Yoga, Health, and Wellness Articles + Recipes

Influencers have become a familiar part of the fitness industry. They tend to be considered some of the most important marketing tools for businesses in a landscape dominated by social media. Not to mention that this can also be a viable career choice for talented content creators with fresh perspectives on physical, mental, or holistic wellness. This isn’t the same as saying that success as a fitness influencer is necessarily guaranteed. If you choose to follow this path, you will in effect be setting up your own fitness marketing business. There are also a variety of challenges to navigate if you’re to break through in a healthy, successful, and sustainable way.

Back pain impacts millions of people at one time or another, whether from a specific injury or from long-term poor posture. Most of us sit too much and as a result, our spines become compressed, our muscles and connective tissue tighten, and then we are hurting. This week, we have six practices designed to give you a spinal tune-up and help prevent future pain. We tend to store emotions in our tissues and if we don’t create a release, physical tightness and strain can result. Whatever is causing your back pain is individual. How yoga helps is universal.

Without darkness, can we truly appreciate the light? Each one of us is composed of light and shadow. Masculine and feminine energy. Life is all about balance. The warmth from the sunshine on our skin. The cool gleam of a full moon’s rays. Yin and Yang. Just like the day is balanced out by the night, work is balanced out by rest. If you’re accustomed to a sweaty, vigorous Vinyasa class, learning to slow down is work.

Nirvana is defined as complete freedom from pain, worry, and the external world. In yoga, it’s considered the highest spiritual state. Used in a broader sense, nirvana can be defined as a state of bliss or a release from all suffering. This week, we’re sharing four practices designed to give you that sweet feeling in your neck and shoulders. Whether you woke up with a stiff neck or spend hours daily in front of a screen, tension in the shoulders and neck can prevent you from feeling your best. These classes will help loosen tight muscles, balance your Visshuda (throat) chakra, and clear your mind.

Maximizing the strength of your glute muscles isn’t just about looking great in your yoga pants. Having a powerful backside is incredibly important for hip stability and proper posture. Sitting causes the glute muscles to turn off completely, so if you spend most of your day in front of a computer, it’s time to make sure you dedicate time activating your glutes! Most people have heard of the gluteus maximus, which is the largest muscle in the body. Two other gluteal muscles, the gluteus medius and gluteus minimus, are deeper than the gluteus maximus and play an important role in building and maintaining a powerful posterior.

Yoga continues to play an invaluable role in many people’s lives. It can present significant health benefits and tends to fit well into many routines. Not to mention that it can be adapted to fit into a range of spiritual and secular practices. One of the ways that yoga can have a positive influence in your life is by enhancing your relationship with the natural world. While it may not currently be a part of your regular routine, establishing a regular outdoor yoga practice can present significant holistic benefits.

Whether you can slide right into Hanumanasana or Monkey Pose like an Olympic gymnast or if the idea of dropping into this pose strikes fear in your heart, we’re here to persuade you to approach the splits with a fresh perspective. Of course, there are modified versions to accommodate injuries or physical limitations, but some version can work for you. And dedicating time to master something seemingly impossible results in deeper lessons than the simply finding the posture’s full expression.

Feeling out of balance? Maybe it’s time to turn your focus inward and create alignment from the inside out. We are all composed of energy or life force or as we call it in yoga, prana. Our energy fluctuates from minute to minute and sometimes maintaining our equilibrium is challenging. Yoga helps us align our energy through Nadis, which are energetic passageways carrying prana through our subtle body. Keeping energy flowing is important to feeling our best because when our prana is stuck, our mind, our body, and our emotions suffer imbalances. By aligning the Chakras from the Muladhara (Root) at the base of our spine through the Sushumna Nadi to the Sahasrara (Crown) Chakra, we are creating balance in our system.

When your yoga teacher moves into backbends, does it spark excitement or anxiety? Backbends have so many benefits for our body, our mind, and our heart but sometimes they can stoke fear, especially if you’ve had back injuries or issues. No surprise as the Anahata or Heart Chakra is the seat of courage, love, and fear. Let’s break down the benefits and the cautions to these enlivening poses because there’s a version for you! Physically, bending backwards strengthens your back, shoulders, and hips. Backbends improve your posture and increase mobility of your entire spine, while opening the chest, abdominals, and front of your pelvis and legs. Emotionally, these poses open your heart for more compassion and aid in letting go of fear. Mentally, backbends energize and awaken your brain, helping impart a sense of clarity and alertness.

As the old saying goes, you are your own worst enemy. When something in your life goes wrong, it’s easy to blame yourself, or drown yourself in sorrow. But, think about how you would treat a friend or loved one in the same situation. You wouldn’t berate them or be cold. Instead, you would show compassion and be empathetic to their feelings. When you adopt a more realistic, kinder view of the problems in your own life, it leads to self-compassion. That can be easier said than done for some people, but it’s not impossible for anyone. Self-compassion is essential. It doesn’t mean you never acknowledge your faults – just the opposite. It’s about acknowledging your failures and struggles, and being kind to yourself as you work through them without judging yourself along the way.

