“Yoga is a balance of effort and ease. ” ~ Stacey Sperling, my yoga teacher
“It takes 7 years to get to enlightenment. 9 if you really try.” ~ Will Duprey, my yoga teacher
3 weekends of yoga teacher training down, 4 to go. We’re now 1/3 of the way through the course. I can feel the change in my body and in my mind. I’m finding ease in my effort, and it seems that the more effort I place into my practice, the more ease I feel. On the mat and off the mat.
Yoga in the west is about asanas, poses. In the west, we are always running, striving, reaching. We are afraid of never having enough, of losing what we have, of what people will think if we can’t keep up. That’s a lot of effort, and there’s no ease anywhere in there.
I’m beginning to wonder if it’s possible to have fruitful effort without a sense of ease. Perhaps this is just another way of saying that we should be on the path of least resistance. It doesn’t mean that path is easy; on the contrary, a good deal of effort is required to get on and stay on the path we’re meant for, our dharma. I’m suggesting that if we find ourselves heading down a road where we find no ease, where it seems that no matter how hard we try, everything just gets harder, then maybe we need to go another way. Yoga’s teaching me that effort and ease are not opponents, but rather partners.
Published by Christa Avampato
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
Hey Christa,
Good to read about your experience with Yoga. Yoga has helped my Mom to continue to be healthy even while suffering from acute arthritis. Yoga also reminds me of the Guruji (respected teacher) who use to teach Yoga to my Mom. He was a wisdom powerhouse.
Hope you enjoy your time doing Yoga and it helps you find balance between your inner self and outer world 🙂
Cheers,
Sumit
LikeLike
Hi Sumit! Thanks for sharing the story about your mom. I’m actually very interested in teaching yoga to people who are dealing with some type of health issue like your Mom. Did she practice at a studio or did she do one-on-one sessions? How is she doing now?
LikeLike
Hi Chirsta: Good to know of your intention to help people dealing with health issues. My Mom had one-on-one sessions and that was almost 20 yrs ago. She is doing well as of now, thanks for asking :).
LikeLike
Very glad to hear your mom is well, Sumit!
LikeLike