A4 Sports Kid Camp

A4 Sports Kid Camp this morning at the Botanic Garden. Great to initiate kids to yoga in between other sports!

34 kids divided in 3 groups, for 2.5hours - quite a (great) challenge!

Yoga, Transformation and Healing

Amazing immersion weekend with teacher Ross Rayburn about Yoga, Healing and Transformation. 
The key to make progress: Patience, Clarity, Persistence... Yoga is a long journey!

Yoga Poses - the Do and Don't illustrated

Source: https://www.etsy.com/listing/102213930/breezy-tree-pose-yoga-print

Move with Joy: The Power of a Playful Practice

Nice article on adopting a lighter approach in our yoga classes, including the adults one, and in our lives...

A playful practice 
can bring you 
more joy on and 
off the mat.

Once upon a time, we all 
viewed the world as a friendly, lighthearted, and inviting place. Then, somewhere in the process of becoming an adult—perhaps when we felt pressure to excel in school, got passed over for that perfect job, or felt the pain of a broken heart—seriousness, self-doubt, and fear may have replaced our wonder and fun-loving attitude. While we can still connect with the idea of being playful at times (say, on the dance floor 
at our best friend’s wedding), for many of us, playful moments have become more and more fleeting. And, the sense of seriousness we use to succeed at work or school extends to many other areas of 
our lives, including our yoga 
mat. That’s not to say that taking 
a thoughtful approach to asana can’t come with benefits, especially if you’re experiencing pain or injury. But a constant laser focus on perfecting alignment, toning core, nailing a balancing pose, or breathing away a tough day can come at the expense of fostering flexibility of mind and spirit.

When Patanjali wrote the Yoga Sutra, he explained asana 
as the intersection and balance 
of sthira-sukha. Translated from Sanskrit, sthira means “compact, strong, steadfast, resolute”—all qualities we embody in our adult lives. Sukha, conversely, translates to “good, joyful, happy, light”—all qualities we often associate with children. Most of us adults have lost sukha. On or off the mat, we may no longer be willing to risk failure or to laugh at those failures like we did when we were kids, and, as a result, we can suffer stress and imbalance.

Realign with Your Inner Child

But you can use your mat to realign to the joy and lightness of sukha and ultimately advance your asanas. By cultivating sukha, you can connect with your inner child again, finding more creativity 
and freedom within your practice. Children, as you’ll see in the practice that follows, are the obvious teachers to light and lead the way. “Yoga can be a place to invite more play into your life, and kids can serve as the example,” says Christen Bakken, founder of Young Warriors, a children’s yoga program in Denver. “Kids remind us of who we intrinsically are and to let go, just be, and play.” Bakken, who has been teaching yoga since 2006 and teaching children specifically since 2008, says that a playful practice helps us let go of 
fear that holds back our practice. “When we’re having fun, we’re more willing to take risks, such as kicking up into Handstand 
or moving into a variation of a pose, such asParsva Bakasana (Side Crane Pose), that we didn’t think we could do or that a more serious attitude would have never allowed for,” she says.

Reconnecting with our 
natural childhood senses is essential to realizing the benefits of sukha, according to San Francisco–based Jodi Komitor, founder of Next Generation Yoga, an international children’s yoga program that began in 1998. “Kids are playful, spontaneous, innocent, and creative beings—all qualities that we, as adults, tend to suppress,” Komitor says. “We learn to stop talking openly, to cover our mouths when we laugh, and to abandon the connection that we once had with our inner child.” In order to cultivate a childlike practice on the mat, Komitor encourages both her adult and child students to embody the essence of the pose they’re assuming, which helps adults in particular loosen the body and mind and feel younger in spirit. For instance, in Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose), hiss, stick out your tongue, and slither like a snake. In Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose), you can lift and wag your tail, ground paws into the mat, yelp, bark, and maybe even chase a neighbor around the room. You might meow 
and moo when doing Cat-Cow Pose. “Get creative, and use your asana to truly come alive,” suggests Komitor.

The Subtleties of a Less-Serious Yoga Practice

If you can’t imagine yourself meowing or barking during a class full of people, or even in your own living room, there are subtler ways to bring more play and lightness into your practice. You can set an intention 
at the beginning of class to relax more into your body. In Airplane Pose, for example, stretch your arms out to the side and imagine gliding into the mountains and perhaps landing atop the highest peak. Instead of berating yourself for not nailing Natarajasana (Lord of the Dance Pose), notice the wonderful ways your legs, feet, and hands move, even when falling. “Sometimes simply smiling when we notice that we’re taking ourselves too seriously or laughing rather than judging when we fall out of a pose can help us let go of some of the limitations we’ve created for ourselves,” says Bakken.

