The second chakra, also known as Svadhisthana, or sacral chakra. This chakra covers the region of the reproductive organs and lower abdomen and back. As an intuitive, I see this as the emotional center of the body. This is the chakra that stores the information around how we are feeling, and what is going on for us emotionally.
One of the most common scenes I see playing out when doing energy work on the second chakra are the themes of what I call emotional competition and emotional judgment. What I mean by that is, the emotional space houses all of the emotions you have, but oftentimes our emotional body wants to compete with “good” vs. “bad” emotions. Many people have given anger, shame, sadness, and some of what we perceive as negative emotions a bad rap. The more we label those emotions as bad or wrong and try to push them out of that space, the more that second chakra will then snowball those emotions.
We all enjoy having joy, peace, happiness, and relief in there, and rightfully so, but the emotional life hack here is that all emotions are invited to the party we call a balanced and harmonious second chakra.
The easiest way to “heal” anger is to validate it, because in reality it is not the anger that needs the healing, it is the programmed traits, expressions, and reactions that arise within us when we feel anger that want to transform.
The best way to heal grief, to look at it and give it the much-needed validation and recognition it deserves. Grief doesn’t require examination, but it does need to be seen and heard before it’ll clean out the container you hold within to the truth and capacity of your joy.
Look inside and greet that anger or sadness like a friend. Ask if it is your emotion or maybe if it belongs to someone else.
Embrace the emotions and create dialogue within yourself. A balanced second chakra would be energetically set like a forest or a garden. It is more than one tree or plant that makes the forest or garden beautiful. There are many plants that create diversity and allow it to thrive, same for the emotional space. When you bring joy, anger, grief, shame, acceptance, love and more, all into harmony, magic happens.
When identifying fear within that emotional space, recognize that while fear can serve a purpose, it can also be like an invasive weed that takes over if left unattended.
I know a fun practice I like to use when setting the intention of getting a healing on my second chakra during my practice on the mat is to notice which spots in my hips and low back feel sticky or tight. When I inhale I focus solely on the inhale and become completely present with that uncomfortable space in my body. When I exhale I sometimes see stored energy of my past energetically leaving my body, and remain present with the exhale.
Another great way to play with doing energy work on your second chakra is to imagine a color or some colors that feel good in that sacral region from just below the rib cage, and down towards the navel. You can play with visualizing vibrations that are no longer serving you release from your body and dissipate, creating space for a balanced second chakra.
As much as we invest in reworking perceived negative emotional patterns in our lives, remember to soak up and bask in the one that feel yummy too, enjoy the giggles, the joy, the delicious food, funny movie, honest conversation, loving cuddles, sensual touches, or exciting news. These are all vital to experiencing balance in your second chakra.
By Angela D.
Practice yoga for your second chakra, now!
Sacral Chakra Flow with Cicily Carter
"People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within." -Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
True happiness and beauty come from within and yoga is a powerful tool to help you shine your own light. When the external world feels heavy or hard, it can be easy to forget all the light and strength inside of us. Yoga reminds us our light is always there––we may have to work to shed the layers of darkness to uncover it, but we have the ability to choose positivity, no matter what. We create our own calm within any storm.
In yoga philosophy, specifically the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali reveals that to progress on the path of yoga, we don’t fight the darkness, we introduce light. In the second Pada on practice, Patanjali outlines the three primary benefits of the physical postures or asanas, as resolving dis-ease, creating lightness of body, and stability. Then, the Sutras on Pranayama, breath control, II-49 through II-53 detail how the regulation of life force is regulated by the inhale and the exhale. Breathing in a certain way will alleviate Tamas or darkness to reveal your inner light. If feeling Tamas (heaviness/depression), do Pranayama. If feeling Rajas (anger) do Asana.
The combination of pranayama and asana encourages lightness on every level. By practicing yoga with mindful breath, you improve posture, build strength and flexibility, and create space in tight areas. Endorphins––the feel good hormones––are released, which helps you feel more positive and optimistic and leaves less room for negative emotions to take root. Yoga helps manage physical pain, which directly impacts our emotions and thoughts.
Yoga at its root is about learning to direct the attention of your thoughts or control your mind. One of the most powerful Yoga Sutras is II-33. vitarka badhane pratipaksha bhavanam, which translates to: when disturbed by negative thoughts, cultivate the opposite. In other words, when an angry or depressing thought arises, acknowledge it and then replace the negative with a positive. This technique when practiced regularly will help create a pattern of naturally beginning to see the positive first.
Yoga reminds us that we have a choice in our perspective––always. Through the rollercoaster of life, there will be challenging times and your ability to bolster yourself will see you through the difficulties. It isn’t about pretending reality doesn’t exist, it is about recognizing you have the power in how you allow it to impact you.
This week's classes will have you feeling lighter and more optimistic. Whether you're feeling positive, or feeling down, you will gain inspiration and let go of heaviness by giving yourself the time to enjoy these classes that encourage lightness.
1. Quick Energy Flow 5 - Claire Petretti Marti
2. Angela Kukhahn - Quest for the Press 2
3. Kristin Gibowicz- -Yoga for Weight Loss: Your Body is a Temple (FREE Class)
4. Pradeep Teotia - Good Morning Sunshine
One of the staples of the Conscious Cleanse eating plan are great big meal-sized salads! When the weather heats up, standing over a hot stove to cook a meal is not ideal. So we wanted to share some of our favorite summertime salad recipes with you today!
We love salads, but it’s easy to get tired of the same old salad day in and day out. The best way to keep coming back for more greens is to get creative with the salad dressing and toppings! All these salads use flavorful dressings plus unique and tasty toppings to upgrade your summer salad experience.
This brand new recipe that’s exclusive to our online cleanse program. That’s right – if you become a Conscious Cleanse On Demand member, you’ll get access to recipes that are available just to YOU!
The Big Island Salad is cleanse-friendly and packed with delicate flavors that will transport you to tropical shores. Who needs a beach vacation when you’ve got this recipe!
Happy summer salad-making!
With love,
The Big Island Salad
Yield: 1 large salad
Ingredients:
¼ cup macadamia nut oil ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice 1 large bowl arugula ½ cup garden peas (cooked, if using frozen peas) 1 carrot, shredded ¼ cup purple cabbage, shredded ½ cup green cabbage, shredded 1 large handful hemp seeds 1 large handful dulse flakes Pinch sea salt Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions:
In a large bowl combine arugula, macadamia nut oil and lime juice. Toss to coat well. Add in peas, carrot, cabbage, hemp seeds and dulse flakes. Toss again. Season with sea salt and pepper, adding more oil or lime juice as needed.
Jo Schaalman and Jules Peláez are co-authors of the book The Conscious Cleanse: Lose Weight, Heal Your Body and Transform Your Life in 14 Days, a best-selling, step-by-step guide to help you live your most vibrant life. Together they’ve led thousands of people through their online supported cleanse through their accessible and light-hearted approach. They’ve been dubbed “the real deal” by founder and chief creative director Bobbi Brown, of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, beauty editor of the TODAY show.
The first chakra is the chakra that most reflects the physical body; also known as the root chakra, or Muladhara. Energetically speaking, the root chakra contains the information that codes how we take care of our physical bodies, what set of experiences have created assistance and resistance to being in our bodies, survival information, safety information, fight, or flight information and our connection to our mother.
Whenever we feel that things are no longer in alignment with us, or could use some mending or transformation, the first chakra tends to be the best place to go within and get curious.
Maybe we are feeling drained, defensive, uncertain, or like we are operating off knee-jerk reactions or a personal belief system how to take care of ourselves, that feels outdated at a core level. A great way to self-heal that first chakra is to create a dialogue with your body. There are many mediums to doing this, but let’s talk about using yoga asanas as a simplified way in which to do so.
The beauty of self-healing is that while it does require curiosity, it does not require analytical dissection. For those with a strong basis in psychology, I understand how this might be triggering, I am just simply offering different mindful, right-brain approach to healing without a need for the analyzer.
So what does getting curious about outdated information in the first chakra look like?
Here are some examples, but again, the emphasis is on what to get curious about will be based upon how you are or are not taking care of the physical body, and what does or doesn’t feel good for you.
Okay, so where to begin, now that I have you triggered!
When healing this first chakra space through the intention of your asanas or yoga practice and turning down the analytical mind you simply begin on your mat. Before the practice starts, simply set the intention that any outdated information or information that is creating discord in the first chakra around how to take care of your physical body is released. Also, ask if any blocks in the communication between you and your body are mended.
Wait, it's that easy?
Yes, it can be. Decoding, re-writing, and transforming chakras can be a wormhole of a topic, but it also doesn’t have to be rocket science or an incredibly gut-wrenching process of self-discovery.
As you flow through your yoga practice, with the intention in place that you are self-healing your root chakra, it is like opting for the update on your phone or computer. You are bringing yourself into the highest frequency possible for you and your optimal health in present time, and coming into clear communication with your body and its needs. You are also releasing old information and unconscious memories that have created and shaped the previous vibration of how you take care of your physical body.
See what happens, get curious, watch what comes up for you during your practice when that intention is in place. See what get’s uncomfortable, see what you get to breathe into, get really present, with, and then transition out of it.
We all know magic happens every time we get on our mats. Allow the magic of your practice to transform your first chakra without digging too deep into your personal psyche, but through presence, breath, transitioning asanas, and willingness to show up and trying something new.
Set your intention and align your Mulhadara chakra in yoga, right now!
Yoga for the First Chakra with Elise Fabricant
Muladhara Chakra Yoga: Root Down with Cicily Carter
If you’ve been feeling a bit down recently and are in need of a mood boost, it can be easy to veer towards those vices which might not necessarily be the best for you. That’s not to say there’s not a time and a place for a bit of junk food, or a glass of wine, but one thing you can do everyday to help boost your mood is practicing yoga.
