The Spirit of Yoga | Phyllis Pilgrim and Michele Hebert

• 10 am Yoga Fundamentals (Level 1) with Phyllis (45 min) Montana gym
• 11 am Raja Yoga (Level 2) with Michele (75 minutes) Montana gym
• 4 pm Inner Journey: the mindful practices of yoga and meditation. (50 min) with Phyllis and Michele. Oaktree pavilion

The sessions will include deep relaxation, sound healing, chakra balancing, Insight meditation, guided meditations, breathing practices, and will offer unique inner practices to awaken the sleeping spiritual giant within each one of us.

Yoga Fundamentals

Phyllis teaches thematically: a different theme each day … Standing poses, balances, back bends, twists, forward bends, sun salutations, giving you a solid foundation in yoga practices.. She weaves the philosophy of yoga into each theme and relates each to life through movement as metaphor i.e. “holding your ground” with standing poses, “bowing to your own inner wisdom” in forward bends etc. Phyllis works with precision, humor and joy. Friday’s class is a summary of the week’s work with a suggested take home routine, although each day could be a take home, too.

Phyllis draws on her life experiences which she weaves into her yoga practice and meditations. Her new book “The Hidden Passport” tells of her young life in Japanese concentrations camps in Java, and reveals much about her life and philosophy enhanced by her yoga and meditation practices. www.phyllispilgrim.com

Raja Yoga

Michele’s yoga practices are influenced by the work of Walt Baptiste as well as from her studies across a wide spectrum of yoga practices. She will offer a daily flow weaving the philosophy and teachings of Raja yoga (the 8-fold path) as lifestyle practices: a blueprint for living life. Yoga is more than just body movements on a mat, although you will certainly get that, but include practices to not only transform the body but also our lives with greater joy and inspiration. www.spaspirit.com

Culinary Experiences at La Cocina Que Canta | Visiting Teacher Tori Ritchie

Tori Ritchie is a San Francisco–based cooking teacher, cookbook author, and TV personality who has appeared regularly on the CBS Early Show and on Food Network in the long-running series Ultimate Kitchens. Her latest books are “Braises & Stews: Everyday Slow-Cooked Recipes” and “Party Appetizers: Small Bites, Big Flavors” (both from Chronicle Books) and she is a frequent contributor to Bon Appetit magazine. Her website tuesdayrecipe.com reaches thousands of fellow cooks with a new recipe every week.

Tori offers three hands-on culinary experiences, 3.5 hours each, during which you will enjoy preparing your own meal along with fellow cooks. Classes take place at La Cocina Que Canta, our new culinary center.

For more information and registration, please click here.

Improve Your Communication Skills | Jan McLaughlin

Jan McLaughlin’s programs are loaded with humor, audience participation and practical information. The focus is communication skills—helping people discover how to positively influence the responses they get from others. What better setting than the Ranch to explore ways to communicate more effectively with those you care about?

Jan’s programs include:

Don’t Just Talk, Communicate! We’ll explore the four essential factors in communication and take a look at the rapport-building techniques of remembering names and using humor. Participants remark on how many more people they meet during their stay when they attend this program.

What's Your Style? What's Their Style? Have you noticed that people often see things differently than you do? Each of us communicates in our own way—our style. Determine your style and discover how you can communicate more effectively with the people in your life.

Jan McLaughlin, CSP, has been a member of the Ranch La Puerta family since 1979 and a presenter since 1993. She is the owner of the speaking, training and consulting firm, Your Communication Connection. Referred to in the Seattle Times as a “pioneer in the image industry” and “the most frequently-quoted image professional in the Northwest,” she was a popular guest on television and radio and in demand as a speaker.

As a highly-rated trainer, Jan toured the United States, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom conducting communication seminars. A graduate of Washington State University, Jan is a former teacher, retail executive and actress in television commercials. She served as president of the award-winning National Speakers Association/Northwest. She’s also been quoted—or authored articles— in The Wall Street Journal, Christian Science Monitor, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, News Tribune, Puget Sound Business Journal and even the largest daily paper in Southern Germany, Suddeutsche Zeitung.

Writing Workshop | Dan Wakefield

There are books that make great impressions on the reader, not only by providing information, but also by inspiring, enlightening, and influencing life decisions and directions. Books and stories not only reflect but sometimes affect our conduct, beliefs, and attitudes, sometimes unconsciously as well as when we are aware of their influence. Hear how books helped guide this author in his life and work, and share your own experience of the joys of reading - and the power of what psychiatrist Robert Coles has aptly characterized as "The Call of Stories."

Dan Wakefield will offer three writing workshops on memoir.

NEW YORK IN THE FIFTIES.
Dan Wakefield will introduce this exciting documentary film based on his book, and answer questions afterwards. It's the story of a unique time and place that shaped today's culture. Interviews with Robert Redford, Joan Didion, and Calvin Trillin, with archival footage of James Baldwin and Jack Kerouac give an inside look at the creativity of a remarkable era.

