Many students begin a yoga practice for stress relief or for increased flexibility. Some people began practicing yoga for other emotional, psychological, or physiological reasons. Personally, my yoga practice started at a vulnerable and stressful time - I was facing a number of tough decisions and a heavy work load. I turned to yoga for clarity....and I found it.
More and more people each day are discovering that a regular yoga practice yields tremendous benefits. Leaving aside the competitive, zero-sum mentality of many sports and the "no pain, no gain" mentality of many gym workouts, people worldwide are turning to yoga for peace, strength, and balance.
But is yoga enough? Is it enough to keep our bodies healthy over our life cycle? Studies conducted in both the US and India seem to agree: Yes. Yoga (especially the strenght-building yogas) IS enough. In fact, certain styles of yoga (Ashtanga, Anusara, Vinyasa/Power) may be even BETTER suited to life-long physical activity than some other athletic pursuits.
Wanna read more? Check out this Yoga Journal article with summaries from studies performed at UCDavis & Stanford Universities: http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/739
The best thing about yoga? It's never too late to start. Today is always the best day to practice. Find a class in your area! Yoga Journal (www.yogajournal.com/directory) & Yogafinder (www.yogafinder.com) both have listings of classes searchable by zip code. Have an iPhone? Shoot, there's even an app for that! Download class information, current schedules, and teacher bios right to your iPhone with the MindBody App.
Start now!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
Asana of the Week- Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I)
Welcome to Jeweled Lotus Yoga's Asana (pose) of the Week post for the week of May 10-17th. This week, we're looking at the alignment, benefits, & contraindications of the pose Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I):
Before trying this pose, please take a moment to read through all of the instructions. It's always a good idea to practice yoga with a teacher, and to check with your physician before beginning an excercise regimen.
Warrior I position is a basic standing hip opening pose. Depending on the tradition of Hatha Yoga that you follow (Iyengar, Ashtanga, Sivananda, Classical), you practice it with different alignment cues than the ones given here. My training and my teaching philosophy is a multi-style blend of many of the major yoga traditions.
Alignment cues for Warrior I:
Stand with your feet together at the top of your yoga mat, or on a non-slick floor (like wood or outside in the grass!). Look down at your feet and notice if they are inturned, out-turned, or if your ankle bones touch. Try as best as you can to bring the feet towards parallel and to lift the arches in the feet (you can feel the arches engage by spreading & lifting your toes up - try it out!). Keep the arches engaged as best you can (but feel free to put your toes down!). Do not lock the knees, but do keep the muscles on the front of the thighs working throughout the pose.
Take a large step back with your left foot and try to keep the toes of that foot angleing toward the front of your mat (the back heel will be further out than the back toes). Bend your front knee up to 90 degrees, but no more. Look down & make sure that your front knee is directly above your front ankle.
Bring your arms out to the sides and spin your palms up toward the ceiling. Try to relax your shoulders as you bring the arms to frame your ears. If this is uncomfortable on your arms, your neck or your back, then please bend the elbows and keep the upper arm bones in line with the shoulders; the upper arms will be parallel to the floor & the forearms will be perpendicular to the floor in this variation.
Take a few moments here to notice your breath. Notice your inhales and your exhales. Is it easier to breathe in deeply with your arms to the sides or above your head? Notice if you are tensing your shoulders, your face or your jaw. Try to relax.
Strongly engage the muscles in the lower abdomen as you exhale and now try to bring your shoulders right above your pelvis. Elongate the tailbone toward the heels and feel your strong leg muscles working.
If you are comfortable here, consider looking up towards your hands. If this bothers your neck, simply look forward.
Hold as long as you can remain comfortable and steady. Remember to breathe!
Step back to the front of your mat. Repeat on the other side.
