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Escape to Yoga Island
Showing posts with label Yoga Practice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yoga Practice. Show all posts
Friday, July 29, 2011
Escape to Yoga Island
Attention all broke yoga lovers: Lululemon Athletica is presenting a FREE yoga festival on Governor's Island!
Lululemon, who is known for their free classes in their retails stores and and in various city locations like Bryant Park, is hosting it's first annual yoga festival called Escape to Yoga Island. Similar to the Lucy sponsored Solstice in Times Square, another popular (but incredibly packed) free yoga festival, Escape to Yoga Island will be an all-day yoga heaven from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday, August 6th. There will be live music to the 60 minute open level classes on the main stage, as well as a variety of 90 minute intensive classes, including Yoga for Athletes and a Power Vinyasa class, on a 2nd stage. Runners can also enjoy a run around the island starting at 10:30. You are required to bring your own mat to the event (no mat giveaways, Lululemon?) and be sure to bring lots of water, sunscreen and some food, as it appears there will not be many vendors at this event. Click on the link below for more info on this festival, including how to get to Governor's Island. Hope to see you all there! Namaste!
Escape to Yoga Island
Escape to Yoga Island
Monday, July 25, 2011
Ujjayi Breathing and Running
With this recent heat wave in NYC all last week, my running and yoga practice took a back seat to sitting in my air-conditioned apartment and drinking a bottle of wine with my husband. As most runners find, the humidity and extreme heat make it difficult to run and can be very draining. One skill that I have picked up in yoga class that has helped me through these types of runs is ujjayi breathing, the ancient yogi breathing process to help calm the mind and body.
Yoga encourages the practice of controlled breathing, known as pranayama, to help create balance and calm. It is the practice of filling the lungs up by breathing through the nose (all yoga breathing is done through the nose) to your lungs full capacity and then emptying the lungs completely. When breathing out, you want to restrict the back of your throat (like you're drinking from a straw) and create an "haaaaahhhh" sound to the breath coming out (think Darth Vader). The way I've heard it best explained is to breath out of your mouth as if you're trying to fog a mirror, then close your mouth around the sound and continue to exhale your breath in the same manner but out your nose. Additionally, you want the breaths to be consistent and even. Don't inhale nice and slow just to exhale the breath out quickly.
In yoga, the breath helps you flow from one posture to the next, as well as creating that balance and calm mentioned above. For runners, it has a host of benefits. The main benefit, and one that I have found most beneficial, is the improvement in my lung capacity. The consistent practice of filling the lungs to capacity and emptying them completely improves a runners ability to run longer and harder, even in the extreme humidity. Also, by having even breaths it is easier to run at a steady pace and avoid those dreaded cramps and stitches in your side due to the constant supply of oxygen reaching your muscles.
Below is a link to a video that I found that explains yogi breathing. I encourage any runners (especially those training for a marathon) to begin this practice, whether it be via a yoga practice or simply incorporating this breathing technique in to your runs. It may seem daunting at first, but if you stick with it you'll see improvements, and fairly soon, in how much farther and longer you can run!
Yogic Breathing Technique
Yoga encourages the practice of controlled breathing, known as pranayama, to help create balance and calm. It is the practice of filling the lungs up by breathing through the nose (all yoga breathing is done through the nose) to your lungs full capacity and then emptying the lungs completely. When breathing out, you want to restrict the back of your throat (like you're drinking from a straw) and create an "haaaaahhhh" sound to the breath coming out (think Darth Vader). The way I've heard it best explained is to breath out of your mouth as if you're trying to fog a mirror, then close your mouth around the sound and continue to exhale your breath in the same manner but out your nose. Additionally, you want the breaths to be consistent and even. Don't inhale nice and slow just to exhale the breath out quickly.
In yoga, the breath helps you flow from one posture to the next, as well as creating that balance and calm mentioned above. For runners, it has a host of benefits. The main benefit, and one that I have found most beneficial, is the improvement in my lung capacity. The consistent practice of filling the lungs to capacity and emptying them completely improves a runners ability to run longer and harder, even in the extreme humidity. Also, by having even breaths it is easier to run at a steady pace and avoid those dreaded cramps and stitches in your side due to the constant supply of oxygen reaching your muscles.
Below is a link to a video that I found that explains yogi breathing. I encourage any runners (especially those training for a marathon) to begin this practice, whether it be via a yoga practice or simply incorporating this breathing technique in to your runs. It may seem daunting at first, but if you stick with it you'll see improvements, and fairly soon, in how much farther and longer you can run!
Yogic Breathing Technique
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