Happy New Year from Bikram Yoga Birmingham

Greetings Yogis and Yoginis!

This will be our last update of 2010! I hope to have more news to share with you in next week's update. We are still waiting on permitting from the city. There are a few complications that have arisen and we are waiting on the property company to resolve them. We are using our English Bulldog determination to motivate those involved to move forward with what needs to be done!

This morning, we received word from Bikram Yoga Headquarters that we are now on the website's ClassFinder! We're official! Alabama now has a spot on the Bikram Yoga Website! Check it out-

http://http://www.bikramyoga.com/studioListing.php?type=CO&id=1

Have a wonderful New Year! We look forward to making you sweat in 2011!

Kate Jenkins

Director

Bikram Yoga Birmingham

www.bikrambirmingham.com

Bikram Fall 2009 Teacher Training Las Vegas

Bikram Yoga Timelapse

I'm a Lululemon Ambassador!!!

Aside from all the new studio business, I had the most pleasant surprise this past weekend at Lululemon Athletica Birmingham! They asked me to come over so they could take some pics of me in their workout gear. They said they would place the pics in a facebook post to feature hot yoga. So as I came out of the dressing room, they held up the signs as seen in the pic on the left. As you can see from the other pic, the Lululemon ladies totally caught me off guard!

Their website reads, "The lululemon ambassador program is extended to unique individuals in our store communities who embody the lululemon lifestyle and live our culture. "
I will do my best to continue to live this sensible manifesto every day!

the lululemon manifesto

• Drink FRESH water and as much water as you can. Water flushes unwanted toxins from your body and keeps your brain sharp.
• A daily hit of athletic-induced endorphins gives you the power to make better decisions, helps you be at peace with yourself, and offsets stress.
• Do one thing a day that scares you.
• Listen, listen, listen, and then ask strategic questions.
• Write down your short and long-term GOALS four times a year. Two personal, two business and two health goals for the next 1, 5 and 10 years. Goal setting triggers your subconscious computer.
• Life is full of setbacks. Success is determined by how you handle setbacks.
• Your outlook on life is a direct reflection of how much you like yourself.
• That which matters the most should never give way to that which matters the least.
• Stress is related to 99% of all illness.
• Jealousy works the opposite way you want it to.
• The world is changing at such a rapid rate that waiting to implement changes will leave you 2 steps behind. DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW!
• Friends are more important than money.
• Breathe deeply and appreciate the moment. Living in the moment could be the meaning of life.
• Take various vitamins. You never know what small mineral can eliminate the bottleneck to everlasting health.
• Don't trust that an old age pension will be sufficient.
• Visualize your eventual demise. It can have an amazing effect on how you live for the moment.
• The conscious brain can only hold one thought at a time. Choose a positive thought.
• Live near the ocean and inhale the pure salt air that flows over the water, Vancouver will do nicely.
• Observe a plant before and after watering and relate these benefits to your body and brain.
• Practice yoga so you can remain active in physical sports as you age.
• Dance, sing, floss and travel.
• Children are the orgasm of life. Just like you did not know what an orgasm was before you had one, nature does not let you know how great children are until you have them.
• Successful people replace the words 'wish', 'should' and 'try', with 'I will'.
• Creativity is maximized when you're living in the moment.
• Nature wants us to be mediocre because we have a greater chance to survive and reproduce. Mediocre is as close to the bottom as it is to the top, and will give you a lousy life.
• lululemon athletica creates components for people to live longer, healthier and more fun lives. If we can produce products to keep people active and stress-free, we believe the world will become a much better place.
• Do not use cleaning chemicals on your kitchen counters. Someone will inevitably make a sandwich on your counter.
• SWEAT once a day to regenerate your skin.
• Communication is COMPLICATED. We are all raised in a different family with slightly different definitions of every word. An agreement is an agreement only if each party knows the conditions for satisfaction and a time is set for satisfaction to occur.
• What we do to the earth we do to ourselves.
• The pursuit of happiness is the source of all unhappiness.

The Creek

Ah, Patton Creek. This is the beautiful, clear creek that flows behind the studio. I can imagine this creek as an oasis for the adventurous students after hot, steamy classes. I imagine this creek as a scenic backdrop for our studio cookouts, badminton games, and other festive yoga gatherings.

Currently, though, it is the named source of our permit process being stalled by the city. The area is technically a flood plane and FEMA has new standards to protect commercial tenants. In the event of a flood, we will hopefully be well protected and this current wait will be worth our while. I'll practice patience while the property management, the city building department and FEMA get things straightened out. Trust the process.

Last week was a whirlwind! I spent the weekend of Dec 4-7 at a teacher's seminar in NYC. It was incredible! It was also a mini reunion to see so many that I went to training with. I'm continuing to recruit some fabulous teachers for our studio. I also had time to catch a class at Bikram Yoga Grand Central in Manhattan. Denise Naan, a teacher training classmate of mine just opened the studio. She was a wonderful wealth of information and I learned so much from her.

Later in the week, bids came in from the 6 contractors who were competing for the job. My husband, architect and I carefully chose from the pool of bidders and decided on Cooper Construction. They are ready to roll as soon as we get the permit! Woohoo!

Movin' Right Along

Hello fellow yogi's!

The plans were officially submitted to the city for review this week. Hopefully, there will not be too much to change. The yoga flooring was ordered this week and I am so excited about it. It will a combination of oranges & reds, Bikram's favorite colors. I met with my architect/ design consultant today and finalized all of the paint colors, countertop finishes and locker room fixtures. I will speak with my heating consultant tonight and order the heating equipment! It's gonna be some hot stuff!

Many folks have been asking about what the schedule will be. I will send out a survey soon to get a feel for what will be most the convenient for the most people. All comments and suggestions are always greatly appreciated!

Tomorrow, I am off to NYC for a teacher's seminar with Diane Ducharme. I attended her seminar last month in Lexington and gained so much deep insight into the postures. I am looking forward to what she will share with us! I really enjoy these opportunities to travel and to continue to learn from Bikram and his most senior and experienced teachers. Nothing with these postures ever changes, but our insight as students AND teachers will always continue to evolve.