All posts tagged: how to do yoga

Nail Your Handstands & Forearm Balances

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My mentor and teacher Kino MacGregor is a yogini extraordinaire. Her handstands are like whoa! Actually, I think all of her asanas (poses) are ah-maaaaa-zing, but those handstands! OMG those handstands! SO fabulous! It came as a huge surprise to me when Kino confessed handstands are her weak point, literally. She’s naturally more flexible than she is strong, and she loses strength easily and has to work hard to build it back up. The fact that Kino has Mere Mortal Syndrome is both a huge relief and also tremendously inspiring. She has perfect inversions, because she trains to have perfect inversions. The take away: you can nail any asana with diligence and consistency. I’m still working on building up strength so that I can easily do my handstands and forearm balances even after doing a million vinyassas during my practice, but I’ve learned a lot after training with Kino both one on one and also in various yoga intensives. I wanted to share some of her knowledge. Another great way to get handstand training is …

New Yoga Challenge: May Mantra

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Are you a part of the yoga community on Instagram? If not, this is the perfect time to jump on board and get inspired by your fellow yoga practitioners, as well as to try out your own skills. The great thing about these challenges is that it gives you the opportunity to practice and fine tune certain asanas that you might never have tried. I love seeing other people’s yoga practice via their Instagram. Unlike so many other accounts dedicated to fashion and makeup, I feel tremendously encouraged and motivated when I follow along another person’s journey. It helps me learn, grow, and believe that practice does make progress! Please feel free to follow me at theyoga_journey, and let me know you’re starting your challenge so I can follow you as well!

Training with Kino: Fearless Backbends

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Backbends: that part of a yoga class that makes most yogis inwardly groan. Most of us are perfectly content to skip all and any camel like poses. And count us out entirely when it comes to Urdva Dhanurasana. There’s actually a scientific and emotional base for most people’s dislike of backbends. Yoga poses release a cascade of neurotransmitters (they cause those feel good emotions or the shock of adrenaline that gets your heart pumping like crazy) that usually leave us feeling euphoric after a yoga class. Backbends aren’t always so kind to us. The spine is massive network of neuroreceptors and neurotransmitters. Needless to say, getting the spine involved in a big way can release a tidal wave of emotions that can flood us with notsohappy emotions. We usually like to back away from these overwhelming experiences, so we avoid getting deep into our backbends. Kino actually explained that these emotional blues are unavoidable in yoga, and hitting that wall is usually when people quit yoga. Introspection and discomfort isn’t usually what we sign up for when we …

Beating the Yoga Blues

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Yoga is a journey that has it’s peaks and valleys, to be sure. Sometimes, we leave a practice feeling on top of the world. In fact, yoga is famous for the euphoric high that comes after a ridiculously grueling session. Maybe science hasn’t nailed down exactly why yoga is so magically healing and emotionally satisfying, but any regular to yoga will swear by its powers. Speaking of science, we do know that yoga, which incorporates tons of back bends and twists, causes the body to release a high level of neurotransmitters like serotonin (which is directly responsible for happy feelings). The spine of course is connected to the brain, and both are big control centers for neuro activity and hormonal releases. While yoga usually leaves us feeling oh so blissful, sometimes it also stirs up deep emotions and can leave us feeling like we’ve been hit by a Mack truck. It’s not uncommon to feel emotionally drained after a big influx of neurotransmitters, hormones, twists and bends…but it seems hard to shake at times. From a …

The Case for Chaturanga Arms: Learning from Expert Jennifer Martin

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Chaturanga is one of the primary moves we learn from day one in yoga. It’s like our basic corner stone, but we often need assistance truly getting this asana (pose) correct. I went to an awesome arm balance and inversions workshop presented this past weekend by the amazing Jennifer Martin. I don’t know if she has any bones in her body, because she’s ridiculously flexible, but her strength is beyond inspirational as well. The east coast as a whole as obviously displeased the weather gods. We’re being constantly brutalized by a barrage of ice storms and snow, and while I love a good over sized sweater as much as any other #basicbitch, there’s only so many layers a girl can wear before looking like that waddling kiddo from The Christmas Story. I personally wear about twenty thousand layers when it’s cold outside, because my Texas blood cannot handle the cold. Creatures who dress cute when it’s negative degrees outside are some kind of ice demon and are not to be trusted. Seriously. They aren’t normal. …

