Yoga at Home for Absolute Beginners!

Yoga at Home for Beginners: Avoid Injuries -Don't Try Too Hard!

Yoga instructor Roger Cole has reportedly said that if you don't "force" things, you're going to prevent 99 percent of yoga injuries."  I agree completely.  To date, after 4 decades of yoga practice, I have yet to suffer an yoga-related injury.  I follow the rules that "no pain is all gain" and that "slow and steady" is essential.  As Dr. Timothy McCall says in his book, Yoga as Medicine, "Build up what you do over time and be patient."

Dr. McCall also explains that "due to anatomical variations, yoga poses readily done by some people are simply impossible for others..." and that "Some people unnecessarily torture themselves over the inability to perform certain asanas without realizing that it's something inherent in their body proportions or shape." Great!  Now I don't have to feel inferior because I can't do some of the challenging yoga poses that 92-year young Porchon Lynch can do with ease!

The key to success and an injury-free yoga practice is always to tune yourself into your body. At first, you may find this challenging and not feel competent in interpreting your body's signals.  With consistent yoga practice over time, however, you'll find yourself better able to innately know what your body can and cannot handle.  A good tip that Dr. McCall includes in his book is that you should pay special attention to your transitions entering and exiting postures to avoid injury.  This is where I notice that at least on many youtube videos I have watched, many instructors seem to move rather quickly (too quickly, in my opinion) into and out of poses.

Two days ago, I slept late and a total of over 10 hours in one night - a rare treat for me.  Except the major disadvantage is that after having slept so long, I awakened a bit stiff.  In addition to that, I felt some pain in my right knee as I eased into the half-lotus pose.  I had no idea why.  My knee felt slightly bruised but more importantly, I felt considerable discomfort when I tried to enter the half-lotus.  So - that day, I backed off and refrained from sitting into the half-lotus.  At the same time, I extended the hold for other poses (for example the child pose) that made my right knee feel good.  Two days later and all the knee pain is gone.  So the lesson here is simple - you can enjoy an injury-free yoga practice if you don't "try too hard."

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the Beginners' Yoga at Home Coach

 

 

 

 

Yoga at Home for Beginners: Stay Relaxed During Hectic Holidays-Do Yoga!

You CAN Stay Relaxed & Serene This Holiday Season! - Press Release-November 2011

“Real, regular” people can de-stress during the holidays by practicing gentle but powerful yoga in the privacy and convenience of their own home! 

As we enter the busy holiday season, many people experience considerable stress because of the lack of time and money to get “it” all done and the pressures to produce a perfect, idyllic experience with family and friends. The extra shopping, cooking, cleaning, and entertaining we do can lead to depression, sleep disturbances, and lethargy. But, a gentle yoga practice done in the privacy, convenience, and low expense of your own home can enable you to stay relaxed, serene, and full of energy in the midst of all the holiday activities. 

Self-taught yogi Laura Venecia Rodriguez, who has been practicing yoga for 40 years, recently released her first book, Yoga at Home: Gain Energy, Flexibility, and Serenity in 20-30 Minutes a Day. Half-instructional, half-motivational, Yoga at Home includes easy yoga breathing techniques such as the alternate nostril breath and dreamlike, slow-motion poses like neck rolls and the backward bend that take only a few minutes and enable you to stay relaxed and serene no matter how hectic your life is over the holidays.

Furthermore, “yoga is NOT just for the elite corps of supermodels, celebrities, athletes, or super-flexible instructors,whom many of us could never match in ability,” asserts Laura. Gentle, slow yoga can be practiced at home by virtually ANYONE who wants to feel wonderful and stay calm and relaxed during the upcoming busy holiday season.

Although yoga books abound, Yoga at Home is likely the only one you will find authored by a real, regular person who considers herself the ultimate klutz! Written in a simple, easy-to-follow format, and laid-back style, Laura’s book makes yoga accessible to the absolute beginner who may have felt that yoga was beyond his/her reach.

