Essential Meditation Posture

Yao-shan was sitting quietly in cross-legged meditation when a monk asked him,
"In this immovable position, what are you thinking?"

"Thinking of that which is beyond thinking," said Yao.

"How do you go on thinking that which is beyond thinking?" pressed the monk.


READ THE ENTIRE TEACHING PLUS:
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The most essential point of the meditation posture is to keep the back straight, like “an arrow” or “a pile of golden coins.” The “inner energy,” or prana , will then flow easily through the subtle...

READ THIS ENTIRE TEACHING by Sogyal Rinpoche

IN TODAY's Subscription Format of DIRECT LINES!

We've been keeping genuine spiritual fitness warriors tracked on accurate, world class practice since 1982... Come, Join Your Tribe; we are waiting for you to Re-Member us!



photo:
your ol' coach training for sport and spiritual performance by practicing abiding in a state of non-thinking. by Ananda.

Coach's Meditation CD's now available in the WF Pro Shop

"My Training Is Everywhere," WF Online Shishya Sauve Flies The WF Chi in Morocco!

most beautiful and noble WF Student Daniel Sauve of Canada flies the WF Jersey
while on location in Morocco. this is one amazing WF Father Warrior, lemme tell ya.
below, his heart touching letter to me...
THIS is why i have devoted my Life to this Path...letters like this from a guy like this...wow.

this DL is in honor of Sacred Being: WF Online Student Daniel S who just cranks...

let all Beings who read this be dutifully, divinely inspired,

Om Men,
coach ilg
founder/Wholistic Fitness Personal Training

***

READ THE HEART TOUCHING and INSPIRING LETTER FROM STUDENT SAUVE TO COACH ON TODAY'S DIRECT LINES;
a VERY NOBLE FITNESS WARRIOR SHOWS US THE APPROPRIATE ACTION OF THE WF LIFESTYLE; EVEN IN MOROCCO!

MoAB BOUND; Father Warrior Morse Takes Off For The Sacred Southwest

Steve,
Had chance to catch up on DL recently and thought I would drop you a quick line of thanks and gratitude for providing such a positive contribution to our planet! Congratulations to you and Joy on the great news of pregnancy, my instincts tell me this will be one very lucky child!

In April I will be heading to Moab April 14th - 18th with my two sons for some mountain biking and hang time with the dad. Not sure if you are familiar with the area, if so, would you be open to offering some local knowledge? Not necessarily mountain biking, perhaps some off the bike activities in the area a guide book might not offer? Anything you might have to offer would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks Brother!

Sammy



FROM COACH's RESPONSE IN TODAY's DL:
"...before Moab became known as the mountain biking mecca that it is today, i was climbing traditional and mind numbingly scary rock climbing routes on those amazing desert spires that you will see as you cross through Monument Valley. we would recover in Moab, then just a town with a Laundromat and a few curio shops. NOT NO MO!!! with such great rides as Poison Spider Mesa (do NOT attempt alone!), Behind The Rocks (can you say, GONZO!!?!), Hells Revenge (can you say, FRIGGIN' A DOUBLE GONZO!!!!!!!!!), and of course, the world's most popular MTB route; The Slickrock Trail (Note; the PRACTICE LOOP does NOT mean; Beginner Loop!), Moab has stolen the show from the climbers and is pumped full of bike rack toting MTB's from all parts of the country on any given day.

be sure to..."

LET COACH, an outdoor athlete veteran of Moab, steer you to secret places OFF the MAPS!
plus:
photos of
1) Delicate Arch, Arches National Monument.
2) in my element, near my Honda Element; base camp; Arches. by Ananda.
3) one of several fantastic running/hiking trails in Devils Garden, Arches.
4) Ananda approaches yet another heart thumping slickrock headwall on the Practice Loop; Slickrock Trail.

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

"Sorely Kneeded" Counsel in WF SanghaLounge...

i cannot believe what a fantastic Body/Mind/Spirit healing vehicle my WF SanghaLounge has turned out to become! Several hundred exchanges from doctors, healing artists, champion athletes, and WF Warriors the world over just like you ready to Spring into Service to help you, inspire you, and just chill with you and enjoy the amazing Daily Miracles of WF. It's growing into the most amazing beautiful collective of Spiritual Fitness Archives the world has ever known! Each day, new energy is contributed into the Lounge...please, please, PLEASE take advantage and come into the WF SanghaLounge and ask for help or contribute a Haiku Poem or just chat with our World Wide Tribe! it truly is a fantastic place to hang on the internet.

here is an exchange about knees from the SanghaLounge and remember, this is just one of HUNDREDS of Topics!

and of course, i keep the SanghaLounge absolutely complimentary to ALL Direct Lines subscribers! come, join our Tribal Bonfire, stirred into sky high flames each night; there ain't no kinder, fitter, more balanced people on the planet than right here in the Crazy Wisdom World of WF!

enjoy:

SORELY KNEEDED COUNSEL

- certainly one of the world's most widely tested and capable knees; mine! not just survivors but thrivers from adolescent ultra distance running impact that got me onto national podiums, into the lateral testings of decades of world-level skiing, to the ligamentous tweaks inherent to rock climbing and the twisted wisdom of yoga...my knees have grown only stronger and more supple throughout my life; thanks to my allegiance to the Wholistic Fitness Path. doing only yoga would have made my knees too lax. doing WF keeps them as strong as AirCraft Cable yet supple enough to run or ski up and down high mountains faster than just about anyone else on the planet. such is the wisdom of the multidisciplined path of WF! oh, and check out the new "Sonic" trail running shoe that i am testing for La Sportiva! look for my Product Review on this shoe in an upcoming DL.





