Yoga from a teacher's perspective
Posted in yoga poses on Jun 10th, 2012
I just posted another class that focuses on opening hamstrings and hip flexors in preparation for handstand pose. The sequence builds up to using the wall for support of this challenging inversion. Check out the full yoga class sequence here.
Posted in garudasana, gomukhasana, vinyasa, yoga class sequence, yoga sequence on May 13th, 2012
I just posted a new class sequence focusing on stimulating the 2 lower chakras, muladhara and svadisthana. Learn how to stimulate these vital energy centers here. There are so many other poses I could have included…bhujangasana (cobra), garudasana, upavishta konasana, … What poses would you include?
Posted in back bends, yoga class sequence, yoga poses, yoga sequence on Apr 8th, 2012
I just posted another class that warms students up to practice One Footed King Pigeon Pose, Eka Pada Raja Kapotasana. It includes lots of shoulder and hip flexor stretching and backbending. Check out a full yoga class sequence here. In the full expression of the pose, the yogi’s head is touching the feet. However, for [...]
Posted in back bends, sirsasana, yoga, yoga poses on Mar 25th, 2011
It’s Friday and I’m feeling a little silly. Here are my interpretations of yoga poses as emoticons. Can you think of any others?
Posted in back bends, bhekasana, eka pada rajakapotasana, garudasana, gomukhasana, lunge, pigeon, running, vinyasa, virasana, yoga, yoga poses, yoga sequence on Feb 23rd, 2011
At the start of each class, I ask students if there is a pose or body part that they would like to work on. One of the most frequent requests is for hip openers. It’s in the top 10 along with neck and shoulders. Hmmm…all places we commonly carry stress. The anatomy of the hip [...]
Posted in mindfulness, vinyasa, yoga, yoga poses on Feb 17th, 2011
What would you think if I called you a poser? Isn’t everyone who practices yoga a poser? Or are we? I guess that depends on how you define poser. I’m thinking of it in 2 ways: a person who aligns their body into yoga poses a person who acts like something they aren’t From my [...]
Posted in back bends, inversions, viparita karani, yoga, yoga poses, yoga sequence on Feb 14th, 2011
Sequencing a yoga class is akin to choreographing a dance. Like a dance, a yoga class should have a sense of flow and feel coherent. At the same time, it should target a variety of postures to open energy channels throughout the body. There are hundreds of basic yoga poses. Add to to those, the [...]
Posted in adho mukha svanasana, inversions, sirsasana, viparita karani, yoga, yoga poses on Jan 25th, 2011
I went shopping last week to pick up some essentials for my house…tissues, toilet paper,…you get the idea. Nothing very exciting, but I was at Costco where you never know what’s going to be around the next corner. As I was pushing my cart through the aisles, I came across an item I’ve been enamored [...]
Posted in back bends, kapotasana, laghu vajrasana, ustrasana, yoga, yoga poses on Jan 13th, 2011
Once a week, I practice Ashtanga Second Series in a led class. Second Series is also known as Nadi Shodhana, meaning nerve cleansing. Nadi is the Sanskrit term for the energy pathways through our bodies. Nadi Shodhana purifies, opens and clears these energy pathways with a strong focus on back bends. In the series, there [...]
Posted in garudasana, vinyasa, yoga, yoga poses, yoga sequence on Jan 12th, 2011
You never know where inspiration for a blog entry will come from. Yesterday, I took a great yoga class with 4 variations of eagle. This morning, I got an e-mail from my brother with with some amazing photos of eagles. Now, I’m not one to ignore cosmic forces and write this off as coincidence – [...]