January 30, 2003
Namaste Noble Warriors!
{this entry is dedicated to Claymo}
�
"Who can convince the sea
to be reasonable?
What's it get from demolishing
blue amber, green granite?
And why so many wrinkles
and so many holes in the rock?
I came from behind the sea,
now where do I go when it cuts me off?
Why did I close the road,
falling into the sea's trap?"
- Pablo Neruda
there are only so many authors that a writer can keep within arm's reach.
Neruda is one of mine.
for fifteen years i zig-zagged the US, Canada, and Mexico, climbing rocks and scaling peaks and competing in all sorts of outdoor sports when i should have �been making something of myself.� i spent much of this time in �Vince� - a svelte, yellow sport pickup with a shell. in the shell, i fashioned a sleeping cot and draped cargo netting to hold my gear, cooking stove, food, etc. Vince was durable. even notoriously fiendish bears in Yosemite�s Camp Four parking lot couldn�t significantly damage Vince, though they sure scared the shit out of me as they shook Vince back and forth in the middle of the night. to regain my sleep, i resorted to a trick my wolf �taught� me. I would squirt these overgrown pack rats in their faces with a special water bottle full of - oh geez - well, my urine. the beasts backed right off. must have been all those amino acid pills i was consuming back then. anyway, i just had to make sure i didn�t bring that particular water bottle up on the big walls with me the next day!
Vince and i seemed fueled by the same forces: the scent of granite domes, sequoia wind, and magnificent, if not intimidating, high peaks. to my memory, i put gas into Vince like five times in all the years i drove him. i�d pass some sign somewhere out in a deep Nevada night that read, �No Services For 138 Miles.� i dared not look at Vince�s gas gauge for it would inevitably suggest the same abundance as did my wallet: next to nothing. yet, i always seemed to arrive to the next crag or camping place just fine. more than a fistful of times did i fall asleep during at night while �driving� Vince...only to awake, refreshed, and still cruising along some ribbon of desert asphalt. when i arrive at the Pearly Gates, i�ve got a pair of Guardian Angels to look up...i owe them far more than a 20% tip!
in this mystical way, Vince delivered me to the bottom of even more mystical vertical terrain. like a sandstone nymph, i cared for little but to scurry and sometimes burst - dance like - up vertical rock or ice. most often with a partner, but sometimes i climbed without so much a rope. confidence and a helluva lot of WF training and meditation was all i carried for my protection. climbing upward was ecstasy to me. i adored the yawning of my arms extending toward hidden handholds. i cherished the sweet opening of my hip muscles as they too, stretched to accommodate a gymnastic posture far above a canyon floor. at night, back at �Villa Vince� - whose yellow merged well with tawny campfires - i cooked feeble food, mostly ramen noodles, while in yogi squat. years of living this simian way, evoked something in my inner world which still nourishes my Sacred Happiness.
even after a hundred thousand vagabond miles under his tires, Vince sported but one quote on his dash. a great Neruda line, now etched liked a skid mark into my soul...
�All who wander are not lost.�
don�t worry if you miss a workout.
don�t get all weird if you go off your diet.
you worry and get weird because society has made you myopic and obsessed with sensual infatuations and entertainment that serve only to charm your ego and weaken your chi.
you�ve let yourself become over identified with the outer world.
this is why you still refuse meditation
as part of your fitness training.
you can�t stand
to sit
still
in silence.
but do not worry
about that.
don�t even worry if you are not a formal online-student of Wholistic Fitness and have yet to develop structure and consistency and wisdom in your choreography of genuine fitness.
instead of worrying, do this:
just em-body the dance of your breath
and the presence of your posture
today
right Now
right Here.
in time,
your fitness wandering will lead you to something that is as Sacred
as the sun
within you...
(Kundalini)
and ignite
your inner fire
(tapas)
to endlessly Rise Above,
and find union
(Yoga)
with the Source of who you were
before there was even a sea.
May this Meditation
help keep your Practice strong
and most of all
keep it sincere,
coach ilg
���
coming up next in DIRECT LINES?
YOUR INPUT, QUESTIONS, and ANSWERS!
thanks for choosing to
be
here
now!
���
DL READER SPECIAL: new supply of HP Yoga videos and HP Yoga pants just in!
buy both within the next 7 days and get a free HP Yoga Sweat Towel until supplies last!
���
January 25, 2003
Namaste Noble Warriors!
�The highest Quality moment in training is the one we invest in choosing softness over tightness. Don�t try harder, try softer.�
- Coach Ilg
�
Hey, it�s SUPERBOWL SUNDAY weekend!!!!
YIPPEE, YAHOO!!!
