View this post on Instagram A post shared by Yoga Anatomy Academy (@yogaanatomyacademy) As an avid student of yoga since the mid-90s, I have heard many yoga teachers say that boat pose, also known as navasana or paripurna (full) navasana, was a core pose. This always confused me because, in my own body during navasana, […]
It’s the season of gratitude, and this week we are dropping tidbits about the science of gratitude. It turns out that the neurophysiological effects of gratitude are profound. Inducing a state of gratitude is one of the most powerful, speedy ways to change your heart rate and markers of positive neurotransmitters in your body. Gratitude […]
Thoughts on Alignment, Universal cues, Ableism, fitness and exclusion on the yoga mat. Something I cherish about being a physical therapist* is the opportunity I’ve had to work with patients of all ages (pediatrics to 99 year olds), and in all sorts of conditions (literally from a cardiac transplant ICU to sports medicine settings). Although […]
Pseudoscience is everywhere in the yoga world. It happens when a natural curiosity about a phenomenon — for example, whether emotions may get “stored” in our hips, or “20 minutes of headstand reverses aging” — becomes passed on as fact. Thus begins viral circulation of a falsehood throughout yogaland. Does that sound harsh? “Falsehood” is, […]
The knowledge of foundational yoga therapy for Covid-19 recovery is vital for studios, teachers, and yoga students. No, returning to your yoga studio won’t bring back your sense of smell after Covid-19…but it could improve lung function, reduce inflammation and safely help physical recovery from Covid-19. Yoga Anatomy Academy is pleased to announce a guest […]
We are so thrilled to announce our new* weekly yoga livestream yoga classes. After 5 years of blogging and vlogging about some of the missing components of modern postural yoga, we are now doing our part to fill in the gaps. Current class schedule: Mondays: Core StrengthWednesdays: Mobility, Fascia and FunctionFridays: Hips “Happy” Hour (about building strength) Drop in to a class at a […]
Bodies are intersectional. Yoga is intersectional. The experiences and bodies that each of us bring to the practice of yoga contain multitudes: Multitudes of social identities like race, class, gender / gender identity, age and able-bodiedness. We at Yoga Anatomy Academy have always known this but have not always acted publicly to actively uplift all […]
High hamstring tendinopathy (tendinopathy = an updated version of “tendinitis”) shows up as an ache, burning sensation or other pain near your sitting bones. The sitting bones, or ischial tuberosities, are the upper attachment point to the three hamstring muscles on each side. In the yoga world, this uncomfortable sensation has a name: “Yoga Butt”. […]
In my early thirties, I noticed something that shook my self-concept. Many of my friends had infants and toddlers. Although I was a doctor of physical therapy and had been teaching yoga for over a decade, it was sometimes uncomfortable to hang out on the floor with babies. WTH. To play with these little ones […]
Julie Tran of Science Yoga Sundays graciously invited me to speak on her program. I chose a topic that has been on my mind a LOT lately — Are we serving the yoga or is the yoga serving us? “We are here to enhance our lives, we are not here to bow down to some […]