Category Archives: restorative yoga

Yoga for Backache

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posture is key to alleviate backache

balance posture can help backache

Lower Backache

Many people complain of backache despite no structural issues.  The figure above, for example, as a stick figure, has no lower back problems, and excellent posture, which either means it does lots of yoga or is just an illustration. Whether you have poor biomechanics and posture during the day, sit, stand or drive a lot, or are just very active, accumulated stress and tension can accumulate in the lower back and cause a feeling of dullness and tightness. Some of the muscle groups involved include tight hip flexors, tight hamstrings, inflamed Si joint, mid back rigidity. Note that each person is unique and may need to explore their own back issues, and sometimes a practitioner needs complete rest rather than any type of movement. Yoga is not a magic pill. It is a practice. 

#yoga is not a magic bullet. It is a practice
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Restorative Yoga for Backache

Some of the key ingredients to a healthy back might include balancing your active yoga practice with:

  • Traction
  • Mobility
  • Stability
  • Flexibility

or a combination of all of these to eliminate the compression. Healthy postural habits must also be learned otherwise the ease you gain will be easily lost when you go back to daily living. Use your yoga practice to learn new skills and tools.

lower backache and pain relief

lower back pain relief

The emotions and backache

Emotional overload and stress can also create discomfort in the lower back, because the mind is in the body! We also need:

What a Restorative Class Can Do 

Restorative yoga involves a series of prop-supported asanas held for prolonged periods. This may facilitate the transition from lower back discomfort to comfort and well-being. Come explore this themed class and reap the benefits!

yoga prop tutorial

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Yoga Prop tutorial 101: The Blanket

Blankets are a staple yoga prop, and very useful for a restorative practice. While in many forms of yoga classes blankets are used during savasana, as a warm layer, there are other uses of them. 

#yogaprop tutorial: the blanket #tips on how to use for a #restorative #yoga practice
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how to use a blanket as a yoga prop

Foundation: The single fold

One of the things blankets do is soften the hardness of the floor, which allows the muscle fibers to relax. You can use a stack of blankets or just one. The height you choose will depend on the asana, the intention of use, and how much you want to bring the floor closer to you.

Finding The Right Height

I often see students using way too much height under the head, or not enough, and the result is not an improvement of the posture. You want to be able to release tension in a restorative practice, to support you body in any number of poses from backbends, chest openers, forward bends, twists, and simple seated poses.

Two simple uses of Blankets

How you fold blankets is an important factor in using them as effective yoga props. You can roll or fold them, stack them up, or use combinations. They can be substituted for bolsters. Folding them well means having clean edges so they retain their shape. Remember that a yoga prop is there to support you and provide feedback. If they are falling apart this cannot happen.

SINGLE FOLD: FOUNDATION: Starting with the short ends of the blanket, it gets folded in half, then folded again twice. Smooth all edges. As seen in above photo

how to use the blanket as a yoga prop

Yoga Blanket folding step 1

DOUBLE FOLDED: Starting with the foundation fold one side into the middle, follow by the other side. Smooth all edges. As seen in above photo

how can I create a home yoga practicee

yoga blanket as bolster

The finished product, seen above, smooth edges can be used with another one together to make a nice bolster. Enjoy different ways to use yoga props in class today 

Enjoy using blankets as #yoga props in #restorative yoga class today! #jerseycity #Hoboken
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Or book a private!

 

Why restorative yoga?

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Best benefits of restorative yoga:

Restorative yoga offers the practitioner an opportunity to explore different aspects and benefits of practice that are often overshadowed by more dynamic styles.

top benefits of restorative yoga
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A restorative yoga practice frequently relies on the use of props, prolonged holding in safely aligned asana sequences, meditation, pranayama and relaxation. Excellent for active physical recovery, balance, stress management,a restorative yoga class can explore different safe alignment skills through therapeutic themes.

looking for a #yoga practice that offers physical recovery, #stress relief, #balance and #relaxation?
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Let’s take a look at Child’s pose (balasana)

benefits of restorative yoga?

Active childs pose

This is often called a resting pose, and can certainly be that. The variation in the above photo is dynamic, and often used as a preparation for downward facing dog. The props are used to wake up the spine and the shoulders as well as encourage conscious breathing into the back body. In a vinyasa, holding the pose for 5 or 10 breaths can offer the practitioner a break from the activity of the practice. However, many students cannot actually ‘let go’ in the pose, whether due to stiffness or pain or just inability to perform it safely. So…is it really restorative?

Now take a look below. Here, props are used to bring the pose to the person, encourage release, and the arms are taken out of the equation. There is no pulling, but the arms lines, shoulders, hips and spine are safely letting go of tension.