Building a healthy habit of practicing a little bit of yoga each day can help to improve your mental and physical health, as well as make you feel happier. Here are a few more reasons why doing yoga everyday can help you.
Improve Flexibility
The first thing that probably comes to your mind when you think of yoga is someone bending themselves into all kinds of shapes! Well, you actually don’t have to be super flexible to practice yoga, anyone can try! In fact, practicing yoga daily can actually help improve your flexibility and improve your mobility.
Improve Strength
You don’t have to go to the gym and lift lots of weights to improve your strength. If heavy lifting isn’t your thing, try a daily yoga practice. There are lots of poses that will help to build your muscles and tone your body - even more than lifting a heavy weight will do. You can find poses such as the plank, which strengthens your entire body in one go.
Improve Posture
If you work a desk job and find yourself slouching, practicing yoga every day can help you to improve your posture. A daily practice will help you to stand up taller and sit up straighter - which can in turn help ease any aches and pains that bad posture causes.
Help You Lose Weight
An everyday yoga practice will help you to fuel your metabolic system, and help you to burn fat, which leads to weight loss. Practicing daily can also help to restore your hormonal balance in your body, leading to a more normalized body weight.
Increased energy
A few minutes of yoga each day provides the body with an energy boost that helps you keep active for longer periods. Yoga uses a unique combination of body movements and breathing techniques that help to increase your energy levels throughout the day.
Daily yoga practice also awakens your main energy centers, or chakras, in your body. Poses that extend the spine are great for circulating extra energy in the body.
Reduces Stress
Yoga is one of the best stress-busters out there. Studies show that the combination of breathing, poses, and meditation can help to regulate your heart rate variability. This means that your heart rate is lower, and allows your body to respond to stress in a more flexible way.
Better Sleep
A daily practice of yoga can help to reduce insomnia. Relaxing postures and forward folds can help to improve your sleep quality, as they relax the body and the mind.
Breathe Deeper
Breathing deeply is an essential part of a yoga practice. Breathing exercises, or pranayama, focus on slowing down the breath and breathing fully from the pit of your stomach to the top of your lungs. These exercises will help to make you feel more relaxed and balanced and make you feel more confident and calm. There are also more benefits including increased lung capacity.
Boosted Immune System
Yoga helps the levels of stress hormones in your body and helps to also calm the nervous system. Practicing yoga everyday can help lower the levels of pro-inflammatory markers like cytokines.
Happier
Regular yoga and meditation can help improve your serotonin levels, which are the hormones that make you happy. A study has shown that people who practice yoga long term have more mass in the areas of the brain associated with happiness, as well as higher levels of GABA hormones, which is associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety.
Mindfulness
Practicing yoga each day will help you to become more mindful. When practicing yoga, your sensations and thoughts and emotions will come to the front of your mind and help bring your mind into the present moment and help you feel happy and focused.
Do all these benefits sound good to you? Or perhaps you need to go inwards, relax, unwind, and reset? If you're needing this now, more than ever, YogaDownload teacher Elise Fabricant's 7-day immersion into gentle, nourishing yoga, will help bring ease and peace to your mind and body. This program will give you a daily yoga class, focused on a different intention or area of the body, for 7 days. Classes are suitable for all levels, and transformative, yet gentle. Treat yourself to this week-long home yoga experience.
By Amy Cavill
Want to experience these benefits for yourself? Practice yoga, from the comfort of your home, right now for a week straight!
Do you ever wish you could pull the plug and reboot your life the way you can reboot your computer? You know those days when your phone or laptop go haywire and you waste hours with minor fixes, but nothing works until you perform a full restart? 2020 has been characterized by dramatic shifts and some unwelcome and shocking changes impacting every single one of us. This week consider committing to a complete reset for your body, mind, and heart with our special Reset Refuge 7-Day Gentle Yoga Immersion with Elise Fabricant.
Yoga is one of the most powerful tools we have to navigate the ebbs and flows of change. By concentrating on building our strength and balance from the inside out, we are better equipped to handle whatever comes our way. The definition of “Hatha” is Sun-“Ha” and Moon-“tha.”
Every physical style of yoga practice is considered Hatha Yoga, including Vinyasa and Power Yoga. All these styles are intended to balance the body and the mind, like the balance of the sun and the moon. When a class is offered as Hatha Yoga, it is usually slower-paced and focused more on mindfulness.
Physically, these practices will increase your immune system, stimulate circulation, stretch your muscles and ligaments and tendons, and soothe your nervous system. The gentler forms of Hatha Yoga, including restorative and Yin yoga, are excellent for providing a refuge where you can recover on every fiber of your being. Taking time for self-care is vital to remaining balanced and handling whatever comes at us from the external world.
The intention of these classes is to encourage you to shift your awareness inward. To slow down and allow your nervous system to settle and grow quiet. To support you in active yet restful poses designed to restore you to your factory settings. Well, maybe not factory settings, but restore you to a time when you felt peaceful strength from within. Our perspective on the world shifts when we are fortified from the inside out.
Staying consistent at home isn’t easy, so we’re here to help you commit to a one-week program to reboot your system, no matter where your starting point. These classes are shorter practices––20 to 30 minutes––so you can fit them in any time of day. Having Elise Fabricant, an expert yoga instructor and life coach, with you daily for 7 days helps you stay accountable to yourself.
Summertime weekends are our favorite times to dedicate to family – we love gathering together with our families for a big hearty breakfast or brunch before embarking on all those warm-weather outdoor adventures. That’s where this recipe comes in!
Jo’s daughter Ilse LOVES these pancakes – they’re the perfect special weekend brunch treat. They’re super easy to make and take less than 15 minutes of prep and cook time. A great recipe to whip up for a weekend breakfast in bed or laid-back stay-at-home brunch.
This recipe is lower in sugar than conventional pancakes but still satisfies any sweet tooth. These pancakes have no added sugars – the banana provides natural sweetness, plus stevia sweetens without added calories. They’re also totally gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and vegan – allergy-friendly to the max!
Another unique aspect of this recipe is that it’s truly whole grain based – it only uses whole grain oats and buckwheat, no flour! This makes it less processed than traditional pancakes and a healthier option for you and your family.
These simple pancakes are delicious as is, or topped with fresh fruit (like sliced banana or blueberries) and chopped nuts (like walnuts or pecans). Because of food-combining rules, this recipe falls under our 80:20 eating plan.
The 80:20 is our formula for staying vibrant even when we’re not cleansing – we follow cleansing guidelines 80% of the time, and indulge in our favorite non-cleansing foods the other 20%.
With love and weekend pancakes,
Easy Oatmeal Banana Pancakes
Yield: 7-8 pancakes
1/2 cup gluten-free whole rolled oats 1 cup nut milk 1/8 cup water 1/4 cup buckwheat groats 2 TB. flaxseeds 1 tsp. vanilla 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 tsp. baking powder Pinch of salt 1 ripe banana 10 drops stevia or 2 TB maple syrup 1 TB. olive oil
Mix oats, milk, water, buckwheat, flaxseeds, vanilla, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, banana, and stevia in a high speed blender until smooth. Heat olive oil in a skillet until shimmering. Pour batter, about ¼ cup per pancake, into the skillet and cook on medium-low for 2-3 minutes per side. Serve warm with maple syrup and more sliced bananas.
If you liked this recipe and would like to learn more about the Conscious Cleanse, we invite you to join our online community! As a welcome gift, we’ll send you our Taste of the Conscious Cleanse Free eCookbook, a collection of more of our favorite recipes!
We’ll also be sure to share new recipes and healthy lifestyle tips. Welcome! We’re so glad you’re here.
Want to fire up your yoga practice? Here’s how to do yoga with resistance bands. Build your strength with this complete list of yoga poses with bands.
Resistance bands can be added to any work-out. They’re an easy way to incorporate a challenge into your exercises, and you can use them in many different ways.
Resistance bands make your muscles work just that little bit harder, so you get more work-out for your time spent. And resistance bands are portable – pop them in your yoga bag, and you’re good to go.
For yoga, resistance bands are great if:
You want to increase your strength without compromising your joints.
You are recovering from an injury*
You want to slow down your movements and increase the mindfulness of your practice
You want to increase your stability
You want to raise your awareness of where your body is in space
*If you are recovering from an injury, consult your physiotherapist or doctor before taking on new exercises.
Yoga poses to practice with resistance bands:
High Crescent lunge
When in high lunge, wrap a resistance band around your wrists. With your arms up high, gently pull your hands apart. Use gentle pulses, keeping the band taut. Great for upper body strength! Start with 10-15 pulses.
You can keep your legs working too. Bend and straighten your legs to go into and out of a squat, while working your arms. Multitasking!
Downward Dog
Wrap the resistance band around your ankles. Raise one leg out to the side for 10 pulses. Repeat with the other leg. Very good for your glutes.
To give your hamstrings a work-out too, bring the band up to rest around the middle of your calves. Staying in a downward dog pose, gently pulse one leg up and behind 10 times. Repeat with the other leg.
Bridge
Place the resistance band around your thighs. It should be just above your knees. Lie down on your back. Bend your knees. Make sure your feet are hip-distance apart. Raise your buttocks and retain bridge pose while gently pulsing your knees outwards.
Keep your weight on your heels. Your feet should be flat on the mat or floor. Move slowly and work deep. You’ll feel it along the backs of your legs and in your glutes. Aim for 20 reps.
Remember to keep the tension in the resistance band throughout the exercise.
