Best of the Best: Yoga Gear

One of my favorite parts of being a teacher is watching new students fall in love with yoga. Often they start out practicing casually, but once they discover the transformative power of yoga they can't wait to practice again and again. It's usually around this time they decide to invest in more high end gear. 

I started the same way about 15 years ago. I had an entry level mat, straps and a block from Gaiam. It served me well at the time but as my practice grew I needed something more durable for the long haul. I ended up giving away my block to a friend in need. The mat I kept as a keepsake that still makes me smile to this day. Although I have purchased more straps from another vendor, I still have mine. It's lasted just fine. 

Throughout the years I have bought a pretty nice collection of mats and props. My recommendations below are all out of personal experience. I won't add any product I don't believe in wholeheartedly. These are my favorites with a little review and purchase link. I opened an Affiliate Account on Amazon. If you are a member and want to buy anything I recommend, I would appreciate if you do it through this link. I don't make a lot, but it's a nice way to help me support the content on this site. :)

For years I used an loved my Manduka but I have to say, I’ve found a mat that I love even more. The Liforme Yoga Mat has guides that help you with alignment. After using mine for the past few months, my practice has shifted quite a bit. I’ve been able to fix an issue with my shoulders and hip. In full disclosure, I have paired this with a yogic diet cleanse, but I’m 100% sure the yoga mat is helping me with this progress.

PROS: It’s nonstick, eco-friendly and non toxic. They are wonderful to help with alignment and have 0 break-in time.

CONS: They mark up easily so consider them your warrior battle wounds. It’s not going to look perfect soon after practicing, but the alignment aspect makes them indispensable.

Manduka Pro Yoga and Pilates Mat- 

PROS
This is the mat I use to practice and teach with at home. It's a wonderful investment and you will never need to replace it. I have had mine for at least 7 years and use it daily. Another upside of this mat is it's very cushy for student's you have sensitive knees. I've noticed that this is probably the most popular mats among teachers and for whatever reason they are usually black but they make some wonderful colors too.

CONS
It's pricey but it will stay in style longer than trendy yoga pants for about the same price.

You need to break it in. There is a bit of film on the mat when it comes. If you have a tendency to slip on the mat you will need to do the break in process with sea salt. If you life in cold climates don't put the mat out in freezing temperatures. They recommend putting a few towels underneath. I used kosher salt and water when I did mine years ago.

Manduka eKO Yoga and Pilates Mat

PROS
I bought 2 of these before I decided to get the Manduka PRO. They are about $25 cheaper than the pro and made of non Amazon harvested tree rubber. The coating on them  makes them better if you tend to slide on a mat. While they aren't as thick as the Manduka PRO they still have a bit of cushion.

CONS
Both of mine stained after years of use although still fully functional. They also unraveled a little on the edges. 

Jade Harmony Yoga Mat-

PROS
I use this mat anytime I go to public classes. I love this mat for a couple of reasons. It's light enough to bring on the train and walk around the city. I also never ever slip, even in heated classes. I've only had this mat for about a year but it hasn't degraded whatsoever. 

CONS
It's pros are also it's cons! Since it's so light, there is minimal padding for sensitive knees. This isn't a big deal for me, but I could see someone having an issue with it. The nonstick texture is also a bit bumpy. This only bothers me when I do a jump through and my bottom foot grazes the mat.

Hugger Mugger 4" Foam Blocks

PROS
Everything! I love these blocks. These are the only ones I prefer for myself and my students. I find them to be the perfect density and weight. I love that they are sturdy enough for handstands yet not too heavy like a cork block to hold between my feet in core work. I also like that they have white lines running through the width of the block. I use them to line up fingers with chatturanga supported holds and pushups. 

CONS
They aren't cheap. In order to do a lot of the drills and homework I like to assign my students you will need 2.

Hand Woven Thunderbird Mexican Yoga Blanket-

PROS
These are my favorite blankets and this turquoise one is so pretty!! They have other colors, but I have to say I'm fighting back buying this one as we speak. The reason I love this particular blanket is that it's really pretty. I have an orange and a green one in my studio. Over the years I have bought other blankets when I found a cheaper deal but I wish I had stuck with just this brand. I find they are a perfect weight for blanket slides. They are an acrylic, polyester cotton blend and machine washable. 

