Go Local – Taking Your Practice Into the Concrete Jungle

When you travel do you often have a goal in mind such meeting new yogis? Running in new destinations? Trying local cuisine? As a yogi, do you check out new yoga studios during your travels or ever take your practice outside of your hotel room or hostel to the local park? There are tons of amazing yoga studios in the NYC area to check out in every boro (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and the Bronx), but one of my favorite things to do is to take my practice outdoors, to really enjoy my surroundings and use the distractions of the outdoors to allow me to focus even more on my practice. During the Spring and Summer months is the opportunity to take my yoga practice outside.

4 of my favorite places to do yoga outside in NYC

Times Square – hosted by Athleta happens every year during the summer solstice

Bryant Park – hosted by Athleta on Tuesdays and Thursdays every week from June to September

Gantry Plaza State Park – hosted by The Yoga Room

Riverside Park – hosted by NYC Parks and Recreation every Wednesday Evening

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Taking your practice outside gives you the chance and the challenge to be deliberately present in nature – not the easiest thing to do in  NYC , a city thats constantly moving and growing. Are you up for the challenge?

Until Next Time -xo AGT

Where Will Your Wanderlust Take You?

 Wanderer, Traveller, or Commuter whatever you call yourself travel can sometimes be very stressful and taxing on the body, especially for those that are commuting long distances, taking long roadtrips, and those traveling to different time zones. How do you keep your balance during your travels? How do you unwind from a long day of travel? Massage? Meditation?Yoga? One thing that consistently works for me is yoga. My practice is apart of my weekly routine and just because I’m on the road and traveling doesn’t mean that I don’t bring my practice with me. When I receieved the email from Well+Good NYC that they’d teamed up with Wanderlust Yoga to develop a “Yoga on the Fly” poster for Wanderers, Travellers, and Commuters I made my reservation to meet the artist and talk with staff.

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The sequence is the brainchild of Aarona Pichinson, the creator of Yoga Soundscapes. To bring Pichinson’s vision to life, Well+Good worked with Kate Sutton, an amazingly talented illustrator. “We wanted to create a fun travel yoga sequence that would motivate the Wanderlust community to keep falling in love with their yoga practice, no matter where they found themselves this summer,” says Ashley Campbell, Wanderlust’s marketing director. “And who better to collaborate with than the always inspiring yoga teacher Aarona Pichinson and the trend-setting ladies at Well+Good?” – Well+Good 

To get yours, click here and download your free copy today!

Need a little more guidance? Or prefer verbal instruction? Check out these yoga apps

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Pocket Yoga HD

Three practices, three difficulty levels and three durations combine to offer a choice of 27 individual sessions. All sessions feature illustrated examples of the 145 poses in the program, a log to track your progress and updates with new poses.

Price: $4.49 on iPad.
Website: http://itunes.apple.com and click on the “app” tab.

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Yoga Free for iPad

With a range of guided sessions or the ability to create your own yoga workout, it’s no wonder over one million devotees have downloaded this company’s sleek applications.

Price: Free on iPad.
Website: http://itunes.apple.com and click on the “app” tab.

Take your practice and your wanderlust on the road this summer!

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Wanderlust Yoga Festivals Across the County

Wanderlust Festival is the largest celebration of its kind in the world: a 4-day celebration of yoga, music, and nature. Bringing together thousands of people from myriad backgrounds to experience adventure and transformation, Wanderlust provides the opportunity to bring your yoga practice to new heights, to enjoy the freedom of live music and to follow your spirit of adventure in spectacular outdoor settings, all the while creating community with like-minded seekers. – Wanderlust Festival

Wanderlust Oaho – Missed it? Stay tuned for next year’s event!

Wanderlust Whistler – August 1-4, 2013

Wanderlust Colorado – July 4-7, 2013

Wanderlust Vermont – June 20-23, 2013

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Wanderlust Yoga in the City

Yoga in the City (YITC) takes the essence of Wanderlust Festival into urban settings, giving city-dwellers a little taste of their epic 4-day adventures in their own backyard. Top local instructors lead large, free classes infused with musical performances and often ending in post-savasana dance parties. Vendors, performers, artists and acro-yogis are in the mix, making it a modern-day yogic celebration coming to your town this spring or summer!

San Francisco – Missed it? Catch next year’s event!

Los Angeles – June 30, 2013 Santa Monica Pier

Chicago – June 2, 2013 Butler Field at Grant Park

New York City – June 9, 2013 Pier 63 and Hudson River Park (See you there!)

Where will yout wanderlust take you?

Until next time! -xo AGT

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Go Local: Brunch in the Concrete Jungle

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Here’s 10 of my favorite places for brunch around the city

The Hudson Bond – I checked them out last month after I purchased a deal on Gilt City and they’ve since become one of my favorite brunch spots.  My friends and I sipped mimosas, enjoyed a wonderful Sunday brunch, and watched ‘Grease’. This place has the right idea offering brunch, a movie on 4 large flat screen tv’s, and all you can drink mimosas and bloody mary’s. Visit their website to check out their menu and movie schedule http://thehudsonbond.com

Take Root (Noshery and Yoga Room) – What better way to start your Saturday or Sunday morning than finding yourself on your yoga mat, then enjoying a delicious and refreshing brunch.Located in Brooklyn this place is a must visit  http://take-root.com

Beauty and Essex – a swanky speakeasy located on the Lower Eastside on Essex Street, known for their fabulous champagne brunch. From the outside it looks like a thrift shop, but once you walk beyond the second door you are welcomed into a hot and trendy restaurant/lounge. http://www.beautyandessex.com/

Beauty and Essex

Stanton Social – sister restaurant to Beauty and Essex, the food is amazing and the atmosphere is trendy and chic . Beware of foodgasms, you’ve been warned. http://www.thestantonsocial.com/

Buttermilk Channel – this would be a great place to go for a brunch date, or to treat Mom for Mother’s Day- and by the way, their buttermilk pancakes are fantastic! :) http://www.buttermilkchannelnyc.com

The Sunburnt Calf – one of my favorite spots when I’m on the Upper Westside, they have an awesome staff that provides amazing service, and their brunch includes unlimited mimosas and bloody marys. The first time I went was when a friend was in town. We sat at the bar and the bartender gave us a shot to jump start the meal. The food was yummy, we made new friends, and the time just flew by. We  started the morning with a workout and Tai Chi, got there around 1pm,  and left at 6pm….Good times :) http://thesunburntcalf.com

Cornelia Street Cafe – one the first places I went for brunch when I got to NYC and still a favorite. http://corneliastreetcafe.com

Westville Chelsea – always packed, especially for weekend brunch, but don’t let the line deter you. The food is definitely worth the wait. They have 3 locations in the city, but my favorite is the one in Chelsea on 18th street. http://www.westvillenyc.com

Bone Lick Park– I love when I can go to a restaurant and have cheddar cheese grits with my breakfast/brunch (I guess it’s the Southern Girl in me), and this place doesn’t disappoint. And they offer all you can drink mimosa, frozen margaritas, and bloody marys so you can turn your brunch into drunch if you so choose :)  http://bonelickparkbbq.com

Beso – enjoy harbor views as you ride the ferry from Manhattan to Staten Island. Just a 5min walk from the Staten Island Ferry Terminal enjoy yummy spanish tapas for brunch and tasty sangria before you head back to Manhattan http://www.besonyc.com

Until next time – xo AGT

Source: 1