Innholdsfortegnelse for Wellbeing Yoga Experience i WellBeing

Balance is frequently claimed as the reason for practising yoga, but there’s something much bigger at play. Life is always in flux, like the stream of a river. The moment you think you’ve arrived at equilibrium, you are bound to encounter change. Balance is elusive. Rather than hoping for everything to stand perfectly still, what may be more helpful is to enhance your ability to clearly perceive and confidently respond to your inner and outer world. Just as musical instruments need to be tuned when location or conditions change, humans too must tend to their attunement. Here is where yoga excels. By practising yoga, you develop a deep understanding that refines your sensitivity. This becomes the foundation for resonance with yourself and the world around you. Attunement allows you to…

There are perhaps no other muscles more closely associated with the physical practice of yoga than the hamstrings. The capacity to fold forward and touch your toes in a hamstring stretch is the popular, though inaccurate, gauge of whether you belong in a yoga class or not. Even for those who know there’s a lot more to yoga, deep hamstring stretches are so ubiquitous in yoga sequences that you could be fooled into prizing hamstring flexibility above all else. And yet, no matter how much you stretch them, they often still feel tight. There’s a reason why the term “yoga butt” was coined, and it has nothing to do with how you look in yoga pants. It describes irritation where the hamstring tendons attach to the sit bones and is…

Ganesha is the Hindu elephant-headed god. He is the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, making him the brother of Lord Kartikeya, Goddess Lakshmi and Goddess Saraswati. Ganesha is the remover of obstacles. He will help grant success, prosperity and protection against adversity. Ganesha represents both the power of knowledge and fulfilment. The Sanskrit words for this mantra are Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha. Om is the sound of universal consciousness. Gam is the bija or seed mantra of Ganesha, comprising a one-syllable sound. Ganapataye is another name for Ganesha. Namaha can be translated as “I bow to you”. When chanting this mantra, you are aiming to invoke the energy of Ganesha, accepting and seeing all his great qualities in yourself. This mantra is traditionally used at the beginning of…

Yoga communities are in transition. The pandemic gifted us with a plethora of online yoga options that connect the teachings of yoga with students far and wide. Traditional, in-person yoga communities are coming back to life. As a collective, we are unfurling, preparing to fly. Thriving is self-perceived. This subjectivity is empowering. As a student of yoga, you’ve honed your ability to shift your perspective time and again. To release yourself from being stuck on what has yet to improve, can you reflect on the ways your yoga practice contributes to your sense of thriving? How has it helped you overcome adversities? Opportunity gives rise to thriving, too. Have you made intentional choices and resourced yourself to follow your aspirations? Acknowledge where your pursuit of the yoga practice has helped…

Iyoga props W: iyogaprops.com.au Cotton bolster The iYogaprops cotton bolster offers exceptional comfort, firm support and great value. Filled with recycled cotton sourced from clothing waste and covered with organically grown cotton fabric, this eco-friendly choice caters to environmentally conscious practitioners, enhancing relaxation for a soothing and sustainable yoga experience. Foldaway backbender The Foldaway backbender is for spinal health and flexibility. This original Australian design from iYogaprops can be found in more than 20 countries worldwide. Adapted from BKS Iyengar’s whale bench design, the Foldaway backbender has a number of configurations and can be folded for compact storage. Kurma mat range Explore the Kurma range of yoga mats available from iYogaprops. These premium-quality European mats offer excellent grip, comfort and superior durability for a lifetime of use. Be drawn to…

Dearest you, My first desire to be anything in life was to be a writer. In my childhood, I wrote about skunks falling in love and a figure-skating mouse winning Olympic medals. As the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors and the daughter of immigrants, I yearned to understand how we overcome adversity and can live our best lives. Then I found yoga. In my teens, yoga and I flirted, while dance remained my first love. In my 20s, yoga rescued me, providing direction and hope. On my 30th birthday, I taught my first class and, earlier this year, I celebrated a decade of teaching yoga. When I practise and teach, I witness myself at my edges. Uncovering truths allows me to expand more into who I am. My passion now is…

Humour in its various forms has long been seen as a balm against hurt, whether emotional or physical. If you experience persistent pain or have a long-term debilitating illness, it is likely you are familiar with the premise that if you are ever lost in the middle of nowhere, simply say out loud that you have fibromyalgia (or a similar chronic illness) and a spritely, smiling person will appear from nowhere and ask, “Have you tried yoga?” Those people mean well, but they have zero understanding of the dark cloud that descends on the mind and body of a chronic illness sufferer. Rather than seeing a solution in yoga, people with persistent pain see a recipe for a pain flare and exasperation. When the main sensations coming from your body…

