Sasha Yoga + Wellness

11/17/2025

If you struggle with staying motivated to maintain a consistent movement practice—what to do, where to start, how to stay committed—here are some tools and tips. Both your body and mind will thank you.

Adapt what resonates to suit your body, lifestyle, and capacity:

—Know your WHY. What positive shifts do you hope to experience, or have you already experienced? Mood, strength, mobility, physical / emotional resilience? This can empower and motivate you.

—Understand what works for you. Maybe 5-45 minutes of daily movement feels great; maybe a long walk or a class you love twice a week nourishes you more. Know your sweet spots.

—Plan ahead. If it feels helpful, choose a general or specific time of day—morning, lunchtime, sometime after work. Or move for a few minutes when you have a break: hold a plank pose, lift something heavy, dance in your room.

—Personalize your space. If you’re practicing at home, create a space—however small—where you’ll feel as focused and inspired as possible. Whether outdoors or at home, at a studio or fitness center, listen to something that supports your practice—podcast, playlist, or silence.

—Gather and tidy your equipment. Keep things clean and organized to honor the integrity of your practice— it keeps your mind focused, too. Choose ecological options when possible—especially yoga mats and blocks.

—Wear whatever makes you (and the planet) feel good. Favor natural fibers and materials when possible to support physical and ecological wellbeing. Same for body and hair care.

—Check in. Notice how you’re feeling and practice accordingly. Some days call for an active practice; other days restorative movement is more appropriate. Choose what brings balance, even if motivation is low.

—Choose your adventure. Try online classes, or choose a self-guided practice that aligns with how you’re feeling—even if it differs from your plan. Sometimes a dynamic practice can reinvigorate you; sometimes slowness is more nourishing.

—Be on your own time. Some days you might have time for a long practice; some days you might just walk or jump around for 5-10 minutes. Do what’s feasible—movement is important, even if it’s limited.
—Don’t judge. Some sessions feel amazing, some don't. Sometimes we feel strong and capable, other times we need to swap a planned workout for a restorative session. Do what’s possible, do your best avoid self-judgement, and remember that consistency > perfection.

—Notice how you feel. Awareness reinforces why movement matters and helps you discern which practices do or don’t work for you. Gratitude and appreciation help build consistency, no matter how your movement session unfolded.

Why is movement important to you, and what helps you stay consistent with it?

https://sashanelson.substack.com/p/make-movement-work-for-you

What helps me stay (mostly) motivated & consistent, even when things don't go as planned

11/14/2025

The “insta” aspect of this app sometimes makes me feel like we are spending too many precious moments on our devices instead of being present with the moment that’s happening this instant 🌀

I’m definitely not immune to this, but taking weekends off social media has been a really refreshing reminder that the juiciest slices of life happen outside of our phones and these social platforms—even if we capture photos to relive the memories and eventually share them with others.

Being in nature obviously helps a lot with being more present, too—as long as we remember to watch the sunset and see the sea through our eyeballs more than the camera lens of our phones 🌊

Here’s to spending more insta moments with as much awareness, connection, and gratitude as possible.

Happy weekend, take a tech break ✌🏻

📷: Fall moments in the Côte d’Azur 🇫🇷

11/07/2025

Here are 9 simple tips to make meditation feel approachable enough to practice consistently and easy enough to stick with. Personalize whatever resonates to make it work for you:

1. Know your WHY. Consider why you want to meditate. What positive shifts do you you hope to experience / have you already experienced—mood, energy, sleep, communication, emotional resilience? The WHY can help empower and motivate you.

2. Plan ahead. If it’s feasible and feels useful, choose a general or specific time of day you’ll meditate—morning, before bed, during a work break, or after lunch. Or just choose to meditate for a moment instead of scrolling through social media during downtime.

3. Meditate before tech. If you’re aiming for a morning meditation, play with setting the intention to look at devices after your practice. I definitely don’t always nail this, but I always feel better when I do.

4. Create a cozy space. Set up an area of your living space where you’ll feel grounded and as calm as possible. Create a little altar with meaningful objects if it feels aligned, light a candle, sit by a sunny window.

5. Set up a comfortable seat. Arrange a supportive seat like a meditation cushion, pillow(s), block(s), or a chair so you can sit upright. If you have back, hip, or knee pain, you can sit with your back against a wall or elevate your seat.