When we give ourselves permission to play on the mat, a whole new yoga practice 
and outlook on life can emerge. 
We lose our attachment to outcomes, which limits our effort, and instead enjoy the moment for what it is, explains Kali Love, a certified instructor in yoga, meditation, and Ayurveda at the Chopra Center in Carlsbad, California. “We can learn so much from how children respond to uncertainty with 
a sense of curiosity and adventure,” says Love. “Rather than fearing that we’ll fail to meet an expectation, we can adopt 
a child’s practice of letting go, and so much more becomes possible. We can create more magic, inspiration, happiness, love, joy, and laughter both on and off the mat.”

Practice Moving Joyfully

Find a young buddy—perhaps your kid or 
another little loved one—to share your practice with. Practicing with a child helps keep it light and more playful, but you can also do this sequence solo.

Source: http://www.yogajournal.com/slideshow/the-joy-of-playful-practice/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=story4_image&utm_campaign=myym_01272016#2

New Corporate Class for So Yoga

Great surroundings for an after-work yoga session with colleagues!

7 Ways to Incorporate Yoga Philosophy into a Physical Flow

To me, Yoga is richer than other physical activities thanks to its spiritual aspects. But how to bring it during my classes?

Find ways to weave yoga philosophy into your asana sequence without alienating or overwhelming your students.

As yoga teachers, we have so many responsibilities to our students. We keep them physically safe with sage verbal cues and hands-on adjustments. We make them feel welcome and accomplished while simultaneously encouraging them to push their edge. We introduce Sanskrit, and cue their ujjayi breath. Some of us use music and others quote the Bhagavad Gita. We do ALL of this while creating comprehensive flows and guiding an anatomically intelligent asana series.

With all this to manage, it can be challenging to incorporate the more esoteric elements of a well-rounded yoga class including inspiration and the introduction of the other 7 limbs of yoga. Guiding these valuable principles to truly resonate with each person is the real art. Here are some of my favorite tips:

1. Relate the teachings to modern day life

Few people in 2015 America can relate to Hindu deities or ancient holy men so enlightened they practically levitate above mountaintops in Nepal. But people can understand things they deal with in their own lives, so personalize the principles. The lesson of Ahimsa (non-violence), for example can be perfectly applied to our responses to everyday challenges. All the sutras, yamas, and niyamas are just as relevant today as they ever were. We just need to practice articulating their pertinence in modern language.

2. Break it down.

Instead of undertaking ALL of Patanjali’s wisdom in one 90-minute class, chose one limb or “yama” per class over a series of classes. This allows bite-sized pieces of wisdom that can be more easily digested.

3. Create your asana series in alignment with your theme.

If you are talking about niyama (personal observances), introspective poses like Eagle, and prostrate positions of honor, like Child’s Pose, are physical embodiments of this idea. Use them to create unity in your theme.

4. Chose a soundtrack that helps narrate your theme.

If you do use music in class, there are hundreds of songs about love, peace, joy, balance, etc. Find them and allow their lyrics to subtly underscore your theme.

5. Find contemporary references that illustrate ancient spiritual text.

People can’t always relate to Lao Tzu or Sri Swami Vivekananda, but most can relate to John Lennon or Martin Luther King. Similar messages abound throughout history. Find them, so students feel like you are speaking their language.

6. Open their minds to personal contemplation. Don’t tell them what to think.

Telling people how to feel or what to think invites resistance. Offer them the wisdom of the sutras and invite them to consider it. Encourage students to practice applying these limbs and notice the changes it brings into their experiences.

7. Follow your passion.

As any great author will tell you, “write what you know.” We always speak most authentically and passionately about the messages that resonate with US. Start there. When you speak from your soul, it resonates most deeply with others.

Source: http://www.yogajournal.com/article/philosophy/incorporate-yoga-philosophy-physical-flow/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=story1_more&utm_campaign=myym_01272016

Is it safe to do yoga lunges while pregnant?

Teaching Pre Natal Yoga is very nurturing, however very sensitive as so many postures and instructions vary according to different researches. One of the most common yoga poses to practice during pregnancy, lunge, is well described below!