Dead Bug pose
Put the resistance band around the bottoms of your feet. Put your arms either straight up in the air, or flat on your mat. Alternate your legs in cycling, straightening one leg out while bringing the knee of the other leg towards your chest.
This exercise can work your core, too, so make sure your lower back is always on the ground or mat.
Begin with 10 reps, working up to 20.
Seated (Sukhasana)
Stretch your arms out in front of you with the resistance band around your wrists. Pull your arms apart to the side gently, while keeping your back straight. The muscles in your back will thank you for this one!
Begin with 10 reps and work up to 15-20.
Donkey Kicks
Beginning in a tabletop pose, wrap the resistance band around the bottoms of your feet. Keeping your upper body straight, slowly lift one leg. Hold the position and then bend your knee to repeat. Do this slowly, 10 times.
When your first side tires, switch legs.
Banded donkey kicks work your core as well as your legs. Keeping your core muscles tight during this exercise will increase the benefits to your core.
Warrior 1
In Warrior 1 pose, make sure both feet face forward as well as your hips. Hold the resistance band around the palms of both hands. Bring the hand on the same side as the front leg to your chest so that the palm is flat.
Now extend the other arm out straight so that it is parallel to your back leg, and the band is taut. Aim for 10 reps to start.
Make sure your upper body stays straight during this exercise, and you’ll be giving your triceps a great work-out!
Warrior 2
Start in Warrior 2 pose, with both feet flat on the mat or floor. Ensure your back foot is perpendicular to your front foot.
Put the resistance band underneath your back foot and hold the other end with your back hand. Keep your front arm straight out in front of you, while pulling up on the band. Your elbow should come up into a 90-degree angle. Extend your back arm back down, and repeat.
Do 10 reps, then switch sides. This exercise is good for working your upper arms.
A note on hypermobility and how resistance bands can help:
If you are very flexible, you may be interested to know that resistance bands are actually one of the best ways you can enjoy the stretch while challenging your strength.
Resistance bands are great for people who are hypermobile because you can work against the tension of the bands.
The bands also are excellent for slowing down movement and allowing you to be mindful in your poses while still giving your muscles a work-out.
You can read more about hypermobility and how to use resistance bands to build awareness and avoid injury here. Enjoy your yoga with resistance bands!
By Sarah Peterson
Practice FREE yoga right now and add the resistance band to some of these poses!
Head Up, Heart Strong with Christen Bakken
Stepping into any yoga class, it’s common to include some music into your yoga practice. Music combined with yoga practices can help the mind to find stillness, and help you get into the mood to get on the mat. It can be hard to take your mind away from your busy life for an hour, and music can help with that transition into a more mindful state.
Music can affect the whole brain, and help it relax, in a similar way that meditation does. It can help the mind slip into a state where happiness and stillness is created. Music can help you to get into the groove of your yoga practice, and link your mind, breath, and body to a beat.
The benefits of a regular yoga practice are great for your body, including increased strength, flexibility and circulation - and there’s also great benefits for your mind including lower stress levels and increased focus. A good music playlist to your yoga practice can help you reap these benefits even more.
Here are the ways in which music can help your yoga practice.
Both practicing yoga and listening to music are actually very similar activities. They can both improve your wellbeing and make you feel positive. And much like yoga has psychological benefits, studies have found that music does too. Music has been shown to decrease anxiety and lower levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, in the body - sometimes in higher levels than taking anti-anxiety medication.
Listening to music can also allow you to enter a ‘flow state’ which is a state of consciousness that allows you to feel and perform your best. When your brain is in a flow state, it moves into a borderline state between alpha waves - which you might recognize as being associated with daydreaming and REM sleep. In short, this means that your brain switches off for a while from firing off beta brainwaves, and temporarily deactivates the prefrontal cortex, letting you lose yourself to the moment. This is an ideal state of mind to be in while you practice yoga, being fully mindful of what your body is doing with zero distractions.
Music can also help to set our mood for a yoga practice. Music actually influences and can change our emotional state when we listen to it. For example, listening to an upbeat song with a faster rhythm may inspire you to move faster as you connect with it.
Listening to music can actually help you take in more oxygen. This is because our bodies naturally connect with the rhythm, and we breathe in time with the beat. This can help you find more energy in your yoga practice, and stimulate your mind and set your mood. Studies have even shown that listening to music can help release dopamine - also known as the happy hormone!
Music can settle your nervous system also, which can help your body to relax, as well as reduce anxiety. This can in turn help your body to produce chemicals like dopamine and serotonin, leaving your calm and content, and connected with your body - the perfect state of mind for a yoga class. Music also helps lower the stress levels in the body, such as lowering your heart and respiratory rate, blood pressure, and levels of cortisol.
Music also helps support our health, which may be why you’re hitting the yoga matt in the first place. Music can help to boost cell growth and immunity. Additionally, because music helps to combat stress, our body is left with better digestion, circulation, respiration and more energy!
Music can also be the building blocks to connections, both between the mind and body, and with other people. Since the dawn of time, humans have had a relationship with music and rhythm. Music is seen as an expression and a way to connect across the globe. In a yoga class, music helps us to clear our minds and helps us be more present both with ourselves and with each other.
Convinced? Try one of these new classes from the YogaDownload Electronic Music Series!
Copasetic Flow with Ali Dunacan w/ music by Sahale
Get into the Flow with Keith Allen w/ music by Sahale
Superflow 2.0 with Ben Davis w/ music by AnjunaDeep
Flow & Let Go with Kylie Larson w/ music by AnjunaDeep
You’ve probably heard that the yogic path is simple, but not easy. In the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali lays out the eight-limbed path of yoga and emphasizes how it takes consistent practice over time. Just like you vary other types of physical training to keep your muscles and bones in optimal shape, varying the intensity of physical asanas will keep you from over-use injuries. If you practice daily, it’s great to adapt your routine to keep your body healthy.
Slowing down can be just as powerful as leveling up. In fact, slowing down offers the opportunity to truly focus on your breathing and the sensations of each asana. The true yoga practice is internal. We use the physical practice to quiet our minds and balance our emotions. Of course, some days you really need to move, to have a vigorous flow to get that yoga buzz. But a gentle practice will also help you approach that place of stillness.
What do we mean by gentle yoga?
In general, a gentle yoga class contains additional modifications, a slower pace, and more relaxing or therapeutic poses. When you hold poses for longer, sometimes with the use of props, you’ve got less external stimulation and can find it easier to shift your focus inside. Sometimes with a vigorous asana practice, the emphasis is more physical, and with a gentler flow, you can access your mind and heart more readily.
All the benefits you receive from your yoga practice are the same: muscular strength and flexibility, a calmer clearer mind, and a softer heart. Gentle yoga also contributes to better digestion and aids with insomnia issues. A more gradual approach can feel safer, especially if you’re recovering from an injury, have more physical limitations, or want to ensure you protect your muscles and joints.
Also, if you exercise intensely on a regular basis, a gentler practice is an excellent way to complement your fitness. So, for example, if you are preparing for a 10k or a triathlon, you could take a gentle class on a tough training day and a vigorous Vinyasa on a non-training day. Nobody wants to burn out too soon, right? With a gentler practice, you may also feel more relaxed straight away.
Don’t take our word for all the different ways gentle yoga can help you feel good today. Try one of these gentler classes today to unwind and relax. You deserve to treat yourself.
1. Jackie Casal Mahrou - Anytime Wind Down
2. Kristin Gibowicz - Metamorphosis Flow: The Becoming
3. Shy Sayar - Therapeutic Yoga for Stress, Anxiety, and Insomnia
4. Channing Grivas - Super Lazy Restorative
In the heat of mid-summer here in Colorado, no one wants to be spending time in a hot kitchen! So we’ve been looking for more ways to add cooking-free recipes to our meal planning rotation. That’s where today’s recipe comes in. This delicious spicy slaw is the perfect hot weather recipe that features one of our new favorite veggies – Kohlrabi!
Kohlrabi is a funky looking veggie but don’t let that deter you – it’s super tasty and easy to eat! It has a sweet-peppery flavor similar to a cross between an apple and a radish and its texture is comparable to broccoli stems.
It also has great nutritional value – Kohlrabi is high in fiber, essential vitamins and nutrients, and it can help aid in weight loss, support healthy digestion, and help regulate blood pressure. All in all, this unique veggie makes a great addition to your regular rotation.
It’s also worth mentioning how amazing the sauce is in this recipe! It’s peanut-free to make it more allergen-friendly, and has far less added sugar than store-bought sauces. It also can totally be reused for other dishes – cold Thai-inspired noodles, dipping sauce for spring rolls – you name it!
This slaw makes the perfect addition to any summer meal – perfect for picnics, BBQs, and more! Have a favorite food you’d like us to share a healthy recipe for? Let us know in the comments below. We love hearing from you!
Kohlrabi Cabbage Slaw with Spicy Almond Butter Sauce
Spicy Almond Butter Sauce:
⅓ cup almond butter 2 TB. fresh lime juice 2 TB. rice vinegar 2 TB. coconut aminos 1 TB. honey 1 ½ tsp. sesame oil 2 tsp. sriracha 2 TB. ginger, peeled and finely minced 2 garlic, finely minced 1 tsp. salt
Kohlrabi Cabbage Slaw:
1 Kohlrabi, peeled, then shredded or spiralized 2 cups carrots, grated or julienned 5 cups shredded cabbage 1 red bell pepper, sliced 2 green onions or spring garlic, sliced Sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)
Instructions: To make the sauce, combine almond butter, lime juice, vinegar, coconut aminos, honey, sesame oil, sriracha, ginger, garlic and salt in a food processor or blender. Blend until smooth.
To assemble the slaw, place kohlrabi, carrots, cabbage, bell pepper, and green onions into a large bowl and toss to combine. Pour over your desired amount of sauce and toss again to combine. Top with a sprinkle of sesame seeds for garnish (if using).
