Warrior I Pose: Virabhadrasana 1

One of the biggest challenges in this pose is finding the right position for the hips. Ideally, hips will be square to the front of the mat. Most likely though, this will not be the case. Hips will likely be at a slight diagonal away from the front knee. Encourage balance by drawing the back hip forward and hugging the front hip back. 

Warrior I Pose Breakdown

 Stand in Tadasana, With an exhale, step or lightly jump your feet 31/2 to 4 feet apart. Raise your arms perpendicular to the floor (and parallel to each other), and reach actively through the little-finger sides of the hands toward the ceiling. Firm your scapulas against your back and draw them down toward the coccyx.

 Turn your left foot in 45 to 60 degrees to the right and your right foot out 90 degrees to the right. Align the right heel with the left heel. Exhale and rotate your torso to the right, squaring the front of your pelvis as much as possible with the front edge of your mat. As the left hip point turns forward, press the head of the left femur back to ground the heel. Lengthen your coccyx toward the floor, and arch your upper torso back slightly.

 With your left heel firmly anchored to the floor, exhale and bend your right knee over the right ankle so the shin is perpendicular to the floor. More flexible students should align their right thigh parallel to the floor.

 Reach strongly through your arms, lifting the ribcage away from the pelvis. As you ground down through the back foot, feel a lift that runs up the back leg, across the belly and chest, and up into the arms. If possible, bring the palms together. Spread the palms against each other and reach a little higher through the pinky-sides of the hands. Keep your head in a neutral position, gazing forward, or tilt it back and look up at your thumbs.

 Stay for 30 seconds to a minute. To come up, inhale, press the back heel firmly into the floor and reach up through the arms, straightening the right knee. Turn the feet forward and release the arms with an exhalation, or keep them extended upward for more challenge. Take a few breaths, then turn the feet to the left and repeat for the same length. When you're finished return to Tadasana.

Pose breakdown courtesy of Yoga Journal

EO Spotlight: Balance

Lunch Hour Yoga in Arlington Heights

I am so pleased to announce a brand new class to my schedule!

Lunch Break Vinyasa Flow 

Break up the day and get the energy flowing with this thoughtful flow. This hour-long class begins with a high-intensity flow to get the heart pumping and help warm the muscles. From there we'll wind down with deep stretches, getting into the connective tissue to help release tension and improve range of motion.

Classes are held on Tuesdays & Thursdays from 12 to 1 PM at Lionize Training Center in Arlington Heights. Just off of the Dundee exit on 53, Lionize is located at 516 w. Campus Drive Unit B in Arlington Heights, IL. Monthly yoga passes can be purchased, and drop-ins are always welcome. 

Click here to see my yoga teaching schedule.

Yoga 101: How to Stand in Yoga

"Come to stand at the top of your mat." 

Pretty basic instruction, right? 

You'd think so, but seeing as how no two bodies are alike, everyone carries their weight differently, and our society as a whole has poor posture; a simple standing position can be one of the most difficult things to do. 

Hyperflexible people like me will lock their knees, causing them to bow backward and put stress on the joints. Many of us stick our tailbones outward, causing the front ribs to jut out and giving this feeling of a fake backbend that we think is strong & flexible; but really causes more tension in the spine.

Long story short, every body is different. We all have different limitations. No two bodies were built the same. We are all asymmetrical. 

Learning the proper way to stand takes practice and requires constant reminders (my students can surely attest). Here are some fail-safe cues that will help you to stand properly both on and off the mat.

How to Stand in Yoga

Standing with feet hip-width distance apart, start by lifting the toes a few times to wake up the arches of the feet. Really focus on lifting that pinky toe as these are the muscles that help keep knee and low back pain at bay. Spread the toes as much as possible then set them down with the big toe pointing forward.

Keep the knees soft—not bent, but not locked either.

Find your hip points on the front of your body and slightly lift them (they may not go anywhere, but see how this feels) to point your tailbone downward.

Bring your fingertips to the points of your shoulders and bring them down & back as much as comfortably possible. Notice how the chest begins to lift and spread as you do this—keep this feeling.

Find your front lower ribs and if they’re sticking out, soften them back into your torso. This will keep your belly long and lifted from the front of the spine.

Bring the ears in line with the shoulders and the chin parallel to the floor. Relax your face. 

Yoga for Runners - Yin Yoga for Shin Splints

Let's start out with a little bit of brutal honesty here: I am not, nor do I claim to be a runner of any sort. I've got a tough enough time with a steady jog - more of a hop, really - to ever consider actual RUNNING to be a pleasurable activity. Bless those of you that find a joyful release and peace while running because that will never be me. I wish I could love running, I really do, but I just really don't... like, at all.

