JULY 31, 2010

15 Minutes Practice While On The Road Or On A Busy Day

Posted by Dorothy under Wellnessno responses

Clients of mine usually cite lack of time as a reason for abandoning their yoga practice. I soon realized that such complaints are due to their misconception that they have to reserve an hour or half to exercise, otherwise they will not reap any benefits from it.
My advice to them and all my readers is just simple:

“Being able to take even 5 minutes off your busy schedule a day to make your body happy is better than nothing!!”

The other concern I hear from clients is when would be the best time to practice. In all honesty, follow your feelings because there is no such thing as the best time. Remember that everyone is different and have different preferences and schedule.

With that, I have listed a few of my favorite asanas with accompanying explanations and guides which will take up only 15 miutes of your time a day to make you feel energized and to keep your joints and muscles healthy ( and definitely lasts longer ). If you do not have 15 minutes, then choose only a few asanas and cut down the suggested holding time. The listed asanas are mostly focused on the common tight regions of our body: upper back, hip region, inner thighs and hamstrings.

A) Standing asanas

1) Uttanasana ( Standing Forward Fold )

Duration: 2 minutes
Tips and focus: Lengthen your spine and hinge from the hips, Ground feet firmly, Do not lock knees, shoulders away from the ears and relax the neck, Let upper body fall freely, Lift your sitting bones upwards
Benefits: Stretches the calves, hamstrings and spine
Modifications: Bend the knees
Pic and link: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/478

2) Parivrtta Prasarita Padottanasana (Revolved Wide-Legged Standing Forward Bend )

Duration: 1 minute each side ( R & L )
Tips and focus: Lengthen your spine and hinge from your hips, Even out the weight between both legs, Do not lock knees, Actively extend both arms away from the midsection of the body, Lead with the shoulder while opening and twisting the chest, Do not lean the weight of the upper body into the lower arm, Lengthen through the waist, Gaze towards the upper fingers
Benefits: Stretches the calves and hamstrings, expands the chest
Modifications: 1) If there’s strain in the neck, look to the side
2) Bend the knee – if twisting to the right, bend the right and vice versa
Pic and link:

3) Adho Mukha Svanasana ( Downward Facing Dog )

Duration: 1 minute
Tips and focus: Press the heels into the ground, Extend through the back of the knee and do not lock the knees, lift the sitting bones upwards, Lengthen through the waist, draw the shoulders away from the ears and widen them, extend through the arms, spread the fingers, even out the weight between the arms and legs, gaze towards the navel.
Benefits: Similar to why the dogs and cats do this – to stretch the entire body!!
Modifications: 1) Keep feet apart
2) Lift heels above the ground
Pic and Link: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/491

B) Sitting Asanas

1) Upavistha Konasana ( Wide Angle Seated Forward Bend )

Duration: 2 minutes
Tips and focus: Lengthen the spine and hinge from the hips, Roll the pelvis forward, Ground thighbones down and back, Feet flexed with toes pointing upwards, Stretch heels away from the hips to lengthen through the back of the legs, Extend the chest further forward while lowering down, Lengthen the throat and place the chin on the ground.
Benefits: A good hip opener, stretches the hamstrings and inner thighs
Modifications: 1) Sit on a folded blanket
2) Sit against a wall
3) Rest the upper body on a bolster
Pic and link: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/684

2) Parivrtta Janu Sirsasana ( Revolved Head to Knee / Seated Side Stretch )

Duration: 1 minute each side ( R & L )
Tips and focus: Curve in deeper along the lower torso, Round the upper torso, Do not compromise the curve while reaching both hands to hold the foot, Lead with the upper shoulder while opening the chest, Extend fully from the hips to the hand.
Benefits: Stretches from the hips to the arms, Stretches the back
Modifications: 1)Sit on a folded blanket
Pic and link: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/2496

C) Supine asanas

1) Halasana ( Plough )

Duration: 2 minutes
Tips and focus: Chin towards the chest, Lengthen through the back of the neck and relax, Draw the shoulders away from the ears and broaden ,Ground the arms and keep your upper arms parallel to each other, Extend the spine, Keep the feet flexed, Rest more of the weight on the shoulders instead of the neck.
Benefits: Stretches the entire body especially the neck and the shoulders – it helps relief the tightness in the shoulders for people who are hunched over theircomputers at work. Helps in the flexibility of the hamstrings.
Modifications: 1) Place blanket under shoulders
2) Bend knees to forehead
Pic and link: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/479

1a) Counter Pose – Pawanmuktanasana ( Wind Releasing )

Duration: 30 seconds
Pic and link: http://www.yogabasics.com/supine-yoga-poses/wind-relieving-pose.html

2) Chakrasana / Urdhva Dhanurasana ( Wheel / Reverse bow )

Duration: 1 minute
Tips and focus: Keep the feet grounded, Lifting through the thighs and abdomen, Lift and open the chest, Extend through the arms, Draw the shouldersaway from the ears, Even out the weight between the arms and legs, Imagine the palms and soles to be as firm and strong as the legs of a table.
Benefits: Opens the front of the body, Stretches the spine to its maximum, Strengthens the arms and lower back
Modifications: 1)Rest the crown of the head on the mat
Pic and link: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/473