- WF Teacher Ananda's knees shortly after i met her and before her WF Journey. when i first met Ananda, she could not do a simple hike without her surgically cut up knees swelling into cantaloupe sized circles of pain and immobility.



- Within 3 years of my WF training of her including allegiance to my 3-Phase Approach to using the SUNRIDER HERBS and BioBuilde amino acids and structured Pranayams designed to increase the Pranic Constitution while decreasing her Kaphic tendencies, Ananda's now enjoys winning snowshoe races, running races, cycling, hiking, trail running, rock climbing, and skiing like never before. oh, and her yoga practice has never been as strong. Hey, the WF Path is Proven Stuff for 25 years,
all you gotta do? Follow the Path! It's amazingly powerful and uniquely personal!

LIFTED FROM THE WF SANGHALOUNGE:

Hey Chris!
i wanted to ask you about your knees! How are they?
i just fell into this thread for the first time tonight...

i am an osteopath/healer/an engineer perhaps of the energetic and physical bodies. i have some experience too having blown out my left knee in americam football at the age of fifteen and succumbing to the surgery of the day at 18, which was to pop open the knee and cut and yank out the offending cartilage, and not repairing the medial collateral or the anterior cruciate ligaments that had been completely torn.

to echo what Ananda and EC said already, there is something...

READ Dr. Weiss's FULL AND WONDERFUL COUNSEL ON TODAY's DL SUBSCRIPTION and GAIN 24/7 ACCESS TO THE WF SANGHALOUNGE...FOR FREE!

WHEN ARE YOU GONNA REALIZE THAT THE $10/month SPENT ON A DL SUBSCRIPTION IS THE ABSOLUTE BEST THING YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR BODY, MIND, SPIRIT?!?!?

WE ARE YOUR TRIBE!!!! COME ON IN! SUBSCRIBE TODAY AND GET OUT OF THE COLD, IDOTIC WORLD AND REJOIN WITH YOUR FIRED UP ON LIFE FELLOW WARRIORS OF WHOLISTIC FITNESS!

Of Waxwings and Awakened Athletes

intoxicated by the emergence of spring...i get poetic on DL today and hook up my Love for the Feathered Beings with my racing teammate rob...

ON TODAY's DL;

WHOLISTIC FITNESS; Awakened Athletics For The Spiritually Inclined

National Champ Laurie to coach: "The love you spread is endless..."

Laurie Lambert, Master National Snowshoe Champion in 2003 and 2004, realizes the value of Wholistic Fitness® in this
unsolicited gift of love:

"Hello Steve and Joy! ("Ananda!" Tell me the meaning of that name. It is as beautiful as Joy is!)~
I have had your email saved on my computer because I knew I wanted to be able to get in touch with you both again.....Well, today I received the notice of your LA workshop so I took that as my sign to chime in and tell you both how inspiring you continue to be. I read "The Winter Athlete" cover to cover. What a fantastic read! It is a permanent and cherished treasure at the cabin. As I raced up in Minnesota earlier this month, I kept thinking of two key phrases: "The arms pump the legs", and "relaxed, soft breathing". I squeaked onto the National Team (the top 5 make it and I was fifth place) and am going to Austria this week to race at the World Championships. I have also watched your wonderful FLIGHT WITHOUT WINGS SNOWSHOE DVD and got such a charge out of it. From that, the boys and I gleaned the skiing method on snowshoes and we have had an absolute blast with it! (Not to mention that I think of your incredible photos and energy everytime I stretch. Talk about divine motivation!!!!)
I am truly blessed to have crossed paths with you and I pray for your highest good. The love you spread is endless and I am nourished by your Light.
Peace, Love, Joy, Namaste!
Laurie"

Coach Responds;

Most Noble Snowshoe Goddess Laurie,
well, after you kicked my ass at the Rocky Mountain Regionals this winter,
i reckon you OUGHTA send me some LOVE!!!!!!

Laurie, you are a tremendously precious Gift to this world. you are an example of brilliance in
both Motherhood and Sport and an example of yogic philosophy embodied. it is my honor
to have raced with you and share the Sacred Sweat of our beautiful winter sports!

Go(o)d luck and Godspeed in Austria...and don't forget; THE ARMS DRIVE THE LEGS!!!!!!

love and cold sweat,
coach ilg

Student Input from a HEAVEN OF A WINTER!

i have not been the only one using my WF Training to enjoy a heaven of a winter! each week that passed produced many WF Warriors that saw fantastic, positive performance, fitness, relationship, and lifestyle shifts. this Path has always attracted the most beautiful, sincere, and hard-working two-leggeds on the planet. thank you, all of you for choosing to Be Here now! what follows is just a smidgen of your input and remember, the WF SanghaLounge is always up and recording so many great training exchanges and information and inspiration, so visit and contribute often!


may this week of Practice deliver more and more fun sweaty grist for your mill of Awakening!

om so ti,
coach ilg

above photos; Photographers from OUTSIDE MAGAZINE descend upon Two Tree Manor to shoot me for an upcoming feature thanks to Online Student Sasso for stepping up!

***

Before we get to the Student Input, now, how come US Cities can't do this? This is like precisely what i have been TALKING ABOUT ALL THESE YEARS! i bow to Paris!
Cardio Commute Heaven

***


The Ilgmeister,

Congrats on your podiums this winter; You rock the glory of the high peaks.

Namaste,

Mark Blanchard
MarksPowerYoga.com

{note; i will be returning to LA to rack up some warm weather miles on my road bike and teach a High Peformance Yoga workshop at Mark's on April ??}

***

FORMER STUDENT WANTS TO RETURN TO ONLINE STUDIES; PLEADS "NO CONFLICT" TO COACH

Namaste, Coach.
In response to your question as to whether or not there is a conflict between my Pranakriya path and the warrior path of Wholistic Fitness:
I don't think there is a conflict. Pranakriya Yoga uses the same techniques as Kripalu Yoga to raise energy, but with a greater emphasis on Pranayama. It teaches the student to build a charge of energy and to carry the charge with them as a greater level of 'aliveness' - living from a more 'alive' place.
I have also had the honor of studying with Taizan Maezumi Roshi and have a strong daily zazen practice.
I've competed in triathlons, duathlons, martial arts (Muay Thai, Kendo, etc.).