Is it safe to do yoga lunges while pregnant? This is a great question and one that comes up a lot in prenatal yoga, (well a lot of questions come up in prenatal yoga) and for good reason!
 
There is a lot of contradictory information available about pregnancy, yoga, and the two together. While some of it is consistent, like avoiding heated styles of yoga or closed twists, there is some information available that’s out of step, and may be more experiential than science based. (...)

So to answer this question, yes it is safe to do lunges in prenatal yoga with a few things in mind:

Only Do What Feels Good

Before starting any kind of exercise program, get the ok from your doc or midwife. And most importantly, only do what feels good — come from a place of nourishment for your body and gently making space for your baby. If anything starts to not feel quite right, stop and adjust so it feels amazing.

If you can’t make it feel amazing, don’t do it.

Doing Lunges During Pregnancy

Traditional low and high yoga lunges are a fantastic way to strengthen and lengthen the muscles in the legs. The hip flexors shorten and tighten when you’re sitting at your desk all day, or relaxing in front of the TV.

Lunges strengthen the muscles for delivery like the glutes and adductors. Mentally focus on building strength in this pose rather than opening the hips for two reasons.

Firstly, this will help physically during the marathon of labour, and help the pelvic floor regain its strength post delivery which is vital for a solid recovery.

Secondly, your clever pregnant body makes a hormone called relaxin which makes you super supple already, so there’s no need to make opening your primary goal. Relaxin increases flexibility and purposely causes ligaments to relax to help the body open up for birth.

Mamas-to-be often find they can go deeper in most poses than they could pre-pregnancy. This isn’t necessarily a good thing, as it can cause over-stretching. And over-stretching can cause pelvic instability, pulled muscles or ligaments, and added stress on an already stressed physical body.

Focus on building strength during prenatal yoga, rather than attempting to fold deeper, or get the hips lower in Lizard Lunge.

How to Do Lunges During Pregnancy

When moving into High or Low Lunge while pregnant, take care not to overstretch and cause instability in your pelvic floor. Only work to about 75 per cent of your normal/natural range of motion.

The moment you feel yourself pushing your limit, take a step back and remember your body is extra supple at the moment, and could do more damage than good. Not only will it be a good exercise for your body, it’ll be a good exercise for your mind too.

Modify it like this:

• Move into a Lunge from Table Top position.
• Place one leg forward so your knee is directly above your ankle.
• Depending on how far along you are and the size of the bun in your oven, you may need to wiggle your front foot to the side to make more space for the bubba.
• Either tuck the toes of the back foot under to relieve pressure in the knee, or simply press into the earth with the top of the foot. Do what feels best for your body right now.
• Place both hands on the front thigh and breath into the front of the back leg, or the hip flexor.
• Extend out through the crown of head and down through the tailbone to create space in the spine.
• Hold for 5-6 breaths and switch sides.

Yoga lunges can do so much good for the body, and with these tips in mind, they can do so much good for the pregnant body, too! Remember to focus on building strength rather than flexibility, modify the pose, and don’t move deeper than your natural range of accessibility.

Source: Jacqueline Buchanan, http://www.doyouyoga.com/ask-a-yogi-is-it-safe-to-do-yoga-lunges-while-pregnant-49785/?utm_source=DOYOUYOGA&utm_campaign=55f3f853c1-DOYOUYOGA_Weekly_Update_143&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_77365ebdc2-55f3f853c1-169059121

Benefits of Yoga on Teens

Teenagers can benefit yoga in many ways, during this very challenging, yet rich period of their lives.. I am looking forward to teaching more teenagers as ECA in the next school year!

Scientific and experiential evidence proves many of yoga’s well established benefits. From physical to mental to spiritual, devoted yogis everywhere race to their mats to reap the rewards. And now, recent research from the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics shows that even high-school students can cash in on the same benefits that older yogis do.
 
At the end of their ten week study, researchers found that high school students who participated in the yoga offering during PE class scored better on psychological tests screening for anxiety, depression, and mood imbalances than the teens that did not. The teens who participated in yoga reported fewer negative emotions than those who didn’t participate in yoga during the ten week study. How amazing is that? This inspired us to pull together the top five benefits of yoga practice for teens below. So whether you’re a teen yourself, a parent of a teenager, or just a yogi looking for even more reasons to hit the mat, check it out!

