Filed under: Yoga News
I wonder what readers think about this. (Thanks, Matt, for sending me the link.)
It’s pretty much accurate to say that there are religious aspects to yoga. So the National Fatwa Council is not wrong on that front. Even still, there’s a host of issues/concerns here regarding the role of government and religion in guiding and restricting the behavior of citizens, but I don’t want to get into a discussion about that, especially when we’re talking about another country that I don’t know a lot about. I wonder, though, if people in Malaysia could just practice yoga without the religious aspects. They could, for instance, do “gym” yoga.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Debby Harris, Bloomington’s favorite Ashtanga teacher, will be joining Bloomington Power Yoga in December. Her first Ashtanga class at BPY will be Tuesday, December 2, at 6:00 PM.
Note: My usual Tuesday night 2/3 Flow class will be on hiatus until further notice.
Also Note: Class packages with Debby are valid for all BPY’s classes. And BPY students may use their class packages to take Debby’s class.
Filed under: Yoga Musings
I’ve heard a lot of talk recently about the differences between “real” yoga and “gym” yoga. I don’t know if this is really a useful distinction to make, but quite a few people who practice at yoga studios stick their noses up at the yoga being taught a gyms. And a lot of yoga teachers quietly think of their gym yoga classes as watered down yoga for the masses. Many yoga teachers I know teach at gyms primarily for the money, and for the cachet of having, say, Equinox or Beverly Hills Sports Club on their resume. But what is the difference between yoga at a gym and yoga at a so-called real yoga studio? Is there a difference? (more…)
Filed under: Yoga News
This recent article in the NY Times has some interesting information about about stretching. The old and persistent myth is that stretching out before exercising is a good thing. Apparently, though, static stretching really isn’t so great for your body, and it may even make the muscles less able for athletic performance, and more vulnerable to injury. The good news is that dynamic stretching is very good for you, and it’s the new trend in pre-athletics warm-up, especially among professional athletes.
Check out the video at the end of the article. There’s a good demo and explanation of dynamic stretching.
After reading this article, I was surprised to find that the author didn’t mention yoga even once! Vinyasa Flow in particular is a lot like the dynamic stretching that the guy demonstrates in his video. And the pictures on the side margin of the article are all basically yoga poses. In fact, I’d argue that this article and video are essentially promoting yoga, without evening knowing it!
