As my journey of meditation progressed, I decided to try a different tactic with my meditation practice: loving-kindness.
Read moreBreakfast Smoothies
The following post was written by Liz Montgomery, a dancer/choreographer, writer, and teacher for The Perri Institute for Mind and Body. She currently co-teaches the Grow Your Practice seasonal series with TaraMarie Perri, and is involved with various aspects of the institute’s growth and development. As evidenced by her constant recipe sharing, Liz loves to feed people.
As the temperature climbs higher still, it's tempting to forgo breakfast altogether. Don't do it! The quintessential summertime breakfast, the smoothie, has been around since the 1970s, but has recently seen a surge in both popularity and creativity. Gone are the straightforward banana/strawberry swirls of my childhood. Now, smoothies are expected to have complex flavor and be chock-full of nutrients. Since I am a yogi on the run (and I suspect most of you don't have time to kill in the morning), I've provided two ways below to combine your breakfast with your morning drink-of-choice. That's right, no more juggling multiple mugs on your commute!
Lime Green Smoothie
3/4 cup coconut water or 1/4 cup greek yogurt plus 1/2 cup water
1 handful baby spinach
1 frozen banana
1/4 of an avocado
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 teaspoon Matcha green tea powder, optional
Maple syrup to taste (sometimes I add it, sometimes I don't)
Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth.
Beans and Nuts Smoothie
1/4 cup cold brew coffee or 1 shot espresso
1/2 cup milk of your choice (cow, almond, hemp)
2 Tbs almond butter
1 frozen banana
A dash of cinnamon
Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth.
And here are a few tips to help you become a smoothie pro:
- Pre-freeze your bananas. Anytime you've got a bunch and one starts to go brown, peel it and toss it in a bag in the freezer. I can't tell you how much easier this makes things.
- For the tea drinkers: invest in some matcha! Creamy and mild, matcha is a varietal of green tea processed into a powder. It is known for its ability to simultaneously increase both alertness and calm.
- For the coffee drinkers: cold brew your coffee. With just a bit of foresight, you can be out the door without ever needing to turn on your kettle. I find cold brew to be so much better on my finicky tummy--the acidity can be as much as 65% lower than coffee made with heat! A quick primer: take 3/4 cups of very coarsely ground beans and 4 cups of water and place in a glass container at room temperature overnight (12 hours), then strain with cheesecloth or a fine mesh sieve and refrigerate.
- Get creative... but not too creative. It is very easy to end up with too many competing flavors. When in doubt, make a small test batch. Some things you can add that will give your smoothie more oomph and texture while preserving the taste include: chia seeds, hemp hearts, ground flax seed, and rolled oats.
-Liz Montgomery
Coffee Shop Meditation
We are all creatures of habit. I sit down to write this having just returned from my morning ritual.
Most days, rain or shine, I walk down to my local coffee shop, order a tea or cappuccino, and take a seat. Teaching takes me all over the city, but the rest of my work duties are generally conducted from my home office. For me, my coffee shop is far more than a place to socialize. I think of it as my caffeine-infused meditation space. I know I am not alone. Each morning, fellow patrons and I nod at one another as we arrive for our daily gathering.
You will not find cushions or gongs in this place, and it is far from silent. Yet while methodically sipping a hot beverage on a sun-infused bench or stool, I trust the sounds of the espresso machine and the exchange of morning pleasantries to set a familiar environment and pace. Against the active backdrop, my thoughts somehow begin to come into focus. I listen and notice. I reflect on what I wish to accomplish. I proceed to set my intention for the day.
Morning rituals are important no matter what you do for a living. They provide a starting point. Maybe we’re just in it for the caffeine, but I prefer to think that the promise of a seated focus in a quintessential New York City café scene is what unites so many of us there each morning. It is this time that infuses each of us with the drive to go about the rest of the day in this city of dreams and ambition.
Coffee shop or yoga mat. Meditation cushion or apartment stoop. Before you work, FOCUS.
- TaraMarie Perri
If you’re looking to add yoga to your morning ritual, check out our daily morning classes with great teachers held in NYC, both uptown and downtown!