I encourage you to uncover some of the benefits! Restorative Yoga Classes can be booked privately or check my Calendar  

uncover the benefits of #restorative #yoga
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strategic yoga prop placement

restorative child’s pose

Group yoga classes

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Group Yoga Classes in September:

group restorative yoga classes

group restorative yoga classes

This season I’m kicking the restorative yoga classes up a notch, through the use of weekly themes and focuses on different categories of asanas. 

This season I’m kicking the restorative yoga classes up a notch
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This is primarily because I notice a prevalence of folks who either come expecting to just lay out on a bolster and sleep, or are already burnt out and tired that they should really be coming more often (preventative measures) rather than 1&1/2 hours of “curative”. Don’t get me wrong, it’s all good, but discipline (tapas) pays off, especially with restorative yoga, since we do not always cultivate the softer forms of practice (meditation, relaxation, pranayama). 

cultivate the softer practices of yoga
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Also, holding any pose for any length of time is either not helpful (if you do not have the alignment or trajectory of the pose in the first instance), or helpful if you are really in tune with proper prop placement and so on. Comfort is really learned too!

Many of you come to group yoga classes when you are already tired; have lower back pain, stiff shoulders, and tight hips. We will address all these issues in weekly themes during our yoga classes where you can learn sequences and alignment skills to complement your busy life and your active yoga practices. The sequences will progress as you learn them…right?! so come to class – or just book me privately.

The first week of the month will be devoted to supine standing poses, which are great to alleviate tension in the whole body. The second will be devoted to backbends and twists, to improve posture, circulation, the third to forward bends and light inversions, which have great benefits for immunity and overall calmness, and the fourth to peaceful practices and pranayama.

Look forward to seeing you in class, 

check out my calendar for yoga classes and events
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Rana

Lower Back Pain Relief

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lower back pain relief

lower back pain relief

Asana For Lower Back Pain Relief: One of the easiest asanas to practice, even at home, for lower back pain relief is called legs up the chair pose. This is actually a mini variation of viparita karani. It is really useful, especially for students who have difficulty, due to restrictions and tight hamstrings, in doing the classic legs up the wall variation – which I love too, as you may know.

Most people I encounter have some kind of lower back tension, and while certainly yoga has many tools to alleviate it, please know that activity is not always the answer. I teach and practice strong and alignment oriented asanas but I also incorporate restorative sequences, relaxation and breathing with myself and my students.

Legs up the chair is just that, and there are many variations. The photo above shows you quite straightforwardly that all you really need is a chair (although I have taught this to people in their homes where all they had was a sofa), and some support under the shoulders and head is quite nice, especially if you have slightly rounded shoulders and any neck discomfort. Ten minutes a day in this asana is quite soothing mentally, physically, and emotionally.

For other practices, call me or come to my restorative class here in Jersey City

Yoga For Fatigue

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Yoga for Fatigue

yoga for fatigue

yoga for fatigue

Do you suffer from being tired, not getting enough rest, or just having low energy?  Here are a few reasons to do yoga for fatigue and improved energy so that you can deal with the challenges of being tired mentally, physically, emotionally.

First of all, it helps to identify whether you are mentally, physically, emotionally tired, but have energy, or, either of these with no energy. This should help you somewhat with a basic idea of how to use your yoga practice for fatigue.

Yoga can be a good way to tone and invigorate your adrenals, but if your adrenals are shot due to being overly tired or stressed, you should think of pacifying your nervous system. You can do this with forward bends, or downward dog, and use some head support if you are mentally tired.

A balanced practice can massage and stimulate your adrenal glands; backbends tend to squeeze them and rid them of stale blood, twists will rinse them with freshly oxygenated blood.

What I enjoy about restorative yoga is that it can certainly open your body but without the brain having to do so much work. Navigating alignment is work, its still you doing something. Apart from legs up the wall, which is a go-to pose, I like Matseyasana when I have been working at my desk and my neck and shoulders are congested. It can be a little stimulating, because the heart and chest open, but this affords a nice opportunity to breathe too.

create the life of your dreams

Come to class or book a private yoga lesson for more tips

yoga for fatigue

yoga for fatigue

Supported Pranayama Practice

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Supported Pranayama Practice

Supported Pranayama Practice can be used as an alternative to classical Savasana, and has many benefits, especially when the right props are used

Using props to support the torso in Savasana has many benefits:

  1. Especially with beginner students who tend to fall asleep during relaxation, this variation keeps students more alert than in classical Savasana
  2. Due to the elevation of the torso, it reduces nasal congestion
  3. The props help to support the shoulders and neck as well as open the chest
  4. The strategic placement of yoga props will aid students in feeling the alignment of their back ribs and the different components of breathing
  5. The support will help to roll the tops of the shoulder blades back, whereas many people suffer from the postural imbalances of rounding shoulders and forward head
  6. Improves breath awareness and helps to teach proper breathing patterns
  7. Is a lovely alternative to seated mindfulness, as the student can relax the lower body.

