Featured Yogi Of The Month: Brandon Jacobs
This month we're sharing a slice of Brandon Jacobs' life. You can find this guy leading classes, helping with the upcoming Yogalife Studios teacher training, facilitating Warriors of Change and The Art of Yoga and Massage workshops, and writing for our blog. Whew! Oh, and he's a massage therapist and was recently published in Elephant Journal.
To keep up with Brandon, follow his Facebook page!
I was basically pulled in and drawn to come to Yogalife. I had practiced at a couple of different studios in the city, but in all reality, had been searching for a "home." Yogalife has become just that for me.
My normal schedule is:
Mondays - SOUTH STUDIO - 12:00pm Hot Flow, 1:30pm Warm Flow, 5:00pm Hot Flow, 7:00pm Mindful Vinyasa Flow
Saturdays - SOUTH STUDIO - 7:30am Hot Flow, 9:00am Hot Flow, 10:30am Beginner's Hot Flow
I have been a part of Yogalife since September 2012. I finished my Teacher Training at Yogalife in August of 2012, and started out writing blogs and helping with the media team. And it eventually transformed into what it is now!
Share a favourite quote, lesson, or teaching that inspires you.
- I have just too any quotes to pick just one. That would be impossible! One of the greatest lessons I learned was from Patrick Creelman. He once said that if you truly want to become innately aware of your body and truly transform it, you need to find teachers who cue very succinctly and precisely, and then do absolutely everything they say, without compromise. This has helped me not only as a practitioner, but also as a teacher.
What's your favourite music to practice to (or do you prefer silence!?)
- I practice to a lot of different music, so I definitely cannot pick anything in particular. Mostly electronic, if I had to put it into a genre! I steal a lot of people's music! It's really just anything with a pretty solid beat. I rarely notice words!
Biggie or Tupac? haha
- Tupac
Your favourite books, yogi-inspired and fiction.
- Yoga and the Path to the True Self, The Great Work of Your Life, Way of the Superior Man. I would say that those three have influenced me the most.
Where's your favourite vacation spot?
- It's really anywhere my wife is, but we seem to lead towards Nicaragua.
What is your favourite meal to make and share with friends?
- Anywhere where good friends are where we can have a real conversation. Without cell phones. If I had to choose food, it would be sushi. Every time.
What's your favourite pose/sequence/area of the body to work on?
- Ustrasana (camel) is one of my favorite postures, simply based on the fact that it can be very emotionally opening. I suppose that makes me a bit crazy. I am a sucker for any inversions or arm balances and am constantly in search of new transitions. It's pretty amazing what our bodies are capable of once we figure it out!
Who inspires you?
- My mom and dad have always inspired me. Always. I have always looked at my dad as my hero. My wife inspires me to continually just be authentic. She believes in me even when I doubt myself, and it's truly the greatest gift. Her desire to learn anything and everything is something I greatly admire.
Share your favourite self-healing practice.
- Honestly, it's just yoga. Yoga is what has always helped me to heal and it continues to do so. It's my calm in any storm. It is one place where I can shut off everything and just breathe. I can't remember the last time I practiced and noticed much of anything besides my own mat and sweat.
Share one of your life goals.
- I simply just want to leave some sort of legacy. I understand that isn't necessarily "simple" but I believe that we all have the power to affect some sort of change. That we can help and influence people, even when we don't think people are listening or watching. We don't ever really know the ripple effect we may put into motion by the way we act, the words we say, or the thoughts we consciously or unconsciously think. I don't know where or what this legacy looks like, and it's not something I will "try" to do. I just think that by being real, honest, authentic, and loving, that I am somehow capable to doing that.
Do you have a favourite teacher you'd like to see featured on here? Let us know at info@yogalifestudios.ca or connect with us on Facebook!