6. Choose your own adventure. Use guided meditations from a teacher you like, remain in silence, silently repeat a mantra, or try ambient music—whatever helps you settle.

7. Don’t judge. Some days feel zen and chill, some days feel like a circus. Sometimes I’m seated and still, sometimes I pop headphones in for a guided meditation while on public transportation or during walks. Do what’s possible, and know that it might not always be ideal.

8. Take your time. If you want, set a timer for however long you have time for—whether 5 or 20 minutes—and keep returning your attention to a meditation anchor like breath, sensations, sounds, mantra. Pause for a few deep breaths before you re-enter into the world.

9. Notice how you feel. Awareness helps reinforce why meditation matters, and helps you discern which techniques do or don’t work for you. Gratitude and appreciation helps build consistency, no matter how your meditation unfolded.

Read the full post for meditation resources and tools to support your practice.

https://sashayogawellness.com/2025/11/06/make-meditation-work-for-you/

Make it easy enough that you’ll stick with it (because it’s always worth it) Committing to daily meditation hasn’t always come easy for me, and honestly sometimes it still doesn’t....

11/06/2025

Committing to daily meditation hasn’t always come easy for me and sometimes still doesn’t. I’m currently not as consistent as I would like to be, but certain practices do help—especially remembering why meditation matters to me, and how it positively impacts my body, my mind, and my day (and life) as a whole.

Learning to infuse mindfulness into everyday life is powerful, too—same goes for mindful movement. I can see how it could be strange to believe that sitting still and focusing your attention could be even more transformative, but the results are real.

Something that works for me—and something I share with coaching clients who struggle with consistency—is to make it easy for yourself by setting yourself up for it.

This is just like you would set yourself up for a morning walk by leaving sneakers by the front door, set yourself up for a nourishing breakfast by prepping overnight oats, or set up your weekly calendar so you feel organized and ready to roll. Setting yourself up for meditation can be a gentle yet practical kickstarter to get you going.

Even when meditation becomes second-nature, life still happens and gets in the way. The most important thing we can do is figure out how to make it work for us—even if it still feels challenging (i.e. the whole “quieting the mind” thing, or finding time in general). Some days it feels natural, some days it takes discipline and a loving nudge, but it’s always worth it.

Read the science if you want more proof of the benefits, but the proof is really in the pudding. Try it and see for yourself.

Why is meditation important to you, and what helps you stay consistent with it?

Reach out for personalized 1:1 coaching to cultivate your own nourishing meditation tools and practices that work best for you and your lifestyle—watch how it positively impacts both your personal and professional life.

https://sashanelson.substack.com/p/make-meditation-work-for-you

Make it easy enough that you’ll stick with it (because it’s always worth it)

11/03/2025

Re: Mindfulness Works: I recently had a long dental procedure, and whenever I noticed myself tensing my muscles or feeling jittery—personal protective tendencies that mindfulness has helped me recognize—I took a smooth, deep belly breath and relaxed my body as best as I could.

This simple yet powerful shift helped me stay relatively still for two hours of relative discomfort and calmed me down when I felt especially anxious.

Before it ended, even though it wasn’t necessarily “easy” for me to remain mostly calm and still while they worked, the dentist mentioned that I was “a really easy patient.”

I credit this to many years of practicing yoga, meditation, and mindfulness on and off the mat—otherwise, I’m not sure I would’ve been so accommodating. I still sometimes get frustrated when my mindfulness practice momentarily crumbles under stress, but this dental anecdote reminded me that mindfulness does clearly work against all odds.

While recovering, mindfulness helped me teach myself how to chew at half-speed on only one side of my mouth for two weeks—including how to create blended concoctions instead of getting irritated by having to avoid my normal go-to meals (or at least I met any irritation and pain with kindness). It was a true lesson in patience and trust, not to mention a massive reality check on what Mindful Eating really means.

So although a seated meditation can absolutely calm and root us, general mindfulness is really about how we’re able to apply it out in the wild real world—like when dentists are using sharp tools inside your mouth, when you have no choice but to have to chew a snail’s pace, or when life and work get uncomfortable and challenging.

How do simple, daily mindfulness practices help you feel more grounded and connected in varying circumstances—personally or professionally?