NOTE: This recipe makes a lot of sauce, so don’t add it all at once. Start with about half the sauce and slowly add more until it’s to your liking.
If you liked this recipe, we invite you to join our online community! As a welcome-gift, we’ll send you our Conscious Cookout Ecookbook: 13 Recipes for Clean Eating.
How many times have you heard the phrase: “You are what you eat?”
Probably enough times that you no longer pay it any mind, but there is actually something to that age-old saying. Research has started to show just how our diets are connected to our overall health and wellbeing. If you find yourself struggling, it may be time to take a look into what foods could be the cause of the negative conditions affecting you. It’s also a great chance to discover more foods that help with positive mental health.
Mental Health and Diet: What’s the Connection?
While you might think that your diet and mental health are two unrelated things, research tells us otherwise. Our gut health, more specifically, the bacteria inside of our guts, can really affect our mood. While discussing the gut-brain connection, those at Rider University explain, “Our gastrointestinal tract is lined with 100 million nerve cells and releases hormones that influence everything from when we are hungry to feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression. In other words, our guts heavily impact the way our brains think, how we feel, and our general well-being.” Making the right diet choices on a regular basis can help decrease negative mental health conditions.
But what are the right choices?
Rider University suggests foods to incorporate into our diets that have the necessary nutrients to make our digestive tracts and brains happier.
Omega-3s: The bacteria in our guts really love Omega-3s but because our bodies don’t naturally produce it, it’s important to consume more fish such as salmon, mackerel, and sardines. If fish isn’t your thing you can also get Omega-3s from things such as walnuts and flaxseed. Protein: Think of protein as the crime-fighter for your gut health. Because proteins contain nitrogen, they can help limit the number of bad bacteria in your gut’s microbiome. Additionally, the proteins that you get from beef, chicken, nuts, and even Brussel's sprouts can boost your mood as these produce serotonin, which helps ease feelings of depression. Fiber: Another key nutrient that makes your gut excited is fiber. Fiber not only helps reduce inflammation and oxidative stress in your digestive tract but it’s also said to help with our overall mood. Foods that are high in fiber include fruits, veggies, and dark chocolate. Improving your mental health through your diet is also not only about incorporating more good foods, but also limiting the foods that can negatively affect your mood. For example, increased use of alcohol and consuming a lot of processed foods, sugar, and trans fats can not only negatively affect your physical condition but your mental condition, too. It’s all about balancing the good and the bad.
Making a Positive Change
Transforming our diets doesn’t happen overnight — and it shouldn’t! Denying yourself foods that you enjoy in an effort to boost your mood could have the opposite effect.
How can we focus on improving our mental health if we’re constantly berating ourselves for eating a doughnut or two? Moreover, if one day all you can think about are the chips in your pantry then it’s not worth denying yourself, as that can form a bad relationship with food.
If you’re unsure where to start with improving your diet, it may be helpful to create a list for a week or two of all the foods you’re eating. Each day, under each meal, include a brief summary of how you felt (both physically and mentally) in the few hours afterward. There could be some hidden culprits among your diet you’re not considering or haven’t noticed before.
For example, there are many people who suffer from gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). It’s a chronic gastrointestinal condition that results in acid reflux or heartburn and can sometimes impact a person’s quality of life if symptoms are hard to manage. It’s recommended that people who deal with frequent GERD symptoms limit their intake of certain foods such as dairy, alcohol, caffeine, carbonated beverages, and spicy foods.
After you’ve listed your meals and your response to them for a bit, you can take a better look at how your current diet is affecting you. Is dairy making you feel bloated or irritating your stomach? After that burger and fries did you feel melancholy or glum? Did the steak dinner with mushrooms and salad have you feeling rejuvenated and happy? What about the fresh strawberries you picked up from the farmer’s market? While tracking your food and reactions may not be the most exciting way to spend your free time, it can give you a clearer idea of how your body and mind respond to certain foods, which can help you start making the right changes.
At the end of the day, the goal is to incorporate more foods and healthier habits that can aid your mental health, while also being more mindful and limiting certain foods. It’s also important to tailor your diet to your needs. Our diets shouldn’t be formed based on a popular fad or one-size-fits-all diet, it’s about your body and mind and learning how you respond to certain foods. Never self-diagnose and always consult with a trusted medical professional for resources if you find yourself relying too heavily on a harmful diet in an effort to be “healthy.”
By Frankie Wallace
Frankie Wallace is a freelance writer from the Pacific Northwest of the United States. She writes about a variety of topics, but manages to spend her free time tending to her garden and cuddling with her cat, Casper.
Get your health and diet on track with a fast. Try this 3, 4, or 5-Day Yoga for Fasting program!
Depending on who you ask, you’ll receive varied answers to whether playing music during yoga helps you get into the flow easier or distracts you. Some people love music that enhances the yoga experience. When teachers offer appropriately energizing songs to boost the students’ mood and complement active asanas or play relaxing, calming music to aid in quieting the mind, the overall class can be just that much more impactful. Of course, there’s an art to creating flow in yoga both in instruction and playlists.
Here a few benefits of music and yoga together:
Music Helps You Disengage the Mind and Find your Flow
According to Patanjali, in the first chapter of the Yoga Sutras, yoga is defined as Citta Vritti Nirodha or learning to direct the attention of our thoughts. The entire text focuses upon how through the yogic path we can learn to calm the mind’s fluctuations and focus our attention where we choose as opposed to being controlled by the external.
Naturally, our minds are active and learning to find stillness or control our thoughts is a lifelong discipline. The focus on the breath in yoga is a primary tool in quieting the mind. Adding in a well-designed playlist to uplift or calm your mood aids you in releasing the chatter can elevate you to finding your moving meditation faster.
Music Improves Your Mood
Ever noticed how when you listen to one of your favorite songs your mood lifts immediately? Or how hearing an old song brings you back to the moment you heard it the first time? Music impacts on the physical, mental, and emotional level, just like yoga. If you’re in a vigorous yoga class and one of your favorite songs come on, it can act like an injection of energy and boost you through class. It can even make you feel like you aren’t working so hard. In a quieter Yin class, pacifying sounds of nature or classical music assists you in tapping into your parasympathetic nervous system to lower your blood pressure and soothing your soul.
Music Aids in Meditation
With your mind free of external distractions and your mood elevated from your yoga practice, you’ve arrived in the perfect space to find stillness. Many people actually find it more difficult to let go in stark silence than in a practice enhanced by sound. Traditionally, meditation is performed in silence or through repetitive mantras. Mantras utilize the power of sound to deepen the meditative state. Similarly, music can help the mind release the repetitive distracting thoughts and settle into the present moment. And who doesn’t need a little help to stay in the here and now?
Whether you are a yogi that regularly flows to the beat or you practice in silence, we encourage you to give this week’s classes a try! We’ve got some special classes, linking world renowned music, with yoga, so step into the flow!
A few weeks ago, I hit a real low point. It happens to all of us, no matter how spiritually advanced we are. Despite the number of Downward Dogs I may have done that morning, I was still not immune to having a bad day.
I felt overwhelmed. Anxious. I felt I couldn’t put one foot in front of the other and complete the tasks of the day, because my mind was reeling. The pandemic. The Black Lives Matter movement. The uncertainty of all of it got to me. The tears came with such force I had no choice but to hunker down and let them flow. My attention moved from overwhelm to intense feeling and all I could do was feel my emotions with every inch of me. I didn’t have words to describe these emotions, and I didn’t need that, I just needed to feel it all.
Luckily, I have an amazing partner who witnessed all of this and gently suggested I take a little venture out to the river with a hammock, to feel all the feelings while the sun kissed my body with healing beams of love. I complied, and of course, that was a genius idea.
I perched in my hammock, listening to the river flowing effortlessly underneath me. My pen moved organically in my journal under the warm embrace of the sweet sun. What came out on paper shocked even me! I wrote about the river, the sun, the priceless nature of that calming moment in nature. How I knew everything was okay.
I took a black river rock, and infused it with my anxieties and worries. I thanked it for the lessons, and ceremoniously threw it in the river.
These simple actions changed the course of my day.
I was able to enjoy the sun, the river, and my sweet partner. If it weren’t for my foundation of ritual and journaling, I would have spent that day crumpled on the floor of my house, crying and feeling my feelings. Neither is right or wrong, or better than the other.
It is so important to feel feelings, but they also need an outlet, so they can be expressed and so we can learn from them. In this way, we can thank them and move on with our lives, rather than staying hostage to them, stuck in the quagmire of shadow exploration.
It’s not meant to last forever. Those shadows are meant to teach us lessons so we can move on, feeling, and spreading joy once again.
You will find breakthroughs in the pages of their journals all the time, but not always in the way you might think. The breakthroughs may come later, after things are written.
By Dia Michelle Smith
I have found this combination of Ritual and Journal to be so powerful, that my business partner Sarah Brianna Smith and I wrote a book on it! This is a choose your own adventure path which leads you to break through the limitations of your mind and to live the life you’ve always dreamed of, but never thought possible. We are also offering a 30-Day Transform Group Coaching Journey for a limited number, where you can achieve the breakthroughs that come from speaking your truth aloud to other humans. We will begin on the New Moon of July 20th! The perfect time to set your intentions for what you want to release and create in your life.
Check out the details of the Transform Book and the Group Coaching program. And for added support, join our Free Facebook Group, called Soul Healing Sisterhood!
Meditate with Dia, right now!
Breathe Your Way Into the Perfect Day with Dia
The summer is upon us here in Colorado. We’re looking forward to relaxing at home with small (socially distant) gatherings of friends and family.
