We all know that meditation is good for the mind, enhancing clarity, equanimity, and intuition. But, did you know that meditation is good for the body as well? It lowers oxygen consumption. It decreases respiratory rate. It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate. Increases exercise tolerance in heart patients. Leads to a deeper level of relaxation. Go..read more
Love Your Feet – Foot Care Tips for Happy Feet
I have received a few emails in the past few months from students and teachers on the subject of the feet, and thought we might begin a discussion of this important part of our anatomy. The feet are the most distant part of our anatomy to where we usually "reside" in our minds, and thus they can often be relegated to a position of little importance. That is, until they begi..read more
Quick Yoga Fixes
Yoga is a deep and rich experience of body, breath and awareness, but sometimes the depth of our practice is hindered by slippery palms, niggling aches and minor discomforts that keep the awareness from moving deeper into the joy of the present-moment focus that our asana practice delivers. Here are a few "quick fixes" to allow you to experience the depth of your practic..read more
Causes & Quick Fixes for Abdominal Bloating
I regularly field questions from students and Core Yoga instructors about the causes of that uncomfortable bulk around the waist, and the abdominal bloating that most of us experience from time to time, and wanted to address in a few points here.
Firstly, excess abdominal fat and abdominal bloating are two different things. When we carry excess ab..read more
Yoga For Desk Jockeys Part 2
Following on from last month’s article, this piece will explore some techniques designed to support your body in maintaining a healthy posture, reducing repetitive strain at work, and helping you to continue your computer work with less tension, strain, and discomfort.
A large majority of the population spends a large percentage of their time at ..read more
Yoga For Desk Jockeys Part 1
The majority of students and teachers that I work with report that they spend at least a few hours a day on a computer. The result of frequent and long-term computer use is that the body begins to form itself around the task of typing. This means that your shoulders hunch forward, your chin pokes out, and your upper back begins to round. This kind of posture can cause a lot ..read more
Yoga Injuries – On The Rise?
Following our discussion last month about the current conversation in the yoga industry (and in the broader community) about the incidence of Yoga injuries, I have done a bit of research on whether or not there truly is an increase in Yoga injuries and, if so, how we can be safer teachers and students in our practice.
Are Yoga Injuries on t..read more
Yoga For Athletes
This month I have read several articles about how more and more athletes are practicing Yoga, not just to relax and unwind after a tough training session, but also for the many fitness and sport-specific training benefits. Athletes of all levels and from a wide variety of sports are using both group and private yoga sessions to increase flexibility, strength, endurance and agil..read more
Ayurvedic Self Care – Garshana Self Massage
Ayurveda – Yoga’s ‘sister science’ of holistic health care – recommends several self-care techniques that not only bring great health, vitality and purification to the body, but also offer an opportunity for compassionate self-care that can bring healing and connection to body, mind and spirit. In a series of Self Care articles, I will share a few of these simpl..read more
Ayurvedic Self Care – Abhyanga Self Massage
Ayurveda – Yoga’s ‘sister science’ of holistic medicine and preventative health care – recommends several self-care techniques that not only bring great health, vitality and purification to the body, but also offer an opportunity for compassionate self-care that can bring healing and connection to body, mind and spirit. In a series of Self Care articles, I will s..read more
Ayurvedic Self Analysis – Vata Dosha
Ayurveda – Yoga’s ‘sister science’ of holistic medicine and preventative health care describes three Doshas or three constitutional types that each of us have in some combination. The Doshas are a system of classification that help us to understand our essential makeup which greatly influences our physical body, the function of our mind, our behav..read more
Ayurvedic Self Analysis – Pitta Dosha
Ayurveda – Yoga’s ‘sister science’ of holistic medicine and preventative health care describes three Doshas or three constitutional types that each of us have in some combination. The Doshas are a system of classification that help us to understand our essential makeup which greatly influences our physical body, the function of our mind, our beha..read more