Category Archives: Yoga as Therapy

Yogatherapy for the Subscapularis

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Yogatherapy for the Subscapularis:

Yoga Therapy for the Subscapularis: In case you here the cue “open the heart” – I find the cue not as informative as seeing anatomically how the chest and arms work together here are some tips and a great infograph to put join yoga mind body and spirit. This infographic is cool  – it shows muscles, has some mind/body self-reflections/spirit  and also gets into the meridians. Yoga Therapy for the Subscapularis ! If you are someone whose shoulder blades ‘wing’, or, you have tight pectorals, and can never understand the cue ‘ keep your shoulder blades seated on your back’ this is a muscle group you can investigate and look towards strengthening.

Too much tightness in one area can simultaneously create tightness (and pinching) in another. There are a few ways that yoga, used therapeutically can address this. A restorative backbend can nicely open the front lines of the body while allowing the back body to re-pattern, plus you get to facilitate breathing.

Muscle metaphor questions to answer:

-What are you hiding or keeping private?

-Is there something that you need to reveal?

-What do you feel in your heart as opposed to your head?

-How are you receiving and sending messages about your life to yourself and others?

-ow is your communication and circulation within your soul, or in your daily activities, literally or figuratively?
Yoga Therapy for the Subscapularis

I do yoga to stay supple

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Word of the day: supple! Many folks are on the fence about starting yoga because they are “too stiff”. Actually this is one great reason to begin ~ to balance out strength with improved range of motion. The way I teach, yoga is accessible to you at your own level and pace. It is not actually necessary to be too bendy, but when you think of it, you want to be able to bend down, tie your shoes or reach for something on a shelf; flexibility is pretty practical. That being said, stretching is not all created equal. It does not mean yanking, pulling, tearing, and you want to be careful. Contact me for more info!

I do yoga to stay supple

Feet First: Yoga Therapy Tip Basic

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Feet First: Yoga Therapy Tip Basic

Let’s face it – our feet take a beating in daily life, whether it is the shoes we wear, the activities we do, or the way we stand, the feet are our foundations. If you already have a pre-existing condition, then you can use Yoga Therapy to strengthen and even prevent further damage to your feet as well as  learn to stand using better posture. It is always good to know, who you are and what you bring to asana.  Sometimes cues are for the general public.  I have found, through years of practice, that my bunions have gone from pain level 10+ to almost no pain ever (with the exception of walking in some shoes for prolonged periods).  However, I have to do a lot of work in my feet especially in standing poses. Great read on bunions by one of my teachers, Doug Keller

Tips

Yesterday at a client’s house, we didn’t have a tennis ball but they had some small 3 pound weights which we used to

-roll the feet over as a little preliminary massage before

-some ankle rolls

– toe tractions.

Don’t wait for your next pedicure to take care of your feet from the inside out. Try to distribute your weight on your feet (not so easy).  And don’t forget, the feet communicate with your calves so don’t expect to get tension out of the calves without working the tootsies…For more tips contact mefoot healthreflexes in the feet

Why Using a Wall is a Useful Yoga Prop

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Yoga Props To Increase The Benefits

Why Using a Wall is a  Useful Yoga Prop

As a yoga therapist, I  have never seen anyone not benefit from the use of a strategically placed yoga prop. Apart from a sticky and reliable yoga mat, the wall itself is a fantastic yoga prop and one of your best teachers for a few reasons:

-it does not lie; when you press into it you feel direct postural feedback of where you are in time and space

-it helps you maintain balance which can deliver you into more self-confidence, and strength

-it helps you maintain alignment and so conserve energy and keeps you safer (because there are healthy ways to stretch and ways that create injury)

-you can stack things against it like yoga blocks, bolsters, yoga chair

-it reminds us to ground, lengthen, align the spine and helps deepen awareness

Sounds pretty great right? right now, while I get to know the ropes here in Jersey City,  I am available for private yoga classes

The belief that using props is cheating or makes things ‘easy’ is ridiculous. Believe me.

Try this variation of a lunge: Come into downward facing dog with your heels up the baseboard of the wall. Step your right foot forward between your hands (you can use blocks). Keep pressing the back heel into the wall, draw your top thighs into the body so your hips are steady, as you lengthen through the spine. 60-90 seconds each side, steady breathing steady alignment

Join me for restorative yoga whether in private or in Jersey City to explore some calming options

wall as yoga prop

wall as yoga prop

 

The Yoga of Alice In Wonderland

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Lesson from Yoga practice: there is no ‘yesterday’ in the present moment.

Stay present to who you are today so that you can find the practices that meet your needs, whether it be physical – as in you wake up with a stiff neck, mental – as in you have a heavy load of solving problems on your brain, or emotional – as in you feel a little blue. Yoga Therapy addresses you holistically.

 

yesterday

Using Your Yoga Practice To Move From Spirit

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Using Your Yoga Practice To Move From Spirit  is seeing practice as meditation in motion, mindful movement. Sometimes life is full of challenges, and we have to call upon some inner grace to get through it. Relaxation is the antidote to stress, it will help you find that grace..

The lotus flower grows from the bottom of streams and muddy ponds to rise above the water and bloom. At night, it closes and sinks below the water, just to resurface again, untouched the next day, Fully grounded in earth, yet aspiring towards the divine, the lotus flower lives in the muddy water, yet remains unsoiled.

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Time on the yoga mat is meditation in motion, mindful movement.

The “P” in practice can either be “push push push” or “patience patience patience”. Generally I like to tell students to go gradually and navigate a pose, considering where they are at in the present moment, what the cues from their breathing indicate, and what the general physical feedback is telling them. There is a skill to using yoga props that not only makes the asana approachable and possible but also, increases the benefits and your ability to learn how to be peaceful in a challenging situation because you aren’t fighting so hard to maintain alignment etc. If you have never tried Restorative Yoga therapy wow, here too is a most intelligent and awesome way to cultivate safe flexibility and the rest and digest attitude that the nervous system so needs

 

yoga and healing

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This is a really cool quote about healing; I always equated Yoga with healing – that every posture and facet of the system is there as a tool for transformation. Very different approach from the fitness craze – doesn’t mean that yoga as therapy cannot be endurance and strength building. I challenge you if you think that way to book a private yoga class with me ! People think of yoga props as cheating whereas in fact, a well placed yoga prop can make it way more difficult for you NOT to rely on compensation patterns!

healing

Seeing Things

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“We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are” ~ Anais Nin

This quote points out a really great reason to relax and let your nervous system rest and digest…And if you are one to stay away from the quieter aspects of yoga why not try on this holiday weekend? I see many students, even those who are really revved up, learn to let go with purposeful instruction from a private yoga lesson. And then, there is always just taking a good old-fashioned nap! Enjoy the Memorial Day long weekendQuote

On your yoga mat – where does your attention go?

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Are you a fidgeter? I think it is important to navigate each yoga pose by breathing and sensing, so you may not get into it without little adjustments or the help of strategically placed yoga props. These can be your own, or where skillful attention and purposeful instruction come into play. I have seen it many times when I teach private yoga classes, that most people benefit from the teacher’s eye, and that finding comfort in the body, the mind will follow. After that though, if you still can’t stay still, it can be a question of focus. Learning how to breathe for mindfulness may help…

adjustment in asana