Wellness & Fitness Blog | Flexibility, Strength, Cardio & Recovery

7 Common Yoga Mistakes & How to Fix Them

April 11, 2017/in Preventing Yoga Injuries, Yoga /by Shannon Austin

Our goal is to guide you throughout your yoga journey, helping you grow in strength, flexibility, cardio and mindfulness while preventing you from facing injury or discouragement. In this week’s blog we offer tips to help you avoid seven common yoga mistakes. Are you ready to get the most out of your yoga practice? Mistake […]

Personalize Your Experience: Try a Private Group Yoga Class in Grand Rapids

Maybe you’re new to hot yoga in Grand Rapids and worried about embarrassing yourself in a large group class. Or, perhaps you’re looking for an excursion to suit the needs of a particular group, like a bachelorette party or a circle of fitness-minded friends. Maybe you and a few friends desire a little extra attention […]

Yoga Fuel: The Importance of Breathing

March 28, 2017/in Yoga, Yoga Breath /by Shannon Austin

If we breathe automatically and hardly think about it during the day, why is breath emphasized so much during yoga class? And how is it even possible to breathe incorrectly?

These questions are common among beginner yogis, and they’re worth discussing! Awareness of breath, as well as synchronizing breath to movement, is what makes yoga, yoga – rather than gymnastics or any other physical exercise.

Mechanically speaking, the act of breathing can be either automatic (an unconscious, involuntary behavior) or deliberate (a conscious, voluntary behavior). By making an automatic behavior deliberate, we begin to affect our neurological programming through a state of intentional awareness. This conscious breathing affects us biologically, emotionally and physically.

Biologically:

During most of the day when we’re breathing unconsciously, our breath is controlled by the medulla oblongata (the primitive part of the brain). When we switch to conscious breathing, it stimulates the cerebral cortex (the more evolved areas of the brain). It’s in that moment that the magic starts to happen! Activating the cerebral cortex has a relaxing and balancing effect on our emotions, which leads us into the next benefit of intentional breath.

Emotionally:

When you begin to tune into your breath like this, emotional stress and random thoughts vanish. Your whole system gets a break. Your body’s energy begins flowing freely, disrupting any emotional and physical blockages and freeing your body and mind. This results in that “feel good” effect you experience after a yoga practice!

Physically:

In our physical yoga practice, the breath works side-by-side with our structural alignment. Our natural tendency is to hold our breath or use stress-induced breathing (short and shallow) while holding a posture, especially in a challenging pose. This creates stress and tension in the body. That’s why you always hear yoga teachers reminding students to continue breathing intentionally during the toughest poses and sequences.

Now, you’re probably wondering exactly how you’re supposed to breathe! In yoga, there are a variety of different breathing styles. We’ll highlight one here called Ujjayi breath. When done correctly, it calms the mind, creates internal heat and gives an uplifting boost of energy. Like most aspects of yoga, it requires practice, patience and an open mind and heart. To do this type of breath, try the following sequence:

With your mouth open, try exhaling the sound “HAAAAH” – similar to the sound you make when you’re trying to fog up a mirror. Get comfortable with this sound to get the hang of the practice.
Close your mouth and attempt a similar sound, feeling the outflow of air through your nasal passages. If you’re doing this correctly, you should sound like waves in the ocean (or Darth Vader!).

Generally, you should incorporate a positive resolve or mantra into every yoga session. This can be a single word or phrase that serves as a goal for your practice. This mantra should be integrated into your breathing process. When you inhale, gather up the stress or worries in your mind; when you exhale, imagine that stress flowing out of your entire body.

We’re willing to bet you had no idea how important – and complex – your breath is! What seems like an automatic process is actually critical to mindfulness, stress removal and energy creation.

If you’re ready to practice the art of yogic breathing, come join us for a hot yoga class! And don’t forget to incorporate conscious breath into your daily life. When you’re feeling stressed or tired at work, school or home, spend two minutes focusing on deep inhales and exhales. You’ll be surprised how great you’ll feel after!

“A yogi measures the span of life by the number of breaths, not by the number of years.” -Swami Sivananda

How Does a Private Yoga Lesson Work?

October 10, 2016/in Preventing Yoga Injuries, Yoga /by Shannon Austin

What is a private yoga lesson? A private yoga session is a one-on-one yoga lesson with a skilled and trained Registered Yoga Teacher. During a private yoga class together you can focus on your specific needs. Some like to go the private yoga route to learn the basics as a beginner before they throw themselves […]

What is the Significance of 108 in Yoga?

April 25, 2016/16 Comments/in Yoga /by Shannon Austin

Why the number 108? The number 108 is considered a sacred number in Hinduism, Buddhism and yogic tradition. Malas or Japa beads come in a string of 108 and are used for devotional meditation, mantra and prayer. With each bead a mantra or prayer is repeated to meet a total of 108. The Meru bead […]

Yoga for Runners

April 12, 2016/0 Comments/in Hot Yoga Benefits /by Shannon Austin

Rolling out a yoga mat may just improve your running skills Studies show that the strength and flexibility you gain on the mat can help you run more efficiently and stay injury-free. Yoga opens up several muscle groups in the legs such as the quads, IT band, hip flexors, psoas (core), and hammys. According to several […]

Hot Yoga and Diabetes

March 9, 2016/1 Comment/in Hot Yoga, Hot Yoga Benefits /by Shannon Austin

Can I do hot yoga if I have diabetes? Yes, you can absolutely do hot yoga if you have diabetes. However, being mindful of your blood sugar level and hydration is key. Checking your blood sugar before and after class is a good rule of thumb to measure where your levels are with the incorporation […]

Why Men Should Do Yoga

March 2, 2016/29 Comments/in Hot Yoga /by Shannon Austin

Yoga is not just a sport for women Fact: Yoga was originally designed for men. Yes, it’s true. Ashtanga was designed for 14-year-old boys many many moons ago. Women were not even allowed to practice yoga back in the day. Of course, times have changed. When yoga moved to the west it became female-dominated with […]