What exactly is yoga? We hear the term all the time and we know that it has something to do with deep breathing and certain poses, but what exactly is it? Yoga is a set of disciplines that involve the mind and body. The art that combines body toning with mental relaxation was developed in ancient India with roots in the Hindu tradition.

Yoga has been proven to have several beneficial effects on the physical and mental well-being of those who practice it. Some of the benefits of yoga include better muscle tone, improved metabolism, weight loss, increased flexibility, and higher energy levels. Yoga has also been found to help athletes in many ways.

How yoga benefits athletes

Athletes need high levels of energy both to train and to perform while playing their sport. Being an athlete takes hard work and dedication and adds a lot of stress on the body. Here are the ways yoga helps to relieve the bodily stress that athletes encounter:

1.  Improved strength: While doing yoga, a lot of poses require you to hold up your own weight. The manner of holding a pose while concentrating on your breathing helps to strengthen the muscles and improve the overall body strength.
2. Flexibility: Yoga is all about stretching and toning the muscles. The gradual increase in stretching the muscles helps to make them more flexible. The deep breathing techniques also help increase the oxygen supply to the muscles.
3. Balance: Athletes often need to be fast and have quick reflexes; yoga improves your physical balance, giving you better control over your body. Good balance doesn’t just mean you are less prone to falling. Yoga gives you better muscle control to prevent injuries from straining a muscle too much.
4. Mental stability: Competitive sports can be very stressful. Even the fittest of athletes can at times buckle under pressure and not give their best performance. Yoga helps in strengthening the mind. The practices improve focus and endurance, equipping athletes to stay calm under pressure and giving their best even in stressful situations. The meditative practices included in yoga teach you how to focus your mind and use your breathing to relax both the mind and body. Once mediation has become a habit, it becomes an invaluable tool in helping you through tough times.
5. Improved core strength: The poses or asanas in yoga work to improve core strength. Exercising and building the muscles that are engaged in the sport is easier for those who are used to it but building core strength can be tricky. Yoga builds strength in the very center of the body that ultimately stabilizes the whole being.

Athletes who include yoga as part of their training routine have a definite advantage over those who don’t. The increased focus, balance, and flexibility, among other benefits, give athletes that extra edge when it comes to crunch time. Whether it be a team sport, track event or competitive swimming, the athlete who has that added bit of endurance stands a better chance at beating the odds.

The holiday season is typically a very busy and stressful time of the year for many. Because of this, yoga practice is the perfect activity. Not only can yoga help to calm your nerves and reduce your overall stress levels, but it can help your physical health as well. This is vital for anyone who indulges just a little bit when it comes to eating during the holidays. The following are a few yoga poses that are particularly beneficial during the holidays:

1. The empty coat sleeves pose

Plant your feet so that they are slightly wider than shoulder distance apart. Turn your heels in towards one another so that your toes point out. Gently twist your upper body from side to side, allowing your arms to hang loose to the sides. Your arms should flop against your front and your back as you twist.

This movement will help to massage the lymph nodes in the groin and armpit areas. This will help boost your immunity, remove cellular waste and promote healing. It’s also meant to be soothing for your nervous system.

2. The revolved chair pose

Chair pose is basically a squat that you hold while your hands are in a prayer position in front of your chest. Revolved chair pose requires that you twist to one side while in your chair pose so that your elbow hooks your opposite knee. Your lower body should remain facing forward while your upper body twists to the side. Try to hold this position for ten breaths, looking up towards the ceiling as you do so. You’ll want to repeat this pose on both sides.

Revolved chair pose can be quite a workout and can cause you to sweat – especially if you’ve done a number of other poses beforehand. Sweat is one of the ways that your body gets rid of toxins, which means it’s good to sweat. The pose itself also helps to massage, squeeze and clean your abdominal organs, thereby improving how your liver, kidneys, and intestines process waste.

3. The dead bug pose

This pose is a great way to end a yoga session or any exercise session for that matter. Lay on your back and raise your arms and legs into the air. Then wiggle every limb and digit, shaking everything out. If you’re in a private space where you won’t disturb anyone, scream while you are doing this. This allows a full physical and mental release. Keep doing this pose for one to seven minutes. Once you finish, lay down on your back in Shavasana pose for ten minutes.

The dead bug pose allows you to shake out any bits of stress that still remain in your body after your practice. Because it’s a full release, performing this pose allows you to detoxify your body.

