Prepping for a Yoga Road Trip

Owning a yoga studio is an easy way to get disconnected from your own yoga practice. I have struggled with making time for myself and my yoga practice for over ten years now and I'm tired of it. Owning a business means that you are involved with every facet of it - from restocking the toilet paper to doing bookwork. On any given day, I wear the hats of Director of Marketing, Human Resources Director, CEO, CFO, Instructor, Accounting Manager, Janitor, and Customer Relations V.P. At the end of the day, most days, I just don't have it in me to do my own practice - even though I may want to. In fact, it is challenging to use my days off as true days off and not answer emails or calls or do a little paperwork.

A student of mine (also a local business owner), said to me a week or so ago, "that's why we own our own business, so we can take off any time we want." My first thought in response was, "must be nice. I certainly cannot take time off whenever I want to." But the more I thought about it, the more that phrase echoed in my brain. Certainly I take vacations and am gone from the studio, but I've missed so many parties and special events because of my teaching schedule, my own yoga practice has suffered, and frankly, I have become a big ball of stress from the constant pace. So I decided to re-evaluate my schedule a bit.

I was supposed to start a Vinyasa Yoga teacher training in July, but it wasn't coming together for some reason. Instead of being upset about it, I sat with it. The Universe is definitely telling me to take a break for the summer. The question was, why? Of course the normal answer would be just to relax, unwind and take a break. But the business owner in me worries that during the slower summer months I may not have enough coming into the studio to take time off. Yet, the clear message was undeniable.

Then one morning I had a brainstorm: take a yoga road trip! My Gemini mind likes that. I can immerse myself into yoga and get away from the business of running a studio, yet use the week to write about yoga and enjoy my journey. Maybe I'll even learn some creative ideas to bring back to my own studio along the way...a little work, and a lot of play!

Although armed with my Prius, I'm going to start small-scale. I want to try and catch 2 classes a day in the tri-state area (NJ, PA, NY), keeping to a 2-hour maximum drive time in distance to my home. I planned a week off in July, got my subs all in place for my regular classes, and warned my husband that he would have to care for the dogs most of the week as I would most likely have early morning and late day classes. I intend to stay at home most evenings, with the exception of an overnight stay in NYC, but basically once I leave the house in the morning, I am gone for the day...destination unknown!

Well, that's not entirely true either. I've actually been scanning studio schedules and trying to plan things out in a meaningful way. The overnight trip to NYC will work out nicely to hit at least 3 studios (making time for a few classes with Sri Dharma Mittra, of course). Since I live close to Philadelphia, I can run into the city from my home for classes, making it likely to attend another class in Pennsylvania for the evening as well. 

This is going to be good for me. Not just because I can attend to my own yoga practice again, but I am also finally getting back "out there." Since I opened my own studio, I have had little time to see what others are doing in theirs. Now of course when I opened my studio there were very few others out there. Now there are hundreds of studios spread about the area. I certainly cannot hit them all, but those with a buzz about them or who have well-known teachers are amongst the top studios to hit.

I am also interested in checking out some different styles of yoga. I'm well versed with certain styles, but I'd like to use this time as a mini-workshop/retreat for myself too. I've walked out of more Iyengar classes than I've taken, so I want to hit the Iyengar Institute in NYC - and stay for a class this time. I want to check out a class in Forrest Yoga, Asthanga, Aerial, Yin and Jivamukti as well. It seems these days that many studios have their own eclectic mix, not unlike my studio. I get that. But I really want to immerse myself into certain disciplines with more structure. 

I am slightly concerned how my body will hold up with so much yoga during the week, several classes a day, every day. I am used to doing yoga for 7 days straight with my teacher training programs, but it is very different when you teach yoga. It isn't your practice. When you are teaching, you are going through the motions, but there is no depth. You never really get to "feel" the practice, your body, and where you are at, in the moment, because the practice when you are a teacher is not for you - it is for your students. Plus, driving/commuting from location to location is also a physical drain on my body (especially with Philly and NYC rush-hour traffic patterns I'll be hitting). So, while I am excited about the week, I am cautious not to spread it on too thick and fizzle out in 3 days.

This morning I had yet another wonderful brainstorm: why not treat myself to bodywork at any studio that offers it? Certainly this would help regulate my body with this overflow of practice...and I mean, why not?!

Since my schedule has been non-stop since this January, I also want to try and visit some old friends along the way and possibly invite some yoga friends to join me for certain classes. My idea is to make the week as enjoyable as possible for my mind, body and spirit. I'm not sure how it's all going to pan out, but it should surely be an interesting week, to say the least.

I plan to blog each day while I'm on my yoga road trip and share the thoughts, inspirations, emotions and feelings that each practice and day brings me. As American author, Greg Anderson once said, 

"Focus on the journey, not the destination. 

Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it."