**Libby will not be teaching her regular classes from February 9th-28th because she is working as an Olympic correspondent for KING 5 TV**

To follow her adventures in Whistler, check out the video on the KING 5 Website, or her blog at: http://www.nbcolympics.com/king/blogs/blog=libbyludlowsblog/index.html#libby+ludlows+blog

Libby’s Regular Teaching Schedule

Mondays-
Yoga for Athletes 7:30-8:45PM at Yogabliss

Tuesdays-
Hour of Power 9:30-10:30AM at Yogabliss
Hour of Power 12:00-1:00 PM at Be Luminous

Wednesdays-
Hour of Power 6:15-7:15AM + Optional Seated Meditation 7:15-7:45AM at Be Luminous

Thursdays-
6:00-7:15PM Gentler Vinyasa at Mountain Flow Yoga
7:30-8:30PM Power Hour Vinyasa at Mountain Flow Yoga

Yogabliss is located off I-90 on Mercer Island (see: www.yogabliss.org)
Be Luminous is located over the Whole Foods in South Lake Union (see: www.beluminousyoga.com)
Mountain Flow Yoga is located in the heart of Madison Park (see: www.mountainflowyoga.com)

Sundays 4:00-5:30
September 13th – October 4th
$89 for all four sessions

Whether you are a skier wanting to get ready for the ski season, or simply someone interested in an athletic style of vinyasa flow yoga, this four-session workshop series offers the perfect opportunity to tune into your body for improved athletic performance and overall well being.

This dynamic class will link movement with the breath to both enliven and balance the body, mind, and spirit. Each 90-minute workshop will cultivate strength, balance, and flexibility in order to address imbalances, relieve tension, and help improve overall function and range of motion. With an emphasis on mindfulness, participants will also develop better body awareness, a keener inward focus, and move toward a more integrated and unified self. Attention to alignment, breathing, and quieting of the mind ensures an intelligent and healing practice. Participants should be prepared to move and sweat, but are encouraged to work within themselves and honor their limits.

Libby is a former ten-year member of the U.S. Ski Team, an Olympian, and a U.S. National Giant Slalom Champion. Since she retired from ski racing, Libby earned her Yoga Alliance instructor certification in Goa, India and has been teaching Yoga for Athletes at Dartmouth College. After taking Libby’s yoga class this spring, U.S. Ski Team member and World Cup ski racer Andrew Weibrecht wrote: “Libby’s knowledge of both yoga and athletic ailments really helped improve many of the chronic injuries that I have been suffering with for the past three or four seasons. Libby’s classes are great for anybody who is looking for a great ‘yoga’ experience while building strength and flexibility.”

All levels of yoga experience are welcome

Only ages 16 and up please

Classes held at:
ONVO Whole Body Health
10838 Main St
Bellevue, WA 98004-6322

Space is limited, so please register early!

To register, please email libbyludlow@gmail.com

Yoga for Athletes

Sundays 4:00-5:30

September 13th through October 4th

$89 for all four 90 min. sessions

More info soon to come!

The Real Beauty self-esteem workshop this past weekend was a great success! With the diligent help of five wonderful family members and friends, the session ran beautifully. Twenty girls—ages eight through twelve—participated in the two hours of discussions and activities.

The goal of the workshop was to heighten awareness about the unrealistic portrayals of beauty in the media, encourage girls to understand and accept a wider definition of beauty, and to promote self-esteem and positive self-image. Over the two hours, the girls participated in a fun “quiz” that pointed out which messages propagated by the media are “fact,” and what ones are “fiction.” They also did several workbook exercises designed to highlight the value of having unique talents or attributes, as well as stimulate thought about self-esteem. In our discussion of the way the media manipulates images, the girls watched a film called “Evolution” (which can be viewed at: http://dove.msn.com/#/features/videos/default.aspx[cp-documentid=8354359]/). Then after analyzing magazine advertisements, each girl was able to create her own “advertisement,” which sent whatever kind of message she felt girls ought to receive… Most of the girls’ messages were to the tone of, “Be happy being you,” or “Every girl is beautiful in her own way.” It was great to see the girl’s creative sides! The workshop concluded with discussions about how to help other girls feel good about themselves, how to maintain self-esteem, as well as instruction on goal setting.

I have to say, I was truly blown away by the intelligence and maturity of the girls who attended. Their comments and insight was both refreshing and fun. While the disparity in ages proved to be challenging, but the young ones hung in there for the entire two hours and kept up with surprising acuity. I think that the girls went home with a powerful message and I think they will remember it for some time. It is so encouraging to know that our world is graced with such strong, smart young girls!