Summers are notorious for being filled with food and fun (sometimes too much!). It can be tempting to over-indulge in less healthy foods and drinks until you wake up the next day inflamed, hungover, and hurting.
We know that being prepared with healthy food options is a good place to start so we’ve got a handful of recipes for you this week perfect for your health-conscious BBQ, including a brand new recipe – Raw Cherry Pie!
This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, paleo, and delicious! It’s nothing like the unnaturally red, sickly syrupy sweet cherry pies of the past. It will make the perfect centerpiece to any barbeque.
Raw Cherry Pie
Yield: 8 servings
1 cup raw walnuts ½ cup dates, pitted 1 tsp. vanilla extract ½ tsp. ground cinnamon Pinch sea salt 4 cups organic fresh or frozen cherries, pits and stems removed 1 TB. honey
Instructions: In a food processor fitted with an S-blade, combine raw walnuts, dates, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and sea salt until smooth. Press mixture evenly into a pie dish, and refrigerate for about 1 hour or until crust is firm. Meanwhile, in the food processor fitted with an S-blade, combine cherries and honey. Pour into chilled crust, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Variation: You can easily substitute the cherries in this recipe for blackberries, blueberries, or if you are feeling really adventurous, try a mixed berry medley.
The 7 chakras are individual energy centers in your body. Each chakra holds unique physical and emotional qualities that are part of your whole being. We want each chakra to be in a state of balance, for one to experience optimal balance in these various areas of your life.
The chakras teach us that everything in our being is related. Our physical well-being is connected to our emotional health, and vice versa.
Here is a quick look at what each chakra is related to physically and emotionally, and what a state of balance looks like in each of these energy centers.
Root (Muladhara)
Your root chakra is like the foundation of a house. It is your base which everything else is built upon. It is associated with the Earth.
Your root chakra on a physical level is associated with your feet, legs, tailbone, and lower sacrum. On a mental and emotional level, this energy center is related to a sense of security, a harmonious and healthy relationship to money, and groundedness and stability.
An out of balance root chakra could result in health issues in the legs and feet, and related to mobility. Emotionally, feelings of instability, and chaotic financial life (like being overly indulgent and irresponsible or too cheap) point towards an out of balance Muladhara chakra.
A root chakra in optimal balance is embodied by a strong lower body, that moves gracefully with strength. Emotionally, a strong root center results in a steady and grounded demeanor that doesn’t get thrown off too easily and exudes groundedness as well as a healthy relationship with money.
Sacral (Svadhisthana)
Your sacral chakra, Svadhisthana, is your center of creativity, sexuality, and emotional well-being. It is associated with water.
On a physical level, your hips, pelvis, sacrum, are related to this energy center. Emotionally, this space relates to emotional health, new life, creativity, and sensuality.
If out of balance, physically, it can result in issues in the hips, lower back, and pelvic region. An off sacral center can relate to issues in either overindulging or depriving yourself of pleasure and is the energy center related to addiction if you get attached to pleasure.
An ideal sacral chakra leads to exploring your creativity, a happy sex life, and healthy ways of moving through your emotions. It also results in healthy and mobile hips, and sacrum, which helps the rest of your body stand tall and in alignment.
Solar Plexus (Manipura)
Your Solar Plexus chakra is your center of power. This is the place where you hold the confidence to bring your dreams into reality. It is related to the element of fire.
An out of balance Manipura center could lead to either dominance (think of dictators), or not being able to stand your ground and stick up for yourself when needed. It is related to any power imbalance. Physically, it is the place of digestion, so any digestive or stomach issues are related to this area.
Healthy digestion, inner organs, and abdominals are signs of a healthy Solar Plexus. Someone with a balanced Manipura chakra lives with humble confidence and treats people compassionately while also commanding respect.
Heart (Anahata)
Your heart chakra is the place of love and connection. It is associated with the element of air.
It is connected to your lungs, heart, and chest and upper back region. Emotionally, it is the place where we love.
If out of balance here physically, one may experience heart problems, trouble breathing, or poor posture in the upper body. Emotionally, there could be a guard up to letting love in, or a lack of discernment.
A happy heart chakra is seen as a healthy respiratory system, a healthy heart, and a proud posture. Emotionally it leads to healthy and meaningful relationships.
Throat (Visshuda)
Your throat chakra is the center of communication, where you express yourself, and truthfulness. It is associated with ether.
Physically, it is connected with your throat region. It is related to being honest and expressing yourself.
Out of balance, it can physically result in any issues with the throat or thyroid. Emotionally, it is someone dishonest, or cannot speak up or stop talking.
A healthy throat chakra in an individual can lead to a healthy sense of self-expression, ability to articulate and also listen, and ideal posture in the neck region.
Third Eye (Ajna)
This is your center of intuition, meditation, analytical thought, and healthy brain function. It is associated with light.
Physically, it is a sharp and clear functioning mind. Emotionally, it is a sense of clarity and a healthy sense of intuition and problem-solving abilities.
If out of alignment, Ajna chakra can cause chaos in being unable to see life clearly. It can also result in issues with your brain function.
Balanced Ajna chakra is someone with a brilliant and sharp mind, who lives in a present and meditative state, and knows how to listen to their intuition.
Crown (Sahasrara)
Your crown chakra is the energy center where you connect to everything else in the universe and the things bigger than just you. There is no element associated with this center.
Physically, it helps maintain good posture. It is the antennae at the top of your head that keeps everything buoyant and lifted. It results in a healthy spiritual life and a sense of connection to the world around you.
If out of balance, one can be overly focused on results, and the material world, rather than the miracle that it is that we are all here, able to live, breathe, and experience each day on this planet with one another.
There is a sense of lightness in someone with an activated crown. They can stand tall, not take things personally or too seriously, and keep insight into the bigger picture.
By Keith Allen
Want to feel like life is easy and good? Then focus on feeling that way, right now, more than anything else that might seem in the way of it.
While it is easy to focus on one's shortcomings, like anxiety, depression, and things that may feel real and impossible to overcome, the truth is we will never overcome any problem by focusing on it. Where the attention goes, the energy flows.
Sure, it might be easy for someone not experiencing any specific issue to say, 'just ignore it', but on some level, we all have the power to choose what we focus on.
This is particularly true in how we treat ourselves. If you repeat stories of why you're no good or less than, remember that you can think of yourself as a confident and strong person, and over time, become just that.
Take a moment, and take a deep breath.
After you’ve done that, think about what the opposite of any of your struggles and worries would feel like for you. What would really that feel like? Focus on and allow your imagination to explore what your energy would be like without any anxiety or inner tension.
Likely, you’ll see yourself as relaxed, peaceful, and easy-going. There might be some other qualities that emerge. Confidence is a common quality of someone who is calm and centered and not second-guessing their every move.
I want you to stay in this focus on what you look and feel like as a peaceful, non-anxious, and happy and confident person. How would your life be different? Let your mind go here, and stay here in this fantasy for a few more deep breaths. Simply enjoy it.
When you return to reading this article, remember, you have the power to reprogram your mind and create this reality you just envisioned through meditation techniques.
Regardless if you struggle with anxiety, depression, money stress, or relationship disharmony, you are never going to solve any of these or anything else, by solely fixating on these problems. You are only going to solve any situation, but focusing on its opposite, which is the solution you desire, aka feeling good.
So next time you want to complain, or feel stuck in any way, instead, see if you can find the awareness to focus on what you would do if you embodied the most confident, loving, calm, and centered version of yourself.
Envision the vision, and you can live it. The rewards of putting the focus on how you perceive and see yourself are real and powerful. You have the power to be a confident, humble, and powerful person. Focus on this more than anything else you may dislike about yourself, and these qualities will emerge and you will realize that your mind creates your reality.
By Nicki Mateo
Want to focus on feeling peaceful and being fit? Practice this FREE yoga class now.
When is the last time you tried something different on your yoga mat? We all have our favorite styles of yoga and it’s easy to find your routine has morphed into a rut. This week, we’re here to offer some variety to help you avoid a practice plateau. There isn’t an identical path for any of us. We’re all unique. Why not branch out and experience something new?
Some people claim that their yoga is the “true” yoga and everything else is not yoga. Whose path is the right one?
Is there a right one? If the end result is that you uncover your best self, you shed the layers weighing you down and shine bright, isn’t that actually the “right” path for you? What really matters is how you feel during and after your yoga practice.
Whatever your beliefs, there’s a universal premise that yoga is a process of turning inward. Of getting quiet so you can truly be present. Of finding your brightest inner light or—gasp––even achieving Samadhi or enlightenment.
The ancient practice of yoga has been around for about 5,000 years. Philosophies and schools and styles of yoga have proliferated, especially in the last few decades in the West.
To keep it fresh, shift gears this week. If you usually gravitate to a sweaty, challenging flow, try a slow flow, yin, or a guided meditation.
Here’s a quick recap of some of the popular yoga styles:
Hatha Yoga: This physical form of Yoga is one of physical purification and strengthening and is the umbrella under which all physical practices reside. A Hatha Yoga class combines asanas and pranayama, usually at a slower pace than some other practices like Ashtanga and Vinyasa. Georg Feuerstein contends that “the heart of Hatha Yoga is unquestionably Pranayama (Life Force) control.”
Ashtanga Yoga: Ashtanga yoga is a style of yoga developed by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and T. Krishnamacharya based upon the eight-limbed yoga path. It is a dynamic, flowing style that connects the movement of the body with the breath.
Vinyasa Yoga: Vinyasa yoga is a flowing style of yoga derived from Ashtanga. Instead of a set sequence of postures, Vinyasa flow classes link breath to movement in countless creative ways, depending upon the teacher and the focus.
