After purchasing traditional classics such as “The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali” and “The Bhagavad Gita,” Kelowna educator, Dewi Peters, found herself wanting more. With little idea of where/how to start building her yoga library, she reached out to the brightest, wisest and downright coolest yogis she knows to find out what books they hold dear.

If you're the kind of person who can't get enough of your teacher's wise parting words during Savasana; loves setting an intention for each practice and captions your yoga pictures with motivational quotes, this list is for you.

three incredible yoga reads

Meditations from the Mat: Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga
Rolf Gates & Katrina Kenison

Interested in the philosophy behind yoga and how it applies to your life but not the heavy reading that sometimes comes with it? You'll love this book. Broken down into 365 short essays that build upon each other, it is written in contemporary language with no shortage of humour, honesty, humility and wisdom. Described by one reader as “a one-a-day vitamin for the yogic soul,” this is a great choice for anyone seeking down-to-earth inspiration in daily life.

The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice
T.K.V Desikachar

As the son of T. Krishnamacharya, often referred to as the “father of modern yoga” who taught both B.K.S Iyengar and K. Pattabhi Jois, Desikachar was uniquely qualified to write this book. Based on his personal experiences and "The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali", the emphasis here is on gradually learning and enjoying each pose instead of hurrying to complete your practice. It focuses on both physical and spiritual elements while helping you tailor each aspect to your specific preferences and lifestyle – pitch-perfect for beginners and advanced yogis alike.

The Inner Tradition of Yoga: A Guide to Yoga Philosophy for the Contemporary Practitioner
Michael Stone

Written for a Western audience, this is a highly-accessible exploration of how yoga theory applies to our practice on the mat. Practical and poetic, it's a deep read that's best accompanied by a cup of tea and followed up with some meditation time. Touching on the ethics of non-violence, patience, honesty and respect, Michael explores the mind-body connection and weaves in some Buddhist philosophy to boot.

What yoga books have a permanent home on your bookshelf? Share your favourites with us! 

1. ezlinks.com
If my dad could be anywhere, he’d be on a golf green so an EZlinks giftcard is the perfect present for him. EZlinks is a website that lets him choose a course, date and tee off time at tons of different clubs all around the world (and at a great rate too). – Allessia

2. spin pins
Spin Pins for all! Affordable and the best hair tool ever! I own a truckload and will be putting these in every girl’s stocking. – Ali

3. printstagr.am
I love this idea of taking people’s instagram photos and turning them into a book. It’s a unique gift idea!  – Kristina

4. gym essentials kit
The answer is in the name. It’s simply essential. This little guy has not only taken me to and from the gym but to Paris and London too. It’s the perfect companion for trips short and long.  – Tiffany

5. strengths finder 2.0
For people in my family who are in the early career stage, I get Strengths Finder 2.0. It's been my most powerful career development tool yet and I want to pass that on to others. (The Alchemist is also a standby book that I give to anyone that doesn't have it.)– Carolyn

6. cooking lessons for two
I’ve organized with my partner’s favourite restaurant to run a private cooking class, to show us how they make their sinuous, silky pasta. Equal parts romantic and practical. – Michael

Have a list you’re checking twice? What are some of the best gifts your giving this year?

who is john galt?

This question appears many times in Ayn Rand’s classic 1957 novel, “Atlas Shrugged,” and, curiously, it also appears on the side of our shopping bags currently in our stores.

You might be wondering why a company that makes yoga clothing has chosen a legendary literary character’s name to adorn the side of our bags. lululemon’s founder, Chip Wilson, first read this book when he was eighteen years old working away from home. Only later, looking back, did he realize the impact the book’s ideology had on his quest to elevate the world from mediocrity to greatness (it is not coincidental that this is lululemon’s company vision).

elevating the world from mediocrity to greatness

In “Atlas Shrugged,” Ayn Rand describes a society where people work and reside in government-controlled environments that are tightly regimented. Without realizing it, this control created a society of mediocrity; propagating a cycle of listless, uninspired existing as opposed to living. The character John Galt encouraged all of the world’s innovators and intelligent minds to go on strike from the increasingly controlling government in order to create a vacuum of brilliance, proving that independent creativity and free-will is critical for quality of life.

what john galt teaches us

While the plot in the book may sound radical and far-fetched, we place many of these constraints and limitations on ourselves which impede us from living our best lives. Think about it: we are all born with magical machines, aka human bodies, able to think, jump, laugh and run. We are able to control our careers, where we live, how much money we make and how we spend our days through the choices we make. Of course, there are situations sometimes where we aren’t able to control what happens to us. Life can be hard, challenging and unfair. What we can control, however, is our reaction. We can choose to rise up and be great.

Many of us choose mediocrity without even realizing it. We think we “have” to do things or “aren’t able” to do what we want. We create rules and experience fear when we dream of a life we love. Why do we do this? Because our society encourages mediocrity. It is easier to be mediocre than to be great.

What do we want to create for our lives right now? We can do it. It might be hard but there is nothing stopping us. Think about the reasons and excuses that come up when we envision our best lives; it is remarkable how manipulative and clever mediocrity can be, sneakily convincing us to continue existing without what we desire most.

Our bags are visual reminders for ourselves to live a life we love and conquer the epidemic of mediocrity. We all have a John Galt inside of us, cheering us on. How are we going to live lives we love?

want more?

