Beginning students often share common challenges. These include a lack of body awareness, and the typical physical limitations of the American body, such as tight hamstrings, tight hips, a weak back, and lack of core strength. The older the student, the more pronounced these limitations. Learning to observe and adjust your teaching to these common issues is … Continued
The most foundational yoga pose of all is Tadasana or Mountain Pose. Tadasana demands just one simple thing: that we stand with good posture in a way that supports the natural curves of a healthy spine. In our Western sedentary society, however, it’s surprisingly difficult for most yoga students to achieve correct alignment in Tadasana. … Continued
It is no exaggeration to say that the hip is one of the most important major joints of the body. First, it is the major connecting point for load transfer between the upper and lower body. Second, the hip also plays an important role as a part of the pelvic complex implicated in the diaphragmatic … Continued
It’s well known that stress has a significant impact on our bodies. From muscle tension to nervous system dysregulation to hormone disruption, stress wreaks havoc on our bodies. What fewer women realize is that the effects of stress on our bodies can also affect our ability to get pregnant! The good news is that there … Continued
In our modern society we often focus on treating each ailment separately: we take one pill for headaches, another for depression, and another for high blood pressure. This targeted approach can be useful, but it fails to take into account the whole person. The human body/mind is an integrated set of systems, and no health … Continued
Forward bending yoga postures are among the most relaxing and soothing groups of yoga postures. They calm body and mind and can help us shift from a frenzied, busy mind set into a more relaxed, parasympathetic mode of functioning. But forward bends also have a little known dark side. If practiced incorrectly without reference to … Continued
Part I: Taking Refuge – Coming Home to Ourselves We all have a great need for a place of refuge. But sadly the difficulties of today’s world can invade our consciousness at any place and at any time, mainly because of the internet. It may not actually be harder to find the way and the … Continued
We have a lot more power over what unfolds in our lives than we usually think we do. “We are all vibrational beings, and that’s where everything starts,” says Lana Reed (aka Shakta Khalsa). If your vibration is not where you’d like it to be, this webinar will introduce you to some key techniques to … Continued
One of the effects of yoga postures is to challenge the joints and muscles in order to enhance strength and flexibility. This not only increases strength, stamina, and flexibility. It also engages the nervous system, enhancing neurological health, and stimulating receptors in the nervous system that slow the production of stress hormones. But when we … Continued
The psoas muscle is often talked about as one of the most important muscles in the body, because of its central location and interconnectedness with other parts of the body. The largest hip flexors in the body, the psoas muscles have many other functions which affect our health and well-being in numerous ways. The two … Continued
High blood pressure is also known as ‘the silent killer,’ because many people don’t even know they have high blood pressure, and only discover it when it’s too late. Unregulated, high blood pressure puts us a higher risk for stroke, heart attack, kidney issues and eye problems. New guidelines on how to diagnose and treat … Continued
The opioid crisis and the growing problem of addiction in general are among the most critical issues facing humanity today. At its root, substance use disorder stems not just from chronic pain, but far more commonly is a reflection of the mounting inability to deal effectively with life’s challenges. As a society, we are over-worked, … Continued