The Benefits of Rolling and Myofascial Release
‘Myo’ refers to muscles and fascia is what wraps around all the tissues inside the body, acting like an internal cling film. A foam roller or myofascial release balls allow for pressure to be applied to soft tissues while applying traction to this facial ‘film’.
Yoga isn’t a ‘quick fix’ solution but it a long-term practice that helps us to navigate the demands of life, be that mental, physical or emotional. Yoga is a powerful tool of self-regulation but takes time and consistency to notice the deeper long-lasting benefits.
Sometimes we come to yoga due to a pain or discomfort such a as back problems. This could have been set off years ago when pregnant, making a quick twist in football or from a desk job with insufficient support. Yoga may not be able to cure this issue that you’ve been dealing with over years, but it can deepen your connection to your body, in turn, shining a light on what may be continuing to aggravate it and that which supports and soothes the discomfort.
The autonomic nervous system responds to environmental demands and helps us through changes and threats. Homeostasis is needed to put energy toward the important yet longer term projects of rest, repair and growth.
The sympathetic response, known as ‘fight or flight’ is effective and useful at times. It evolved to keep us safe and is a great way to increase our level of performance in a short-term act such as delivering a presentation or exercising. This response is an immediate and urgent one that draws our body’s energy away from ‘non-essential’ functions in that moment. Our heart rate and blood pressure increase while our immunity, fertility and digestion are put on hold.
When we look at an issue in one area of the body, we can deepen our understanding by broadening our outlook. Have you ever been for a massage, physio or osteo appointment because of a pain in a certain area in your body and they start working on a different area? It can seem counterintuitive to begin with but of course it makes perfect sense in the end. A holistic bodyworker sees each person as a collection of systems. If there’s a kink in the chain, it might be presented at a different area to the root cause. Each muscle, joint, tissue, blood vessel, organ all connect and work together to create your physical form. For example, what can appear as a severe pain in the neck could actually be from muscular tension in the shoulder, pressure on a nerve, a blockage of fluid or a whole array of other factors!
How Can The Core Support Our Transitions?
Vinyasa Yoga is about flowing through yoga postures to create a sense of ease in the body and mind. However, if we haven’t built strong foundations, it can be difficult, if not impossible, to find that sense of fluidity.
A strong core is essential to our movement both on the yoga mat and in everyday life. The core is the centre of our body and stabilises our trunk while our limbs may be off doing all sorts of things! It really is a fantastic thing that allows us to make both the most simple and wildest shapes we may have dreamed of.
Like anything in life, the more we learn/see/do, the more we realise there is! The anatomy of a human body is the same, you learn about the muscles, bones and connective tissues but then you remember that each body is unique and you’re likely to come across different proportions and connections forever! What may feel great in one body may well aggravate another, and vice versa.
The Benefits of Chaturanga
Chaturanga Dandasana is an advanced form of a low plank and is regularly taught as part of a vinyasa class or within the Ashtanga Yoga Series. So, what’s it about?
Just like plank, which we may be more familiar with, this posture relies hugely on the strength of our core muscles. While you need a strong core to hold a plank, practicing it will hugely strengthen those muscles!
The Benefits of Headstand
An inversion is any pose in yoga, where the head is lower than the heart (opposite to when standing) and there are so many benefits to this type of posture. Headstands call for increased strength and flexibility in order to move toward it, which means that you are gaining on many levels at every step of the journey.
The masculine aspect of being is consistent and unchanging. This is about being the container, the space holder, the awareness that sits behind it all. The feminine then weaves through this structure with constant motion, the power and force that allows for all change and growth. This is where seasonal yoga is born, from an understanding that the natural world, including us, is in constant motion and therefore requires a different approach at different phases and cycles.
Immerse in Winter…
These shorter days encourage us to lean into the nights, a time for softness, steadiness, stillness. We live in a cyclical world and each season impacts the next, we save more energy in the winter and spend more in the summer. Of course, if we don’t save, we have nothing to spend.
