4 Ways to Practice Locust Pose

Locust Pose (Salabhasana) is a simple backbend that strengthens the entire back of your body, from the nape of your neck to the backs of your heels. Salabhasana has benefits for a wide range of problems, including lower back pain,

Deepening Your Home Yoga Practice: An Interview with Judith Hanson Lasater

In this interview with YogaUOnline, renowned yoga teacher Judith Hanson Lasater speaks about a subject very dear to her heart: creating and deepening a home yoga practice. Judith has taught yoga since 1971 and has published 10 books, including her most recent

Do Yoga and Meditation Reduce Health-Care Utilization? What Studies Say

Countless studies have documented the many health benefits of both regular practices of yoga asanas as well as meditation. The intriguing question is - does that translate into lower health care utilization? Indeed, over the past decade, several studies have

Yoga and Body Image: How Yoga Can Help You Make Friends with Your Body

We’ve all heard about the amazing benefits that yoga offers the human body, from strength and balance to relaxation and better sleep. The effects of yoga are a trending research topic; so far, studies have shown that a regular yoga

Are You Making This Common Stretching Mistake in Yoga?

Early in my days of teaching yoga teacher training, a student who had been teaching in a fitness studio asked a very important question. She explained that one of her female students became unusually flexible prior to ovulation, probably because

The Yoga Sutras: Practicing Non-Attachment without Becoming Detached

The concepts of attachment and non-attachment are mentioned several times in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Asana, on the other hand, is only mentioned as a preparation for meditation. So though most people think asana is the be-all and end-all

4 Easy Ways to Use a Sandbag in Yoga Practice

B.K.S. Iyengar is credited with introducing props into modern yoga as a means of support within the asanas or yoga poses. Some yoga students may see using a prop as cheating. But a prop is nothing more than a tool

5 Keys to Healthy Neck Alignment in Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)

When practiced appropriately, Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose) and all of its fantastic yoga pose variations can be an important yogic exercise for creating and maintaining back and neck health. If you practice it incorrectly, however, you can create the very neck

Yoga for Osteoporosis: How Your Breathing Affects Your Bones

When we think about keeping our bones strong, most of us focus on getting enough calcium, taking vitamin D, or doing weight-bearing exercises. But there's another crucial factor that's often overlooked: how well you breathe. Your body's ability to get

Uttanasana: Expand Your Breath

We practice yoga asanas (poses) to free the body so that it can more easily take in, let go of, and absorb the energy of the breath. In Patanjali’s Eight Limbs of Yoga, the practice of asana (i.e. the third

Yoga and Cancer: A Sequence to Help Alleviate Lymphedema

One of the most distressing side effects of cancer treatment is lymphedema. Lymphedema is a swelling of the extremities caused by damage to the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system is part of the immune system and consists of nodes, vessels,

Exercise and Longevity: Diversify Your Yoga Practice for Maximum Benefits

In asana (posture) practice, we aim for that “sweet spot”—notable physical sensation, but that which causes no harm. This lets us know that we’re opening up muscles and fascia in the body but not straining joints or tearing muscles. Many

Glute Amnesia: Yoga for Your Forgotten Rear

Are you forgetting about your backside? If you spend most of your day sitting, there’s a good chance that you are suffering from glute amnesia. The more you sit, the more you “forget” how to use your glutes! The glutes

Open Your Heart and Free Your Mind in Bow Pose

Resembling the shape of an archer’s bow, Bow Pose (Dhanurasana), is a wonderful backbend that opens your heart and mind to the fullness of your potential. Bow Pose strengthens the back body (shoulders, back muscles, glutes and hamstrings), while opening

Free Online Yoga Video! Natasha Rizopoulos: Keys to Core Stability – Two Postures to Transform Your Practice

In yoga, we hear a lot about the core, and the importance of core strength. But what exactly is the core and what does it mean to cultivate core strength in a balanced way? In this yoga practice video, Natasha

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