Yoga at Home gives the reader step-by-step instructions for 20+ yoga poses, tips on how to keep yogafun and avoid injuries, as well as creative techniques to gain maximum benefits from a yoga practice. Laura proves you don’t have to do the complex, pretzel-like poses you find in magazines, or the super-intense forms of yoga often taught in yoga studios, to gain tremendous benefits from this 4,000-5,000 year-old practice.

Check out - Yoga At Home: Gain Energy, Flexibility, and Serenity in 20-30 minutes a Day

Laura Venecia Rodriguez

190+ pages; $12.95

Published May 2011 by Awaken the Wisdom Within Communications, LLC

ISBN # 9781453898369

Available from Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/dp/1453898360 or at https://www.createspace.com/3493692

Yours for staying relaxed and serene in the holidays ahead,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, The Beginners' Yoga at Home Coach 

 

 

Yoga at Home for Beginners: Yoga Practice can Lead to a Decrease in Medication!

Just the other day I was talking to the mother of one of my son's friends who dates back to pre-school years. We hadn't spoken in a couple of years.  She told me that she had been thinking of me the past few weeks because last August she bought my book, Yoga at Home, and had recently begun her yoga practice.  She shared her delight with her home practice saying she had set up a special yoga space in her home.  And, to her great joy, because of her yoga practice, she was no longer suffering from migraine headaches and that the quality of her sleep had greatly improved.

What a welcome testimonial about the power of a gentle yoga practice! I personally have been fortunate in that the number of times I have had to use medications in my life has been almost nil.  So, I cannot personally attest to yoga's benefits in helping to lower one's dependence on medication.  However, physician Timothy McCall says in his book Yoga as Medicine that "it is not uncommon when people begin to practice yoga regularly that their need for medication decreases."

This is NOT to say that you have the green light to just any medication at any time. However, I do believe that as you practice yoga consistently over time, your ability to read your body and be attuned to its messages increases. As McCall also says, "The more you do yoga, the more you'll have access to that intuitive senses of what's good for you and what isn't."  And, I would add, "you discover what you need and what you don't require to feel your best and remain healthy." You may well find that you can decrease or even eliminate your use of medications.  Of course, always check first with your licensed medical practitioner before making any major changes in your medical regime to be safe.

Yours for reaping untold benefits from practicing yoga,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginner's yoga at home coach

 

Yoga at Home for Beginners: Vivaldi Adds Vitality to Yoga!

What a glorious, brisk sunny morning I woke up to today!  I slept in and felt more refreshed than usual. Following my toasty warm shower I stepped into my yoga "studio"/space and turned on the light classical music channel.  As I have noted in many posts, my taste in music is ecletic and today I felt like moving and holding my yoga poses to classical selections.

I love the music channels on cable because they give you the opportunity to listen to a wide selection of performers and composers.  For years, I have loved Vivaldi's Four Seasons and other popular pieces. Today, however, I heard Concerto in A Major for Violin and Orchestra which was new to me. What an energizing piece whose melodies filled me with vitality and energy!  I felt especially fabulous after I completed my practice.  Choreograph your yoga practice with the music you love and try out new selections as well.

Yours for moving to lively music as you practice yoga,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, The Beginners' Yoga at Home Coach

 

Yoga for Beginners: Listen to Your Body with "Candlelight" Yoga

Yesterday, I received an email about healthy living habits and the author stated that although he generally did not like yoga, he does enjoy "Candlelight" yoga.  Candlelight yoga varies from class to class but generally invovles doing hatha and restorative yoga while basking in soothing candlelight.  

What I like about the youtube video shown below that features yoga instructor Chris Tucker, is its emphasis gentle yoga.  Tucker holds candlelight yoga classes in the evening with dim lights and includes poses from hatha yoga, restorative yoga, and yin yoga.  The classes are designed to allow people to unwind after a busy day and prepare for a wonderful restful sleep when they go to bed.

Tucker brings out a wonderful concept that I agree with 100%. He says that the gentle yoga he teaches in his "candlelight" yoga class allows people to listen and hear whatever may have been repressed in their bodies and bring it to the surface. Yes, indeed - that's what I like about my "slow mo" gentle yoga practice. You have the time and ability to really listen to your body's whispers and its innate wisdom. 