There are many different yoga poses that can benefit your physical and mental health. These are three yoga poses that are particularly effective for dealing with the stress of the holidays.

Mindfulness: 6 Steps for Belly Breathing by Melissa Kaufmann, December Teacher of the Month

Being a professional in the mindfulness and yoga world am often asked “How can I practice mindfulness with my family?”  I love this question!  It use to be that I was asked “what is mindfulness,” but as mindfulness becomes part of our vocab the conversation is changing to HOW do we practice being mindful?  I recommend Belly Breathing as a simple way to practice mindfulness individually or with friends and family.  It’s so easy even toddlers and kids can participate; for you yogis, it’s very similiar to Three Part Yogic Breathing.

According to Mindful Schools, “From a neurological or physiological perspective, deep belly breathing slows the heart rate, lowers blood pressure, and sharpens the minds ability to focus and learn by slowing down the amygdala and supporting the higher brain function taking place in the frontal lobes.  One of the other benefits of deep belly breathing is the control it gives participants over their emotions, their learning, and their own lives. “

6 Steps for Belly Breathing

Belly Breathing helps slow and deepen the breath. This triggers calming changes in the body and mind.

1. Get into a comfortable position, sitting tall or lying down on your back.
2. Close your eyes and place your palms on your lower belly, resting them comfortably below your navel. Relax your abdomen
3. Breathe in and out through your nose. As you take a deep breath send the air to your belly and feel your stomach rise as it fills with air on the inhale and then fall again as you breathe out. As you breathe in and out, allow the hands on your belly to gently rise up and down.
4. Belly breathe for anywhere from 20 seconds to a few minutes with slow and full breaths.
5. If your mind wanders, that’s okay, just re-focus your attention on your breath.
6. When you are done, slowly open your eyes but stay still and quiet.

Happy Breathing!

Please contact Melissa Kaufmann with any questions, comments, or requests regarding mindfulness and yoga at MelissaTheYogi@gmail.com

Learn why contemporary physicians are prescribing a centuries’ old practice for health conditions.

Yoga enthusiasts have long raved about the benefits of practicing this ancient art. Now, thanks in part to a growing body of research touting the benefits of yoga, mainstream medicine is beginning to recommend yoga therapy as an adjunct to traditional treatment options.

In fact, a study by the U.S. National Healthy Interview Survey found that 1 in 30 Americans is using yoga therapy at the behest of a medical professional.

What Is Yoga Therapy?

Yoga therapy is different than traditional therapy classes. According to Yoga Journal, yoga therapy is lead by instructors who have been specifically trained to work with clients with a variety of health conditions. Yoga therapy is a holistic approach that focuses on the healing principles of the individual.  The tools used in yoga therapy include postures, breathing exercises, guided imagery, meditation and diet.

What Kind of Health Conditions Does Yoga Therapy Help?

Yoga therapy can help to alleviate many health issues. Like many other treatments, it is particularly effective when it is used as a complement to other forms of health care. In fact, during the 2016 American Academy of Pain Management’s Annual Meeting experts suggested that yoga may be just as effective as standard physical therapy.  Here are just a few of the health issues that yoga therapy can help.

Back Pain

Tons of research has found that yoga reduces medication use and improves pain and functioning in people with back pain, according to WebMD.  Recently the Boston Medical Center  conducted a study following the lives of 320 chronic pain sufferers as they participated in a 12-week program designed to study the benefits of yoga versus standard physical therapy. The study showed that 12 weeks of yoga produced as much benefit as the same amount of physical therapy.

Heart Benefits

According to experts, yoga has a number of benefits on the heart.  In an interview with Fox 7 News in Austin, cardiologist for St. David’s Georgetown Hospital Dr. Michael Henderson told that yoga can improve lung capacity, lower blood pressure and improve heart rate. The Harvard Heart Letter says that yoga may help lower heart disease risk as much as other, more conventional forms of exercise. Research published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology indicates that yoga can effectively lower blood pressure, reduce harmful cholesterol and help those trying to shed pounds.

These are just a few of the benefits of yoga therapy. If you are suffering from an injury or health problem, consider yoga therapy to help you get relief.

Yoga is proven to be beneficial in numerous ways for men and women of all ages. However, what you may not know about yoga is that it’s extremely beneficial for pregnant women. Prenatal yoga has grown in popularity over the past few years, and it’s not difficult to understand why when you take a look at the benefits.

