Transitions This past weekend in our Monthly Motivation Meetup, one of our members, Sandrine, spoke about how she takes time when she gets home instead of rushing to the next thing. She makes a ritual of it. She takes off her hat and and her coat and she sits down for a moment or two. […]

Half Moon Balancing Pose

As you learned in Yoga in Melissa 354, your balance relies on your vision, your proprioception and your vestibular system. Your body takes in these signals from your vision, proprioception and vestibular system through nerve impulses through special nerve endings called sensory receptors and sends signals to your brain. In this class on how to do half moon balancing pose or ardha chandrasana we will continue to train your proprioceptive system and your vestibular system.

Half moon balancing pose is such a great pose to teach us about balance. We live in a world that expects us to move at a highly productive pace at all times. We are expected to have the same amount of energy no matter what is happening in our lives, no matter the season, no matter what time of day, no matter where we are in the moon cycle.

There is a natural balance that happens when we flow with the energy of the moon. When the moon is new we can plant new seeds, plan, think, and quietly build our energy in a gradual way. When the moon is full, it is natural to feel an excess of energy and then it is time to let go again and begin to release. This is balance following the flow of the moon and the energy of the earth.

The moon sets the stage for us in our lives by letting us know when to begin things (new moon) and when to rest or let go (full moon). When we align with the energy of the moon we are not so surprised when our energy is wild, creative, and expressive as the moon waxes and when we need to retreat into nurturing as the moon wanes take time to rest.

As the moon grows so does your own energy. It is a time to move with that momentum, take action in and nourish your creativity. You will feel the support of the moon’s energy during the waxing phase. The Full Moon is our most active time energetically. At the full moon you will feel energy and emotions peak, you may even find that you respond strongly to energies at this time.

As the moon begins to wane, you will start to notice that your energy wanes with the moon as well. You will observe a natural tendency to turn inwards. This is a time for surrender, rest, recuperation, reflection and contemplation. The waning moon is also a supportive time for releasing and letting go. The energy of this phase allows you to release negativity, stress, worry, tension, anxiety. This is balance. We can’t always be go, go go. We need time to come into our inner world for inner reflection to balance our outer world of outer action.

The moon phases show us the way to balance in our lives. Just like a balancing yoga posture, we are not always in the creating phase. There are times to plant the seed, prepare, create, be in the pose and then there is time to come out of the pose, restore, and reflect on the effect of the pose in our body. The same is true in our lives. Our energy waxes and wanes like the moon. When we take time to look up at the moon, we can see that our energy follows the energy of the moon and we need not be so frustrated when we can’t keep going and going and going. We can allow ourselves times in our lives so move more slowly, gather momentum and then retreat again.

Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu

Yoga Postures/Asanas: Supta Padangusthasana or Hand to Big Toe Pose, Pigeon or Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, Melting Heart Pose or Puppy Pose, Adho Mukha Svanasana or Downward Facing Dog, Parsvottanasana or Pyramid Pose, Half Moon Balancing Pose or Ardha Chandrasana, Legs up the Wall or Viparita Karini, jathara parivartanasana or Reclined Twist, Baddha Konasana or Bound Angle Pose, Savasana or Corpse Pose, Shakti Mudra

Props Required: Yoga Strap, Bolster, Wall, Blocks

Did you like today’s show?

Yoga to Help Fight Violence Against Women

November 25th is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Together we can take our yoga off our mats to create a culture that rejects violence as a way to deal with problems. Through our yoga practice we cultivate the resources to speak up against messages that say violence or mistreating women is okay.

In a culture that objectifies and commodifies women, women are dehumanized and treated as anonymous goods to be looked at, ogled, touched and used and once used discarded and replaced with a newer, younger form. Their human rights to be here, to feel, to be empowered, to love, to speak, to envision a future for themselves, to experience their own spirituality is often ignored.

In a culture that dehumanizes women and treats women as objects it becomes easier for women to be abused. In a world of advertising and media messages which creates on impossible standards for women in order to drive consumerism, women lose touch with who they are and an environment of justification is entrapment of abuse is sustained.

