In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna tells Arjuna, “On this path no effort is wasted, no gain is ever reversed.” A comforting thought when we’re nose first in crow pose – dust off the schnoz and try to fly again! But what about when those wings get a little damaged in flight? Yes, injuries are difficult to deal with and certainly humbling on our journey through yoga practice, but it’s not to say there aren’t some steps we can take along the way to help prevent future emergency landings.
We’re especially excited to present the latest YD Giveaway in the #365Yoga Journey, an incredibly valuable webinar series courtesy of Yoga Therapy Web – Creating a Safe Yoga Practice – Keys to Preventing and Healing Shoulder Injuries. Hellooo Nurse!
WIN: Free 2-part webinar series led by renowned yoga therapist Dr. Loren Fishman and author Ellen Saltonstall focusing on the anatomy, health and injury prevention of the shoulder joint. *cough* rotator cuff *cough*.
Details:
Creating a Safe Yoga Practice – Keys to Preventing and Healing Shoulder Injuries
Monday, May 2 and May 9
8:30 pm EST / 5:30 pm PST
*sessions will also be recorded and available for download following.
In this 2-part webinar, Loren and Ellen will focus on the anatomy of the shoulder joint, and how to keep the shoulder joint healthy. Shoulder injuries are among the most common yoga injuries, but a strong healthy shoulder joint is also essential for helping us practice key yoga poses, not just arm balances and inversions, but chaturanga, downward dog, and so on. In this webinar, Loren and Ellen will also go into detail about:
* the anatomy and kinesiology of the shoulder
* the most common errors people make in their yoga practice
* the yoga postures which put students the most at risk of shoulder injuries
* key points of a safe practice
Bonus Q&A segment – so prepare you questions! Awesome opportunity for students and teachers.
Read more about Loren Fishman and his work Sciatica.org
Read more about Ellen Saltonstall and her yoga workshops Mohiniyoga.com
HOW TO ENTER: We yogadorks can usually name a laundry list of reasons why we love yoga. Come to think of it, we’ve probably a lot of sweaty laundry too! er…well, we can get excited about yoga, but when we have setbacks like an injury, or you know, life, it can be tough to slow down and make a pit stop to reboot. In a world of go go go, it’s easy forget to slow down and take care of ourselves, until we have to. To enter this giveaway, simply add in the comments one good thing you do just for yourself, or one thing you have the intention of doing like taking supta baddha konasana every night, meditating in the morning, indulging your baking fetish, or reading 20 minutes before bed. Maybe it will inspire others, and maybe it will help you make it happen this time! Can be yoga or non. Slow down tiger, check in with yourself. Ahimsa, yeah?
Giveaway closes end of Friday, April 29th. Winner will be chosen at random and announced Saturday the 30th. Good luck!!
UPDATE: We have a winner…CONGRATS to Eve!
Thank you all so much for entering. We hope this has stirred up inspiration for you to continue appreciating the pauses in your practice as well.
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Earlier…
One thing I do just for myself is meditate each and every morning. I sit, close my eyes, and remain allow myself to be with me. One thing I have the intention to start doing is juicing daily. I feel so great when I am consuming fresh juices, and I know it is great for my body.
One thing I’ve started doing for myself is meditation. Admittedly, I’ve taken a bit of a detour (okay, several years) from my yoga-ing and whatnot, and I’m making an effort to incorporate it back into my life…slowly making room for a quiet mind and a flexible body : )
I like to eat ice cream after practice… its an amazing feeling. In the future I would like to stop eating ice cream after practice…
I sit and write on my blog. I make time for it daily and it has become a therapeutic thing for me to do. (well that and read blogs 😉 )
I practice savasana (corpse pose) at the end of every practice and when I’m tired, whenever possible. Or nap, if I can! Rest is one of the most important gifts I can give myself – AND, I’m so much nicer to be around! 🙂
emphasize proper breathing and make time for quality sleep
Been brewing my own Kombucha for about a year now! Drinking it first thing after morning meditation provides essential vitamins, enzymes, and sets the balance in the stomach for optimal digestion through the day.
I try to read a little non-Internet stuff every night before bed. Helps me settle in, especially when I can get my husband to turn the TV off as well….
I recently started meditating in the evening – starting at just 2 minutes, but I realized that I wake up with mental chatter already rolling. I started doing this to hopefully, one day, quiet it down.
