I love balancing postures in yoga. The effort of maintaining the pose makes it a great chance to practice mindfulness by focusing all attention on the present moment. Itâs not always such a picture perfect moment though… Â balancing postures can bring up frustration if weâre having an âoff dayâ or working on building strength or recovering from an injury. So here are a few simple tips to help improve your balance if you’re finding it tricky. Increase your surface area….
You don’t know how it happened. One day, you were a totally normal human who for some reason decided to try a yoga class. Maybe you wanted to finally be able to touch your toes, maybe you wanted a nice butt, maybe you wanted a calmer mind, maybe you wanted complete spiritual enlightenment. Whatever your reason for finding our way to that first class, the obsession seed was planted, and before you know it… You find yourself standing in Tree…
With the recent snow storm, you might have found yourself cooped up indoors for a lot of last week, which can affect your mood and your body in lots of different ways. If youâre surfacing back into the world today and youâre back to your regular work-week, your muscles might be a little tight. Here are a few simple yoga poses you can do anywhere to get your body moving again and refresh your mood. Shoulder rolls – this is…
Just can’t wait for your after-work yoga class, or can’t make the time to squeeze in a lunchtime flow? We feel you. Here are 5 simple yoga poses that you can easily squeeze into your working day – without getting too much attention from your co-workers. Seated side bend Easy peasy – and no-one will even notice what you’re up to. When we’re hunching over our desks and computers – as we tend to do – the side body can suffer….
If youâre new to yoga and joining mixed level classes with more experienced yogis, itâs normal to feel unsure of some of the postures when a teacher cues them to the class. Here’s a cheatsheet with 3 commonly used yoga cues and how I interpret them. Chaturanga In flow classes, youâll usually have a lot of âchaturangasâ. This is when you flow down from a plank position to slowly lower your body to the mat on the exhale. Keep your…
Have you heard your yoga teacher mention Ujjayi breath in class, but you haven’t been sure exactly what they’re talking about? Never fear – we’re here to break it down for you đ What it is Ujjayi breath – which translates as Victorious Breath – is a specific way of breathing that warms your entire body and helps you to connect more deeply with your physical yoga practice. How to do it To utilise Ujjayi breath, you need to create a…
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 itâs 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 whatâs all the fuss about? What differentiates yoga asana from most other forms of physical activity is…
Hi Yogis! It’s the month of all things L-O-V-E – And we’re here to give you some tips on tending to the most important relationship in your life – the one you have with yourself! (Cheesy, I know, but hey. It’s Valentine’s day.) Why not devote this Valentine’s Day to self-love, self-care, and doing all the things that YOU really love? Here are our favourite ways to practice self-love. Treat yo’self! Take a leaf out of Donna and Tom’s book…
Anxiety. Weâve all been there – sweaty palms, racing thoughts, quickened heartbeat. Anxiety can strike before a big presentation, an important meeting or a first date. Or sometimes it can creep up on you when youâre tired or under-slept. When it surfaces, anxiety can rob you of the joy of the moment, and it can zap your energy. So hereâs one simple, discrete yoga pose to have in your âyoga tool beltâ when anxiety strikes, depending on where and when you…
Not to sound too much like your mother…but good posture is so, so important! And a lot of us (myself included) spend too much time on autopilot – which usually involves slouching, hunching, and generally not being too kind to our spines. Good posture helps us feel confident, look taller and slimmer, and is way better for our bodies in the long run. Luckily, yoga’s an amazing tool to help you improve your posture, and we’ve compiled our top 5 poses…
