Movement can be a powerful way to release ‘energy in motion- emotions’. When we let go of trying to logically explain feelings and allow them to be processed through the body, we may innately heal.

I found movement a key catalyst in recovery from addiction. In early recovery I was resistant to talk therapy and so locked up with foreign feelings. After yoga class or a long walk I soften, I opened up and began to reconnect. Just being in my body without drugs or alcohol was odd at first, then liberating. My clear mind, body connection invited my soul to stay present. If addiction is out of body, an inability to be in the moment, sobriety requires us to be fully present, there I found true freedom.

I completed a 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training, then further 650 in-depth Yoga Therapy Certification. l I studied Somatic Experiencing, which illustrates how unresolved trauma is stored in our joints and tissues. Through specific exercises we can effectively release negative emotions and even resolve PTSD. This process also works with Neuroplasicity to rewire new pathways in the brain as we develop healthy habits to move from overthinking to healing.

Ironically, mindful movement may help get us get out of our heads, as our bodies are focused on not thinking. Various activities like team sports, time in nature, weight training, pilates, yoga and so many more may benefit beyond fitness. Functional movement compliments physical exercise, cares for injuries and conditions healthy lifestyles.

Physical awareness practices become meditation in motion.

‘To seize the fluctuations in the mind.’ is the purpose of yoga, as described in the yoga sutras. Different stigmas and yogi stereotypes float around the world with images of flexible, fit bodies dancing, vegan hippies chanting or devotees contorting into odd shapes. Yet those interpretations may miss the mark on the true essence of yoga. To pause our mental chatter and connect with a lightness within us all. We recognizes the same flicker alive in others and with gratitude we meet at the end of a yoga practice and say, Namaste which means ‘the light in me honors that light in you’. 

Project-11 originated to bridge yoga beyond studio walls. Working with treatment centers, recovery and underprivileged communities, the trick was creating a class that delivered the benefits of yoga, without the weirdness. Some of the poses, breathing and language may not only turn off those students, could even be harmful with respect to trauma etiquette. We developed a style that was safe, effective and welcoming to all preconceived limitations.

Post pandemic many of us no longer had the luxury of attending in-person class. Good news is scientific research shows that consistent low level activity throughout the day can be more beneficial that hours of strenuous exercise. It boosts metabolism, brain function and easily weaves into any daily routine.

We organized our on-line movement videos into bit sized practices focused on a physical area to stretch and strengthen. And more luxurious amounts of time to relax and restore in intelligent sequences sprinkled with a bit of mystical embodiment.