I am glad that I got my first workshop under my belt, and I do look forward to holding more in the future… I learned a lot of things this time around that I’d like to do differently, and gained some insight into how I can reach the girls better. Since I am going to be at Dartmouth for Fall and Spring quarters, the next time I will be holding a workshop in the Seattle area will be either in the Winter or next Summer. While I want to put on more of the standard “real beauty” sessions for girls, I am also interested in working more exclusively with young female athletes to talk about both the benefits and challenges of being a female athlete today. It would be cool to do workshops with girl’s sports Teams too… Of course there are lots of possibilities! There will definitely be more fun stuff in the future.

If parents have comments, requests, or suggestions about my last workshop or future workshops, I encourage you to email me at libby@libbyludlow.com.

Next Up….

Workshops for young girls and athletes

August 23rd

ONVO Whole Body Health
10838 Main Street
Bellevue, WA 98004

Session 1: “Real Beauty” Workshop for girls ages 8-12
12pm-2pm

Girls are bombarded by images of idealized “beauty” every day. These images can negatively influence how girls see their bodies and themselves. This workshop will encourage the girls to embrace a more positive self-image, both inside and out. Borrowing activities from Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty, girls will engage in a healthy dialogue about self-esteem.

Session 2: “Finding Beauty in Strength” Workshop for female athletes ages 13-15
3pm-5pm

Although it is undeniable that participation in sports helps young girls develop self-confidence, that doesn’t mean young athletes are immune to the unhealthy images of beauty portrayed by their peers and the media. This workshop will include discussion about athletic body-image and the virtues of pursuing excellence, as well as activities to cultivate self-esteem.

The workshops are free of charge, however, small donations will be accepted after completion of the workshop to help offset the cost of printing the girls’ workbooks.

Both sessions will be hosted by former U.S. Ski Team member and U.S. Olympian, Libby Ludlow. Three additional college-educated women who have experience working with kids will be helping facilitate the workshops.

Attendance for each workshop will be capped at 30 girls maximum.

These workshops are designed for the girls to attend without a parent or mentor, however, we highly encourage parents and mentors to carry out an ongoing dialogue about self-esteem and body-image into the future. The girls will be sent home with a workbook that will include information and various activities. The hope is that parents and mentors will be proactive in discussing what the girls learned in the workshop and encourage them to cultivate awareness and self-esteem by engaging with the workbook.

Email seattleselfesteem@gmail.com to register. Please indicate which session and the attendee’s full name and age.

After an amazing ten years on the U.S. Ski Team, I have decided to announce my retirement from ski racing. Although I was able to successfully fight back from many setbacks—including my most recent knee injury—in the end there have simply been too many injuries for me to justify continuing with the sport. Ultimately, the frustration of constantly competing less than 100% has exceeded the joy. Aside from the expected aches and pains from ten years as a professional athlete, however, I am completely healthy and happy. It has always been my intention to walk away from ski racing on my own terms.

Photo credit: Jonathan Selkowitz

Honestly, it is easy for me to walk away right now. I accomplished more in my career than I ever really thought I could. I scored forty-five top-30 World Cup results, at my best I was ranked tenth in the World in Super G, I had three top-10 World Cup results, I got ninth place at World Championships, I was a National Champion, and I was an Olympian. All of these things I accomplished during one of the most momentous and strongest eras of American alpine skiing history. It seems fitting that my World Cup career culminated with my 100th World Cup start, on the 2010 Olympic course in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, and with my family and friends in the crowd watching.

While I am very proud of my tenure on the Team, I recognize the time has come for me to move on. I have always been a multi-dimensional individual and I look forward to exercising my many other strengths as well as exploring my many other interests. Next year, in June 2009, I will graduate from Dartmouth College with a degree in Philosophy. I definitely look forward to the satisfaction of finishing my college education after what will be eight years of being a part-time student in the off-season. After college, I plan on traveling to India to obtain my yoga instructor certification. I have always had a passion for yoga and I look forward to enriching other people’s lives through instruction. It is possible I will consider graduate school after I’ve had the opportunity to soak up some quality time with the wonderful family and friends I have put on hold for so many years.

Obviously I am facing a major transition, but as I move forward I find confidence knowing that I gave ski racing every single thing I had. I gave 100% every moment of every run, and there wasn’t a single day I didn’t leave my heart out on the hill. Of course I also know that skiing will always be a part of me. My passion for skiing has not diminished in the slightest bit and I couldn’t be more excited to finally have the freedom to truly freeski.

While I look forward to joining my family every weekend at my home ski area Crystal Mountain, I will always remember my time on the U.S. Ski Team with fondness. My ten years on the U.S. Ski Team helped mold me into the person I am today and I am very grateful for the amazing experiences the Team afforded me. I had the privilege of working with wonderful coaches, became friends with some incredible individuals, and skied alongside some tremendous athletes. I will always highly value the many relationships and memories I collected over the years… I got to travel the world, doing what I love, with cool people—it really doesn’t get much better than that.

As this new chapter of my life unfolds, I couldn’t be more excited about what the future has in store for me! A big thanks to everyone who supported me throughout my career, I couldn’t have done it on my own.

