San Diego Yoga Festival is Nama-stoked to collaborate with the press! This festival has provided health and wellness for thousands of people setting and breaking world records. People have taken notice!
Good Morning San Diego
March 08, 2019
Various press interviews over the course of the weekend March 8-10 on channel 7 San Diego news.
Namastoked in San Diego
April 13, 2018
As the sun set over the Pacific Ocean, some 400 yogis gathered on the cool sand overlooking the surf for a singular purpose; to set a Guinness Book World Record for the largest collective Om circle in the world. For 25 minutes we sat, facing each other, facing the ocean, facing the sky and gave our vibration to the collective. Maybe you watched our Instagram live story of the event, but nothing could compare to the presence of being there in that moment. At the end of the 108 oms something truly magical happened. Maybe it was just the carry-over of vibration, or our mind that was yearning for more, but when the last om was chanted, the ocean seemed to throw the vibration back to us, like it was oming along for a few more rounds. It was palpable, it was powerful, it was oneness. It was also the end of the amazing San Diego Yoga Festival down on the last beach of Southern California.
The vibe of the whole weekend was nama-stoked. Founder Shawna Schenk said that this word embodied the laid-back atmosphere of San Diego with the chill vibes of doing yoga on the beach. In full respect to the border and the political climate, Shawna included Spanish- English Vinyasa classes and a meditative walk to the USA-Mexico border. The last yoga class of the event featured translator Karla Rodas and about 100 Spanish speaking yogis. Shawna spoke about coming together as community and caring for our neighbors and Karla lovingly translated both the message and the flow.
Head to The San Diego Yoga Festival For Four Days of Yoga, Surfing, Skateboarding, & More
January 01, 2020
Even living in San Diego can get overwhelming from time to time — sometimes you just need a weekend to escape the madness and “OM” it out. Take a much needed break at the SD Yoga Festival, where you’ll have endless opportunities to chill. After four days of yoga, surfing, and skateboarding in the place that invented the low-key lifestyle, you’ll be ready to tackle anything.
World Record Setting Meditation Circle To Cut World Terrorism By 70% In Imperial Beach, CA
February 04, 2018
PRESS RELEASE FROM SAN DIEGO YOGA FESTIVAL
On Sunday, March 11, 2018, on the beach in Imperial Beach, join thousands of people as they sit in unity chanting the word “AUM” 108 times. AUM is the vibration affecting the subconscious mind bringing the brain balance and unity. This meditation circle will be at the most South-Westerly part of the country bordering Mexico as a symbolic gesture of unity between our country and all other countries...
OC Mom Blog and SDYF
December 31, 2017
The San Diego Yoga Festival is an epic and life changing 4-day yoga festival happening on the beach in Imperial Beach, from March 9-12, 2018. This festival happening in the most South-Westerly part of the USA and is a holistic health party that aims to bring health, peace and wellness to its attendees and supporting community.
With non-stop yoga and holistic healing classes, held right on the beach, until sunset for four days straight, festival goers can look forward to unforgettable classes and healing experiences led by the top healers and teachers in Southern California: with offering virtually almost every style of yoga known to modern yogis, for beginners to yoga teachers, to fun holistic health experiences.
SDYF Founder Gives Run-Down of the Event
January 23, 2018
Shawna Schenk and I have a chat about what to expect at the San Diego Yoga Festival. This festival is going to be awesome!! Grab your ticket for the whole weekend or just one class. Use the code YogiTones to save %50 on your purchase. See you at the Festival!!
Get Nama-Stoked for San Diego Yoga Festival
January 23, 2018
What about the hurdles of starting a yoga festival from the ground up?
It’s a joy working on this thing. To be honest, I am not an event planner, but in this case, I had to be because I am doing this event! But that is not my forte. I am a yoga teacher, reiki healer, I certify people, I like to sit and talk to plants and do yoga on the beach and I don’t like excel spreadsheets or computers or ordering port a potties or trying to figure out insurance. I have my own business so I know how to do those things. They are more a labor of love aside from a passion, because I know that in order to get the message out there and do what I was born to do, I have to do these root chakra things. I knew that if I was going to take on a festival and do it well year after year and touch people and synergistically touch all the local businesses, that I would have to be the best version of myself. So, I amped up my personal yoga practice to 2-3 hours a day and just continue to work on myself. So, when there are challenges, whether it be having to work on permitting stuff or taking the risk with big financial commitments to invest in this festival to make it wonderful or managing people, I am so grateful that I have the mat to hold me and help me and guide me. I feel like something more beautiful is going through me to make this thing happen and so my hurdles don’t really exist they are blessings. I feel like it’s a joy and an honor and a gift to be able to create something that I know will shift the consciousness of the community. Sitting in yoga together for 4 days changes a person and I am honored to have the role of helping to do that.
