Jennilee Toner is a rock star yoga teacher. I have more to share about one of my main gurus (below the first picture), but now I want to tell you about a Yoga Journal talent contest in which she’s competing. Jennilee is deserving not only because she has a beautiful practice and rocks the asanas, or because she is so knowledgeable about everything yoga. Jennilee lives it, breathes it, and has transcended all the roadblocks in her way to bring yoga to people who never would have been able to access its benefits and joys. And for those who were already on the path, oh, how she leads you to your core, your passion, your creative fire…to do good.

So if you’re up for doing an easy act of kindness today (and every day until 4/17), you can hop on over to the Yoga Journal Talent Search and vote for Jennilee. You can vote five times per day until April 17, 2012. Just type in her name under Search, you’ll see this gorgeous woman (below), and you can click on the thumb’s up symbol. Pretty please? She’s really great. And, of course, it would be so cool if you’d share with friends.

Thank you for reading on and hopefully clicking the thumb’s up for my friend and teacher. Let’s get this terrific yogini on the cover!

More on Jennilee. She is a teacher’s teacher: Jennilee has the ability to share her knowledge of yoga—anatomy, asana, history, and philosophy—and inspires her students to feel it, live it, and find their inner strength so the positive energy can reverberate within their families, communities, and world.

She also created Hot Warrior Yoga,™ a 50+ posture set sequence that safely strengthens both the body and mind. This practice—81 minutes, in a room heated to 90 degrees—provides a physical and psychological challenge like no other. The intelligently designed sequence combines the very best of Hatha and Vinyasa yoga. I love it for so many reasons, and here are a few:

• Consistency cultivates steadiness and ease. The set sequence allows me to think less, feel more, and enjoy. Hot Warrior Yoga™ (HWY) offers two options for the mind: breath and sensation, how the body is feeling in the pose. You groove, go within, and get strong rather than worrying about what’s coming next or which leg is forward.
• Safely strengthens and builds. HWY flows logically, preparing the body for progressively more challenging poses. I never hurt.
• Perfect combination of static and flow. My body craves this little yoga recipe. It’s interesting and non-repetitive, and has just the right mix of attention to alignment, practicing of steadiness and ease in the postures, and vinyasa flow—integrating placement of the body on the breath.
• There are options for the advanced practitioner (not me, yet!), the intermediate, and even the beginner. Emphasis is on how you go more than how far you go. You’re perfect right where you are.
• After practice, I feel totally energized. I’m not exhausted even though every part of my body feels stretched, every muscle contracted/relaxed, and my balance challenged. My heart is open, spine decompressed, and my mind is calm, clear, and focused. My husband tells me I’m always in a better mood afterward. And that statement doesn’t annoy me as it usually would.