You are definitely one of my Root teachers and I have had many teachers over the years. All that I have learned has made me who I am today and yet, I am constantly evolving.

P.S. The last time I was at Kripalu, they were selling TOTAL BODY TRANSFORMATION.

peace, love, light
eric b.

***

Congrats on the Ski Race that's awesome! Shit Coach if you can win up in T-ride on ski's,Cycling in flag will be no-prob.

Talk to ya soon.
b.

{"b" has been profiled in DLs previously. you may remember him as "Sensei", my racing teammate and mountain biking mentor here in Flag.}
***

Dear Teacher Ananda,
Thanks for your feedback and insights.A whole new world is being revealed to me!

Peace and love,
New Student Deirdre, TX

***

hi joy-

i miss HP yoga! after moving to Colorado, i have been to several yoga classes and haven't found any that i enjoyed or benefited from half as much as your class. thanks again for teaching me. i am so glad to be done with graduate school at NAU, but finding a job is proving to be more of a challenge than i wanted. i miss my weekly time in your class, where i could get out of my head and into my body. and congratulations on expecting! that is so exciting!

take care and tell coach i said hello
- Maria, Breckenridge,CO

***

Ya kno, I am cautious when TELLING people they WILL be GREAT, but… I KNEW YOU WOULD BE, ARE, WILL be again…..
I would luv more details on your Telluride race, well, what else is there, took off from the gun as fast as he could, then increased his lead all the way to the finish..Pre-like…Luv it!
You rock,
Your Teammie always,
lg

{'lg' is Lisa Goldsmith, multi-champion pro mountain runner and my teammate at Mt. Taylor's Championship victory this winter.}


***
Coach,
We are sending you a complimentary case of Cannon's Green Chile next week. Is your physical prowess due to Cannon’s Chile????? Take Care.

Jane

{as many of you know, i rarely miss a day without my Cannon's New Mexico Green Chile! "Jet Fuel for the Soul," is what i like to call it! visit the WF Power Links on the Visitor Cave for their contact, or call Jane directly at;
877-630-7026...tell her, "Coach Ilg sent me!"...or and you better just get the MILD version for starters!}


***

DUDE!
Friggin' congrats on “finishing with a kick” for your Nordic.07 season! God dammit man! You make me want to feel the pain again baby! In-joy…talk to ya soon…

I have tightening my schedule a bit and will fly into LA a day early to hit your HP YOGA Worksho and class in April baby! Yea! Ragin’ (feeble) rj will be in submission for BOTH sessions!
Crank it,
rj

{'rj' needs no intro to DL readers! he is a favorite for his "Ragin RJ" guest features on DL...right now the World Champion in ultra racing and my former teammate is berserkin' on the obesity of America and is leading the charge against it. expect more of RJ soon in DL...the TRIBAL DRUM OF GENUINE YOGIC WARRIORS!}

***

I stumbled on a copy of Steve´s book Total Body Transformation on a Thai massage workshop at Kripalu Center in Massachusets, in fall 2005. I truly felt blessed at that day. Needless to say I bought that only copy in the store
IlgBooks: I have Total Body Transformation, The HP Prop yoga workout and the Basic strength DVD session dvd

I am in awe and inspired of your ability to use the chi in sport performance. I want to go in that direction!!

Please accept me as an Online Student!

- Brynjulfur Jonatansson
Reykjavik, Iceland

***

Dear coach,

Please, I have to thank you. Thank you for what you do and how you do it. Thank you for creating this wonderful path. Thank you for creating these powerful tools that support and challenge us on our journey and give our inner teacher so much opportunities to speak up.

Bowing deeply,

Torsten of Germany
(Which indeed, like 'ilg' is an very old germanic/nordic/viking name :-))


***

Steve,

Going to our yoga practice each week makes me so happy! I can never stop giggling afterwards. Just wanted you to know!

take care!
- Valerie, Flagstaff

***

Congratulations! on your win and your recent fantastic news of a little one on the way!

I look forward to doing yoga in the jazzercise cave every week! Thanks for leading a fantastic practice. I am happy to be able to share in it.
namaste,
- mara, Flagstaff

***

YOU KNOW YOU'VE HAD A GREAT WORKOUT WHEN YOU CAN'T FIND YOUR WAY HOME!

Dear Teacher Ananda,

a dazed and confused student coop reporting in having completed both sets of Minutes are
Forever intervals just moments ago. my route wasn't long enough to accommodate these so i used every cul-de-sac and backtracked a couple of times to avoid getting too close to home too soon :-). in the end, i got misplaced in my own neighborhood! i still can't figure out how i ended up where i did without running by my own house... so maybe i did.
feeling pleased with this effort as you may be able to tell.
and signing off i'm thinking -- how lucky am i to have you to share experience with?? thanks!

love
student wendy, Indiana

***

YET ANOTHER GREAT WEEK OF DL's COMING UP as i begin (SLOWLY) my transition from Winter Performance Season to Summer Performance Season! God i LOVE THE WORLD OF WF!

SUBSCRIBE TODAY and DO NOT MISS THE CHI FLOW THAT HAS BEEN CASCADING FROM THE TINY TEMPLE BENEATH THE SACRED PEAK SINCE 1982!

- peace out Boy and Girl Scouts!

ec

WF Makes Appearance on YouTube

WF CRANKS ON YOUTUBE


Give up some comment love so we can boost its popularity!