Super Bowl Sunday can only mean two things to the Student of Wholistic Fitness:
1) ski areas, yoga studios, and mountain biking trails will be less crowded
and
2) see # 1
�
i haven�t updated DL for a few days. i�ve been teaching a 3-Day Private Intensive with New Student Patrick from Montana here in LA. Patrick, whom I�ve given the WF nickname - �Student B� - will one day earn his Master Student Inka, i am sure. Although over fifty, Student B has all the requisites for becoming a Master Student of WF. he loves learning. he loves being creative. he seeks integration of fitness into his busy and international travel intensive lifestyle. his weakest disciplines are similar to many �successful� American men his age; yoga and meditation. the older we get, the more important those softer, more spiritual fitness disciplines become rather than strength and cardio training. but don�t take my word for it. just age. you�ll see.
anyway, for those of you who still have not gotten your ass out here to take a 1-3 Private Training Intensive with Kathy and i or with one of my other WF Teachers, here is the actual itinerary with my work with new Student B. Note: i had never met Student B before. he had read my books and stuff about me in magazines, but it was his wife who surprised him with a 3-Day Intensive with me for his birthday. we had a great time, check it out:
New Student B�s Itinerary
Based upon your input, here�s how i�ve designed your personalized Wholistic Fitness Intensive for optimal body/mind training during your Intensive:
Wednesday, January 22
8:00 am
Orientation/Consultation with Steve
10:45 am
HP Yoga with Kathy
and Lunch
Location: PowerHouse Gym
2:30 pm Private Yoga Basics with Kathy
Private session to orient your body in the basic poses
Location: Home
3:00 pm Breath & Posture Clinic with Steve
Specific facilitation of your body and awareness for daily practice of WF Lifestyle Principle #1: Breath & Posture
Location: Home
4:00 pm
Hiking & Taoist Yoga Postures
clears mental & emotional clutter while fortifying heart & lungs..enjoy breathing and moving!
Route: �Hectic Hill� a rather abrupt 1.3 mile climb from the floor of the San Fernando Valley up a steep hill of the Santa Monica Mountains to a ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
On the ridge, the Taoist Yoga Postures will be introduced to you before the technical descent!
8:00pm Vegetarian Dinner with Steve and Kathy
9:00 Hei Wa Video & Zazen Instruction
enjoy Sensei Kishiyama�s beautiful video on the Ai Imawa (Taoist Yoga) Postures followed by a brief instruction in Zazen for tomorrow morning
�
Thursday, January 23
7:00 am
Morning Zazen & Pranayama
clears and stabilizes mind/enhances awareness/deepens uptake and control of prana.
Location: home Zendo
8:30 am - Breakfast/Free Time
10:15 am
Strength Training: Upper Body with Steve
a shared workout that covers basic WF technique and philosophy and intensity
Location: PowerHouse Gym
12:30 pm - Lunch/Nutrition Discussion
3:30 pm
Mountain Trail Run/Walk with Kathy
a Cardio workout to balance the gym...
Route: El Caballero Trailhead to Dirt Mullholland, approximately 5.5 miles roundtrip
7:15 pm
HP Yoga with Kathy
what a perfect ending to a perfect WF day!
Location: PowerHouse Gym
9:00 pm
Ethiopian Dinner & Cinema
Meet WF Teacher Q while enjoying Coach�s favorite cuisine and film to inspire training energy: �Endurance� - a great film about Olympic gold medal distance runner, Haile Gebrselassie.
�
Friday, January 24
7:00 am
Morning Zazen & Pranayama
8:30 am - Breakfast/Free Time
10:00 am
Strength Training; Lower Body & Midsection with Steve
12:00 pm
Private Yoga with Steve
2:00 pm
High Performance Bodywork/Energywork with Steve
A final release to bring your first Intensive to a sweet surrender!
3:30 pm
Departure
�
sound like fun?
it is.
schedule yours today!
wholisticfitness.com
tribal catalog; Private Intensive
we�ll completely tailor your WF Intensive to suit your ability and enjoyment.
�
Now some WF DHARMA ...
Common Yoga Question:
�should pranayama (yogic breathing) be done before or after doing asana (postures)? the teachers at my studio seem to do it both ways.�
Pranayama volumes depend upon the �nadic� - subtle energy channel - capacities of the student. let me give you a personal example of what i mean.
it's great for me to do an hour bike ride.
but with my past fitness abilities in cardio, an hour workout will not increase in my cardio fitness. it will help sustain it, but it won't increase it.
if i wanted to increase my cycling fitness, i'd need several weeks of 3+ hour rides just to get back to a level i once had.
even more to surpass it.
same with Pranayama.
an advanced yogi who can voluntarily open and facilitate chakra (energy center) and nadic channels really doesn't need too much asana practice. just sit in Maha Mudra (the �Great Meditation Posture�) and Tap into deep levels of universal energy or �pran.�
students hear many things about how to blend Pranayama with Asana, which defines �Hatha Yoga.� but until the student feels for him or herself, their own inner circuitry grow more fit and their sense of Pran becomes more refined, it is best to do Pranayama before Asana. otherwise, it's like doing abs after a kickass upper body workout in the gym...the energy level just ain't there and it won't be a quality ab workout. for a better set of abdominals, do abs first thing in a workout, when you�re freshest. same thing with Pranayama. until your yoga becomes highly conditioned, if you wait until after Asana practice to do Pranayama, your subtle channels could be fatigued and your mental concentration tired.
when privately working with students, i often prescribe this format:
DAY ONE: Meditation and Pranayama
DAY TWO: asana
DAY THREE: recovery
proper choreography in the spiritual arts is the same as with physical training: it�s all about priority training.
and the Student's intent, capacity, and Tapas (inner desire).
