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"Go for the feel, not the look." - Britt Hunter As a yoga teacher, I cue practitioners into yoga poses, giving steps to each pose. I invite yogis to play the steps - to find what step is appropriate for their bodies in that moment and to work that step before moving on. There are varying degrees of postures in yoga, each level designed to create a feeling of openness in the body. However, in an image-obsessed culture, it is easy to lose sight of how we feel because we are so concerned with how we look that we end up mimicking the look of yoga postures without actually experiencing the feeling of openness each posture is designed to cultivate. Your unique and amazing body is designed to feel good, regardless of how it looks and regardless of how flexible you or are how long you can hold a handstand. So many practitioners say to me that they aren't flexible, as if it's a bad thing that they really have to work to touch their toes. I often respond that not being flexible is a blessing. While you may not be contorting yourself in all sorts of shapes typically associated with yoga, you get to DO less but FEEL more! How awesome is that? And guess what, that amazing feeling you get in your body when you do something that might look simple but that feels liberating, THAT is yoga. It's all about the feeling, not the look. In yoga, you simply go through whatever steps you need to go to in order to feel. If you need to go deeper to feel more, perfect! Do that. If you don't need to go deeper to feel more, perfect! Do that. 🙃Ya dig? 🙂 Similarly, in life, we try to contort and even distort our true self in order to project a certain image or to look a certain way; one that doesn't always feel authentic. When we do this, we mimic life, but we don't feel it. It's empty. The satisfaction is temporary. Coming from someone who has spent a lot of time worrying about what I look like, trust me, life is better when you FEEL IT, regardless of how you look. You not only get to live your life the way you choose, but you also inspire those around you to do the same, to be comfortable enough to be authentic around you - and that's a rare gift. 📷 by @jetlucyphotography

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"When you know that the power that is Life is inside you, you accept your own Divinity, and yet you are humble, because you see the same Divinity in everyone else." -don Miguel Ruiz ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ We practice yoga to remember our own divinity and to see that this same divinity resides in everything. With this awareness, we can easily love, accept and respect ourselves and it is through our self-love, self-acceptance and self-respect that we are able to truly love, accept and respect all life. Without self love, respect and acceptance, we have no capacity for love, respect and acceptance of the other because we are so stuck in our own lack that "giving" to someone else becomes "taking" from yourself that which you don't even have. So, we expect something in return, and the giving is selfishly motivated and not real and it is obvious when one is selfishly giving love, respect or acceptance. It feels empty. You feel empty and the other feels that emptiness. We must fill ourselves with so much love, respect and acceptance that it just naturally overflows and just by being in your presence others feel their own sense of love, respect and acceptance. ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ We get to this point through radical self acceptance of everything about ourselves. In yoga, we practice postures not to simply replicate a shape but to cultivate the ability to accept and even love and respect where you are and what you are capable of in that moment. Not expecting or demanding more, not wishing more, not shaming the body, but being grateful for its abilities, whatever they are. This self acceptance then is carried into daily life and we eventually accept ourselves in every moment. ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ Whoever, whatever, wherever and however you are, know that YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH! ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ 📷 by @jetlucyphotography of Master Yoga Teacher, Britt Hunter, who you can practice the art of radical self-acceptance with this week: Tuesday 6 am - yoga 6 pm - beginner yoga 7:15 pm - yoga @ritual_yoga_pilates Thursday 5:15 pm - yoga ($13) 6:30 pm - 90 minute vinyasa at Ritual Palm Beach Friday 5:30 pm - beginner yoga ($13) @essenceofliving Britt is also available for private, corporate and pre-wedding yoga and/or meditation classes. Contact us for more details.

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There are days when nothing seems to go your way; days that present more obstacles than opportunities; days you want to run away and back down from your dreams and goals; days you feel like you're completely alone. We are connected through our struggle. It's part of being human. But those days present such a unique opportunity to choose, against everything, victory. It is so tempting to give in, to succumb to defeat. And maybe you do that for a while, because you need to rest; you need to stop struggling and take a step back to see a clearer picture. But when it's time, and you'll know when it is, you turn your face to the sun, throw your hands in the air and claim your victory; not over anything outside of yourself, but your victory to overcome the biggest challenge of all: choosing your own life - choosing to not live as a victim to your ingrained thought and behavioural patters that are holding you back. Yes, they were developed and cultivated at a time when you maybe needed them, but it is time to let them go; Time to reclaim your control over your life; time to be the master of your own fate and the captain of your own soul. So, if you're down now, don't worry. Just rest. Soon you will rise up and when you do, you will rise with the strength of all beings who have ever overcome adversity and you will know you are powerful beyond measure.