- WF Temple Management

Student Karl Sings WF Practice Praise From The Podium!

Long Time WF Student Karl, shown overwhelmed by the size of his trophy second from right, knows full well the value of a devoted WF Practice which includes the SUNRIDER Herbs and BioBuilde that prevented some ski specific injuries from knocking him off the podium! Chalk up yet another podium among the hundreds that WF Athletes have been enjoying attainment of since 1982! This DL is for KARL! GREAT JOB!

***

READ KARL's FANTASTIC WF TESTIMONIAL ON DL SUBSCRIPTION TODAY! VERY INSPIRING!!!

3 Questions to Coach; Enlightenment, Tumeric, and...Oprah?

From the massive Dharma flow that cascades across the giant DreamCatcher of WF in my day to day running of the world's original and still so humble, Path of Transpersonal Fitness...

May these exchanges of spiritual fitness purify, empower, and keep you Here Now...

om so ti,

from your lifestyle coach who was here long, long before there were certifications for such things as "Wellness Coaching" and "Lifestyle Coaching"


***

QUESTION NUMBER ONE: ENLIGHTENMENT OR BUST?

STUDENT:
I have been involved in your work now for several months. It is super hard. Not just your workouts, but more importantly, the constant in-your-face confrontations when it comes to your Lifestyle Principles of Breath and Posture, Mindfulness, and the big one for me; Appropriate Action; acting out of conscious, cultivated space before just doing something. i mean, i can't even walk past a piece of litter or enjoy lingering my shower any more without hearing your voice; "Your Highest Workout Is Everywhere." AAARGH! i think i need help in realizing the spiritual progression of WF because everything is so bloody confrontational right now for me.



COACH:
Ain't it great to be AWAKE in Kali Yuga (the current epoch of spiritual decline)?

and hey, we are ALL feeble students until Enlightenment!

let me see if i can help you; first and foremost WF is a genuine Path of Yoga. Sure, i stylized it for the Western culture by putting the Fitness Stuff up front. However, as ANY student of WF knows by Direct Experience, the REAL MEAT of WF is in the fires of self-confrontation which are continuously, progressively brought forefront to the Student's awareness through the slow, steady science of self transformation through the WF Practices.

Enlightenment has never ever been conveyed through a religious context in Yoga. at least in traditional Yoga. any religion - you name it - attempts to put "God" into some sort of a box. that is why religions are called, "spiritual organizations."

however, it is pretty much kindergarten common sense to realize...

COACH's FULL ANSWER ON TODAY'S DL SUBSCRIPTION including his Teaching on TapasDharanaSvadhyaya Kriya Yoga



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QUESTION NUMBER TWO: TUMERIC TO COMBAT BRONCHITIS?

STUDENT:
Coach, amazing display of your "yoga" up at Telluride; congratulations on yet another inspiring victory against the 'specifically-trained' athletes! i understand that after competing at that altitude and then extreme skiing for two days afterward you contacted edema. how are you now and as a long-time sufferer of chronic respiratory challenges, i would love to know what you used to help you.

COACH:
i was stupid after winning that race. i was so HIGH (literally and figuratively) that my CHI up at Altitude ran over my Intuitive Wisdom like a boatload of bricks. i stayed up high for two days, skiing my heart (and lungs) out, did not drink enough and pretty much was an idiot. As a penalty for my lack of Wise Discrimination, Shiva rightly and enthusiastically reMinded me of my history with Altitude-induced edema which then morphed into bronchitis and an inflamed respiratory track.

i did not miss one workout; although i am extending my Recovery Phase before finally beginning to pedal my bike for cycling season.

my two-decade devotion to the SUNRIDER HERBS and along with BioBuilde, has made the following supplementation drastically effective:

READ COACH's Presciption for Respiratory Challenges on TODAYS DL SUBSCRIPTION




***

QUESTION NUMBER THREE: OPRAH DRAWN TO COACH'S H(om)ELAND!

STUDENT:
okay, there i was watching OPRAH's special on her "road trip" across the country and low and behold right off the bat she visited five places where you lived! So Cal was her start, then to Flagstaff/Sedona, then to the Navajo Nation, then to Durango, Colorado, then to Pagosa Springs, Colorado!

she was STOKED ON THE PRAN of YOUR SOUTHWEST!
she said she LOVED, LOVED, LOVED DURANGO and Pagosa Springs and was amazed at "how fit" everybody from those places are!

so, what do you think Coach? is Oprah coming to you?!



COACH:
i watched the episode. i saw with dismay the utter idiocy of how the World's Most Powerful Woman did not know how to walk, let alone drive elegantly or safely, pump gas, find directions, and the other multiple dismal failures that she bravely put up on the screen for the world to see. i feel only Compassion; yes the Pranic Ocean of the Southwest cracked open her ChildHeart and stirred her chakral energetics. evident.

professionally, i see Oprah as reflection of her "teachers." her inability to Make The Connection between her talk and her walk lies more in her teacher's responsibility than in hers...


READ THE REST OF COACH's SURPRSING ANSWER IN TODAY's DL!

Climb Now, Work Later

enjoying afternoon chi at Priest Draw bouldering area just outside Flag. more photos on DL Subscription

Forces of Nature

WF Teacher Joy's latest edition of her Joyful Breath blog is absolutely brilliant dharma for your spiritual quiver today...

don't miss it!

here is the link:

The Joyful Breath

Beautiful work, my Beloved!

EXTREME SKIING in TELLURIDE!

come on over to DL Subscription!
i just logged my entry where i take YOU extreme skiing with me in Telluride
after i just won the World's Highest Nordic Ski Race earlier in the day!

learn my yogic breathing techniques i use during extreme skiing, check out my pics,
and even learn why it is vital for yogis to take their Practice into Extreme Terrain and COLD!


c'mon Heart Brothers and Sisters!

let's RIDE!

