How Yoga Practice Strengthens Your Core Muscles—Without Crunches
From my observations around my gym it looks like abdominal crunches are on their way out, which is a good thing. It doesn’t mean that you should never do them; it just means that you shouldn’t do them exclusively. An
Meditation May Change The Brain’s Response To Stress, Study Shows
Chronic stress kills. Decades of research show that high levels of persistent stress undermine every system in the body, increasing the risk for disease, diminished quality of life, and poor mental health including psychiatric illness and dementia. A study in Biological
Research Suggests Yoga May Ease Symptoms of Prenatal Depression
Prenatal depression can lead to numerous immediate and long-term negative consequences for mothers and their children. Recent research suggests that prenatal depression is a strong predictor of postpartum depression, and is also associated with fetal growth delays, premature birth, low
7 Reasons to Practice Plank Pose and 4 Awesome Versions to Keep You Safe!
Plank Pose (Phalakasana, as it is sometimes called in modern times) often shows up in our practice as a brief way station between other poses, such as between Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) and Four Limbed Staff Pose (Chaturanga Dandasana).
Best Bet for Preventing Type 2 Diabetes? A Healthy Lifestyle Plus Yoga Says Study
Metabolic syndrome refers to a cluster of symptoms, which increase the risk for diabetes, heart disease, stroke and premature death. A study published in Diabetes & Metabolism finds that yoga may be an excellent and feasible addition to a healthy
Keys to Becoming a Successful Yoga Teacher – Free Webinar Series for Yoga Teachers
Yoga is big, and it’s getting bigger. In just four years, the number of people who practice yoga has nearly doubled, increasing from 20.4 million people in 2012 to 36.7 million in 2016, according to a recent survey by Yoga
Doug Keller: How to Protect Your Neck in Backbends - Tips for Safe Alignment
How do you ensure proper neck alignment in yoga backbends, so the backbend goes into the thoracic spine instead of the neck? Avoid Neck Pain in Backbends A common mistake almost all yoga students make is to crank the neck back
The Fit Floor Part 3: Alignment - Position Your Pelvic Floor For Fitness
The relationship between your diaphragm and pelvic floor is synergistic. In the ideal situation, the pelvic floor mirrors the movement of your diaphragm, giving the pelvic floor uniform tone from front to back. The key to supporting this synergistic relationship
Yoga Pose Primer: Jathara Parivartanasana (Revolved Belly Pose)
Taoists call the belly the “elixir field.” In addition to the belly’s role as assimilator of food, from before birth the navel contains a reservoir of life force, a gift from our mothers. According to Chinese medicine, positive emotional qualities
Yoga Anatomy: The Rectus Femoris Muscle in Yoga
In this blog post we examine the rectus femoris muscle and its relation to yoga poses, beginning with an overview of the muscle and how it stretches. We conclude with some interesting synergy that can occur between the rectus femoris
Tapping Into The Power of The Vagus Nerve - How Your Breath Can Change Your Relationships:
Did you know that chronic stress undermines your behavior in relationships? Applied neuroscience research shows that when your brain and nervous system are dominated by the stress response you are prone to greater anxiety, irritability, negative mood and behavioral rigidity.
The Fit Floor Part 2: Teach Your Pelvic Floor a New Trick
The pelvic floor muscles share connections with our diaphragm, organ systems and our musculo-skeletal structure. The pelvic floor has two parts—front and back. Most popular pelvic floor toning exercises utilize just the back half of the pelvic floor, leaving out
Yoga Anatomy: 4 Main Functions of Your Core Muscles
One thing that I often hear from new yoga clients is: “I was told by my doctor (PT, massage therapist, personal trainer, etc.) that I need to strengthen my core.” “Awesome! – I say – where is your core?” “My
Building Core Strength in Yoga - It's Not What You Think
Think core strengthening is all about painful and tedious crunches? Think again! The purpose of core strengthening is essentially about building core stability. This involves not just strengthening the muscles, but a functional component as well. The aim is to build the strengthe
Yoga Practice Tips: 4 Images to Enliven Your Classes
In my relatively few years as yoga teacher, I have found it extremely helpful to use verbal cueing that creates images for students—in their minds and then hopefully in their physical experience. Unlike more general guidelines (such as breathing deeply