We are back to the mat, people! Group yoga classes are back, and I am truly thrilled to get back to teaching you the finer points of Hatha yoga. A year has now passed since I last gave a group class. It has been a strange year, to say the least. The pandemic (which I…
Orchids, yoga, and lying fallow
Fallow land is land that is not planted with crops. It is left to lie uncultivated for a season in order to improve the quality of the soil. In the olden days, before chemical fertilisers forced land into continual productivity, parts of a farm would be left fallow for a short time before being replanted…
Yoga and minimalism
When I think of yoga imagery, minimalism the last thing that comes to mind. The Hindu aesthetic is quite clearly maximalist, full of colour, symbolism and detail. This spills over into Western yoga. Yoga leggings, to choose an obvious example, are often brightly coloured and patterned. Many yogis adorn their studio spaces with multi-hued batiks.…
Fascia and slow yoga
On the Alteayoga facebook page, I re-posted a piece from Dr. Mercola’s web site in which fascia is thoughtfully discussed. I suggest that you pop over and read it, then come back here. Summing up: Fascia makes up about 20% of body weight and is like a battery pack for muscles. It also transports water in…
How We Breathe: Moving things around
Introduction We usually just think of the breath as being Oxygen in and CO2 out…if we think about the breath at all. Yoga practitioners may think about prâna. But few of us take the time to contemplate all the other things that move around because of the breath. Most of us know a little about…
Spring Fair: May 5, 2018 – Save the Date!
The Alfaz Spiritual Foundation is hosting it’s Spring Fair this coming Saturday and you’re all invited! My dear friends Tania Plahay and James Heather very kindly asked me if I wanted to share their table and I accepted. Later, it transpired that some help was needed on the sound technician front, and I was only to…
How We Breathe: Mouthbreathing
Introduction Mouth breathing is an all too common habit, and one that can be broken through yogic breathing techniques called pranayama. In today’s post, I am going to talk about how mouth breathing can become habitual, the problems brought on my this bad habit and some ideas on how to correct mouth breathing. The mouth-breathing…
Yoga practice – "Towards Inversion"
I am feeling generous tonight, and shall give away a lovely yoga practice that I designed last year and have taught a number of times to my dear students. Notice that “B” or “R” means breath or respiración. When it says “6x”, it means do the vinyasa six times. When it says “6B”, it means…
Yoga is meant to calm me…so why do I feel so nervous?
This is a brilliant question that I received this week from a newcomer to class. This particular lady was recommended yoga by her doctor, so comes as a special case. Ideally, it must be said, such a person would have private tuition. But, the mere fact that she has managed to make contact and come…
Re-post from The Guardian: Yoga for Lazy People
Here is a cute little article from today’s Guardian: Yoga for Lazy People. Have fun and…get on your mat!