I’m approaching the final stretch of my every-day-in-July yoga challenge, and this week definitely felt more like the ‘one step back’ after ‘two steps forward’. Last week I imparted just a few nuggets of knowledge that I’ve picked up along my yogic journey. This week, in some bizarre pseudo-teenage rebellious act, I decided to completely […]
Forward folds are such an integral part of yoga practice. Some people effortlessly reach their toes while others feel like their toes may as well belong to someone else. Forward folds are iconic yoga poses. They are found in sun salutes, standing and sitting sequences, and they are a major hip opener in the ashtanga
Welcome to Zen Monkey’s Āsana Dictionary! This department came to be as a result of the Zen Monkey Āsana Challenge in June of 2015, and we’re constantly adding to and improving it! Please click on the pose titles below to see details about each of the poses listed, and check back regularly to see new poses as we add
Have you ever wondered what happens to your day? You plan to do something and by the end of the day, you’ve done something entirely different. How does that happen? I had dedicated the afternoon to a simple task – to write this blog. That was pretty straight forward, wasn’t it? Just sit and write,
Stressed? Busy? Juggling too many balls? Trying to tick off an endless ‘to-do’ list? This seems to be most of us, especially if we’re lucky enough to live in the buzzing capital city of London. What with work, family, a social life, and the mental load that comes with that trio, it’s easy to let
We might not always have to fall to stand up. We might not always have to make mistakes to learn lessons. But sometimes we do need a jolt to bring us to our senses. Sometimes we do need to burn and rise from our ashes to grow stronger and wiser. A while back, I made
Not long ago, I was having a particularly bad day at the office. My boss dropped a ton of work off at my desk, and then completely disappeared leaving me with no support or guidance on how to complete the assignment. So, naturally, I panicked. The adrenaline kicked in, which in turn kept me up
Earlier this year, YogaAlliance and YogaJournal teamed up to produce the 2016 Yoga in America Study: a comprehensive study of over 3,000 yogis and non-yogis across the country that produced some interesting results that we in London could afford to pay attention to! The 2016 Yoga in America Study is the third of it’s kind
Ayurveda is like a secret doorway that has been in front of you the entire time. It’s been guiding you, expanding you, and restricting you without you necessarily being aware of it. It constantly shows you where you need more balance and if you are listening, it shows you how to receive it. Conscious awareness
Meditation and Tai Chi don’t just calm the mind – they seem to affect our DNA too. Evidence has emerged that these ‘mind-body practices’ reduce the activity of genes associated with inflammation – essentially reversing molecular damage caused by stress. It has been found that genes related to inflammation become less active in people practising