1. Physical

The physical benefits of yoga for teens are quite similar to the benefits of yoga for adults. In the end, yoga means union in Sanskrit, so it makes sense that many of the benefits would be the same!

Yoga builds strength, increases flexibility, lengthens the muscles, increases coordination and balance, builds core stability, and can help students’ posture rebound from a day hunched over a desk (or a smartphone!).

2. Educational

As a teenager, there are heaps of distractions around — from what you’re going to wear to the football game on Friday night, to the who-likes-who dramas — there are much more interesting things to think about than the correct placement of an accent in Spanish class.

Yoga can help teens mentally refocus on the task at hand. By practicing living in the moment on the mat, teenagers can more fully concentrate on the present moment off the mat.

3. Emotional

By practicing present moment living on the mat, high school students will have a better sense of their emotions. Yoga will enable them to connect with their deeper layers and understand more fully what they are feeling. By developing a better understanding of their emotions, teens can then more appropriately process them.

Emotional intelligence is a very powerful thing to learn at an early age.

In addition to connecting you with your emotions, yoga encourages self-love and self-acceptance. This benefit is especially powerful for teens struggling with body image. It’s a beautiful way to learn to love yourself and appreciate the body for what it is and what it can do, rather than what it looks like. It builds compassion for the self which then radiates to compassion for others.

4. Mental

Yoga’s mental benefits are fairly well documented, and as evidenced by the study mentioned above, teenagers who practice yoga show more positive moods, less anxiety and depression, and greatly enjoy asana practice.

With the stress and anxiety of exams, placement tests, speeches and all of the other pressures that plague high school kids today, yoga can be a step in the right direction.

5. Social

Yoga breeds connection. As mentioned previously, it means union in Sanskrit. By understanding that each and every single person is one, perhaps teens will learn to accept one another more fully, no matter their clique, social interests or popularity ranking.

Yoga is non-judgemental, and the more we practice, the more acceptance and less judgement we’ll have in our daily lives. Yoga will help teenagers become more compassionate for one another.

So while this list is in no way comprehensive, it’s a bit of fuel to get your teen’s yoga fire burning!

Source: Jacqueline Buchanan, http://www.doyouyoga.com/5-benefits-of-yoga-for-teens-77981/?utm_source=DOYOUYOGA&utm_campaign=55f3f853c1-DOYOUYOGA_Weekly_Update_143&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_77365ebdc2-55f3f853c1-169059121

Which muscles are we stretching?

Very useful article to revise the anatomy and explore various body parts stretching exercises: 34 in total below!
Stretching is so important to improve posture and reduce risks of injuries.

1. Camel Pose

Muscles emphasized: Rectus Abdominus and External Obliques. This stretch is though most appropriate for people who already have a good flexibility. Sitting on your heels, put your hands behind you, pushing your hips up and forward. Do not put too much pressure on your lumbar spine. Also, in case you have problems with your neck, do not drop your head back.

2. Wide Forward Fold

Muscles emphasized: adductors. This exercise is great for stretching the adductors and the hamstrings, and you just need to open the hips. Start with your knees bent, holding your spine straight. As you start feeling your muscles starting to release, straighten your legs, round out your back and reach for your feet. Pull easily on the bottom of the balls of your feet in order to release the calf muscles. If you are beginner, you might not be able to reach your feet, so then you will need to use a belt or a towel. This stretch can also be performed while you lye on your back and push your legs up the wall.

3. Frog Pose

Muscles emphasized: adductors. This stretch for your groins can put pressure on your knees as well, so it is recommended that you perform it on a soft surface. Rest your hands and knees, and then bring your knees wider until you feel your groin muscles well stretched. You will feel a bit differing stretches as you actively push your hips back and forward.

4. Wide Side Lunge Pose

Muscles emphasized: adductors. Begin by putting your both feet forward in a wide stance, holding your legs as straight as possible. With your hands, walk to your right foot and then bend your right knee and rotate your left toes up to the ceiling, sitting in your right hip. Make sure your right foot maintains flat on the ground.

5. Butterfly Stretch

Muscles emphasized: adductors. Sitting, bring the soles of your feet together and sit tall through your sit bones. Develop this stretch by putting pressure on your knees, using your hands. If you want to stretch your groin muscles better, hold your feet closer to your body. Now, make sure your feet are far from your hips and slowly round your upper body to loose your back muscles.

