Full-disclosure: the folks at Casper, a new sleep startup, invited me to create a bed-time yoga sequence and post it on my blog, and then they might pick some poses to put on their blog. Well who am I to refuse a chance to be on the internet? (Like, more than I am now.) Or to be involved in a hip Manhattan start-up? Their blog is pretty cool - it's about all things sleep-related. It's total synchronicity - cuz I LOVE sleeping!

So how do I use yoga to help me sleep? Here are seven poses that help me relax before bed time. Try them all or pick and choose - happy sleeping!

First up: namaste forward fold!

Stand with your right foot in front of your left, hug your belly in, and gently fold over your right leg. Relax your head and let your fingertips touch the floor. Take slow deep breaths in and out of your nose. Do one side for five breaths, then switch to the other side. I love the hamstring stretch I get in this pose!

Come down to the floor for floating fish! Put your hands under your low back and press up onto your forearms, letting your head drop back. Float your legs up and point your toes. Breathe deep and enjoy this gentle back bend.

Who needs traction? Pretty much everyone. Bring ease to your neck with this head hammock! Loop a strap around your head and one foot, and relax back into it. I love this pose after a long day at the office.

Are you getting sleepy yet? Create rotation in your spine with supine twist. Start by lying on your back, and pull both knees to your chest. Extend your right arm too the right and drop your knees to the left. Keep both shoulders on the floor and look over your right shoulder. I could stay in this pose forever - make sure you do both sides though!

Try this variation on frog pose if you have tight hips. Lie on your stomach, extend your arms wide, and bend one knee. Take a few breaths on one side and switch to the other.

Finish with five to ten minutes of legs up the wall pose. Lie down with your hips about five inches away from the wall, and extend your legs up, resting them on the wall. This pose puts your spine into perfect alignment, is a great restorative pose for athletes, and is a very gentle inversion - so you can get all the great benefits of going upside down without messing up your sleep. Aaah!

Lately, I've had some dudes come to class who have been lifting weights as their main form of exercise. Then they come to yoga and find it too hard , and they get really discouraged. I find this baffling. A chaturanga and a push-up aren't that different, right? It also gives me new respect for the dudes who come back, who embrace the beginner mindset and are willing to stretch both physically and mentally. Keep coming back, dudes!

Welcome to my new website! It was designed and built by the very talented Dave of Schmarketing - click on the Schmarketing Shrew at the bottom of my home page to check him out!

I'm wrapping up an awesome 30 Day Yoga Challenge with Wild Abundant Life. I got to be both participant and co-facilitator, along with a whole bunch of other yogis! It's been so fun to read everyone's updates, see pictures and watch videos of the challengers doing a little bit of yoga every day. 

My experience with doing a little yoga every day has been eye opening. As a teacher, it's so easy for me to let my own practice slide. Often I feel like I can't dedicate a whole hour or 75 minutes to a studio class, and therefore I can't do any yoga. And of course, that's just not true. I don't need a studio or even a mat to practice. When I include yoga every day, I'm more present, grounded, and happy! 

So what's next? Well, for me… another 30 day challenge! Ha ha ha. It's true though; Honest Soul Yoga is hosting a 30 day yoga challenge, and of course I signed right up! My 'challenge pose' is handstand. I'm working up to it with my favorite prep: feet on the wall and hands on the ground. This allows me to strengthen my back muscles without having to kick up; so I can hold the pose and build stamina. Try it out! 

I feel really lucky that I get to be a part of Honest Soul Yoga. I met Suzie Mills, the studio owner, when she was teaching at Dancing Mind. She went on to open Honest Soul in August, and it truly is a reflection of her spirit: down to earth, encouraging, and powerful! In a few short months I've met some really cool yogis - full-time moms, full-time armed service members, part-time massage therapists, and definitely full-time awesome people! Recently I've gotten some more classes to teach at the studio; check out the schedule page and come see me! Or, come to Honest Soul Yoga for ANY of the classes - all the teachers are great, seriously! 

See you on the mat!

About the picture - yes, I'm a yoga teacher, so shouldn't this be a picture of me doing a perfect dancer pose on a scenic rocky cliff or something? Am I implying I'm going to teach you to surf? Isn't it weird to include a Surf Diva TM pic on a kiramickleyoga page?

Also, as pictures go, it's not the most flattering. I'm hardly pulling in my uddiyana bandha or lengthening my spine.

Here's the thing. I love lots of things. Surfing is one of them, and it's something I had to plan, save, and travel to learn how to do. I had to see surfing as a possibility for myself and then move into action to do it. It was during my yoga practice at Dancing Mind Yoga that I really started to see and feel possibility opening up! I like this picture because while I wasn't at my prettiest, I'm in action and feeling so much joy. I think it's a perfect illustration of what yoga did for me. What can it do for you?

The other thing about this picture is, I'm standing with one of my Surf Diva instructors, Heather. (Shout out to my other teacher Art - she wasn't there on picture day!) Heather and Art led me through surfing calmly, with patience and joy - and on my second day out, I got up on the board! It's hard to learn and grow alone. We're all teachers and we're all students - let's get learning!

I'm committed to empowering you: through my yoga teaching, cycle classes, and anything else I can offer. (Raw foods cleanse anyone? More on that later!) Please find me at www.dancingmind.com, www.honestsoulyoga.com, or anywhere else you'd like to meet!

I'm also here to celebrate those who continue to inspire me. I've met and learned from so many amazing teachers and students in the past few years, and I want to share them all with you! For starters, if you're San Diego-bound, check out www.surfdiva.com. And sign up for my newsletter for an interview with craft beer lovin', roller derby skatin', yoga teaching bad-ass Cory Murphy-Wayne!

Namaste,
Kira