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| Breathe Vietnam by Michele McCartney-Filgate |
Monday, April 30, 2012
Spring Break
Friday, April 27, 2012
Friday Q&A: Glasses and Balance
Q: I always wonder if my vari-lens glasses affect my ability to balance.
A: Dear Vari-lens Wearer:
This is a good question! The answer depends a lot on each individual and how strongly you rely on your eyes for balance and alignment. In general, for new students, keeping your glasses on so you can see what is going on with you and also with the demonstrations you might be using to learn new poses can be essential for your progress. But as many more seasoned practitioners have noted, it is often natural to begin to close your eyes at times as you practice and rely on a more internal sense of awareness and balance for many poses. The obvious exceptions are balancing and arm balancing poses, like Tree and Handstand, but I have found myself on occasion closing my eyes in Headstand and Shoulderstand quite successfully.
The good news is that the eyes are only one of several systems that work together to assist in good balance, and the others can pick up the slack when needed. So I'd probably try periods of practice at home without your glasses, when looking at demos is not an issue. Then try it a bit in class and notice how it goes.
—Baxter
A: I don't know what vari lenses are but I do know what progressives are, as I have been a wearer of them for three years. In progressive lenses, the glass is graduated between far, closer and closest distances. And if you try to look through a part of the lens that isn't made to do that task, your vision is blurred. And if you have a slight astigmatism, this can in turn cause you to overwork certain eye muscles, which leads to head aches/eye aches. I don't understand all the ways new lens are now made, but in my own practice I have found that if I take off my glasses then my balance is more impaired than if I leave them on. However, if I take away all my vision by closing my eyes, it makes me work more with my other balance centers (proprioception, pressure sensation) and it actually improves my balance!
Although we use our eyesight to help us balance, we can indeed improve our balance by removing this or other senses from the equation. And I personally find that if my vision is impaired, it is more stressful for my nervous system because I’m trying to correct something that can’t be corrected. As someone who is extremely myopic, if I can't see clearly, I can't hear as well and I can't mentally focus. But if I close my eyes, my nervous system can focus on strengthening the balance sensors that remain. My other senses are clearer. I hear better because I direct my attention more to my hearing. I feel more, and I direct my breath into improving my sensation and relaxing areas that I might tend to overwork if I am using my eyes.
Like Baxter, I recommend that you experiment with glasses on/off. When practicing with your eyes open, try finding a focal point (something to visually focus on that you can see clearly) and use that to assist in balancing.
—Shari
A: Dear Vari-lens Wearer:
This is a good question! The answer depends a lot on each individual and how strongly you rely on your eyes for balance and alignment. In general, for new students, keeping your glasses on so you can see what is going on with you and also with the demonstrations you might be using to learn new poses can be essential for your progress. But as many more seasoned practitioners have noted, it is often natural to begin to close your eyes at times as you practice and rely on a more internal sense of awareness and balance for many poses. The obvious exceptions are balancing and arm balancing poses, like Tree and Handstand, but I have found myself on occasion closing my eyes in Headstand and Shoulderstand quite successfully.
The good news is that the eyes are only one of several systems that work together to assist in good balance, and the others can pick up the slack when needed. So I'd probably try periods of practice at home without your glasses, when looking at demos is not an issue. Then try it a bit in class and notice how it goes.
—Baxter
A: I don't know what vari lenses are but I do know what progressives are, as I have been a wearer of them for three years. In progressive lenses, the glass is graduated between far, closer and closest distances. And if you try to look through a part of the lens that isn't made to do that task, your vision is blurred. And if you have a slight astigmatism, this can in turn cause you to overwork certain eye muscles, which leads to head aches/eye aches. I don't understand all the ways new lens are now made, but in my own practice I have found that if I take off my glasses then my balance is more impaired than if I leave them on. However, if I take away all my vision by closing my eyes, it makes me work more with my other balance centers (proprioception, pressure sensation) and it actually improves my balance!
Although we use our eyesight to help us balance, we can indeed improve our balance by removing this or other senses from the equation. And I personally find that if my vision is impaired, it is more stressful for my nervous system because I’m trying to correct something that can’t be corrected. As someone who is extremely myopic, if I can't see clearly, I can't hear as well and I can't mentally focus. But if I close my eyes, my nervous system can focus on strengthening the balance sensors that remain. My other senses are clearer. I hear better because I direct my attention more to my hearing. I feel more, and I direct my breath into improving my sensation and relaxing areas that I might tend to overwork if I am using my eyes.
Like Baxter, I recommend that you experiment with glasses on/off. When practicing with your eyes open, try finding a focal point (something to visually focus on that you can see clearly) and use that to assist in balancing.
—Shari
Healthy Spirits: New Arrival
Uinta Birthday Suit Sour Cherry Ale now available in limited quantities.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Green Beans with Mango-Melon Salsa
Lightly steamed fresh green beans served with a delightfully flavourful mango-melon salsa! This easy recipe makes an intriguing side dish for a festive dinner or served with crispy rolls or fresh baguette enhances the first picnic of the season. Sunflower seeds raw pistachios and hemp hearts add crunch and valuable protein, anti-oxidants and vitamins to the already rich nutritional profile. Quick to make, this recipe can be made ahead and kept chilled until serving, or eaten at room temperature once it's prepared.
You'll Need:
1/2 lb of fresh green beans; 1 mango, peeled and cubed; 1 cup diced melon; 1/3 cup arugula sprouts; 1/4 cup chopped green pepper; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 2 teaspoons olive oil; 1 teaspoon agave syrup (or sweetener of choice); 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander; 1/4 teaspoon turmeric; 1/4 cup soaked sunflower seeds; 2 tablespoons soaked raw pistachios; sea salt to taste.
Garnish: long slice of green pepper; hemp hearts.
Garnish: long slice of green pepper; hemp hearts.
Method:
Place pistachios and sunflower seeds in a small bowl. Cover with fresh water. Soak for at least 1 hour. When ready to prepare salad, drain and pat dry. Rinse green beans. Cut or snap stalk, pulling off the string down the center of the bean. Leaving 'tails' intact. Lightly steam beans until tender-crisp. Remove from heat and plunge into cold water to stop cooking process. Refrigerate to chill until ready to use.
Peel melon and cut into small cubes. Wash green pepper and dice. Peel and pit mango; set 1/3 of mango aside. Chop remaining 2/3 mango in to bite-size pieces. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt, cover and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk 1 tablespoon of lemon juice with 2 teaspoons of olive oil, cumin, coriander and turmeric. Mash 1/3 mango into mixture and stir until smooth. Add soaked sunflower seeds and pistachios and mix well to thoroughly coat with mango-lemon dressing.
Gently fold in mango pieces, melon bits, and diced green pepper. Toss in arugula sprouts and lightly stir together. Coat all ingredients well with the mango-lemon dressing.
To Serve:
Line a serving platter with green bean, making a small indentation along the center of the vegetables. Spoon salsa on beans.
Sprinkle lightly with hemp hearts, and a twist of green pepper. Serve immediately, or refrigerate to chill until mealtime. This salad keeps well in the fridge.
Enjoy this crispy dish with fresh bread or rice crackers for its fresh and exotic taste.
Interested in the art of mindful cooking? Visit zen-cuisine
Enjoy this crispy dish with fresh bread or rice crackers for its fresh and exotic taste.
Interested in the art of mindful cooking? Visit zen-cuisine
Healthy Spirits: Some more new stuff
1. Leireken Wild Berries 16oz2. Seven Sins Luxuria
3. Seven Sins Gula
4. Strubbe IPA
5. Strubbe glassware
cheers,
dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610
Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals
1. Bruery White Oak (limit 1 per customer)
2. Zunft Kolsch
3. Einstok Toasted Porter
4. Einstok Icelandic Witbier
cheers,
dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610
Yoga for Brain Health?
by Nina
Exercise, the latest neuroscience suggests, does more to bolster thinking than thinking does. —New York Times
Just a quick post today to let you know—if you don’t already—about the article in last Sunday’s New York Time’s Magazine called How Exercise Could Lead to a Better Brain.
While most current advice for keeping your mind fit as you age focuses on staying intellectually challenged by learning a new language or even by doing crossword puzzles or special "brain exercises" (why does the thought of that make me feel slightly ill?), there is more and more scientific evidence that continuing to exercise is the most important strategy of all. Are you wondering why? The New York Times article explains that the brain, like all muscles and organs, is a tissue, and that exercise seems to slow or reverse the brain’s physical decay, much as it does with muscles.
Unfortunately we don’t yet know how the exercise provided by a yoga practice fits into this, as so far all tests have been on animals either running or doing other aerobic activities. Here's another quote from the article:
“It’s not clear if the activity has to be endurance exercise,” says the psychologist and neuroscientist Arthur F. Kramer, director of the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois and a pre-eminent expert on exercise and the brain. A limited number of studies in the past several years have found cognitive benefits among older people who lifted weights for a year and did not otherwise exercise.”
One advantage of yoga for exercise, though, is how versatile it is. There’s strengthening as well as stretching and balancing. By moving with your breath, either in vinyasas or mini vinyasas, you can obtain some of the benefits of aerobic activity. And, who knows, maybe our inverted poses will turn out to have some special benefits for the brain.
