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What 100 yo and 70 yo Yogis Are Like
October at Glow: Community, Growth & Celebration
September has been nothing short of amazing here at Glow Yoga & Wellness. This past month reminded us how much stronger we are together in spirit, in practice, and in community.
This month, we're celebrating a huge milestone that filled us with pride and joy. Thirty-three (33!) Glow Members completed over twelve classes last month, earning their Self-Care Rewards. It is a record number for Glow, and a true reflection of the dedication and love you all pour into your practice. Please take part in our October Social Challenge by bringing 3 friends to Glow, and we will gather for a creative and playful Halloween celebration at our Paint & Wine Night, where we'll paint Holiday Cards and Christmas Tree Ornaments with glow-in-the-dark acrylics.
Our teachers' team has also been growing in beautiful ways. This fall, we have welcomed Ashima Sarin, who is guiding us into the healing energy of Medical Qi Gong; Anne Barbaret, who shares thoughtful alignment of Iyengar Yoga; Anna Bolender, who opens doors into somatic healing; and Era Osibe, who fills the studio with the joy of Tango. Each of them adds a new dimension to the Glow experience, helping us expand the ways we care for body, mind, and spirit.
As we grow, so does our team. We are currently looking for Yoga and Pilates teachers, as well as gifted massage therapists, to share their expertise with our community. If you know someone you love in this field, we would love your help in spreading the word.
First time, our Glow team carried the bliss spirit into the community at Mancini Sleepworld, where we added Sound to their offerings, making new friends. We ended the month by welcoming Danielle Hall of SoundEmbrace to San Francisco, where she led a powerful SoundBath that left our hearts and voices vibrating with peace.
This month, our focus turns to Forgiveness, inspired by the yogic practice of kṣamā. In our classes, we will be exploring how to release old burdens, soften, and meet even the hidden parts of ourselves with understanding.
We are deeply grateful for the magic we have already experienced this fall and for the new chapters we are writing together. Thank you for showing up for yourself and for one another.
Let us keep growing, forgiving, and celebrating together this October.
With love and gratitude,
Your Glow Team
Glow Monthly Curriculum
for Physical & Spiritual Growth
Dear Glow Community,
October is the season of release. Just as the trees let go of their leaves, we are called to follow nature's wisdom. This month, we honor Kṣamā Yama, forgiveness and patience - the practice of loosening the grip of resentment, softening old hurts, and opening space for peace.
Through its 10 yamas and 10 niyamas, Tantra yoga philosophy expands the path by embracing the body, senses, and everyday life as gateways to greater awareness and living fully. Yamas and Niyamas are values and ethical practices that help us reach our full potential for personal, spiritual, and professional growth, and to liberate us from the repetitive cycle of suffering. When we live in contradiction to the highest values, when we avoid taking the higher road - we get stuck in a rat.
October also stirs the emotion of grief. With shorter days and colder nights, we may feel the weight of endings and transitions. Yoga teaches us to meet these feelings not with resistance, but with compassion. Forgiveness is a form of release, allowing ourselves to feel grief while not holding onto it, creating space for healing and renewal.
On the mat, we’ll explore hip openers like Pigeon and King Pigeon Pose (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana), moving with patience toward deeper variations, as well as scare Crows for Halloween. These shapes remind us that forgiveness is a process of steady practice, not forced, but revealed with patience and time.
Forgiveness means you’ve found a way forward that acknowledges harm done … without letting either your anger or your pain rule your life.
- Cheryl Strayed
It's a month of Halloween - beyond costumes and celebration, it’s an invitation to meet our shadows: the fears we hide, the parts of ourselves we keep in the dark. Forgiveness helps us soften toward those hidden places. By acknowledging what we fear, forgiving what has been, and releasing what no longer serves, we find the courage to step forward lighter.
I love to think of Ksama Yama as a tool for seeing each other with the eyes of understanding, and remembering that nobody is perfect - we all simply act out of our conditioned selves. The key to forgiveness is knowing that hurt people hurt people, and life is not presented to everyone the same way. Forgiveness is the ethical concept that lets our hearts heal, feel lighter, and repair ruptures. Forgiveness is practiced to soothe our nervous system and to free ourselves from feeling better than others or being victimized. It is not an easy mountain to climb, but one we absolutely have to.
In Yogic and Buddhist philosophies, the value of Forgiveness and Patience are taking center stage and must be practiced moment to moment to eliminate unnecessary suffering.
Please consider these 3 life-changing benefits of cultivating the noble quality of Kṣamā:
1. Create Less Harm.
When we are impatient, we judge, we react harshly, we move fast, we injure our bodies, we drive over the speed limit - all of which are dangerous to ourselves, and even worse, may cause harm to others. Forgiveness and patience are a path of peace and compassion.
2. Build Safely Functioning Relationships.
Forgiveness helps us preserve and nurture all our relationships. When we are patient with the shortcomings of our loved ones, when we stay kind even if our expectations aren’t met, we give the space for people to breathe, develop, and bloom. Patience gives us time to assess what action to take for the greatest good, what is our responsibility in the situation, what is in our control, and what is in others'.
3. Achieve Your Dreams.
When we hold grudges and live wearing the victim's mask, we give the power away to follow our dreams. Often, when we are in the state of blame and impatience, when we don't see the results as fast as we falsely desire, we sell out of the stock market, we quit our fitness, careers, music lessons, language school, education, relationships... You name it. Perseverance, taking charge of our lives by showing up are superhuman power.
