She is at peace with herself through yoga and urges the world to join her peace drive. In Dubai as part of her ‘Play Yoga’ global tour for Adidas, Rainbeau Mars takes City Times through her world of meditation
WHETHER YOU’RE AS lithe as a contortionist or stiff as a board, yoga guru Rainbeau Mars wants you to join her revolution.
Rainbeau came to Dubai as part of a world tour, in which she is encouraging everyone and anyone to “Play Yoga” - an Adidas campaign extolling the virtues of the discipline. On Sunday, Rainbeau led two sessions at the Burjuman Fitness First to dozens of eager yoga enthusiasts.
“Yoga is about being the best version of yourself,” the Los Angeles-based beauty told City Times. “It increases your focus, tones muscles, aligns your bones and gives you clarity.”
Rainbeau acquired her unusual name because her mother, a holistic author from the French upper class, saw a rainbow from her teepee just after she had given birth.
After growing up in Hawaii and Colorado, Rainbeau moved to Hollywood at the age of 19. She went on to work as a model and an actress, appearing in films such as ‘The People Versus Larry Flint,’ before turning her attentions to yoga.
“My mother did yoga while she was pregnant with me,” she continued. “And my godmother is a yoga teacher as well. I rebelled against it for a long time - I ate pizza and smoked. But when I moved to Hollywood I needed some kind of order among the chaos.”
Rainbeau has practiced ashtanga yoga for more than 14 years and now holds the status as a “master” of the discipline. She has also released seven DVDs, which have gone on to sell more than two million copies worldwide.
“I don’t know where my life would be without yoga - I’d probably be a complete mess,” said Rainbeau. “I’m not naturally good at it, but I’ve practiced a lot.”
Celebrities including Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, David Duchovny and Flea from the ‘Red Hot Chili Peppers’ have since turned to her training, as have professional athletes such as Steffi Graf and Laila Ali.
Last year, she was approached by Adidas to become the sportswear giant’s global yoga ambassador and assist with its clothing line. She has visited 12 countries in the past year, turning millions onto the joys of yoga.
The campaign centres around Ra’Yoka, a unique hybrid of yoga, martial arts, and core conditioning. Combining breath-centred yoga with more dynamic movement, Ra’Yoka improves core strength as well as flexibility.
Rainbeau has devised a series of workouts that can be tailored towards different lifestyles or schedules, such as office workers or sportspeople. These programmes can be seen on her personal website and will be expanded for the Adidas website in the near future.
“If all the billions of people in the world practiced yoga for just 10 minutes each day, it would help create world peace,” Rainbeau insisted. “Peace begins from within. It’s like a computer - you have so many programmes going, you go into overdrive. You need to re-fragment, align your body and mind and meditate on your intentions.”
See www.adidas.ae/women or www.rainbeaumars.com for more information.
adam@khaleejtimes.com