The positive effects of pranayama are definite and not illusory. It gives relief from anxiety, stress-related diseases and everyday ailments. There are no short cuts – the only way to reap the benefits is through patient and regular practice. Pranayama is something that many yogis struggle to fit into their home practice. I’m one of them. […]
Love it or hate it, Utkatasana is a wonderful pose for strengthening and stabilising the legs and core in particular. Read on for a hints and tips to enhance your own practice and develop your students. I remember my first ever attempt at Chair Pose very clearly. It looked so easy on the DVD and I was
The word orange comes from the Sanskrit word nāraṅgaḥ which means ‘orange tree’. Plant origin foods which are coloured orange are usually rich in carotenoid pigments. In some foods like tomatoes and carrots, the carotenoids are present as crystals, while in foods like paprika and mangoes carotenoids can be found dissolved in lipid droplets. This
This year hasn’t been easy, but for some, it’s provided some mental space to think about what’s really important. Family, yes. Friends, yes (but perhaps not all of them). Yoga, yes. Yoga has been a bedrock for so many people during this strange and uncertain time. Some of you may have found yourselves furloughed with
As mental health issues become more prevalent in our fast-paced society, many UK doctors are warming up to embracing yoga as a powerfully healing modality. Has it finally been given the kudos it deserves by Western medicine? We look at the huge potential of yoga being offered as a mainstream health practice in the treatment of conditions
While science has been championing the positive effects that yoga can bring to the mind and body, religion seems to be following suit, with Christians making yoga good for their souls, too. The first “Christian Yoga” emerged in a book of that title, which was published in 1960, but it has taken some decades to
Remember being a kid, the night before the start of the new school year? Fear grips your churning stomach – a new class, a new teacher, a new label as a ‘big girl’. At the same time, excitement radiating from every pore at the idea of seeing friends, sharing (and embellishing) your summer holiday adventures
Experienced journalist Sidonie Gaucher was one of the very first YogaLondon 200-hour graduates, who has decided to celebrate her ten-year graduation anniversary by taking the 500-hour course. Her love of yoga nidra and the philosophy of yoga has helped guide her through extreme hardship, with severe eye problems, and then sudden deafness, and has allowed
If you’ve never tried to make Kimchie, or you’ve made it a thousand times, this recipe is easy, delicious and compliments every dish imaginable. The ginger stimulates the secretion of stomach acids and therefore aids digestion. The lacto-fermentation process produces various strains of probiotic bacteria that promote gut health. The cabbage provides fiber with high levels
Aa a physiotherapist and yoga teacher, I would say without hesitation that one of the most important muscles of the body is the psoas (pronounced so-as). It is the main flexor of the hip and plays a huge role in determining whether our posture is efficient or not. It suffers from the prolonged sitting that modern life brings but