Which mindfulness practices might help you cultivate and sustain your roots as we move into the end of 2025 and beyond?

https://sashayogawellness.com/2025/10/30/october-roots-mindfulness-fun-fact-it-works/

Rooting resources & a mindful reminder from a dental procedure that had me chewing at half-speed Group check-in: How are you feeling? What practices have helped you feel rooted this...

10/30/2025

The aim for Mindfulness and Wellness is not necessarily to master it, but to keep learning—over and over again—how to respond and rebound more consciously when things get difficult, instead of letting inevitable challenges completely derail us.

Something that’s helped me stay more grounded is simply getting to know myself better, mainly so that I can understand:
A. What sets me off, and
B. What helps me feel more balanced.

This ongoing process involves mindfulness practices like inner-inquiry, self-awareness, and self-compassion—all of which can be incredibly rooting because they invite your attention back to yourself in any circumstance.

In this and other ways, I find that simple mindfulness practices help cultivate physical, mental, and emotional roots on both a personal and collective level—in both personal and professional lives. It’s invaluable to know how to practice awareness and ground yourself amidst individual or collective dis-ease, because it directly relates to how we react and recover.

In what ways has mindfulness and wellness helped ground you both personally and collectively; personally or professionally?

Work with me 1:1 for holistic lifestyle coaching to develop personalized, grounding mindfulness practices for your everyday life that feel attainable, sustainable, and deliciously nourishing for your body and mind.

https://sashanelson.substack.com/p/october-roots-mindfulness-fun-fact

Rooting resources & a mindful reminder from a dental procedure that had me chewing at half-speed

10/27/2025

Movement and physical activity can open our bodies, hearts (cheesy, but true), and headspace. But if we swing too far towards that delicious feeling of space, fluidity, mobility, and flexibility, we lose our sense of grounding and balance.

The same goes for movement that takes us upside down—it can actually offer a playful and grounding perspective shift, so long as we know how to feel rooted both on our head/hands and on our feet.

Restorative practices and mindful movement like yin yoga, Tai Chi, gentle swimming, and breathwork are an incredible—and arguably necessary—compliment to other physical activities and an overstimulated world. They nourish both body and mind, free and settle emotions, and literally anchor us to our breath.

You can also always sprinkle some movement into your travels—before, during, and/or after. When there’s a will, there’s a way, and you’ll feel so much better for it because, guess what—it’ll ground you.

Lastly, movement is a means of moving stagnant energy. It keeps things flowing physically, mentally, and emotionally so that our roots don’t weight us down, but rather free us. Consider how that concept might apply to you…

In short: Mindful movement roots us in our body, mind, and the present moment. Without that sense of embodied awareness, we risk moving from one thing to the next without much attention or intention—which can sometimes make life feel like a relentless hamster wheel (it’s not!).

Work with me 1:1 for holistic lifestyle coaching or personalized yoga to cultivate physical, mental, and emotional roots that feel both attainable and sustainable.

Which movement practices feel grounding and rooting for your body and mind?

https://sashayogawellness.com/2025/10/24/october-roots-rooted-movement/

Rooting resources & tools to move with attention & intention My relationship with movement and physical activity wasn’t always very grounded, especially during the 8+ years I was tossing extra...

10/24/2025

It's not only how we live our day-to-day lives, but also the types of movement we choose that can either add to or subtract from our sense of feeling rooted. This is very personal and it shifts depending on a variety of ever-changing factors like age, physical and mental health, location, injuries, even time of day and time of year.

And when our external world feels at all chaotic—whether its something within our personal lives, communities, or disturbing news headlines—it’s essential that the movement practices help us ground rather than uproot our bodies and minds.

What movement practice would feel balancing for your body and mind right now—more intensity, or more softness?

How could this mindful movement enhance both your personal and professional life?

https://sashanelson.substack.com/p/october-roots-rooted-movement

Rooting resources & tools to move with attention & intention

10/21/2025

Neck pain is no fun! (Video on YouTube 🎥) It’s more and more common from staring at devices and sitting for long periods of time, but can also show up after a rough night’s sleep, travel, carrying heavy bags, or general stress 🫠

As a student, it’s important to know how to relieve pain so we understand if and how to modify when needed—especially if we’re in a group yoga class—and how to take care of ourselves on our own 🙏🏻

It’s also imperative for longevity to pay attention to how we feel so we can learn how to respond accordingly, and to know when third party intervention is useful / needed 👍🏻

As a teacher, it’s important to know how to help private clients or students in a group class modify due to neck pain if and when needed—whether they just have a creaky neck or are healing from an injury 🧘🏼‍♀️

This short yoga session is curated to:
—Relieve areas of tension, especially neck and shoulders.
—Relax the brain with modifications featuring head support.
—Create shoulder blade stability and shoulder release, both of which can help release neck or upper back tightness.