Personally I’m looking forward to the day when more is known about the specific types of exercise that benefit the brain because I really want to design some sequences for brain health! But until then, I’d recommend two strategies:
Exercise, the latest neuroscience suggests, does more to bolster thinking than thinking does. —New York Times
Just a quick post today to let you know—if you don’t already—about the article in last Sunday’s New York Time’s Magazine called How Exercise Could Lead to a Better Brain.
While most current advice for keeping your mind fit as you age focuses on staying intellectually challenged by learning a new language or even by doing crossword puzzles or special "brain exercises" (why does the thought of that make me feel slightly ill?), there is more and more scientific evidence that continuing to exercise is the most important strategy of all. Are you wondering why? The New York Times article explains that the brain, like all muscles and organs, is a tissue, and that exercise seems to slow or reverse the brain’s physical decay, much as it does with muscles.
Unfortunately we don’t yet know how the exercise provided by a yoga practice fits into this, as so far all tests have been on animals either running or doing other aerobic activities. Here's another quote from the article:
“It’s not clear if the activity has to be endurance exercise,” says the psychologist and neuroscientist Arthur F. Kramer, director of the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois and a pre-eminent expert on exercise and the brain. A limited number of studies in the past several years have found cognitive benefits among older people who lifted weights for a year and did not otherwise exercise.”
One advantage of yoga for exercise, though, is how versatile it is. There’s strengthening as well as stretching and balancing. By moving with your breath, either in vinyasas or mini vinyasas, you can obtain some of the benefits of aerobic activity. And, who knows, maybe our inverted poses will turn out to have some special benefits for the brain.
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| Plank Pose, A Strength-Building Asana |
- Be sure to include strength building and dynamic movement in your yoga practice, along with stretching and relaxation.
- Challenge your intellect at the same time you are exercising by experimenting with new poses and maybe even memorizing their Sanskrit names.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
How to Stretch
by Nina
I’m conducting a little experiment this month. Every day, I’m going to be sitting in Gomukhasana (just the leg position) to stretch my piriformis muscle, a muscle that runs from the back of my hip (my upper buttocks) to my hip joint. I have restricted mobility in my right hip joint, and it was recommended to me by an expert that stretching my piriformis muscle, which appears to be tighter on the right than the left, might help me gain more mobility in my hip. I’m not sure it’s going to work, but to tell you the truth, I like challenges like this one. And in the past, when I’ve focused on increasing my flexibility in a certain area, I’ve had a lot of success. For example, when I was frustrated with my lack of ease in backbends (okay, okay, that’s the nice way of putting it), for about a year, every time I practiced, I did a long passive upper backbend over a blanket roll to open up my chest and upper back. That was very effective, and my backbends soon became much more enjoyable.
I decided to post about this today because I know that some of you who have tight muscles are just resigned to it. Students sometimes sigh and say things like, “My legs are really tight.” But if there is a certain restriction you have that is having a negative effect on your yoga practice and maybe even your physical wellbeing, you can actually use yoga to target that area. For example, people with very tight hamstrings are not only uncomfortable in forward bends, but they may also have ongoing lower back problems because their leg muscles pull on their lower backs. But by stretching their hamstring muscles regularly and holding the stretches from 90 to 120 seconds, these people will not just release more in their yoga practice, they can also permanently lengthen their muscles to find more comfort and health in their everyday lives. Here's a leg stretch you could practice regularly to permanently lengthen your hamstrings.
In general it is recommended that you hold your stretches from 90 to 120 seconds, in order to obtain permanent results. There are several theories about why this is true, some having to do with fascia and others with the muscles themselves. If you’re interested in learning more, there is an excellent article on stretching on the Yoga Journal web site called What Science Can Teach Us About Flexibility. (Baxter says that some of the recommendations in this article are well supported by science, while others are not, so he suggests you read it with a critical eye.)
In order to hold your stretch for longer periods, you need to make sure you are properly aligned and that you are comfortable enough in the pose to relax and breathe. So be sure to use props if you need them! Remember, a long, relaxed stretch is much more effective than a short battle with your tight muscles. Not to mention, much more fun!
So, have I convinced you now that you’re not stuck with being tight? Just follow these three basic guidelines:
1) Use props to make yourself comfortable in the stretch.
2) Stay in the stretch 90 to 120 seconds.
3) Practice the stretch at least three times a week.
Because I’m not comfortable sitting in Gomukhasana flat on the floor, I’m going to be using a folded blanket under my hips so I can relax in the pose. And I’m going to be staying in the pose for two minutes on each side. I’ll let you know in a month how my experiment goes! And if any of you decide to experiment on yourselves, do tell us about it.
I’m conducting a little experiment this month. Every day, I’m going to be sitting in Gomukhasana (just the leg position) to stretch my piriformis muscle, a muscle that runs from the back of my hip (my upper buttocks) to my hip joint. I have restricted mobility in my right hip joint, and it was recommended to me by an expert that stretching my piriformis muscle, which appears to be tighter on the right than the left, might help me gain more mobility in my hip. I’m not sure it’s going to work, but to tell you the truth, I like challenges like this one. And in the past, when I’ve focused on increasing my flexibility in a certain area, I’ve had a lot of success. For example, when I was frustrated with my lack of ease in backbends (okay, okay, that’s the nice way of putting it), for about a year, every time I practiced, I did a long passive upper backbend over a blanket roll to open up my chest and upper back. That was very effective, and my backbends soon became much more enjoyable.
I decided to post about this today because I know that some of you who have tight muscles are just resigned to it. Students sometimes sigh and say things like, “My legs are really tight.” But if there is a certain restriction you have that is having a negative effect on your yoga practice and maybe even your physical wellbeing, you can actually use yoga to target that area. For example, people with very tight hamstrings are not only uncomfortable in forward bends, but they may also have ongoing lower back problems because their leg muscles pull on their lower backs. But by stretching their hamstring muscles regularly and holding the stretches from 90 to 120 seconds, these people will not just release more in their yoga practice, they can also permanently lengthen their muscles to find more comfort and health in their everyday lives. Here's a leg stretch you could practice regularly to permanently lengthen your hamstrings.
 |
| Reclined Leg Stretch Pose |
In order to hold your stretch for longer periods, you need to make sure you are properly aligned and that you are comfortable enough in the pose to relax and breathe. So be sure to use props if you need them! Remember, a long, relaxed stretch is much more effective than a short battle with your tight muscles. Not to mention, much more fun!
So, have I convinced you now that you’re not stuck with being tight? Just follow these three basic guidelines:
1) Use props to make yourself comfortable in the stretch.
2) Stay in the stretch 90 to 120 seconds.
3) Practice the stretch at least three times a week.
Because I’m not comfortable sitting in Gomukhasana flat on the floor, I’m going to be using a folded blanket under my hips so I can relax in the pose. And I’m going to be staying in the pose for two minutes on each side. I’ll let you know in a month how my experiment goes! And if any of you decide to experiment on yourselves, do tell us about it.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Your Feet on My Mind
by Baxter
I just returned from a five-day trip to Jelapa, Mexico, where I spent the vast majority of my walking time barefoot. I explored the beaches, the cobblestone town, and the dusty dirt trails leading inland, and my feet were in heaven. I was amazed at how quickly I acclimated to being barefoot, and delighted in the adaptability of those two pals of mine as they maneuvered over uneven surfaces efficiently and without any complaints. So it has been an interesting transition back to Oakland and to shoes and boots for urban living. Of course, I am fortunate to practice and teach yoga every day, so I get to spend a decent amount of time barefoot, but not out on the paths and trails as I did in Mexico.
The day after my return, I presented a workshop on healthy feet. In my preparations for the day, I encountered again and again foot-related problems that were directly attributable to shoes! A few months back we talked about one of those conditions, bunions, which certainly are strongly influenced by the shoes we wear. But I came across others, such as toe deformities, including claw toes and hammer toes, which are often a result of high-heeled shoes, and Morton’s neuroma, a painful swelling of the nerve that goes between your third and fourth metatarsal bones in the midfoot, also worsened by shoes too tight in the box.
In addition to this, I came across some interesting facts about human vs. other animal feet. From the Trail Guide of the Body came a fascinating comparison. Mammals such as cats and dogs are called digitigrades, as they actually walk on their toes or phalanges, whereas hoofed animals like horses, called unguligrades, are actually walking on the tips of their toes all the time. We humble humans are classed plantigrades, meaning we walk on the soles of our feet, although some dancers and rock climbers are known to imitate our other mammalian relatives on occasion!
And I am not certain which source proffered this opinion, but I read that it that plantar fascitis or heel spurs can result from shoe wearing by weakening the intrinsic muscles of the feet (those that arise and insert within the foot) such that the force of our weight is transmitted to the plantar fascia, a thin yet tough sheet of connective tissue that spans the sole of the foot, from the heel bone to the base of the toes. Once asked to take on such a big load, the plantar fascia often protests by becoming inflamed, especially where it attaches to the calcaneus bone, or heel bone, which can eventually lead to the formation of a calcified spur of new bone growing out into the fascia…owww!
If we step back from all this news about feet gone bad for a moment and consider the primary functions of our feet, I immediately think of two. First, my feet have to provide stability for me to be able to stand upright like when I am in line at the bank. And, second, my feet have to allow for mobility when I am in movement. So, stability and mobility, all delivered in one package, is called a foot. Yoga, via being practiced in bare feet and involving both stationary or static poses as well as dynamic movement between poses, is a great way to help your feet fulfill their dual role.
