In our yoga practice, we are constantly striving to deepen poses and to enhance flexbility, and the secret key to accomplishing this does not come easily. In fact, even after I tell you the key, you will have to figure it out on your own. The key is relaxed intensity.
Yoga teachers often remind students not [...]
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Relaxed Intensity
Posted in Uncategorized on May 25, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Bone Density and Yoga
Posted in practice, weight loss, yoga on April 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Recently, I was asked to do a seminar on bone density and its connection to yoga. We had a wonderful group of ladies at the Bangor Y’s Isaac Farrah Mansion in Bangor, Maine, and they had great questions. Here is some of the material I included in the seminar:
What the Research Shows
Researchers say just 12 sessions of [...]
Feel the Flow
Posted in fitness, practice, yoga on April 5, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
When we practice yoga on a regular basis, it’s easy to get caught in the trap of concentrating too much on how perfect we can make our poses. Precision is certainly important in our routines. This helps us avoid injury and get the most physical benefit, but focusing too much on perfection can rob you of [...]
Don’t Neglect the Breath
Posted in Uncategorized on March 20, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
In yoga practice, the breath is the one, most important factor in your practice, and yet it’s probably the most neglected and ignored aspect of beginners’ practice sessions. It took me about a year of yoga practice to really feel how much difference the breath made in deepening the poses and gaining more flexbility.
I believe in [...]
Relieving Headaches With Yoga
Posted in Uncategorized on March 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Specific yoga postures can help relieve a wide variety of ailments. I do not profess to have any medical knowledge, however, my personal yoga practice and time as an instructor has shown me that certain poses release tension through the neck and back, and this can aid in conquering a headache.
Start with the Easy Pose [...]
Warmer Means Deeper, right?
Posted in fitness, practice, yoga on March 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Experts often disagree about whether a practice room should be warmer or cooler during yoga practice. Some say the extremely warm rooms (90 degrees plus, such as in Bikram Yoga) breed bacteria, while others say practitioners need a warm room to deepen the stretches and prevent injury. My personal choice is to have a room that [...]
Back in Business
Posted in Uncategorized on March 1, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
After nearly four months out of action due to a broken foot, I’m happy to say that I’m back to teaching two classes a week at the Bangor Y in Bangor, Maine. My regular teaching slot of 5:30-6:30 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays was graciously filled for weeks and weeks by my fellow Y instructors. [...]
It’s Never Too Late
Posted in fitness, practice, sprituality, yoga, tagged Add new tag on October 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
One of the things I love about yoga is how it brings people together in a common struggle. It binds people, much more so that many other forms of exercise. I expect this has something to do with the fact that yoga should not be a competition. It is a battle with yourself–your own limitations, physically and [...]
Walkin’ the Plank
Posted in Uncategorized on September 9, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
One of the funnest parts of practicing yoga is discovering you can do things that you couldn’t some time before. For instance, when I first started teaching, side plank just killed me. In fact, I hated it so much that I went out of my way to avoid using it in class. Most of us [...]
Go Ginger
Posted in martial arts, practice, yoga on November 25, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Crunchy is not a word I would normally use to describe myself, but even some of my closest friends don’t know I’ve managed to conquer a number of serious ailments with the use of dietary supplements and herbs. Whenever medications were ineffective or too harsh, I’ve found natural alternatives. It helps that my mother is [...]
