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Beautiful Rituals Healthy Activities Healthy Living

“The Art of Stillness”

This book was one of the recommended books at the Invitational by Judith H. Lasater, PhD/Yoga Teacher/PT and this quote from the last page resonates with me this week. Don’t get me wrong, we need to exercise, move, dance all those but somewhere during the day and night … take a moment (75-90 minutes yoga class would be ideal:).

“In an age of speed, I began to think, nothing could be more invigorating than going slow.  In an age of distraction, nothing can feel more luxurious than paying attention.

And in an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than sitting still.

You can go on vacation to Paris or Hawaii or New Orleans three months from now ( I wish !), and you’ll have a tremendous time, I’m sure.

But if you wan to come back feeling new – alive and full of fresh hope and in love with the world – I think the place to visit may be NOWHERE.”

– Pico Iyer

I wish I wrote the above because it’s my sentiment exactly & Pico Iyer says it so well. Sitting still is not meant literal of course (while Zen at a monastery is certainly a training) but he means that we can all weave in a moment of reflection, repose, a conscious time-out – that moment of PAUSE even during the movements. Our self-worth is not measured by how busy we are.  Rather, by paying attention, our mind clears up and our body is more in tune with our inner wisdom  – all of which yoga teaches us so well.

And this is the sentiment because I am breathless running around in flurry of self imposed activities trying to pack to get off to Asia this week.  Yes, I am going Somewhere … bearing gifts, with baggage and all.  Things to do list piling up and anxieties over not getting them done mounting every minute. Still I am proud of myself that I retained my yoga practice and even slipped into Knee Workshop and … most memorable yoga class on a Memorial holiday (Yoga Therapeutics by Harry’s LAST CLASS – tears and laughter as he bids goodbye to start his new chapter …) so now going into a tailspin as the week restarts but somehow amidst the juggling, there’s that PAUSE where the debris settle to the bottom of the swirling well and only the distilled essence can be bottled. How to pause?

Stop.  What’s the worst that can happen?  What is most essential to this life I live? There are those who depend on you, yes, but … what do they treasure in you?

***

Deep Breath.

Invite the stillness; the tranquility to approach all those things on the list with

serenity and grace.  Is that even possible.

To make the impossible possible is my intention this full moon week

by living my yoga – We can even “stretch” time … Namaste.

Categories
Healthy Living Yoga

Dr. Langevin’s work uncovering the key role of Connective Tissues in Preventative Medicine

(above a graduation gift from one of the faculty teachers at Niroga Institute, Tianna Meriage-Reiter, DPT, C-IAYT, WHC  Lovely message to carry with us on this journey.)

We came to find out that Fascia care is important in recovery and healing as said:

“Integrity of Fascia plane is really important.”

-Dr. Helene Langevin

But, to go further to say that the role of stretching connective tissues also plays a big part in preventing manifestation of … inflammations and even cancer cells is AMAZING! Did you ever wonder why stretching is beneficial? Why hold for longer? Why slow movements and holds actually work the muscles more?  And the fascia envelopes each muscle groups … so that stretch one part of the body reverberates to the other distant parts of the body – as with the fascia matrix, all are … connected. It is really that “ripple” effect that reboots our entire system.

I cannot go to this event held in Boston …but hope to read up on it. The findings she shares appear to be what Chinese/Eastern Medicine practitioners and Yin-sters (yin yoga practitioner) always held their faith in.  If we think of practice of certain kinds of yoga as one resembling “needle-less” acupuncture treatment, it’s something everyone can benefit from whether you suffer from chronic pain or not. It’s a discipline and a practice that will bring about holistic wellness, wholeness, yumminess … vibrancy!

Dr. Langevin has published several NIH-funded studies investigating the role of connective tissue in low back pain and now cancer lifestyle intervention.  She has also  investigated the role and the mechanisms of acupuncture, manual and movement-based therapies and their effectiveness.  She has shown that mechanical tissue stimulation during both tissue stretch and acupuncture causes dynamic cellular responses in connective tissue. She postulates the therapeutic effects of stretching on inflammation resolution by stimulating the healing mechanisms within connective tissue.

Connective Tissues manipulation by acupuncture needles vs. stretching ?  This is fascinating how Dr. Langevin via “mouse yoga” concluded from her “mouse yoga” research was that stretching decreases inflammation !  

