We settle our weight down onto the floor in Sukhasana (with crossed legs) to begin our practice. From this starting point we attempt to cook up some of our inner fire and energy. The first few movements of this warm up remind us to dig to...
According to yogic texts and teachings, the wind that flows in the middle of the body, Samana Vayu, helps in the process of digestion. It can do much more than that. The breath that flows in the middle of the body may also help to free...
Whatever might cause us to move through our lives in a jerky, hesitant, insecure way, we still possess the ability to be graceful, fluid and easeful. Sliding on a blanket on a smooth wood floor is like a gentle ride. It reminds us to...
Stretching out the body is one of the benefits of yoga. But, we are not stretching just our body. We are elongating and thinning our physical, mental and emotional blockages within our inner channels. So if we focus on our right side to...
How often do we as parents and teachers say, "Good job!" in response to something our child or student has done? Feedback like this comes out of our mouths so often that it is habitual. It is only when we try to eliminate this kind of...
We have hundreds of nerves streaming from our spine into all parts of our body. You can see this very clearly laid out in the Bodies exhibit. According to ancient yogic texts, The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, we...
Letting go is one of life's important lessons. Reconnecting with our sense of grounded ness helps us to relax right in the midst of our busy schedules. When we let go, we can sometimes experience a renewed sense of freedom, like taking a...
I was sparked with new intentions and energy after a 6 hour workshop on Yoga and the Pelvic Floor with Jaki Nett at Yoga Union Center For Backcare and Scoliosis. The word Core is rampant in our physical vocabulary. But, we rarely talk...
When we move into a pose, it is tempting to try to make the pose look like some picture in our mind. And it is true that initially we do learn a lot by imitating what we see visually. But after some experience with our practice we want to...
To bring about an ease of movement and grace in our bodies, most of us can afford to release some extra tension from our shoulders. Too much restriction around our shoulders gives our nervous system an emergency signal to tense for fight...