- coach ilg
�
HP Teacher Grant Couture adds to this discussion:
�doing Pranayama at the end of your yoga session can settle the energy that you have generated or it can hinder the release of energy. the dissipation and movement of energy during the practice is controlled and manipulated through Ujjayi and the Bhandas (internal locks) in the moment of practice ideally. from my experience we do not store energy we transmit it, like a conduit. the pranayama gives us some hard wiring to transmit this energy. any lingering energy needs to be dissipated and transmitted. by the end of practice, you are balanced (with the ideal comes the actual!!)�
�
welcome New WF Online Student:
Diane Johnston of Denver, CO
(taking training under Teacher J.)
�
WANTED:
before and after photos of WF Warriors/Warrioresses for possible inclusion in my next book.
send before and after photos to
coach ilg
5720 yolanda ave #2
tarzana, ca 91356
deadline: March 1st
���
i bow to you,
coach ilg
January 20, 2003
OF AGASSI and A-ROD, MEDITATION, CELIBACY, and STUDENT SHAWNA
Namaste Noble Warriors!
�Life is not busy. It�s your mind that is busy.�
- Coach Ilg
�
Coach Ilg On The Australian Open:
Agassi�s got the Chi, baby.
If only Hewit
knew it.
It�s Serena�s world, we just live in it.
i like A-Rod because he�s a hyper, good-looking punk with a ton of talent and charisma and knows how to work It for the good of the sport. Having said that, he needs to stop muscling his game so much and lower his breath more. he�s got the power, but not the discrimination. unless he learns the yin, he will get injured and beat himself. Summary? Hey, i love this kid�s 127 mph first serve...giddy-up, cowboy!
Whassup with this �Heat Index� crap? I thought Tennis was an �Outdoor Sport.� Now �Tournament Officials� at the Ausssie Open are going to �close the roof� if the sun and heat threaten �physical challenges� to the players! Oh, poor babies! I didn�t get to have a roof automatically appear when weather conditions reached extremes in ultra racing, mountaineering, rock climbing, cycling, etc. What�s next, have the players cut out paper dolls for a tiebreaker? Like graphite racquets and 5-star hotel resorts aren�t enough for these �outdoor athletes?�
it seems the moment golf and tennis players starts earning my respect as �outdoor athletes,� it�s the damned �Tournament Officials� that screw everything up. Let the athletes PLAY!!!! He or she with the best trained body/mind should win, not just the most skilled one!
�
Coach Ilg On The NFL Playoffs:
certainly not worth missing a workout over.
i thought the Eagles did yoga.
guess it wasn�t High Performance Yoga they were doing!
Raiders by 10.
�
Dear Coach Ilg,
you once wrote in regard to Meditation;
" The reality is that pleasurable moments will come and go and painful moments will come and go. But your ego wants something different from that reality; it wants to keep the pleasurable and get rid of the painful. So, you start clinging to your desires for pleasure instead of experiencing reality. Right there is the root of all human suffering; wanting things to be other than the way they truly are."
I am not sure i agree with this - so humans should never try to change the world?"
- MC, NYC
Dear MC -
whether you "agree" or not, is not the point. in spiritual work, personal opinion is set aside and the aspirant should just observe the teaching...like observing the breath while sitting in Zazen. suspend judgment and clamor from past opinions, belief structures, etc. Empty cup type of thing.
the point is that the untrained mind defaults to pleasure and ease and duality instead of seeing Brahman or the Absolute Reality or the Play Of It All (lila). this habituation of the ego leads toward an addiction to comfort so that if it happens to be raining or snowing or cold for instance, people will say, "Oh, it's bad weather," instead of saying, "Oh, it's raining outside." It's this dualistic trait of the ego that causes our suffering, because the Universe does not accommodate personal dictates.
The world is always changing - yogis know it as the play of Lila - you don't need to try to change it. Meditation teaches us to be present with the changing tides of our inner world, so that the changing tides of our outer world can be understood and in-Joyed. Most of us will effect more significant Higher change in the outer world when we practice more deeply within our internal world.
i bow to you,
ilg
�
Dear Steve -
my partner and i are considering celibacy to strengthen our relationship as a spiritual couple. what do you think about the issue of celibacy?
- JZ
Dear Yogini J -
if celibacy is an �issue� to you, then it is not yet appropriate for you to consider it as part of your current Practice.
consciously giving up sex to facilitate the powerful energies of that physiology and instinct is one of the most difficult things for a yogi to practice as indriya-jaya (Mastery of the Senses). voluntarily giving up sex, especially for most non-renunciates or �householder�s,� is a tremendous lifestyle choice, particularly as the years pass. choosing celibacy as a yogic practice requires close guidance of a Teacher and world class levels of meditation volumes to transmute sexual energy toward Higher Consciousness. otherwise, a lot of energy and love and lust could backfire in any number of ways. most American yogis first need to execute Mastery of far less intense issues such mastery of food, entertainment choices, word choices, addiction to comfort, habituated though, and concentration of mental energies. it requires tremendous mind power and fitness of subtle channels to control the sexual energetic reservoir.