CONS
They aren't as dense as a wool blanket. This is more helpful when your getting into the calves. This is used when you roll the blanket like a taquito placing it between your calfs and your thighs while sitting on your shins. You can still do this with this blanket it's just not as effective. The fact that it doesn't use animal products is worth not getting as deep of a calf massage in my opinion. 

Yoga Accessories Supportive Rectangular Cotton Bolster

PROS
This is is the only brand I use. I really like the choice of colors and softness of the bolster. I find other brands can be too dense for my taste. These bolsters are also reasonably priced because they can get expensive. I've had mine for years and they hold up. 

CONS
none

Namaste Yoga Lavender Eye Pillows

PROS
They are reasonably priced. The lavender scent doesn't seem to fade over time. I've had mine for about 2 years. You can freeze and microwave them. They are made of cotton instead of silk.

CONS
They are only sold in a pack of 4. The pillow cover is sewn together so you can't remove it to machine wash. 

I hope you found this page useful. If you have any questions about the products, leave me a comment. 

Dharma yoga wheel basic

PROS
This is a wonderful prop to help your flexibility and strength. There are so many different poses you can refine with this prop it will continue to grow with your practice. This prop was designed by my teacher, Dharma Mittra and his son. There are cheaper knockoffs but he was done so much for the world with yoga, I think he deserves the sale.

CONS
It's a little pricy, but still halfof the cost of high end yoga pants. :)

Transitioning from a Plant Based Diet to Vegan -My Experience Training with Sri Dharma Mittra

Last summer, my heart filled with excitement. I had waited 5 years to enroll in a 500 hour level yoga teacher training. The reason I had waited so long, was it never felt quite right. I had enjoyed my 200 level training at a local yoga studio in Los Angeles, California, but I knew the next time around, I would have to find a guru who truly lived a life of pure yoga.

During my first training, I decided to commit to a vegetarian diet for the duration of the program. While it wasn’t part of the program to eat vegetarian, I felt it would be right to honor the yogic tradition and give me the discipline I needed to see if I could commit to a vegetarian diet. 

As a young adult, I watched my father and mother-in-law both die from horrific cancers. In both cases they were related to lifestyle choices. I began to search for answers as I didn’t want my family and I to suffer the same demise. I read The China Study and watched as many vegan documentaries I could find.

When I started the first day of the 200 level training, there was eye rolling from some of the students and teachers.  A few others who were already vegetarian or vegan helped me figure it out along the way. While it seems completely bizarre now, I honestly didn’t know what to eat. 

After I completed the 200 hours, I decided to stay vegetarian and work on transitioning into a plant-based diet. I started to trend away from more leather but still, I was slippery. I think at the time, I was still more selfish and ultimately concerned about my own well being rather than seeing the whole picture. 

I continued to eat plant-based and was almost always perfect about it for the next few years. It was easy to do. I lived in Los Angeles. Supermarkets were full of wonderful plant-based options. There were vegan restaurants for any occasion popping up everywhere. My husband had joined me on the plant-based bandwagon and my daughters for the most part were vegetarian. Our friends accepted our lifestyle. All was going well. 

We uprooted our family in 2014 to Fairfield County area of Connecticut. We maintained a plant based diet at first but started getting sloppy. Istarted practicing yoga at an Ashtanga studio where many of the yogis were vegetarian. I found it difficult to meet new family friends and decided at that time to eat cheese. My perspective, although I completely disagree with it now, was that if we didn’t at least eat pizza, people would be too uncomfortable to invite us over. I had taken a break from teaching yoga when we moved. As I look back now, I had lost my grounding and was ignoring my inner voice. 

This slip from the plant based diet lasted for about a year. After 10 months of an Ashtanga yoga practice I switched back to a vinyasa style I had been practicing and teaching for the years before. As fate would have it, I ended up taking a class at a small Wilton studio called Hello Yoga.  The teacher, Molly Lehman had studied with Dharma Mittra. Her classes were wonderful! I was hooked. Very soon after that, they asked me to teach there too. 

As I began to teach more, I went back to the plant-based diet. I had found my yoga community and allowed my true nature to reveal itself.  The teachers at the studio and I took a field trip to NYC, to take a master class with Sri Dharma Mittra. I was blown away. This 77 year old man, kicked my ass. His class was very different from what you experience at many yoga studios these days. He had a great sense of humor and practiced the inversions in such a child like manner. The class was demanding. While physically, he was unbelievable, you could also sense his seriousness with the practice. He focussed on more than just the physical yoga poses. What I remember specifically from that particular class was the final resting pose, savasana. He led us into a 15 minute deep, meditative savasana. It was amazing. At the end of the class, he mentioned there was wonderful vegan food across the street and to go check it out.

