everything myself, except the Bali trip which I sometimes do with a partner. You’ve got to be super organized. If you’re not great at planning, you can use a retreat company. It’s way easier, but you’ll make much less money that way.

Where have you hosted retreats?
I think I’ve been leading retreats to Bali for 9 years, and to Marrakech for about 7 years! I’ve also brought people to Vietnam, and Banff, Canada.

What advice would you give someone planning a retreat for the first time?
Over the years, I’ve realized how important it is to create solo time and space for yourself during the trip. Yes, you’re there to guide folks and to give them the best experience that you can, but you can’t do that if you’re depleted. I’ve seen people who lead these kinds of trips and never give themselves a break, and by the end they get sick! Make sure you have your own room, and if you need to disappear for a couple of hours to recharge, that is totally OK.

What is your favorite memory from a retreat you hosted?
One moment that made me cry happy tears was when the first friend I ever made in Bali came and picked up my son and took him to her village for the day. He picked fresh guavas, went fishing, rode ATVs through the jungle and flew kites in the rice paddies. It was such a special experience for him, and I was so grateful for the friendships I’ve made in my travels.

Dream location for retreat?
I have so many dream trips that are half planned! I really want to bring people to the more remote and wild islands of Scotland.

The theme of our issue is JOY, can you share with us how retreats/travel helps you or others connect and create JOY in their lives?
I see joy and awe as deeply connected, and in my experience there is nothing more awe-inspiring than traveling to a wondrous, beautiful and far away place. It makes you more tolerant, less focused on stuff and more delighted by experiences, especially when those experiences are shared with a group of great people. I have seen so many deep and long-lasting friendships formed on my retreats!

Has anything changed the way you plan a retreat post-covid?
Covid changed me in that it made me much more interested in what it means to travel ethically. During the pandemic, I saw people taking groups of Americans to places with limited medical care, and it really made me take a hard look at travel in general and how to do it in a way that benefits the people you visit just as much as the retreaters that you bring on vacation.

Victoria Greene

victoriagreeneyoga.com
@victoriagreeneyoga

How many retreats do you host per year?
Last year I hosted retreats to Iceland, Peru, Ithaka (Greece) and Sicily. In the US, I host weekend retreats in Pennsylvania (at the Himalayan Institute).

Any advice to someone planning a retreat for the first time?
Always remember that people are not only trusting you with their money, but also with their time…they could choose to go anywhere with their vacation time, and they are choosing to come somewhere with you. Hold this close to your heart and realize the great responsibility that you carry. I never take that for granted.

What is your favorite retreat memory?
Seeing hundreds of Icelandic horses galloping across the most beautiful landscape imaginable was incredible. Experiencing a true ‘Pachamama’ moment of an earthquake at the beginning of one of our yoga classes in Peru! Seeing how the heaviest rainfall in over 8 years, brought out the most beautiful wildflowers all over the tiny island of Pantelleria in Sicily overnight. Waking up to that was magical.

Dream location for a retreat?
I tend to obsess about a place before diving into the reality of leading or running a retreat and for me, at the moment New Zealand is calling.

How do retreats help us connect and create JOY in our lives?
After the first day or two on retreat, when everyone is settled and feels comfortable. I have quite literally seen the softening of people’s expressions. It’s hard to explain, but it looks like a gentleness comes over them, they are quick to smile and to laugh. Joy becomes more than a buzzword or some elusive quality of experience. It becomes a reality. There is such wonder in being in a new place to me, with a new vista, to feel the air and the land as new. At some point wherever I go, I will kick off my shoes and just lie down on the earth—just for a moment. That brings me joy. Here I am in a place that perhaps I only dreamed about, and it reminds me to be grateful for all the people in my life that have helped me get to that place.

Any resources you recommend?
There are some responsible retreat companies out there, who care about the impact that their business has on the environment and support local economies and conservation efforts. I love to introduce yoga practitioners to the Himalayan Institute in PA, for any of their faculty-led weekend retreats and study weekends, and internationally to a B-Corp retreat company that I am so honored to be a member of the team for reclaimyourself.co.uk.

Sarah Platt-Finger

sarahplattfinger.com
@sarahplattfinger

Where have you hosted retreats?
I host about 2 retreats a year and planning is minimum of 9 months, but 1 year in advance is best. Locations have included Mexico, India, Bali, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Sweden, Greece, Florida Keys, and NY. My dream location to host a retreat is the bush and the vineyards of South Africa.

Do you plan with a partner?
I offer retreats with my partner or with a colleague. I’ve also taught in several retreats led by Chopra or through my studio, ISHTA Yoga.

Any advice to someone planning a retreat for the first time?
Be sure that the retreat location is vetted to host yoga retreats! There are many specific details required for a location to host a yoga retreat, including the yoga space, noise levels, food options, and the overall vibration of the space. Hosting a yoga retreat is very different from vacationing at an all-inclusive resort! So it’s important to either visit the location ahead of time, or speak to a fellow yogi who has taught there before.

What is your favorite memory from a retreat you hosted?
Teaching with a live musical accompaniment overlooking the Aegean Sea during sunset. Absolutely divine!

How do retreats help us connect and create JOY in our lives?
I have always loved going outside of my element and traveling to new places. Sometimes all it takes is leaving our normal everyday routine to spark the seeds of joy that are latent within us. Then add the powerful practices of yoga, meditation, and the company of like-minded individuals in the beauty of nature; it is hard NOT to experience joy!

We have all probably had those kinds of holidays where we feel like we need a vacation just to recover from the vacation. Retreats are an opportunity to not only experience adventure, see new landscapes, and deepen your yoga practice, they are also an opportunity to deeply rest. Everyone is deserving of joy, and everyone deserves to experience at least one yoga retreat in their lifetime (hopefully many more than that!).