Most of us American yogi�s can�t give up the desire for a Diet Coke let alone giving up the desire for sex!
celibacy as a yogic practice came from strict austerities performed by holy men (and women) that lived lives of meditation and renunciation of the world. they were in constant contact with their Guru. their monastery caves and walks in the Himalayas and weren�t bombarded by the sex-obsessed images, concepts, and culture of our society. trying to curb the sexual appetite for most American�s would drive them neurotic. a life of silence and spiritual practice is optimal for the celibate and that is difficult to create anywhere. it�s really difficult in a big city.
Like Mastery of anything - say food - when your Vibrational Fitness shifts onto a Higher Level, then it just makes sense to leave off the eating of meat or sweets or junk food. It simply feels completely appropriate and there is not a question of it.
It will only harm a yogi�s Practice if he or she prematurely takes a vow of celibacy only to become trapped in what Ram Dass hilariously called, �the horny celibate stage.� my counsel to most non-renunciate yogis in regard to Brahmacharya (the main yogic tenet that includes appropriate use of sexual energy) is to first stop having sex without Love. start there. that is tricky enough. then, keep refining your sexual awareness from an energetic perspective. more Teachings, Teachers, and signs (cinha) will then arise as your Practice matures.
i hope this helps...
I bow to you,
steve ilg, R.Y.T.
�
Wholistic Fitness Student, Shawna, who is currently studying under WF Teacher In Training, Chris Roche, in Indiana was required to answer the following question from her Teacher:
�One of Coach Ilg's 'infamous' axioms is 'my workout is everywhere'. what does this mean?
p.s. -- there is no 'right' answer."
Shawna answered,
�Dear Coach Chris -
MY WORKOUT IS EVERYWHERE - what this means to me
Scheduling a 9:30 am meeting downtown so I can go to the gym prior to my meeting without having to travel north to go to the office first thing: my workout is everywhere.
Attending a high pressure meeting with demanding deadlines, leaving to commute with a co-worker for a 1/2 hour drive in heavy traffic, anxiety in her voice with a linger of frustration...I comment "isn't the sun gorgeous today?" The conversation turns to the power the sun brings to uplifting moods and inspiring thoughts entered the conversation along with laughter: my workout is everywhere.
Telling my husband, Steve, something that I appreciate about him today: my workout is everywhere.
When something irritating crawls under my skin for no apparent reason, take a deep breath, or maybe ten, let it go: my workout is everywhere.
In the gym doing my lower body session. Superset 4 times: Squats 8 reps, Jump squats for :45. I'm on my 3rd superset, the jump squats are stealing my breath at 10 seconds, focus the mind, where do I want to go? 25 seconds....ahhhh. Not quite :45, but I'm here, I'm in the gym, I'm pushing my body, I can do this: my workout is everywhere.
Being aware and mindful of what I fuel my body with throughout the day. Drinking water, FD, saying "no thank you" to being offered a cup of coffee: my workout is everywhere.
Meeting friends (Scott, Jo, Austin, & Kinley) for dinner. Looking forward to seeing those babies. The feeling that warms the soul as a 5 month-old looks up and smiles up at you. That single moment becomes frozen from everything else that happened in the day....realizing the importance of life: my workout is everywhere.
Writing this email to you in response to your assignment: my workout is everywhere.
You are a superb trail blazer or maybe domestique is more appropriate - grazie mille (a thousand thank yous).
Namaste,
WF Student-Shawna
January 15, 2003
Namaste Noble Warriors!
"Be that which you really are; don't pretend to be what you are not."
- unknown yogi Master
Here are 4 things for those of you eating or are interested in SUNRIDER HERBS...the Official Nutrition of Wholistic Fitness.
Number 4 is my traditional new year herbal 'throw down' which has yet to be succesfully answered!
enjoy!
1)
first... this from Wholistic Fitness Teacher Joseph Sheader,
"A woman who I got some SUNRIDER HERBS for came by to pick the herbs up and shared with me how last year while having some serious health problems she went on Sunrider... just 'Simply Herbs Nuplus' and 'Calli', and ate only vegetarian and lost 48 pounds in 6 months!"
{Certified WF Teacher Sheader is accepting applications for new online Students. visit www.wholisticfitness.com to read about Teacher Sheader under the Instructor link}
2) my grandfather-in-law, Ken, is about to undergo 6-weeks of radiation treatment. i am showing my care for him by ordering the following SUNRIDER herbs to beef up his immune system to deal with the radiation and to increase his overall cellular regeneration. here is what i am getting him:
�) Simply Herbs
�) Alpha 20C
�) Calli Night
3) if you or someone you know has the slightest question regarding why SUNRIDER products cost what they do or if there is any questions regarding the integrity of SUNRIDER's herbs OR their business practices... order SUNRIDER's COMPANY PROFILE through www.sunrider.com
Company Profile
Product Code Product Description Price
#574101 Company Profile English 1 Each 4.00�
it's a fantastic booklet that pounds home just HOW INTENSELY CONCENTRATED, UNIQUELY FORMULATED, and the SUPERIOR QUALITY of these amazing, completely natural, preservative free whole foods and products are! you'll be shocked at the greatly expensive lengths that Dr. Chen goes through to bring us the most superior herbal whole foods and products on the planet!