In the world of yoga, unfortunately many times these same media messages exist. The underlying narrative of yoga videos, yoga images, yoga in social media is that women must be beautiful, skinny, flawless, curvy, lifeless, and God forbid if you speak up or say anything meaningful! You should be a glossy figurine moving gracefully across a screen without any words. Remember an object has no personality, values, passions or dreams.

Yet for the past seven years here on Yoga with Melissa we have been focusing on something different. So many of you have told me you come here because we have a different message. We are real yoga for real people. We have real bodies, with real limitations. You have told me you appreciate my real personality. And, we are connecting with something deeper, our true nature and trying to overcome violence on a deeply personal level, starting with ourselves, our relationships with others and our place in the world.

Today we will practice with Bhuvaneshwari the Goddess of infinite space. Her motherly embrace will gather us into her vast, spacious womb. We will allow her to support us, hold us, and renew us, helping us to let go of anxiety and fear.

Bhuvaneshwari spaciousness swallows all that needs to be cleared. So take this time to offer her whatever you are holding onto. Whether you or somebody you love has been the victim of violence, Bhuvaneshwari will take whatever your burden, dissolve it and offer it back to you transformed.

Throughout our class today, we will allow Bhuvaneswari's comfort to wrap around us like an invisible loving blanket creating a still, calm center. Bhuvaneshwari acts as a nonjudgmental, loving witness holding space with a subtle generosity.

Yoga Postures/Asanas: Reclined Bound Angle Pose or Supta Badha Konasana, Sleeping Pigeon or Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, Half Happy Baby Pose or Ardha Ananda Balasana , Square Breath, Goddess Victory Squat or Utkata Konasana, Ardha Chandrasana or Half Moon Balancing Pose , Wide Kneed Child Pose or Balasana, Savasana or Corpse Pose, Shakti Mudra

Props Required: Bolster, Blocks, option strap

Weekly Yoga with Melissa #359 Photos of Yoga Pose

 

Yoga to Help Fight Violence Against Women

November 25th is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Together we can take our yoga off our mats to create a culture that rejects violence as a way to deal with problems. Through our yoga practice we cultivate the resources to speak up against messages that say violence or mistreating women is okay.

In a culture that objectifies and commodifies women, women are dehumanized and treated as anonymous goods to be looked at, ogled, touched and used and once used discarded and replaced with a newer, younger form. Their human rights to be here, to feel, to be empowered, to love, to speak, to envision a future for themselves, to experience their own spirituality is often ignored.

In a culture that dehumanizes women and treats women as objects it becomes easier for women to be abused. In a world of advertising and media messages which creates on impossible standards for women in order to drive consumerism, women lose touch with who they are and an environment of justification is entrapment of abuse is sustained.

In the world of yoga, unfortunately many times these same media messages exist. The underlying narrative of yoga videos, yoga images, yoga in social media is that women must be beautiful, skinny, flawless, curvy, lifeless, and God forbid if you speak up or say anything meaningful! You should be a glossy figurine moving gracefully across a screen without any words. Remember an object has no personality, values, passions or dreams.

Yet for the past seven years here on Yoga with Melissa we have been focusing on something different. So many of you have told me you come here because we have a different message. We are real yoga for real people. We have real bodies, with real limitations. You have told me you appreciate my real personality. And, we are connecting with something deeper, our true nature and trying to overcome violence on a deeply personal level, starting with ourselves, our relationships with others and our place in the world.

Today we will practice with Bhuvaneshwari the Goddess of infinite space. Her motherly embrace will gather us into her vast, spacious womb. We will allow her to support us, hold us, and renew us, helping us to let go of anxiety and fear.

Bhuvaneshwari spaciousness swallows all that needs to be cleared. So take this time to offer her whatever you are holding onto. Whether you or somebody you love has been the victim of violence, Bhuvaneshwari will take whatever your burden, dissolve it and offer it back to you transformed.

Throughout our class today, we will allow Bhuvaneswari’s comfort to wrap around us like an invisible loving blanket creating a still, calm center. Bhuvaneshwari acts as a nonjudgmental, loving witness holding space with a subtle generosity.

