Improving Posture: Don’t Get Trapped in Internal Rotator Dominance
In our computer-dominated society, poor posture is increasingly common. And while the usual recommendation is to simply ‘stand straight,’ changing posture habits is just not that easy. Poor posture typically results from a combination of cascading, dysfunctional elements acting on
The Adductors and Alignment in Yoga Postures: Interview with Julie Gudmestad
Most yoga teachers are aware of the alignment issues that tight hamstrings cause in yoga postures. However, the adductors of the inner thighs create their own problems, if they are either too tight or too weak, says Iyengar yoga teacher
Yoga Light Within You: 12 Sanskrit Words for Winter Meditations
Yoga sutra I.36: viśokā vā jyotiṣmatī “We can be free of suffering by paying attention to the light within.” When we experience the long nights and short days of the winter season, we can benefit from a deeper look at yoga
ChatterRunGirl: From Overweight to Yogini-Runner in Nine Years
Nine years ago, Alice Toyonaga was told by her doctor that if she didn’t change her ways, she would “have a stroke by age 30.” At the time, Alice was an overweight smoker with an out-of-control diet. Many people in
What to Eat?: Breaking Through the Confusion to Reconnect with Instinctual Eating
Following the excess and indulgences of the holiday season, many of us may be trying to change our eating habits. We set unrealistic standards and unattainable resolutions. Then when we don’t reach them, we blame ourselves and a vicious cycle
How Does Yoga Work? Study Sheds Light on Mechanisms of Change
Have you ever wondered what was behind the magic that you feel at the end of a yoga practice? There are over 2,000 articles related to yoga and health listed on PubMed, a database managed by the National Institutes of
Yoga Gets into Med School - Students learn to relax patients, and themselves
Emily Holick thought yoga was for sissies. But as a graduate student hoping to reduce stress, she gave it a try. And hated it. What irked the former college tennis player most was her inability to do a move that
Yoga Teacher’s Scope of Service: Knowing Your Limits
A large proportion of yoga students come to the mat with some sort of physical problem, be it an injury or illness, chronic pain, a tight neck and shoulders, bad knees, a hip replacement, or a sore back. Many have
Next Level: Maryland University of Integrative Health Launches Masters in Yoga Therapy Program
Yoga therapy is still a new and evolving professional practice. Yet interest in the medical and therapeutic applications of yoga is rapidly growing and making headway into the academic world. Potential practitioners of therapeutic yoga can take their skills to
Complementary Therapies like Yoga Ease the Pain of Osteoarthritis
Our joints bear the brunt of our daily actions and movements. For some people, joint wear and tear leads to osteoarthritis (OA), an often painful and progressive condition resulting in stiff or tender joints and reduced range of motion, which