 How to use props in supported pranayama practice

supported reclining pose for pranayama

supported reclining pose for pranayama

In the photo above, please note that we used what we had at hand. In lieu of an eye bag, we used the student’s soft sweatshirt. We also had one yoga mat, 4 of the 3 Minute Eggs and one standard bolster. For my favorite yoga props, click here. You can make substitutions or additions as needed. I will give you the directions for what is pictured.

  1. Position your bolster parallel to the mat with 2 eggs underneath the top end.
  2. Recline over the bolster, keeping the small of your back against the bottom end of your bolster.
  3. Allow your arms to rest, here we used the eggs to alleviate the pull and meet the students needs.
  4. Allow your legs to stretch out , and separate, and relax.
  5. Breathe

yoga poses to encourage calm

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yoga poses to encourage calm

Yoga poses to encourage calm enable the brain to focus, not on fighting gravity, but surrendering to it. One of the ways we achieve this is through supporting the head. A forward bend with the head supported on a block, for example, allows the brain to recover from mental fatigue, gain mental clarity, and can be held for a more extended period of time. Great benefits are reaped, such as a reduction in blood pressure, and lowered heart rate, which are all very soothing to the nervous system.

yoga poses to encourage calm

yoga poses to encourage calm

Paschimottanasana, or seated forward bend pose, is a lovely spine lengthener, assuming you can get the thoracic spine to expend. Sometimes very tight hamstrings pull the pelvis and the result is more struggle than surrender. When done comfortably though, it is a pose that benefits the digestive system, and stimulates the reproductive system, a long with producing calm. Whereas it may be hard to support the head on a block, you can always use a horizontal or vertical bolster. For those of us who cannot rest with that, sit on a blanket stack and bring a chair over to rest the head. Breathe and relax. Properly supported, a restorative forward bend can really encourage calm.

Tension Taming Yoga

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Tension Taming Yoga

A Mother’s Day Restorative Yoga Workshop to Tame your Tensions

Mother's Day Restorative Yoga Workshop

Mother’s Day Restorative Yoga Workshop

Mother’s Day is a day to celebrate the women in our lives who teach, guide, and support us with their love and direction to become the best variation of ourselves. Restorative yoga honors the peaceful and relaxed place in our minds, bodies and spirits, from which love emerges. Why not luxuriate in a practice geared to support you where you are by using the strategic placement of yoga props to help you align, rejuvenate, relax and heal? 

Mother's Day Holiday

Mother’s Day Holiday

Lower back pain and tight hips and shoulders plagues many of us, even when there is no structural impingement. Hours commuting, computing, lifting, and overall stress and tension can accumulate and irritate the lower back. Let’s focus on calming the tissues with a practice that promotes healing the body, calming the mind and soothing agitated emotions, all of which will help shift the inner status from tension to blissful  ease. Whether you are a mom, an aunt, want to bring your mom, or just want to come and send your mom loving Reiki energy from your peaceful inner place, you are all welcome to join us.  Makes a great gift, a lovely opportunity to spend time together, or just give back to wonderful you.  

The ananda maya kosha

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The ananda maya kosha

ananda maya kosha

I am light

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to traditional yoga writings, in order for true relaxation to take place, the body and mind need to actually take a mini holiday so that the level of peace can be uncovered. This state of peace is covered by five coverings, or bodies, called Maya Koshas. Maya means illusion and Kosha means body or Sheath. They are like wearing different layers of clothing. Just like you remove clothes to take a shower, so we have to relax each of these sheaths to uncover the light of the pure self within.

ananda maya kosha

ananda maya kosha

This particular post is timed with an invitation to come to my group Restorative Yoga Class, it is a great way to systemically relax. The sheath called the Ananda Maya Kosha, means the body of joy. It isn’t like a temporary happy feeling that you get from a sugar rush, or a purchase. It is best described as a stillness or quietude that is content in and of itself, and usually only uncovered when the body is relaxed and the mind is meditative.

ananda maya kosha

bliss

Most of us do not take the time to allow and nurture this type of silence and inner stillness. Ironically, when we push ourselves with more and more effort, we are actually often depleting ourselves. Taking the time to uncover your true joy and silent inner core is where the deepest healing takes place.