San Diego Yoga Festival and Yoga Guide Magazine
October 25, 2017
San Diego Yoga Festival (SDYF) is an epic 4-day yoga festival offering non-stop yoga classes (every hour on the hour until sunset) right on the on the beach! Classes will be held from Friday, March 9 to to Monday, March 12, 2018 with Pre-Conferences held on Friday and Post-Conferences held on Monday led by master teachers. Classes are led by the top healers in Southern California and worldwide: many of these “yoga celebrities” have been featured on television shows, magazines, and/or are internationally recognized. We are also featuring one of the youngest (8) and oldest (92) yoga teachers in the world!
San Diego Yoga Festival 2018
October 22, 2017
What is the San Diego Yoga Festival? It's an epic event happening March 9 - 12, 2018 and it is doing three huge things!
One: Hosting a 4-day Festival on the Beach
With non-stop yoga and holistic healing classes, held right on the beach, until sunset for four days straight, festival goers can look forward to unforgettable classes and healing experiences led by the top healers and teachers: with offering virtually almost every style of yoga known to modern yogis, for beginners to yoga teachers, to fun holistic health experiences including....
8 Reasons You Need The Sun
January 09, 2017
By Shawna Schenk
Living on this Earth, we all know that the sun, well, he is everything. He is our life force and he is what keeps us (and all living things) alive. I truly feel that the sun’s importance in this world is one topic that universally binds us all: regardless of what language you speak or culture you come from: the purely logical scientist is going to defend the sun as strongly as the hippy yogi who dances Sun Salutations every morning.
Science has proved that the winter time blues are real: seasonal depression affects many people. There is an energy of the light of the sun that fulfills us and makes us feel happier on days that are bright than days that are gray.
Break the Rules
January 09, 2017
By Laura Plumb
You go through your life thinking you know the rules. You get good grades, you play the game, you make a living, you may even make a very good living, you look the part.
The world is full of happy people. They think you are happy, too. But you are not. Something is wrong, and it grates. You can’t figure it out, which makes it worse. You try to talk to someone about it. They tell you that your life is great, you have so much, you should be happy. You feel even worse.
You try Yoga. It makes you cry. You pour yourself a glass of wine. It tastes sour and doesn’t offer the solace of yesteryear. In fact, nothing seems to work. You sigh. You ask your best friend. You lie awake at night.
It gets worse. You begin to feel cold in your marrow. Your teeth taste like tin. At last you cry out, “What is Happening to Me?”
5Q with DTO and the founder of the festival
January 06, 2017
1) Tell me about your personal journey with yoga. Why is it important to you?
Yoga is medicine: it is what I chose when I was anixious out of my mind and put on anti-depresants. It is the “pill” I pop now to keep my off the anit-depressants. I found it when I was desperate, and now I cherish it every day: It is not stretch pants and headstands: it is a life stye, something I do every second of my life: striving to be in the NOW grateful for the second that is the gift in which I get to live.
I thank the stars every day that the yoga has stood the test of time and has been passed down lifetime to lifetime and ended up in my life.
Best Yogi Destintions for 2017
January 02, 2017
Travel helps you see the world through a different lens. Just like a focused yoga practice can help diminish stress from the body, a change in latitude can change your attitude. Getting away from the distractions and comfort of home can create a fresh perspective on absolutely everything. Do you ever notice how aware you are when something is exciting and new? Traveling to unfamiliar destinations and meeting a variety of people will not only rejuvenate your spirit but helps to boost confidence, compassion and self-awareness. Yoga Digest believes that travel is not a luxury, but a necessity for optimal growth on the path to enlightenment. Mix in some yoga with that travel and we are all on board! From mountains to beaches, cabins to resorts, camping under the stars or spa sessions and fine dining; it can all create space for you to bloom. Here is a list of some of our favorite destinations for yogis wishing not only to seek but to discover. Whether you are interested in music, culture, food, deep roots of yoga or exotic travel, there is literally something on this list for every yogi! We hope to see you at some of the Yoga Digest Best of Yogi Destinations in 2017! Keep calm and travel on.