New WF Logo!

I would like to extend my personal thanks to WF Devotee Brad Gantt of Sherman Oaks, CA
who once again,
unasked,
created from his love of WF
this logo:




this wonderful, powerful image will soon grace the Landing Page of WholisticFitness.com

Ask not what your Wholistic Fitness Path can do for you,
ask,
what YOU can do for the Path!

i bow to Devotee BG on this Night of Nights...

Thunder Stealer inspires Student BG to a new Desktop!

Noble Thunder-Stealer Ilg,
Must have been something special in the air up in Telluride. Wonderful DL today. I was inspired to enlighten my desktop immediately.

Head Bowed

hsbg

Part II; King Of The Mountain (Intermission Due To Spring CHI!)

special thanks to Shishya Leslie for providing the killer quotes for this entry, Namaste LH!

***






Teaching #3; Do the DO!

"How can you come to know yourself?
Never by thinking; always by doing.
Try to do your duty, and you'll know right away what you amount to.
And what is your duty?
Whatever the day calls for."
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

i spend my Recovery Weeks doing things that keep my Heart Rate RELATIVELY low...
although my adrenalin spikes while doing some 'high ball' bouldering might beg to differ.
just days after winning the Worlds Highest Nordic Ski Race, my WF Conditioning allows me to
enjoy non-endurance sports such as climbing and bouldering at a terrifically fun and meaningful level.
the WF Master Student can change his or her body within a matter of days to whatever he or she wants.


the philosophy of WF is excruciatingly simple:
one must develop and be able to control the body (in all physiologic realms)
before ever even HOPING to control the mind or, certainly,
the spirit!

TODAY ON DL SUBCRIPTION:

6 WF Master Student Lifestyle Teachings accompanied by
great photos of everyday activities backed with DharmaTeachings
and quotes from Goethe, Thoreau, Dr. White

on TODAY's DL SUBSCRIPTION FORMAT; DO NOT MISS IT!

6 GREAT TEACHINGS THAT ARE PRACTICAL YET POWERFUL FOR SPIRITUAL PROGRESS!

rare opportunity!



COMING TOMORROW:

DL SUBSCRIBERS GO EXTREME TELE SKIING WITH COACH IN TELLURIDE!!!!!

COME ON, JOIN THE WACKED BUT TAPPED TRIBE OF THE NATION's ORIGINAL ONLINE TRAINING SYSTEM FOR TRANSPERSONAL FITNESS!

PART I: THE KING OF THE MOUNTAINS, BABY! (at least i get braggin' rights for one year!) My Sacred Sweat Finish To My Sacred Winter

See that Cheshire Grin on my face again?
wanna know why?




CUZ, I JUST BEAT THE LOCALS IN TELLURIDE ON THEIR OWN MOUNTAIN!

I JUST WON THE WORLD'S HIGHEST NORDIC SKI RACE!

i got what matters most among mountain athletes; BRAGGIN' RIGHTS in the pubs! FREE DRINKS all year baby!

THANK YOU Brahman for WF! 45 years young and still kickin' it!

LOVE IT! only one year after a decade of sucking smog in LA to regain TOP FORM in these brutal high altitude endurance sports!

i am sorry, you will just HAVE to put up with me for a second cuz i am still just pinchin' myself:

let's revisit what WF produced this winter for your ol' coach who now can train you ever better than ever;

1st Place: Flagstaff Winter Triathlon
2nd Place: Arizona State Nordic Championships
4th Place: Langlauf 30 kilometer Freestyle
Overall Pairs Championship; Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathlon
Fastest Ski Descent; Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathlon
Overall Classic Champion; TopatenK - The World's Highest Nordic Ski Race
38 ski days out of 90.

Wholistic Fitness.
The Mt. Everest of Personal Training.

***

READ COACH's RACE DAY ENTRY WITH PHOTOS ON TODAY'S DL!

***

COMING UP NEXT IN DL SUBSCRIPTION:
TAKE A GUIDED EXTREME SKI DAY WITH ME!

just
in case you have never tele-skied (or boarded, or alpine skied) Extreme Terrain, c'mon, let's drop in together!
coming up next from the Coach Who Still Does!

Temple Gong Rings!!!!!!!!!!!!Coach Stuns Locals; WINS WORLD'S HIGHEST NORDIC SKI RACE!!!!!

Telluride, Colorado -
Saturday Night, March 10

Although unavailable for direct comment due to partying in downtown T-ride,
it is confirmed:
Coach Ilg has finished his remarkable winter performance season with yet another overall victory, sweeping the honors out from under stunned local T-rider's
who are now, at this moment, buying him drinks.

"You gotta love the southwest," was all we could get from an obviously high-as-a-kite ilg.

coach won the 10 kilometer Classic division by nearly 5 minutes in a wire-to-wire effort that is surely having the spirit of Steve Prefountaine as well as all the nordic gods from above smiling ear to ear.

Nordic Ski Racing, accepted as the Standard of Endurance Epitome by Exercise Scientists is generally recognized as the most brutal endurance sport.

The Topaten-K Race,
which coach won today in convincing fashion
starts at an heart-pounding elevation of 11,000' and goes UP from there.

Story and photos by coach himself comining only to DIRECT LINES SUBSCRIPTION on Monday...errr, maybe Tuesday because it's snowing today it's gonna be a Bluebird day of tele skiing at T-ride tomorrow, and i...err, i mean, Coach might need to extend his visit back to his h(om)eland to capitalize on the conditions.

thanks for reading WF Warriors,
i skied brutally hard today because i know in my heart,
you expect it from me.

i done go(o)d.

ain't NOTHING like WF, baby!

and there ain't NOTHING like my Beloved Southwest. i got the CHI down here!