1. Improve balance – As the fetus begins to grow, your body changes rapidly. It can be challenging to become accustomed to having to learn how to balance yourself physically, something that yoga will help tremendously with.
2. Relieve physical tension – The bigger the fetus grows, the more stress is put on the lower back, upper back, hips, chest, neck, and shoulders. Practicing yoga will help to relieve this tension.
3. Develop strength and stamina – More energy and strength is needed in order to carry the weight of a child. Yoga will strengthen your back, hips, arms and shoulders.
4. Increase your circulation – Increasing the circulation of blood in your body will help to decrease swelling and enhance your immune system, thereby creating a healthier environment for your baby. This is accomplished through the elongation of joints and muscles through yoga practice.
5. Calm your nervous system – A big part of practicing yoga is the practice of deep breathing. Deep breathing will help your nervous system to go into parasympathetic mode, which is what’s responsible for relaxation. When your body goes into parasympathetic mode, you’ll end up getting better sleep, improving your digestion and enhancing your immune system – all of which are important when you are pregnant.
6. Prepare for labor – Deep breathing exercises don’t just help calm your nervous system, they also help you to prepare for labor. Yoga practice requires you to perform conscious breathing during each pose and teaches you to be comfortable with the uncomfortable, something that will be extremely useful during your labor.
7. Prepare for contractions – In addition to helping prepare you with the difficulty of labor, breath work will also help you to breath during contractions, thereby helping to regulate your blood pressure and heart rate during labor.
8. Slow down – Being pregnant comes with a lot of stress. After all, you’re basically spending nine months preparing for the baby. Yoga allows you to take a mental break, which is extremely helpful on days during which you find yourself especially busy and stressed out.
9. Connect with your baby – Prenatal yoga helps you to slow down and focus your attention on your body. By doing this, you’ll feel more connected to what’s going on with and in your body, which means you’ll become more connected with your baby.
10. Bond with other women – By taking prenatal yoga classes, you have a chance to bond with a community of other pregnant women who can relate to what you’re going through.

Women that are pregnant go through a lot of physical and emotional changes that can be quite taxing. This is why prenatal yoga can be so beneficial.

Years ago, doing yoga was considered to be a highly feminine activity strictly limited to those on the outer fringes of society. Nowadays, yoga is mainstream. As we learn more about the power of yoga, it becomes increasingly clear that this low-effort exercise provides an incredible array of mental benefits as well as physical benefits. Let’s examine the top ten reasons why everyone should start practicing yoga.

1. Yoga Improves Flexibility and Balance

Most of us sit in office chairs for an extended period of time, regardless of whether we are at work or at home. The average person spends much less time on his feet as he ages. The result of this sedentary behavior is a decrease in balance and flexibility. Regular yoga has the potential to reverse these shortcomings or at least slow their onset.

2. Yoga is a Surprisingly Good Workout

If you were to ask active people if they would rather run a couple miles or practice yoga, most would opt for yoga. Though yoga doesn’t get the blood pumping like an intense run, it promotes weight loss, especially for those in their 40s and 50s.

3. Yoga Boosts Your Strength

Yoga is a true full-body workout. It engages all sorts of different muscles, from the calves all the way up to the biceps. So put down those weights at least once per week and substitute in a yoga session. You’ll probably enjoy your yoga session so much that you end up practicing yoga several times per week.

4. Yoga Lets You Chill Out

Engage in some yoga exercises and you will feel considerably less stressed. Numerous studies have shown that those who engage in yoga enjoy lower blood pressure and significantly less stress. There is also mounting evidence that yoga decreases the intensity of mental health ailments like anxiety.

5. Yoga can Sharpen Your Mental Prowess

Yoga is an all-natural means of improving your mental clarity and focus. According to Runner’s World, yoga has the potential to heighten brain function and even improve one’s post-workout reaction time.

6. Yoga Combats Migraines

A study conducted in 2007 found that migraine sufferers who participate in yoga enjoy fewer intense headaches.

7. Yoga Decreases Pain

Yoga is an excellent alternative to pain medications. It can mitigate nasty knee pain, back pain, shoulder pain and beyond. According to researchers at Harvard Medical School, yoga even has the potential to reduce chronic pain.