Yoga Postures/Asanas: Reclined Bound Angle Pose or Supta Badha Konasana, Sleeping Pigeon or Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, Half Happy Baby Pose or Ardha Ananda Balasana , Square Breath, Goddess Victory Squat or Utkata Konasana, Ardha Chandrasana or Half Moon Balancing Pose , Wide Kneed Child Pose or Balasana, Savasana or Corpse Pose, Shakti Mudra

Props Required: Bolster, Blocks, option strap

Weekly Yoga with Melissa #359 Photos of Yoga Pose

 

Yoga to Help Fight Violence Against Women November 25th is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Together we can take our yoga off our mats to create a culture that rejects violence as a way to deal with problems. Through our yoga practice we cultivate the resources to speak up against […]

Pressure

This is Real Yoga for Real People so you can move better, feel better and connect with your true nature, Welcome to A Brand New Series Moving At the Speed of Our Bodies,

Today’s Class is called: The Pressure of Our Lives

We have an incredible amount of pressure in our lives. Our schedules are filled to the brim. We have an enormous amount of personal and professional responsibilities. On top of that the media, advertising and social media exert the burden of perfectionism with endless glossy images of perfect bodies living perfect lives in perfect homes with perfect jobs all the while taking perfect vacations.

In trying to push through and accomplish the to-do list of our lives we inevitably feel this pressure in our bodies. The burden of carrying our load is literally felt in our bodies. Whether the responsibility is thrust upon us or self imposed is inconsequential, the atmosphere of pressure creates a burden in our bodies.

Through our yoga practice we create a sacred space to unload this burden in a gradual, progressive and step by step way. First, by creating a sacred space, where there is quiet and a sense of spaciousness, openness and freedom in our lives, we start to become aware of the pressure and tension that exists in our body. With this boundless awareness we have a choice. The choice to release the strain instead of continually pressing through.

The more and more we begin to unburden ourselves, the more we begin to become aware of the freedom that exists and has always existed within us.

First we will start with a Testimonial: From Darcy via Email:

Dear Melissa,

I just wanted to say thank you! Thank you for these wonderful free classes that you put so much time and effort in each week! Because of them I am a lot happier and healthier. I feel strong and confident. I used to follow along a long time ago but got busy with life and put others before me. I have recently started back up and have decided to do one episode from the beginning each day. I call it Mommys yoga hour lol I am happy to say that today will be my 78th consecutive day and I am loving it more and more each day. Thank you again!

Darcy

Thank you for taking the time to send your testimonials and leave your comments on YouTube, Itunes, Facebook, Instagram, email, my website. And as always the most in depth conversations happen in our membership community.

Speaking of which, it was a delight to welcome Madeline Sicinski into our membership community this week with our gifted membership from Jennifer Lease. She has been settling in nicely.

Props Needed: Bolster, Blocks, Yoga Strap

Yoga Postures/Asanas: Supta Ardha Chandrasana or Reclined Side Bend, Heart Bed, Cat Pose or Marjaryasana, Gate Pose or Parighasana, Lunge Pose or Anjaneyasana, Ardha Chandrasana or Standing Side Bend, Side Angle Pose or Parsvakonasana, Wide Legged Standing Forward Fold or Prasarita Padottanasana, Sphinx Pose or Salamba Bhujangasana, Marichyasana or Marichi’s Twist, Gomukhasana or Cow’s Face Pose, Savasana or Corpse Pose

Sahanavavatu mantra or Peace Mantra

Aum SahNaa v -vavatu Sah nauow Bhunak - tu sah veeeeR - yumm karvaaa - Vahey teJas -vinaa vadeeetaa -mustu maa vid vishaa vaheee

aum shanti shanti shanti

Protect us together, student and teacher

May our studies nourish us together

May we work together in union for the good of all

May our learning be luminous and purposeful

May we live in harmony

Peace. Peace. Peace be unto all.

Members you would benefit from doing the Three Part Breathing Class today prior to class, I will link to it in our show notes :)

Pressure

This is Real Yoga for Real People so you can move better, feel better and connect with your true nature, Welcome to A Brand New Series Moving At the Speed of Our Bodies,

Today’s Class is called: The Pressure of Our Lives

We have an incredible amount of pressure in our lives. Our schedules are filled to the brim. We have an enormous amount of personal and professional responsibilities. On top of that the media, advertising and social media exert the burden of perfectionism with endless glossy images of perfect bodies living perfect lives in perfect homes with perfect jobs all the while taking perfect vacations.