Notes:
—These postures can be useful before or after a long day, or during / after travels, so take a few of these poses with you on the road to use when needed.
—Please modify if and whenever necessary (take care of yourself!), and let me know of any questions.
—Consult ​a professional if you have any​ pressing issues or specific questions and needs.

Enjoy taking care of your body in this way 🤍

10/20/2025

As the buzz of the holiday season approaches, consider these takeaway notes on cultivating mind-body rootedness around tech, media, communication and engagement, online and offline activism, and modern-day life in general:

—Be good to yourselves and others.
—Get to know yourself and others. Consider what you believe in and why; stay curious when others believe and / or behave differently.
—Reflect on the Sufi saying: “Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates: Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it kind?”
—Consider Buddhism’s Right Speech / Sammā Vācā: Speaking truthfully and avoiding “malicious talk,” harsh words, and “idle chatter.”
—Be willing to have difficult and conflicting conversations. Be open to approaching them with as much awareness, curiosity, compassion, and clarity as possible.
—Stand up for what you believe in when you feel grounded and clear, in ways that feel the most rooted and accessible.
—Don’t feel guilty if you’re not standing up or speaking out in the same ways that others are. People have different and unique ways of actualizing activism—online or offline; in their personal daily lives or within their communities.
—Stay informed and set media boundaries; read good news, too. Let the information you learn inform how you want to live and the type of person you want to be.
—Remember that triggers happen. We can choose how we act / react and respond.
—Don’t act out of pressure or guilt. Do act with consciousness, intention, and as much compassion as possible.
—Take time away from phones and devices. Step away from technology when you can and reconnect with yourself, others, animals, nature. Cook, dance, write, garden, make something with your hands, create and experience art, be offline.
—Laugh when you can along the way.

Does any of this resonate? I would love to know your thoughts on this.

https://sashayogawellness.com/2025/10/16/october-roots-inspiration-insights-to-get-rooted-in-your-beliefs-actions/

Tools & reflections around how to mindfully navigate tech, media & modern life This feeling has been brewing for a while now, but especially within the past year, I’ve found...

10/17/2025

Roots provide stability as a tree grows and expands; they absorb and distribute nutrients for the health of the tree; they even communicate through an expansive underground network. Similarly, when we’re rooted in ourselves, we’re more stable and resilient in body and mind; we communicate more clearly, make more nourishing choices, and may even feel more free and expansive.

Roots need favorable soil conditions to flourish as seasons shift, which we can relate to creating the internal and external conditions that help to sustain our personal roots. This comes from habits and practices we add to or eliminate from our daily routines—whether it’s a form of self-care or self-discipline (often interrelated).

Being highly influenced by our environment and surroundings can obviously create a strong sense of un-rootedness. This makes it imperative to cultivate a sense of groundedness in ourselves before we discern if and how we engage online and offline, if we do in fact share the same perspective as others, etc.

Because I’m a sensitive person—and have supported both yoga and coaching clients through similar sensitivities—I’ve written a lot about working with un-rooted experiences like emotional overwhelm, cultivating stability in uncertain or tense times, safely expressing feelings, and regulating a wired-and-tired nervous system.

All that said, I’m still sometimes struggling with—and therefore investigating—how to create rooted conditions for my body and mind in ways that help me stay healthily informed with current events, communicate clearly and effectively, and consume content intentionally (even if the intention is for entertainment and laughter—also valuable).

Because while many of us may occasionally fantasize about living off the grid, being rooted doesn’t necessarily mean shutting yourself off from the world. It’s more so about staying connected without getting completely lost or depleted by the noise—finding your unique balance between engagement and stillness.

Contact me for personalized 1:1 support around cultivating a balanced mind, body, and lifestyle that suits your needs.

https://sashayogawellness.com/2025/10/16/october-roots-inspiration-insights-to-get-rooted-in-your-beliefs-actions/

Tools & reflections around how to mindfully navigate tech, media & modern life This feeling has been brewing for a while now, but especially within the past year, I’ve found...