Spring Ayurveda

Within the art of Ayurveda, there will never be one remedy or one sequence that brings everyone or their dosha back into alignment. The response to every inquiry about your health should be “It depends,” as my teacher, Dr. Robert Svoboda, was so fond of saying. The mantra of “It depends” teaches you to see the interconnectedness between you and your lifestyle, how changing one facet of your routine will affect another. It’s a friendly reminder that humans in general are complex, and it’s wise to look at or diagnose the body/mind/soul from many angles.

To start early spring cleaning, consider adding the following pranayama practices from Art of Sequencing – Volume Two, to your daily routine:

· Kapala bhati—also known as “skull shining”—to reduce weight gain, bring heat to the chest, and to promote strong agni and mental alertness. (Do not do this if you are menstruating. Menstruation is considered a natural cleanse for women.)

· Agni sara, to prevent stagnation in the organs and promote blood circulation. From a standing position, separate your feet hip-distance apart, and bend your knees while resting your hands on the lower part of your thighs. Exhale completely to create Mula bandha (root lock) and Uddiyana bandha (upward flying, diaphragmic lift). After your exhale, quickly pull your pelvic floor muscles inward and upward towards your diaphragm until you feel your deep core muscles. Keep holding your breath while your diaphragm, abdominal organs, and pelvic floor pulse quickly back and forth away from your spine. Relax all of your muscles before you take your next breath.

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Thanksgiving - Nutrition and Mindfulness

From your own experience with yoga, you are probably well aware of the tremendous impact that an asana practice can have on your body. Like yoga, food creates specific alchemical changes in your body and has the power to both nourish and transform your unique being. Food has the magical power to become the foundation the body. It can build or reduce your physical weight and shape, depending on the amount of calories you consume. Different foods can stimulate or calm the adrenal glands, speed up the mind and heart rate, or cleanse the colon and gastrointestinal tract.

Now that it's Thanksgiving, you might wonder,“How will I know what the right amount of food to consume or yoga to practice is”? One way to think about your nutrition and yoga choices is in terms of sustainability, which means eat and practice just the right amount to fuel your svadharma (life’s purpose), so you can share your gifts, hear your calling, and do work in this life that comes from your heart. With too much food in your belly it’s easy to loose motivation and with not enough food, it’s hard to maintain focus or stamina to get through one the day, let alone answer your heart’s calling. Alternately, not enough asana will make the body slow, stiff, and sluggish. By learning to sequence mindfulness into your Thanksgiving ritual, you will discover a sustainable middle path, which encourages smooth rolling transitions from one activity to the next, and requires less fuel, calories, or muscular effort. At the end of the holiday, you are left with a feeling of santosha (contentment. Good luck everyone.

melinameza.com

Summer Seasonal Vinyasa Class with Melina

It's summer in the northwest! Time to celebrate, play, eat piles of fruit, swim, be outdoors, and cultivate your intuition in yoga practice by closing your eyes and moving from within. This week in class we've been working on doing our familiar poses with eyes closed, it's been super relaxing and grounds you deeply into the moment, not to mention your being. Give it a try! There are still a few spaces left to join me for the summer retreat at Breitenbush Hot Springs, OR. Call 206-325-1511 to reserve your space.

Pranayama lying on your back with a bolster supporting your spine, hold a comfortable amount after exhale
Tadaka Mudra
Supta Padangusthasana (hamstrings, balance, twist series)
Supta Baddha Konasana w/hands holding head curling up into abdominal curls
Rock and roll on your spine
Cat/Cow with knee to face on exhale, inhale leg lifts look up
Downward shifting back and forth into plank
Forward bend
Elevator squats
Flow 1: beginning with side arch, forward bend, step back to plank, salabhasana with legs opening and closing, up dog, downward dog, high lunge with arms raised, bring feet together for chair with arms up by ears, tadasana. second side.
Flow 2: Twisting chair, caturanga, up dog, downward dog, warrior 1, lean forward into warrior 3 variation "airplane", step up to the top of the mat, second side.
Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana
Prasarita Padottanasana with hand in reverse prayer
Standing neutral
Turn to one direction: Pyramid pose, twisting triange, other side
Turn to one direction: High lunge, revolved half moon
Samakonasana, wide leg splits
Plank
Vasistasana with variations
Childs pose
Headstand
Virasana
Ustrasana with one arm up, one down
Supta Virasana
Pigeon with bolster support
Dandasana
Roll back down to floor
Bride or Shoulderstand
Neutral
Closing ideas....
Cover eyes in savasana ( :

Enjoy. In just a week or two, my new video series with My Yoga Online friends will be available to download. Stay tuned for details. www.melinameza.com

Seasonal Vinyasa - Winter!

With temperatures well below 30 degrees in Seattle, it's time to start the winter sequencing. Keep in mind that the winter flow is to help raise your core temperature and increase circulation, not to exhaust you! For starters, consider adding a strong vinyasa component to your practice to warm you up and lift your spirits, back bends to stimulate the kidneys, forward bends to stimulate the bladder, and breath retention after inhale to warm the lungs.

In classes this week here is what I will be emphasizing:
Supported pranayama with a bolster under the ribs. Lace your fingers together to hold your head our use a blanket.
Roll to the side with a bolster under the ribs, lateral bend
Supta Baddha Konasana with fingers laced around the back of the head, flow into abdominal crunch
Setu Bandha (bridge) in/out with arm movements
Navasana, roll back and forth on spine
Balance on all fours with R leg, L arm lifted, exhale pull both toward navel, round spine- repeat
Uttanasana (forward bend) to Utkatasana (chair)
Squats

Surya Namaskar (sun salutes): with raised leg in Uttanasana, step back to high lunge, plank with one leg lifted, Bhujangasana (cobra), plank, Down dog with one leg lifted, high lunge second side

Natarajasana Prep (dancing shiva)

Trikonasana (triangle) with lateral/neck focus, arm movements over head
Ardha Chandrasana (half moon) with back bend option
Prasaritta Padottanasana (wide leg forward bend)

Ustrasana Prep (camel)
Supta Virasana (reclined heros)
Sirsasana (head stand)
Balasana (childs)
Baddha Konasana (cobblers)
Upavista Konasana (seated wide leg forward bend)
Pascimottansana flow rolling back to the floor, abdominal work
Thread the Needle with head turned to the side
Gentle Halasana (plough)
Anything else?

Stay tuned for more Seasonal Vinyasa tips. My DVD, Yoga for the Seasons, can be purchased on my website for more asana support during the holidays.

www.melinameza.com