8. Yoga Improves Sleep Quality

Would you rather pop sleeping pills or enjoy a yoga session? Most would opt for the latter. Studies show that yoga wards off insomnia, calms the mind and generally improves sleep.

9. Yoga Improves Your State of Mind

Numerous studies have found that regular yoga practice results in a more positive outlook.

10. Yoga can Boost Your Sex Life

Are you on the prowl for a way to improve your love life? Yoga might be the answer. Studies show that yoga has the potential to boost sexual satisfaction for men and women.

Chronic pain can leave you wanting to try just about anything to help ease it.  For many this means taking pain relief medications that have serious and sometimes harmful side effects.  Thankfully, there are other more holistic ways to ease chronic pain.  One of those effective methods is restorative yoga.

What is restorative yoga?

Restorative yoga is a practice that stretches the body to relieve tension while inhaling and exhaling with deep breaths. It is a form of yoga that does not cause pain or discomfort, but instead deep relaxation. When the body reaches a deep relaxing state of being, the body’s natural healing responses turn on and begin working to relieve the chronic pains.

As you are practicing this form of yoga it is essential that you imagine your body’s natural healing energy flowing through it freely starting from the crown of your head all the way down to the soles of your feet. Allow yourself to feel all the sensations that occur with each yoga pose and deep breath you take. Do not rush while you are practicing. Remember, you are trying to bring forth natural pain relief to the body, which is better than any pain medication you could ever take.

Can props be useful during restorative yoga?

Yes, props are extremely useful during restorative yoga because they help you achieve the positions necessary for turning on the body’s natural healing responds comfortably.  Some of the most useful props that can help you get into restorative poses are pillows, beach towels, bolsters, long thin blankets, yoga balls, and jump ropes. Keep in mind you want just the right support going in and out of poses; you do not want to injure yourself and cause more discomfort in the body.

How does this alternative healing method relieve chronic pain?

Restorative yoga relieves chronic pain from the body by relieving physical and mental stress. Practicing restorative yoga reverses the way the brain responses to stress by helping it adapt to it in a positive way. If you use this healing method daily, it can restore the body back to health and help prevent chronic pain from occurring again in the future.

Before practicing any kind of alternative healing method to restore the body’s health, it is wise to consult with a doctor first to make sure it is safe for you.  Remember, you want to relieve your current condition. You do not want to worsen it. With that said, live well and be happy.

Even if you’ve never taken a yoga class before, you probably have some kind of idea of what to expect. Yoga has gained immense popularity over the past decade to the point where yoga classes are often depicted in movies and TV shows. So as far as you know, you’re probably expecting close quarter yoga in a room full of students. However, before showing up for your first class, it’s important to understand the following yoga class etiquette:

• Show up early – You’re going to need a little bit of time in order to get yourself ready, such as removing your jacket, taking off your socks and shoes, signing in and getting set up on your mat. If you show up right when class starts, all of these actions will distract the other students. Try to show up between ten and 15 minutes early.
• Turn off your electronics – Make sure that any electronics you might have on you, such as your smartphone, your tablet or your wrist watch, are all turned off or set on mute. You don’t want to be that person that has to jump up in the middle of class to go turn off that incredibly disruptive ringing sound.
• Stagger your mat – When setting up your mat, stagger it from the person behind you so that you don’t block their view of the instructor.
• Get rid of all odors before coming to class – Make sure you’re not wearing stinky socks that cause an odor to spread through the class. Wear clean, appropriate clothing. You should also avoid wearing strong perfume or lotion that could bother others.
• Don’t get chatty during class – If you want to chat to someone after class, that’s okay. But during the actual class, refrain from speaking to anyone. Yoga is supposed to be a very reflective and meditative practice – by speaking you are not only disrupting the practice of the person you are speaking to, but also of everyone else in the class.
• Clean up afterwards – If you’ve borrowed a mat from the yoga instructor, make sure that you wipe it down afterwards. You should also carefully put away any props that you borrowed during the practice, such as blocks or blankets, the way that you found them.
• Face your head to the instructor during shavasana – At the end of every yoga class, students do what’s called “shavasana.” This consists of laying flat on your back in brief respite to let your body take everything in. When you get into shavasana position, make sure your head is facing the instructor – this is a sign of respect.
• Respond with namaste – Once the practice ends, the instructor will bow their head and say “namaste.” Namaste is the term used to honor the divinity within you. It is respectful to respond in kind.