Some of us tend to have feet that are a bit stiffer, possibly with a higher arch, which are better suited for stability. Others of us tend to have more pliable, mobile feet, which adapt nicely to changing surfaces as we move about and are in motion. And there can be a nice mix of qualities in some feet. But feet that are very loose and mobile can even go to the extreme of having a collapse of the arches, especially the medial arch, which runs along the inside edge of the foot. For these students there is a unique way to practice standing poses that can help strengthen the intrinsic muscles, as well as those arising above the ankle but inserting on the foot called extrinsic muscles. Keeping your heel grounded as well as the ball of your foot, with a focus on the big and little toe side of your feet, try lifting the toes (not the ball!) of each foot off the floor as you explore the standing poses, starting with Mountain pose, and even working your way eventually to Tree Pose and Warrior 3! If you can do this regularly in your home practice and stay with it for months or longer, you may find that you have re-established your medial arch! Then of course you will need to relearn how to lower your toes without loosing your newfound springy arches. Sounds worth the journey to me.
I just returned from a five-day trip to Jelapa, Mexico, where I spent the vast majority of my walking time barefoot. I explored the beaches, the cobblestone town, and the dusty dirt trails leading inland, and my feet were in heaven. I was amazed at how quickly I acclimated to being barefoot, and delighted in the adaptability of those two pals of mine as they maneuvered over uneven surfaces efficiently and without any complaints. So it has been an interesting transition back to Oakland and to shoes and boots for urban living. Of course, I am fortunate to practice and teach yoga every day, so I get to spend a decent amount of time barefoot, but not out on the paths and trails as I did in Mexico.
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| Bare Feet by Michele McCartney-Filgate |
In addition to this, I came across some interesting facts about human vs. other animal feet. From the Trail Guide of the Body came a fascinating comparison. Mammals such as cats and dogs are called digitigrades, as they actually walk on their toes or phalanges, whereas hoofed animals like horses, called unguligrades, are actually walking on the tips of their toes all the time. We humble humans are classed plantigrades, meaning we walk on the soles of our feet, although some dancers and rock climbers are known to imitate our other mammalian relatives on occasion!
And I am not certain which source proffered this opinion, but I read that it that plantar fascitis or heel spurs can result from shoe wearing by weakening the intrinsic muscles of the feet (those that arise and insert within the foot) such that the force of our weight is transmitted to the plantar fascia, a thin yet tough sheet of connective tissue that spans the sole of the foot, from the heel bone to the base of the toes. Once asked to take on such a big load, the plantar fascia often protests by becoming inflamed, especially where it attaches to the calcaneus bone, or heel bone, which can eventually lead to the formation of a calcified spur of new bone growing out into the fascia…owww!
If we step back from all this news about feet gone bad for a moment and consider the primary functions of our feet, I immediately think of two. First, my feet have to provide stability for me to be able to stand upright like when I am in line at the bank. And, second, my feet have to allow for mobility when I am in movement. So, stability and mobility, all delivered in one package, is called a foot. Yoga, via being practiced in bare feet and involving both stationary or static poses as well as dynamic movement between poses, is a great way to help your feet fulfill their dual role.
Some of us tend to have feet that are a bit stiffer, possibly with a higher arch, which are better suited for stability. Others of us tend to have more pliable, mobile feet, which adapt nicely to changing surfaces as we move about and are in motion. And there can be a nice mix of qualities in some feet. But feet that are very loose and mobile can even go to the extreme of having a collapse of the arches, especially the medial arch, which runs along the inside edge of the foot. For these students there is a unique way to practice standing poses that can help strengthen the intrinsic muscles, as well as those arising above the ankle but inserting on the foot called extrinsic muscles. Keeping your heel grounded as well as the ball of your foot, with a focus on the big and little toe side of your feet, try lifting the toes (not the ball!) of each foot off the floor as you explore the standing poses, starting with Mountain pose, and even working your way eventually to Tree Pose and Warrior 3! If you can do this regularly in your home practice and stay with it for months or longer, you may find that you have re-established your medial arch! Then of course you will need to relearn how to lower your toes without loosing your newfound springy arches. Sounds worth the journey to me.
Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals
1. Firestone Walker Wookey Jack
2. Widmer Raspberry Russian Imperial Stout
cheers,
dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610
Monday, April 23, 2012
For Tamasic Depression: Moving with Your Breath
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| Light in the Mist by Michele McCartney-Filgate |
Last week in my post Tamasic and Rajasic Depression, I mentioned how moving with your breath can be very helpful for people with tamasic depression (or for all of us on those days when we're just feeling blue). We don’t have scientific evidence to prove this, however, many long-time yogis have experienced the enlivening and uplifting sensations of vinyasas and mini vinyasas. And I'm here to testify to that! Some possible reasons why this works are:
- Moving with you breath engages your mind, providing you with temporary respite from depressing thoughts. Coordinating movements with your breath doesn’t give you time to brood or let your mind wander.
- Consciously breathing as you move improves your breathing in general, which can reduce lethargy and fatigue.
- Exercising in general can actually change your mood, possibly by changing your body chemistry.
Practicing a vinyasa with a backbending movement may be the most helpful for depression. For most people, backbends are energizing and uplifting. Patricia Walden, who teaches yoga for depression, says that backbends “let in the light.” In Gary Kraftsow’s sequence for chronic depression in Yoga for Wellness, he includes a mini vinyasa with Bridge pose, a sequence that includes Warrior 1, and second mini vinyasa with Upward-Facing Dog pose, probably for the same reasons.
Today I’m just going to offer up a few ideas for poses you can use to start a practice or to do on their own as mini practices (and, hmmm, now that I look at the list, I realize you could actually do them all, in the order below, as a short sequence). Some of these ideas come from Patricia Walden, some from Gary Kraftsow, and some are my own.
Cat pose: If you can’t even bring yourself to stand up on your yoga mat, whether because you’re depressed, discouraged, or just tired, try starting on hands and knees. Move into your backbend on an inhalation (what some people call Cow pose and what I like to call Purring Cat) and arching your back into Cat pose on an exhalation. Repeat any number of times. Who knows, maybe you’ll feel like going into Doward-Facing Dog pose next or perhaps even standing in Mountain pose on your mat. By the way, you can even do this pose in a chair, as we described in our post Chair Cat Pose, anywhere and in any attire.
Mountain Pose: The easiest standing mini vinyasa is to move in Mountain Pose. Start in Mountain pose, with your arms by your sides. On an inhalation, bring your arms overhead as you bend slightly into a backbend in your upper back. On an exhalation, release back to your starting position, bringing your arms back by your sides. Repeat six times.
Warrior 1: Moving from Warrior 1 stance to full Warrior 1 pose as we illustrated in our post Warrior 1 and Warrior 2 Mini Vinyasas is a more challenging vinyasa. But the fact that it takes more concentration and effort may bring you more powerful results. Repeat six times.
Bridge pose: This is the deepest backbend of the group, which provides the benefits of a good chest opening along with the benefits of moving with your breath. Start by lying on your back with your knees bend, your feet about hips-width apart and your arms by your sides. On an inhalation, press down with your feet as you lift your pelvis off the ground, open your chest, and raise your arms overhead and down toward the floor behind your head. On an exhalation, return to the starting position, dropping your pelvis straight down to the floor as you bring your arms back by your sides. Repeat six times.
I hope that some of you out there will give these a try and let me know how it goes!
Hunger is your best friend: It makes natural foods taste delicious and promotes optimal nutrient partitioning
One of the biggest problems with modern diets rich in industrial foods is that they promote unnatural hunger patterns. For example, hunger can be caused by hypoglycemic dips, coupled with force-storage of fat in adipocytes, after meals rich in refined carbohydrates. This is a double-edged post-meal pattern that is induced by, among other things, abnormally elevated insulin levels. The resulting hunger is a rather unnatural type of hunger.
By the way, I often read here and there, mostly in blogs, that “insulin suppresses hunger”. I frankly don’t know where this idea comes from. What actually happens is that insulin is co-secreted with a number of other hormones. One of those, like insulin also secreted by the beta-cells in the pancreas, is amylin – a powerful appetite suppressor. Amylin deficiency leads to hunger even after a large carbohydrate-rich meal, when insulin levels are elevated.
Abnormally high insulin levels – like those after a “healthy” breakfast of carbohydrate-rich cereals, pancakes etc. – lead to abnormal blood glucose dips soon after the meal. What I am talking about here is a fall in glucose levels that is considerable, and that also happens very fast – illustrated by the ratio between the lengths of the vertical and horizontal black lines on the figure below, from a previous post ().
Those hypoglycemic dips induce hunger, because the hormonal changes necessary to apply a break to the fall in glucose levels (which left unchecked would lead to death) leave us with a hormonal mix that ends up stimulating hunger, in an unnatural way. At the bottom of those dips, insulin levels are much lower than before. I am not talking about diabetics here. I am talking about normoglycemic folks, like the ones whose glucose levels are show on the figure above.
On a diet primarily of natural foods, or foods that are not heavily modified from their natural state, hunger patterns tend to be better synchronized with nutrient deficiencies. This is one of the main advantages of a natural foods diet. By nutrients, I do not mean only micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals, but also macronutrients such as amino and fatty acids.