Vata Pranayama and meditation for vata should be calming, grounding and soothing. Working with repetition (like mantra meditation) accomplishes these goals. Find a comfortable and supportive meditation posture, then begin with a few minutes of a calming breath pattern, emphasising the exhale with a 1:2 ratio — for example, inhale for a count of 4, exhale for a count of 8. Then, relax the counting and allow the breath to return to a natural, tidal rhythm. Next, allow the mantra “so hum” to ride on the breath, mentally chanting “so” on inhalation and “hum” on exhalation. “So hum” can be translated as “I am that”. Continue for at least 5 minutes. Pitta Focusing on joy, empathy and compassion can be a balm for pittas in their meditation practice. Find a…

Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism are the three central pillars of traditional Chinese thought. “Taoism” refers to both a philosophical tradition and an organised religion, which, in modern Chinese, are identified separately as taojia and taojiao respectively. Philosophical Taoism traces its origins to Lao Tzu who probably lived during the sixth or fifth century BCE. It is debated, however, whether he may have lived much later, in the third century BCE, or whether he lived at all but may only be a legendary figure. In religious Taoism, Lao Tzu is revered as a supreme deity. The name “Lao Tzu” is best translated as “Old Master”, and the ancient philosopher is said to have written a short book, which may originally have been called simply the Lao Tzu. In later centuries when…

Under the earth is a vast mycorrhizal network — a living web woven of fungus, plant and earth. It is a web of connection, symbiosis and mutuality that restores relationships. It works silently and invisibly to bring harmonious balance to the interdependent ecology of life. Can you imagine yoga as a mycorrhizal network? Rooted in the fertile soil and the soul of South Asia, yoga serves to help you realise your fundamental nature as the same source of life and this web of connection. Yoga has spread around the world much as mycelium networks spread, evolving according to the conditions and culture of each new environment. It has pushed up fruiting bodies like vinyasa yoga, yin yoga or even goat yoga. Modern Westernised forms of yoga are the complex fruits…

Nestled among the gum trees just a 10-minute bike ride from the heart of Byron Bay sits one of Australia’s longest-running yoga institutions, Byron Yoga Centre. This tranquil eco haven is a place where lifelong friendships are made while your devotion to yoga fortifies and your ego fades away. These are not results of practising yoga but rather manifestations depicting the true embodiment of the practice and lifestyle. This connection to yourself and your surroundings is the wholeness that yoga aims to deliver you into. It is the very essence of yoga itself. The contemporary yoga world presents us with so much choice, and it is sometimes to our detriment. Over my personal 20-year journey of yoga, I have found myself caught up in many ego-boosting endeavours such as chasing…

I still remember my early days on the mat, where each yoga practice became a gateway to newfound wisdom, unlocking the secrets of my soul. In those moments of blissful exhaustion at the end of a sweaty vinyasa class, our teacher would guide us gently into a variation of pigeon pose, providing a potent place for contemplation. This serene sleeping swan invited a moment of yin to my predominantly yang-filled life, and it was in these moments that profound realisations washed over me. As I held the posture for a few precious minutes, my mind embarked on a whirlwind journey, visiting various landscapes of thought. Yet, amidst the mental wanderings, one resounding mantra echoed through my consciousness: “Something bad is going to happen.” I was convinced I would sprain something,…

As women, we have been searching outside ourselves for too long, inviting fear to overshadow our wisdom and interrupting our body’s natural functions. It is vital we learn to move through life embracing our feminine energy and intentionally leaning toward practices that guide us to slow down. This is when we can hear the soft whispers of our intuition and gather new perspectives borne from a place of ease. One such perspective is the understanding that you don’t have to face life’s challenges alone. Having a healthy support system in place for the hard times you face drastically lowers your stress and anxiety levels. Support is recognising that you have the power to lean on others, seek guidance and embrace the resources available to you. However, arriving at this realisation…

Alice Browning Alice is a mother, yoga teacher, life admin avoider and founder of The Fold, an online platform for women, from women. Having taught and held space for students for the past decade and counting, she has concluded that sharing slabs of her heart with the world is her happy place, whether that is through her yoga classes, her platform or her writing. She can almost always be found stretching over a bolster, pushing her daughter on the swing, or frantically replying to emails within the pockets of midday nap times. Her mission is simple: to advocate and empower women; to love her daughter fiercely; and to source the best sticky date pudding with hot butterscotch sauce. W: thefold.online Instagram: @thefold_online Caitlin Cady Caitlin Cady shares teachings that are…