4) it's the new year...which means it is time again for me to thrown down just how much i trust in SUNRIDER nutrition.
so, to newcomers and skeptics that are still dancing around SUNRIDER but still eating all sorts of vitamin pills and weird supplements and drugs instead of JUMPING INTO the herbal whole food SUNRIDER products
i tell you what...
if you can find ANY OTHER PERSON IN THE WORLD that uses another herbal foods/whole-food supplement,
engineered food powder or pills,
steroids,
or drugs
who can:
can outperform me in
� strength
� power
� flexibility
� agility/balance/coordination
� ultra endurance (event must be over 5 hours in duration to qualify),
� sustained seated meditation
� and, if that person has at least equaled me in all those disciplines, it'll come down to a bodybuilding competition to determine whose nutritional fitness has carved out better overall proportions and bodyfat percentage.
if you can find that person, i'll be COMPLETELY open to explore whatever nutritional product or program he/she is using if they are willing to 'compete' in a nonjudgmental, non-egoic manner to determine whose nutritional choices are truly able to produce wide-spectrum fitness. bring it on, baby!
any takers from the Doritos and Pepsi crowd?
no? how about you meat-eaters? ready to test your beef-based body against this pansy-ass herb eater? come on! real beef for real people? okay, let's see how real you are!
how about you dairy people?
got milk?
i got herbs.
come on! let's test!
i'll even 'spot' this person any age difference (i'm 40) and my injury history (fractured lumbar/subluxated pelvis).
my point in this offer?
� nutritional supplements or foods sold in mass grocery stores, commercial chains, or through TV or popular media should be tested in the physiology of your individual fitness and health experience, not marketing savvy.
�SUNRIDER herbs are usually only discovered by word-of-mouth. you won't see Dr. Chen in an infomercial. word of mouth is the truest form of direct marketing, i reckon. examine the fitness of whomever is counseling you about what foods are good for you. this is historically how healthy whole foods have been discovered. not through glitzy advertising.
� nutritional supplements that are 'proven in clinical studies' by pencil-necked dietary 'experts' means nothing to me. "The devil can cite scripture for his purpose.". coach ilg says, let's test the quality of daily nutrition out in the FIELD OF broad-spectrum fitness! lets truly TEST how well your nutrition is providing for ALL your different physiology systems over years and decades!
from endurance to power to flexibility to mental focus to emotional equanimity...THESE are the realms in which quality nutrition provides! test YOUR nutritional fitness in REAL life, not by submitting to marketing propaganda! you are what you eat.
� quality food should produce cellular regeneration and recovery at an optimal level of body/mind performance for decades. true quality cannot be demonstrated at a pseudo scientific level during a few experiments or through paid testimonials!
across 20 years i've yet to find ANYTHING that regenerates the body and manages bodyfat levels like SUNRIDER herbs. i'm throwin' down baby...if you think there is something better out there for your body and mind...and can prove it to me by DIRECT EXPERIENCE through well-rounded fitness..then, i want to hear from you!
or, better yet, just order your monthly supply of SUNRIDER HERBS today to stay lean, feel great, and become Whole.
need help ordering your herbs?
that's why i'm here...
let me know how i can help.
May Your Practice Be Strong & Sincere,
coach ilg
January 12, 2003
A Pandemonium Of Texture
�All hunger, if examined through meditation, is an instinctual and spiritual hunger for union with the Divine. all humans have a hunger for texture in our lives yet we satiate it wrongly by sensual instead of spiritual attainment.� -
steve ilg
my beautiful friend Tina rates her attraction to food on its texture. she is either attracted or repulsed by food according to texture. caloric and nutrient value of foods matter less to Tina than does its texture. �It can�t be too gushy or too crunchy,� she counsels me, �and it�s got to have a some sort of creamy quality to it.�
i�m the same way. about my workouts.
see, after Tina�s comment, i decided to weigh texture more frequently in my day to day life. it�s a good quality to ruminate on; texture. the texture of our lives. our attractions. our workouts. texture imparts dimension, quality, and feel. it�s what gives depth to anything... from carpet to a kiss. word experts say that texture probably comes from a Latin word, �texere� which means a woven structure like �text� in a book or threads in a jacket (textile). texture (a word which, by the way, has great texture to it) is what largely attracts us to tangible things like clothes, jewelry, and dishes. but to me, texture is also what attracts me to more etheral things like mountain bike trails, road cycling routes, ski trails, yoga styles, and ice and rock climbs.
my thoughts about texture were still with me even this morning as i prepared for my mountain bike ride. so, during this morning�s ride, i chose to view my ride from a perspective of texture. want to come? good. let�s go.