Tucker's class sounds most inviting.  Of course, you can also create candlelight yoga practice in your own home studio.  Below is my set up with safe, battery-operated candles.  And, you aren't limited to doing "candlelight" yoga in the evening! You can do it in the mornings to gently segue and ease your way out of sleep into the activity of your day.   Try it soon!

 

 

 

Yours for doing yoga in any kind of light including candlelight!

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginners' yoga at home coach

Yoga for Beginners: "Yoga is the Dance of Life" Says Amazing 92-Year Young Yogi!

Are you over 45 or 50 and think you're too "over the hill" to begin a yoga practice? Are you talking about how "old" you are? Frequently? Stop right now and "Think Youfully Now!" which is the title of a book written in the 1960s that I keep close by on my personal library shelf.And, I just found a wonderful video about a 92 (did you get that? - NINETY-TWO) year young yoga instructor, Ms. Porchon Lynch who exemplifies and exudes youthful vitality.

What is so touching about Ms. Lynch's story is that she can do poses like the crow and the full lotus which I still haven't mastered. Yet, she considers herself to still be a "beginner" even though has been teaching yoga for 40 years!  She was a female maverick in her earlier years because she grew up in India and saw young men doing yoga and was told it was not a practice that women should engage in.  She didn't listen and she certainly demonstrates the benefits  of a lifelong practice.  Yoga is the "dance of life," says Ms. Lynch and she emphasizes the importance of the energy you put into a practice.

Ms. Lynch's smile radiates her beauty inside and out and she is serene, humble, energetic, and giving.  She admits to learning as much from her students as they do from her.  She is also wise because she recognizes that people's physiques differ and that not everyone can do a particular pose the same way. She is not one of those drill-sergeant type of yoga instructors that some yogis have told me about!  She revels when she hears her students say they are surprised at what they can do that they first thought was beyond their ability.

What an inspiration!  My intention is to follow her lead and be able to continue to be vital, sharp, strong, and as genuine as she is 40 years from now!

Think you're too old to start yoga?  Watch Ms. Lynch and give me a break!  Change your attitude!

 

Yours for beginning a yoga practice at any age,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginner's yoga at home coach

 

 

Yoga for Beginners: Start with Gentle, Achievable Yoga, Please!

You see this pose?!  I decided to browse for some photos of impossibly difficult yoga poses that real people, like me, and perhaps you, cannot hope to achieve - at least in this lifetime!  Such photos anger me, truth be told.

In a way, I think it's a crime that too many of these intimidating photos seep out into the media. Luckily, when I began yoga at age 15, I saw few photos of pretzel poses like this one.  If I had, I would have not even attempted to learn yoga.  This is acrobatic yoga.  No doubt, hundreds of years ago, probably quite a few Indian yogis could master such poses.  However, I believe that the essence and spirit of current yoga practice includes presenting poses that are accessible to most, if not all people.

Had I thought yoga was limited to such acrobatic yoga, I would have never started a yoga practice.  And, I would have not reaped the benefits of energy, flexibility, and serenity that I have enjoyed for years!  I strongly suspect that the preponderance of these types of photos versus those of the simpler, less visually dramatic poses that I do, have discouraged many people from considering yoga at all.  They just tell themselves, "whoa, I am too inflexible to do that!" 

Consequently, I strongly believe if you are a yoga newbie, begin with gentle, restorative yoga, period! Once you master gentle yoga poses, then the light is green to move on to more intense poses and yoga practices and maybe even seemingly impossible yoga feats as shown above.  But, your mantra should always be to learn and progress in gentle, baby steps.  If you follow this guidelines, you will advance much farther in the long run with your practice and gain tremendous results.

Yours for starting with gentle yoga,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginner's yoga at home coach

 

Yoga at Home for Beginners: Flying Somewhere? Do Yoga After You Arrive!

Are you planning to fly somewhere soon?  The joys of air travel - we can zoom 3,000 miles across the country in just a few hours as I did 2 weeks ago, flying from Washington, DC to Los Angeles, CA. The downside, however is that since I am not YET able to go first-class, the section I sat in looked very much like the photo you see here - with double rows of 3 seats each.  And, a long flight in narrow seats=body stiffness.