• get your own copy of Atlas Shrugged
• keep the sun shining all winter long with these beach reads
• how to get a book club off the ground

Just like summer weddings, summer beach reading can't be rushed into without advice from your friends. When we asked for some great beach reads for the summer, you didn't let us down. Here are the top picks for "something old, something new, something deep and something trashy". Enjoy!



If we've missed your favourites, be sure to let us know. We're always on the lookout for the latest and greatest best-story-ever-told.

want more

• Line up your music for summer.
• Be prepared for adventure with paradise beachwear.

Today we say hello to Citron and Pink Mist! It's no secret that we love pink around here but you may not know about our other love - this Pink. If you haven't checked out any of Dan Pink's work, we strongly suggest you do. His books, his blog - everything the man touches seems to turn to gold - pink gold.

drive

Dan Pink speaks about motivation but he's not necessarily a motivational speaker. When he spoke at our Leadership Conference, he left us with six powerful words we won't forget. The first three were autonomy, mastery and purpose - the components of lasting, intrinsic motivation and the themes from his powerful book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. It's currently available in a whopping eleven languages (Pig Latin pending). You really need to read it. It changed how we do life around here.

dan pink on the surprising science of motivation

If you have 18 minutes, spend them wisely - watch Dan's TED talk on motivation. (In short, Pink says the business community is missing the mark.)

The last three words Dan left us with were brevity, levity, and repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition. (Okay, that's more than three but you get the idea.) According to Dan, these are the keys to powerful communication. (We agree. That's why we're keeping this blog post nice and short.) Pour yourself a glass of citron-ade and immerse yourself in Pink!

citron modern racer tank

Forget the business world. How are you trying to motivate yourself? How does autonomy, mastery and purpose fit into the way you achieve your goals? How does Dan's insight challenge the way you operate your personal business?

Bibliophilia members celebrate the completion of their first read at lululemon's Store Support Centre.

There is so much to gain between the covers of a book. Some teach us about parts of the world we have yet to visit, or give us insights into the human condition, while others draw us into a captivating, fictional world. Reading has always been my solo activity of choice, but I recently discovered that reading with a book club can offer so much more!

I joined my first book club, luluemon’s Bibilophilia, earlier this year and we just closed the cover on Eckhart Tolle’s, A New Earth. I had read this book the summer prior, but the book club’s leisurely pace & lengthy discussions really cemented the concepts I didn’t understand before. Bibliophilia met every few weeks, so that we could explore the book together and discuss any questions or timely themes that came up.

What could be more motivating than the chance to catch up on some reading, while bonding with old friends and new faces? Check out the tips below to get your own book club rolling:

1. Recruit a few avid readers from your workplace, sports team or social circle. Ask each person to invite a friend or two and soon you’ll have a diverse group.

2. Discuss the number of chapters you’ll read between meetings & the frequency of those meetings with your group members. Finding a sustainable pace ensures that reading doesn’t become a chore.

3. Try rotating the hosting responsibilities around your group. Meet at someone’s house for an intimate discussion, or at a quiet restaurant for zero prep work.

4. Have the host facilitate the discussion and supply some probing questions, or have every member prepare a few.

5. Send out the questions via e-mail prior to your meeting, so that group members get a chance to contemplate the questions. Not everyone’s genius comes out when they’re put on the spot!

6. Check out your local library for book club sets. Select titles can be checked out in sets of 10 for an extended loan period of 6 weeks. Just don’t write in the margins!

Sharing your love of reading with others in this way inspires powerful discussions & meaningful actions. What books have resonated with you lately? Are you already a member of a book club in your own community?

Sleep. Read. Sweat. Shower. Work. Meet. Write. Shop. Clean. Fix. Organize. Here. There. Everywhere.

I am a recovering list-a-holic. Seriously, if I could itemize the minute details of my life purely for the satisfaction of crossing tasks off my list, I would. I do.

The to-do list is hardly fresh. Children return to school and receive agendas on their first day at class. As for me, I have been sharpening my planning skills as if training for the Organizational Olympics since the ripe age of seven, and I am as detail-oriented as they come. Come to my apartment, and witness the to-do list that is permanently fixed to my front door. (Neurotic? Guilty.) Recently my paradigms of list-making were shaken up a bit – enter the “stop doing” list.

I just finished working my way through Jim Collin’s book Good to Great, a must-read in my opinion. His research resonated with me - my eager eyes feasted on all the pretty little lists, brimming with empirical data, waiting neatly for me to absorb, page after page. I learned that “good-to-great leaders distinguish themselves by their unyielding discipline to stop doing anything and everything that doesn't fit tightly within their Hedgehog Concept. “ (Hedgehog concept? It has nothing to do with chocolates. You need to read this book and learn more.) The more I chew on this idea, the more I like it – and guess what? Out comes my red journal and POP! a new list descends the page.

1. I stop chatting online; instead I welcome friends into my home for real quality time.
2. I stop doing busy things that thwart my creativity.
3. I stop wasting time lamenting the things I do not have and think I need. I am grateful. Period.
4. I stop making the computer screen the first and last thing I see in a day.
5. I stop criticizing myself & the people in my world. I replace criticism with encouragement and praise or nothing at all.
6. I stop spending time worrying about the future. Every day has enough troubles of its own.

Streamline your life. Take inventory of all the “DO’s” in your life and see if they align with who you are and where you want to go. Make a list of “DON’Ts” and bathe in the clarity that follows. Repeat as necessary.

What’s on your list today?