Post-Color Run 5K Fun

I've had flat feet for as long as I can remember which has caused me to have chronic foot, knee, and low back pain. I wear orthotics in my awesome pair of Asics running shoes, but no matter what my body just does not like the feeling of running. My asthma likes to kick in when I start noticing the soreness in my lower body. All around, just not my recipe for fun.

While enthusiasts might enjoy that runner's high, if I had to think of one feeling to attach to my running career it would be this:

SHIN. SPLINTS. 

Goodness gracious. Every. Single. Time. And it really sucks.

So why on Earth would I even consider running, then? Well, for one I really should try to run, I mean it is good for you. My lungs and heart could use some toning. But honestly, the only reason I'm writing this is because my girlfriends put together a team for the Color Run and it just so happens that "Run a 5K" is on my bucket list. Not sure why, but it's written in ink so it stands.

So I ran that 5K.

Was it fun? Hell yes.
Did we finish? Of course!
Would I do it again? Nehhhhhh....

I have not run that much since high school, I can guarantee that. Hips, hammies, and OOHHHH WEEE those shin splints. It's 2 days later and I'm still sore.

So here's a sequence I've been practicing at home to help ease the pain of shin splints, tight hamstrings and hips that I hope you can enjoy with me!

I like to think of this as a "Yinyasa" flow; meaning that there's a small bit of vinyasa-style flow before slowing it down to take it deep. The muscles have a chance to get warmed up and I find that it just feels better. I know many of you high-energy runners out there might crave a hot sweaty flow to make things feel better, but it just won't. Here's the thing -- whether or not running is your thing, you need to slow it down to get relief.

Enjoy.

Yoga for Runners (1 Hour Yoga Sequence)

1. Begin standing with 10 rounds of Breath of Joy
2. Surya Namaskar A 2X
3. Hang dog to Warrior 1 3X each side (5 breaths)
4. Vinyasa through
5. Bound angle with zipper toes
6. Down Dog, raise R leg
7. Low Lunge hands to thigh - lengthen upper body (3 min)
8. Stay in Low Lunge, bring L hand to knee/inner thigh and pivot upper body toward inside of leg to twist (2 min)
9. Runners Lunge, toes tucked (2 min)
10. Lizard (3 min)
11. Ardha Hanumanasana w/ blocks (3 min)
12. Pigeon (5 min) *If mermaid/king pigeon is in your practice, enter this first for a juicy quad stretch*
13. Childs (2 min) 
14. Repeat steps 6-13 on L side
15. From a kneeling position, tuck your toes underneath you and spread them as widely as comfortably possible. Sit your hips onto your heels, applying as much pressure as comfortably possible. This is an intense stretch, but it gets the job done. This stretch is so intense for me that I have to close my eyes and do nothing but breathe. If I stick with it long enough, I'll start to see colors on the insides of my eyelids. So don't hate me for this stretch, you may release a lot of stuff. It's good though. (2-5 min, depending on how long you can take it)
16. Reclined fish on bolster, legs straight or in bound angle (5 min) 
17. Legs up the wall

If this sequence still leaves you needing more relief, try my favorite natural cure: Deep Blue Rub. You can find it here on My doTerra Shop.

Yoga 101: The Breath of Joy

Let's get back to the basics. No matter how many breathing cues I give, I can never give enough. Isn't it funny that we have so many things on our minds that we need someone to remind us to breathe? 

Life is busy. Just because you don’t have a full hour to dedicate to a yoga class doesn’t mean that you can’t benefit from yoga. Five minutes of deep stretches or rhythmic movements paired with energizing or relaxed breathing can sometimes be more beneficial than a crowded room full of sweaty bodies. 

I've decided to break down some of my favorite breathing exercises on a weekly basis in hopes that we can all benefit from them as much as possible. 

Enjoy.

Breath of Joy (Energizing)

• From standing, extend your arms out to the sides of the body like one straight line out the shoulders. Turn your palms up and relax your shoulders. Try to make yourself longer laterally starting from the middle of the chest
• Keeping this same open and lifted feeling in the chest, inhale and reach your arms up toward the sky. You may feel like you look like the letter Y.
• Begin to exhale as you bend your knees and fold forward from the waist. Swing your arms down toward the ground and allow them to stretch down & back behind you. I like to think of this like diving into a pool. You can let your torso fall onto your thighs to allow that exhale to reach a little deeper.
• Inhale and swing the arms out the side then up overhead as you rise back up to stand. 
• Repeat 10 times.