first thing i noticed was air pressure in Grunt�s feet (that�s ilgspeak for my mountain bike, whose name is �Grunt� - and his feet are his tires). texture is very important to mountain biking tires; the air pressure must be appropriate for the terrain. this morning i was going to climb a lot of super steep and technically tricky uphills. this type of riding requires low air pressure; not more than than 32 psi per tire. this imparts a �sticky� texture between rubber and earth. the grip factor is enhanced. the trade off? you go a lot slower on pavement and flat terrain.
second thing was the texture of my warm up. it is important to warm up slowly when doing cardio workouts. you�ve got to lubricate the inner engine with a slow and steady oxygenation of the pulmonary and muscular tissues. i�ve noticed that the older i get, the longer they become. when younger , hell, i could jump out of bed and peg my heart rate to 190 without a flitter of a thought a bout it. not these days. i take my sweet ass time warming up before punching out any high intensity stuff.
third was the texture of dirt. dirt and rocks are the bread and butter of mountain biking and this morning, the texture of Mother Earth was ideal for ultra steep, technical mountain biking. recent rains have transformed slippery, dusty mountain trails into tacky, serpentine pathways upon which mountain bike tires grip perfectly. today in fact, i was able to �clean� an insanely steep headwall that i�ve always fallen off. i mean, if it was any steeper i�d have to outfit Grunt�s tires with crampons. the art of steep climbing on a MTB involves a yoga of four qualities:
�) balance
�) hip and leg power
�) anaerobic cardio fitness
�) mental focus
this morning the key to success occurred in my balance...specifically, my right elbow.
that�s right, my right elbow.
the tackiness of the trail allowed me to relax into a better balance during the intensity of the climbing. because i was relaxed on the hard stuff, i was able to realize i held my right elbow rigidly and it was affected my center of gravity. so, i breathed softness into my right elbow, dropping it lower and found i could effectively use it like a rudder as the near vertical terrain rose sharper and sharper. i swear to Lord Buddha that i rode up this tough section like a computer enhanced Spider Man...i just KNEW i was not going to fall and just enjoyed myself ride right up this thing that used to toss me off my bike like a dog shakes off water. it was great. it was heaven on earth.
i lost count of textural awareness after that. i was too high,now heavily intoxicated by lush and detailed textures everywhere. only images from my workout remain; bronze headed cowbirds swimming through the air beside my bike like Dolphins leaping through waves escorting an ocean ship. a family of California quail squirting across the trail, their unmistakable curving topknots disappearing into the chaparral like comic ghosts. marine layer clouds creeping up coastal canyons before refusing the drier air of the Valley only to curl back into itself like an infant snuggling into a warm crib. i recall the glimmer of dew, the gossip of wrens, the whispers of morning shadows fading, and the soaring glide of my descent down �Natoma trail�.
why would anyone NOT choose to be fit enough to take the sacred pause of a morning workout like this? if only President Bush would ride mountain bikes with me, feel these things, examine the texture of his inner life. for it is through the breath of self-propelled effort that we can clearly see that there is no such thing as �preventative war�. no divorce is truly healing. the hunger for war is the same one rooted in gossip and addiction to entertainment and it is a mistaken one. all hunger, if examined through meditation, is an instinctual and spiritual hunger for union with the Divine. all humans have a hunger for texture in our lives yet we satiate it wrongly by sensual instead of spiritual attainment.
palm tree fronds seemed to swish traffic out of my way as i swiftly piloted my mountain bike across Ventura Boulevard. now back down in sixty degree warmth of the valley, i concluded that, like yoga, texture is everywhere. we just have to Practice finding it. our entire lives - if lived consciously - reveals but a pandemonium of textures. some people say they get �bored� by fitness training. i say they are simply not paying attention. delightful textures inevitably arise from any mindfully performed workout. .
as we edge deeper into our richly stratified folds of self through Wholistic FItness practices, we can use our awareness of texture to help climb our inner, personal hills. those inner obstacles are intended to focus us. they fuse our breath into a repetitive presence...and turn up the faucet of the Divine. hills, both inner and outer ones, makes us sweat, gasp, and if we are aware enough to appreciate their texture, they will edge us ever Higher.
may all beings know peaceful texture to the dance of their lives.
may your Practice be strong and sincere.
i bow to you from the humble helm of Wholistic Fitness...
- coach ilg
January 08, 2003
Namaste Noble Warriors!
sorry i�ve been late in updating this...it�s NEW YEAR Resolution time...a busy time for us personal trainers! right now i am in Vegas working with a private student.
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"The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior is
that a warrior takes everything as a challenge while an ordinary
man takes everything either as a blessing or a curse."