45 years young and crankin' because i know you Trust in me...and our amazing Path.

the Proof is in the podium(s).

om so ti,

gotta go...my bro's are calling me...

Emptiness is Arising...or is it Anger? plus; i set a new PR during MahiMana experience

i point toward one of the only two directions that i have cared about in my life;
Upward. the other? inward. endlessly, inward. photo; several hundred feet above my Zen Center in Jemez, New Mexico. i would often invite my other Zen peers to come and run or hike or climb with me outdoors. few ever brought their Zen off the cushion. sad.

One day Tesshu, the famous swordsman and Zen devotee, went to Dukuon and told him triumphantly he believed all that exists is empty, there is no you or me, etc. The master who had listened in silence suddenly snatched up his long tobacco pipe and struck Tesshu's head.

The infuriated swordsman would have killed the master there and then, but Dokuon said calmly,
Emptiness is quick to show anger, isn't it?

Forcing a smile, Tesshu left the room.

- from the Sufi Tradition

***

no matter how often i say it.
regardless of the fact that even my WF Application To Study says in black and white:
if you come here to Study WF, your cup must be empty

the very moment this Steep and Direct Path starts pushing ego buttons, attachments, emotional adhesions,
even the Devoted Ones quit.
even the ones that called me "Guru", quit in a fit of anger.
even the "Never Quittin'" ones? quit, rationalizing, "Well, WF wasn't what i expected,' or "I don't like the direction Coach is taking with WF," and many other similar rationalizations to soothe their agitated ego.

***

for 25 years i have only led each and every one of you in one unfaltering Direction;
inward.

right where your Gunk is.

sure, get mad at me.
quit the Path.
i have done my SvaDharma; i have shown you precisely where your Highest Workout remains!

this is why my Teachers told me, "I don't want Students...i want sacrificial goats."

now, i see Why.

i am far less fierce than my Teachers.

yet, still, most will Quit this Steep, Direct, and Proven Path of Transformation.

***



yesterday i set a new Personal Record while 'skinning' up Agassiz Peak.
for those of you who are not familiar with that term, it means applying a glue-based 'carpet' to the bottom of your cross country skis and trudging up a ski slope. the carpet, which can be peeled away once at the summit, allows the skier to creep up extremely steep terrain.

most of the fittest local ski warriors can skin up Agassiz in a little over an hour.

yesterday, i cranked it in 47:42.
nearly a quarter hour faster than the fastest local.

that was after tele-skiing for 2.5 hours. and it was snowing and windy.

it was a Breakthrough for me. i have often made the ascent in just over 50 minutes. yet, i was determined to break the 50 minute barrier.

yesterday, i creamed it.

a new Standard was set; physically and metaphysically.
during the Ascent i experienced a sustained state of what yogis know as MahiMana.

i cannot Teach you this in this forum.

it would confuse you.

let me just say this; though yesterday's ascent was one of the most remarkable athletic feats i have done in my life,
it was less athletics to me
than an hour long meditation.

oh, and i skied down to the base in 7 minutes.

yesterday, i skied up and down a mountain from 9,300' to 11,500' in less than one hour.

that, my Friends Along The Path, is yoga.

High Performance Yoga.

"The Path works, when YOU work the Path."

Make the Decision to live WF.
then,
Live
The
Decision.

i promise you this much;
your Emptiness will never be as Sacred, as Fun, and as Meaningful
if you do.

***

though i will attempt to update DL, i am heading off to Telluride to compete in the nation's highest altitude Nordic Ski Race.

Internet access is sketchy and i have a couple of Secret Mountain Yogi escapades to do in the backcountry before and after my race, so enjoy the Archives and Live the Path until i get back, okay?

"Going forward is a matter of ordinariness."
- Zen


om so ti,

the mountain yogi

Plane Spirit Victory For Online Student Weiss plus, i get ready for a BIG HURT!

"The most perfect technique is that which is not noticed at all."
- Pablo Casals

i am getting ready for my last nordic event of the year; the nation's HIGHEST nordic ski race on top of Telluride Ski Resort! THIS is gonna hurt. stay tapped into DL for more. now, check out this Teaching inspired by Online Student Weiss of NYC who has recently experienced a tremendous Shift in his understanding, practice, and appreciation of the WF Online Path. How about YOU?


From An Actual Online Training Exchange:

STUDENT W:
...and this morning when flying to Denver, i realized that i failed to become clear about which airline was actually flying me there, and to walk with my bags about 1/2 to 3/4 mile- it wasn't the distance, nor the weight of the bags, but my annoyance with the situation that ultimately i had created. but all of a sudden i got a sort of "hit" of WF Qi- and i read you r words about everything is practice to a yoga, and suddenly i was doing conscious breathing, smiling and kind of bouncing my way down the walkway between terminals at the san fran airport! Breath and Posture!

COACH RESPONDS:
that, my Friend,
is PRECISELY what WF (Western Based Yoga) is ALL ABOUT!
it is sooo terribly difficult to get my fans and even my students to understand that the real Gem of WF Training lies not in her physicality; rather in her YIN side; her 4 LIFESTYLE PRINCIPLES!. many people are intimated by WF Online or even by my books because of the up front physical training, the look of my own body, my athletic resume, etc. They think, "Oh look at him, i can never be like him; he must spend ALL day training..."

little do they know the true history of that broken body of mine, my supremely average...

READ COACH'S ENTIRE TEACHING on today's DIRECT LINES SUBSCRIPTION FORMAT: stop missing all these potent tools for your OWN JOURNEY HIGHER!

Yoni Two-sday - ilg comes to LA to Teach!