On a natural diet, nutrient deficiencies should happen regularly. Our bodies are designed for sporadic nutrient intake, remaining most of the time in the fasted state. Human beings are unique in that they have very large brains in proportion to their overall body size, brains that run primarily on glucose – the average person’s brain consumes about 5 g/h of glucose. This latter characteristic makes it very difficult to extrapolate diet-based results based on other species to humans.
As hunger becomes better synchronized with nutrient deficiencies, it should promote optimal nutrient partitioning. This means that, among other things: (a) you should periodically feel hungry for different types of food, depending on your nutrient needs at that point in time; (b) if you do weight training, and fell hungry, some muscle gain should follow; and (c) if you let hunger drive food consumption, on a diet of predominantly natural foods, body fat levels should remain relatively low.
In this sense, hunger becomes your friend – and the best spice!
By the way, I often read here and there, mostly in blogs, that “insulin suppresses hunger”. I frankly don’t know where this idea comes from. What actually happens is that insulin is co-secreted with a number of other hormones. One of those, like insulin also secreted by the beta-cells in the pancreas, is amylin – a powerful appetite suppressor. Amylin deficiency leads to hunger even after a large carbohydrate-rich meal, when insulin levels are elevated.
Abnormally high insulin levels – like those after a “healthy” breakfast of carbohydrate-rich cereals, pancakes etc. – lead to abnormal blood glucose dips soon after the meal. What I am talking about here is a fall in glucose levels that is considerable, and that also happens very fast – illustrated by the ratio between the lengths of the vertical and horizontal black lines on the figure below, from a previous post ().
Those hypoglycemic dips induce hunger, because the hormonal changes necessary to apply a break to the fall in glucose levels (which left unchecked would lead to death) leave us with a hormonal mix that ends up stimulating hunger, in an unnatural way. At the bottom of those dips, insulin levels are much lower than before. I am not talking about diabetics here. I am talking about normoglycemic folks, like the ones whose glucose levels are show on the figure above.
On a diet primarily of natural foods, or foods that are not heavily modified from their natural state, hunger patterns tend to be better synchronized with nutrient deficiencies. This is one of the main advantages of a natural foods diet. By nutrients, I do not mean only micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals, but also macronutrients such as amino and fatty acids.
On a natural diet, nutrient deficiencies should happen regularly. Our bodies are designed for sporadic nutrient intake, remaining most of the time in the fasted state. Human beings are unique in that they have very large brains in proportion to their overall body size, brains that run primarily on glucose – the average person’s brain consumes about 5 g/h of glucose. This latter characteristic makes it very difficult to extrapolate diet-based results based on other species to humans.
As hunger becomes better synchronized with nutrient deficiencies, it should promote optimal nutrient partitioning. This means that, among other things: (a) you should periodically feel hungry for different types of food, depending on your nutrient needs at that point in time; (b) if you do weight training, and fell hungry, some muscle gain should follow; and (c) if you let hunger drive food consumption, on a diet of predominantly natural foods, body fat levels should remain relatively low.
In this sense, hunger becomes your friend – and the best spice!
Friday, April 20, 2012
Friday Q&A: Bunions, A Can, and A Rubber Band
A: Yoga teacher Joanne Mitchell wrote us to let us know what happened after she read Baxter's post New Tricks for Old Dogs: Working with Bunions. With her permission, we're going to share her story with you today. Here is the tale in her own words:
After the February 9 article on bunions, I told my chair yoga class about it and demonstrated the pose with the can and rubber band. One student volunteered to do it for a minimum of 10 minutes a day for a month. Today she reported her results to the class.
She missed only two days out of the month, and some days she did it for 15-20 minutes, but she did it for at least 10 minutes each of the other days. Before she began, she drew an outline of her feet on a piece of cardboard. After her month of faithfully doing this stretch, she redrew the outline. One toe had moved outward about 1/4 of an inch. The other toe has been more stubborn but she says it is now beginning to move out. She can feel a difference in her feet and was pleased to get results after only a month. She intends to keep doing it.
She said the first few days she could feel a stretch down her whole foot and up her lower leg. After a few days that feeling was not noticeable any more. Visitors to her house ask why she keeps a can of black olives and a rubber band on her end table by the TV set, and she explains her toe exercises.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Featured Pose: Chair Seated Forward Bend
This simple pose is another good antidote to sitting upright in your chair. An excellent hip opener, this forward bend counteracts the tightness of your hips that you develop from sitting with your legs straight in front of you, helping you to maintain mobility in your hip joints. The release in your hips can feel wonderful, and you may also feel a good stretch in your lower back and inner thighs. The pose also helps stretch and wake up your arms as you press them toward the floor.
By changing your relationship to gravity, this pose helps release tension you’re holding in your back, neck, and head. This can be particularly helpful if you’ve spent hours in front of your computer screen or driving, and your neck is stiff or even painful. The partial inversion also stimulates your circulatory system and can re-enliven you if you’re feeling sluggish, stimulates your circulatory system.
Because your knees are bent, this is a very accessible forward bend. If you are unable to enjoy straight leg forward bends, you may find this version pose some of the fabled quieting and soothing qualities that you've heard about but never before been able to experience. Try it sometime for stress or anxiety.
Like the other poses in our full-length office yoga sequence (coming soon!), you can do this pose almost anywhere there is a chair and in almost any attire, though probably not in a tight skirt!
Baxter prescribes this for:
- tight hips
- tension in the spine
- mental sluggishness or fatigue
- weakness in the arms (if you engage the arms)
- substitute for inverted poses for those who can’t do full inversions
- alternative for Standing Forward Bend poses for those who can’t bear weight on their legs
- arthritis (for maintaining joint mobility in the hips)
- anxiety or stress
If you have lower back issues or are very stiff in the hips, try a variation of this pose with your elbows on your knees come down about a quarter of the way.
Cautions: This is a relatively safe pose. However, if you have lower back disk disease or pain in your hip joints, approach the pose carefully. And if the pose aggravates your symptoms, come out immediately, and get advice from your teacher about how to get in and out of the pose safely. If you feel excessive pressure in your head, don’t stay in the pose very long.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
The Direct Opposite of Taking Life for Granted
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| Beauty is Everywhere in Vietnam by Michele McCartney-Filgate |
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
A Hard Day
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| Blast off to Somewhere |
I found this fabulous Motivational Poster that says “You are one workout away from a Good Mood”…this is so true! Feels like a hard day, or hard week…all blending together as my fingers are trying to unwrap my feelings as I write this Blog. I always like to say YES…I am human and have hard days, weeks, moments…just like you, I am not immune. Sometimes I want to curl up in a human escape ball and ya know…blasting off to Hawaii sounds pretty good sometimes. OH MY…what a share…well, why not…I mean really??? I have no fear of sharing who I am with you. I am in and out of my workout writing this getting into that “Good Mood” coming from a great sweat. It is my free therapy session where I process all the crap that can attempt to bring me down or create a hard day. As things come to my mind, I am near my computer for entry…that being said, back at it soon to return that will be for certain.
What the heck am I talking about…well, lots of things that have not been so fun…illness, a little surgery, and you know what can bother the most…being hit with the daily not so great communication or circumstances that can come from OMG…really…from them, or her, or him. BIG YUCK…I am sure I am not sharing anything new…this screams…ARC TRAINER please and the other poster that I just found and absolutely LOVE…”God is STRONGER than my mood”…whew…Perfect for today and has been an “In My Face MOTIVATION” Screen Saver for me this week!
No…it is NOT my period or hormonal issues…although I must say that I do feel more anxious and edgy during that time…generally, I do not allow that to have any power over me though. I am talking about living one day at a time, and just having, well…a hard day…I will not call it a bad day because I do not believe that days are bad…they are gifts. I am happy to be here today…although hard…I am thankful.
I am definitely a believer of a drama free life, not sweating the small stuff, letting go of those things I can’t control, and responding to life’s circumstances is 90% of the outcome. Sometimes, depending on what the heck has hit me in the “funk” face determines how difficult it will be to not be sad, funky, down or whatever word best fits the scenario. I mean, if something continues to sneak into my mind and try to bug me…YUCK…it must have bothered me for some reason. I will say to myself…I have let that go… so what the heck…maybe something triggered it…who knows…but the BEST I can do is be my absolute BEST through all situations…which I will also share…I AM NOT PERFECT…and so sometimes get this wrong. I mean really, if I always get it right, then how am I learning? Life is a learning journey and I will experience let downs, hard days, unfair circumstances, and unkind words …do I like this part…well, of course not. Don’t we all want fairy tale days full of nothing but happy times, carefree living, sitting at nearby cafés sipping our favorite beverages while watching people stroll by…that warm fuzzy life that is perfect, picturesque, and stress free…OK…KNOCK KNOCK…time to wake up…this is not reality, and only a fairy tale perfect for travel brochures and romance novels.
What does sharing this have to do with living my healthy life…I think it still comes down to how I handle things. Today feels like a hard day and the last couple months have been up and down a funky town ride, and I am going to grab onto that poster that I shared in the beginning…”I AM ONLY ONE WORKOUT AWAY FROM A GOOD MOOD”. I release so much stress when I get my sweat on and achieve a feeling of strength that is greater than anything a hard day can give me. Like I shared in my last Blog…my free therapy session…and when I am done with that hour, I seem to have a whole new perspective on things. My mood is definitely lifted in a positive direction, and I can think clearer, and make better choices for myself.
So... Hard Day…Go Take a Hike!