6. Forearm Extensor Stretch

Muscles emphasized: Forearm extensor. Pack your shoulders and your back down and rotate the shoulder towards outside in order to get into the optimal position to stretch the forearm muscle. After you have managed to bring your body into this position, put pressure on your other hand to start the stretch. You can develop this stretch by touching the tips of your fingers together in the shape of a tea cup.

7. Lateral Side Flexion of the Neck

Muscles emphasized: sternocleidomastoid “SCM”. Prolong your neck as much as possible and slowly drop your ear to your shoulder, ensuring that you are not collapsing your cervical spine. This stretch can be further developed and advanced by sitting on a chair and holding onto the bottom of the seat. This is going to make the tension down your arm and neck consistent, and thus it will let you target the upper traps.

8. Neck Rotation Stretch

Muscles emphasized: sternocleidomastoid “SCM”. Begin by rotating your neck in a slow manner, while keeping your chin a bit elevated to isolate the SCM. For a deeper stretch, you will need to put pressure with the opposite hand from the direction that you are rotating.

9. Neck Extension Stretch

Muscles emphasized: sternocleidomastoid “SCM”. Begin by putting your hands on your hips, and in meantime, keep your spine long start to tilt your head back, ensuring that you are not collapsing your cervical spine.

10. Lateral Side Flexion of the Neck with Hand Assistance

Muscles emphasized: sternocleidomastoid “SCM” and upper trapezius. Prolong your neck as much as possible while you slowly drop your ear to your shoulder. While you do this, make sure you are not collapsing your cervical spine. Advance this stretch by sitting on a chair and grabbing the bottom of its seat. In this way, you will create consistent tension down the arm and the neck, and it will let you target the upper traps.

11. Half Kneeling Quad / Hip Flexor Stretch

Muscles emphasized: psoas and quadriceps. Begin in the position of half-kneeling. Then you should bring forward the right hip, and you should also start feeling a stretch in the front of your hip while you do that. Take your back foot and squeeze your back glute in order to add to the stretch on your hip flexors.

12. Forearm Extensor Stretch

Muscles emphasized: forearm extensor. Begin by packing your shoulder and your back down. Next, rotate your shoulder towards outside to get into the optimal position to stretch the forearm muscle. When you have come into this position put pressure on your opposing hand to start the stretch. You can advance this stretch by touching the tips of your fingers together in the shape of a tea cup.

13. Lateral Shoulder Stretch

Muscles emphasized: side deltoid. With your arms across your body, put pressure on your arm to add to the stretch on your shoulder.

14. Standing Assisted Neck Flexion Stretch

Muscles emphasized: trapezius muscle. Stand on the ground with your feet together. Make sure your spine is prolonged and slowly sit your hips back and round your upper back, pushing your chin to your chest at the same time.

15. Lat Stretch with Spinal Traction

Muscles emphasized: latissimus dorsi. Begin by taking a firm grip on a bar and slowly lifting your feet off the ground. The stretch needs to be felt in your chest and lats. In case you have totally taken your feet off the ground, you will feel traction in your lumbar spine. If you have recently undergone a shoulder injury or you have impingement of the shoulder, do not perform this stretch.

16. Lat Stretch at the Wall

Muscles emphasized: latissimus dorsi. Put your both hands on the corner of a wall or post. Maintaining your spine prolonged, push your hips out to the side in a slow manner. If you have problems with your lower back, do not perform this stretch.

17. Child’s Pose

Muscles emphasized: latissimus dorsi. Being on the ground with your hands and your knees on the floor, slowly bring your hips back until your forehead is on the floor. If you want a better stretch in your hips, you should bring your knees wider. Your upper back should be positioned in the shape of an arch, and then you should externally rotate your shoulders to stretch your lats and chest muscles.

18. Standing Calf Stretch

Muscles emphasized: soleus and gastrocnemius. This stretch can be performed on a rack or on the edge of a stair step. Rotate your ankles a bit towards inside and outside to actively stretch your calf muscles.

19. Front Split

Muscles emphasized: psoas and hamstring. This stretch is not suitable for beginners, as it is kind of advanced, and it should be performed with caution, especially if you have any hip problems. Begin in a position of kneeling lunge. It can also be beneficial if you have the support of a chair while your hip flexors and hamstrings release.

