Props are a yogi’s best friend

Props are silent instructors that teach directly to the intelligence of the body, and through that direct perception the harmony of mind, body and spirit can be experienced. - Mary Dunn, Yoga Teacher (from the book “The New Yoga for People Over 50,” by Suza Francina.

Photo Credit: eHow.com

I can’t say enough good things about props. I have several blocks, both for my students to use in class and I keep four of them in my private yoga room. I also own five mats, two bolsters, several straps, a sandbag, a metal chair, several blankets, and assorted varieties of eye pillows. I carry four extra mats to the class I teach because there’s always someone who either forgot their mat or they just don’t own one. We have to be prepared.

For those of you who aren’t all that familiar with what props really are or what they can do, “A prop is any object that helps you to stretch, strengthen, relax or improve your body alignment. By providing more height, weight or support, props help you to extend beyond habitual limitations and teach you that your body is capable of doing much more than you think it can!” (quoting Ruth Steiger and Kay Eskanazi, co-founders of the company Yoga Props and authors of the Yoga Prop Usage Guides.

For people who are stiff and haven’t ever exercised but want to give yoga a try, using props will help them to get into poses they ordinarily wouldn’t be able to accomplish. If you’re over 50, chances are you have some kind of back, neck, or knee problems, or you’re suffering from an old injury. Perhaps your doctor prescribed yoga therapy to heal you and bring you back to life. Here’s where props can be your best friend.

With props you can hold poses longer, and go deeper and feel their healing effects. Props can support, allowing muscles to lengthen and improve blood circulation and allow for easier and deeper breathing.  Placing your hand on a block while bending forward will allow you to reach further without trying to strain to reach your fingertips to the floor. As you become more flexible and advance in your practice, you’ll be able to remove that block and feel the earth all by yourself. Those who can’t do the more strenuous poses can use props, such as a chair, for support and encouragement so as not to overextend themselves.

Props can be adapted to anyone’s level of flexibility, body type, and level of ability. They encourage, build confidence, help decrease pain, and support a student’s body so that he or she can be guided correctly into poses they never thought they could do before.

Yoga, Natural Healing and Daily Treasures

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

We might hear: Hatha Yoga can be applied toward healing, without a mat or a visit to the local ashram, but how can this be? What daily treasures are we missing out on, and how can Yoga be applied toward healing outside of our practice time?

The time we spend practicing Yoga is “practice time for life.” We should enjoy every minute of it. Too many people do not take the time to enjoy what they are doing, when they are doing it. This is why the benefits of Yoga take a little time before they become obvious.

However, the practice of Yoga is only part of the “big picture.” The application of Yogic principles, to our lifestyle, is a major key to better health. The following are events in our daily lives, for which we should make time:

1. Make the most of your time at work. Many people dread work, because the tasks have become mundane, or they feel the work is beneath them. This can happen when a person has more potential than their job allows. Some employers would prefer employees to refrain from making suggestions.

Friends may advise you to leave a job you dislike, but what about your paycheck, and what about your family? The solution is to realize what work is. Work is the cost of success. Work is not your identity – it is a combination of tasks we perform to get from one point to the next.

We could compare work to traveling, because we are trying to get somewhere by working. However, we can control the quality of the journey by doing our personal best with each task. If your work is having a negative effect on your health, the logical solution is to find another job.

2. Make time for laughter. Laughing stimulates the immune system. Adults tend to neglect laughing, but it is vital because of the health benefits. Laughing activates T-cells (antibiotics that are naturally produced within your body). Laughter also decreases pain by releasing endorphins.

3. Make time for playing. While it is important to work and study – it is also important to let your inner child be entertained. Any sport or game, that releases the mind from the daily burdens of worrying and taking life so serious, is worth your time. Life is too short to forget about playing.

4. Make time for prayer. It is easy to have a distorted view of life when so much bad news is easily accessible. Yet, worship allows each of us to clarify our vision. The path of reverence allows us to see.

© Copyright 2009 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Yoga Teacher Training. FREE Yoga Report. FREE Yoga Newsletter. FREE Yoga Videos. Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”

Yoga Teacher Training Certification Courses

Lengthen your spine in Triangle Pose

Photo Credit: ExpertVillage.com

Triangle pose (Utthita Trikonasana) is one of the more popular poses in the practice of Hatha Yoga.  It’s one of my favorite poses because I love how it stretches and lengthens my spine and adds flexibility to my lower back. But it does a lot more.  First, lets talk about how to do the pose:

Stand in mountain (Tadasana) pose and step your feet wide. Inhale and raise your arms out to your side. Your ankles should be under your wrists for correct alignment. Turn your left foot in a bit and turn your right foot and leg out to the side.  Keep your legs strong and engaged, inhale, and extend your spine. Bend your waist to the right and reach toward the floor with your right fingertips, just below your right shoulder. Look up toward your left hand and hold for several breaths. Be sure that your right heel is aligned with the arch of your left foot, and that your left arm is extended directly up from your shoulder (see photo).