Motivation of the Day: You Are Only One Workout Away from a Good Mood
Workout of the Day:
ARC Trainer: Strength Mode, Level 6, 30 minutes (this kicked my literal Bootay)
Triceps/Biceps Interval
Cable push downs: 15lbs, 8reps, 5 sets
Tube kickbacks: (medium resistance): 8 reps, 5 sets
Interval of choice (one minute)
Biceps curls: 12lbs 8-10 reps, 5 sets
Interval
Nutrition of the Day:
1. Coffee with Sprouted Wheat Bread drizzled with honey
2. Post Workout Juice/Protein Shake Combo (The Works)
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| Stay Healthy Quinoa Chicken with Fresh Basil |
3. Shredded Chicken Breast on Thin Bun with Avocado
4. Juice/Protein Shake (The Works)
5. Quinoa Chicken with Fresh Basil
6. Peanut Butter Protein Balls
IF YOU ENJOYED MY BLOG, LIKE IT, LEAVE A COMMENT, AND IF INSPIRED TO SUPPORT STAY HEALTHY FITNESS WITH A SHAKE DONATION…I THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!
Tamasic and Rajasic Depression
by Nina
I can’t seem to face up to the facts
I’m tense and nervous and I can’t relax
I can’t sleep ‘cause my bed’s on fire
Don’t touch me I’m a real live wire
—from Psycho Killer by the Talking Heads
At one point in my life, I felt those lyrics from Psycho Killer described me perfectly. If you are suffering from depression or just feeling “depressed,” how exactly would you describe your feelings? Because the type of depression you have—whether it is tamasic or rajasic—will determine how you can use yoga to relieve your depression. The same thing is true if you want to help a student who has depression or is just feeling depressed. You’ll need to question your student about his or her symptoms and feelings, and use your powers of observation, to determine the right approach you should take to help them.
The term “tamasic depression” comes from the Sanskrit term “tamas.” Tamas, one of the gunas, which are the three primordial qualities of matter that make up all of creation, is responsible for inertia. So tamasic depression describes the type of depression where lethargy, fatigue, and hopelessness predominate. People with tamasic depression may have slumped shoulders, collapsed chests, and sunken eyes, and may look as if they are barely breathing. That tamasic feeling of not being able to get out of bed is evoked for me by the Blind Melon song “No Rain.”
And I don't understand why sleep all day
And I start to complain that there's no rain.
And all I can do is read a book to stay awake,
And it rips my life away but it's a great escape.
Escape, escape, escape.
Because of the lethargic aspect, people with tamasic depression need energizing as well as uplifting. Active poses, such as standing poses, backbends, and sequences where you move with your breath are all helpful for tamasic depression. However, people with tamasic depression also suffer from stress, so they may need to include relaxation in their practice. (Yesterday’s post Warrior 1 and Warrior 2 Mini Vinyasas mentioned that the two Warrior mini vinyasas can be helpful for depression, and in that case we were thinking mostly of tamasic depression, where moving in and out of the standing poses with the breath is energizing as well as uplifting.)
The term “rajasic depression” comes from the Sanskrit term “rajas.” Rajas, also one of the three primordial qualities of matter that make up all of creation, is responsible for activity. So rajasic depression describes the type of depression where agitation and anxiety predominate. People with rajasic depression may have stiff bodies and racing minds, with a hardness around their eyes, and may suffer from relentless insomnia. Even in Corpse pose or restorative poses, their eyes may dart and their fingers won't stay still. Some of these people report difficulty in exhaling fully, a symptom often linked to anxiety. That rajasic feeling of not being able to rest is evoked for me by the Talking Heads song “Psycho Killer.”
Because of the agitated aspect, people with rajasic depression need calming and soothing, rather than energizing. So inverted poses, forward bends, passive backbends and restorative poses are helpful for rajasic depression. However, people with rajasic depression may need to release the physical tension in their bodies first before they are ready to relax, so they may need to include some active poses in their practice.
The third guna is satva, which is the primordial quality of matter that is responsible for “being” or “existence,” and which has also been translated to mean balance, order, or purity. This is the quality we’re aiming for in our yoga practice, moving away from being too tamasic or rajasic toward a more satvic state. A person who is primarily “satvic” would be someone who is neither too tamasic or rajasic and is therefore in a more healthy mental state.
But the truth is that even those of us who are mentally healthy feel out of balance some of the time, and we can experience mildly tamasic or rajasic days, even if we don’t have a full-blown tamasic or rajasic depression. So all the techniques I’ll describe in future posts for helping with tamasic or rajasic depression can be beneficial for anyone who is simply, like that kid, Alexander, having a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
I can’t seem to face up to the facts
I’m tense and nervous and I can’t relax
I can’t sleep ‘cause my bed’s on fire
Don’t touch me I’m a real live wire
—from Psycho Killer by the Talking Heads
At one point in my life, I felt those lyrics from Psycho Killer described me perfectly. If you are suffering from depression or just feeling “depressed,” how exactly would you describe your feelings? Because the type of depression you have—whether it is tamasic or rajasic—will determine how you can use yoga to relieve your depression. The same thing is true if you want to help a student who has depression or is just feeling depressed. You’ll need to question your student about his or her symptoms and feelings, and use your powers of observation, to determine the right approach you should take to help them.
The term “tamasic depression” comes from the Sanskrit term “tamas.” Tamas, one of the gunas, which are the three primordial qualities of matter that make up all of creation, is responsible for inertia. So tamasic depression describes the type of depression where lethargy, fatigue, and hopelessness predominate. People with tamasic depression may have slumped shoulders, collapsed chests, and sunken eyes, and may look as if they are barely breathing. That tamasic feeling of not being able to get out of bed is evoked for me by the Blind Melon song “No Rain.”
And I don't understand why sleep all day
And I start to complain that there's no rain.
And all I can do is read a book to stay awake,
And it rips my life away but it's a great escape.
Escape, escape, escape.
Because of the lethargic aspect, people with tamasic depression need energizing as well as uplifting. Active poses, such as standing poses, backbends, and sequences where you move with your breath are all helpful for tamasic depression. However, people with tamasic depression also suffer from stress, so they may need to include relaxation in their practice. (Yesterday’s post Warrior 1 and Warrior 2 Mini Vinyasas mentioned that the two Warrior mini vinyasas can be helpful for depression, and in that case we were thinking mostly of tamasic depression, where moving in and out of the standing poses with the breath is energizing as well as uplifting.)
The term “rajasic depression” comes from the Sanskrit term “rajas.” Rajas, also one of the three primordial qualities of matter that make up all of creation, is responsible for activity. So rajasic depression describes the type of depression where agitation and anxiety predominate. People with rajasic depression may have stiff bodies and racing minds, with a hardness around their eyes, and may suffer from relentless insomnia. Even in Corpse pose or restorative poses, their eyes may dart and their fingers won't stay still. Some of these people report difficulty in exhaling fully, a symptom often linked to anxiety. That rajasic feeling of not being able to rest is evoked for me by the Talking Heads song “Psycho Killer.”
Because of the agitated aspect, people with rajasic depression need calming and soothing, rather than energizing. So inverted poses, forward bends, passive backbends and restorative poses are helpful for rajasic depression. However, people with rajasic depression may need to release the physical tension in their bodies first before they are ready to relax, so they may need to include some active poses in their practice.
The third guna is satva, which is the primordial quality of matter that is responsible for “being” or “existence,” and which has also been translated to mean balance, order, or purity. This is the quality we’re aiming for in our yoga practice, moving away from being too tamasic or rajasic toward a more satvic state. A person who is primarily “satvic” would be someone who is neither too tamasic or rajasic and is therefore in a more healthy mental state.
But the truth is that even those of us who are mentally healthy feel out of balance some of the time, and we can experience mildly tamasic or rajasic days, even if we don’t have a full-blown tamasic or rajasic depression. So all the techniques I’ll describe in future posts for helping with tamasic or rajasic depression can be beneficial for anyone who is simply, like that kid, Alexander, having a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Hormonal reductionism is as myopic as biochemical reductionism
Biochemistry-based arguments can be very misleading. Yet, biochemistry can be extremely useful in the elucidation of diet and lifestyle effects that are suggested by well-designed studies of humans. If you start with a biochemistry-based argument though, and ignore actual studies of humans, you can easily convince someone that glycogen-depleting exercise (e.g., weight training) is unhealthy, because many health markers change for the worse after that type of exercise. But it is the damage caused by glycogen-depleting exercise that leads to health improvements, via short- and long-term compensatory adaptations ().
Biochemistry is very helpful in terms of providing “pieces for the puzzle”, but biochemical reductionism is a problem. Analogous to biochemical reductionism, and perhaps one example of it, is hormonal reductionism – trying to argue that all diet and lifestyle effects are mediated by a single hormone. A less extreme position, but still myopic, is to argue that all diet and lifestyle effects are mostly mediated by a single hormone.
One of my own “favorite” hormones is adiponectin, which I have been discussing for years in this blog (). Increased serum adiponectin has been found to be significantly associated with: decreased body fat (particularly decreased visceral fat), decreased risk of developing diabetes type 2, and decreased blood pressure. Adiponectin appears to also have anti-inflammatory and athero-protective properties.