The one good thing I do for myself is getting a massage. I get 20 minute ones at the chiro, one hour medical ones at an aweseome place and I have tried others over the years including thai, reflexology and yes I have even been rolfed. I have tried the Feldenkries Movement and just plain old regular massage. It’s good for you!
One thing I do each and every day is move with my breath. Allow my breath to invade each and every area of my body. I visualize that breath opening up areas of my body that need it: hips, shoulders, neck. Some days it is vigorous movement and some days it is slow deliberate movement. Without movement, we seize up, and it isn’t just our bodies that need this daily movement.
BTW, LOVE this giveaway!
I scheduled a massage way in advance. And I’m going to keep doing it, whatever the (my) economy, impossible schedule, feeling fat. The benefits are miraculous.
One good thing I do is a weekly acupuncture appointment. Nothing is more relaxing.
My yoga teacher BFF and I used to have a private advanced practice together in the empty studio every Tuesday morning. After a series of injuries I sustained related to hypermobility, we now meet at her house every Tuesday for meditation practice, working our way through various books and exercises. We also spend a lot of time talking through the steps in our journey. It has been so enlightening–dare I say even moreso than the hatha yoga practice we were doing before? Today we discussed mourning the loss–temporary or permanent–of poses that we took pride in mastering, as our bodies change and age or we make mistakes in poses or in life in general that cause injury. Our Tuesday mornings have helped us both so much–and they are just for us.
I chant in the car while driving to and from work. The Ohm sound is great to move beyond the hectic morning routines of getting everyone fed, dressed an off to school. It is also a great way of telling my brain and body to leave my work behind when going back home.
I try to slow down my breath…every…time…yoga…gets…hard. It helps me to come into the moment and to stop grasping.
Couldn’t live without massages every few months and mani/pedi’s every other week. But the most important gift I give myself is making time to slow down every day and enjoy my kids, my husband, and my kitties!
The older I get, the more I am able to take time for myself. What I have learned to do is say “No” (graciously of course!) when I truly feel I can’t do something asked of me. And, I am taking that one step further in that I don’t feel guilty about it!
One thing I always do is meditate every morning and I also practice yoga every day, even if it’s just a short routine in the evening I make it a point to get on the mat every day…
I do alternate nasal breathing each and every morning before I turn on anything electronic. Helps me to clear my head, focus and have clarity before the monkey mind sets in from the electronics!
One good thing I do for myself, besides practicing yoga each evening, is make my own yogurt and granola. It’s something I really enjoy eating each morning for breakfast with fresh fruit and makes me feel like I’m taking better care of myself than when I was buying my jumbo packs of store bought!
I love to eat after practice and I eat anything in sight from cookies to carrots.
Hi started juicing at least three times a week. I aim for once every two days at the least, but don’t always make it yet… Every time it feels way too good to be healthy!
I take the time to stretch every morning and night; it really helps me to relax and focus 🙂
One good thing I do every day? I have a “gratitude moment”. Life is great and I have soooo much to be thankful for, so I make sure I can breath at least one breathe of pure “Thank you!”
I turn off the radio on my commute and give myself time with some quiet.
I meditate, it helps when I am stressed out.
i sleep an extra 5 minutes after my alarm goes off. oh! and eat a spoon full of nutella and peanutbutter. mmmmm….
I allow myself time to review the events of the day. Savoring the good, resolving to make changes to avoid the less than good. Gratitude.
One good thing I do for myself is to never miss out of my two best physical and spiritual practices: yoga and Argentine tango. Even in stressful times, I make sure to do both at least 3-4 times a week, which keeps me sane and sound.
I have a home practice, but I allow myself to go to a yoga class at least twice a week. Sounds funny, but we live in a rural area, and if you factor in the drive, attending classes is quite a commitment in terms of time and money. When I feel like I should be getting more done at home or work, or like I should be spending less money, my twice weekly yoga classes are non-negotiable. This is my gift to myself.
Love your blog! Great contest! One thing that I do for me is to make sure, aside from daily yoga and at least 10 minutes of meditation, is to make time to breath. As a recent Ex-smoker, instead of putting a cancer stick to my mouth, every time I think of it, instead I take a minute or two to do some deep, 3 part breathing. Its amazing how much that can calm you if you take a few breaks during the day to remember to breath! Thanks for your great blog!