Iyengar Yoga: B.K.S. Iyengar was one of Krishnamacharya’s other famous disciples and created Iyengar Yoga. This slow methodical style emphasizes precise physical alignment and the use of props like blocks and straps to assist during practice.
Yin Yoga: Yin Yoga emphasizes static postures held for time. The focus is on soothing your nervous system quiets and relaxing connective tissue. It is an excellent complement to more active practices.
Kundalini Yoga: Kundalini Yoga focuses on freeing the feminine energy (Shakti) at the base of the spine and activating energy centers (Chakras) throughout the body with different breathing, chanting, and physical movements.
Embrace what calls to you! Yoga doesn’t have to be serious or complicated. It’s truly a simple practice, but as Patanjali states in the Yoga Sutras, it isn’t easy. Yoga can be the practice of discovering your own inner state of joy. Consider branching out and try a different style of yoga today.
1. Noemi Nuñez - Iyengar Chair Yoga: Warrior Series
2. Ben Davis - HIIT & Flow
3. Caitlin Rose Kenney - Yin Yoga for Energy & Clarity
4. Shapadpreet - Kundalini Therapeutics: Concentration In Action
Salads have a reputation for being bland and boring. This is not how it should be because, in reality, they can be juicy, crispy, vibrant, and delicious – very far from boring. This bright watermelon salad here is a perfect example of an exciting salad.
It is juicy and sweet from the watermelon, crunchy from the toasted pumpkin seeds, zingy from the lightly marinated red onions, and has enough substance to stand out as a main meal from the halloumi. In fact, I would never serve this salad as a side dish; it is way too perfect for giving it a supporting role instead of being a hero on its own. In case you wish to keep the salad fully vegan, feel free to swap out the halloumi to firm tofu, the dish might need a little more salt in this case, because tofu tends to be bland compared to salty halloumi.
Watermelon Salad with Basil and Halloumi
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 2
A handful of pumpkin seeds
7 oz halloumi cheese
¼ of a smaller watermelon
½ red onion
1 small cucumber
5-6 radishes
A handful of fresh basil leaves
The juice from ½ lemon
1 tbsb balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Heat the pan and toast the pumpkin seeds until they start popping. Set aside to cool.
Slice the halloumi to 1cm thick slices. Add a drop of oil to the pan and fry the halloumi slices until they are crispy.
While the seeds are toasting and the halloumi frying, prepare everything else – slice the onion as thinly as possible, squeeze a little lemon juice over it and sprinkle with salt – give it a quick massage and set aside.
Slice the cucumber and radishes, cut the watermelon to bite-sized junks. Pick the leaves from basil.
Add all the salad components to a big bowl, season with salt and pepper, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and gently toss.
Finally, top with crispy halloumi slices, and you are ready to eat!
By Kadri Raig
Kadri is a food blogger and yoga teacher from Estonia. She does love to spend time in the kitchen, but most of her recipes are simple and don’t take more than 20 minutes of active cooking time. She thinks that everybody can find time to cook healthy food at home, it is just a question of planning. "I work in an office full time, teach yoga 7-8 hours a week and write a blog. So if I manage to cook most of my meals, then so do you!" Connect with Kadri and enjoy many more of her delicious healthy recipes on her website here: www.kahvliga.ee.
Try this free meditation class before your delicious salad!
Meditation: Release Reactivity with Geenie Celento
Listening. It sounds so simple and yet is my hardest challenge in life. I interrupt myself, my thoughts, my actions, my progress and so yes, I interrupt others.
By doing so it says to them, I don’t care or value your way. I believe my way is superior and better suited to you and your situation. This most certainly is not my intention, quite the opposite in fact. My eagerness to speak, is a direct reflection on how much I want to help, humor, or praise them.
However, it redirects attention, from them to me. It steals their chance to process and evolve and be present with their feelings. Let people cry, don’t tell them it will be ok and try to change the moment. Be in the moment, the rawness of the emotion and let it run its path.
When people turn to another person, it is to be seen and heard, not necessarily to be given a solution or advice. By just being there and indulging them time to explore their emotions, you have given them the gift they want and initiated the path to healing.
Silence is golden. It holds space and heals. It speaks louder than any well-intentioned words and is received on a cellular level beyond that of the ears.
Perhaps the beginning step is to listen to ourselves first. To be with our thoughts, feelings, tears, and sorrows not with the intention to fix or “cheer up” but to be there until it is there no more.
Interrupting your own thoughts and constant chaotic mind chatter sends the same message that we are not valued. Practice meditation, mindfulness, stillness.
Perhaps, if we hold space for ourselves without the need for words or actions, we will learn to be more patient for others. A problem heard is a problem halved and that in itself is incredible. For self-growth, the person experiencing the pain needs to be the one to heal it, not an outsider, who says the right thing or speaks louder.
When you jump in over the top to force your opinion, you take away that chance for the sufferer to self heal. You steal their chance at self-expression. You become a truth thief, trying to redirect their truth.
So take a breath and offer your intentions via energy. By sitting and listening, your intention will be heard louder and remembered clearer than a collection of words strung together.
The simple but clearly not easy offering of being there, speaks volumes, and is the greatest gift you can give to another.
By Amy Booth
Amy is a yoga and pilates teacher and personal trainer in Brisbane, Australia, where she runs a cute riverside studio and a personal training business. In addition each year she runs yoga and hiking retreats.
To find out more: Website: www.ambertreeyoga.com.au Instagram: @ambertreeyogaandretreats Facebook: Amber Tree Yoga and Retreats
Give yourself silence to sit and listen, right now!
Meditate & Cultivate Calm with Keith Allen
Restorative and Yin Yoga are often confused and assumed to be the same style of yoga. Some yoga studios even use the class names interchangeably.
They are, in fact, different styles of yoga that employ distinct techniques and philosophical approaches. While some of the benefits of these practices are the same, the aim and methods not only differ, they are complete opposites.
Why do they get confused? At first glance, they appear to be similar practices because they explore mostly poses that rest close to the ground and often use props to support the body. Like most yoga practices, both Yin and Restorative Yoga can promote relaxation and stress relief.
Further confusion may come from the descriptive names “restorative” and “yin” which are not brands of yoga associated with an individual or codified sequence. As Bernie Clarke explains in a forum titled “Who Owns Yin Yoga” on the website yinyoga.com:
... the word 'yin' is an adjective and anybody can freely use this term to describe his or her practice. Yin and yang exist in complementary roles: a softer practice is yin compared to a hard practice, and even a hot room can be yin-like compared to a much hotter room. Indeed, the USA Trademark Office has decreed that a descriptive term (like Yin Yoga) cannot be trademarked --- no one can own the phrase 'Yin Yoga', thus anyone can use it.
While many styles of yoga are trademarked to distinguish and monetize a single teacher or guru’s teachings (Bikram Yoga, Forrest Yoga, Kaiut Yoga) — the pioneers of contemporary Yin and Restorative Yoga have intentionally left the landscape wild and alive, making it possible for wisdom to arise from many sources. Leading Yin Yoga teachers Sarah Powers and Paul Grilley acknowledge that the techniques are discoverable by anyone and have historical roots in both yogic and martial art traditions.
A more in-depth exploration of the history of Yin and Restorative Yoga, including background on modern day pioneers is a great topic I will explore in another article. For the inquiry at hand, no one owns Restorative or Yin Yoga. However, the contemporary practices of Yin and Restorative Yoga were named and popularized by specific influential teachers. If you are seeking a Yin or Restorative Yoga training, look to the influential and wise teachers below and their students:
Yin Yoga Luminaries
Paul Grilley
Sarah Powers
Bernie Clarke
Restorative Luminaries
Judith Hansen Lassiter
B.K.S. Iyengar (deceased)
Misunderstandings about yoga can also arise when teachers do not share where they are drawing inspiration from and with whom they are studying. Yoga classes are often creatively hybrid, drawing from multiple styles of yoga and borrowing from other teachings. There is nothing wrong with this. As in all creative worlds, co-inspiration expands and enriches the yoga culture. For both the sake of etiquette and stylistic clarity, yoga teachers should share their creative process and illuminate who their major influences are, what they’ve been studying lately, and how it’s being assimilated into their teaching. Honoring teachers and muses and doing the appropriate research and integration is something all teachers should be tasked with.
Teachers and studio owners have a responsibility to educate themselves on the styles of yoga they offer.
While reading an article is not adequate, I hope that this break-down of the differences between Yin and Restorative Yoga will help shine a light on the value of both of these practices. Yin and Restorative Yoga are distinct in both aim and method.
The aim of Restorative Yoga is simple: deep relaxation.
Restorative Yoga promotes deep relaxation that is ideally achieved in a state of restful awakeness. While most restorative yoga teachers don’t mind if you fall asleep during a class, the value of wakeful relaxation positively impacts your physical systems and is an opportunity to reconnect with the emotional and spiritual layers of your being.
Restorative Yoga aims to remove physical discomfort and promote relaxation through body scans, gentle breathing techniques and encouraging a reconnection with feelings of peace. I would categorize Restorative Yoga as an ascension practice because it is aimed at cultivating the specific states of relaxation, joy and comfort.*
From the ease and comfort of a Restorative Yoga posture, you can exist in your “bliss body” called anandamaya kosha in Sanskrit. This layer of your being is non-dualistic. Rather than being in the Ego mind where your identity and storylines live, the bliss body is the part of you that merges with all that surrounds you. It’s a reunion with the energetic landscape from which everything arises and returns and is often felt as a pure and peaceful state. Yoga Nidra, another yogic approach that uses guided meditation, is often combined with Restorative Yoga to promote a transcendence to this blissful arena. The Restorative Yoga postures put the body at ease, and the guided meditation replaces our mental dialogue with a calm awareness of the breath, body, emotions and capacity for well-being.