As a side note, typically women have higher levels of serum adiponectin than men, particularly young women. Culturally we have a tendency to see young women as “delicate” and “vulnerable”. Guess what? Young women are the closest we get to “indestructible” in the human species. And there is an evolutionary reason for that, which is that fertile women have been in our evolutionary past, and still are, the bottleneck of any population. A population of 100 individuals, where 99 are men and 1 is a woman, will quickly disappear. If it is 99 women and 1 fertile man, the population will grow; but there will also be some problems due to inbreeding. Even if the guy is ugly the population will grow; without competition, he will look very cute.
Jung and colleagues measured various hormone levels in 78 obese people who had visited obesity clinics at five university hospitals (Ajou, Ulsan, Catholic, Hanyang and Yonsei) in Korea (). Those folks restricted their caloric intake to 500 calories less than their usual intake, and exercised, for 12 weeks. Below are the measured changes in tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α, now called only TNF), interleukin-6 (IL-6), resistin, leptin, adiponectin, and interleukin-10 (IL-10).
We see from the table above that the hormonal changes were all significant (all at the P equal to or lower than 0.001 level except one, at the P lower than 0.05 level), and all indicative of health improvements. The serum concentrations of all hormones decreased, with two exceptions – adiponectin and interleukin-10, which increased. Interleukin-10 is an anti-inflammatory hormone produced by white blood cells. The most significant increase of the two was by far in adiponectin (P = .001, versus P = .041 for interleukin-10).
Now, should we try to find a way of producing synthetic adiponectin then? My guess is that doing that will not lead to very positive results in human trials; because, as you can see from the table, hormones vary in concert. At the moment, the only way to “supplement” adiponectin is to lose body fat, and that leads to concurrent changes in many other hormones (e.g., TNF decreases).
Trying to manipulate one single hormone, or build an entire health-improvement approach based on its effects, is myopic. But that is what often happens. Leptin is a relatively recent example.
One reason why biochemistry is so complex, with so many convoluted processes, is that evolution is a tinkerer that is “blind” to complexity. Traits appear at random in populations and spread if they increase reproductive success; even if they decrease survival success, by the way ().
Evolution is not an engineer, and is not even our “friend” (). To optimize our health, we need to “hack” evolution.
Biochemistry is very helpful in terms of providing “pieces for the puzzle”, but biochemical reductionism is a problem. Analogous to biochemical reductionism, and perhaps one example of it, is hormonal reductionism – trying to argue that all diet and lifestyle effects are mediated by a single hormone. A less extreme position, but still myopic, is to argue that all diet and lifestyle effects are mostly mediated by a single hormone.
One of my own “favorite” hormones is adiponectin, which I have been discussing for years in this blog (). Increased serum adiponectin has been found to be significantly associated with: decreased body fat (particularly decreased visceral fat), decreased risk of developing diabetes type 2, and decreased blood pressure. Adiponectin appears to also have anti-inflammatory and athero-protective properties.
As a side note, typically women have higher levels of serum adiponectin than men, particularly young women. Culturally we have a tendency to see young women as “delicate” and “vulnerable”. Guess what? Young women are the closest we get to “indestructible” in the human species. And there is an evolutionary reason for that, which is that fertile women have been in our evolutionary past, and still are, the bottleneck of any population. A population of 100 individuals, where 99 are men and 1 is a woman, will quickly disappear. If it is 99 women and 1 fertile man, the population will grow; but there will also be some problems due to inbreeding. Even if the guy is ugly the population will grow; without competition, he will look very cute.
Jung and colleagues measured various hormone levels in 78 obese people who had visited obesity clinics at five university hospitals (Ajou, Ulsan, Catholic, Hanyang and Yonsei) in Korea (). Those folks restricted their caloric intake to 500 calories less than their usual intake, and exercised, for 12 weeks. Below are the measured changes in tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α, now called only TNF), interleukin-6 (IL-6), resistin, leptin, adiponectin, and interleukin-10 (IL-10).
We see from the table above that the hormonal changes were all significant (all at the P equal to or lower than 0.001 level except one, at the P lower than 0.05 level), and all indicative of health improvements. The serum concentrations of all hormones decreased, with two exceptions – adiponectin and interleukin-10, which increased. Interleukin-10 is an anti-inflammatory hormone produced by white blood cells. The most significant increase of the two was by far in adiponectin (P = .001, versus P = .041 for interleukin-10).
Now, should we try to find a way of producing synthetic adiponectin then? My guess is that doing that will not lead to very positive results in human trials; because, as you can see from the table, hormones vary in concert. At the moment, the only way to “supplement” adiponectin is to lose body fat, and that leads to concurrent changes in many other hormones (e.g., TNF decreases).
Trying to manipulate one single hormone, or build an entire health-improvement approach based on its effects, is myopic. But that is what often happens. Leptin is a relatively recent example.
One reason why biochemistry is so complex, with so many convoluted processes, is that evolution is a tinkerer that is “blind” to complexity. Traits appear at random in populations and spread if they increase reproductive success; even if they decrease survival success, by the way ().
Evolution is not an engineer, and is not even our “friend” (). To optimize our health, we need to “hack” evolution.
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Warrior 1 and Warrior 2 Mini Vinyasas
by Baxter and Nina
Last week in his post “Sequencing in the Style of Krishnamacharya, Part 2” Baxter described a Krishnamacharya-style mini vinyasa. Unfortunately at the time we didn’t have—and couldn’t find—a suitable set of photographs we could use to illustrate the pose that he was describing. However, the next time we had one of our little photo sessions, Nina cleverly decided to sneak in a few extras shots to illustrate the Warrior 2 mini vinyasa Baxter wrote about in his post. And Baxter had the idea of including a bonus set of photos to illustrate a second mini vinyasa, Warrior 1. We are now delighted to share the new photos with you, along with instructions for practicing the two mini vinyasas.
Moving in and out of a pose your breath can be very helpful if you’re feeling fatigued or even depressed. Although it’s not as physical demanding as holding a pose for a long time, this way of practicing can be quite energizing and uplifting. If you have never practiced Warrior 1 or 2 dynamically, give it a try sometime and let us know what you think!
Warrior 2 Vinyasa
Start with your feet four feet apart, adjusted as usual, with your legs straight and your arms relaxed at your sides.
On an inhalation, lift your arms up parallel with floor and bend your front knee to 90 degrees.
Then, on your exhalation, lower your arms and straighten your front leg.
Repeat this cycle five more times on your right side. And after completing six rounds on the right, repeat six round on your left.
Warrior 1 Vinyasa
The Warrior 1 mini vinyasa is very similar to the Warrior 2 mini vinyasa. Start with your feet four feet apart in Warrior 1 stance, with your legs straight and your arms relaxed at your sides.
On an inhalation, raise your arms over head and bend your front knee to 90 degrees.
Then, on your exhalation, lower your arms and straighten your front leg.
Repeat this cycle five more times on your right side. And after completing six rounds on the right, repeat six round on your left.
Last week in his post “Sequencing in the Style of Krishnamacharya, Part 2” Baxter described a Krishnamacharya-style mini vinyasa. Unfortunately at the time we didn’t have—and couldn’t find—a suitable set of photographs we could use to illustrate the pose that he was describing. However, the next time we had one of our little photo sessions, Nina cleverly decided to sneak in a few extras shots to illustrate the Warrior 2 mini vinyasa Baxter wrote about in his post. And Baxter had the idea of including a bonus set of photos to illustrate a second mini vinyasa, Warrior 1. We are now delighted to share the new photos with you, along with instructions for practicing the two mini vinyasas.
Moving in and out of a pose your breath can be very helpful if you’re feeling fatigued or even depressed. Although it’s not as physical demanding as holding a pose for a long time, this way of practicing can be quite energizing and uplifting. If you have never practiced Warrior 1 or 2 dynamically, give it a try sometime and let us know what you think!
Warrior 2 Vinyasa
Start with your feet four feet apart, adjusted as usual, with your legs straight and your arms relaxed at your sides.
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| Starting Position |
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| Inhale Position |
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| Exhale Position |
Warrior 1 Vinyasa
The Warrior 1 mini vinyasa is very similar to the Warrior 2 mini vinyasa. Start with your feet four feet apart in Warrior 1 stance, with your legs straight and your arms relaxed at your sides.
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| Start Position |
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| Inhale Position |
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| Exhale Position |
Friday, April 13, 2012
Workshops of Interest: Healthy Feet
As part of his healthy living series at Mountain Yoga, in Montclair, California, Baxter Bell will be offering a workshop on Healthy Feet, next Saturday, April 21, from 2:00 to 5:00 pm. This session will focus on the under-appreciated and overused foot and ankle. You'll learn about healthy feet and how to work with troublesome conditions of the foot and ankle. Hope to see some of you there!
For further information, see the Mountain Yoga website.
For further information, see the Mountain Yoga website.
Friday Q&A: Hip Pain
Q: I was hoping someone could give me some advice for poses that can help reduce the pain of minor hip dysplasia. My left hip regularly becomes inflamed and sore, and I would like to know what stretches can provide pain relief and also strengthening poses to develop the muscles in a way that will cushion my joint.
A: Dysplasia is an inherited condition. You are born with it. It is due to a shallow acetabulum and how then the hip sits inside the pelvis. It might be helpful for you to learn how much internal rotation and external rotation you have in that hip compared to your other, non-symptomatic hip. Once you know your available range of motion, you need to respect this and not try to put your hip into positions that it can't anatomically go into due to structural assymmetries. That said, you then need to look at how you position that hip in standing poses. If you tend to turn the front leg out too much or too little this will affect how the pelvis rolls over the hip. It would be helpful if you ask a teacher to help you analyze how you hold your legs and to try to get that hip into a more mid-range position. Once that hip is in neutral, you can strengthen the muscles around the hip by holding your poses for up to 90 seconds. Building strength with isometric muscle contractions through the joint will nourish the joint and help keep it healthy.