What does triangle pose do besides lengthen the spine and add flexibility to your back?

• Improves your digestive and circulatory systems
• Relieves symptoms of menopause
• Eases symptoms of sciatica
• Stretches the calves, hamstrings, groin and arches
• Opens and releases the throat, chest, shoulders and hips
• Adds stamina and strength to the legs and torso area
• Increases muscular endurance
• Helps you to focus and develop willpower
• Stimulates the mind and relieves stress

Don’t practice triangle pose if you have low blood pressure or congestive heart disorders. Also, if you have a neck injury, be careful when gazing up toward your extended arm. You may want to look down at the floor instead.

For a more gentler variation, use a block to rest your hand.

Live your yoga every day of the year

I bought A Year of Living Your Yoga, a little jewel of a book written by Judith Hanson Lasater, Ph.D., P.T.  at the Yoga Journal Conference in Estes Park, Colorado, last year after I had the pleasure of going to one of her restorative yoga workshops. Okay, I was a little starstruck. Judith Lasater is one of my favorite teachers, and I’m a big fan of restorative yoga if you haven’t noticed already from my other posts. I can’t say enough about how restorative yoga has changed and shaped my life, and I’m planning to become a certified Rest & Relax Restorative Yoga Teacher next February when Judith visits Salt Lake City and teams up with Charlotte Bell for a 20-hour teacher training. I can’t count the days on my calendar fast enough.

A Year of Living Your Yoga is a precious compilation of daily practices and quotes that will inspire and shape your life. This little book graces my yoga room and I read a passage every day before I start my practice. For example, today’s passage renews us with the value of wonder: 

If you want to understand wonder, look at the face of a child closely examining a bug. Living your yoga: Losing touch with your wonder is sad. Wonder perfectly combines curiosity, gratitude, and presence. Today find something to observe in wonder: a flower, the sky, a tree, and notice how this reconnects you with life (A Year of Living Your Yoga, August 16, 2009)

Every day graces us with a lesson on how to live life through the practice of yoga, on and off the mat. Consider adding this little gem to your yoga library and become inspired by Judith’s wisdom. Buy your copy now by clicking here.

Yoga for Digestive Health

No matter what age we are, we need to take care of our digestive health, and that includes practicing yoga everyday to keep our abdomens soft and encourage deep breathing into our core body.  Digestive problems usually plague women as they get older, and we really can’t ignore them. Face it, poor digestion can lead to other illnesses and diseases, such as chronic indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, or irritable bowel syndrome, for example. None of these conditions are pleasant, but we can avoid them if we recognize the symptoms and do something about them before they get worse.

Take me, for example. Over the last couple of years I started experiencing heartburn and was recently diagnosed with Acid Reflux Disease and Esophagitis. My condition affects my digestive health, as I also experience bloating and, um, gas bubbles from time to time. I can’t eat the same foods I used to eat, and I really have to take care not to overindulge or else I’ll suffer the consequences. But there are yoga poses that I do to settle my digestive system and relieve my symptoms.

Photo Credit: Yoga Journal

One pose I really like to do when I’m feeling a little full is Reclining Hero. As I lie back on the floor or supported by a bolster, reclining hero pose not only stimulates my thyroid and parathyroid productivity, normalizes my blood pressure, and calms my nervous system, for example, but it softens my abdomen and eases my digestive upset. This is one of the few poses you can do after you’ve eaten a heavy meal.

So what else can you do to help with digestive disorders?

• Stop being anxious! Those who experience frequent anxiety also experience frequent diarrhea, which is a sign of a viral infection and that your body needs to get rid of toxins. Don’t use over-the-counter remedies as they won’t help you to eliminate toxins. Instead, drink water, and herbal tea laced with chamomile, nettle or alfalfa.
• Don’t hold in your belly! Lots of women think they have to have a flat belly to be happy or beautiful. Hiding your rolls under tight panty hose or jeans will only keep the blood from flowing to your digestive tract and reproductive organs and will cause all kinds of unpleasant digestive disorders.  I never wear tight clothes, mostly because they’re so darn uncomfortable!  Do yourself and your digestive health a favor, and wear loose clothing and enjoy the freedom!
• Exercise regularly, as it will feed energy to an otherwise lethargic digestive system. If you don’t exercise, you’ll compromise your body’s natural ability to cleanse itself, and your body will hold all kinds of bad toxins day in and day out which can lead to disease. Practicing yoga, for example, will stimulate your gastrointestinal system, balance your thyroid gland, make you feel calm, and inspire healing breath, all contributors to a healthy digestive system.

So what else can yoga do for your digestive health?

• Certain poses such as revolved triangle or plough pose, squeeze blood out of your organs and then soak them with new, oxygenated blood, sort of like a “squeeze-and-soak” effect. This helps to freshen and revitalize cells and tissues and enhances your overall physiological makeup.
• If you suffer from digestive problems related to perimenopause or menopause, certain poses can help revitalize your adrenals, thyroid, and liver, soften your abdomen and ease intestinal disorders. Indigestion, acid reflux, or heartburn, common conditions as you get older, can be eased by practicing supported backbends, a kind of cooling pose which will lift your diaphragm and take pressure off your stomach.

