Warrior one is one of those poses that beginners can have a good stab at, but is quite difficult to perfect. Releasing the glutes and external rotators on the posterior hip of the back leg, and engaging the medial line to create internal rotation and square the hips forward, can be difficult for many and can create compression in the SI joint, due to restriction in the psoas and piriformis. Why is this? Personally I don’t put it all down to tight psoas, weak adductors and tight external rotators; it comes back down to foot position of the back leg. Traditionally, we are told to diagonal the b ..read more

‘So you have heard of ‘nadis’ and heard of ‘fascia’, but the nadi-fascial system? I would like to officially coin the term. Let me start with fascia…. Scientists are only really figuring out what fascia is and what it is not. Until recently, it was stripped off cadavers by scientists and thrown in the bin, so that they could study muscles, bones, organs etc., believing them to be more important. In the last 15 years, science has realised that fascia is so much more than what used to be referred to as ‘the white stuff beneath the skin’. In t ..read more

Do you dump into your joints in your practice? Examples of this could be locking out the knees in straight leg standing postures, hyperextending into the elbows in Downward Dog or crunching into the lower back or SI joint in backbends. What do all these examples have in common? Underusing the correct muscles in the correct action to support the stability of the joints. This tendency can be related to hypermobility. It can also be related to an unwillingnes ..read more

Happy 2020 yogis. May this year be a year where you can let go of old experiences that drain your mental process and life-force in order to create space for new beginnings. In Hindu mytholody, the goddess Kali and her male counterpart Shiva are universal archetypal symbols, that we can call upon or align with in through chant or meditation in times of transition. These times are often met with fear. We cling to old patterns, experiences and people that no longer serve us (aparigraha) and loose the sense of flow in our lives and the trust that the universe really does have our back (Ishvara ..read more

Hip opening forward bends are grounding, cooling and yin in nature. They offer a sense of homecoming or ‘coming back to self’ as the body folds in on itself creating an energetic cocoon, where people can reset and re-centre. According to Ayurveda, they balance the apana energy in the body, which supports the immune system and is also responsible for the elimination of waste products. Forward bends also balance vata energy, the dosha relating to the element of air. Vata dosha types are more prone to this energy being out of sync, but all types can experience vata imbalance, especially in times ..read more

Happy 2020 yogis. May this year be a year where you can let go of old experiences that drain your mental process and life-force in order to create space for new beginnings. In Hindu mytholody, the goddess Kali and her male counterpart Shiva are universal archetypal symbols, that we can call upon in times of transition. These times are often met with fear. We cling to old patterns, experiences and people that no longer serve us (aparigraha) and loose the sense of flow in our lives and the trust that the universe really does have our back (I ..read more

Hip opening forward bends are grounding, cooling and yin in nature. They offer a sense of homecoming or ‘coming back to self’ as the body folds in on itself creating an energetic cocoon, where people can reset and re-centre. According to Ayurveda, they balance the apana energy in the body, which supports the immune system and is also responsible for the elimination of waste products. Forward bends also balance vata energy, the dosha relating to the element of air. Vata dosha types are more prone to this energy being out of sync, but all types can experience vata imbalance, especially in times ..read more

Ever wonder why some people are able to flop into pretzel-like poses on their first attempt and others spend years or sweat and tears trying to master the same poses ? Why some people are more flexible and find it difficult to strengthen and others are strong as an ox but can’t touch their toes? The answer is : Morphology. Our genetic constitution gives us our postural disposition, which is linked to what is called our ‘dosha‘ in Ayurveda, and this determines, to a large degree which muscle fibres are dominant in our bodies and what type of ..read more

Inflammation (from Latin inflammatio) is part of the complex biological response of body tissues to injury or harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants, and is a protective response involving immune cells, blood vessels, and molecular mediators. It is characterised by varied combinations of redness, pain, heat, swelling and loss of function. The process of Inflammation is instinctive, a process that the human form has evolved since its conception (Smith, 1991). Therefore, the Inflammatory process is not something that necessarily needs to be stopped; it is necessary for ..read more

Hatha yoga is a practice that aims to balance the nervous system through stretching and breathing. Ha = sun, hot, masculine, fast, activeness, sympathetic nervous system. Tha = moon, cool, feminine, restorative, calming, parasympathetic nervous system. Therefore Hatha = balance of sun & moon, yin & yang, activity & rest, and both nervous systems. So what is the role of stretching in the balancing of the nervous system and how does it work ?  Muscles are in constant communication with the nervous system. Even at rest, skeletal muscles display a small degree of muscular contraction ..read more