The down side of this is that in standing poses you are typically in weight bearing positions, which may tend to aggravate the joint too much. If this is the case, you may want to try to recreate the neutral hip position in symmetrical seated positions such as Dandasana or Upavista Konasana. The same principle would apply to stretching muscles that cross both your knee and hip joints. Keep your hip/knee in neutral to avoid aggravating the joint. —Shari
A: In addition to the sound information Shari has shared with you, know that in adults with hip dyplasia, arthritis developing in the hips can also add to the unusual structure of the hip with dysplasia. So if you have not had a recent check up to assess your joint via xrays or MRI, it might be good to consider doing so, so you know the present condition of the joint. And certainly, respecting the safe range of motion of that hip joint will give you a sense of how you may need to modify your poses, especially weight bearing ones. Another advantage to working one on one with a good teacher is that you can also learn some poses that will be helpful when your hip is painful, which likely implies some underlying inflammation in the joint. Standing poses would not be a good idea at that time.
I like to teach students to re-create many of the standing poses while lying supine, or on your back, with the soles of your feet pressed against a baseboard, as if it was the floor. In addition, doing some supported inversions with your legs in the air, such as Vipariti Karani or Chair Shoulderstand, will take most of the weight off your hip joints and potentially allow the inflamed area some rest. A final suggestion is for the standing version of Mountain Pose. Imagine your pelvis bones lifting off your leg or femur bones as you root down with your leg bones towards your feet. My students with hip arthritis often report back that this instruction feels very good in the hips. —Baxter
A: Dysplasia is an inherited condition. You are born with it. It is due to a shallow acetabulum and how then the hip sits inside the pelvis. It might be helpful for you to learn how much internal rotation and external rotation you have in that hip compared to your other, non-symptomatic hip. Once you know your available range of motion, you need to respect this and not try to put your hip into positions that it can't anatomically go into due to structural assymmetries. That said, you then need to look at how you position that hip in standing poses. If you tend to turn the front leg out too much or too little this will affect how the pelvis rolls over the hip. It would be helpful if you ask a teacher to help you analyze how you hold your legs and to try to get that hip into a more mid-range position. Once that hip is in neutral, you can strengthen the muscles around the hip by holding your poses for up to 90 seconds. Building strength with isometric muscle contractions through the joint will nourish the joint and help keep it healthy.
The down side of this is that in standing poses you are typically in weight bearing positions, which may tend to aggravate the joint too much. If this is the case, you may want to try to recreate the neutral hip position in symmetrical seated positions such as Dandasana or Upavista Konasana. The same principle would apply to stretching muscles that cross both your knee and hip joints. Keep your hip/knee in neutral to avoid aggravating the joint. —Shari
A: In addition to the sound information Shari has shared with you, know that in adults with hip dyplasia, arthritis developing in the hips can also add to the unusual structure of the hip with dysplasia. So if you have not had a recent check up to assess your joint via xrays or MRI, it might be good to consider doing so, so you know the present condition of the joint. And certainly, respecting the safe range of motion of that hip joint will give you a sense of how you may need to modify your poses, especially weight bearing ones. Another advantage to working one on one with a good teacher is that you can also learn some poses that will be helpful when your hip is painful, which likely implies some underlying inflammation in the joint. Standing poses would not be a good idea at that time.
I like to teach students to re-create many of the standing poses while lying supine, or on your back, with the soles of your feet pressed against a baseboard, as if it was the floor. In addition, doing some supported inversions with your legs in the air, such as Vipariti Karani or Chair Shoulderstand, will take most of the weight off your hip joints and potentially allow the inflamed area some rest. A final suggestion is for the standing version of Mountain Pose. Imagine your pelvis bones lifting off your leg or femur bones as you root down with your leg bones towards your feet. My students with hip arthritis often report back that this instruction feels very good in the hips. —Baxter
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals
1. Upright Brewing Four
2. Upright Brewing Five
3. Upright Brewing Six
4. Upright Brewing Seven
5. Jester King Black Metal Imperial Stout (Farmhouse Version)
6. Devil's Canyon Sunshine Rye IPA
7. Speakeasy Scarface Stout
8. Rogue Russian Imperial Stout 2011 (large ceramic bottles)
cheers,
dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610
Featured Pose: Chair Cat Pose
This seated version of Cat pose is a great way to counteract the tendency to round forward when you sit in front of your computer, laptop, or tablet, or commute in your car. For those who tend to assume a head forward position, this pose returns your head to a healthier alignment over your shoulders. And moving back and forth between arching and rounding your spine strengthens the muscles that support your head in a more even way. For all of us, moving your spine back and forth between flexion (rounded) and extension (arched) helps keep your spine healthy by providing nourishment to the bones and disks.
Because you move rhythmically with your breath in this pose, you take in more oxygen, which has a positive effect on your respiratory system and can help if you get winded easily. In addition, moving with your breath is a stimulating, which may perk you up when you are feeling sluggish and can help you focus your concentration. It’s a good way to kick start your practice when you are feeling fatigued or depressed. After you start gently moving in this pose, you may feel ready for some larger movements.
This pose is perfect for an office or traveling yoga practice because you can do it in any attire, anywhere there is a chair. It’s also a good alternative to Cat pose on the floor for anyone who has problem putting weight on their hands or trouble getting down to and up from the floor.
Baxter prescribes this pose for:
• general stiffness in neck, upper back and lower back
• lower back pain
• head-forward syndrome
• depression
• lack of concentration
• improving breathing, if you get winded easily
• safe exercise for scoliosis or osteoporosis because it is gentle, though effective
• alternative to Cat pose on the floor for those with wrist problems
Instructions: Sit at the front edge of your chair, with your feet about hips-width apart and flat on the floor, and your knees parallel to each other. With your arms relatively straight, rest your hands on your knees or thighs. Lengthen your spine from your sitting bones up through the crown of your head, establishing as much space between the bones of the spine as you can.
Cautions: This is a very safe pose that’s suitable for almost everyone! Naturally if you have a condition that causes pain when you do this pose, you should approach it with carefully, avoiding it entirely if it causing any flare-ups.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals
1. Angry Orchard Apple Cider
2. 21st Amendment Monk's Blood
3. Lost Abbey Red Poppy
4. Old Crafty Hen Vintage Ale
5. Bruery Mischief
6. Bruery Saison Rue
7. Einstok Icelandic White Ale
8. Einstok Toasted Porter
9. Port Brewing Hop 15 DIPA
10. High Water Doppelsticke Alt
11. High Water Campfire Stout
12. Grand Teton Lost Continent DIPA
13. Oskar Blues Deviant Dale's IPA
14. New Glassware from Lost Abbey/Reissdorf/Duchesse De Bourgogne and Tripel Karmeliet
cheers,
dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610
2. 21st Amendment Monk's Blood
3. Lost Abbey Red Poppy
4. Old Crafty Hen Vintage Ale
5. Bruery Mischief
6. Bruery Saison Rue
7. Einstok Icelandic White Ale
8. Einstok Toasted Porter
9. Port Brewing Hop 15 DIPA
10. High Water Doppelsticke Alt
11. High Water Campfire Stout
12. Grand Teton Lost Continent DIPA
13. Oskar Blues Deviant Dale's IPA
14. New Glassware from Lost Abbey/Reissdorf/Duchesse De Bourgogne and Tripel Karmeliet
cheers,
dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610
Take Back Yoga!
by Nina
This morning I listened to a short piece on NPR this morning about the “Take Back Yoga” campaigned launched by the Hindu American Foundation (see here). According to this report, some American Hindus are saying yoga is about far more than exercise and breathing techniques, and they want recognition that it comes from a deeper philosophy, one, in their view, with Hindu roots. Sheetal Shah, senior director of the foundation, said, "What we’re trying to say is that the holistic practice of yoga goes beyond just a couple of asanas [postures] on a mat. It is a lifestyle, and it’s a philosophy. How do you lead your life in terms of truthfulness? And nonviolence? And purity? The lifestyle aspect of yoga has been lost."
If you’ve read this blog before, you already realize that none of us are in the “yoga is just a couple of asanas on a mat” camp. I’m even willing to bet that the four of us would agree the philosophy and lifestyle aspects of yoga will be more helpful than the asanas for allowing us to age gracefully. So I definitely agree with the Hindu American Foundation that many Americans have serious misconceptions about yoga. However, while we may agree that yoga is not just asanas, agreeing on exactly what it is, is more difficult than you might think.
In recent years I’ve done a lot of reading about yoga history and philosophy. And I’ve been particularly influenced by Georg Feuerstein’s masterful (and somewhat dry, I admit) The Yoga Tradition: Its History, Literature, Philosophy and Practice. One major insight this book brought me was what a minor part hatha yoga played during the history of yoga. Although yoga may be thousands of years old, for most of that time it had nothing at all to do physical postures. But another major insight for me was how little agreement there was during those thousands of years about what yoga was and how to practice it.
