10 Tips for Adjusting to Heated Yoga Classes in Summer
I’ve been practicing heated yoga for 13 years. I’ve mixed in other styles as well, including those that don’t involve heat, and I can say I enjoy both and find both effective. However, I will admit that once it starts to get hot outside, I need to make adjustments in my practice so I can practice comfortably in a heated class. In the past few weeks, the weather here in Boston has started to shift to warmer temperatures. With that, as expected, I’ve had an increase in questions from students about how to practice safely in a heated studio. They’ve also had some questions about experiences in their body that they don’t normally feel when it’s cold out. If you’re practicing heated yoga in the warmer summer months, here are 10 tips to help you adjust safely: 1. The water you drink before class is just as important as drinking water after class. Many of us don’t think about additional hydration in the summer months and keep our same routine of liquid intake and then hop into the hot studio. In the warmer months, with increased sweating even before you arrive, you need to replace that hydration before you start class. 2. Replace your water with fluids that have electrolytes. When you sweat, you lose electrolytes such as sodium and potassium. These need to be replaced so you’re not dehydrated and to keep your overall systems in balance. I like coconut water but there are many other supplemented waters out there you can try. Be aware if drinking sports drinks of the added sugar content. Coconut water is great because there is no added sugar. 3. Check your diet. As it gets warmer out, we need to adjust our intake so we aren’t overeating or ingesting heavy foods, especially if we plan to take a heated class within a few hours of eating. When you eat, the blood goes to your digestive organs and away from the muscles, so overeating will work against you in class. However, we also need to make reasonable food choices before yoga. If the class is before the lunch or dinner hour, make sure you select foods that are easy to digest and watch portion sizes. A banana, other fruit, nut bar or Greek yogurt are good choices. 4. Rest more. Some students never rest until the very end of class when the teacher calls for everyone to rest in shavasana. During the summer months, you may find yourself feeling drained before you even step in the door, due to the increased heat and humidity outside. As you’re practicing, take time to stop in Child’s Pose and take a few breaths before joining […]
8 Great Posture Changes You’ll Get with Yoga
When I began practicing yoga, I already had pretty good body awareness through my background in physical therapy and my love of running and exercising in general. But it was only through yoga that I was able to develop a deeper understanding of anatomy, body mechanics and greater awareness of the unhealthy habits in my own body when it came to how I stood, walked, sat, lifted things and moved in general. In my work with people in yoga classes and private sessions, I am able to see how stress, the effects of sitting, hard work, raising kids and just overall sensory overwhelm has affected people’s bodies. There are several things I usually see: tight shoulders, lack of overall strength, tightness in the legs and an overall lack of coordination. In most cases, this isn’t because of a physical problem but more a result of spending too much time thinking and not enough time noticing the body. The good news is that all of this can be shifted through a regular yoga practice. For those that insist yoga is not for them because “they can’t do one thing that long, can’t meditate, can’t concentrate, are not spiritual or can’t touch their toes,” I have news for you. Most people struggle with the same things but somehow gather up the requisite energy to get to a class. After one, they make another and pretty soon, as the body starts to feel better and more alive, they’re well on their way. If you’re looking for some practical benefits from yoga, here’s a good list of things I’ve personally seen shift in people after only a few sessions: 1. Standing more evenly on the feet. Yoga is the practice of working from the “ground up.” If you’re in a pose and unsteady, you make changes to your foundation to connect to greater steadiness. When you stand more evenly on the feet, you naturally create better posture. When you have better posture, you have less back pain, less pain in the hamstrings and breathe better. Working in bare feet stretches the bottoms of the feet, which, if you’ve ever had plantar fasciitis (a painful inflammation of the thick band of muscle in the bottom of the foot), you know how horrible this can be. Standing evenly on the feet and stretching the soles of your feet is a great way to build your arches, improve your posture, decrease your chances of foot problems and improve your steadiness while walking or running. 2. Relaxed shoulders. For most of us, stress in our life shows up in our bodies. One of the most common places is the shoulders. As we hold that stress in […]