It felt good to end the season on the podium. Getting third in the GS at U.S. Nationals was a really positive way to walk away from the 07-08 season. I skied well and I was proud of how I was able to pick myself up for my final race after a challenging couple of months. It was also really cool to see Lauren win, too. I couldn’t have been happier to see someone else on top in the GS.

Now that my season is over, I am back at school at Dartmouth College. I will be studying hard for the next couple of months, taking a heavy load of four classes. I am really looking forward to having the time off snow. Both my body and my brain need a break from ski racing, and going to school is the perfect diversion. I’ll be spending lots of time on my bike, and lots of time in the library… Just getting healthy is the goal for the next few months!

All of the resilience and patience I developed over the course of my career, I called upon over the past couple months…

Since I hurt my back in Sestriere, Italy in early February, things have been pretty tough. I tweaked my lower back during the World Cup Downhill in the middle of a turn. Although I was able to finish the run, it turned out that I had a couple of bulging disks. It was a very painful and debilitating injury and has literally been the “straw that broke the camel’s back,” so to speak. Adding the back pain, on top of my everyday knee pain, has made skiing a real challenge. I haven’t been able to move the way I normally do because I am so stiff, and the pain has been very distracting.

The highlight through all of this recent injury drama, was being in Whistler for the World Cup races in February. I had been looking forward to those races all season, and even though my body was operating—uncomfortably—at about 60%, I still somehow made it down the Downhill course safely (although not very quickly!) Being greeted by my entire family, and a collection of my closest friends from Seattle, was one of the best feelings I have experienced at a ski race. It meant so much to see all of their smiling faces at the finish and to have them there supporting me.

After Whistler I flew back to Europe to race in the last GS of the regular World Cup season, my final chance to qualify for World Cup Finals. I was ranked 32nd in the world going into the week and only needed to move into the top-25. Although my back wasn’t feeling great, I actually had some really fast training leading into the race. We made the trip north to Zwiesel, Germany for the races, but we never got to compete. A huge wind/rain storm (which I believe actually attained hurricane status) tore through the region that weekend and cancelled the races. So, a week after I arrived, I flew right back home.

The past few weeks I have been racing at Noram finals and U.S. Nationals. My back seems to have reached a plateau in its improvement since I keep cranking on it day after day skiing. I can’t express how much I am looking forward to getting back to school at Dartmouth, not only for the mental “break” from ski racing, but the physical break too. I think a few months of rest are exactly what my body needs!

I’ll admit, it has been a disappointing couple of weeks.

By nature, ski racing is always a rollercoaster ride of ups and downs. I suppose I should not be entirely surprised that I’ve slipped into a brief slump—especially considering my limited training—but that doesn’t make my sub-par results any easier to swallow.

Although I didn’t qualify for second run in the GS in Maribor (35th), it was easy to brush off the disappointment because it was practically impossible to move into the top-30 that day. Conditions were really poor and only two girls starting outside the top-30, broke into the top-30. Thirtieth place was almost six seconds out! I skied well and was pleased to have a mistake-free run on a challenging course.

Me racing in Maribor. Photo credit: Zoom Agence

After Maribor, I had a really productive three-day training block in Reinswald, Italy. I can’t tell you how nice it was to finally have a few days to focus on my skiing away from a competitive setting. The Super G training went really well and it was encouraging to see that my times were just as fast as Lindsey’s. I also figured a few things out with my equipment setup… Basically, I made gains with my skiing and equipment that I normally would have been making in October or November. I finally felt like I found a level of skiing that felt solid and competitive.

Cortina at its best

Unfortunately, I didn’t do a very good job at translating that feeling to my racing. Albeit, my 29th in the Downhill in Cortina wasn’t a bad result for me—especially on such a glider’s course—but my finishes in the Super G races were definitely a letdown. In the first Super G I was too hard on my edges in the soft snow, and I had a couple of uncharacteristic bobbles. I was crushed that I got 35th place in what I consider “my” event.

The next day I was determined to be more aggressive with my line, softer on my edges, and more relaxed with my approach. I actually did all of these things… Then I went out of the course. My aggressive tactics eventually caught up to me when I hit some bumps, and missed a gate. Game over. I don’t remember the last time I DNF’d a Super G. I never do that. I was bummed, but at least I went out going for it, which was at least better than the day before.

Haffey and me on an epic powder day in Cortina. I love my Katanas!!

The next weekend I raced GS in Ofterschwang, Germany. I started number 30, which was such an exciting position to be in! I have worked so hard to be a world-class GS skier, and just having that bib on at the start made me feel like, “oh my gosh, I am one of them.” Pretty cool feeling. Anyway, I didn’t exactly ski like a world-class GS skier in my run, making a significant mistake in the middle of the top flat, and I failed to qualify for second run. Another big disappointment, but the way I look at it, is that was basically my first bad GS race of the season. And I think everyone is entitled to have a bad day.