Stop what you’re doing for a moment––well, after you read this––and close your eyes. Place one hand over your heart and one hand on your belly. Exhale everything out and take the biggest inhale you’ve taken today. Inhale the possibility that you can change the way you’re feeling right now. Inhale and trust you can renew your spirit by tuning into your heart. We’re here with a gentle reminder that yoga is one of the most powerful tools for regenerating your body, your mind, and your spirit. No matter what style of yoga you love to practice, the emphasis on conscious breathing helps to uplift your spirit.

Every time your tablet, phone, or computer fails to function properly, experts will advise you to flip the switch off and wait. Most times, that momentary unplugging fixes the issue. When you slow down and shift your focus inward, even for a short time, you’re refilling your well and benefitting your nervous system. Yoga is an incredible way to reset your mind, body, and spirit. Simply by unrolling your mat for practice, you’re eliminating distractions and choosing self-care. All types of yoga will do the trick, but slower styles like Slow Flow, Yin, Gentle, and Restorative allow you to dive even deeper

Who is ready to boost endorphins and create a strong, balanced body? This week, we’re focusing on how asana can help you grow physically strong. Sure, building muscle strength and endurance will help you feel better in your yoga clothes but being as strong as you can be is about how you feel more than how you look. Prioritize feeling great in your skin! We’re taking out the guesswork for you. All you need to do is roll out your mat and join our global yoga community every day for two-weeks. Three different class options per day will provide something suitable for beginners to advanced yogis! Let’s get stronger together.

Pilates is an incredible exercise system which builds strength, stability, and flexibility in your core and spine while also developing mental focus and clarity. Before we dive into three reasons why you should consider incorporating Pilates into your fitness regime, we wanted to share the fascinating history behind the method originally called Contrology...

Here's a quick and easy recipe for a healthy and delicious vegan quinoa salad that can be made in just 20 minutes. It's perfect for a quick lunch or a light dinner. This quinoa salad is crisp, delicious, and refreshing. It’s made simply with fresh cucumber, red bell pepper, red onion, chickpeas, fresh parsley and a honey-cumin olive oil and lemon dressing.

Pilates is an incredible exercise system that builds strength, stability, and flexibility in your core and spine while also developing mental focus and clarity. Before we dive into three reasons why you should consider incorporating Pilates into your fitness regime, we wanted to share the fascinating history behind the method originally called Contrology.

The summer is quickly approaching, and that means it’s time to take a relaxing and accessible vacation to your favorite domestic or international destination. If you’re a person with a disability, you may need to make some extra arrangements to ensure that your trip is fun and successful and that you can stay healthy along the way.

When we consider asana (postures), we often think first about creating flexibility in the muscles. But yoga also positively impacts connective tissue. Think about when you peel an orange and there’s all that spongy, stringy white stuff between the peel and the fruit. Yes, that’s what our bodies’ network of ligaments and tendons a.k.a. fascia can be compared to––or maybe even a spider web–– supporting our bones, joints, organs, muscles and nerve fibers.

Whether you’re in the thick of winter, trying to keep warm until the leaves re-emerge on the trees, or if you’re in the other half of the world where the summer sun is heating your skin, it’s important to keep your inner fire burning. Our lives are created from the inside first, so join us this week for some classes designed to stoke your inner flame and boost your energy and confidence.

The way you present your body has a massive impact on your mental health and overall well-being. Even subtle changes to your wardrobe can help you feel confident and content in your own body. A positive body image can help you appreciate your flaws, too. This is important if you’re trying to better manage your weight or are partaking in yoga to improve your overall health. Wearing the right clothes at the right moment will allow you to breathe deeply into your poses without worrying about what other people think.

Loving yourself means embracing and accepting who you are, including all of your strengths, weaknesses, and imperfections. It means recognizing your worth and valuing yourself as a person. Feeling self-love is essential to our overall well-being and happiness, as it provides a positive foundation for our relationships with ourselves and others.

To truly love yourself takes a lot of work! We all have ingrained emotional wounds and patterns developed over a lifetime which can mire us in patterns of self-doubt, self-criticism, and lack of self-love. Yoga is one path to release what’s holding you back from what is preventing from loving and respecting yourself. No matter who you are and where you are on your journey, you are worthy, valuable, and lovable.

What do you think first when you hear about learning to go deeper in your yoga practice? Mastering an advanced asana or standing on your head for five minutes or “fill in the physical achievement here?” Sure, working consistently toward your edge in yoga is valuable and for many is as deep as they care to go in their practice. That’s fine! But this week, we’re delving beneath the surface of the physical body and connecting to something deeper.

Whether you slept wrong, overdid your workout, or are under major stress, pain and tension often manifest in your neck and upper back. In an ideal world, you’d have your massage therapist at your beck and call to knead out the knots. Most of us aren’t in the position to afford daily massages but we can manage or eliminate tension with yoga.

Muscle knots can hit you at any point after a workout. For example, after a strenuous upper-body workout, you might wake up feeling a tightness in the back of your shoulder blade. Upon investigation, you may feel a small knot, which is tender to the touch, and slightly painful when you move it. If you recognize this situation, you might be wondering how you can avoid muscle knots in the future.