A little while back I happened to be reading the bios of some of my favorite yoga stars when I came across this curious mention in the bio of my secret crush, Sadie Nardini:
“Her 15 years of study in the yogic arts, energetics, eastern and western philosophy, nutrition, anatomy and Ninja training, attract students of all styles seeking to draw the powerful energy of Center into their yoga practice and their lives….” [emphasis added]
What? What?
Apparently, I’m a little behind on this one, as Saide has been talking about the Ninja connection since at least April 24, 2012 when she uploaded this Youtube video to help those of a befuddled curiosity come to grips with rumors regarding her training in the secret black arts:
Of course, my first assumption was that this was some whack ass (or dope as hell, depending how you view it) neo-ninja shizzle and not really anything to write the ol’ mumsie about. But, The Babarazzi’s own martial arts consultant assured me that Nardini was practicing at the Muzosa Bujinkan Dojo of NYC, and therefor notable.
My own relationship to the black-clad arts began way back when I was a kid mildly obssessed with G.I. Joe’s arch rivals, Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow.
Word is bond
Less word is bond
It ended when I called a local Brazilian Jiu Jitsu center asking if they could point me to the nearest ninjitsu dojo, to which they laughed and offered me a discounted first month membership fee to take Brazillian Jiu Jitsu classes and actually make a difference in the world. Now, while I’m certainly down with possessing some serious secret internal powers, as well as the ability to walk on water, I’m even more down with possessing some not-so-secret powers like being able to verbally express to a would-be cellphone swiper exactly which articular junction I’m about to snap in half.
Bad situation to be in
Anyway, guess what I found out in my lil’ internet search? You can actually Google “Sadie Nardini Ninja” and come up with not one, but a couple of hits, which is both bad ass, as well as “Oh no. Don’t do it, Sadie!” when you inevitably end up watching this video…
…which looks about as “ninja” as a meth addict on a subway platform.
The “meth dance”
So, here’s a question: Do you think it’s time the medical community’s own controversial bible, the DSM, included an entry dealing with the obsession people have with incorporating every little hobby/practice/whimsy into some sort of new-fangled yoga practice? I mean, why is that some people can simply practice yoga and also have a separate healthy interest in playing “cornhole“….
Cornholing it up
…while other people feel the need to create “Cornhole Yoga?” I can’t help but wonder if there’s a related correspondence between the yoga mash-up -vs- integrity phenomenon and people who need their food neatly separated on a plate…
…and those who like it all f’ed up…..
Somewhere in here there’s a joke about “yoga for weightloss,” but I can’t seem to access it in the Akashic Records.
Anyway, since you all seem to love Die Antwoord, here’s some serious ninja drops that started it all for those Zef-styled pop-saboteurs:
![This Naked Yoga School Video is Awesome [VIDEO]](https://thebabarazzi.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/hqdefault.jpg?resize=200%2C200)
![[The Friday Good] Gour Khepa Das Baul Singing Mad Spirit](https://thebabarazzi.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/thumb.png?resize=200%2C200)
![[NSFW (in every way)] Yoga Undressed Remains Undressed](https://thebabarazzi.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/naked1.jpg?resize=200%2C200)
The Babarazzi 
Zhander Remete’s Shadow yoga is a kick-ass system which marries martial arts (mainly Kung Fu) and Qi Gong understanding to yoga asana practice. The rest is just fluff and weight-loss promotion
I’ve checked this before. Did look kinda boss.
he also uses a lot from kalari payyattu, which is an indian martial art from kerala – and some people claim that kung fu also has its origins in kalari.
the shadow yoga system is pretty intriguing to me too. i took a few classes when i was visiting santa fe one time and really dug on it. stuff is no joke hard either. Zhander’s stuff has been worked out and adapted over MANY years of practice and study though, as opposed to this weekend warrior stuff. his book is kind of interesting too, although practically speaking rather unhelpful. basically each chapter is, “hey this stuff is pretty amazing, but there is just no fucking way you’re ready for it yet”. i really like his take on working out the stuck prana in the joints as being more important than that of the muscles and by fixing the flow in the major peripheral joints(wrists/ankles/neck) the rest of the body will come in to balance. and dear god, those videos on youtube are just beautiful to watch.
Yeah, youtube vids are beautiful. Don’t know if it’s good or bad, but stuff like that always reminds me of how simple my own practice is. Next birth, maybe.
Shadow yoga is pretty powerful. I’ve taken a number of classes from Scott Blossom and each one was really illuminating. It’s quite different from my regular practice, but I found it to be very informative in terms of the awareness of prana moving and how to find real stability in stance by focusing on the bones. If I lived in Berkeley I would be at his center all the time. Scott’s a fantastic teacher, very down to earth, serious and light-hearted all at the same time. Highly recommend him.
