Air Element: Balance Your Prana
My last post on the five great elements explored fire. In this post, we’ll explore the air element and how it can help us enlighten up. What is air? It’s mostly gas. It’s Earth’s atmosphere, and it’s all around us. Air
Mudra: The Power in Your Hands
In September of 2014, my wife and I toured the Asian Hall at the British Museum in London. The presence of nearly every statue exhibiting one or more mudras confirmed my suspicion: We in the West have overlooked a powerful
Yoga Anatomy: Release Your Tight Psoas Muscles with Clinical Somatics
The psoas muscle, formally called the psoas major, is a very important core muscle. The psoas attaches the lumbar vertebrae to the lesser trochanter, near the head of the femur. These muscles are often grouped together with the iliacus muscles,
Dr. Ray Long: Stabilizing the Shoulders in Downward Dog and Upward Hands Poses
Today’s post will look at the scapular motion on the ribcage and the role of the lower third of the trapezius in drawing the shoulders away from the neck. This motion is called scapular depression, and it is frequently used in yoga,
Healthy Heart: How Yoga Can Help Prevent Heart Disease
Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in both men and women in the United States. It is an all-encompassing term for heart and blood vessel disease, including heart attack, stroke, and high blood pressure. But the good news
Book Review-Empowered Aging: Everyday Yoga Practices for Bone Health, Strength, and Balance
Ellen Saltonstall’s latest offering, Empowered Aging: Everyday Yoga Practices for Bone Health, Strength, and Balance, is an invaluable resource for those seeking to cultivate strength, maintain balance, and enjoy overall well-being as they navigate the aging process. This comprehensive guide
Fascia and the Vagus Nerve: Healing from the Inside Out
Have you ever had a morning in which you woke up with a painful knot in your neck? What happened? Did you sleep in a funny position or was it the wild dream that had you tossing and turning? Maybe
Change Your Perspective of Pelvic Tilting: How the Transversus Abdominis Can Help
"Tuck your tailbone under" or "lengthen your tailbone" have long been among the most common alignment instructions in yoga. But lately, this instruction has taken a lot of flak, because the instruction can result in people flattening their lumbar curve,
Warrior I Pose: 5 Strengthening Variations
Warrior I Pose (Virabhadrasana I) is an excellent pose for strengthening your whole back body, from the base of your skull all the way to the heel of your back leg. Plus, your front leg gets a different kind of
Feeling Lost? Try These 6 Positive, Daily Self-Care Rituals
“When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life.” ~ Jean Shinoda Bolen We all get lost sometimes. We are so lost that we