Yoga, Health, and Wellness Articles + Recipes

Does a backache always have to come with a pregnancy? Happily, the answer is NO! But you’ll have to do a little bit of work to avoid or alleviate that age-old pregnancy complaint. Back ache is the most common complaint I hear from my pregnant students. There are some essential exercises that you can do every day that will really make a difference in how you feel.

We were all born with flexibility. It is life experience and stress that tightens up our bodies, rounds our shoulders, and gives us neck and back pain. Imagine if you would have learned yoga postures and deep breathing techniques when you were a kid. How might your body and mind be different today? While we cannot go back in time to change our own lives, we can offer the opportunity of learning yoga to our children. These days children live a fast paced life of school, homework, sports, music lessons, and other activities that combined together can cause stress. Kids yoga can provide an opportunity for children to slow down, stretch, and connect to their inner joy so that they can learn to cope with stress, and stay flexible. Here are more ways that children can benefit from yoga:

I am blessed to work with a population going through arguably the most radical transition of their lives as they navigate and understand the extraordinary changes that occur during pregnancy and childbirth. While most of the woman I support are committed to their yoga practice during pregnancy as a way to build strength and power that will serve them in labor, the real challenge is in helping them stay connected to their mats postpartum, with the strain of a new baby, a new role as mother, and the cascade of changes that this inevitably creates in relationship, career, and in priorities related to nearly every facet of life.

If there is one yoga posture that tests our patience, flexibility, and dedication, it is Hanumanasana, or the forward splits. Unless you are a dancer or gymnast, it can seem ridiculous to even attempt such a huge stretch that can take years to achieve, but therein lies the magic of the pose. While I doubt Hanumanasana is anyone’s favorite pose, we cannot ignore the physical, mental, and spiritual power that this posture can evoke.