PURE Focus

February 2012

Issue No. 27

PURE Focus

Greetings!

"Give me 60 days and I'll change your life"

- Bikram Choudhury

You know it, you feel it, you can't escape it! We are dead in the middle of the PURE 60 CHALLENGE SEASON! Whether you've made the dedication to complete 60 classes in 60 days or not, you are part of the Challenge. Your energy, your belief in this practice, your body heat in the room, all contribute to making this experience what it is for us all - a time to focus one point and breathe. Our studios aren't just places to do yoga, they are places to practice being a better you. It's within the studio walls that many of us find reminders to relax, have patience, compassion, and focus in our lives.

We are always giving updates, banter, feedback and fun on our PURE Bikram Yoga page! If you haven't joined the fun yet, be our fan!

PURE Bikram Yoga is also on Twitter!

Check out our NEW YouTube Channel full of Bikram Yoga videos!

Don't forget, our web page is continuously being updated with Press, Testimonials and PURE 60 Challenge Info! Take a look around!

Recent Events

Keep reading for important schedule changes, specials, happenings and celebrations!

January

Challenge Kick-off! - January 1st-11th

The 2012 PURE 60 Challenge is off to a great start! We have a record 377 Challengers this year between the 4 studios!

PURE Action Research Presentation - January 7th

Cedar Park

Dr. Stacy Hunter discussed her recent research on hatha yoga and her upcoming research goals with PURE Action! A great turn out from the Cedar Park crew!

Upcoming Events

Mid-term Pre-parties/Studio Socials - Feb 10th

Do we like to party? Yes! South and Cedar Park will have "Pre-parties" to the Mid-term Party on February 10th. We will have raffles and, non-alcoholic beverages, and chips and queso (Chuy's)! These parties are open to all students, whether you are participating in the Challenge or not! It's a great chance to meet your home studio yogis and mingle without the sweat!
Another thing: Take $10 off any Mat or Towel purchase during the party!

Cedar Park - 6:30-9:30pm

South - 6:00-9:00

PURE 60 Challenge Mid-term Party - Feb 11th

MORE PARTY TIME! Join the rest of the crew on Saturday for yet another chance to celebrate with the PURE crew! While we have made the mid-term parties into more intimate socials this year, ALL students are welcome to attend ALL parties! Again, we will have a raffles with gifts from our sponsors!

Westlake - Berryhill - 6:30-8:30

Downtown - TNT - 8:00-ON (we will take over the restaurant! It was so much fun last year!) TNT has agreed to serve us special cocktails all night!

$5 Coconut Margaritas made with 1800 Coconut tequila, fresh pineapple juice, and fresh lime juice. They are yummy! Also $5 Featured top shelf margaritas made with Gran Centenario Roseangel, fresh lime juice and agave nectar! DELISH!

Synergy Weekend Workshop - Feb 11th & 12th

Kathy, Gianna and Tyler led donation-based Synergy classes last year, raising $300 towards PURE Action! For those of you who would like more Synergy, fret not! Last chance to sign up for this full weekend Synergy Workshop during the Challenge! See Upcoming Events for more details. Part of the proceeds go to PURE Action!

2012 USA Yoga Asana Championship - March 3rd & 4th

The Championship will be held in NYC at the Hudson Theatre! You'll recognize several familiar faces in the line-up...

Sara Hajiebrahimi - representing Texas Youth

Jeff Chen - representing Texas

Kathy Durham - representing Texas

Gianna Purcell - representing Illinois

Afton Carraway - representing Florida

Kristina Gatdula - representing Nevada

Semi-finals and Finals will stream live on the USA Yoga Website. You can watch from home or at our studios!

PURE 60 Challenge FINAL PARTY! - March 10th

Join us at MIZU for a tremendous Final Party celebrating the end of another successful Challenge season and the great accomplishments of PURE Action! Don't miss this Red Carpet Event! Stay tuned for more details!

PURE Action Challenge

Fundraising & News

We hope the Challenge and the busy season is treating you all well. We appreciate you all being ambassadors of Pure Action and informing our community about the progress past, present, and future.

Saturday we had another nice milestone. A couple of the KIPP program students accepted an invitation to come and practice in the Hot Room. For us to go to them and do yoga in their comfort zone is one thing, but for them to come to our studio and do a true Bikram class is another!

This week we start production on a Pure Action video. This will be launched at the final party and then be used on our website to connect us to the public and potential donors/volunteers. Look for cameos from you favorite students, teachers, and staff!

Pure Action newsletter coming soon!

Make sure you have signed up for the

Pure Action Newsletter!

Interim Challenge Stats

Challengers kicking Asana!

This is our biggest Challenge Season EVER! 377 Challengers signed up this year to complete 60 classes in 60 days! An amazing feat! Here are the team lists, captains, and team totals for each studio. Keep each other strong! You are halfway there! Also, keep your eyes peeled for PURE 60 Challenge Inspirations in your email box and on our facebook and Twitter feeds!

