Blog Every Day in May: Day Two

Day 2, Thursday: Educate us on something you know a lot about or are good at. Take any approach you'd like (serious and educational or funny and sarcastic)

So hmmmm, what do I know a lot about?
See the thing is, I really know a little about a lot of things.
But one thing that I thought would be fun to instruct about (since it's been while) would be yoga.
I was a yoga instructor at the campus rec center at the University of Richmond for about 18 months, and it was wonderful.

Mini Yoga Background Time!
*The word "Yoga" means "unity" in Sanskrit, and it is an ancient Indian (the Asian country, not "Native American") discipline, and actually was meant to be practiced in all aspects of life, rather than just an exercise (its about more than the physical poses, it's a mindset).
*The names of yoga poses, or "asanas," are usually based on natural objects and animals (think mountain pose, downward dog, tree, cat, cow, etc.), and sometimes actually resemble the thing their named after, but sometimes require a bit of imagination.
*The most common yoga practice taught in classes is Vinyasa Yoga. "Vinyasa" means "to move with the breath" so Vinyasa Yoga is all about the unity between breathing and physical movement. Bikram yoga, Ashtanga yoga and other forms of hot yoga are all based in Vinyasa yoga.
*In Yinyasa Yoga it is important to breathe smooth and slow, and let your movements be steady and controlled, reflecting your breath, and bring intention to your movements while you concentrate on breathing.
*In Vinyasa Yoga, you breathe in through your nose and out through your nose, generally lifting/lengthening your spine on the inhale, and releasing/sinking on the exhale.
*Another main form of yoga it Hatha yoga which focuses more on the breath and meditative aspects of yoga.
*For every thirty (30) minutes of yoga practiced, one should spend 5 minutes in savasana or "corpse pose." While it sounds morbid it is actually a way to mentally reflect on what you just did, or focus on your breath, while your body relaxes and recharges.
*Usually a yoga class will end with the participants saying "Namaste" to one another, which roughly translated means "the divine in me recognizes the divine in you"

Mini Yoga Class Time!
Check out one of my YouTube yoga videos, focusing on opening up the hips and sides of your torso:

Or you can follow along with my most popular yoga video, focusing on leg strength and balance:

Hopefully you feel relaxed and zen after this brief introduction to Yoga. For more info, ask in the comments or find me on twitter: @itzbizr

Namaste