finding inspiration in all the right places (aka twitter)

I have a confession.  While I enjoy quotes, lyrics and inspirational messaging very much, I like to come across them by accident. Call me quixotic but I like inspirational material to make an immediate and surprisingly profound impact in the moment. This is why I love Twitter – in between the random musings of pals and the relentless take on the day’s events by various personalities, I follow a few yogis, athletes and musicians online. These special people often talk about their practices or training schedules – and sometimes they share musings or quotations (their own and other people’s) that strike a chord amongst the mad goings-on of the Twittersphere.

Here are the people that consistently inspire me to learn and reflect:

Elena Brower, @ElenaBrower

Without question, Elena is one of the coolest yogis on the scene (feel lucky, New Yorkers who get to practice with her!) She is so real online that it feels like I know her just through her tweets. She shares her experiences and thoughts in an accessible way that always seems to have relevance in the moment.

Alex Mazerolle, @girlvanayoga

Vancouver yogi Alex Mazerolle founded Girlvana Yoga to be a place for young girls and teens to discover yoga in a relatable and authentic way both online and in the studio. She is a must for daily inspiration and also for all the young folks in our lives who are just getting into their practice.

Marianne Williamson, @marwilliamson

Spiritual author and lecturer Marianne Williamson spits hot truth all over my Twitter feed on a daily basis. Her messages are simple, yet eerily effective; many times  I have dreamt out the window thinking and feeling a whole different way after glancing at one of her anecdotes.

Baron Baptiste, @BaptisteYoga

I completed an intensive Vinyasa retreat with Baron last year and still find myself thinking about what he said to us over the course of the weekend. He has the uncanny ability to sum up a profound ideology in a few words in a way that is immediately striking and powerful – and very, very yoga.

Danielle LaPorte, @DanielleLaPorte

This woman defies categorization. She’s a motivational speaker at events across Canada and works as a life coach – and many more things I’m sure I’m not doing justice to here. What I do know is that her Twitter feed is always filled with juicy nuggets that knock me on my butt and get me thinking in a whole new (and usually healthier and more awesome) way.

Who do you follow on Twitter for inspiration (and maybe perspiration)?

What did you get up to last weekend? Lateesha, a key leader from lululemon Soho, practiced with global yogis, declared new goals and got her dance on with a live DJ and drum circle. Read on for her other New York Yoga Journal conference highlights.

making new friends at the photo booth
I spent much of my weekend at our photo booth, where yogis looking for a place to relax would stop by, like the group looking seriously yoga-stoned after their all day intensive with Ana Forrest. Yogis from all over the world visited to have conversations, make new friends and strike a pose. The atmosphere was so fun which is probably the reason I pitched a tent and camped out here all weekend!

getting my dance on
Dancing at a yoga conference? This was no ordinary dance party. Part energetic yoga class, part free form body bumping dance party and a whole lotta fun. Elena Brower, Dana Flynn and Shiva Rea lead the evening and created a space that was both meditative and playful. How often do you get to meet up with hundreds of friends (both old and new) to shake your booty to a live DJ set and drum circle? Highlight of the evening: the entire class on their mat singing along to a soulful version of Empire State of Mind. A New York moment that can never be repeated!

creating a life i love
On Sunday, our eastern U.S training manager, Tricia Prange, shared tools to make powerful choices and build a future that inspires and moves us, at our Create a Life You Love workshop. If you missed it, check out our goalsetting page for some of the juicy info.

practicing with seane corn
My 10-year vision includes having Seane Corn on speed dial and the opportunity to practice with her was by far the highlight of my YJC experience! Each year Seane’s organization Off the Mat, Into The World sponsors an international service project called the Global Seva Challenge that challenges yogis to raise $20,000. I plan to raise the funds and join OTM next year in India to raise awareness for the issue of sex trafficking worldwide.

Sounds like fun, right? If you live on the West Coast, good news! The first-ever Yoga Journal Conference in San Diego is happening July 12-16. We’ll be there with bells bandhas on.

what is the lululemon ambassador program?

The lululemon ambassador program is extended to unique individuals in our store communities who embody the lululemon lifestyle and live our culture. Learn more about the ambassador program here.

Ambassadors yoga-ing at this week's first ever Ambassador Summit!

what's an elite ambassador?

Our elite ambassadors are our international rock stars, athletes of an elite level (think Olympians) that choose to train and/or compete in our fantastic product because it is the best in the world. Further to that, they are members of our lululemon family. Learn more about elite ambassadors here.

so, what's appreciation week about?

We'll be sharing profiles, stories and more to highlight as many of our amazing ambassadors as we can. Stay tuned to our blog, Facebook, and Twitter pages for more to come!