Cedar Park - Smiling, Happy Faces

Captains: Nora Horvath, Edy Baily, & Brent Boecker

Total Challengers: 65

South - 747's Taking Off!

Captains: Jeff Chen, Casey Urban, Amanda Napolitano, & Traci Bemis

Total Challengers: 57

Westlake - Hotties

Captains: Jonathon Haack, Jackie Mistler, Blandine Barbedette, Mary Barbour, & Jen Ervin

Total Challengers: 55

Downtown - Beverly Heels

Captains: Mardy Chen, Tedd Li, & Nora Pirsch

Total Challengers: 50

Downtown - Double Jerks

Captains: Donna Calleja, Afton Carraway, & Teresa Harrison

Total Challengers: 51

Downtown - Japanese Ham Sandwiches

Captains: Kathy Durham, Teresa Bessette, & Gianna Purcell

Total Challengers: 48

Downtown - Lampposts

Captains: Tyler Tanhoff, Sally Niess, & Amanda Sauro

Total Challengers: 51

Synergy Weekend Workshop

with Kathy, Tyler, & Gianna

February 11th & 12th - 2:00-5:00pm

Downtown Studio

$40 for 1 day OR $70 for the full weekend

Synergy is a way to bring together the elements of trust, communication, and playfulness into a unique workshop setting. Learn to work deep into the muscles and structure of the body through massage techniques partner stretching, and therapeutic flying techniques. It's a simple way to connect, communicate, and learn different ways to access the over-worked, sore, tired muscles that we use all of the time. It's fun, easy, and relaxing. In the 3 hour workshop, you'll have time to give and receive massage, stretch, hang, be upside-down, base, fly, and even learn to do some tricks and turns in the air if you want. We will teach you all you need to learn how to play Synergy with us. You'll walk away confident in showing your friends what you learned and you'll want to share it with others. Join us on one or both days! There are always more things to learn!

The room will NOT be heated.

Each Workshop will count as ONE CLASS towards your

PURE 60 Day Challenge.

Bring a towel, mat, and water.

Wear comfortable clothes to stretch in.

Email info@purebikramyoga.com with any questions.

National Yoga Asana Championship

Support your PURE Competitors!

Watch the Championship LIVE online at home or at our studios!

Yogi's you know from PURE...

Sara Hajiebrahimi - representing Texas Youth

Jeff Chen - representing Texas

Kathy Durham - representing Texas

Gianna Purcell - representing Illinois

Afton Carraway - representing Florida

Kristina Gatdula - representing Nevada

Afton's back & here to stay!

Afton Tiger

Hello, Pure Yogis! Its Afton here to give you guys a little Florida sunshine. I want to thank you so much for welcoming me to your Bikram home here in Austin. I'm so happy to be living, breathing, and sweating with all of you in this wonderful city. I feel very fortunate to be able to come in and be involved in a yoga community so well rounded and easily accessible. I hope you guys feel lucky too! You have such a great staff working to bring you the gift of yoga - and boy do they work hard to create an optimal environment for students to grow! It's refreshing to see the idea of the 'more you give, the more you receive' manifested in a business model that brings peace of mind and health to a community. I also am overjoyed to come to a place where so many students are involved in a 60-day challenge. Good for you for working hard to make yourselves better people, because the better person you are to yourself, the better you will be to everyone else around you. Sometimes it's hard to remember that you're doing this for the betterment of yourself when the classes get tough and the heat gets heavy. But that's when you have to smile bigger, give more thanks, and know that all you have to do is show up. Every day counts! You guys have really proven to be true yogis and I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you better as we move through new challenges, changes, and evolve through the New Year. I'll be seeing you around! X - Afton.

Lululemon

Mardy Chen - Ambassador

"Will You Be Our Ambassador?" Is not something you hear everyday - in fact, that question only gets popped a few times a year in Austin, making it even more exciting. This past September, the team from lululemon athletica at the Domain surprised Mardy Chen one morning during her Bikram class by asking this very question with huge signs and even bigger smiles when she exclaimed, "Of course!"

By now, you're probably wondering not only what all this means, but why you, the avid Bikram yogi or yogini should care - right? Well, in the lululemon athletica world, ambassadors are the rockstars of our fitness community - they go above and beyond the job title of "instructor" or "studio owner" and are constantly elevating the community as a whole above their individual business. These people are game changers - their enthusiasm for living life is contagious and they continously inspire those around them. When you think of all of these qualities, Mardy Chen is a natural fit into the lululemon athletica ambassador family - whether it's in or outside of the studio, she pulls out all the stops to ensure everyone around her is loving life just as much as she is.

Her partnership with lululemon athletica at The Domain is just another way for her to reach more people and spread her story of success and inspiration. She has been welcomed into a family of fitness professionals not just here in Austin, but all over the United States and Canada with dreams just like hers - to change the world.

lululemon athletica is a yoga inspired fitness-wear company located in the Domain. Based in Vancouver, Canada, the culture of lululemon athletica lies in community - elevating those who are already inspiring their community through the ambassador program. For more information on the program & the store, please visit http://www.lululemon.com/austin/domainstore or

PURE Pepper Perks!