2a) Counter Pose – Pawanmuktanasana ( Wind Releasing )

Duration: 30 seconds
Pic and link: http://www.yogabasics.com/supine-yoga-poses/wind-relieving-pose.html

3) Jathara Parivartanasana ( modified version ) / Supta Padangusthasana
( Reclining Twist /Reclining Hand To Big Toe )

Duration: 1 minute each side ( R & L )
Tips and focus: Twist from the pelvis and spine, The bottom leg acts as a foundation, Therefore press down the inner heel and extend through the heel of the bottom leg, Flex both feet, Widen through the shoulders ( If one side of the shoulder is not in contact with the ground, allow it as long as the shoulders are broadened and relaxed )
Benefits: Increases hip flexibility, Relieves pain in lower back, Stretches hamstrings.
Modifications: Bend the knee, Place folded blanket or a bolster to support the upper leg
Pic and link: http://www.staryoga.com/star-hamstring-stretch

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MAY 27, 2010

Beware Teeth Grinders And Jaw Clenchers

Posted by Dorothy under Wellness2 comments

Have you ever been told by your partner that the grinding of your teeth wakes him/her up in the night? Or have you heard a loud clicking or popping sound when trying to open or close your mouth? If not have you experienced pain in the face, jaw, neck, upper back or headache?

If you do relate to any of the two symptoms above, you may or may not be aware that you are suffering from Bruxism which can lead to Temporomandibular Joint Disorder ( aka TMJ ).

What is bruxism?

Bruxism originated from the Greek word brugmos which means “gnashing of teeth”. The most common causes for this is stress, sleeping disorders and obsessive compulsive disorders. This teeth grinding and jaw clenching behaviour can happen anytime of the day but is uncontrollable and more worrying during sleeping hours.

How to identify bruxism?

Bruxers are often not aware of their bruxism unless someone notices them doing it while asleep and informs them so. Dental damage like the uneven surfaces of the edges of teeth or poor bite alignment can also be the cause of bruxism. In the worst case scenario, which only affects a small number of bruxers are the symptoms of jaw or head aches which can lead to TMJ and will need to be treated.

What is TMJ?

TMJ disorders are problems or symptoms of the chewing muscles and joints that connect your lower jaw to your skull.
Watch this animated video to find out more:

How is it treated?

There are a few options to treat TMJ disorders relating to bruxism.

a) What your dentist can do for you

Mouthguard

You will need to go to your dentist to get a mould of your upper or lower teeth
in order for them to make a mouthguard which should be worn at sleep. There
are various views about using mouthguards to protect your teeth. It will stop
your teeth from wearing down and minimizing the changes in the teeth
structure. I personally find it uncomfotable and it just feels like wearing braces.
Permanent use of a mouthguard is not recommended and visits to the dentist
should be made regularly to monitor your teeth structure.

b) Less intrusive options

i) Get some yoga going at least twice a week to keep your stress levels down
ii) Refrain from chewing gum
iii) Use some stretching techniques to exercise your neck and facial muscles – for ie the Lion’s Pose

*** TMJ also affect those who sit at the computer for more than 3 hours a day, please keep your chest open, shoulders relaxed and spine lengthened at the desk and have a break every one hour to stretch and relax your muscles.

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MAY 19, 2010

Walk vs Don’t Walk

Posted by Dorothy under Wellness6 comments

“ Walking a hundred steps after every meal will make you live till 99 ”

Is that saying a myth or truth? Most people I know would render it true because they have heard this since they were kids. But let us not accept this common practice blindly and consider other reasons before we conclude.

The reason behind this practice is that after having a heavy meal, it is better to take a walk rather than sitting down because inactivity causes laziness and weight gain. But scientifically, when we move around, muscles and energy are used, which means that our heart has to work harder to pump blood around the entire body.

In contrast, in the yoga world, we are advised to sit still in vajrasana ( thunderbolt pose ) or virasana ( hero pose ) for about 10 – 15 minutes after a heavy meal. You may wonder now that sitting still is inactivity and will not help digest the food. To say that this is inactivity is true, but it causes the digestion system to work more efficiently. What happens in vajrasana or virasana is that due to the extreme flexion of the knees, certain nerves of the lower legs are being compressed causing the reduction of blood supply to that area. Therefore, more blood will be circulated around the stomach area increasing the working capacity of muscle and glands relating to the process of digestion to be better and quicker as compared to walking. Note that the composition of chemistry of the stomach will still be the same. Other than that, the position also benefits those with indigestion, constipation or gas formations. It helps stretch the front thighs and opens the ankle joints.

Having said all that, everybody has a different body structure and levels of flexibility. Therefore, be careful if you experience pain in the knee. You can place a rolled up towel or bolster under your buttocks. And if the top of the feet hurts, you can also place a towel under them.

In conclusion, walking after a meal is fine. The question to consider here is when to walk after a meal? It all depends on how heavy the meal was. I would say that one hour post – eating should cause no harm to your digestive system.

This makes me wonder whether the reasons above are why the Japanese sit in a similar way ( known as seiza style ) most of the time. For those with difficulty sitting in the seiza style can check this cool and convenient invention:

Seiza Cushion

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