A lot of beginners and experienced yogis alike can find it uncomfortable and a little bit strange when they are invited by their teacher to chant ‘om’ at the beginning or end of a yoga class. For many people who go to yoga for the more physical benefits, it might be tempting to completely dismiss this aspect of yoga. But when you understand the meaning behind it, you might find a whole new depth in the practice of saying ‘om’…
More and more people are turning to yoga to help prevent and recover from injuries as doctors, physiotherapists and trainers are increasingly aware of the positive benefits of a long-term yoga practice. As yoga enters the sports arena (so to speak) it is becoming another key tool for athletes and those who are looking to maintain their fitness in a way that will complement their injury prevention or recovery plan. In terms of injury prevention, yoga is an excellent way…
Ahh, the ego. We all have one, and every so often (or, um, every hour or so) it likes to come out and play. And one of the places we can notice it the most? Our yoga practice. All too often we can find ourselves starting to compare ourselves to others, berate ourselves, and generally feel not quite good enough. Which I think you’ll agree is a pretty icky feeling. So here are three ways that you can start to…
‘I’m not flexible enough to do yoga’ is something I hear all the time (mostly from my dad), and honestly? That’s like saying ‘I’m too sick to go to the doctor’! It doesn’t matter how flexible you are when you step on to your yoga mat. What matters is that yoga can help you to build flexibility over time – especially in our pesky hamstrings. Maybe you’re a runner, maybe you have a job that requires a lot of sitting,…
We all hear the teacher tell us to inhale, and to exhale, and we follow along. We then get to a standing posture, or a challenging posture – and what do we do? We stop breathing. Whether it’s holding our breath or going back to shallow breathing, we lose the rhythm of the breath that we had at the start of class. So what’s all the fuss about? What differentiates yoga asana from most other forms of physical activity is…
Downward facing dog is one of the most common yoga poses, and it would be pretty rare to have a class without it, for many reasons. It’s one of the best overall body stretches you can do, as well as strengthening key muscle groups, and helping to reduce stress and anxiety. So if you’ve been doing yoga for more than 10 minutes of your life, more than likely you’ve been told to ‘relax back into downdog.’ However, when I started…
We all – or a lot of us, anyway – love the idea of morning yoga. Starting your day off with a room full of like-minded yogis, flowing on your mat, and connecting body and breath. Heaven, right? Except sometimes – especially when it’s still dark when the alarm goes off and you can hear rain pouring outside – that idea just doesn’t become reality. Much as we might want it to! So here are our top 5 tips for…
As the weather sets in for autumn, you may notice your body and your mind being swept up with the change. After an active summer, it may be hard to slow down to the pace of autumn. As the late sunny nights of summer die off, the feeling in the air is more of introspection and getting cosy and snug indoors. Check out the following poses for helping to stay grounded and joyful through the transition: Cow Face Pose –…
Muladhara The root chakra, or Muladhara, is located at your tailbone, and extends to include your legs and feet. Representing the beginning of your spiritual development, the root chakra is literally your root, your base, there to ground you. Representing who you are at your core, who and what you trust, and your sense of belonging and tradition, the root chakra’s desire is survival, self-sufficiency, and stability. It governs how we deal with things like family, money, basic needs, and…