Because yoga practice is so meditative, it’s extremely important that you follow basic yoga class etiquette in order to show respect to your instructor and to your fellow students

Yoga sadhana (practice) is a magnificent reflection of all life…its simple and complex cycles, existing as the evolutionary world around us. As a movement meditation, it expresses the dance of the pulse of life through the rhythmic unity of breath and movement. Through mindful practices of asana, pranayama, and self-observation we can tap into the power of subtle exploration of our world, and our inner state. True yoga is the understanding relationship- to our inner and outer realms. Energy flow drives each movement, each breath, and allows us to respond and adapt intelligently as our world demands us to be in a state of constant and sustainable growth.

At some point in the world of modern day “yoga”, with the booming popularity of yoga as a new fitness industry, the *energetic* depth of the practice was put on the backburner. By often being conditioned to ignore our subtle bodies and the energetic forces which support and unfold in each movement and asana, we have lost the most powerful primal quality of asana practice itself. With a perspective like this, there are implications. Injury tends to happen more often, as a result of individuals or instructors pushing themselves on the mat. Not only this, but the “Type-A,” fitness based, and more aggressive or rigid styles of yoga are increasingly aggravating a society which already needs more softening, balancing, and nourishing practices in their lives. Now, of course, this is not present in all styles of yoga, and each branch on the tree of modern yoga has its inherent value whether it is more exercise oriented or bhakti-centered. The spectrum is wide and everything has its healing role.

There are so many beautiful practices with incredible perspectives into the role of yoga as a healing art. When one looks deeper to examine the current state of modern yoga — therein lies an important question: How can a practice still be challenging, while maintaining energetic awareness, safety in movement, and sustainability as a lifestyle choice? How can we stoke the fire without burning out? As a teacher and student of Prana Vinyasa yoga, I have experienced this practice as the inspiring middle ground between more regenerative practices, and the healthy challenge so many of us enjoy in a Vinyasa class.

Prana Vinyasa, a uniquely creative and energetic vinyasa yoga practice created by Shiva Rea, revives the connection to our deepest inner intelligence as a reflection of the universal intelligence that guides the natural flow of creation. By bowing to the inner and outer cycles of change, Prana Vinyasa is the dynamic practice which allows us to cultivate a unique and invaluable ability to grow and change with grace. Power is matched with fluidity, linear movement is balanced with circulation, and classical asanas are rejuvenated through intuitive body movements, pulsations, and counterposing. From the classical Krishnamacharyan perspective, the philosophies of Tantra and Bhakti turn strict asana into pure poetry. With 40 unique namaskars, and 64 creative sequences, each new experience in the body is rooted in a solar-lunar and elemental foundation that serves the time of year, time of day, or simply the current state of the practitioner’s life experience.

Through the full spectrum approach to yoga asana and living yoga as a portal to understanding ourselves, we are able to view our world from a more balanced perspective– embracing the cyclical flow of all things — initiation, sustenance, and dissolution. We can draw upon our reactions and resources in the present, and experience a greater ability to embrace change and facilitate our own self healing as the first and most important step to healing the challenges of our outer world. Prana Vinyasa has unlocked my connection to the state of flow as an exquisite evolutionary approach to the art of living, that at once provides a healthy challenge and the juiciness to stay nourished as the practice deepens. The path is continuing to unfold with each breath on and off the mat. I encourage you to incorporate an awareness of the Prana pulsing through you, with every step, dance, embrace, and asana you feel within you. Bowing to the transmissions of my teacher Shiva Rea and all that she has inspired in my journey, I encourage you to enjoy a Prana Vinyasa practice today!

Devon has spent the last seven years cultivating her own abilities as a guide on the mat and her teaching method is centered around serving the deeper intelligent flow of the universe and challenging students to explore the way they can connect to that subtle energy. Teaching at a variety of festivals, events, and studio settings, Devon’s unique ability to lead group practices with graceful clarity shines through. Through intelligent sequences and creative soundscapes, Devon’s practices are a full yogic experience of integration between the mind and body, guided by the breath. She is currently active in the Samudra Global School of Living Yoga, has over 1,000 hours of teaching experience at all levels, assists teacher trainings, and offers treatment-based therapeutic bodywork in Denver and Boulder. www.intelflowtherapy.com