Vaughan Dagnell is a soon-to-be YogaLondon graduate and founder of the charitable organisation Flip Your Dog for Mental Health. Set up in response to feeling disconnected in lockdown, his first fundraiser raised almost £4k for mental health charities and he plans on making his efforts an ongoing platform to join yoga and mental health. We talk to Vaughan about his love of yoga, his own mental health struggles and his hopes for the future.
Christmas is a time to let go of all those dietary disciplines and just let loose! For a few days each year, most of us put our healthy eating efforts to one side and over-eat to our heart’s content. And it’s not just the over-eating, it’s rich food!
Take the traditional British Christmas lunch. Turkey, stuffing, pigs in blankets, roast potatoes, roasted carrots and parsnips, mashed celeriac, Brussel sprouts, bread sauce, cranberry sauce and, to top it all off, lashings of gravy. That’s how it goes in our family anyway. What’s lovely about the traditional Christmas lunch is that for every family there’s something a little bit different, which makes it the special annual over-indulgence it is.
And personally, I wouldn’t miss out on any of it. However, the after-effects can be disastrous. So here are some ways to help to alleviate the bloating, lethargy and sluggishness of the post-prandial Christmas state. (more…)
2020 has not been the easiest.
The world has had to adjust to loss, lockdowns, restrictions, kids at home, job losses, and a whole pile of not-nice things.
But one thing that many people say has got them through this year is their pets. Dog and cats don’t care if we’re in lockdown or not. They just need to be fed, walked and stroked and all is right in their world.
So how can we learn from our canine and feline friends, and take on this great attitude when it comes to our yoga practice?
Yoga is more than just stretching and breathing. Discover the ten yoga attitudes that you can cultivate towards yourself and others to lay the foundation for your whole yoga practice. Known as yamas and niyamas, these attitudes can help us further our yoga journey both on and off the mat.
Back in lockdown 1.0, we all threw ourselves enthusiastically into our hour of exercise a day. We tuned in to Joe Wickes, we bought bikes, scooters and trampolines in record numbers. And of course, threw ourselves into the plethora of online yoga classes out there.
This time around the mood is slightly less enthusiastic. We know why we’re doing this – Covid has not gone away – but it feels harder. We’re tired, stressed and there’s only so much Zoom a person can take.
So how can we keep up our spirits this Autumn? Well here are TEN excellent reasons to get yourself outside every single day during this lockdown.
