stress

I have been teaching yoga for 17 years, and one of the most frequent complaints I hear from students and yogaphobes alike is that they don’t have enough time for practice, so they avoid it altogether.

Avoiding a regular practice of stretching will never get you the healing benefits that come with the work. Even if you only do one pose a day, you will make a huge difference in your body, brain and well-being.

Breaking news! Some newly discovered compounds have just been found to turn off all of the genes that cause diabetes. Are these compounds found in a pill bottle? No!

Diabetes and insulin resistance are completely preventable and often reversible through aggressive lifestyle changes, including diet, supplements, exercise and stress management.

I remember hearing the song “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” by Bobby McFerrin and feeling instantly elated. The lyrics and melody were simple but made a lot of sense to me.

I consider myself a very “healthy” person. I eat well and walk and stretch every day. I challenge my balance to make sure I still can. I look both ways before crossing the street. But even with this preventative mindset, I still manage to end up wounded every month like clockwork. Don’t worry. It’s nothing my body isn’t designed to handle. And it is a wound borne by half of the people on the planet at about the same frequency.

The busier we become, the more we steal from our “joy” time. If work demands more time and effort, chances are our gym time will suffer. When the teenager has yet another hormone tantrum, watching a movie or painting our toenails goes out the window.

Ah, summer — longer days, a less structured lifestyle … NOT. If you’re stressed out by your kids’ summer activities, friends, meals, constant messes and late night hours (I have three teens; I can relate!), you know it’s easy to feel you can’t fit in workouts on top of everything else. But study after study has shown that regular exercise is one of the best things you can do when you’re stressed.

Guiding my students into a deeper Side Angle Pose in the woods of Omega, 2009.

Stacks of unfinished work, money worries … Burnt out? When was the last time you had a chance to get beyond stretching out the daily knots of life when you unroll your yoga mat? Two words: yoga retreat. It’s probably the best not-so-secret secret in the yoga world. And here’s how you can  justify taking one this year.

Everyone is moving fast. The level of information bombarding us is staggering. My clients consistently talk about feeling over-amped and overwhelmed. It’s time for an “energetic rebirth” — take an inventory how many places are draining your energy and find new ways to become vital.

OK, so we’re now finding out that the dreaded swine flu is in reality more like the piglet flu, but I don’t have the slightest time or the desire to get even a pint-sized illness … do you?

Yoga can help protect you from marauding viral invaders like cold and flu germs because it:

• Detoxifies and oxygenates your system

Backaches, anxiety, and feelings of claustrophobia are all common symptoms associated with the stress of the packing, schlepping, waiting and hurrying involved in travel. And travel can present the risk of more serious health threats including Deep Vein Thrombosis, the formation of blood clots in the legs due to lack of circulation and dehydration. So what’s a yogic traveler to do? Try these simple strategies and easy yoga stretches to help shield you from the effects of stress and inactivity when you travel: