spring yoga

There's a sense that Spring is sneaking into winter. Now is a good time to start thinking about which parts of our bodies need attention. I'm not just talking about the winter layers you may have accumulated (it's what I do well in winter), but also which organs begin to wake up and go to work. Spring is the season of activity and the season to eat foods with upward energies like young, green, sprouting, above-ground vegetables.
If you're thinking of cleansing anything, then think liver and gallbladder. People with a healthy liver and gallbladder are calm, make decisions easily and are stress-free. If these organs are supported and balanced during Spring, they'll support you for the rest of the year.

For an achievable cleanse when you don't want to commit to days of 'deprivation', or simply have too many christmas parties that would interfere with your programme...
Green drink:
1 garlic clove or ginger (opt)
2 cups lettuce (or silver beet or spinach)
2 cups parsley leaves
1 celery rib
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
4 cups spring water
1 fresh orange or grapefruit, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil

Process in blender or food processor until smooth. Keeps in the fridge 3-5 days. Makes about 6 cups. This is a great liver cleanser. Try having two cups for breakfast every morning. For a really good general spring cleaning, follow with vegetable soup and salad for both lunch and dinner.
Do this for 3-5 days. It will make a nice difference, I promise.

To embark on a more thorough liver detox, click here for a day-by-day programme complete with recipes.


BREATHE Wellness Workshops for schools
Geelong Grammar is the first school in Australia to introduce a wellness philosophy, and it's a great privilege to be part of such a visionary programme. I developed a ten hour workshop for them at their Timbertop campus which involves the students learning about health from a Yogic perspective. BREATHE represents the five aspects for a balanced mind/body/consciousness.
Breath Relaxation Exercise Appetite Thinking positively = Health + Energy
The feedback I received from the school and students has been very positive. "I know how to be healthy now", "I am more focused", "Very interesting and relaxing", "Great fun learning new things" are just some of the feedback collected at the end of each block.

The ABC have currently been filming a documentary at Timbertop, following the progress of six students and the benefits of their participation in the wellness programme, which will be aired this year.

I have also been working with a variety of other schools including primary, secondary and Steiner schools. Each have adapted Yoga into their curriculum as either a health programme, elective hobby, stress management for final year students, or simply as an exercise routine.
My vision is to see wellness programmes in every school, and I feel we're spearheading a vital new movement.

This year we are launching the programme at Peninsula Hot Springs. It provides the ideal location for fun and experiential learning. For more information about the school and holiday programmes, please visit their website



Watch Ken Robinson give an inspiring talk on education http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html




Yoga as a Therapy
Yoga is a slow medicine, but it is a strong medicine.
If you understand how your body works, and learn to listen to what it's telling you, then you'll be able to respond to it and heal it if required.


Classes are fantastic for all-round general maintenance, but if you can develop your own practice, that's where the true benefits lie. Using a combination of physical assessment and Harmonic Medicine (as taught by Dr Monica Henry), I work with people to customise a short and achievable programme that can easily be integrated into their morning routine. I can also test for food intolerance's and suggest foods that your body needs.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like to know more about how I work.


If you are structurally off balance,"... you are at war with gravity" Ida P. Rolf.


"To be healthy is to be whole, to heal is to make whole."Healing is a two-way street. To be healed requires the mind to be open to the healing and that requires faith. Faith in the healer, faith in the process, and faith in yourself.







Golf Wellness
'Alternative therapies' such meditation, Yoga and pilates have slipped into the golfing world. The benefits of Yoga to the Golfer are numerous and both, curiously, share similar philosophies.


The effects the breath can have on our minds is no secret to the Yogi, and golfing academies are now recognising the techniques.


Over the last 12 months I have been working with a golf pro to better understand the mechanics of the swing and where Yoga can help. The core, shoulders and lower back are all areas Yoga can strengthen and lengthen, providing a few extra yards on the shot and relieving the stress (from body and mind) to make the game more enjoyable, and take ten years off your swing.


"Strong as an oak, supple as a reed"





Contact Baxter on
b@palateearth.com
0423 161 503