Even though yoga originally evolved as part of Hinduism, it was also adopted by the Sikhs, the Jains, and the Buddhists. And the different religions naturally had their own takes on yoga. But even among the Hindus, there were an enormous variety of interpretations, with a large schism developing between those who worshiped Vishnu and those who believed in Shiva. Then there was the dualism vs. non-dualism conflict, not to mention sex is good/bad, the body is good/bad, and you can achieve liberation in this lifetime/no you can’t. They didn’t even agree on how many “branches” of yoga there are! While classical yoga (the yoga of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras) has the well-known eight branches of yoga, other traditions have ten or twelve or even more.
So where does that leave us? There just is no simple answer. While some of you may find a teacher whose particular take on yoga you can adopt, others, like me, are left to piece something together for themselves. If you’re interested, you can start by reading some of the classic yoga texts, such as The Bhagavad Gita and The Yoga Sutras. Maybe you’ll even be willing to take on Georg Feuerstein’s book. Just be skeptical of anyone who claims there is only one right way to think about yoga.
This morning I listened to a short piece on NPR this morning about the “Take Back Yoga” campaigned launched by the Hindu American Foundation (see here). According to this report, some American Hindus are saying yoga is about far more than exercise and breathing techniques, and they want recognition that it comes from a deeper philosophy, one, in their view, with Hindu roots. Sheetal Shah, senior director of the foundation, said, "What we’re trying to say is that the holistic practice of yoga goes beyond just a couple of asanas [postures] on a mat. It is a lifestyle, and it’s a philosophy. How do you lead your life in terms of truthfulness? And nonviolence? And purity? The lifestyle aspect of yoga has been lost."
If you’ve read this blog before, you already realize that none of us are in the “yoga is just a couple of asanas on a mat” camp. I’m even willing to bet that the four of us would agree the philosophy and lifestyle aspects of yoga will be more helpful than the asanas for allowing us to age gracefully. So I definitely agree with the Hindu American Foundation that many Americans have serious misconceptions about yoga. However, while we may agree that yoga is not just asanas, agreeing on exactly what it is, is more difficult than you might think.
In recent years I’ve done a lot of reading about yoga history and philosophy. And I’ve been particularly influenced by Georg Feuerstein’s masterful (and somewhat dry, I admit) The Yoga Tradition: Its History, Literature, Philosophy and Practice. One major insight this book brought me was what a minor part hatha yoga played during the history of yoga. Although yoga may be thousands of years old, for most of that time it had nothing at all to do physical postures. But another major insight for me was how little agreement there was during those thousands of years about what yoga was and how to practice it.
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| Shadows of Leaves by Brad Gibson |
So where does that leave us? There just is no simple answer. While some of you may find a teacher whose particular take on yoga you can adopt, others, like me, are left to piece something together for themselves. If you’re interested, you can start by reading some of the classic yoga texts, such as The Bhagavad Gita and The Yoga Sutras. Maybe you’ll even be willing to take on Georg Feuerstein’s book. Just be skeptical of anyone who claims there is only one right way to think about yoga.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Sequencing in the Style of Krishnamacharya, Part 2
by Baxter
Last week, I introduced a few key concepts for you to consider as you think about trying to design a home practice using T. Krishnamacharya’s approach (see Sequencing in the Style of Krishnamacharya). Before diving into today’s discussion, you might want to take a few seconds to review that post. As we build our understanding of how to put a practice together, I’d like to share another foundational perspective and also introduce the concept of the “mini-vinyasa.”
In addition to having an eye to a goal for your practice, and understanding which stage of life you are in and what additional work or reflection you need to do as you start your practice, you need to evaluate on any given day whether your overall system in a state of fatigue, depletion or weakness or if you are in relative good health, energized, strong and balanced. Once you have an honest sense of that, you can apply another essential concept to how you will design and approach the yoga today.
Two terms help to clarify the way in which you will practice and even the attitude you will cultivate as you work: brahmana and langhana. Both concepts are very helpful when you are addressing injury or illness, but I find them helpful for everyday practice as well. And although Desikachar first connects these terms to how you breathe as you move between poses, I find the concepts can also be applied more generally.
Brahmana, which can translate as “to expand,” refers to a lengthening of the inhalation, with the possibility of adding a short pause or retention at the end of the inhale. This tends to energize and heat the body, which could be perfect for someone who’s underlying energy is a bit sluggish. Brahmana breathing tends to affect the chest and lungs more and anatomically fits better with back bending poses.
Langhana, which can translate as “to fast” or “to reduce,” refers to extending the length of the exhalation, with a possible pause or hold at the end of the exhale. Langhana practices tend to have a quieting and cooling effect on your system, so could be helpful in anxious or stressful times, as well as when you are generally depleted and need support. Langhana breathing tends to work better for forward bending practices and has a greater effect of the upper and lower belly, so could be good for processes of elimination.
In this system, unlike some others, you start working consciously with your breath with your very first asana sequence, since something called a “mini-vinyasa” is used. Instead of coming into a pose, say Warrior 2, and holding it for one to two minutes, with the mini-vinyasa method, you begin from a starting position, coordinate with your breath as you come into the full pose, and then return to the starting position with the next part of your breath. Typically this cycle is repeated about six rounds.
As an example, for Warrior 2, you would begin with your feet four feet apart, adjusted as usual, with your arms relaxed to your sides. On an inhalation, you would lift your arms up parallel with floor and bend your front knee to 90 degrees. Then, on your exhalation, you would lower your arms and straighten your front leg. You would then repeat this cycle five more times. And after completing six rounds on the right, you would repeat six round on the left.
To any mini-vinyasa, you could apply the concept of langhana or brahmana. In our example, since there is a natural expanding quality to the Warrior 2 pose, brahmana works more easily. So, as you enter the pose, you could take a four second inhalation, pause for one to two seconds in the pose, and then exhale naturally out of the pose. If your breathing gets ragged after only one or two rounds, you may not yet be ready to do this brahmana variation, so go gradually.
A full sequence or practice would involve a series of mini-vinyasa linked together to move you closer to your goal. To see illustrations of mini-vinyasa, see The Heart of Yoga by TKV Desikachar or Yoga for Wellness by Gary Kraftsow.
We’ll continue our journey toward understanding sequencing in the style of Krishnamacharya next time in Part 3!
Last week, I introduced a few key concepts for you to consider as you think about trying to design a home practice using T. Krishnamacharya’s approach (see Sequencing in the Style of Krishnamacharya). Before diving into today’s discussion, you might want to take a few seconds to review that post. As we build our understanding of how to put a practice together, I’d like to share another foundational perspective and also introduce the concept of the “mini-vinyasa.”
In addition to having an eye to a goal for your practice, and understanding which stage of life you are in and what additional work or reflection you need to do as you start your practice, you need to evaluate on any given day whether your overall system in a state of fatigue, depletion or weakness or if you are in relative good health, energized, strong and balanced. Once you have an honest sense of that, you can apply another essential concept to how you will design and approach the yoga today.
Two terms help to clarify the way in which you will practice and even the attitude you will cultivate as you work: brahmana and langhana. Both concepts are very helpful when you are addressing injury or illness, but I find them helpful for everyday practice as well. And although Desikachar first connects these terms to how you breathe as you move between poses, I find the concepts can also be applied more generally.
Brahmana, which can translate as “to expand,” refers to a lengthening of the inhalation, with the possibility of adding a short pause or retention at the end of the inhale. This tends to energize and heat the body, which could be perfect for someone who’s underlying energy is a bit sluggish. Brahmana breathing tends to affect the chest and lungs more and anatomically fits better with back bending poses.
Langhana, which can translate as “to fast” or “to reduce,” refers to extending the length of the exhalation, with a possible pause or hold at the end of the exhale. Langhana practices tend to have a quieting and cooling effect on your system, so could be helpful in anxious or stressful times, as well as when you are generally depleted and need support. Langhana breathing tends to work better for forward bending practices and has a greater effect of the upper and lower belly, so could be good for processes of elimination.
In this system, unlike some others, you start working consciously with your breath with your very first asana sequence, since something called a “mini-vinyasa” is used. Instead of coming into a pose, say Warrior 2, and holding it for one to two minutes, with the mini-vinyasa method, you begin from a starting position, coordinate with your breath as you come into the full pose, and then return to the starting position with the next part of your breath. Typically this cycle is repeated about six rounds.
As an example, for Warrior 2, you would begin with your feet four feet apart, adjusted as usual, with your arms relaxed to your sides. On an inhalation, you would lift your arms up parallel with floor and bend your front knee to 90 degrees. Then, on your exhalation, you would lower your arms and straighten your front leg. You would then repeat this cycle five more times. And after completing six rounds on the right, you would repeat six round on the left.
To any mini-vinyasa, you could apply the concept of langhana or brahmana. In our example, since there is a natural expanding quality to the Warrior 2 pose, brahmana works more easily. So, as you enter the pose, you could take a four second inhalation, pause for one to two seconds in the pose, and then exhale naturally out of the pose. If your breathing gets ragged after only one or two rounds, you may not yet be ready to do this brahmana variation, so go gradually.
A full sequence or practice would involve a series of mini-vinyasa linked together to move you closer to your goal. To see illustrations of mini-vinyasa, see The Heart of Yoga by TKV Desikachar or Yoga for Wellness by Gary Kraftsow.
We’ll continue our journey toward understanding sequencing in the style of Krishnamacharya next time in Part 3!
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