Alignment Focus: Extended Triangle Pose

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I’m truly thankful for my teachers who have taken the time to show me proper alignment. It’s something I still work on, because it’s a lifetime endeavor to be sure. As an ICU nurse, I firmly believe in protecting our bodies—we only have one and we put it through a lot! As a yoga teacher in training, I believe alignment brings incredible power to each pose. When people ask me which form of yoga is best, I quickly reply, “I’m realizing all of them, actually!” They each bring something to the table that the other practices do not, and we can have a well-rounded practice when we learn from each practice. While Ashtanga yoga is my jam and I love the athleticism it requires (think Kino MacGregor’s crazy arm balances and inversions—swoon!), I am learning to embrace to spiritual flow of Prana, the healing elements of Tantra, and the safe alignment of Iyengar yoga. The side triangle is a staple pose in most yoga flows, and so here are a few tips and tricks to …

How to Do Vasisthasana |Side Plank

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Vasisthasana is one of those fabulous asanas that’s a one stop shop arm balance. Not only will you get an intense ab workout that targets those often neglected obliques, but it tightens the entire core. It’s such a great pose, that it’s been borrowed by non-yoga workouts as a secret weapon for keeping abs tights and the waist small. It primarily strengthens entire core, but it also targets the gluteus medius and gluteus minimus in the hips, as well as the adductor muscles located in the inner thigh. But wait! There’s more! The secondary the side plank also works several other muscles that provide additional stability as you hold the position including the gluteus maximus, the quadriceps on the front of your thighs and the hamstrings on the back of your thighs. TIPS: Keep your shoulders, hips, knees and feet in one straight diagonal line, Important: make sure your neck and head continue the line of your spine. Keep obliques pulled up up up at all times to avoid hips collapsing. HOW TO: From downward facing down, come …

On and Off the Mat: Just Be Present Part 1

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Is it December already? Seriously, Time! Pull those reigns in! You’re running away from me! As the holidays roll around, it’s usually a startling reality that the year has flown by, usually in a blink of the eye. Christmas, like weddings, always seem better in concept than in reality. An entire day dedicated to love, fellowship, and joy? Sign us up, right? But people are usually wildly stressed out and haggard by the time the actual day rolls around. The planning, shopping, organizing and trying to corral everyone together can be a big fat energy zapper. Ask any bride planning a wedding or a mother trying to get things in order for the holidays. I’m not saying it’s all a miserable experience, because big events (like Christmas and weddings of course) often bring huge amounts of joy. It’s the days leading up that often cause us to focus on anything and everything but our current time and place, and to soak it up and enjoy it. I personally despise the mall and would rather trek …

An Asana of Freedom: Wild Thing Pose

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I absolutely love the yoga community on Instagram. I am constantly inspired and encouraged by the mutual journey I get to take with other yogini’s, and I am deeply moved when people take time to comment. It’s so uplifting! I try to do the same for others, because it honestly is such a lovely encouragement to me and I want to be that for others. I was recently tagged by a friend to do a stop, drop and yoga pose, and I thought over which one to do. I felt like so many people chose mind blowing poses that demonstrated such strength and inspiring skill. I was tempted to pull something similar out of my bag of tricks, but I felt moved to do one of my favorite poses: wild thing. To see tips on the pose, jump to the bottom of the page. I love the pose wild thing because it’s accessible at many skill levels, and it reminds us we’re all wild at heart and should never let life break us or totally …

How to Do: Side Crow into Eka Pada Koundinyasana

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Bakasana (or Crow pose) is usually the first pose that most people learn, but I actually like side crow even better. It flows so perfectly with a typical vinyasa practice, and not only do you get the benefits of core strengthening, but you also get the detoxing, cleansing effects of a side twist. What?! #winning! Another added perk is you get to start adding more transitioning poses and start building up your yoga practice. The Koundinyasana pose is optional, and you can add it on just as easily as leave it out. Tips: 1) Warm up with your sun salutations (review here) and crow (review here)  to get in your flow. 2) Have good contact points! Firmly connect those chatarunga arms to your legs. The key points are close to the hip and the side of the knee. 3) Use chatarunga arms as a platform to get into the pose. 4) Make a triangle of your two hands and gaze focused in front of hands. 5) Spread fingers wide! This will really help with balancing. …