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"When the love and respect for something outweighs the fear of it, then you will know true courage." -Britt Hunter Our fear stems from the unknown. Get to know whatever it is you are afraid of and you will find there's more to love than to fear. Yoga cultivates our ability to meet our fears and become curious about our response to fear. In a safe and controlled environment, such as a yoga class, you will often do postures that might scare you, especially inversions. When we practice these types of postures, we have the ability to notice when we are afraid and how we respond to that fear. This week, we will explore some of the inversions, but on a deeper level, we will explore how we respond when faced with fear. Join Britt, who is pictured above smashing her fear of water on head height waves at a reef break in Indonesia: Tuesday 6 am - yoga 6 pm - beginner yoga 7:15 pm - yoga at @ritual_yoga_pilates Thursday 5:15 pm - yoga ($13) 6:30 pm - 90 minute vinyasa at Ritual Palm Beach Friday 5:30 pm - beginner yoga ($13) at @essenceofliving Britt is also available for private yoga classes, corporate yoga classes, and yoga for weddings. Contact us for more details.

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Native Yoga's Founder and Lead Yoga Instructor, Britt Hunter's thoughts on her experience with yoga: I owe everything that is "good" in my life to yoga. The first yoga class I ever went to was at uni. It was in a gym and the instructor seemed not much older than me. I don't recall much about the class and it didn't have much of an impact on me at the time, but there are things in your life that just "feel right" and to my 20 year old mind, riddled with insecurities, fears, anxiety, stress, mild depression, low self-worth and constantly stuck in my head, something about yoga just felt right. I sporadically attended classes after that, not really knowing why. I happened to take a course on religious studies and eastern philosophy and started to learn more about yoga. I read various Hindu and Buddhist texts that started to shift my perspective. I started to realize that I actually had control over my mind, where before I didn't even consider that there was a difference between me and my mind. I often would joke that I felt like a walking brain and that my body (i.e. my thought, word and action) was simply at the will of my brain. Many psychologists say that feelings of true happiness come from a sense of control over your life. It was then that I realized that my unhappiness was linked to my lack of control over my life, but this prison that I was in was constructed by my own mind. As I continued to study these ideas, life seemed to be leading me more in the direction of the practice of yoga, even while my mind was leading me elsewhere. It wasn't until law school that I started practicing yoga daily. The radical shift I experienced during this time is almost surreal. To the outside perspective, I likely seemed relatively the same. I've always looked healthy, but for the first time since my teenage years (when I turned to cigarettes and other intoxicants to feel "good") I actually felt healthy. This kind of health wasn't just physical. In fact, the physical health was the least of the change. I felt mentally and emotionally healthy. I no longer felt like I was working against myself and instead, I became my own friend. My thoughts started to shift and I felt like I was in control over my self. Once I had this awakening, I couldn't resist the direction of the flow of my life. I saw how so many decisions I had made were based in fear, and while I am grateful for every step of the way of my journey, I knew it was time to base my life in love. It was then that I decided to quit my job as an attorney and book a one-way flight to India. It was my act of complete freedom. I now live the life I, together with my newly befriended mind, created for myself years ago when the shift started to occur. In my 30s, I am in the best physical shape I've ever been. For the first time since I was a teenager, I'm emotionally and mentally stable. I have complete control over my own life and each day, I consciously choose how I want to be. For the first time since I was a teenager, I can truly say that I like myself and mean it. For the first time ever, I am in a healthy and stable relationship based in love. I am courageous enough to allow myself to live the life I choose. I choose my thoughts, words and actions based in love and not fear. I experience causeless joy in nearly every moment. I'm not promising any of this to you. I am not promising it's an easy thing to overcome the self-limiting thoughts, words and actions created by an un-mastered life. It took me a decade since my first yoga class to get to this point, and I am still practicing every single moment. I'm not even promising that yoga is the answer. I am promising you that, with conscious effort, patience and consistent practice, you can live the life you want. Yoga was the method I chose, but at the end of the day, it was me, not yoga that did the work. Yoga "worked" for me and has worked for so many people because it consists of creating a healthy body, mind and consciousness, and each is necessary to the mastery of your life. The answer is clear: find something that promotes a healthy body, mind and consciousness and practice, practice, practice. The question is: when will you finally decide to take back control over your own life? The time is always now. You can catch Britt teaching group yoga classes this week here: Tuesday 6 am - yoga 6 pm - beginner yoga 7:15 pm - yoga at Ritual Palm Beach Thursday 5:15 pm - yoga ($13) 6:30 pm - 90 minute vinyasa at Ritual Palm Beach Friday 5:30 pm - beginner yoga ($13) at Essence of Living Britt is also available for private yoga classes, corporate yoga classes, and yoga for weddings. Contact us for more details.