The aim of Yin Yoga is more difficult to encapsulate. As I have come to understand Yin Yoga from my teacher Sarah Powers and personal practice, it is a framework for exploring our interiority and nourishing our “yin side.” Most of us are familiar with our “yang side” which is the part of us that is motivated, generative, action-oriented, progress-driven and externally validated. Our “yin side” is content, receptive, fertile, quiet, still and often hidden. Consider your “yin side” the soil from which everything grows and your “yang side” everything that emerges from the soil.
Yin inquiry asks us to descend into the soil of our body, psyche and invisible realms to embrace everything that we find below the surface.
What we find is likely to be a wide range of sensations, thoughts and emotions. All is welcome and met in a Yin Yoga practice: comfort, discomfort, neutrality, essence and complexity. Because of Yin Yoga’s readiness to meet uncomfortable positions, and how it is taught in conjunction with mindfulness practices, I consider it a practice of decision.* One of Sarah Powers’ guides to Yin Yoga is to “stay awhile” and respond tenderly to whatever arises in your system. Given the more challenging components of a Yin Yoga practice, one has to have both curiosity and resolve to explore the somatic and psycho-emotional depths that are possible.
A more practical understanding of the differences between Restorative and Yin Yoga comes from knowing the physical methods and psychological approach.
Yin Yoga and Restorative Yoga have completely opposing physical methodology.
Restorative Yoga intentionally unloads the joints, muscles and skeleton so that the entire physical body is relaxed for extended periods of time ranging from 5 to 20 minutes in each pose.
Yin Yoga intelligently stresses the joints and fascia through loading the physical body, utilizing both traction and compression, in poses for 1-10 minutes.
Restorative Yoga organizes the body into a shape that provides maximum comfort and support so that muscular tension is released and joint tissues relax. Similar to methods of sensory deprivation, the design of restorative yoga is to remove bodily discomfort and stimuli to achieve a state of deep relaxation. Props, and lots of them, are essential to Restorative Yoga. Props are used underneath and on top of the body to promote ease and maintain relaxation for longer periods of time.
Judith Hansen Lassiter says that, “During deep relaxation, all the organ systems of the body are benefited, and a few of the measurable results of relaxation are the reduction of blood pressure and the improvement of immune function, as well as improvement in digestion, fertility, elimination, the reduction of muscle tension and generalized fatigue.”
Yin Yoga poses target specific structures in the body through both traction and compression to improve joint health and deconstruct patterns of restriction. In most poses, the muscles are relaxed so that the healthy stress is applied to the myofascial tendon complexes, ligaments, bones and fascia. Once the muscles are relaxed, gravity exerts the perfect amount of gentle force on the body. The amount of time spent in each pose varies from person to person and depends on which area of the body is being focused on.
Yin Yoga poses can stimulate a lot of sensation as the body acclimates from the initial feeling of a muscular stretch to sensations occurring deeper in the joint sites. The physical benefits of this approach include improving blood flow to joint tissues, maintaining and reclaiming joint mobility, softening scar tissue and unwinding postural habits.
Props are not absolutely necessary in Yin Yoga as the benefits of the poses can often be achieved by simply being where you are naturally and letting gravity “do the work.”
If props are used in Yin Yoga they serve the purposes of:
In conjunction with attending to the physical body, Yin Yoga works directly with the energy body by way of targeting the meridians (energetic channels mapped by Chinese Medicine and yogic sages who referred to them as nadis). All styles of yoga can have an impact on the energy body; very few styles of yoga intentionally target the 14 major meridians. Because Yin Yoga works directly with fascia, which is a collagen-rich highly conductive matrix in the body, the meridians located in the fascia are impacted. Yin Yoga poses are designed to traction or compress meridians to promote better energetic flow across the channels and throughout the internal organs. In her book Insight Yoga, Sarah Powers offers Yin Yoga sequences for organ support and introduces Chinese Meridian Theory.**
Along with the physical methodology, Yin and Restorative Yoga have different psycho-emotional approaches. As mentioned before, Restorative Yoga is promoting the specific state of relaxation and teachers often encourage you to reconnect with feelings of joy or bliss. In contrast, Yin Yoga employs mindfulness techniques to witness thoughts and emotions without clinging to the storylines. “Making friends” with challenging inner conditions promotes an integration of the complete psyche and can reconnect us to feelings of empathy and compassion. What we experience in our minds is often reflected in our body and vice versa. As Sarah Power’s reflects below on her personal experience with Yin Yoga, the benefits of ease and clarity often come with Yin Yoga, but the pathway taken to get there is different from Restorative Yoga.
The lengthy postural steadiness allows us to develop yin qualities of surrender and observance, a willingness to feel a greater tolerance for uncomfortable experiences. After doing my Yin poses strung together, I have found that a feeling commonly develops that is similar to the effect of a long acupuncture session. My body begins to feel very relaxed and at ease, while my mind feels a heightened sense of clarity and restfulness. —Sarah Powers, Insight Yoga page 25
Both Restorative and Yin Yoga are valuable practices to explore and provide relief from our everyday, overstimulated, agitated, and exhausted states. Both styles of yoga take us to a quieter and more still place that allows us to replenish our energy stores and reconnect with our whole being. With separate aims and methods, the differing “medicines” of Yin and Restorative may resonate with you at different points in your life.
If you’re a yoga teacher or studio owner interested in offering one or both of these styles of yoga, I invite you to hold your teaching and leadership in the highest integrity and practice and train in these styles of yoga with a qualified teacher prior to including these classes on your schedule. All of the luminaries listed above lead teacher trainings. Trainings in Iyengar Yoga continue to be offered by his senior teachers. As a student of Sarah Powers***, I am proud to be offering both a 60-hour Yin Yoga Immersion (for students who love to learn and teachers who have a 200-hour certificate) and a 200-hour Yin Yoga Teacher Training (for aspiring teachers to attain their teaching certificate).
To experience Yin Yoga yourself, please join me at a public class in Boulder or Denver, Colorado, or take a class with me on YogaDownload or subscribe to my free podcast “Yoga Sesh”.
*Ascension and descension practices are not mutually exclusive. Often, they act as portals to one another. Ascension states of ease and safety can open the human system to realms of healing that were previously inaccessible. Descension practices can yield to moments of insight or release that propel us to states of freedom. It is important to have an experienced and trustworthy teacher, healer or therapist to support explorations into both ascension and descension.
**Chinese Meridian Theory is a vast body of knowledge that is introduced, through the lens of yoga, in Sarah Powers’ book Insight Yoga. It is not a resource for diagnosing physical or mental health or for prescribing treatments. For anyone who is captivated by Chinese Meridian Theory, seek experts and mentors that help you grow and learn. Licensed acupuncturists and Chinese Medicine practitioners have invested years, if not decades, to studying this powerful medicine and are a great resource for personal healing.
***I have completed Sarah Power’s Level I and II trainings and continue to study with her on silent retreats. I am currently one of twenty-one international yoga teachers that is doing her Level III training.
By Caitlin Rose Kenney
Caitlin Rose teaches yoga to satisfy the whole being and speaks about the physical practice as an access point for widespread change in mental patterns, emotional states, and connection to spirit. Caitlin Rose is known for holding space with a calm confidence that allows practitioners to move safely, feel their experience, revitalize and heal. Her gentle demeanor and articulate instructions aid students at any level to advance their ability for precision and graceful embodiment.
Practice Yin with Caitlin on YogaDownload, right now!
Yin Yoga for Stress Relief with Caitlin Rose Kenney
Yin Yoga for Energy & Clarity with Caitlin Rose Kenney
"Don´t be afraid to fail. Be afraid not to try." - Michael Jordan, one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
In order to grow, we must continue to take chances and try things outside of our comfort zones. Now we’re not suggesting you need to go bungee jumping or climb Mt. Kilimanjaro tomorrow! Well, unless it’s on your bucket list. Until you attempt something new, you’ll never know how it could turn out.
Yoga can appear intimidating if you’ve never tried it, but with appropriate instruction, it is actually much more accessible than you think. Maybe in the past, you’ve tried some different classes and the teacher didn’t resonate with you or you suffered an injury or illness and are hesitating to return to the mat. Or maybe you are a true newbie and are finally ready to try yoga.
“If your spine is inflexibly stiff at 30, you are old; if it is completely flexible at 60, you are young” Your spine and overall health directly correlate to how young you move and feel.” Joseph Pilates
Many students sheepishly confess that they haven’t tried yoga because…wait for it…they aren’t flexible. Well, if you don’t work to become more flexible, you will become increasingly stiff by the day. It’s like playing the piano or speaking a foreign language: if you don’t practice regularly, you become rusty. Nobody wants a rusty stiff body like the tin man from the Wizard of Oz, so step onto your mat! Practicing yoga will help you stay young for the rest of your life!
In addition to the benefit of becoming more flexible, both physically and emotionally, yoga also focuses on developing strength, balance, calmness of mind and lightness of spirit. If you can release any pre-conceived notion of what yoga poses should look like, you’ll be much more open to giving it a shot. There is no perfect pose.
What is vital to remember is that it does not matter what a yoga pose looks like, what matters is how the pose feels. Learning to direct your focus inward and become more aware of how you feel in any given moment helps in all areas of your life, not just on your yoga mat.
Another positive element of being a beginner is you return to that place where you are open to hearing, processing, and accepting new information. Learning about alignment and breathing and sensation gives you new tools for feeling better inside and out. This week, we’ve got several classes to help you start with the basics and progress safely and effectively at home. You’ll be able to get stronger, more flexible, and stay young forever! Or at least feel that way!