Things to Know in the South End Today, May 15: Yoga for Toddlers at Community Music Center
1. Weather: The National Weather Service is predicting an increasingly cloudy day, with a high near 67 degrees, and a 30 percent chance of showers. 2. Yoga for Kids: The Community Music Center of Boston (34 Warren Ave.) is hosting musical yoga classes for toddlers ages 1-3 years old on Wednesdays at 5 p.m. Classes incorporate sitting, standing, and floor poses that the caregiver performs with baby and toddler as well as poses caregiver can do for the child to help develop sensory skills and digestion. Classes are $ 15 at a drop-in rate, or $ 130 for ten classes. See here for more information. 3. South End Resident Elected: Gerard Doherty, MD, chief of Surgery at Boston Medical Center (BMC) chair of the Department of Surgery at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and a South End resident, has been elected as President of the American Association of Endocrine Surgeons (AAES). He will serve as President-Elect through 2014 and as President through 2015. Read more here. 4. Downtown Schools: Learn more about options for downtown schools tonight at “Meet the Schools Night” at Kingsley Montessori School (26 Exeter St.) tonight from 6-7:30 p.m. Representatives from The Advent School, Beacon Hill Nursery School, The Boston Children’s School, John Winthrop School, The Learning Project, Montessori Parent Child Center, Old South Preschool, Park Street School, Pine Village, Spruce Street Nursery School, and the Torit Language Center will be available. See here for more information. 5. Art Show Announced: The South End Community Health Center (1601 Washington St.) is opening a new art exhibition on June 15th at its facility to raise awareness about its mission and its impact in the South End. The artists on display have committed to donate back at least 20 percent of the sale proceeds made during the show to the nonprofit. This year’s artists include: Susan Jane Belton, James Alan Edwards, Cathy England, Nancy Johnson, Evelyn Berde, Jennifer Ellwood, Betty Canick, Chandra Dieppa Ortiz and Vaughn Sills. See here for more information. Things you can do every day on South End Patch: Share your news with the rest of the community. Click here to add an announcement. Add your events to our events calendar. Click here to sign up for breaking news updates. Want up-to-the-minute news? Click here to follow us on Facebook or Twitter. Share your thoughts on your community in a blog. Click here to get started. South End Patch
Ten Ways to Get Started with Yoga After an Injury
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been approached or have had conversations with people in class about how to best get started back with yoga after an injury. This also applies to starting yoga for the first time after an injury. I thought this would make a good topic for my next column. Maybe you’re reading this and like one of the people I spoke with, you’re afraid you’ll get hurt again. Maybe you have a memory of how fit you once were and now, faced with your injured body, you’re frustrated and feel there is no way you’ll be able to taste that feeling of strength and flexibility again. Maybe you have “good days” and “bad days” and have just given up on the idea of doing anything physical. The good news is yoga is the perfect exercise to do in instances like this. Why? Because yoga poses and sequences can be modified to fit just about anyone’s body and physical condition. Yoga’s intensity and be increased or decreased depending on the pace, the poses selected, the use of props and the sequence offered. Here are some tips for getting started back or getting started for the first time: Check with your physician before starting a yoga practice. This is pretty obvious but depending on your injury, you might not think to check. Yoga is getting a great deal of exposure these days as being a contributor to injuries and despite that, there are a number of physicians who are actually suggesting it to their patients, as well as physical therapists who encourage people to attend class as well as therapy. Review the classes on the schedule at your local studio and make a selection based on your physical condition and requirements. This may require some consultation with the studio owner or one of the teachers. Generally speaking, if you’re a beginner, these are the best classes to attend. These classes will be geared towards people with little to no experience. Even if you have experience, with your injury, you may be looking for a slower pace and more time to move from pose to pose. These classes generally provide both. If you are unable to put weight on your hands or have an injury to the upper body, power yoga or vinyasa (flow) classes may not be the best choice. There’s a great deal of movement from standing to the ground as well as many poses where weight is put on the hands in these classes. Now, having said there, there absolutely is a way to modify these sequences so you can skip placing weight on the hands. This would require one on […]