Suggested poses for improving digestion:

• Reclining Hero Pose
• Reclining Bound Angle Pose
• Downward-Facing Dog Pose
• Head-on-Knee Pose
• Seated Forward Bend
• Headstand
• Child’s Pose
• Shoulderstand
• Bridge Pose
• Corpse Pose

Going Upside Down: The Benefits of Yoga Inversions

Scared of going upside down?  You don’t have to be. You can enjoy the benefits of yoga inversions without wearing yourself out trying to get up into a perfect handstand.  There are many yoga inversions that are perfectly doable, if you learn what they are, what the benefits are, and how to do them properly.

Yoga inversions are a gift you give to your circulatory, respiratory and immune systems. Poses such as shoulderstand and plough pose improve blood flow to your endocrine glands, as they squeeze, soak and massage your inner organs, efficiently ridding your body of old toxins and allowing new blood to flow. The result is a renewed feeling of overall health and vitality, akin to giving your body a tune-up.  By going upside down, you literally energize and stabilize your entire endocrine system, by pushing new blood into your skin and bone marrow. Most people who engage in shoulderstand, for example, radiate feelings of joyfulness, balance, energy and peace.

So, what are some inversions that you can do? Here’s a sampling of some of the best:

Shoulderstand (Sarvangasana)

Photo Credit: Yoga Learning Center.com

Lie down on your back with two folded blankets supporting your neck and shoulders.  Your head should be resting on the floor. Exhale, and bend your knees into your chest. As you press your hands into the floor, swing your legs with knees still bent over your head. Keep your elbows pressed firmly into the blanket, and place your hands on your lower back to support it.  Slowly raise your torso so that it’s perpendicular to the floor, and bring your knees to your chest. Raise your legs so that your thighs are parallel to the floor, then extend them toward the ceiling  (see photo).  Your body should feel long and straight and there should be no strain. Be sure to move your shoulders away from your ears and keep your head steady.  Stay in this pose for two minutes or more. When you’re ready to come down, slowly bend your knees and roll down.  Shoulderstand will surely lift your spirits and calm any anxiety or irritability you may be experiencing.  Note:  don’t do this pose if you have high blood pressure, are menstruating, or have neck or shoulder problems.

Plough Pose (Halasana)

Photo Credit: Yoga-for-beginners-a-practical-guide.com

Lie down on your back with two folded blankets supporting your neck and shoulders.  Your head should be resting on the floor, your arms are by your sides, and your legs are out in front of you with feet and knees together. Exhale, and bend your knees into your chest. Expand your chest and move your shoulders away from your head.  Exhale again, and extend your legs up and over your head, placing your toes on the floor behind you. If you can’t get your toes to the floor, then place a block or two for foot support. You can either extend your arms flat on the floor (see photo) or place your hands on your lower back for support.  Breathe deeply and slowly, and stay in this pose for several minutes or for as long as you’re comfortable. To come out, roll out slowly, one vertebrae at a time. Lie back and breathe deeply for a little while.  Plough pose will surely quiet your nerves, tame irritability and anxiety, and offer your body complete relaxation.  Note: don’t do this pose if you have neck problems.

Headstand (Sirsasana)

Photo credit: divavillage.com

The best way for beginners to do this pose is to do it against a wall. Place a folded blanket on the floor against the wall and kneel in front of it with knees and feet together. Some people do the pose without a blanket, but I think a blanket gives more soft support for the arms, which will be holding all of your weight.  Interlace your fingers and place your hands about three inches from the wall, keeping your elbows shoulder-width apart. You’ll be putting all of the weight of this pose into your wrists, forearms and elbows, so be sure to give yourself a firm foundation. Place your head on the blanket. The back of your head should touch your hands. Pressing your forearms into the floor, lift your shoulders away from the floor, straighten your legs and raise your hips toward the ceiling. Walk your feet in until your spine is almost perpendicular to the floor, then exhale and lift one leg at a time until your feet touch the wall.  Keep your eyes and throat soft, and your tummy relaxed.  Hold this pose for as long as you’re comfortable, up to five minutes.  To come out, exhale and lower one leg at a time.  Bend your knees and sit back on your heels and rest for a few breaths. Raise your head slowly.  Headstand encourages freshly oxygenated blood to circulate freely into your head and chest and rejuvenates your entire body.  Its a great pose if you’re feeling agitated or depressed. Feelings of joy may follow, so be forewarned! Note: don’t do this pose if you have high blood pressure, are menstruating, or have neck or back problems.

There are other yoga inversions that can be done.  Some can be done with a chair, against a wall, or with the aid or other props.  Get a copy of The Woman’s Book of Yoga & Health by Linda Sparrowe if you’re interested in learning more.