How to Increase Energy & Improve Circulation: Creating Core Stability Without Tension

How to Increase Energy & Improve Circulation: Creating Core Stability Without Tension

During my classes I often suggest softening the belly a little. I sometimes use the term “embrace your jelly belly”! which has been met with a bit of shock horror on some fronts!

Of course, strictly speaking, this is not something we should embrace “all the time”. It is not necessarily healthy to have a complete jelly belly as we all know. Excess fat around the midriff is linked to diabetes, heart-disease and many other life-threatening illness. However, neither is it healthy for us to be walking around with super-tight abdominals (or super-tight anything really!). This extreme has been linked to digestive problems, infertility, back and hip problems and goodness knows what else. Put it this way; if I walk around with my shoulders tense and tight all day does it make them stronger? Nope – it just makes them tight and tense!

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Ten Reasons You Might Be Feeling Stiff

For someone who teaches yoga, It can be a common cry from class participants: “I am feeling sooooo stiff!”. Luckily, regular yoga and stretching can help! Here are just some reasons your body might feel as if it is getting stiffer and some tips on what you can do to keep things feeling a little more free and easy.

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What is Meant By Bandah?

It may surprise you to know that when lots of people stretch, their stretching is ineffective. Often this is because the muscle they are trying to stretch is in a shortened position. It may feel stiff, sore, tight and tense but will get more so as the stretch reflex switches on – this happens particularly if the stretching is aggressive. It then becomes very difficult to lengthen the muscle because tension limits blood flow. If the whole body is constantly tense, we can see how this might restrict our range of movement.

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How and Why Does Yoga Work?

To understand why yoga is one of the best things you can do for your overall health, you firstly have to try to forget everything you thought you knew about how exercise works. For example, the goal of yoga is not to lose weight or burn calories. It is not to make you stronger, fitter and/or more flexible. But certainly, with regular practise, these things happen. Amazing side effects!

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Sugar is POISON!

Apparently. So imagine how excited I was to discover low GI organic coconut sugar in the health food shop, Coconut sugar contains magnesium – which you need for calcium absorption as well as zinc, potassium and iron. Hey, it’s not perfect but then neither am I and it tastes great in my morning coffee and…

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Why Are Yogis Thinner Than Average?

Long-term yogis are generally trimmer than the average person and although some run and do other things for fun, most are not pounding the pavement or hitting the treadmills in their efforts to stay fit or to lose weight. So what is this about?

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