- Carlos Castaneda
Master WF Student John �Hakado Ru� Kuhlman submitted that quote to me. It�s a very WF kind of quote. It falls in line with the WF maxim, �There are no rights or wrongs, just consequences.�
Now the funny (or shall i say, �perfectly synchronistic�) thing about �Hak� sending me that Castaneda quote is that mere hours earlier i had experienced a wonderful spiritual victory; my motorcycle had gotten impounded by cops who pulled me over for speeding, said i did not have the appropriate papers, wrote me up, and impounded my bike leaving me to walk home through a thankfully warm winter night in the Valley.
now, why is THAT a spiritual victory?
because i chose to accept the whole situation as a challenge to strengthen my yoga Practice...all of it, from seeing the whirling police lights in my side view mirrors, to dealing with the bureaucratic bs to get my bike out of the pound, i remained utterly, completely calm - even joyful - through it all. it was great!
after the cops pulled me over, i just sat down in the gutter in half lotus (i figured full lotus would have freaked them out too much), realized that 1) i had voluntarily broken the rules of the game by speeding, changing lanes too fast, and without signaling, 2) although completely unintentional, i had the wrong papers with me, 3) the cops were just doing their job, and 4) this was merely the consequence of my actions (karma) and...it was a perfect situation to practice my yoga...to walk my talk.
so, sitting there in the gutter, under the spinning sirens, i began to silently chant a name of God. i merged into the moment.
a steady stream of what transpired after i surrendered to this situation like this was nothing shy of miraculous. my heartrate never increased. i never took the officers out of my heart. and Divinity flowed into the moment instead of drama, worry, anxiety, and stress.
the officers picked up on the Divine vibrations...instead of throwing the book at me, the cops basically let me go of everything except the speeding. and, they started asking me about yoga! they still had to impound my bike by law. but when i got home, i fetched the right papers, and raced through the night on my bicycle back to where their patrol car still stood idling. i asked them if this was the paper they needed not to tow my bike. it was indeed. but, the tow truck had carted off my bike a mere 30 seconds earlier. i know this, because i saw my Nighthawk being towed away as i rounded the final corner on my bicycle.
as the officers saw my sincerity we cut through the masks of police persons and lawbreaker and met in the Namaste space. it was great. so was the unreal way the Universe parted the red tape for me the next morning to get my motorcycle back. i loved the whole affair, even paying the $200 to the impound yard. for me, that test of how effective my yoga has become for keeping me in touch with the Divine instead of Drama was worth far more than $200.
but then again, i should reserve my enthusiasm until i see what my insurance rate is going to be jacked up to!
oh, and of course, i no longer speed.
may your enjoy this update and may your Practice be strong during YOUR next challenging moment so that you find only Divinity smiling at you, testing you to see if you�ve overcome the Drama.
"The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior is
that a warrior takes everything as a challenge while an ordinary
man takes everything either as a blessing or a curse."
- Carlos Castaneda
i bow to you,
coach ilg
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congratulations to Lenore Fusano and Greg Diaz who won the coveted HIGH PERFORMANCE YOGA WARRIORESS AND WARRIOR AWARD for displaying unmatched consistency and follow through in their Practice during 2002! Lenore and Greg received gifts courtesy of MelodicaMusic.com and POWERBAR.
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speaking of POWERBAR...
the only approved �engineered food� supplement of WF,
i wish to thank my friends at POWERBAR for approving my 17th consecutive year as a sponsored athlete of POWERBAR! from ultra endurance athletics to climbing to skiing to cycling and now to yoga...POWERBAR has been and remains my choice for those moments when just a little more POWER is needed for that workout!
yes, my favorite flavor remains the original malt-nut although i must say the new SUGAR FREE PROTEIN PLUS Strawberry Cream Something Or Other is pretty dang good! i like the POWERGELS too, especially when i am teaching consecutive yoga classes and don�t want any food in my gut but would like some glycogen refilling, you know?
Although whole foods and herbs remain my primary personal and professional choice for food 99% of the time, it�s nice to keep POWERBARS and POWERGELS in the cupboard for that extra long bike ride or that extra helping of nutrients to help recover or get through a busy day. www.powerbar.com
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This comes in from WF Online Student Shawna as she summarizes her practice in Meditation for last week:
M: I did 2 Zazen sessions (1-15min., 1-10min.), I practiced my early morning cleaning ritual - while staying focused and very mindful., I got the Peace is Every Step and started to read it. I have Beeper guru set on my computer at work and sometimes - I find it very difficult to stop and say "Am I at peace?" sometimes it is very abstract to fit that into "work" when it is so demanding, and it doesn't feel like I am at peace with myself. I caught myself falling into the drama of a stressful situation at work on Friday. After festering for moments about it - I caught myself and then just said "don't buy into the drama - now, let it go." It felt so good. It was beyond my control - so I just acknowledged it and then moved on.
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Coach Ilg,
Many thanks for your comments. I also wanted to thank you for some of the writings in your direct lines column. I just finished a 5 day family ski trip in Michigan and it might have been pretty awful if not for your writing. To begin with, there was no natural snow and therefore no Nordic skiing. Not a problem. I remembered your column about early morning Nordic skiing and got up early and skied at the downhill resort. It was an incredible experience (and yes I did ski up to the top multiple times). I also brought my leather telemark boots thanks to your columns and this again, was an excellent choice. Many thanks.
