Extreme Yoga Poses

For my blog this week, I decided to research extreme yoga poses for fun!
The ones I found look really cool. I actually tried a couple and could kind of do all three poses!

The first pose is called Mayurasana.


This pose requires large amounts of arm strength and balance. To get into this pose, you rest your body on your forearms, while bending your elbows. Make sure your wrist are rotated back toward your toes. You then lift your feet off the floor while suspending your body in a plank position.

The second pose is called Urdhva Dhanurasana.
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To get into this pose, you start from a standing position and then lean back and bend your back until your hands touch the ground. To make this pose more intense, move your feet and hands together. Once satisfied with the pose, try to return to standing using your core strength to pull yourself up.

The third pose is called Scorpion pose.

This pose starts with a forearm stand. You then sway your back and bend your knees until your toes point toward the top of your head. You can make this pose more intense by bringing your toes down to touch your head.

The last part of the article talks about Acro Yoga.
This is a combination of yoga and acrobatics. It is where you partner up and try to complete poses together. You can end up balancing on top of someone else's feet, hands, back, etc. The possibilities are endless. In class last Wednesday we split up into groups and tried a little bit of Acro Yoga. It was very difficult but rewarding at the same time. 



http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/extreme-yoga-poses-12428.html

Breathing Methods

For my blog this week, I read an article about how to cope with depression, anxiety, and fatigue through breathing and meditation.
For anxiety, it is best to focus on lengthening exhalations. It is best to make your exhalations soft and even from beginning to end. To work on fatigue, you first settle into your everyday break then pause briefly after exhalations. It is good to explore the lengths of your exhalation and inhalations, and to focus on the sound of your inhalations. For depression, it is best not to force your breaths. Start by slowing down your breathing and then counting the lengths of your inhalations and exhalations. Next try to match your inhalation and exhalation lengths to make them even.
These breathing methods like they would be really helpful. I know when I am stressed I try to slow down my breathing and it really helps. Next time I get stressed, I might try these methods out.

http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/1523

Best Yoga Poses for Women

For this week, I looked up an article about the best yoga poses for women. The poses include half pushup, planks pose, plow pose, supported head stand, feathered peacock pose, mountain pose, downward dog, warrior pose, twisted chair, and marichi's pose. These poses were chosen because they have specific benefits that are good for women. For example, the half pushup and plank pose stimulate calcium retention, which is vital for fighting osteoporosis. The plow pose and supported head stand pose invert your body, which is helpful for regulating the thyroid and parathyroid glands. The glands are vital for maintaining hormone production. The twisted chair pose and Marichi's pose benefit a woman's adrenal system and help support your bones. The adrenal system makes adrenaline in the body. These poses, along with downward facing dog, help to quiet this system and alleviate stress. We have done many of these poses in class, including twisted chair, warrior pose, downward dog, plank, mountain pose, and half pushup. I would like to try the others though, specially feathered peacock and supported headstand pose.

http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/10-yoga-poses-women-7741.html

Yoga Breakdancing

For my blog this week, I found something a little different. I was looking through cool breakdancing videos and found one of this guy doing what he calls "yoga breakdancing." It is truly amazing. He mixes yoga poses with his breakdancing moves. Throughout the video, he demonstrates strength and fluidity as he easily/quickly switches between poses. He transforms difficult poses into astonishing dance sequences. All I can say is that my new life goal is to be able to dance like this guy!

Yoga for Fatigue

For my blog this week, I read an article about yoga and fatigue. I have currently been suffering from fatigue and can not seem to get enough sleep or have enough energy to get through the day. The article gives tips on some basic poses that can help with fatigue. The first is Sun Salutation or Surya Namaskara. Sun Salutation is a series of poses meant to warm you up and establish a link between your movement an breath. It consists of starting in mountain pose, bringing your arms up to the sky then bending down into a forward fold. From here you step back into a plank, then lower yourself and move into upward facing dog. You then move into downward facing dog. Next bend your knees and step forward into a forward fold. Finally lift halfway up, move back into forward fold, then lift all the way up with your hands towards the sky and bring your hands to your heart. Sun Salutation can be repeated as many times as needed.
The article also explains that forward fold pose, fish pose, and headstands help with fatigue. Fish pose is a pose I have not currently done but it sounds very interesting. To start fish pose, you first lay on your back with bent knees and your arms at your side. You then arch your back and raise it off the ground while pressing down your elbows. The head is then tilted back to rest on the floor. This pose seems like it would be great at opening up your back and diaphragm.
For this next week, I am going to try and do these poses once a day and see if they help with my fatigue.

 http://www.organicauthority.com/health/yoga-for-fatigue.html

Benefits of Headstands/Shoulder stands

For my blog this week, I read an article about headstands and shoulder stands. There area many benefits associated with these two positions. When practicing these positions, your body is inverted. Inversion increases blood flow to your brain and heart.




There are many benefits to practicing shoulder stands, which include curing colds and nasal disturbances, soothing nerves, strengthening upper body, legs, and abdomen,  and stretching neck/shoulder/back muscles. The benefits to practicing headstands include ensuring proper blood flow, rejuvenating thinking power, strengthening spine/neck/shoulder/arm muscles, and relieving colds, coughs, tonsillitis, bad breath, and palpitations. Practicing both positions daily "brings health and vitality to the body while calming and soothing the mind and spirit.

http://www.sunandmoonstudio.com/Articles/headstand.html

Warrior II Pose

 The three warrior poses were made to represent the warrior Virabhadra. Virabhadra, according to Hindu mythology, was a warrior created by a lord named Shiva. Shiva had married the daughter of his enemy. Shiva's enemy, Daksha, never approved of the marriage and there was always animosity between Shiva and Daksha. Shiva's wife, Sati, killed herself because of the fighting between her husband and her father. Shiva was so distraught by his wife's death that he created the fiercest warrior to destroy those who had caused the death of Sati.

 

 The warrior II pose has many benefits. One benefit is that it stretches your hips, groins, and shoulders. Other benefits are that it opens your chest and lungs, it builds stamina and concentration, it energizes tired limbs, helps relieve backaches, and improves circulation and respiration.

http://www.cnyhealingarts.com/2011/06/01/the-health-benefits-of-virabhadrasana-ii-warrior-ii-pose/