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
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
At the end of this morning’s session, Sam said “that was lovely! Just lying there at the end of the session with the sun on my face and the sound of the sea. So relaxing”. Sam then went off with a few others, for a quick swim in the sea.
Savasana is such a special pose. It is the one that give us so much when we give it the time it requires.
Learning to relax is not “being lazy”, it is learning to let go of tensions that no longer serve us, things that we can do nothing about and acceptance of where we are in every moment.
Give yourself some time to breathe, release and let go.
This pose is always time well spent. Take a look in BKS Iyengar’s “Path to holistic health” to see how to set yourself up for a comfortable savasana. Alternatively take yourself off to bed..
Enjoy.
Love and light,
Lucy
Right… at the beginning I say this will be a 10 minute practice… my timing this time was not so good, it is more like 15.
The legs hold us up, keep us grounded, mobilize us and motivate us. They need to be a stable and flexible.
Let’s give a great big cheer for our legs and celebrate the amazing work they do every day.
Here’s a practice to help you get to know them a little better.
If you have ever tried to surf, you will know how tight the shoulders can become, even after just a few hours of paddling.
Or, if you have spent the day driving or even sitting at your computer for a long time. This practice is for you.
It’s short and sweet, introducing mobility around the neck, shoulders and upper back.
Please remember body proportion plays a role in how easy certain poses are, e.g. The entwined arm posture; I have very long arms and narrow shoulders, so, I did not have to work so hard to achieve this pose for myself.
After a regular shoulder releasing practice, you will enjoy a greater range of motion and sense of ease around the upper body.
Pay attention to your body’s needs/requirements. Enjoy looser shoulders.
Love and light,
Lucy
If you have any shoulder injuries, get the guidance of a qualified yoga therapist or physio before practicing this sequence, as some of the moves may not be appropriate.
A few nights ago I was on Facebook chatting on the ‘Women with camper-vans’ forum about the idea that a yoga holiday for women with camper-vans might be a nice idea. A lady asked if she do the yoga from a chair. She thought once down on the floor getting up might be difficult. I promised a little video that could be done using a chair (I used a bench in my garden, the weather was just too nice)
There is a lot of ‘Chair pose’.
It’s just a 20 minute practice, but I waffle a bit about G7 summit to begin with. I start teaching the yoga at about a minute in.
Work to your own capacity, be kind to yourself and Enjoy being in your body.
Love and light,
Lucy
A perfect start to a morning.
Release your muscles , unwind your mind.
Gently follow this simple sun salute, bend your legs if you want , step or jump to transition, it’s up to you.
Listen, focus move.
Enjoy!
In under 5 minutes you can feel stronger and more connected with the earth, I certainly did.
Warrior 2 (the clue is in the name) and sideways-stretch (guess where you should feel this pose) combine perfectly together to form a mini sequence appropriate for a quick wild “yoga” session.
Complete with walking boots and a warm coat, no mat required
Enjoy
Whilst out and about for my daily exercise, I thought I could make a few yoga shorts combining yog-asana with my walk.
This came naturally after the previous Trikonasana post.
Ardha Chandrasana is divine when it is supported, you can use a wall at home and have your back against it.
Please make sure that what ever you choose to support you, that it is doing just that; safe, secure and you feel comfortable.