In trying to push through and accomplish the to-do list of our lives we inevitably feel this pressure in our bodies. The burden of carrying our load is literally felt in our bodies. Whether the responsibility is thrust upon us or self imposed is inconsequential, the atmosphere of pressure creates a burden in our bodies.

Through our yoga practice we create a sacred space to unload this burden in a gradual, progressive and step by step way. First, by creating a sacred space, where there is quiet and a sense of spaciousness, openness and freedom in our lives, we start to become aware of the pressure and tension that exists in our body. With this boundless awareness we have a choice. The choice to release the strain instead of continually pressing through.

The more and more we begin to unburden ourselves, the more we begin to become aware of the freedom that exists and has always existed within us.

First we will start with a Testimonial: From Darcy via Email:

Dear Melissa,

I just wanted to say thank you! Thank you for these wonderful free classes that you put so much time and effort in each week! Because of them I am a lot happier and healthier. I feel strong and confident. I used to follow along a long time ago but got busy with life and put others before me. I have recently started back up and have decided to do one episode from the beginning each day. I call it Mommys yoga hour lol I am happy to say that today will be my 78th consecutive day and I am loving it more and more each day. Thank you again!

Darcy

Thank you for taking the time to send your testimonials and leave your comments on YouTube, Itunes, Facebook, Instagram, email, my website. And as always the most in depth conversations happen in our membership community.

Speaking of which, it was a delight to welcome Madeline Sicinski into our membership community this week with our gifted membership from Jennifer Lease. She has been settling in nicely.

Props Needed: Bolster, Blocks, Yoga Strap

Yoga Postures/Asanas: Supta Ardha Chandrasana or Reclined Side Bend, Heart Bed, Cat Pose or Marjaryasana, Gate Pose or Parighasana, Lunge Pose or Anjaneyasana, Ardha Chandrasana or Standing Side Bend, Side Angle Pose or Parsvakonasana, Wide Legged Standing Forward Fold or Prasarita Padottanasana, Sphinx Pose or Salamba Bhujangasana, Marichyasana or Marichi’s Twist, Gomukhasana or Cow’s Face Pose, Savasana or Corpse Pose

Sahanavavatu mantra or Peace Mantra

Aum SahNaa v -vavatu Sah nauow Bhunak – tu sah veeeeR – yumm karvaaa – Vahey teJas -vinaa vadeeetaa -mustu maa vid vishaa vaheee

aum shanti shanti shanti

Protect us together, student and teacher

May our studies nourish us together

May we work together in union for the good of all

May our learning be luminous and purposeful

May we live in harmony

Peace. Peace. Peace be unto all.

Members you would benefit from doing the

Pressure This is Real Yoga for Real People so you can move better, feel better and connect with your true nature, Welcome to A Brand New Series Moving At the Speed of Our Bodies, Today’s Class is called: The Pressure of Our Lives We have an incredible amount of pressure in our lives. Our schedules […]

Balance

When your balance system is working well, you will be able to see clearly, move well, identify your orientation in relation to gravity, determine your direction and speed of movement and make postural adjustments to maintain your position and stability in various conditions and activities.

As you learned in Yoga with Melissa 354, your balance relies on your vision, your proprioception and your vestibular system. Your body takes in these signals from your vision, proprioception and vestibular system through nerve impulses through special nerve endings called sensory receptors and sends signals to your brain.

Through repetition of these sensory receptors to our brain stems and then their resultant path back out through our body, you form a new neural pathway called facilitation. With this synaptic reorganization you are able to come into balance during your activities. This kind of synaptic reorganization occurs throughout your live as you adjust to changing motion environs. The more repetition, the easier it becomes for your sensory receptors to travel their pathways to your brain and back through your body. The neural pathways become more easy to travel. This is great news because balance is something that we can practice and become better at with repetition.

Your ability or inability to balance is the result of three systems:

* Your vestibular system

* Your proprioceptive system

* Your visual system

Your Vestibular System

Your Vestibular System is your inner ear. Your inner ear sense information about motion, equilibrium and spatial orientation. This information is collected in your inner ear by the utricle, saccule and three semicircular canals.

Your utricle and saccule detect gravity, that is information in a linear orientation, as well as linear movement. Your semicircular canals detect rotational movement.