Running Glow now for 14 years, I've been so lucky to witness our members getting physically stronger, healing their aches, growing their careers, families, and companies, as they gracefully move more from their 30s to 40s, from 50s to 60s and from 60s to 70s. I'm inspired every day by our members. We shall erase the misbelief that fast and furious can bring us lasting satisfaction or vitality. Just like we can't force others to behave the way we want them to, we can't force our well-being. Slow and steady does it. Fulfilling life requires patience, forgiveness, boots on the ground, and an open mind, not to miss the precious lessons along the way.
Those are just 3 benefits I wanted to bring your attention to, but they are truly limitless.
We get out of this practice what we put into it: let's become more aware by reflecting daily, asking ourselves 2 questions:
1. Who/what am I blaming for my challenges, and what can I personally do to improve my situation?
2. What moment could I have been more patient today?
I like thinking of forgiveness as holding a burning charcoal in my hand - the longer I hold it, the more it burns my body and my spirit. When we're hurting from all of our losses, from our own mistakes, from natural disasters, from being hurt by others, from surrounding injustice - this is the sign that charcoal is present in our hands. A sign that we have to do the work, the work to flip our palm, to release the rock that hurts us still.
Flipping the palm, every day, will, little by little, heal our hearts so we can love again, take risks again, and appreciate the surrounding beauty.
Seasonal Tip: Warm your body and soothe heavy emotions with ginger lemon tea.
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Slice a few thin rounds of ginger root
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Add 2 slices of fresh lemon
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Simmer gently in water for 10 minutes
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Finish with a drizzle of honey if you like
This bright, warming tea supports immunity, circulation, and comfort during the darker days of autumn. 💛 We’ll be offering warm ginger lemon tea at Glow all month: please treat yourself when you come in. Let it be a reminder that forgiveness, like tea, softens and warms us from the inside out.
October is an invitation: forgive, release, and breathe more freely. Whether on your mat or in your life, let this season be your time to shed old layers, meet your shadows with compassion, and walk forward with patience and strength.
I look forward to seeing you this month as we breathe together, release together, and step into the beauty of autumn. 🍂 Please join our classes this month - we'll be considering the embodiment of Ksama from different angles.
Sending so much love. Let's stay curious about self-care that serves our well-being, connection, and growth in every area of our precious life ❤️❤️❤️
Natasha & Glowing Team
The material on my blog cannot be shared or quoted without my reference. Thank you for reading!
Email Glow Gift Card:
$25 | $50 | $100 | $150 | other
2 OCTOBER SELF-CARE CHALLENGES:
1. Wellness Socials: Bring 3 Friends
Bring 3 different friends to any classes in October = receive $30 Glow Gift Card*
2. Self-Care Rewards: Come in to Glow 12 Days
Take 12 days of any classes and/or spa appointments = receive $20 Glow Gift Card*
To Enroll:
Choose Morning Glow Membership, or Golden Glow Membership >
or start with our 1-Week Trial $49* >
It's easy to get rewarded! Enjoy our unique and diverse weekly program: Barre, Pilates, KettleBuns, Vinyasa Yoga, Yin Yoga, Restorative + Reiki Touch, Myofascial TuneUp, Chakra Meditation, and SoundBaths. VISIT US 3 DAYS A WEEK, or 12+ days a month for in-studio classes and/or spa appointments to receive a $20 gift credit towards a massage, classes, or to pay forward for a friend.
Our challenge is your sweet opportunity to gain momentum and build a reliable routine for years to come! We’re here for you: let's make your daily movement your anchor. Our mission is to help you establish a lifelong, sustainable feel-good workout routine so you never want to quit on your health again! ☀️🌿
* Glow $20 Selfcare Rewards accumulate and don't expire. You can use them for any services and products.
* Your monthly rewards will be added automatically within the first 7 days of the next calendar month - no need to request anything.
* Different types of rewards do not combine and are limited to 1 reward per 1 calendar month. Rewards cannot be exchanged.
* To see and use your Glow Account $ Balance, please see our FAQ Glow Rewards
* If you start with 1-Week Trial, and want to join as a member to continue your challenge, we'll happily waive your membership enrollment fees!
* Please note: To receive $20 monthly reward, we ask you to take not 12 classes, but 12 days of classes. 2 Classes/day do not count, but you can take and enjoy.
FALL RECIPE: EASY PUMPKIN CURRY
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Gluten-free
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Packed with protein (30g-40g/serving)
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Full of Fiber (20g/serving from all ingredients)
Cut in half and bake butternut squash in the oven for 45-60 minutes at 400F. While the squash is baking, in the large stove pot, add olive oil and half a red onion chopped, 1 tablespoon of grated ginger, 5oz of shiitake mushrooms (optional), and 1 package of tofu, stir fry that for 10-20 minutes until onions are soft. Add 1 chopped red bell pepper, 1,5 cups of cooked and rinsed garbanzo beans, and 3 tablespoons of Red Curry Paste. If you prefer a sweeter curry, add 2 tablespoons of brown or coconut sugar. Mix that all, then add 2 cans of coconut milk. Let it boil for 2 minutes, then add 1 cup of basil leaves or cilantro.
Once the squash is baked, I let it cool for 15 minutes, then cut it into large chunks and serve my curry over the squash! Definitely squeeze some lime on it, and add more herbs if you like. It tastes like FALL!
Take a Course: Self-Awareness, BreathWork, Meditation
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