About a year later, Sri Dharma Mittra was offering a Life of a Yogi Teacher Training which fulfilled the 500 hour Yoga Alliance Certification. I knew in my heart this was where I needed to be. As I applied for the training, I was so happy to see that one of his requirements to go through the program was that you had to transition to a vegetarian diet prior to your first day at the intensive. 

On day one of the first 8 day intensive training, he made it perfectly clear how he felt about the suffering of the animals and why he is vegan. He let everyone know that when you keep animal products, especially meats in your refrigerator, it becomes a morgue. You could see so much feeling in his eyes. I think it was at that moment, I switched my mindset from plant-based to vegan. I felt at home. I was grateful that I had found a teacher who not only was keeping the vegetarian teachings of yoga alive, he was transitioning us all to vegan. 

He emphasized that in order to set forth on the path of Self Realization, one must first honor the yogic ethical discipline of ahimsa. This means observing non-violence in action, thought or deed. This is why vegan is the best choice rather than vegetarian, especially in modern times with our farming commercial practices. 

As we neared the end of the first intensive module, we were given a diet plan to follow during the 2 month break until the next session. While we were allowed to just stick to a vegan diet which included a cheat day about once a week, what he really wanted us to do was follow the yogic diet that he designed for this portion of the training after studying with his Guru Sri Swami Kailashananda Maharaji a.k.a. Yogi Gupta, 1913-2011. 

The Dharma Ahimsa Diet Plan was broken down to liquid and solid food separately. While I won’t go into all the specific details, it is basically a diet which includes sprouted almonds in a specific smoothie daily each morning, along with fresh green juices,  fresh and steamed vegetables, fruits, lentils, spouted breads, whole grains, tofu, some approved oils and not too much else. There was no salt, onion, garlic, spices, caffeine, or alcohol permitted. The largest portions of food was to be eaten before 6pm. I was a bit overwhelmed. 

Our training materials included a CD of a recording of Yogi Gupta’s 1969 lecture in New York about Yogi Food Concepts. I listened to the CD in my car multiple times trying to understand exactly why I would make this seemingly drastic change to my diet. He spoke about how we can obtain all of the nutrients we need from food and pranayama (yogic breathing techniques).  This had been revealed to the ancient yogis through meditation and deep contemplation. The healthiest foods for consumption were live, sprouted raw nuts, beans, and lentils, raw or lightly steamed vegetables and fruits ranking next. I was impressed at how Yogi Gupta was ahead of his time. It seems like modern society and science is slowly coming to the same conclusion he revealed over 40 years ago! 

I adapted the diet plan. After a few weeks, my taste buds adjusted. I gained tremendous flexibility in my yoga practice as my body removed inflammation. I had more energy that I’ve every had in my life. I lost about 10 lbs. Any remaining body fat that I couldn’t seem to get rid of in past attempts was gone. 

After I returned to the second module of the training, we were released from the restrictive diet. We were allowed any vegan food we wished. I ended up sticking with most of his plan, while adding some different kinds of nuts along the way. I increased the amount of times I ate per day to maintain my new weight. I didn’t want to lose anymore. 

After another 8 amazing days with Sri Dharma Mittra, his senior mentor teachers and my lovely new student friends we were off to finish the internship part of the program in our home towns. We were given another diet to follow for the next month or two. This one was similar to the first but now included, pepper, homemade hummus, ground sprouted almonds, flax and sesame seeds. While I do use a cheat day for vegan food or caffeine, I will stick pretty close to the plan. 

During the training one of the mentors had expressed that Dharma makes a point to always say something about being vegan in every one of his classes. People come from all over the world to learn from this master who has taught in the city for over 50 years. He knows that sometimes he sees a new student for only one day and wants to make sure everyone has the opportunity to hear that message. 

You can find out where you can see Sri Dharma Mitra at his site, http://www.dharmayogacenter.com. I highly recommend that anyone interested in yoga or being vegan check him out while he’s still teaching.  

As for me, I will continue to teach yoga and be vegan most likely for the rest of my life. I want to help people make a meaningful connection with yoga and the vegan lifestyle. I feel very grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from this master teacher.