Carol Mitchell - Yoga on the Ball: Enhance Your Yoga Practice Using the Exercise Ball

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank my parents, Jean and Glen Gilbert, for teaching by example. As a child I learned so much about the great value and honor in hard work and simplicity in life. I cannot help but think of the Zen proverb before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water... after enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. This proverb reflects the wisdom my parents imparted by example. I learned as a young child that some of the greatest lessons relevant to ones spiritual path can be found in everyday life. I still have very clear images of my father in my minds eyethe quiet contentment in his face as he raked the yard or watched a handful of soil slowly sift through his fingers to return to the earth. My parents didnt talk much about values, they just quietly lived them, day after day.

Thank you to my mother-in-law, Gertrude Mitchell, for being an enthusiastic cheerleader in my corner at all times, and for providing practical support of babysitting and running errands for our young family during the writing of this book.

A salute to my husband, Bruce Mitchell. You are so solid. I thank you for your steadfastness, sense of humor, and practical suggestions not only during the writing of this manuscript but in the daily adventure of our lives together.

Heartfelt thank-yous to three of the great blessings in my life: my son, Dylan, and my two daughters, Savannah and Abilene. I so appreciated your selflessness and maturity in letting me have my quiet time to write. Thanks also for expressing your sincere sentimentalities on a regular basis. I learn so much from you about living yoga every day of our lives together.

Thank you to my maternal grandmother, Ethel Wittick Bonnett, who taught me as a child to count my blessings daily as we breathed calmly into the morning, kneading the bread we would bake for the evenings supper.

I was blessed to have had the expertise of my esteemed editor, Susan Davidson. I can only believe that it was the exquisite work of the Divine that paired our energies. Her extensive knowledge of this field, her conscientiousness, and her commitment to excellence were a tremendous blessing to me. Her ability to hold the big picture together while attending to the many and varied fine details of a project of this magnitude is to be truly applauded. I will be forever grateful for her sincere and heartfelt desire to gain a thorough understanding of the vision I had for this book and for the support, sensitivity, and dedication she gave that enabled me to manifest that vision. I felt at times as if she was not only guiding my hand but holding it too, as she pointed the way to the finish line. I have great respect for Susans outstanding skill, knowledge, and experience, and for who she is as a person as well. She truly inspired my work. With my hand on my heart, I bow to you. Namaste Susan.

I tip my hat to publisher Ehud Sperling. I am grateful for your faith in this project and for the excellence demonstrated by the entire team of players at Healing Arts Press that helped to bring this book into being. I thank Peri Champine, art director at Healing Arts Press, for creating the exquisite cover, and Jeanie Levitan, managing editor, for her warm, nurturing spirit. Thank you to Sandy Brown and Burma Cassidy for the nourishing meals and conversation shared during my stay in Vermont. I extend my appreciation to all in the friendly town of Rochester who made me feel so welcome while I was working with my editor in Vermont.

I am so very grateful to sponsor Dayna Gutru at Ball Dynamics, USA, for her gracious emotional and financial support of my work. Thank you to Joan Cofell and her son, Dana, for the tender loving care and conscientiousness in the handling of the immense photographic work involved in this project. Many thanks to Monique Haan, Todd Wood, and Sarah Hall for allowing me to use the exquisite photos of you in this book. Thanks also to Jill Ellis for the skill and effort put into developing the diagrams in the book. Thank you to Judy Watson for her many episodes of working into the wee hours of the night to place the symbols and codes in the manuscript. Thank you to Sandra Rader for the early morning hair appointments and warm words of encouragement prior to the photo shoots.

Thank you, Marion McHugh, for encouraging me to take on this project and for the warm inspirational messages that found their way from your heart to my heart during the entire writing of this manuscript. I would like to thank Sarah Hall, my assistant, for her professionalism and enthusiasm and her ability to keep things running smoothly in my office when I was knee-deep in writing. Thank you to Trish Scott for her professional opinions and uplifting humor, ever present even in the heaviest of work demands and schedules. I am grateful to Colleen Craig for leading the way with her superb work in Pilates on the Ball.

Thank you to Sister Dominica for encouraging me to find my own spiritual path. Thank you to Sister Sheila and various members of the Islam, Sufi, Bhuddist, Muslim, and other faiths who have shared their visions with me to encourage me to find and celebrate the oneness of all faiths committed to honoring the Divine.

Charlene Bedford, thank you for being an example of excellence and for overseeing every detail, great and small, in our office, and for your heartfelt enthusiasm and support during the writing of Yoga on the Ball. Thank you also to Tamar Malic for sharing your passionate, loving, and energetic spirit with our children during the busy moments of my life.

I am grateful for those who have inspired me with their commitment to excellence in their work: Mary Sanders, for her research in the area of exercise science; Donna Farhi, Judith Lasater, Dr. Richard Usatine, David Coulter, Dr. Dharma Singh Khalsa, Rachel Schaeffer, Silva Mira, and Shyam Mehta for their outstanding contributions toward making the gift of yoga accessible to all populations; and Tom Pervis, Joanne Posner-Mayer, Florence Kendall, and Dr. Steven Stark in the areas of sports medicine. Thank you to Nancy Adams, physiotherapist at the Fowler Kennedy Sports Clinic, and to Dr. Rhan Bohunicky for so kindly making yourselves available to me to answer my many and varied questions. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the physiotherapists, sports medicine physicians, and fellow yoga instructors who have shared their expertise with me over the years and are too modest to be cited here.

Thank you to the students and instructors I train from whom I learn so much. To those of you who have let me tell your stories in this book, heartfelt thanks for sharing yourself this way. Thank you to the organizations, wellness centers, and yoga and health studios around the world who sponsor my workshops and instructor trainings. Finally, thank you to the board and faculty members of the International Society of Yoga Education for your support, encouragement, and sanctioning of my work.

Introduction

Yoga: Tradition and Innovation

Some revolutions begin quietly.

A little more than a century ago a learned man from India made his way to the United States to participate in a pan-religious conference convened in conjunction with the Chicago Worlds Fair. The Parliament of Religions, held in 1893 in Chicago, hosted representatives from a multitude of cultures and faiths, including Jains, Sikhs, Bahais, Mormons, and Rastafarians. Native Americans, Catholics, Protestants, and evangelicals were also present. Representing the Hindu faith was Swami Vivekananda, a young and inspiring monk with a gift for eloquence and a burning passion to serve humankind.

Translated literally, the word