What Should Men Wear to Yoga Class

Posted by author on Sep 24, 2019 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

It isn’t difficult to find plenty of fashion advice for women about what to wear to a yoga class. You see plenty of advertisements for yoga leggings, high-waist capri pants with built-in shapewear, and so many other items. Unfortunately, many clothing manufacturers tend to cater to yoginis when it comes to their advertisements. It can be difficult for men to figure out what they’re supposed to wear to their first few yoga classes.

If you feel too manly to put on a pair of yoga leggings, what should you reasonably expect to wear to your first yoga class? Men can benefit from applying some of these helpful fashion tips to make them more comfortable during their first yoga classes.

Tight pants work best.

It may not be exactly what you wanted to hear, but tight pants really do work best for an avid yoga practice. When your pants are relatively form-fitting, your instructor can see your alignment and help you prevent unwanted injuries on the yoga mat. You don’t want to wear your baggiest pair of sweatpants that obscures an instructor’s view of your knees and ankles.

You may want to wear a pair of compression pants with some looser gym shorts over them. This may make you feel a little less exposed, but it still allows your instructor to see your alignment clearly.

Tank tops are better than baggy t-shirts.

You may be tempted to pull a baggy t-shirt out of the back of your closet, but you should really rethink that idea. Baggy clothing can get in the way during a yoga practice, particularly during inversions. Even extremely gentle poses, like the downward-facing dog, can be difficult when you have a loose shirt falling into your face.

A tight-fitting top is a better alternative for men who want to attend a yoga class. It should fit snugly around the abdomen so it doesn’t come up during inversions, but it shouldn’t be tight enough to make it difficult to breathe. You should have a full range of motion in any shirt you wear.

Prepare for heat in a hot yoga class.

Some men and women prefer to wear full-length pants to a hot yoga class because they believe sweating more will help them to detoxify better. However, other individuals would much rather be comfortable as they move through the rigorous asanas in the sweltering heat. If it’s a hot yoga class, you may be able to get away with wearing a pair of bicycling shorts or regular gym shorts.

It isn’t uncommon to see men remove their shirts for a hot yoga class. A tight-fitting tank top that isn’t too restrictive is still a great option for men to wear to a hot yoga class.

Men who are interested in attending their very first yoga class can benefit from these top fashion tips. You’ll be able to practice your yoga routine comfortably and safely, as well as blend right in from the beginning.

Crystals For Serenity

Posted by author on Aug 3, 2019 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

Many crystals are believed to assist us in feeling more calm, peaceful, and serene. 

• Agate: This soothing and calming stone is said to facilitate strength and grounding. It allows us to heal our emotions and overcome negativity.
• Amethyst: This stone is said to be powerful and protective. It aids us in balancing our emotional highs and lows.
• Ametrine: By clearing stress and removing tension in the head, this stone is believed to calm the mind and allow for enhanced focus during meditation. It is believed to work very fast.
• Apatite: It is known to reduce the fatigue and irritability. It is said to be the stone for manifestation.
• Aquamarine: This stone is believed to treat anxiety, allowing for peace and serenity to enter. It cultivates strength, creativity, and communication.
• Azurite: This stone is said to shift fear into deeper self-understanding, removing stress and worry. It can shift sadness into lightness.
• Bloodstone: By reducing irritability and improving patience, this stone is said to help calm the mind and allow for less indecision in important choices. It is believed to ground and protect.
• Charoite: This stone is believed to effectively reduce stress and worry, replacing them with drive and vigor. 
• Cherry Quartz: This beautiful form of quartz is said to replace anxiety with feelings of tranquility. 
• Coral: The different types of coral are said to bring about different things, but all coral is said to assist in bringing inner peace and overall feelings of optimism. 
• Fire Agate: By stabilizing and cleansing your aura with it, you are also repelling negative energies. It allows for a less chaotic state and overall more mellowness.
• Garnet: This is a great stone to facilitate bringing serenity. 
• Hematite: This is a protection stone that also enhances self-esteem and dissipates negativity. It is a great stone for grounding and cultivating courage.
• Howlite: This stone is said to be like a sleeping aid. It removes insomnia and allows calmness to enter. 
• Jade: This stone is a symbol for serenity and overall purity. It is believed to protect you from harm and bring you harmony. 
• Labradorite: This stone allows calmness for intuition and psychic gifts to flourish. 
• Larimar: By wearing or using this stone, you can allow for love and serenity to radiate. It is said to bring more playfulness and clarity.
• Malachite: This stone is said to bring balance and harmony to the heart.
• Moonstone: This stone is believed to bring balance to emotions. It allows for peace of mind and ease in self-reflection and intrapersonal work.
• Obsidian: This powerful stone is said to be protective of negativity and allow us to grow and offer support. 
• Pink Tourmaline: This stone is believed to attract love, heal emotional pain, and open the heart chakra. It can leave you feeling open and peaceful.
• Topaz: This mellow stone can allow us to release doubt and come into a soothed and aligned state. 
• Turquoise: This stone has been used for ages by indigenous people to promote tranquility and serenity. It allows the whole body to become balanced and healthy, free from disease.

