The Power of Breathing

Prana = constant motion, vibration, life force and vital energy

Ayama = to extend, expand or stretch

Prana is a life force or energy that exists in all things both inanimate and animate. It’s said to be the basis of all creation, and the amount of prana within the body is extremely important, as it affects our energy level and our physical and mental health.

Yoga Yajnavalkya and Yoga Sutra (ancient yogic texts) tell us that someone who is troubled, restless or confused has more prana outside the body than within, and more prana we have within the body, the more peaceful and balanced we feel. Our health is also affected by the flow of prana. It is said that there are approximately 72,000 nadis. Nadis are network of channels that prana flows within the body. When the nadis are blocked, the flow of prana becomes impeded.

Pranayama uses breathing techniques to influence the flow of prana within the body. It is the fourth limb of the eight limbs of yoga.

Co-ordinating Breath and Movement

The ability to skilfully synchronise movements and breath is fundamental to yoga asana (posture). In order to successfully co-ordinate our breath with movement, it’s important to breathe with awareness.

As our breath and movement synchronises, the practice becomes more like a moving meditation rather than a mechanical exercise. When our attention is constantly brought back to the breath, deeper awareness and a strong internal focus develops.

Conscious Breathing

It’s important to get to know our breathing as it’ll help us to understand ourselves and be more mindful. As Donna Farhi the author of the Breathing Book says,

‘Breathing affects your respiratory, cardiovascular, neurological, gastrointestinal, muscular and psychic systems and has a general effect on your sleep, your memory, your energy level, and your concentration. Everything you do, the pace you keep, the feelings you have, and the choices you make are influenced by the rhythmic metronome of your breath.’

The breath becomes an excellent barometer of our health and wellbeing. For centuries, yogis have recognised the important relationship between the mind, body and breath. The breath is often referred to as the bridge between the mind and body.

Inquiry

1.     Observe your breath throughout the day and begin to explore the intricate relationship between your breath, mind and body.

2.     Start Pranayama regularly and notice how you feel after the practice.

This article was written for the Power of Breathing workshop with Naomi in April 2023

Mindful Yin Yoga: Deeply Open, Nourish & Rejuvenate

I’ve just been to Emilia’s Mindful Yin Yoga workshop at the Bristol Yoga Centre. It was so popular that the workshop was completely sold out. 

Yin Yoga is floor-based postures that are held for long period of time, (anywhere from 3 to 10 minutes) to deeply release the mind & body and to encourage you to enter a meditative state. Similar to restorative yoga, props can be used to help you release more deeply. Unlike restorative yoga, Yin yoga applies moderate stress onto the body, especially the connective tissues of ligaments, fascia, joints, bones and the energetic channels of the meridians. 

Emilia’s Yin yoga uses the tools of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and 12 main Organ Meridians to promote relaxation, balance and greater awareness. The workshop was 2.5 hour long but it felt much shorter. Some people worry about not being able to keep up with the longer practice but you’d be surprised how quickly the time goes. It’s actually a really great way to delve more deeply into our practice.  She started with some warm ups and self massage to gently open the body and relax the mind. This was followed by some deep Yin postures that focused on hip openers, forward bends, side stretches and backbends. My favourites were the caterpillar and banana poses. Not only they have lovely playful names but they were incredibly restorative and wonderful to do!

Caterpillar pose is a supported version of Paschimottasana (seated forward bend). It can be confusing but different styles of yoga can have different names for postures (for example, caterpillar pose is often known as Ashtangasana). We practiced it with rolled up blankets underneath our knees, which can really get the length and release in the lower back, whilst gently stretching the back of the legs.

Banana pose or Bananasana is a supine side stretch pose that uses the floor for alignment and support. It’s a great way to open the side of the body and shoulders. This pose is said to stimulate and balance the Kidney Meridian. Meridians are lines of energy that flow through the body and can affect various organs, circulation, and general function of the physical body and the state of mind. 

The session ended with lovely long Savasana with amazing sound of Koshi wind chimes and a balancing pranayama practice. I first came across Koshi wind chimes when I was on a yoga retreat last year. After hearing this lovely sound again, I couldn’t resist getting one!

Everyone seemed completely relaxed and energised after the workshop. It’s amazing to see the difference in people even after only one session. I just recovered from a cold and the workshop really helped with my breathing and energy levels.

We are planning to do more Mindful Yin Yoga workshops soon so watch this space! In the mean time, you can attend Emilia’s excellent weekly classes.

What is Scaravelli Inspired Yoga?

“Yoga must not be practised to control the body: it is the opposite, it must bring freedom to the body, all the freedom it needs.”

– Vanda Scaravelli

Scaravelli inspired yoga is a gentle yet powerful form of Hatha yoga that uses gravity and breath to release the spine and energise the body. This approach focuses on ‘the intelligent heart’, an innate sense of our natural patterns of movement to bring harmony and ease to the asanas (postures).

