Ustrasana or Camel pose is a wonderful heart opening pose, it lifts the spirit and opens up the chest.
Standing poses bring strength to the legs reminding us to remain grounded.
This little film was made one morning on Tresco (one of the Isles of Scilly). Listen out for the birds, so so soothing.
Enjoy your practice,
Lucy
According to Prashant Iyengar “Standing poses bring strength, backbends are for courage”.
I really enjoy how I feel after these poses, well worth the effort in my world.
Trikonasana, Vrksasana, and Utkatasana are my current favourites, I hope you will enjoy them too.
Here is a quick uplifting yoga practice to start your day.
Love and light,
Lucy
This is one of those unplanned sessions, the yoga just flowed.
Firstly we look at shoulder mobility then towards strength.
It’s chilled and slightly challenging.
Enjoy
Using props in yoga can really help with getting a handle on the slightly more challenging poses. Holding Chaturanga in an Iyengar Yoga practice is a challenge. In the book, Light on Yoga, BKS Iyengar says “stay for some time with normal breathing”, leaving it up to the individual to decide how long “some time ” is. Often we dip in and don’t hold this chaturanga challenge, at the end of the practice we do just that (but only if you want to). Enjoy, Love and light, Lucy
Ubhaya Padangusthasana are the Sanskrit words for ‘Both-Big-Toe-Pose’.
Quite literally an uplifting forward bend.
We explore a few forward bending asanas before, loosening up the hamstrings and the back muscles, what the Yogi’s called the west (Paschima) side of the body.
Enjoy this 30 minute session.
x
Lucy
Lift your mood and feel stronger with this marvellous pose, Virabhadrasana 2, aka Warrior 2.
With a few different arm movements to allow the shoulders to feel easier and lighter.
I hope you enjoy this mini focused practice.
Lucy
I just found this little re-visit to last summer.
A quick practice to give you a bit of ooomph for a wintery duvet day.
Enjoy!
If I could only explain the joy a few good standing poses brings to my body, the captured image would be it.
With a strong and well balanced action in the legs we have support for our spine and the rest of the yoga practice.
Standing poses are key within the Iyengar yoga system and yet soooo easily forgotten when we become obsessed with more complicated asana.
The late summer sun, the sound of the sea and the standing poses brought a great sense of grounding with upliftment, the play of opposites!
As always listen to your body and work to your own capacity.
Love and light,
Lucy
Learning to move with a relaxed abdomen can allow our bodies to access deeper release.
It is so important to undo the undercurrents of tension that lie below our asana practice.
These elusive patterns hide away un-noticed as we can sometimes try harder and harder to get the posture “correct”.
Let go a little, feel the holding patterns that may no longer serve you, then maybe you can allow your self to rest well within.
I hope this practice helps a little.
Listen deeply, stay peaceful, enjoy.
Trees are the lungs of the earth. Trees help our planet breathe. Vrksasana (tree pose) enables our chest and lungs to open more, enabling us to find a deeper fuller breath too.
Forests around the world are also our planet’s air conditioning system and help keep the planet cool. In Vrksasana try to breathe through the nose to filter and prepare the air before it enters the lungs. Breathe out through the nose to gently cleanse the nasal passage of any dust or debris.
Practice makes better.
Root your feet into the ground, prepare your base, trunk and mind for a short practice that will help you breathe more easily.
Work to your own capacity and capability.
Breathe and enjoy,
Love and light,
Lucy