All these crystals can be worn or used in meditation to allow for enhanced feelings of overall serenity. 

Yoga As A Stress Reliever

Posted by author on Aug 1, 2019 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

We all have circumstances in our lives that can leave us feeling stressed and anxious. Certain situations cannot be controlled by us—the only thing that can be controlled are our reactions. Stress and anxiety are brought on by circumstances and situations far beyond our control. There are things that can be done to relieve stress and anxiety.

Different forms of exercise, medication and often times avoidance. Yoga can relieve stress and anxiety if you allow it. When many people hear of yoga, they immediately think that it’s not for them because they aren’t flexible enough and another host of reasons why. But yoga is for everyone—every single person can do yoga. Yoga is not just for the mat; it’s for everyday life as well. Stress relief, fitness, and management of chronic illnesses are just a few benefits of yoga.

There are many different styles of yoga and each has its own recipe for combating stress and anxiety. When choosing a yoga style, it all comes down to personal preference and how you are feeling at the moment. Each style of yoga follows the main concepts of mind, body, and soul. When those three concepts become one, you are fully connected to yourself. Meditation and breath are the tools to help you to arrive at that connection. When you meditate and listen to your breath, nothing else around you matters or holds weight. Focusing on just your breath forces you to be present in that moment and slows your mind down. When you are stressed and anxious the focus is on what triggered those bad feelings and nothing else. Meditation and breathing are two positive approaches in times of struggle.

There are different poses to do that are specifically for relieving stress and anxiety. Here are eight poses to do when you are feeling stressed or anxious and need to relax and take a break from the world.

1. Child’s Pose

This pose is great for relieving stress and anxiety because it forces you to focus on your breath and nothing else. Just focus on your breath because in this pose nothing else matters. Melt your body into the early and feel the stress and anxiety leave your body. Sit up on your knees and sink your bottom to your heels as you lean forward and the rest of your body will fall into your thighs. You can stretch your arms in front of you or on the side of your body.

2. Reclined Goddess Pose

This pose brings extreme relief to your body and mind. You are surrendering your body to the earth. To feel extra relief, you can bring one of your hands to your heart and feel your chest rise and fall with each breathing sequence. Lay on your back and touch the bottom of your feet together while our knees fall to either side with your hands by your sides.

3. Standing Forward Fold

This pose helps to relieve stress and anxiety by turning you inward and releasing tension in your shoulders and legs, which can become tense when you are in negative situations. To accomplish this pose, stand straight, fold your body over your thighs and place your hands behind your neck to relieve tension. Staying in this pose for about five breaths is recommended and repeat as needed.

4. Legs Up the Wall

This is one of the best poses for stress and anxiety relief because it gives you calm over your entire body and calms your whole nervous system down. Our nervous systems feel it the most when we are experiencing stress and anxiety. Lie on your back near the wall and put your legs straight in the air against the wall. Make sure your thighs and bottoms are as close to if not touching the wall. You will feel instant relief from a stressful day.

5. Corpse Pose

The final pose of most, if not all, yoga styles. The act of being still and doing nothing seems to be the cure for stress and anxiety. In this pose, you are lying still on your back with your legs and arms slightly spread out onto or even off of the mat. This pose just requires you to shut your mind off and just breathe.

The variety of yoga styles and poses makes yoga phenomenal stress and anxiety reliever. No matter the yoga style or pose, you will be given the challenge of focusing on your breath and to be present at the moment. The connection of mind, body, and soul as one is the main concepts of yoga and once you arrive at that place, you will not want to go back.

What are chakras ?

Posted by author on May 22, 2019 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

You might have heard your yoga teacher mention chakras before and been unsure as to what they were. Look no further as our guide teaches you everything you need to know about chakras.
There are seven chakras in total. The Sanskrit word “chakra” literally means wheel. In our context, they are the centers in our bodies, through which spinning energy flows. It is believed that the blocked energy in these chakras can lead to illness or emotional distress, and so, understanding them can help us to avoid this.