Vanda Scaravelli was born in Italy in 1908 to a musical and artistic family. She actually started learning yoga in her 40’s, but was taught by incredible yoga teachers like BKS Iyengar, TKV Desikachar and Jiddu Krishnamurti. She continued to be an active student and practitioner of yoga until her death in her 90’s. During this time, Vanda wrote one of the most famous Hatha yoga books called ‘Awakening the Spine’. She emphasised listening to the body, rather than working against it.  As she advices,

'If you are kind to your body, it will respond in an incredible way'.

Interestingly, Vanda never wanted her approach of yoga to turn into a method or a style of yoga. This is why teachers who currently follow this method of practicing often refer to as ‘Scaravelli Inspired yoga’ or ‘In the Spirit of Vanda Scaravelli’.

To find out more about this interesting practice, we spoke to Kate Fox. Kate teaches monthly Sunday Scaravelli inspired yoga session at the Bristol Yoga Centre.

I discovered Yoga in my early twenties, but it was only when I discovered Scaravelli Yoga, that I began to fully understand what yoga is fundamentally about and how it could help me.

I was always trying too hard, forcing my body to do what I thought it needed, or what I thought it should be doing. Fixed on trying to ‘perform’ what I thought an asana should be, or should look like. But what I began to realise is that it’s not about trying to force the body into a set of rigid poses, it is about learning to let go of tension and habits that limit our movement.

My focus is now on approaching asana from within. When we 'tune in' with the inner-workings of our body, we can begin to move towards each asana with a new awareness that prevents us from imposing on the body.

We can begin to identify any tension, dullness and old habits that exist.  With some gentle encouragement, we can gradually begin to disperse these, cultivating new habits that will help to make you physically and mentally stronger. This cannot be hurried and will only get richer and deeper with practice, patience and time.

Scaravelli inspired classes are suitable for everyone including complete beginners.  It is also great for experienced students who are looking to deepen their practice.

Yoga for Stress

By letting go, it all gets done - Lao Tzu

We often think that we are relaxed when watching TV or cycling. Whilst these can be more relaxing than going to work or driving the kids around, they are still bombarding our senses. Yoga is a great remedy for stress as it teaches you how to relax fully. 

Relax the yoga way

One of the main causes of chronic stress is our inability to release tension and strain once the cause of the stress has passed. We often worry and carry the disturbance with us long after an incident has taken place. This can cause many of us to suffer tension in our head, neck and upper back. We physically carry the weight of the world on our shoulders! In Savasana (full relaxation), we take the weight off and our body can begin to really relax and rejuvenate.

Be with the breath

Bringing our awareness to our breathing enables us to be in the present moment, rather than focusing on the past or future. Breathing properly means that our body is being supplied with the right amount of oxygen, replenishing our brain and other vital organs.

Balance the nervous system

Yoga also helps our nervous system to rebalance after a challenge has passed. In our practice, we often alternate between strenuous poses and gentler postures, conditioning us to move easily between states of challenge and rest. This teaches us to let go and release once the challenges have been met.

Regular Asana practice

Doing regular asanas keeps our body and mind balanced, strong and flexible. It also relieves muscular tension and mobilise our joints.  If you are feeling healthy, it’s much easier to handle stress and worries.  

Learning to accept change

Often, we feel really stressed when going through changes. Just like stress, changes are an inevitable part of living. Therefore, it’s worth learning techniques to help us when these changes become challenging. When we practice mindfully every day, we can become inquisitive about the process of change and every moment becomes fascinating.

I am running a short relaxation and stress relief workshop on 4th June. Come and learn how to relax fully and ward off stress! This will be a lovely Sunday afternoon event supporting Bristol Mind, a mental health charity who do great work in Bristol.  

We have also scheduled a new meditation workshop on stress and life management on Sunday 2nd July by Kay Baxter at the Bristol Yoga Centre studio. 

Yoga for Cyclists

I recently started to cycle to work and now ride almost everyday to my yoga classes around Bristol. I love cycling; it’s fast, convenient and environmentally friendly. I also feel great and see the mental and physical benefits from cycling. I feel stronger and really enjoy the wind brushing against my skin.

However, as with most strenuous activities it’s beneficial to make sure that you stretch before and after exercising and I believe that this is also true for cycling.

Because I hadn’t cycled much since I was a teenager, I really noticed how it affected my body. I was getting tight, especially in my legs and hips. I also found that my shoulders and back were collapsing and rounding.

After reading articles on the benefits of yoga for cyclists and experimenting with my own yoga practice, I decided to run workshops on this topic. I believe that simple regular yoga stretches can be immensely beneficial for all cyclists. It can soothe tired muscles and help you to avoid and recover from injury more quickly. The holistic approach of yoga practice will encourage balance and harmony in both mind and the body.

A well constructed yoga practice can help you to improve your cycling performance and can be an excellent cross training programme for more serious cyclists. Yoga is great for improving concentration and relaxation especially in challenging situations which will be useful in competitions. Best of all, it will help you to continue doing what you love for longer.