Quick Yoga-Break
Physical Exercise beyond Pain/Gain Myth
No Pain, No Gain. You've heard it. Heck, you've probably grown up with it. The steady stream of Nike ads and fashion magazines tells you over and over: "If you don't go hard, go home." Extremism is built into a capitalist society because it depends on people not ever having or being enough. This is …
Fiery Breathing
If you've been attending yoga classes for a while, you may have been exposed to several types of pranayama, or breathing exercises. With the sanskrit names and the various translations, it might be hard to keep some of them straight. Throw in the fact that even some yoga teachers use the various titles interchangeably, and the …
Taking it Right Down to the Ground
Over the holidays, I got hit with a nasty ear infection that ended up perforating my eardrum. For two days I was more or less bedridden. When I finally emerged, my muscles ached from the inertia, but what could I do? With the damage to my inner ear, inversions were out; I couldn't even manage a …
Back to Basics: Yoga vs. Stretching
January is the perfect time to rediscover the things we often take for granted, to look at them with fresh eyes. Today let's address an old yet enduring question: Q: What differentiates yoga from a stretching class? A: Well, on a purely physical level, yoga incorporates strengthening as well. Follow-up Q: So what differentiates yoga …