Native Yoga

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I am you. You are me. You are my other me. If I do harm to you, I do harm to myself. If I love and respect you, I love and respect myself. . . . In lak'ech. . . namaste . . . When we first start the practice of yoga, we start to think that we are all connected in some way. As we continue to practice, we start to see that we are all connected in some way. Then, we start to believe that we are all connected. In our daily lives, we start to feel that we are all connected. Eventually, we simply are connected. This is Yoga - the profound remembering that we are connected with all things. Xx 📷@jetlucyphotography

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A new journey around the nearest star begins . . . Looking ahead, I see beauty; Looking back, I see beauty; all around me, I see beauty in this constant cosmic circle. May you live this and every moment beautifully. Regardless of time, regardless of space, beauty is there waiting for you. Go, see for yourself! The time is always now. Have a beautiful new year, Children of the Sun. 🌞 Words: A Navajo Indian Prayer of the Second Day of the Night Chant

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Life is a constant reciprocal exchange of giving and receiving. If you're out of balance on either end, life will give you subtle (sometimes not so subtle) reminders that it's time to balance out the exchange. Particularly around this time of year, we lose the balance of giving and receiving as we are so focused on giving that we aren't able to receive or we are so concerned with what we will receive that we forget to give. Whichever way you need to tip the scales, through a balanced yoga practice, you can find your proper alignment in this grand exchange of energy we call life. Join me tomorrow (Sunday) at 9:00 am for an intelligently designed 60 minute yoga class, hosted by lululemon athletica Gold Coast at Pacific Fair Shopping Centre Gold Coast, where we will explore the use of breath, mandala vinyasa and a contemplation on finding balance to bring harmony into this silly season. In the spirit of giving, the class is complimentary (as always). In return, all you have to do is show up. See you tomorrow!

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In everything you do, say and think, ask yourself, "am I awakening?" If not, modify as necessary. Let your awakening be your guiding light. Back to teaching my full schedule plus a few sprinkles on top ✨✨ Catch me before I disappear again... Monday 5:30 - yoga general @essence of living Tuesday 6 am - yoga general 6 pm - beginner yoga 7:15 pm - yoga general @Ritual Palm Beach Wednesday 6:30 am - free movement and meditation at John Laws Park in Burleigh, thanks to lululemon athletica Gold Coast Thursday 5:15 pm - yoga general ($13) 6:30 pm - 90 min adv. vinyasa Ritual Palm Beach Friday 4 pm - yoga general ($13) 5:30 pm - beginner yoga ($13) Essence of Living Sunday 9 am - complimentary in-store yoga lululemon athletica Gold Coast located in Pacific Fair Shopping Centre

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"Open up to the subtle bliss of simply being." -Britt Hunter All around you, there are gateways into bliss. Which door will you enter? Perhaps the breath, perhaps the wind, perhaps the sight of light particles sprinkling the earth, perhaps the smell of salty sea air, perhaps the birds singing... which one will you choose to open you to bliss? We will explore these gateways together, through a mindful movement and meditation class, presented by Britt Hunter and hosted by @lululemonausnz (Pacific Fair) . . . What: Open-air Movement & Meditation . . When: Wednesday, 7th Dec. at 6:30 am (1 hour) . . Where: John Laws Park (Burleigh) . . Who: all are welcome (please bring a mat or towel) . . Investment: your presence . . Contact: Lululemon at Pacific Fair or Native Yoga

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"God dwells within you, as You." ~Elizabeth Gilbert You are a perfect and unique expression of the infinite divine. Let's express our divinity together... Thursday 5:15 pm - 1 hour yoga general ($13) 6:30 pm - 90 minute vinyasa flow (level 2) @ritual_yoga_pilates Friday 6 am - 1 hour yoga general 9 am - 1 hour restorative yoga ($13) 4 pm - 1 hour yoga general ($13) 5:30 pm - 1 hour beginner yoga ($13) @essenceofliving Sunday 4:30 pm - 1 hour beginner yoga ($13)(cover) @ritual_yoga_pilates