Actually, the seats above appear wider than the ones I sat in.  Regardless, even if you get up and move around a few times en route to your destination, sitting in narrow seats for more than 2 hours at a stretch affects your body. Limited mobility causes you to get tight and stiff especially in your neck and shoulders and your legs, especially if the person in front of you has their seat tilted WAY back. 

Although, as I shared in a post over 2 years ago, some people like actress Uma Thurman may be brazen enough to do yoga in the aisle of the plane and get away with it, most of us are not so daring.  Thus, the key antidote to the stiff muscles you get after a long plane ride are to do yoga shortly after you arrive and settle into your hotel. This is exactly what I did two weeks ago when I arrived in Los Angeles.  I unpacked my clothes and because I felt a bit stuffy after a long plane ride, I indulged in a steamy hot shower, lathered my body and rinsed off with that lovely sesame scented Neutrogena body oil that I adore.  Fresh, clean, and lightly scented, I donned my yoga clothes, rolled out my lavendar travel yoga mat, and eased into my regime.  I felt as if I were giving myself a mini-massage as the kinks began to unwind and the tightness in my muscles began to dissipate.  I felt revived and refreshed!  

You may not always be able to do yoga after you arrive at your destination, but, it you can carve out the time, you will enter your next set of activities feeling energized, flexible, and serene!

Yours for unwinding with yoga after a long flight,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginner's yoga at home coach (for regular, REAL people)

 

 

Yoga at Home for Beginners: What? Not Allowed to Leave a Class?

I met a group of women yesterday at a special high tea held at the Hay-Adams hotel in Washington, DC. We shared personal challenges and triumphs and what we were "on fire" about or not...During one of our breaks, a young woman told me that she had recently gone to a Bikram yoga class - a 90-minute session of 26 yoga poses repeated twice and done in a very hot room. 

This was her first experience with yoga and she had attended with a friend. Astounded by the intensity of the session, at one point she decided she needed a break and made a move to leave the room. The yoga instructor stopped her and "told" her that she was not allowed to!  What???   A few years ago I wrote a post about a work colleague who was not allowed to remain in a class and now this time someone told me that she wasn't allowed to leave the class just for a few moments!

Wow!  My experience with yoga classes is admittedly limited and so I may be naive about how such classes are done - especially Bikram yoga since it involves 2 rounds of yoga poses. But,  I just can't imagine taking a class for the first time and not being allowed to take a break if needed. The yoga instructor sounded like a drill sergeant or a coach on a varsity high school team.  In those situations, yes you can't just take a break when you want. 

In my humble opinion, however, a yoga class instructor should be an encouraging coach who guides you along - but doesn't force you into anything!  "Forcing" someone to do or not do something in a class is so antithetical to the spirit of yoga - at least the way I learned it!  And yoga instructors should ask and know how much experience new class participants have when they join a class.

No wonder injuries sustained in yoga classes are increasingly common! As I always say - learn yoga in slow, deliberate, baby steps and you won't overexert yourself, get sore, or risk injury.  This is why I continue to practice in the safety, comfort, and convenience of my home and why I haven't been injured doing yoga.

Yours for listening to your body as you do yoga and taking breaks as needed,

 

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginner's yoga at home coach (for regular, REAL people)

 

Yoga at Home for Beginners: More on MC Yogi - "Give Love" Song

  

 

I talked about this song a few weeks ago in a post and you know, I find it so inspirational that I just HAD to post the video here on my blog.  Go to Itunes and buy it now and add it to your playlist of songs to listen to as you move, stretch, and hold your yoga poses!

If you are like me, you will feel energized, happy, and bubbly. I know - I am sounding like a Pollyanna - but in all honesty, I only share with you what's true for me.

This song is so affirming!  With all the negative news in the media, we need to add as many upbeat positive energizers to our day!  And, I love how MC Yogi weaves in the yoga poses.  A great rap/hip hop yoga song!

Yours for practicing yoga with upbeat positive music,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the beginner's yoga at home coach