Friday Inspiration: Back Bends

Happy Friday! Here are some back bend poses that strengthen your entire body. This is much needed after a busy week and after a couple of snowboarding trips I made during my Christmas vacation. Enjoy!  

Dancer Pose: strengthens legs and ankles, improves balance



Bridge Pose: aids in digetstion, strengthens neck and spine



Upward-facing dog: strengthens wrists, improves posture

Friday Inspiration

Here are a few poses for deep relaxation after a long week:
 

Legs up the wall- the best restorative pose



Bharadvaja's Twist

And finally...corpse pose: SAVASANA



Hard CORE

Having a strong core is, I would say, the foundation behind each good workout. Pilates and yoga definitely focus on core exercises by practicing poses that target your abdominal. This can help prevent many "sports" injuries and even everyday activities like lifting something heavy. Here are some basic poses that stretch and strengthen your core.   



Dolphin Pose

Full Boat Pose



Plank Pose





Finally!!

I've only been doing yoga for 4 months and to push myself I decided to attempt a higher level class (cardio flow yoga) which is now my favorite! Of course I was so lost at the beginning...at first I would pretend to know what the teacher would have us do but I would also look around to make sure I wasn't doing it all wrong. The good thing about this more rapid moving yoga class is that you learn more challenging poses faster. Well, when the teacher first had us attempt the handstand pose I was shocked and scared...so I opted for the alternative pose (lay on my back with my legs up the wall) I was so scared. My biggest fear was that I would fall on my head. But I saw all the perfectly fit people around me effortlessly balance themselves into this pose which made me think I can do it too if I tried. After a weeks weeks I said, I WILL do this, so I tried (and tried) and failed. BUT last night I finally did it!

You can do it...here's the step by step:

http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/788

Yoga Wear

Practicing yoga requires appropriate attire. Wearing baggy clothing can get in your way when moving from pose to pose and it may be difficult to see if you have the proper form. Pants, especially, should be stretchy and comfortable to move in. Here are some of my favorite yoga-wear from head to toe...

Victoria's Secret has the cutest Yoga/work out pants! Good quality and comfy :)

Racer back tank top from Forever 21 codeword for "cheap"

Yoga bags are so useful. I have a black one that I keep in my car just in case I'm in need of some emergency yoga after work. 

Flip flops...easy off, easy on



Take a seat...

Ok since most of my posts have been "bad" I'll balance it out with this one. Its ok to eat desserts in moderation (uhh humm, self control) but your body definitely needs exercise (discipline). Chair pose or utkatasana, is a challenging standing pose that works mainly the lower body but also the arms. This is probably the best pose for strengthening the thigh muscles. Its basically a squat that works your lower back, legs and arms. Who thought sitting could be so good for you?!

There are other variations for this pose but this is the main one:

Yoga...works!

Ok, I'm not an expert here but I recently started doing yoga. There are so many health benefits that it just keeps me wanting to learn more about it. I love fitness and health stuff so this is right up my ally. I admit, I never liked it until now. I thought it was a boring waste of time but, OH was I WRONG! Here are just a few of the benefits that practicing yoga provides:

1. RELAX
2. Flexibility
3. Balance
4. Posture
5. Strengthen muscles

Now here's 3  reasons you should do it:
1. It can happen anywhere- you can strike a pose while you're home watching TV or at work after sitting in your office chair for 8 hours. No equiptment required...just a soft floor or mat.
2. Its fun- as you continue your practice you will want to move on to the next level. Challenge yourself and watch your body improve.
3. It can't hurt- instead of putting strain on your joints loosen your muscles by stretching them. Aches and pains will go away!
http://www.yogajournal.com/health/1634

After reading this, I'm sure you are dying to do yoga now. So I will leave you with one of the first poses that I learned. Its basic, its balanced, its beautiful...Downward-facing dog:

"It both strengthens and stretches your entire body and requires you to balance the effort in your arms, torso, and legs so you don't overburden any one area." Enjoy!