• Learn more about our ambassador program
• Learn about our elite ambassadors
• Apply online to be an ambassador!
• Meet an alumni ambassador

What do you want to learn about our ambassadors? Leave a comment below!

Thank you for giving us a space to practice yoga and take in the air with our neighbours across North America.

Namaste from Salutation Nation 2010.

What do you get when you mix 10 of the world’s best athletes, one of the world’s best yogis, two of the world’s best designers, two of the world’s best lululemon-leaders, and one of the most beautiful places on earth? Well, you get the lululemon elite retreat 2009 -- and obviously a really great time.

Early July 2009 saw myself and our fearless community leader, Eric, take some of our amazing elite ambassadors on the annual-legendary elite retreat to Tofino, BC. I am undeniably biased about the wonder of Tofino (being from Vancouver Island myself) but seriously, people - Google it and go!

To best describe this surreal experience, here’s a day in the life of an elite retreater. And I should know, as I was the diligent itinerary creator.

6:30 - 7:30am The athletes suit up and head in to the water for an early morning surf session

7:30am We grab a quick bite and head over to the yoga studio

8:00 - 9:30am Eoin Finn leads us through a true Eoin-esque practice. There is laughter, challenge, surf quotes, and an overwhelming confidence in us all that yoga truly does enhance elite athletic pursuits.

9:30am We eat again! The athletes should be - Eric and I are just indulging and pretending to be training for the Olympics like the rest of them.

10:00am - 12:00pm The athletes head out for their individual training sessions. Yes, if you are counting, this is the third time they have worked out already today. The bobsledders head to the gym to squat imaginable amounts of weight as the Nordic combined skier goes off for a wee 2.5 hr run. All in pursuit of Olympic gold. Terribly inspiring.

12:30pm You guessed it- we eat again! The food Olympics.

1:00pm Marks the arrival of our two designers du choix - Shannon and MelEesa, and our vice-president of everything progressively inspiring - Sherry.

2:00 - 5:00pm The athletes immediately bond to the new lululemon family members that have arrived and the surf is up so our athletes drag the designers in to the water for a surf session.

5:30pm The design meeting to top all design meeting commences. Shannon and MelEesa create pandemonium with the new fantastic fall samples and our athletes provide us with what can only be described as mind-boggling feedback from the world’s best athletes (because that’s what they are).

7:30pm The conversation continues as we take down some real west coast sushi action.

8:30pm Bedtime. Having all become fast, furious friends, we share conversation and inspiration around a bonfire on the beach - oh, and of course we eat! S'mores!

I speak for us all when I say that to be on a trip like this one is truly inspirational. (Have I used that word already? ) I feel my position here is one of connector of inspirational people and I am honoured to be in this role. These athletes are members of our family and they absolutely love being supported by us with our culture and our movement of elevating the world from mediocrity to greatness. We feel they are true representatives of what it means to strive for greatness in your life and as they strive for Olympic gold next year, we will be there to support them as true family members do.

It was 7:30 in the morning and we'd just arrived at Louise Mckinney Park. The space was empty and quiet - soon to be filled, we hoped, with hundreds of yogis and yoginis breathing and sweating together.

We had no idea what to expect. We had spent a lot of time in our community sharing our vision for this event, but would it come to fruition? No one could be sure. We thought about our lululemon counterparts across the prairies region in Calgary, Banff and Winnipeg, who were likely setting up for their event in that same moment. We vibed them some love and positive energy and then we got down to business!

In a flurry of lululemon madness, we buzzed around like bees in a hive laying down mats, colouring with chalk, hanging balloons, organizing registration and waiting with anticipation. Pete the DJ started spinning the tunes. And then it happened… like waves in the ocean, the people began to roll it. Just a few at first, and then a steady flow of guests known and unknown came to be and to breathe.

Our Earth Water friends arrived with water to share, inspiring us with their mandate, 'water for water'. Each Edmonton store donated to Earth Water, enough that one well will be built in a third world country for those people who do not have access to clean drinking water.

At Louise Mckinney park we drank as much fresh water was we could to flush unwanted toxins from our bodies and keep our brains sharp. Water for water – how cool is that?!

Our perfect moment arrived. Under the smiling sun and bright blue sky, Bob Marley let out his famous cry "one love…" and the class began. There was nothing else to do but breathe, stretch and be together.

Angela Zawada spoke powerfully about yoga, leading a beautiful class. We flowed through the asanas under an open sky, breathing together with one breath. It is not very often that one gets to do yoga surrounded by green trees, bumble bees and the North Saskatchewan River. As we lay in our final rest pose, a feeling of serenity descended over three hundred plus people, a perfect end to an amazing class. Namaste.