Dan Wakefield has been writing since he published his first article for his grade school newspaper in Indianapolis, and has gone on to write five novels, three screenplays, a television series, and 12 books of memoir and nonfiction, as well as articles, short stories, essays and reviews in publications ranging from The New York Times Magazine to The Atlantic Monthly and The Nation

A Self Portrait Drawing Project| Sigrid Burton

Sigrid Burton also offers A Self Portrait Drawing Project or How I Learned to Draw. Guaranteed: Anyone can do it! (and have fun in the process). During this drawing workshop, we will create a realistic self-portrait. Drawing is a hand-eye skill and an aptitude which anyone can develop. The workshop will be conducted for four days; attendance is flexible.

Sigrid Burton, a painter, was raised in California, studied at UCLA, UC Berkeley, Bennington College (BA), and Columbia University (MA Candidate); she lives and works in New York City. In 1995, she received an Indo-American Fellowship to study the meaning and use of color in traditional Indian art forms. Influenced by travels in India and studies in Indian philosophy and art, Burton's work explores color and biomorphic abstraction. She has a distinguished exhibition record including solo exhibitions in major cities throughout the United States. Her work is in numerous private, corporate and public collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

INDIACOLOR | Melba Levick

INDIACOLOR. Join MELBA LEVICK i in her journey through the stunning visual landscape of Northern India, where life offers vibrant surprises at every turn: women in lovely saris, men in striking turbans, brightly colored bangles, handmade puppets, majestically mirrored salons, bejeweled elephants, decorated trucks, hands and animals, murals inlaid with semi-precious stones, exquisite textiles, ceramics, jewelry, and much more…. A colorful slideshow, narrated by Melba, from her new Chronicle book "Indiacolor," revealing the tradition, imagination and creativity that makes India a land like nowhere else.

In addition, Melba will present two photo workshops during the week.

Melba Levick has done over 50 books on travel, design, architecture and gardens in both Europe and the Americas, and her work has been exhibited and appears frequently in magazines world-wide. Her two most recent books are on India: "India Sublime, Princely Palaces of Rajasthan" and "Indiacolor." As a result of these books, she was awarded best photographer on India world-wide for 2009 by the Indian Ministry of Tourism. Melba works mainly for publishers Rizzoli International and Chronicle Books in USA and Ediciones Polígrafa in Barcelona. She is mostly known for her books on California homes and gardens, books on Gaudi and the "modernismo" era in Barcelona, the Mexicolor collection in Mexico, and most recently for her two books on India. She has just published a new book with Rizzoli: "Cottages in the Sun – Bungalows of Venice, CA." Also with Rizzoli, "Classic Houses of Los Angeles" is coming up for publication in Fall 2010 and "Casa Pacifica" for 2011. A new book on India (this time the South!), is in progress, with an Indian publisher, Roli Books. She lives and works, with her husband, writer and composer Hugh Levick, in Venice Beach (Los Angeles), and in Paris, France.

The Joy of Walking | Lynn Weigand

Discover the joys and benefits of urban and suburban walking. We’ll explore how walking can expand your horizons, calm your mind, energize your body and even take care of some of your daily errands. Learn how to start a walking program, keep your existing program fresh, or motivate friends and family to join you at home, at work, or on vacation -- wherever you are!

Lynn Weigand, Ph.D, is the Director of the Initiative for Bicycle and Pedestrian Innovation and an adjunct faculty member in the School of Urban Studies and Planning at Portland State University. Lynn’s work involves planning communities that are safe and fun for walking and cycling, and motivating people to be active in daily life. She is a bike commuter and avid urban walker.

A Big Fat Greek Miracle | Nicholas "Dr. Nick" Yphantides, M.D., M.P.H.

A Big Fat Greek Miracle (The testimony of a life transformed) with Nicholas "Dr. Nick" Yphantides, MD, MPH Come hear the awe inspiring story of a physician who set out on a 38,000 mile trek across North America to address his own personal health needs. At a weight of nearly 500 pounds nine years ago, Dr. Nick went on a personal adventure and experienced a miraculous transformation and a whole new way of life.

He achieved an enduring personal liberation of losing 270 pounds without surgery or gimmicks. He is passionate about giving hope, inspiration and heartfelt motivation to others in need of making positive life changes. His entertaining yet humble approach brings hope that positive and lasting lifestyle changes are possible for anyone.

Dr. Nick Yphantides MD, MPH is an advocate for those in his community who need it the most. For nine years, Dr. Nick served as medical director of the largest network of Community Clinics in San Diego and is proud of the fact that he has never seen a patient with private insurance in his life.

Nine years ago, Dr. Nick temporarily retired from all of his job commitments to address his own personal health needs. Over the course of a year he drove 38,000 miles, visiting every state in America, and in the process achieved an enduring transformation of his personal health. 

His life story has been featured in People Magazine, Reader’s Digest,  Washington Post, New York Times  and on CNN, Fox News, Discovery Channel and even in the National Enquirer!

He is currently advocating with the many others in the community who also have a struggle with their personal health and fitness. He serves as the consulting Chief Medical Officer to the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency.  He also served as Co-Chair of San Diego County’s Childhood Obesity Initiative.

Dr. Nick is a cancer survivor, has been to as many countries as he is old and is always willing to lend a helping hand where it is needed the most. His wife Despina and his daughters Veronique and Zoe are the joys of his life.  They make their home in Escondido, California.