Most Cherished Warriors of the Higher Sweat,

Two Dharma Arrows for your Quiver today;

the first is a most BEAUTIFUL contribution by our very own Teacher Ananda. take your time and let her Beauty sink into each of your cells then, spend the rest of today, turning that Beauty inside out for all Beings Everywhere, okay? here you go:

The Joyful Breath


Dharma Arrow number two?

WE'RE COMING BACK TO LA TO TEACH!

yup, it's becoming a Tradition; TAX DAY COMETH and so does the ILGMAN.
Both arrive in LA on April 15th.
The Latter is a tad bit more fun and healthy for the body/mind than the former,
then again, that is what Balance is all about; dancing that spontaneous edge between the demands of the Outer World
and your Willingness to keep cultivating that Endless Part of you known as your Inner World.

the pdf for my LA Workshop can be found under 2007 Retreats at my website:

WF 2007 Events

oh i am doing some REALLY FUN and COST EFFECTIVE changes in our WF Personal Retreats...so the Tribal Catalog is a bit frolicky (frolicky?) right now. i will let you know when the bulk of the VERY COOL CHANGES are made!

fun stuff, life; live it strongly, live it softly, live it with CHI!

onward, upward, and ever inward,

el coache

Sky Like Mind + Coach Answers a Dharma Question

Buddha sat in serene and humble dignity on the ground,

with the sky above him and around him, as if to show us that in meditation you sit with open, skylike attitude of mind, yet remain present, earthed, and grounded. The sky is our absolute nature, which has no barriers and is boundless, and the ground is our reality, our relative, ordinary condition.

The posture we take when we meditate signifies that we are linking absolute and relative, sky and ground, heaven and earth, like two wings of a bird, integrating the skylike deathless nature of mind and the ground of our transient, mortal nature.
- Sogyal Rinpoche

***
"Coach,
i bow to your learning and recognition from Rinpoche at Naropa. i am working on a paper in my contemplative studies class, kinda following in your footsteps but without all the world-class athlete stuff. i will admire from a distance! i am working on a sidebar for my paper, quoting various body/mind experts that come from Buddhist traditions. if you would be so kind, Dear Dharma Teacher Who Also Does The Do Like Few,
* In one sentence, how would you describe the Buddha's viewpoint on death?

Om Mani Padme Hung .

May Chenreezig himself shower his Blessings upon your brave Path,
kit from Boulder"

COACH RESPONDS:

DO NOT MISS COACH's CLEAR AS A TIBETAN BELL RESPONSE in today's DL Subscription! CLASSIC!!!!

photos:
1) WF Temple H(om)e Buddha; Shakky overseeing and protecting the symbolic representation of the worldwide WF Sangha. by ilg.
2) Flagstaff ponderosa and pranic filled sky. by ilg.
3) coach in the "adepts pose" (Siddhasana). Temple archives.

How To Help Heal, Without Being A Nuisance Or DisServing the Dharma

As our own Practice matures and our Light becomes more evident to our family and friends and
co-workers,
it is quite typical for us to be approached in any number of ways to Help.
sometimes, at the lowest level, we find people coming up to us and basically just
doing what i call, "Acoustical purging," upon us. People just start venting about all sorts of things
to us.
Our Practice during such encounters is WF Lifestyle Principle #1; Breath and Posture..

At other levels, we may find people asking us to perform ceremonies or mediate certain relationship challenges.
Here, our Practice must be to SLOW DOWN and create SPACE before saying, "sure, i can help you!"

The convoluted internesting of our Samskaric tendencies, our Karma, and our own Practice of the Dharma must
be considered before we attempt to "help" or "heal" others.

Below, WF Teacher Ananda provides an EXCEPTIONAL DISPLAY of teaching one of her beautiful and empowered online students to "slow down before you choose to help".

APPEARING TODAY IN DL SUBSCRIPTION:
Teacher Ananda's POWERFUL and PRACTICAL TEACHING!

Coach's FEBRUARY PRACTICE STATS; Light Body = Heavy Metal, Baby!

By the time came to race my Highlight Event of the winter; the Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathlon, my Abhyasa (training consistency) plus the very same Nutritional Path of SUNRIDER Herbs + BioBuilde Amino Acids that i have Taught you, had done its job once again. My bodyweight was tickling 139lbs. a Flyweight with a Heavyweight punch, baby! My immunology was bombproof and my mental tenacity was ragin' to suffer.

That is the yogic body; a body capable of Higher Power Transference. Lightweight, super strong yet supple frame, and an internal energetic engine that recognizes, assimilates, and channels Prana instead of trying to rely upon the archaic muscle and oxygen system known to conventionally trained athletes.


This beautiful Nambe® trophy will endlessly invoke Sacred Sweat memories of my 3rd Consecutive Title at Mt. Taylor. Those memories trigger a cascade of Metta for my amazing Teammate, Lisa Goldsmith, the Kachina Spirits which Dance so powerfully in the ether of "Tsidool," and finally my attainment of the Fastest Ski Descent; something i had been trying to get for years and years.


Winning the Flagstaff Winter Triathlon heading into Mt. Taylor absolutely fired my confidence! A Warrior's best friend; confidence. To win this 2-Day, 3-Sport event, meant getting my bodyfat low by relying upon SUNRIDER Herbs yet Maintaining a Positive Nitrogen Balance by using BioBuilde amino acids to regenerate my body tissues. A difficult balance for most, especially if linking day after day of hard nordic training at altitudes of 9,000' to 11,500'. i skied or snowshoed 15 out of February's 28 days in order to be able to set the 11,301' Mt. Taylor Course on fire! Training at such high altitudes is very hard on the immune systems. Nutrition must be tantamount to be able to train at altitude yet recover and regenerate to manifest the training effect. otherwise you go backward instead of forward.when Racing at high altitude, it is VERY EASY to just try to get into a 'happy place' instead of racing your guts out! most of us will make that same error in the Bardo Entry as well. My key to maintaining my aggressive tenacity while racing and simultaneously instill openness through my power producing hips/glutes/abdominals meant while relying upon solo sessions of my HP Yoga Prop Workouts.