February PERKS!

In case you missed the memo:

For the first time ever, our dedicated Hotties are being rewarded for their attendance in 2011. They've achieved a very special level of HOTNESS, an echelon never before attained by PURE Bikram Yogis. They are now, PURE PEPPERS!

We've established 3 Pepper statuses:

Jalapeno for completing >150 classes in 2011

Serrano for completing >200 classes in 2011

Habanero for completing >250 classes in 2011!

Each Pepper status is privy to perks for 2012 at PURE Bikram Yoga. All Peppers receive 10% off all retail, including drinks, at our studios. In addition, we'll send out periodic specials via email for freebies and even further discounts on retail and class packages! Jalapenos will get great deals, Serranos better deals, but Habaneros will get the HOTTEST deals available!

The February PERKS are:

Jalapenos: additional 10% off purchase of $75 or more

Serranos: additional 15% off purchase of $75 or more

Habaneros: additional 20% off purchase of $75 or more

Didn't earn Pepper status in 2011? There's another way! Status can also be achieved by completing 50 classes for Jalapeno, 55 for Serrano and 60 classes for Habanero status during the PURE 60 Challenge!

Sincerely,

The Yoga Team
PURE Bikram Yoga

In This Issue

Recent Events

Upcoming Events

PURE Action Update

Interim Challenge Stats

Synergy Weekend Workshop

National Yoga Asana Championship

Afton is Back!

Lululemon Domain Ambassador

PURE Pepper Perks

A Family Practice

Click Gift Cards/Credit

A Family Practice

By: Maryam Rowshan

Yoga was on my to do list for almost four years before I actually made it a regular practice. I was not willing to give up my hardcore workout at the gym and miles of running. My only agenda then was stretching my muscles.

After a couple of times coming to the Westlake studio and not following through over two years, I finally made up my mind and canceled my gym membership. I decided to commit to Bikram Yoga on January 5th 2010 - right after I dropped my daughters off at school. In my first class I heard about the 60 Day Challenge and I decided to just jump right in and do it! I made it my number one priority, and it has been ever since. By the end of the Challenge, I was set on changing my life, for the better, and not just to stretch my physical muscles, but to stretch my whole being.

It was not easy to commit to so much change! There were days that I dragged myself in and had doubts, days that I was cussing in my head and just following the dialogue. I am sure that almost everyone has had these experiences! However resistant, I was determined to change my life from inside out and I knew yoga was the way. There was something about it that kept bringing me back to the class.

Right after I committed myself to the first Challenge I became a full time employee, managed to finish my school on time and also managed to stay deeply involved in my daughters' lives as a single mom.

Now, I am in my third yoga challenge and I have decided not to give Bikram yoga 60 days, but all my life, as long as I breathe.

I think yoga when I go to bed and it is the first thought that it comes to my mind when I open my eyes...not to mention that I've recently I been dreaming about yoga at night!

Through yoga for the first time in the 16 years since I moved to the states I have been able to manage my weight with daily practice, I have been making better food choices and have felt better than ever about myself.
I have been accepting myself more and more. I feel much more secure and patient. No longer live in the past, and more and more, I practice living in the present moment.

Along the way in my journey I encouraged my daughters Sara and Saba to join me as much as their time allowed, considering their demanding school work and tennis practice.

It was not always easy to practice yoga together but I managed to wait all day or take double classes sometimes to have the joy of practicing with them at the same time.

Sara is a Senior in High school now. She has been playing competitive tennis for years and was becoming a regular visitor of chiropractic and sport's medicine doctors. Due to 15 hours of repetitive tennis motions a week she was experiencing back and arm pain frequently. She gradually substituted a couple of tennis practices with Yoga on some weekends. It didn't take much of this before she was pain free! She has chosen Yoga as her main sport now and has given up her other activities for Yoga.

Saba, my 13 years old daughter, has always suffered from asthma and allergies. She has had to carry an inhaler at all times and has had to take allergy medicine often. She is now free of all those external healers!

Along the way, they were inspired by PURE Bikram yoga teachers. Especially our dear Susannah and of course dear Lisa that have been continuously supporting them as their mentor and private teacher in their journey. They helped to take their practice to higher levels. Both girls competed in the Texas Yoga Championship and are continuing their practices now to reach even higher levels.

Our lives revolve around Yoga and it has been such a joy for me to watch my girls blossom and grow through yoga. We feel so blessed and humbled to be part of the PURE Bikram Yoga family. We have experienced nothing but pure love and support from the PURE staff.

I believe that "we have no control over anything in life but our mind" and we are all determined to change our beautiful lives into even better lives by changing our minds and our thoughts!

Namaste.

Testimonials.