Jim Johnston
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Dear Steve, i loved tonites Direct Lines. i'd love to put a copy of that in every room of my house and golf shop. Steve, Dr. Robert Arnot has come out with a book entitled, WEAR AND TEAR. In it he says''Trust me, yoga may be the single most effective way of dealing with wear and tear or even mild to moderate arthritis." i have all of his books and have enjoyed each and every one of them. As you have said to me many times YOGA IS WHAT WILL HELP ME THE MOST. i am ready.
LOVE, Student Kendo
Dear Student Kendo -
this is a wonderful sign of the times as MD�s begin to really FEEL the difference that a direct experience of yoga can provide for themselves AND their patients!
perhaps Dr. Arnot will help forward a movement to have Yoga teachers paid on the scale of doctors and doctors get paid like Yoga teachers have been for the last twenty years? Hmmmmmm....i wish!
Hey, before Greg LeMond effectively changed the situation, pro bike racers received poverty level paychecks!
January 02, 2003
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�Nothing but the accomplishment of the present gives form to the future.�
- coach ilg
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Happy New Year Noble Warriors!
i take every January 1st to tally my training volumes. i began journaling as a spiritual practice when i was 17. i remember being so dedicated to my daily diary that i�d secretly journal while in the bathroom in motels during ski trips with the National Team so my teammates would not make fun of me or steal my diary. so enamored with the insights that arose from daily journal keeping, i wrote THE OUTDOOR ATHLETE�S TRAINING JOURNAL (Cordillera Press). Now out of print, it was published in 1992 along with a fantastic CD-ROM that represented the pioneering edge of software technology. i still use this CD ROM to this day for my journaling.
the value of journaling to me is the fact that our life is our best Teacher. if we fail to examine and record our life, we miss the subtle patterns and play of It All. journaling brings Perspective to the flow of life.
i began my diary to improve sport performance variables...for example, keeping track of athletic records, heart rate, distance, intensity, etc. now retired from sponsored athletics, i still journal in order to...well, keep order. order to the flow of spiritual insight with physical change. a most fantastic Dance emerges from my recordings. i sense an arising motif built from consistencies which match up with childhood dreams and long ago visualizations.
when i was a young athlete, i understood intuitively that i must attain mastery in sports when young because i knew a youthful body could sustain the various bone jarring intensities from training. so, i made it my yoga to reach high levels of competitive fitness in such tendon ripping diverse sports as ultra distance mountain running, rock climbing, boxing, nordic jumping, and Olympic weightlifting. better to push my body to the extreme when young and later rely upon yoga to iron out the injuries and restrictions.
it�s playing out just as i saw it, long ago.
for example, here are my YEAR END TOTALS from 1995 and 2002:
1995:
total gym hours: 84
total cardio hours: 494
total yoga hours: 96.5
total meditation hours: 140.25
year end bodyweight: 151 pounds
2002:
total gym hours: 83
total cardio hours: 331.25
total yoga hours: 435.25
total meditation hours: 135.50
year end bodyweight: 149 pounds
to me, three things jump out as i review these statistics:
1) even at age 40+, i still �walk my talk� of Wholistic Fitness! my diary reveals a high degree of versatility in my fitness instead of specificity. specificity is as close to a curse word as one can get if you are a Master Student of WF! the near zero deviation in my bodyweight testimony to the effectiveness of Wholistic Fitness for weight management.
2) strength training and meditation are like my bread and butter during this period of my life. these two disciplines remain moderate in volume, but high in intensity, and extremely consistent.
3) cardio and yoga is what has changed my personal Dance over the last 7 years. in 1995, competitive cycling fitness was my focus and my cardio hours reflected that. today, i focus on yoga to heal years of trauma to my body through sport, so i�ve decreased cardio volume to make time for yoga.
Though few could ever hope to match my fitness �numbers� over the decades (although i encourage everybody to go for it!), it is important to remember that training volumes only point toward a singular principle: Divine Spirit. though my body continues to perform well in many sports and fitness activities, it is the steadfast cultivation of the Divine through the form which keeps my training motivation so High.
it still - quite simply - just feels good to me to workout. this is merely another way of saying, �When i workout, it makes me feel Go(o)d.�
May 2003 see you harvest unmatched consistency in your fitness practices.
i know you think you have many �important things to do� in a given day, but i will tell you this: the MOST �important thing to do�,
is to keep yourself Whole.
so meditate
strength train
do cardio
do yoga
and eat wisely.
this year, do your Practices and let NOTHING stand in your Way.
this year, cherish your Wholistic Fitness, High Performance Yoga, and SUNRIDER herbs like never before.
this year, strive to achieve what my Master Students strive for:
�Excellence in every workout performed.�
there is NOTHING like Wholistic Fitness, baby!
thanks for being Here Now.
keep it fun,
keep it focused.
and keep reading DIRECT LINES!
i bow to you,
coach ilg
Steve Ilg is a licensed USCF Coach, personal trainer, yoga teacher, and top selling book author who used yoga to overcome serious injury and compete in an unprecedented 5 World Championships in 4 different sports. He is the founder of Wholistic Fitness� and High Performance Yoga �. Contact him through
www.wholisticfitness.com