20. Seated Forward Fold / Seated Toe Touch

Muscles emphasized: hamstrings and calfs. Sit into your seat bones and bend your knees if you need to. Your legs will become stronger as your flexibility gets better. Make sure your spine is as straight as possible, especially if you have back problems. This stretch can also be done lying down on the back, with your feet up the wall.

21. Single Led Forward Bend

Muscles emphasized: hamstrings. Begin by having your feet positioned one in front of the other. Keeping your back straight, bring your hands to your hips and start bending from the hips.

22. Deep Squat

Muscles emphasized: glutes. This movement has general impact on all areas of your body. If you have problems with your knees, or if you cannot keep your heels on the ground, perform your squat before proceeding. Begin by standing with your feet apart in the width of your shoulders and then start gradually lowering into the deep squat. When you get to the position of deep squat, bring your arms inside your legs and put a little pressure to the inside of your knees, sitting into the hips and heels. This stretch can also be performed lying on the back with the feet against a wall.

23. Seated Half King Pigeon Pose

Muscles emphasized: glutes. Begin in a seated position and gradually pull your leg to your chest and rotate your hip towards outside, while keeping your spine straight. This stretch should be felt in the glute.

24. Standing Calf Stretch at the Wall

Muscles emphasized: soleus and gastrocnemius. Initiate in the lunge position, having the back of your foot a bit turned out. Gradually bring the back of your heel to the floor to stretch your calf muscles.

25. Lateral Flexion at the Wall

Muscles emphasized: external obliques. Keep your spine prolonged and slowly push your hips outside. If you have troubles with your lower back, do not perform this stretch.

26. Supine Twist

Muscles emphasized: glutes and external obliques. This stretch is especially good and beneficial for people who suffer from sciatica pain and try to get rid of it. Begin by lying flat on your back and then bring one leg across your body, and gradually rotate your gaze and upper body in the opposite direction. What’s important about this stretch is the fact that you use your breath to open up your rib cage and sacroiliac joint and hip area without putting too much pressure on the lower back. If this stretch is too hard for you, stack both of your knees on top of each other, and when you are positioned this way you will feel more stretch on the upper spine when the knees are higher, and more stretch on the lumbar spine when the knees are lower.

27. Lateral Flexion with a Dowel

Muscles emphasized: external obliques and latissimus dorsi. Keeping your spine long, gradually push your hips out to the side while keeping your shoulders rotated outwardly. In case you have problems with your lower back, do not perform this stretch.

28. Triangle Pose

Muscles emphasized: external obliques. Begin with a wide stand and with your front foot straight ahead, and your back foot at 90 degrees. Put your hand on your front leg or on the floor, and sit back into your front hip, keeping your back straight. Rotate away from your front leg and maintain your look on the hand that it is in the air.

29. Chest Stretch at the Wall

Muscles emphasized: pectorals. For starters, face the wall with your thumb up. Gradually rotate away from the wall in order to stretch your chest muscle. This stretch should be felt in the belly of the muscle, but be careful not to stretch too far, as it will result in a pain in the shoulder joint.

30. Assisted Chest Stretch

Muscles emphasized: chest and latissimus dorsi. Begin by lying down on the floor and holding your palms faced up. Your partner should be seated in a deep squat and hold your hands, thus, you are supposed to feel a stretch in your chest and lats. The stretch should also cause some traction in your spine. If you have shoulder impingement, do not perform this stretch.

31. Seated half Pigeon Variation

Muscles emphasized: anterior tibialis. Begin by sitting with your feet positioned in front of you. Put one hand behind you and rotate your hip outwardly and put one foot above your knee. If you want to add to the stretch on your hip, gradually lean forwardly and start the movement by hinging at the hips.

32. Supine Shoulder External Rotation Stretch

Muscles emphasized: subscapularis. Begin by lying flat on your back. Then, place your arm straight out to the side with your elbow at an angle of 90 degrees. Next, gradually bring the back of your hand to the floor. If you cannot bring your hand close to the floor, and it is still far away, it means that your rotator cuff and other muscles that control internal rotation are tight.

33. Down Dog Variation at the Wall

Muscles emphasized: pectorals and latissimus dorsi. Stand far enough from a wall or rack so that when you touch the wall your body gets into parallel position to the ground. Move into this position by pivoting at the hips and make sure your spine is straight all the time. Once in this position, move your chest forward and make a slight arch in your upper back and stretch your lats and chest muscles. If your hamstrings are tight, try bending at the knees.