Here are my Practice Numbers that resulted in myHeavy Metal.
coaching note: do NOT attempt to mimic these numbers in your own training!especially do not attempt to copy my crazy low daily caloric intake vs. caloric output. there ain't a Certified Nutritionist on the Planet that would advise such levels. then again, there has never been a Certified Nutritionist that has been able to keep up with me! Tread CAREFULLY; numbers and intellect lead many Warriors astray from what matters most; Listening to the Language of your OWN Body!

Note how my overall Hours go down; this decrease in Volume is what enables RACE INTENSITY to go sky high!
Timing is Everything.
Most athletes are either too compulsive or too lazy in their training.
WF teaches what did the Buddha;
The Middle Path.

FEBRUARY 2007 Training Stats:

[due to Safety Concerns, coach's training stats are only available to DL Suscribers}

***
i Trust you can see the ebb and flow of my Practice Stats throughout the year.
which Disciplines always remain stable throughout the year?

Meditation and Yoga.

then, Nutrition.

the Dance of Strength Training (Shiva) and Cardio (Shakti) are the two most tweaked knobs in the life and times of a WF Warrior.

of course, engaged application of the WF Four Lifestyle Principles is what keeps our Workout Everywhere which gives the WF Warrior a total advantage in both the physical and spiritual realms of training and performance.


i often get referred to other multisport blogs written by 'triathletes' and 'duathletes' and sure, every now and then i catch the blogs of yoga teachers. then i visit the 'spiritual' websites. my heart opens, for i see them so stuck in specificity. none come close to the stratospheric versatility and wholeness of our own Tribe of humble, powerful, and highly skilled WF Warriors. Like a Dharma Arrow shot straight from Padmasambhava; the Warrior Path of WF producing the most Highly Skilled Yogins.

i love each and every one of you that are brave enough to stay Focused on the Path that develops WHOLENESS while setting the energetic foundation toward spiritual Awakening and possible Enlightenment.

in this day and age of high glitz blogs with advertising all over them, podcasts, and 'certified teachers' of blah, blah, blah, it is so predictably easy to allow our Senses to become addicted to being tuned outward. to spend our days grasping, our eyes hardening by each moment spent looking outward instead of receiving the softness of interplay of (gunic) energies. it becomes so easy to lose our internal core. start scampering off on a bunch of stupid, energy wasting enter-tainments instead of living the decision of inner-attainment through daily sweat and stillness in a balanced measure of wholeness training.

My Practice and Performance Stats all these years means nothing
unless they become footprints in the astral path leading each of you Higher.

May your Practice remain simple, straightforward, and endlessly spontaneous in myriad, inner ways and May your Lotus Feet remain firm until Enlightenment.

i'm going skiing.

om so ti,

steve ilg
a coach that still does...for YOU!

Yogi Jut Makes The International News Again!

What A Brahmanic Warrior! Yogi Jut, shown here with Coach after last year's Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathlon which he also finished this year as well, has again climbed another professional summit in his work as a biologist specializing in, well, cave creatures! check out this story running in MSNBC!

Way to go Yogi Jut! See in you class on Tuesday in our HP Yoga "Cave"!

Yogi Jut In The News

The Beginning Of The End Of What i've Come To Love As ilg?

take good look at that face.
because today, on this Morning of all Sacred Mornings...
i'm getting the first hit that DaddyHood may well be the end of ilg as i love him.
i know, i know. some of you veteran Daddies are already smiling, seeing that ol' ilg is finally, finally gonna have to grow up for christ's sake. let me explain.
see that face? that is a typical ilg face.
you know, the one we've all come to love and enjoy, even me.
and trust me, it's been a long, hard grind to learn to love every afflicted, painfilled, negative, lazy, and spoiled cell of me.
you know how i've come to love all the conflicted parts of me?
i'll tell you right here and now, DL Warriors;
i've allways loved, embraced, and downright embellished the mischievous soul of ilg.
that is right, i said, 'mischievous.'
can a professional yogi REALLY be allowed to be 'mischievous'?
you bet.
in fact, in the Lineage of Mountain Yogis, we excel at mischievousness. we, in additional fact,

{another excerpt...}


...see all that fresh fluff upon the Sacred Peak?
if you could look outside my window right now, your Heart would Dance as the glimmering, glitter of cold snowflakes glissade through Morning Light like an Arctic fantasyland. there is fresh snow upon my Beloved Mother thanks to some night work from Father Sky. Mt. Elden, looking like a celestial white Ganesha in the background, appears to applaud in measured waves as cold and hungry finches, ravens, and chickadees flit like freezing fire through immensely needled giant pines. Each morning in the mountains is to me, Temple Time.
yet, as i write this, in this very moment...

{another excerpt:}

mischievous ilg applies his best yoga in these trees, mimicking puma like agility;
swiftly dropping one knee and then the next in deep, seemingly endless powder as the massive tree trunks whir past.
breath comes quickly, then slowly.
torso rising, then falling tapping into some version of primordial ocean movement still at large within my being.
this is why i telemark ski,
this is why i live,
this is why i...i...


DO NOT MISS THIS HILARIOUS, POIGNANT, POETIC ESSAY IN IT's ENTIRETY FROM AN AUTHOR, WORLD CLASS EXTREME ATHLETE and YOGA TEACHER COMING TO GRIPS WITH A LIFE-CHANGING SITUATION
***


* first photo by WayneWilliamsStudio.com
all others by ilg