It’s no longer just anecdotal evidence but now in the hands of medical researchers, it’s real – paving a way for the assertion that an alternative medicine such as acupuncture, yoga and mindfulness practice is medicinal and gives us more “options” aka: “alternatives” in self-care.  And that, is always empowering.  And when we are empowered, there’s hope and … more joy in finding the inner body intelligence, the wisdom, the spark; we are empowered when we find that healer residing within.

 

Categories
Beautiful People Beautiful Places Yoga

“Yoga Asana @ The Knee Joint” workshop

with Jaki Nett, an excellent teacher at IYISF.  It was the first time ever for me to be at this studio/Institute and a bit surprised that  – it’s so close to Nihonmachi, I had no idea – it’s been in the Japantown neighborhood all these years.  I was just interested in the topic of this workshop which took me there. I did not know anything about the teacher but the topic is what I was drawn to – figured, if it’s at IYISF, I can’t go wrong. But nice discoveries are made… when you seek out what interests you:  (1) a superb teacher; (2) well equipped studio -wall ropes, ceiling ropes, chairs, all props are abundant; (3) positive but calming vibe; (4) nearby, a nice Thai restaurant for dinner:) (5) walking distance to Japantown where there is my favorite bookstore, Kinokuniya.

I loved this style – or should I say that it’s not really a “style” of yoga as late BKS Iyengar probably did not start teaching as a “brand”.. It’s beyond branding – it’s this masterful and innovative teacher’s archive of lifework. I had so loved the teachings by Judith H. Lasator (lyrical, philosophical,   and so much attention to details) and Richard Rosen (brainy and quirky funny) so it would be natural that I would be gravitated back to their school of yoga, even though initially Iyengar classes tended for me to be way too stiff, serious, dogmatic and militant … almost patronizing – not at your eye-level,  in tone BUT NOT this teacher.  She’s warm, welcoming, and knowledgeable and skillful in imparting her knowledge.  That comes from her self-knowing and confidence founded on real life long experiences living yoga.  I was most impressed with the fact that she videotapes her own lecture she said, because she reviews them and uses them to improve – there’s that humility too while being self-assured – THAT, is so inspiring that she never stops trying to better herself in the art of teaching.

It’s kind of like asana “clinic” when you go to these workshops.  It’s not the “fun” flow class with the curated “playlist” – no, not at all – nor is it the Zen mindfulness practice for stress management, reboot and balance … there’s no bounce, vibrancy and a pop of a spark – rather, in this school, yoga is a serious discipline and quite methodical and much about alignment and bodywork – thus – highly recommended for those who like to take the time to get into a pose and then hold the poses to perfect them. Then… repeat. To develop as their literature says “strength, stamina, concentration, coordination, flexibility and more”.

Jaki Nett made the class joyful while keeping it challenging and very informative. There’s no fancy powerpoint or handouts but we were invited to take photos of the picture presentation she posted on the front – yes, all about that joint – KNEE ! which she carefully went over.   The anatomy and the movements of the knee as it relates to our yoga practice were thoroughly discussed and issues addressed.

Learned so much that reinforced the yoga therapy TT  module where Baxter Bell, MD went over yoga for sports medicine working with PT’s . It was just fine without any curated playlist as it’s more a “school” than a practice space.  Music and the frills are not needed when the void is filled with your own focus and detailed anatomical and alignment reminders given by a senior/veteran, highly experienced teacher.  This was a 3 hour workshop but I am so curious about her regular classes – does she impart knowledge in regular “practice” classes as well or is it just to practice in a group setting … If her class resembles her workshop, then, that class is a class I’d want to come back for more !

The following asanas were experimented with attention to the workings of the knees and how to protect them in each of these poses and how they relate to the concept of “open & close chain” – the concept that all joints are connected to illicit healthy alignment and how one is to approach the asana to avoid torching a joint  or tearing a ligament, ending up with injuries.  When your knees are so weakened that they cannot go into full flexion, there’s no need to berate your own body temple – TLC then yoga to enhance body intelligence and practice with injury prevention always in mind :

  • Vajrasana
  • Virasana
  • Svastikasana
  • Padasana
  • Tadasana
  • Dadasana
  • Vibrabhdrasana
  • Janu Sirsasana
  • Agnistambhasana