ANDREA - a full time Yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi instructor.

I fell in love with yoga over seven years ago, when I got a Nintendo DS and bought a game called Let's Yoga. From then, I began 'playing' yoga everyday, sometimes twice a day. At first, the practice was more physical for me, but after few months I started to really count on yoga to bring me a sense of calm during especially chaotic days. Soon after, I began recognizing the benefits of a regular asana and meditation practice and continued to incorporate yoga daily - not just during times of chaos. I found myself feeling more energized, more compassionate, happier, and with more awareness. Now, I teach full-time and couldn't be happier to do what I love. What began as a physical practice for strength and flexibility quickly became a lifestyle. I teach my students to take their yoga off the mat and apply the principles learned in the class to their lives outside of the studio. I do not only teach my philosophy, I live it.

Saturday 12 October 2013

Warrior One

Warrior One / Virabhadrasana I

(veer-ah-bah-DRAHS-anna)
Virabhadra= “warrior” the name of a reincarnation of Shiva

1.  Step forward with your right foot from downward dog into a high lunge and spin your back heel down at a 45 degree angle. Maintaining a heel to heel stance

2.Maintain your knee above the ankle and engage your quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes.
Variation: Keep one knee on the floor as you lunge forward, greater ease of balance and support, also good for warm up variation.
Variation: to increase difficulty, widen the stance and sink into a deeper lunge, align the bent thigh parallel with the floor

3.Rotate the hips forward, and elongate the spine, rotate your shoulders back and reach your arms over head. Lengthen the crown of the head to the sky.

4.Keep your arms straight over head and the palms of the hands facing each other gaze up at the hands in the sky.
Variation: To increase difficulty, without hunching up the shoulder blades, bring your hands together and maintain the gaze up.

Benefits
-Strengthens and warms up the legs, shoulders, back
-Stretches the tights, ankles, shoulders

Cautions
-High blood pressure
-Shoulder or neck injury

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