Some Benefits of Warrior I pose:
Strengthens legs
Slenderizing for the abdomen & hip region
Increased lung capacity (lengthens the intercostals)
Improves balance
Lengthens iliopsoas (hip flexors on the front of the pelvis)
Increases flexibility in the shoulders, groin, & upper back
Some Contraindications of Warrior I pose:
Knee injury (be careful of hyperextending or twisting the back knee & overbending the front knee)
Poor balance due to neurological disorders - face a wall or use a chair for extra support
Low blood pressure (this pose may cause you to become dizzy - please face a wall or use a chair for extra support & remember to breathe)
Before trying this pose, please take a moment to read through all of the instructions. It's always a good idea to practice yoga with a teacher, and to check with your physician before beginning an excercise regimen.
Warrior I position is a basic standing hip opening pose. Depending on the tradition of Hatha Yoga that you follow (Iyengar, Ashtanga, Sivananda, Classical), you practice it with different alignment cues than the ones given here. My training and my teaching philosophy is a multi-style blend of many of the major yoga traditions.
Alignment cues for Warrior I:
Stand with your feet together at the top of your yoga mat, or on a non-slick floor (like wood or outside in the grass!). Look down at your feet and notice if they are inturned, out-turned, or if your ankle bones touch. Try as best as you can to bring the feet towards parallel and to lift the arches in the feet (you can feel the arches engage by spreading & lifting your toes up - try it out!). Keep the arches engaged as best you can (but feel free to put your toes down!). Do not lock the knees, but do keep the muscles on the front of the thighs working throughout the pose.
Take a large step back with your left foot and try to keep the toes of that foot angleing toward the front of your mat (the back heel will be further out than the back toes). Bend your front knee up to 90 degrees, but no more. Look down & make sure that your front knee is directly above your front ankle.
Bring your arms out to the sides and spin your palms up toward the ceiling. Try to relax your shoulders as you bring the arms to frame your ears. If this is uncomfortable on your arms, your neck or your back, then please bend the elbows and keep the upper arm bones in line with the shoulders; the upper arms will be parallel to the floor & the forearms will be perpendicular to the floor in this variation.
Take a few moments here to notice your breath. Notice your inhales and your exhales. Is it easier to breathe in deeply with your arms to the sides or above your head? Notice if you are tensing your shoulders, your face or your jaw. Try to relax.
Strongly engage the muscles in the lower abdomen as you exhale and now try to bring your shoulders right above your pelvis. Elongate the tailbone toward the heels and feel your strong leg muscles working.
If you are comfortable here, consider looking up towards your hands. If this bothers your neck, simply look forward.
Hold as long as you can remain comfortable and steady. Remember to breathe!
Step back to the front of your mat. Repeat on the other side.
Some Benefits of Warrior I pose:
Strengthens legs
Slenderizing for the abdomen & hip region
Increased lung capacity (lengthens the intercostals)
Improves balance
Lengthens iliopsoas (hip flexors on the front of the pelvis)
Increases flexibility in the shoulders, groin, & upper back
Some Contraindications of Warrior I pose:
Knee injury (be careful of hyperextending or twisting the back knee & overbending the front knee)
Poor balance due to neurological disorders - face a wall or use a chair for extra support
Low blood pressure (this pose may cause you to become dizzy - please face a wall or use a chair for extra support & remember to breathe)
New Schedule
We have a new schedule now with more classes per week and more classes in the evening. Join us on Mondays & Wednesday evenings at 5 PM for an hour long Power Yoga class, then stay for an hour long Hot class from 6:15-7:15 PM! Also, the studio is now offering a Community Yoga class (Fridays from 11-noon) for a special rate of $5 - all proceeds will be donated to local charities! Check out our full schedule online at www.jeweledlotusyoga.com/schedule
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Recycling everything!
Welcome to the official blog of Jeweled Lotus Yoga - a cyperpalace dedicated to all things yoga! We hope you enjoy reading our random ramblings here.....Feedback is always welcome, so please feel free to dialogue here or via email: jeweledlotusyoga@gmail.com.
In honor of Earth Month, here is a link for how to recycle pretty much anything you can think of....a very valuable resource for those of us who obsessively recycle EVERYTHING: http://www.lime.com/features/limes_guide_to_recycling
In honor of Earth Month, here is a link for how to recycle pretty much anything you can think of....a very valuable resource for those of us who obsessively recycle EVERYTHING: http://www.lime.com/features/limes_guide_to_recycling
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