4 Reasons To Get Into Yoga This Year
No longer a workout seemingly reserved for zen masters and flexible fitness buffs, yoga is becoming more popular than ever. In fact, industry statistics from Loud Cloud Health predict that more than 55 million people will start practicing yoga by this year, around the world. Indeed, yoga knows no age, gender, or fitness level. Almost anyone can reap its many benefits—whether it’s a clearer mental space or a healthier body you’re after. With the new year in full swing, there’s no better time than now to try this life-enriching activity. Here are more reasons why you should join the yoga craze. It’s the perfect time to detoxify—both your body and spirit. The beginning of the year is always the best time to let go of last year’s woes and start with a clean slate. Previous research here at Yogacara reveals how yoga is an excellent way to detoxify yourself, both of negative feelings and actual body toxins. Poses such as twists and inversions are good for increasing blood circulation and stimulating the lymphatic system.
Spring Sun Salutations
There’s nothing like ushering in a new season by shaking off the cobwebs with a few sun salutations. The tradition of practicing sun salutations is meant to honor the sun, our source of life and light. It’s a beautiful way to warm up the body, increase the flow of prana (a.k.a. life force energy), and honor the shift from winter to spring—or any season for that matter! Sun salutations are also known as “Surya Namaskar” which translates to “sun” (surya) and “to bow to” or “to adore” (namaskar). So what sun salutations should be practiced? Luckily, there are many variations on this ancient spiritual tradition.
Boost Your Energy With Yoga
We all have those mornings when it’s tough to get out of bed. When you’ve finally rolled out of from under the sheets you might feel like you need caffeine. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying a hot cup of coffee or tea, but when you start to crave it just for the caffeine buzz you have to wonder how your energy levels are doing. Here are some great tips for boosting your energy to keep you alert throughout the day. 1.) Try Breath of Fire Kundalini yogis know what’s up when it comes to breath of fire.
Restorative Yoga to Let Go of Stress
If you’re looking to calm your nervous system and let go of stress, look no further: restorative yoga is the practice for you. One of the best things about restorative yoga is its ability to heal, relax and renew. This powerful effect is brought about by the longer, supportive holds in each pose while being in a comfortable space. These elements, along with the meditative aspect of restorative yoga, brings about the nervous system’s relaxation response a.k.a. the parasympathetic response. Here are some restorative yoga poses for your practice to reduce stress in your life.
The Magic of Hip Openers
You may have heard the term “hip openers” in a yoga class, but what does this really mean? The idea of practicing hip openers can actually mean a lot of different things in a lot of different places. The literal hip joint is located where the femur meets the hip socket, or acetabulum, in the pelvis. Many of the hip openers refer to the areas around this joint and the pelvis. First we’ll breakdown where this is actually happening and what shapes to focus on so hip openers can benefit your practice.
How to Improve Your Down Dog
Down Dog is considered one of the yoga poses that creates a solid foundation for nearly any practice. It’s one you’ve probably seen countless times in different yoga sequences. I remember going to classes and yoga teachers would say it was a “resting pose” but how people interpret this shape can be wildly different. I laughed the first time I heard that one since I found it so challenging!
Yoga Poses to Practice Daily
Yoga is such a unique practice that can vary day-to-day. Even if you go to the same yoga class regularly, you’ll notice that most teachers will alter what they share with students. There’s an infinite amount of yoga poses and sequences to choose from. We give you a few yoga poses that you may want to add to your daily practice.
Anatomy in Yoga
An understanding of anatomy is key for the safety and development of your students. Integrating this knowledge can encourage injury prevention and facilitate the healing process. It can connect a deeper understanding of the philosophies in creating yoga sequences for public and private classes. For private classes, if there is a specific area of focus, then you can design a practice that addresses those concerns. An anatomical awareness also prepares you to take on students with injuries in a safe and effective manner. Using variations, props, and mindful sequencing to compliment this information can create an inclusive yoga class.
An understanding of anatomy also gives you the tools to analyze your practice and teachings to create effective movement patterns. This encourages proper sequencing techniques that include adequate warm-ups and poses with appropriate counterposes. It also reinforces the importance of alignment for the purpose of safety for our joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments rather than for an esthetic appeal. The patterns we create on our mat have the ability to affect how we progress outside of yoga, meaning that our muscle memory creates healthy habits to impact other activities in our daily lives.
The Journey of Yoga Teacher Training
Written by Emily Kane – owner of Yogacara Whistler and staff member of the Yogacara Yoga Teacher Training program I used to think Yoga Teacher Training was out of my grasp. Seeing the respect that yoga teachers had for leading classes with confidence, awareness and grace is what drew me towards yoga teacher training, […]
Restorative Yoga – Relax, Restore, Renew
Yoga has the ability to create bliss on many levels – physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. The key to this state can come from a variety of practices, but one form seems to stand out when it comes to relaxation. Restorative yoga uses long, supported holds to relax the body and restore the nervous system, […]
