When you look at photos of people in super-deep backbends, it often looks like they have a sharp 90 degree kink in their lower back. It looks that way because they do. They have a hyper-mobile lower back. That certainly seems advantageous for deep backbends, but it is not something you want to emulate if your back doesn't do that [...]
What does it mean to think of yoga as a gift? Plenty of people practice yoga because they sense that it has the power to transform their life. They sense that it can create a shift away from the ego-centric, achievement-oriented mode that the modern world incessantly reinforces. But it is all too common to see yogis unconsciously applying the [...]
In the yogic tradition, spanda is the subtle creative pulsation that manifests in all living and non-living entities. Recognizing and aligning with spanda helps us become more present in the moment, with a greater sense of connection and joy. The ancient yogic assertion that everything pulsates is true in a very literal way: Scientific investigations confirm that everything vibrates, from [...]
To me the main benefit of practicing yoga is to become more present in more moments of our lives. There are many ways to help you along that path, including breath awareness and body awareness. Focusing on alignment to improve body awareness is one of my most frequently used techniques. However, this week I want to emphasize another method: setting [...]
This week we will continue with inversions, focusing on headstand. The great advantage of headstand over other inversions is that it requires less muscular effort and less precise balance. Thus it can be practiced for significantly longer time periods. This in turn increases the benefits you derive from going upside down. Headstand is also generally easier to do without a [...]
Last week we focused on tuning up our core. This week, I want to apply some of what we have learned there to focus specifically on our digestion. A well-functioning core has tremendous benefits for your digestion. A properly functioning digestive system, in turn, is extremely important for your overall wellbeing. There are a large variety of asanas that promote [...]
Increasing core strength can transform your yoga practice, improving your balance and agility and bringing more ease to difficult poses. However, tuning up your core means more than just building strength. A well-tuned core also involves increasing core flexibility and improving the brain's ability to direct the core with ease. A radiant core can improve posture, reduce back pain, [...]
We typically discount the importance of the breath in our daily lives. This week, I want you to experience how central the breath is to your health. The breath is enough means that simply improving our breathing can increase our wellbeing in very concrete, measurable ways. There is data to back this up. Yogic breathing techniques have been shown to [...]
Pranayama, one of the core practices of yoga, is often translated as "control of life force" or "breath control". This is so because 'prana' means life force or breath, and ‘yama' means control or restriction. (See the footnote below for a detailed grammatical explanation of the meaning of pranayama). While this is probably the original historical meaning, it is worth [...]
Do you frequently wish you had more energy? Do you drink coffee or tea to energize? Caffeine is by far the most-consumed drug worldwide, and the reason is simple: we all want to have more energy. Unfortunately, caffeine is generally not the best way to get it. A few hours after a caffeine-induced energy boost, your energy levels tend to [...]
