Lifestyle Coaching + Yoga Therapeutics

05/01/2025

Next Tuesday, 5/6 @ Simsbury Public Library - Hear from myself and Naturopath Dr. Stacey Munro on the signs and symptoms of menopause and how a holistic approach can support this transition. We will demystify the role of hormones, including cortisol, and discuss the option of HRT. We'll take a look at menopause through the logical lens of Ayurveda and support with small daily practices for big shifts in managing symptoms.

You won't want to miss it! Register here: https://simsbury.librarycalendar.com/event/menopause-6083

04/10/2025

Do you know this equation? Where spring is the catalyst to make the reaction go?

If you enter this equation year after year in prep for summer and end up creating a storm of self-sabotage, know that we can do this path to health differently. Where we name more effective motivators than fitting into bathing suits and set goals that align with values. It’s focused discipline over futile grinding. It’s grounding in new relationship with food and movement. It’s looking at all this societal messaging we’ve mistaken for truth. Somewhere along the way we equated progress with perfection and made hurt on the path to health more than ok. Celebrated, even.

We can do this differently and arrive at the same place. No need to subscribe to this formula. Trust me. There’s enough harm already in our world.

I believe in:
Strong, challenging goals
Changes to the algorithm
Enlisting environmental supports
Down-to-earth conversation about bodies, health, and stress

…because the science of change supports it.

www.elisecusimano.com

04/08/2025

NEW Class in April @ YDF! Wednesdays at 9AM

Yoga for the Season incorporates the subtle, guiding wisdom of Ayurveda into the postures, style and practices. The practice is fluid, taking into account both the seasonal energetics and the time of day, yielding a practice that is largely warmer, brighter and balancing for the wet and heavy qualities predominant in a Connecticut spring.

4/9: https://momence.com/s/115195024
4/16: https://momence.com/s/115195025
4/23: https://momence.com/s/115195026
4/30: https://momence.com/s/115195027

03/12/2025

Yoga class Sunday, 3/23 at 1:30✨

This 60-minute practice is an introduction of the 5 elements (earth, air, fire, water and ether) and their play in breath, mind and movement. Join for a taste of how to bring balance where there's imbalance with ayurveda and self-support on the mat as we navigate the liminal space between winter and spring.

Register here: https://momence.com/s/113935563

02/04/2025

Thanks for the feature The Farmington Valley - Avon, Simsbury, Canton, Farmington, Granby & more in this week's newsletter!

Check out the newsletter here and subscribe to keep the local bits, bites and businesses coming: https://farmington-valley.beehiiv.com/p/begin-again-other-valley-highlights?fbclid=IwY2xjawIPSZhleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHYfuGoAjBpLs2iKg7fpTPcf3sNwxjxnYgIcOTdwPLIEGxIQnva9mAmX7Cg_aem_4Q2J8-tBZ95ufWgQh4Lp5g

Arts, Eats, Nature and More...

01/23/2025

Loss comes in many shades (loss of community, loss of routine and agency, losing friends and family) and winter unfortunately has a way of resurfacing old grief and sadness like no other season. Exacerbated by a lack of daylight, the chemical cocktail inside starts to shift. Sometimes we know what will help, but even reaching for that or marshalling those inner resources to make it happen is all too much.

When I started my coaching career, what I didn’t realize was how necessary coaching was in times of loss. You’re working on a new goal with someone and just like that, grief comes rushing in. Coaching standalone or alongside therapy in times like this is the support many people say they didn’t know they needed to shift gears and put the helpful personal care supports back into the day-to day, whether you’re already working on it, or need new momentum. If you need support, here’s more on my process: https://www.elisecusimano.com/lifestyle-coaching

I’m also holding another 4-week series of Yoga for Winter Blues again in February at Yoga Dance and Fitness where we work with the lymphatic + respiratory system in energetics, posture and breath to warm, clear and uplift. Class is at 9:30am, when the sun is pouring into the studio - it makes for a great start to the day.

Find all of this and everything else, here: https://linktr.ee/elise.cusimano

01/17/2025

Tailored for release of chronic tension and finding deep, deep rest after a busy day, we practice and move in a way that takes into consideration the needs and comforts of each person in the room over a 75-minute practice. Our main tools in yoga therapeutics are asana, somatics, mudra, meditation and relaxation in varying emphasis.

A Group Yoga Therapeutics class or series is different in the way it’s designed and delivered. Our yoga tools can vary, too. Group therapeutics in the yoga space ensures the practice is accessible to each person in the room, weaving in unique needs and asks. It’s an extra layer of consideration and customization for everyone present while we hold space for a common need to release, rest, and restore. You’ll walk away with postures and practices to use in your home routine as it resonates with you.

After registration and before the series start, you’ll have a short call with Elise on the phone, to share and connect on relevant and unique needs before the series start. Please register by 2/2.

This series runs Thursday nights from 7-8:15pm on Feb 6, 13, 20, and 27.

Sign up here: https://momence.com/s/111961461

01/02/2025

Next to mindfulness and nervous system regulation, somatics must just be the buzzword of the year.

And it’s everything it’s cracked up to be.

I was playing around with the word somatic recently to make an acrostic out of it. I laughed when I realized how perfectly it fits what it aims to treat. Hanna somatics has incredible implications for chronic stress.

And that tension we feel is chronic stress, accumulated from long-held patterns, traumas and injuries. The saying is true: the issues are in our tissues.

Why does this mean anything to you? Because we are a series of long-term motor memories. The way we sit and stand, the way we’ve morphed into a ball of tension after an injury or trauma. And as you may very well know, tight muscles are sore and painful.

The goal of somatics, then, is to restore voluntary control of the appropriate muscles to eliminate pain. And it happens to be quite effective in a short amount of time.

Read the full post here: https://elisecusimano.substack.com/p/the-truth-about-somatics-and-muscle

12/26/2024

Designed to gently brighten, warm and counter the seasonal effects of winter in the NE, we practice and move in a way that takes into consideration the needs and comforts of each person in the room over a 75-minute practice. Our main tools are asana, somatics, mudra, meditation and relaxation. You’ll walk away with postures and practices to use in your home practice as it resonates with you.

A Group Yoga Therapeutics class or series is different in the way it’s designed and delivered. Our yoga tools can vary, too. Group therapeutics in the yoga space ensures the practice is accessible to each person in the room, weaving in unique needs and asks. It’s an extra layer of consideration and customization for everyone present while we hold space for a common interest of feeling much, much better despite less light and warmth this time of year.

After registration and before the series start, you’ll have a short call with Elise on the phone, to share and connect on relevant and unique needs before our first class. Please register by 1/11.

Register online via Yoga, Dance and Fitness here: https://momence.com/s/110469204