Issue: #10: September 2009

Namaste friends,

Yoga is not one size fits all. (Just think how dull that would be!) A practice that works well for me may be very different from an ideal practice for you.  A lot depends on your body type and skeletal structure.
 
Some people are chronically tight, while others have hyper-mobile joints.  Recognizing where you fit in is essential to building a healthy practice. Bendy Wendys don't need to be stretchier. On the contrary, they need to stabilize and strengthen the muscles around their already loose joints. Muscle bound bodybuilders, on the other hand, may need a practice that cultivates relaxation and stretching. Of course, most people are somewhere in the middle between the two extremes, looser in some areas and tighter in others.
 
How do you determine what you need in your practice? The first thing is to develop body awareness. Know where you are tighter and weaker. Compare front to back, right to left, top to bottom. Are your quads tighter than your hamstrings? Is your right shoulder more open than your left? Do your abs bully your back muscles?
 
What then? The principle is simple--stretch what's short, and strengthen what's weak. Easier said than done, especially in a class situation where you're trying to keep up or outdo the yoginis beside you rather than address your particular needs.
 
That's why developing a home practice is vital, even if it's just ten minutes a day. Your home practice allows you to focus on your specific asymmetries. You may have to repeat a pose on the right side several times to feel balanced. Keep checking in with yourself.
 
Remember, yoga is not about becoming a human pretzel. It's about cultivating awareness and paying attention.  Being strong and limber is ultimately about having stability in your joints and freedom of movement, not about how far you can stretch.

Breathe well, be well,

Suzanne
Full Potential Yoga
suzanneausnit@optonline.net

P.S. Check out my yoga/nutrition workshop for runners (at bottom of this newsletter) with clinical nutritionist Inna Topiler, CN, MS, on October 18. 

Soul Food
"There is an essential difference between consciousness and awareness. I can walk up the stairs of my house, fully conscious of what I am doing, and yet not know how many steps I have climbed.  In order to know how many there are I must climb them a second time, pay attention, listen to myself, and count them.  Awareness is consciousness together with a realization of what is happening within it or of what is going on within ourselves while we are conscious."

  --Moshe Feldenkrais

HEAL

Baby your baby blues
Your eyes may or not be the windows of your soul, but they are literally the front end of your brain. One of the fastest and most effective ways of calming down your nervous system is by relaxing your eyes.
 
Lie on your back and interlace your hands behind your head.  Close your eyes and drop your eyes toward your hands, into your visual cortex at the back of your brain. Remove your hands and rub your palms vigorously together to generate heat. Cup your hands over your eyes, so that the heels of your hands rest on the tops of your cheekbones. Open your eyes to make sure that no stray light is slipping through. Close your eyes again and let them drop towards the floor. Visualize your eye sockets like warm pools, and let your eyeballs float. Then, with your eyes closed, see what you see before your eyes. Perhaps there are images, perhaps only a blue-black velvet darkness. After a few minutes, slowly begin to lift your hands from your closed eyes so that they gradually become bathed in light. Savor the glow, before opening your eyes.

Tendon tonic
Researchers at Lenox Hill Hospital recently discovered a $15 cure for tennis elbow, a chronic inflammation of the tendons of the lateral elbow. This repetitive stress injury can happen to anyone, not just tennis players. Doctors found that a series of simple exercises with a flexible 8-inch long rubber bar reduced or eliminated the pain better than standard physical therapy. For the full story, see http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/phys-ed-an-easy-fix-for-tennis-elbow/

STRENGTHEN

Foot ABC's

Weak foot and ankle muscles can translate into knee, hip or even back pain. Strengthen your feet with this simple exercise. Lie on your back with one leg in the air and "write out" the alphabet with your big toe. You'll be surprised how tired your shins and calves are by the time you get to L, much less Z. You can also try the same exercise seated in a chair; your quads will burn more in this version.

Clam Up

What's the secret to keeping your front knee from collapsing in during warrior II? Engaging your outer hip muscles, particularly the gluteus medius and piriformis, can make all the difference. To feel their action, lie on your side with your knees bent. Keep your hips stacked and your feet together. Slowly lift your top knee, not too far, while pressing your top foot into your bottom foot, opening the knees like a clamshell. You'll feel a contraction at the back of your top hip. Engage those same muscles while in warrior II and watch that front knee stabilize itself.

LIVE

Curb your craving

Certain foods can help decrease your appetite. Start your day with oatmeal to avoid a mid-morning crash. Oats are high in fiber and low on the glycemic index. They digest slowly, so you don't get hungry again quickly. Choose steel-cut or rolled oats, which digest more slowly than instant. Apples make a great snack, because they contain pectin, a soluble fiber that helps regulate blood sugar. Almonds and other nuts, with their high levels of fiber and protein, can help curb hunger pangs between meals. Eating spicy foods can also help satisfy your hunger. Capsaicin, which makes hot peppers hot, suppresses your appetite and makes you feel fuller. Try adding hot pepper sauce, curry or hot mustard to your meals.

Axe your angst

Psychologists are embracing yoga as a therapy for anxiety disorders. Preliminary results from a study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health indicate that yoga, meditation and breathing techniques are an effective treatment strategy. The mindfulness cultivated in yoga, in which practitioners watch thoughts come and go without following them, helps anxiety sufferers see their worries more objectively, helping them to avoid feeding the panic. So next time you find yourself anxious, depressed or out of sorts, slip into a yoga pose and hold it for 12 breaths. Pay attention to your breath and how your body inhabits that breath. Watch your perspective shift.

WORKSHOP

Yoga & Nutrition for Runners: Pre/Post-Marathon
   with Suzanne Ausnit, RYT & Inna Topiler, CN, MS
  
When: Sunday, October 18th, 3pm-6pm
Where: 80 Park Avenue, Entrance on Newark Street
To register: 201-238-2720 or email Suzanne

If running is your passion, this workshop will give you the tools to optimize your performance, both physically and mentally. Learn to safely and effectively lengthen tight hamstrings and calves, rejuvenate sore feet and relieve back pain. Uncover imbalances that may lead to knee, hip or other joint problems, and become less prone to injury. Reduce tension by learning conscious breathing techniques so that you stay calm and clear even in the heat of a race.
 
As you train for the marathon, you'll find that you can run faster and longer. However, excessive training may be damaging your body in other ways. Free radical stress from strenuous exercise can cause nutrient deficiencies, autoimmune diseases and digestive problems. Learn to properly assess your body's nutrient needs, replenish necessary minerals and protect your body from damaging free radicals. Far beyond electrolytes, this seminar will teach you everything you need to know about keeping your body nutritionally balanced both before and after the marathon. This information will help you while you are training to increase performance and also speed recovery without compromising your health.
 
FEE: $75 if paid by October 9th
          $85 at the door (if space is available)