Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Health through Yoga”
Be firm but calm. Move from your ‘core’. Breathe from your ‘core’. Open your ‘heart’ from your ‘core’. In this blog we discuss how to move towards advanced postures safely and effectively. More importantly, we discuss how, if you learn to move in the way described here, you don’t need to do advanced postures to get the main benefits of yoga on …
With a good understanding of the anatomy and physiology of breathing, it is possible to create energy by doing less than nothing. That is to say that if you think doing nothing means simply lying down and relaxing then you can actually do less than nothing by breathing less than you would normally do in that situation. According to popular …
by Simon Borg-Olivier When you should lift your shoulder blades up as high as possible As I travel around the world I see many people in the world of exercise and yoga teach and practice that when you lift your arms up in the air you should pull the shoulder blades down (scapula depression). While there are times when you …
Chest breathing can be extremely beneficially if done correctly but can also cause problems if done in a way that overstimulates the nervous system. Many people teach and practice to inhale into the chest, and to exhale from the lower abdomen, but clinical research using Real Time Ultrasound (RTU) has shown that about 90% of the average adult population cannot really breathe …
Here are ten great reminders for the day that have been shown to have a positive effect on your life. This is inspired by an article by Eric Barker but I have adapted it to be more inclusive of Yoga practitioners. 1. Get out in nature – bare feet on the earth if best and in the water if you …
by Simon Borg-Olivier In every day life many people do not get enough sideways movement and freedom. Sideways ‘stretches’ (spinal lateral flexion) are really important movements and postures, and are often understated and not practiced in many exercise, stretching and yoga classes. In this post we demonstrate a simple side stretch (Figure 1 and Figure 2) that can be simply …
In this blog I will be discussing how to monitor and reduce your stress levels by using your heart rate, some simple berthing exercises and some other ‘tricks’. You can very simply improve you overall internal health, especially that of your nervous system and your immune system by increasing your heart rate variability (HRV). This can be most easily done if …
by Simon Borg-Olivier In this blog I want to discuss some points about Kundalini energy and Chakras. Much of the information available on the subject of Kundalini is esoteric and so not easy to justify with rational conventional science. I think the best explanation of the science of kundalini comes from Jana Dixon and her excellent book ‘The Biology of Kundalini”. …
by Simon Borg-Olivier In this 9 minute video I am using my understanding as a physiotherapist and yoga teacher to give exercises to my 9 month old son Eric. This training takes advantage of the natural spinal reflexes that are most prevalent in babies. These spinal reflexes help to facilitate the exercises that I am getting him to practice. I …
Basic Spinal Movements In this blog I will be examining a sequence of postures done from a simple standing posture that in its simplest form involves moving the trunk and spine into its 8 main ‘pure’ positions. This is one of the most effective and accessible practices for anyone and can give tremendous release of back and other pain as …