There’s something there with that guy, right. Never done it, but it does have some gravity it seems. Wonder what it is???
Scott is super humble. He’s been doing his practice seriously and privately for many many years – and it shows in his demeanor. Last class I took with him he told us about how when he first met his teacher he could do lots of advanced hatha yoga poses, but his teacher made him practice this very simple stance for a few years until he could stay in it for up to 30 minutes without fatiguing his muscles or getting frustrated…the challenge of this stance, which he made us do in class for a few minutes and it was tough, is to focus on stability in the bones….only then would his teacher let him invert. I thought that was pretty legit.
anyone who is seriously studying a martial art wouldn’t say something like, “we’ll see where i am in a year.” it’s more like, “we’ll see where i am in about 10-20 years of diligent study under one teacher.” i studied seven star mantis kung fu, and my sifu would get so tired of yoga teachers calling him and wanting to “add some qi gong” into their yoga classes – they would want to drop in for a few classes and then just teach what they thought they had learned. western yoga has gotten so disconnected from the teacher-student dynamic, i think a lot of yoga teachers don’t understand just how important your relationship to your teacher is. when you’re studying a traditional martial art, with a lineage and a teacher who is a part of that lineage, you don’t just go “teaching” what you’ve learned before you’ve studied for a long time and asked permission. and referring to it as “cross training for your yoga practice…” grrr.
Oh, how I wish I could thumbs up this over and over until my real thumbs got tired from tapping this here smartphone.
I studied Aikido for many years; the man I learned the from lived and studied in Japan with his teacher (Michio Hikitsuchi) for 14 years before he began teaching in the states.
He would often say that he wanted to write a book called ‘Aikido in 40 Easy Years’. It always made me smile, but when I think back now and actually visualize him saying it, he seemed a little sad.
Sadie seems to be a hybrid between Nicki Minaj and the Sham Wow guy. Only better dressed/undressed as the ninja arts require.
Ninja yoga now, huh? think I’ll hold out for Teenage Mutant Ninja turtle 200 hour certification.
Thanks to your Wikipedia link, today I learned that “meteorology” and “geography” are two of the eighteen essential disciplines of ninjutsu. I will never look at my weatherman the same way.
For those who would like to learn more about ninjas, I recommend the following treatise:
http://www.realultimatepower.net/index4.htm
Based on her videos, Sadie certainly seems to have read it.
That was totally AWESOME…It changed my life…I am going to sign up for Sadies Ninja Warrior Training just as soon as I can get my friend Skinny Joe to sign my permission slip cuz my writing is no good. I am going to go shop for a Ninja belt just for the inspi…insipi…fun.
Arg, the moment! Totally meant to include Real Ultimate Power in the article, but spaced on it. That shit used to bring hours of LOLs back in the day.
“Ninjas fight ALL the time.”
No worries Baba, I got your back. But maybe you can help a brother scratch an itch by doing a piece on this nonsense:
http://yogadork.com/yd-deals/yd-deal-wax-on-wax-25-percent-off-at-shobha/
YogaDork is encouraging all the yoginis to wax your beavs so Patanjali doesn’t see your nasty pubes sticking out your lulus like some gnarly sadhu’s beard. 25% off of 100% off!
The 1st rule of Ninja training is…..oh never mind.
Tyler Durden is weeping somewhere.
Maha Garuda is sad today at the news of the passing of Ray Manzerek….
Yo-Landi Vi$$er has more ninja in her small left toe that Sadie ever will.
i feel the need to mention that yoga students should never practice with a teacher who has yet to get over their feet at the same time going into and out of upward dog. neophyte alignment issues. also, she is just LAME.
On the subject of the up-dog down dog transition …
I found, for the few years of my practice, that frequently at the end of my yoga practice I’d bave brief, stabbing pain in one or both of my sacro-iliac joint.
One day, a dear friend of mine was subbing for one of my favourite teachers, and I was kinda sorta demoing for him but more, you know, doing my practice. And the dude says, “when you transition from up dog to down dog, roll over both feet simultaneously. It’s a little unstable on your sacro-iliac joint if you do it one leg at a time.”
My sacro-iliac joint has felt MUCH better since then. I was able to get this much needed instruction because the class was small because most of the regular students didn’t come because there was a sub.
So, maybe there’s some merit to the above comment. I try to void cut and dry rules like that 🙂
Stress plays a huge role in overeating. It also determines how and where fat is stored in the body.