1. Root Chakra

This chakra, located at the base of the spine in the tailbone area, represents a feeling of being grounded. It is concerned with issues of survival, such as food, money, and financial independence.

2. Sacral Chakra

This is located in our lower abdomen, around 2 inches below the navel and 2 inches in. This governs our connection to others and our ability to accept new experiences. In terms of emotions, it is concerned with well-being, pleasure, and sexuality.

3. Solar Plexus Chakra

Found in the stomach area of the upper abdomen, the solar plexus chakra guides our confidence and our ability to control our own lives. Self-esteem, self-worth, and self-confidence are all linked to this chakra.

4. Heart Chakra

As one might expect, this is located in the center of our chests, just above the heart. As in many other belief systems, the heart chakra determines our ability to love. It also helps us to experience joy and inner peace.

5. Throat Chakra

Found in the throat, this chakra leads our ability to communicate our feelings and truths.

6. Third Eye Chakra

This is sometimes also called the brow chakra. It is located on the forehead between the eyes. This chakra concerns our abilities to see the “big picture” of life around us. It also governs our intuition, wisdom, imagination and decision-making skills.

7. Crown Chakra

This is the highest chakra, found at the very top of the head. This represents our spiritual connection and our ability to experience pure bliss. It is also linked to our understanding of both the inner and outer beauties.

The root, sacral and solar plexus chakras are often known as the “chakras of matter” as they are more physical in nature. The throat, third eye and crown chakras are known as the “chakras of spirit”. Meanwhile, the heart chakra unites the upper and lower chakras and serves as a bridge between the physical body and the spiritual mind.

How can the chakras be healed if they are blocked?

There are several ways to approach blocked chakras, often known collectively as chakra healing. The main ones are chakra balancing and chakra opening.
Chakra balancing consists of attempting to find harmony between the chakras in order to create a sustainable flow of energy. Making one chakra healthy whilst allowing others to flounder will not allow you to achieve a healthy body and mind. Yoga asana (postures) can be a key component in balancing the chakras.

Chakra opening usually involves meditative techniques and breathing exercises. One must become aware of the chakra that is causing you difficulty, and then activate the energy in that area to open the chakra.

The next time you are feeling physically or emotionally uncomfortable, consider the role of the chakras and how you might heal them.

How to Dress to Teach a Yoga Class

Posted by author on Mar 14, 2019 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

If you just received your certification to teach a yoga class, you’re about to enter into an entirely new yoga experience. Being at the front of the room during class time is a unique perspective that you will need to prepare for. The first thing you may need to consider is how you plan to dress in order to teach your first yoga class.

When you headed to the yoga studio as a student, you likely threw on any outfit that was comfortable for your practice. Comfort should still be a key consideration for your yoga outfit, but it isn’t likely to be the only thing you need to take into consideration. As a teacher, your appearance has to be professional and still allow you to move through the yoga sequence with your students.

How should you plan to dress if you have to teach a yoga class instead of simply attending one? Take a look at these suggestions while trying to find the perfect items in your closet.

High-Quality Yoga Leggings Are a Necessity

If you’ve ever wondered whether you could get away with wearing a low-quality pair of yoga leggings, this isn’t the time to make a desperate attempt. These are usually made of thin fabrics that are see-through when you bend over into a standing forward fold. That doesn’t present the most flattering view of a new instructor. Instead, you need to search for high-quality yoga leggings that are designed to last through a rigorous practice.

Look For Shirts That Will Stay Put During Inversions

Even the most basic beginner’s yoga class includes some gentle inversions like the bridge pose, the shoulder stand, or the downward facing dog. All of these postures have the potential to cause your shirt to ride up on your abdomen or to gape and expose your entire chest. You should be sure that your shirt is tight enough to stay put during inversions but not tight enough to restrict your movement. Be particularly mindful not to wear a shirt that is so low-cut that it will expose your chest in a distracting manner either.

Don’t Wear Distracting Accessories

Maybe your mala bead bracelets are an integral part of your personal practice, but you may not want to wear them while you’re teaching. Jewelry, particularly the kind that makes noise, should be left at home or in your yoga bag during class. The sounds can be distracting as you move throughout the classroom to help adjust the posture of your students. Not only that, but these pieces could also snag a student’s clothes while you help adjust his/her bodies.

When it comes to getting ready to teach a yoga class, you want to wear something that is going to inspire your confidence as a leader. Select an outfit that meets all of these attributes and still allows you to feel like the person you ultimately want to be. The right outfit with new and upcoming fashion trends can help you to feel more confident and prepared to teach a class full of yogis.