Interview with Founder of SDYF, Shawna Schenk
January 02, 2017
During one of the best meditations of her life, Shawna Schenk had an epiphany; she wanted to start a yoga festival in San Diego. A few months and hundreds of emails, lists and preparations later, her vision is becoming a reality. San Diego Yoga Festival kicks off January 27, 2017. During this 4-day event, attendees will be able to take classes from nearly all yoga practices including yoga for kids (taught by some adorable 8 year olds), Vinyasa, Hatha, Acro-Yoga, Paddleboard yoga and so much more. There will also be music lessons, an art shop and many of the classes will be taught on sunset cliffs, overlooking the ocean. Attendees will have all the yoga their hearts desire, but it will also be an adventure. One of the founders, Shawna Schenk took some time out of her busy day to share with us the creation of this unique experience.
Interview with Dr. Bali of SDYF
January 02, 2017
By Dana L. Lee
Are you ready for San Diego yoga bliss? There are so many reasons to attend the San Diego Yoga Festival happening January 27 – 30th. Besides soaking up the warm nirvana of the Pacific ocean, the festival has planned what promises to be a life-changing array of opportunities with master teachers from all over the world. The festival offers over 100 glittering jewels of activities and course offerings reflecting the full spectrum of yoga life. I was blessed to interview Dr. Madan Bali, PhD, who at 93 years young, shines like a clear light of wisdom. His unique Bali Method drips with the sweet nectar of life, squeezed from his lifelong passion for connecting people with the healing machinery constantly at work inside their own bodies. When he is not teaching at his Yoga Bliss studio in Montreal, Canada, he can be found traveling the world spreading the nourishing light of yoga to a thirsty world. After learning that Dr. Bali’s daughter affectionately refers to her father as “half Sean Connery and half yogi”, I wasted no time in registering for his course at the festival on Saturday, January 28th entitled “Living in Infinity to Create Health, Happiness, Healing, and Abundance." (Just between us, I think that Sean Connery has some work to do to if he’s going to keep up with Dr. Bali.) Here is my interview with Dr. Bali, and I hope to see you there!
Why You Should Take a Yoga Holiday
December 07, 2016
Travel has immeasurable benefits for the soul. It teaches you how to have patience, communicate with language barriers and practice your listening skills in tough circumstances. It gives you the opportunity to find yourself, lose yourself, reflect, explore, and deepen both interpersonal relationships as well as the one with yourSELF. It finds a way to take you out of your comfort zone and into a place of freedom (if you let it)...
San Diego Yoga Festival makes waves of good vibes, fitting for it's beach-side setting. In this piece SDFY co-creator, Melanie Williams, talks about why the festival is more than just a few yoga classes and in fact is a life changing, earth shaking event.
5 Reasons to Attend SDYF
November 10, 2016
San Diego Yoga Festival is an epic 4-day festival happening in one of the sunniest corners of the earth, San Diego, California. The festival will offer non-stop classes for four days straight led by some of the most powerful and talented healers in the world, January 27-30, 2017. This festival is Yoga Journal Conference meets Lightning in the Bottle, grassroots style, on the beach.
Five reasons to come to the festival:
Unity: There is a class for everyone! The festival is inviting all beings, regardless of yoga experience or style preference to come to the festival. The festival is offering over 90 classes led by the top 50 teachers in San Diego and Southern California. This festival will be like Yoga College with so many epic classes to take to further expand your knowledge in this field....
Ocean Beach Transforming With San Diego Yoga Festival
September 15, 2016
A year and a half ago, Sgt. Dave Yu of SDPD’s Western Division made it his mission to bring OB back to the people.
He patrolled the area and was tired of the aggressive travelers and homeless community who harassed locals for money and food and verbally assaulted them. So, he developed a team, and they’ve transformed OB into a much more peaceful, laid back, respectful environment. He’s even launched an outdoor festival featuring yoga, martial arts, cross fit, and more! Renee Kohn caught up with him to find out how one person’s passion can rebrand an entire community.
Polce and Yogis Have The Same Idea: Yoga Festival in San Diego
September 04, 2016
Melanie Williams (Tri-power Yoga) and Shawna Schenk (Yoga with Shawna) received a grant from the Ocean Beach Town Council on July 27 to support their vision — and Sgt. Yu’s — of a better Ocean Beach.
"It's going to be January 27–29. We’ll have 20 concurrent yoga classes going on over the course of the weekend and we just got our permit — permit pending — to do the largest yoga class on the O.B. Pier.”
Both indoor and outdoor classes will be held, with many local businesses partaking, not just yoga studios.