When you look up and down at the ground and the sky and you are stimulating your utricle and saccule to detect gravity, that is information in a linear orientation as well as linear movement. When you turn your head side to side and you are stimulating your semicircular canals, this is allowing your vestibular system to detect rotational movement. These simple movement patterns will stimulate your vestibular system and help to improve your balance.

As we age, we engage our vestibular system less and less. We mostly keep our body in an upright position. Gone are the days that we jump up and down on trampolines, do cartwheels, hang upside down on monkey bars, or do somersaults. All these movements focus on inversions, rapid changes in directions and enhance our vestibular systems.

Your Proprioceptive System

Proprioception is defined as the unconscious perception of movement and spatial orientation arising from stimuli within the body itself. We receive proprioceptive input from our skin, muscles, joints and sensory receptors that are sensitive to movement and pressure in our connective tissue.

Proprioception is sensed by your entire nervous system. Inside each muscle and joint, you have tiny meters called muscle spindles and golgi tendons that are constantly measuring the amount of tension and degree of contraction that are happening. This information travels up your spinal cord through your spinocerebellar tract and makes its way to your cerebellum. Your cerebellum accepts information from your skin, muscles and joints throughout your whole body and calculates where your body should be in space.

We challenge our proprioceptive system all the time as yogis. When we take our socks and shoes off and practice in our bare foot, we experience maximum input through our feet from the ground. As we move around in different yoga postures our nervous system and brain responds to this propriocept...

Balance

When your balance system is working well, you will be able to see clearly, move well, identify your orientation in relation to gravity, determine your direction and speed of movement and make postural adjustments to maintain your position and stability in various conditions and activities.

As you learned in Yoga with Melissa 354, your balance relies on your vision, your proprioception and your vestibular system. Your body takes in these signals from your vision, proprioception and vestibular system through nerve impulses through special nerve endings called sensory receptors and sends signals to your brain.

Through repetition of these sensory receptors to our brain stems and then their resultant path back out through our body, you form a new neural pathway called facilitation. With this synaptic reorganization you are able to come into balance during your activities. This kind of synaptic reorganization occurs throughout your live as you adjust to changing motion environs. The more repetition, the easier it becomes for your sensory receptors to travel their pathways to your brain and back through your body. The neural pathways become more easy to travel. This is great news because balance is something that we can practice and become better at with repetition.

Your ability or inability to balance is the result of three systems:

* Your vestibular system

* Your proprioceptive system

* Your visual system

Your Vestibular System

Your Vestibular System is your inner ear. Your inner ear sense information about motion, equilibrium and spatial orientation. This information is collected in your inner ear by the utricle, saccule and three semicircular canals.

Your utricle and saccule detect gravity, that is information in a linear orientation, as well as linear movement. Your semicircular canals detect rotational movement.

When you look up and down at the ground and the sky and you are stimulating your utricle and saccule to detect gravity, that is information in a linear orientation as well as linear movement. When you turn your head side to side and you are stimulating your semicircular canals, this is allowing your vestibular system to detect rotational movement. These simple movement patterns will stimulate your vestibular system and help to improve your balance.

As we age, we engage our vestibular system less and less. We mostly keep our body in an upright position. Gone are the days that we jump up and down on trampolines, do cartwheels, hang upside down on monkey bars, or do somersaults. All these movements focus on inversions, rapid changes in directions and enhance our vestibular systems.

Your Proprioceptive System

Proprioception is defined as the unconscious perception of movement and spatial orientation arising from stimuli within the body itself. We receive proprioceptive input from our skin, muscles, joints and sensory receptors that are sensitive to movement and pressure in our connective tissue.

Proprioception is sensed by your entire nervous system. Inside each muscle and joint, you have tiny meters called muscle spindles and golgi tendons that are constantly measuring the amount of tension and degree of contraction that are happening. This information travels up your spinal cord through your spinocerebellar tract and makes its way to your cerebellum. Your cerebellum accepts information from your skin, muscles and joints throughout your whole body and calculates where your body should be in space.

We challenge our proprioceptive system all the time as yogis. When we take our socks and shoes off and practice in our bare foot, we experience maximum input through our feet from the ground. As we move around in different yoga postures our n...