34. Assisted Chest Stretch Variation

Muscles emphasized: pectorals. Lye down on the floor with your face down and your palms faced down. Your partner should pull your hands back and you should feel a deep stretch in your chest muscles. In case you have a shoulder impingement, do not perform this stretch.

Source: http://makeyourlifehealthier.com/36-pictures-to-see-which-muscle-youre-stretching/

So Yoga Interview by Yo Fit! Pass

Thank Yo Fit! Learn more about health & fitness: http://yofitpass.com/blog/

Meet The Trainer: Sophie Spoor

Sophie is the founder of So Yoga. After working in sports marketing for ten years where she organized mass participation sports events, she started practicing yoga to release stress from her job, as well as to release the muscle tightness from running. Over time, she developed a love for yoga and decided to change her career path to become a yoga instructor!

Besides teaching adults yoga, Sophie also teaches Kids yoga. She has always loved playing and spending time with kids, and naturally discovered Kids Yoga, and fell in love with it! She is a certified Kids Yoga teacher and loves introducing children to yoga.

Chrys: Hi Sophie. Tell us more about your personal journey to fitness and eventually finding yoga.

Sophie: I’ve always practiced sports since I was young: tennis, dance, gym and pilates. However, it was only after my first pregnancy that my real addiction to fitness started! Like many new mums, I found it hard to shake off the extra weight, and wanted to get back in shape. I started running, and established a weekly “running lab” with some girlfriends on Monday evenings. Later on I started rolling out my yoga mat more often.

Chrys: As a business owner and a mom, how do you find time to stay fit and healthy?

Sophie: During my classes, I demonstrate most of the poses as I teach. I consider this time as “minimum self-maintenance” time! More importantly, my rule is to self-practice yoga at least three times a week. If I skip yoga for that week, I don’t feel good anyway, and even my kids recognize it and will tell me to go practice yoga!

Chrys: What is the first thing you do every morning?

Sophie: My days usually start very early.. yoga is beautiful to practice at sunrise! My family is usually still asleep when I’m up. The first thing I do is to drink a large glass of warm water with lemon juice, then leave home to teach my first class. I especially love teaching outdoor yoga classes at East Coast Park. I love seeing that magical second, in my clients’ eyes, when they look up and see the sun rising.

Chrys: Eating healthy is an important part of living healthy. Do you have any specific diet guidelines you stick to?

Sophie: I tend to regulate myself naturally. Whenever I find myself eating unhealthy food for a few days, I immediately go back to consuming more soups, veggies and fruits. I also love including a variety of healthy food in my diet – that’s probably the best way to get as many nutrients and vitamins as possible from different food sources.

Chrys: So what types of food are always in your fridge?

Sophie: There’s always either kale or baby spinach, avocados, kiwis, frozen blueberries and almond milk. I love combining all these ingredients into juice, topped with Chia seeds!

Chrys: We all love our juices too! But if you had to pick, what would be your favourite healthy food?

Sophie: An avocado & coconut smoothie. It’s not as light as other juices, but it is still healthy and super yummy!

Chrys: What are some workout tips that you have for people looking to get into shape?

Sophie: Find an exercise that you like, and soon you will love it as you get better at it! Do something that makes you feel good, and whenever you have accomplished a great workout, acknowledge it, be proud of it, breathe.. and smile!

Chrys: What are some mistakes people make when working out or dieting?

Sophie: I often see many people being excessive with their workouts and dieting. To me, the key is consistency. It is better to practice yoga or do any other sports twice a week over the years, rather than seven days a week for six months and then quit after feeling burn out. It is the same thing for your diet – instead of going on a crash fad diet, it is better to slowly introduce healthy food into your diet. Soon, you will start integrating healthy eating naturally in your daily life without realizing it.

Chrys: As a yoga instructor, what would be your favourite yoga routine to practice?

Sophie: I have my own little yoga practice routine. I start with some breathing exercises, continue with stretching, followed by a few rounds of sun salutations. I then work on my shoulders and hips – the muscles in both areas get tight easily when you ignore them. And of course I end my practice with Savasana, a relaxation time!

Looking to practice yoga with Sophie? Book your morning Hatha yoga classes at East Coast Park with So Yoga today!

Source: http://yofitpass.com/blog/2016/02/02/meet-the-trainer-sophie-spoor/