Ready to try? Treat yourself to the benefits of yoga, now!
Have you ever made ice cream at home? I have. All kinds. Since I don’t have an ice cream machine and there is definitely no more space left in my kitchen for another gadget, I have tried all kinds of different machine-free versions. I have a recipe that calls for sweetened condensed milk and heavy cream – the consistency is nice, but it is way too sweet for my liking. I have another method, which uses traditional crème anglaise and taking the mix out of the freezer every half an hour to whisk it through, but this one requires way too much effort, and I always forget to mix it at the right time and by the time I remember it has frozen solid.
For at least five years now I have not experimented with any of those complicated, overly sweet and fatty ice creams, because it only takes 5 minutes to whip up this genius recipe that:
Truth to be told, the recipe I share with you is so ridiculously simple that I’m not even sure if it should be called a recipe. But since it is super delicious, healthy, and I make this or a similar version at least 3 times every single week, so it is definitely worth sharing.
The headline says 2-ingredient, but actually, you only need one – bananas! Frozen bananas. I promise you, if you have never used frozen bananas before, you have missed out. I always have at least ten chopped up bananas in my freezer to make this ice cream. Today I have used raw cacao powder for a chocolate flavor, and I always add a pinch of salt to any recipes that use chocolate cacao because it brings out the flavor. But you can add whatever flavor you like. Sometimes all I add is a tiny bit of vanilla paste. During the berry season, all kinds of fresh berries are nice – some blended in the ice cream, others on top. Another option is to combine the banana with a tiny bit of coconut milk and sprinkle toasted coconut flakes on top. As I said – the possibilities are endless!
Try it out and let us know in the comments if this is your new favorite too!
The Easiest 2-Ingredient Vegan Ice Cream
Serves: 1
Cooking time: 5 minutes (+ a few hours for freezing)
1 large banana, cut to 1-cm pieces and frozen
1 tbsp raw cacao powder
A pinch of salt
If you don’t already have bananas in your freezer, chop one up and freeze it for 3 hours. While you are at it, you might want to freeze more, because you want to do this ice cream again!
Add the bananas to a high-speed blender with the cacao and a tiny bit of salt. Depending on a blender, you might need to add some water to get it going, but add as little as possible, you want to get a nice thick consistency, not a smoothie. Whizz until creamy and enjoy immediately.
Practice this quick, free yoga class before you enjoy this healthy ice cream!
Yoga for Better Sex with Claire Petretti Marti
There are many benefits to practicing yoga regularly. Some are more obvious than others, like more flexibility, strength, and balance. However, yoga’s benefits can also extend off of the mat, and into other areas of our lives as well.
For example, yoga can make you more productive and better at your job. Yoga can also increase your energy levels throughout the day. And yoga can also make you better in bed, whether you’re gay, straight, or anywhere in-between.
Really? Yes really, and here’s why:
Yoga makes you more connected to your body. Sex is not about thinking, it’s about feeling and following your body’s instincts. So is yoga. Practicing yoga postures, helps you connect to your body in a deeper and more internal way. The more connected you are to your own body, the more you are able to connect with another person’s body.
Hip openers help. Do I need to say more? These poses not only make you more bendy, and adaptable but also connect you to muscles that can increase pleasure. Orgasms happen in your sacral region, and practicing hip openers will put you more in touch with muscles there that are activated and engaged during sex.
Sex is spiritual (and so is yoga). Yoga is a spiritual practice. It is a sacred ritual, every time you step onto your mat, and while the physical and mental benefits are plentiful, yoga can make you feel your connection to something bigger than yourself. The same is true of sex. It is unique every single time. You can also treat sex as the sacred ritual that it is, and be fully present for each experience.
Confidence is key. Yoga builds confidence in you over time, and you can carry this with you throughout your life. Confidence is a key element to a healthy and beneficial sex life and you can increase your self-confidence on your mat and see this effect help you in bed.
Surface level beauty. While beauty is in the eye of the beholder, it can be argued that yoga is a fountain of youth, and keeps practitioners with a youthful glow into old age. Postures like inversions reduce wrinkles, and a regular practice keeps the hormone systems of one’s body, operating harmoniously. Good posture is also attractive and is an effect of a regular yoga practice.
Treat others with respect. The Yamas and Niyamas of yoga philosophy are surprisingly relevant to one’s sex life. Be honest with others and don’t do anyone any harm. Sex is something that can benefit all parties involved, and a sense of respect and understanding is key. Diving deeper into the roots of yoga, and applying some of these principles to how you engage and relate to others, can allow for more beneficial, honest, and intimate relationships.
Shamelessness. For many, upbringings infused of shame and guilt around a healthy sex life are real barriers to fully letting go and enjoying this special part of life. Yoga allows people to let go of an array of old emotional baggage, and layers of social programming that they do not need to carry around any longer. It is good to be uninhibited in bed, guilt-free, and be at peace and passionate about this part of your life. Yoga’s emotionally healing benefits, help with this.
Presence. Yoga is really about presence. If you are in your head thinking about things that happened before or what’s going to happen after, you are not going to be as good of a lover. You want to be present and attentive for a peak experience.
True and lasting happiness comes from within and never from sexual satisfaction alone. However, a healthy sex life can be a healing and beneficial part of one’s life. The wisdom and breakthroughs experienced in a yoga practice, have ripple effects and will allow you to experience more pleasure and meaning in your sex life.
Nicki Mateo is an independent artist and author, who enjoys pushing boundaries, yoga and meditation, creative energy, and breaking down stereotypes.
If you’re thinking of starting yoga practice, you might be feeling a little overwhelmed with trying to decide which class is right for you. There are lots of different traditional yoga practices, as well as a huge variety of hybrid yoga classes, which can make trying to pick a style confusing.
Here’s a quick guide to a few different types of yoga, and how to choose the right type of yoga for you.
Hatha Yoga
A hatha yoga class is great for beginners, who want to learn the basics of yoga. This is because the movements are slower than other types of yoga. There is more focus on alignment and deep breathing, with longer posture holds and no flow in between asanas. It’s a great place to start before trying out more advanced and fast yoga styles.
Yin Yoga
Yin yoga is based on the Taoist concepts of yin and yang. Yang here represents more athletic activities, which generate heat in the body, while yin is the softer and restorative activity that heals the body. Yin yoga was actually developed to help practitioners go deeper into the muscles and target joints and ligaments through passive stretching.
Yin yoga is slow in pace and is usually held in silence, with each pose being held between one and 20 minutes. Traditionally, yin classes feature very little movement and consist of between 18 to 24 floor postures to stimulate meridians. This type of yoga class is ideal for people who want to build up their flexibility and improve their joint stability and heal muscular tissues. It is also a great style of yoga for those who are looking to unwind and destress and balance their body and mind.
Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini yoga is a different style of yoga than you might be used to. It’s a very spiritual style that is centered around chanting and meditation. Kundalini translates as ‘a spiritual energy’, and Kundalini yoga’s aim is to channel and awaken this energy.
These classes can be very physically demanding and are ideal for those who are looking for more spirituality in their yoga practice. This type of yoga can help you feel a shift in energy, although they can be pretty tough for beginners. Kundalini sequences typically consist of asanas combined with breathing exercises to awaken each particular chakra. Classes open with a short chant, then usually have a warm-up sequence focusing on spine flexibility, then an asana sequence, and a closing meditation.
Vinyasa Yoga
Vinyasa translates to ‘placing in a special way’, and it refers to the sequence of yoga poses. Vinyasa yoga focuses on moving and linking together postures in a fluid way. It can be quite physically demanding and requires you to move your body in time with your breath.
Every vinyasa class can be different, and you can expect to use props or music depending on your teacher's preferences. Most vinyasa flows incorporate moves such as sun salutations, warrior poses, and lots of backbends and inversions. This type of yoga is ideal if you’re looking to tone up and build up your flexibility.
Ashtanga Yoga
Ashtanga yoga is based on ancient teachings and was popularised in the late 1970’s in India. Ashtanga yoga is challenging and fast-paced - it consists of six pose sequences that are practiced in gradual progression. You need to focus on the connection between your breath and the pose itself, as you flow through the sequence in breath-synchronized movements at your own pace.
This is a very structured yoga practice that is ideal for athletic people. You need to commit to at least 3-4 times a week, and be prepared to move through some tough arm balances.
Power Yoga
Power yoga is a very athletic practice of yoga that is a great workout if you want to push yourself! It incorporates lots of fluid movements with strengthening postures in between, to help build strength. It’s a good practice if you want to push yourselves and work up a sweat, but it’s not the most beginner-friendly practice - so if it’s your first time, maybe work up to this style.
Aerial Yoga
Aerial yoga is a unique style of yoga that uses silk hanging from the ceiling to help support and deepen the poses. It can also be called anti-gravity yoga. This type of yoga typically consists of inversions, and you may need some upper body strength to help lift yourself up on the hangings. Aerial yoga can be quite fun and liberating and is great to help back pain through its gentle spine stretches.
Iyengar Yoga
Iyengar yoga was developed and popularized by a famous yogi named B.K.S Iyengar. This type of yoga focuses on proper alignment and uses lots of props like blocks and straps to help you achieve this. Iyengar yoga features a lot of stillness, and you’ll find yourself holding poses rather than moving with your breath. This type of yoga is great for if you are struggling with injuries, or are less than flexible.
The truth is, there are countless styles of yoga. While finding your preferred style makes it more likely you show up on your mat consistently, don't be afraid to branch out. It'll keep you from becoming stagnant and plateau-ing in your yoga journey, and also work new muscles in your body.
On YogaDownload.com, you can try Yin, Power, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, or Iyengar, to get different takes on yoga and find the right style for you!
Different Styles of Yoga Explained