One good thing I do for myself is make sure I keep my bi-weekly appointment with my massage therapist. It’s an indulgence, certainly, but like my yoga practice, it has become an oasis in a sometimes frantic life (and it feels reeeeally good after a crazy week). Jai!
I try to meditate for 30-40 minutes, clean my nose with my neti pot, and journal at least 3 pages.
When I do my yoga practice I try to be mindful of the edge between just enough and too much. I’d like to start meditating – I think – but have been procrastinating. When I get around to it, I’m going to stop procrastinating! Maybe next week!
I get on my mat everyday…whether it’s at home or in class, use my neti pot every morning (just after brushing my teeth), read something spiritual or uplifting before bed (right now, Meditation for the Love of It) and totally un-related to yoga…chocolate!
I try and be mindful of whether I really need to bring the laptop home with me from the office. I’ve found that my shiney piece of technology isn’t as necessary at home as I’d unreflectively think, and I’ve enjoyed the freedom from morning compulsion to electronically check in. Also blissful are evenings without the laptop, where I’ll serenely knit or read instead.
I meditate everyday…whether on the plane traveling for work or laying with the cat in a sunbeam on the floor. amazing how much better I feel and the ideas that come to mind as a result!
I give myself room for all of the times I fail to do the things I’ve set out with intensions to do.
A few months ago I did two huge things for myself (while I had a pulled intercostal): I completed a 30day yoga challenge and then left for California to study to be a yoga teacher at White Lotus!
Since then I have been teaching and loving it. But now what I’m remembering to do every day is get on the mat myself and at least just practice some pranayama! Teaching means I’m in the studio a lot but that doesn’t mean i’m getting any asanas in. So, I’ve been remembering to let myself practice also:)
I am celebrating spring (it finally arrived in Vermont) by walking on the earth barefoot. My feet, knees and back are all saying a big Thank You!
I let myself ‘fail’, gloriously, maybe not gracefully, but dramatically. I take an insane risk, do something ‘wrong,’ or ‘bad,’ something I’d not intended to do and generally feel guilty, embarrassed by, or uncomfortable with, all the while fully conscious of my choice, standing firm inside the act. Then, I forgive myself, stop comparing myself to others, stop judging instead of inquiring, embrace humility, drop the ego, learn and open, and move on!
Also, I allow myself space to heal, in whatever form this takes, physically or emotionally. This has meant allowing for ample transition time between major life events/activities (i.e. college and graduate school, jobs, and lovers), taking a morning off to nurse a hangover, or, like today, allowing a day to pass without practicing and without ‘exercising,’ giving my SHOULDER!!, injured from overdoing it on the mat, well needed rest.
My daughter and I say 3 things we are grateful for every night before bed. When we started this practice last year her night terrors stopped. We go to sleep with gratitude and we rest better and wake up in a better place.
One thing I started doing for myself as of late is waking up on sun mornings and going downtown to help a small homegrown ministry feed the hundreds of homeless people that line up by the Salvation Army. Miss Jackie pulls up at 9 am sharp and we begin to set up and ready ourselves to do Gods work.
I can’t explain the feeling as I drive there in anticipation of the blessing I am about to receive. It gives me such a peace that it can only be described as Yoga. My mind is one with my spirit and my body is speaking to them both as we work in unison together. Working with others in a common spirit, while each sets about our own task . like the breath building up energy for the body to perform. the mind at peace within itself. The task at hand is underway.
The faces keep coming as the food dwindles down until the line is gone and the only thing left to do is slowdown the breath and take Savasana AKA: Cleanup
I leave Miss Jackie as I do most days my practice, hungry for more but satisfied at the accomplishment and growth. To me yoga is a blessing and a challenge to change. One breath at a time .
I do my very best to let nature touch me every day. If I can’t get out I gaze out the window and really focus on the trees, , birds and squirrels, and if the season is right the flower. I think it may be a human need to do this and that many of us are calmed and soothed by this simple and quick trick.
Focusing on my posture throughout the day has been a life changing experience! ‘I lead with my heart, my head will follow’ is my new favorite mantra!
Running barefoot in the park. I don’t do it every day but would like to. Makes me feel like I am about 7 years old.
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