Learn alignment cues that are skillful, safe, and best suited to you.

Challenge yourself to practice yoga five minutes a day with this inclusive beginner’s guide to 30 foundational yoga poses and sequences—for everyone and every body Yoga is a healthful, stress-busting, powerfully life-changing practice that is truly for everyone! You don’t need to be young, flexible, or athletic to do yoga—and you don’t need to spend hours on the mat. You just need to be yourself and commit to practicing at least five minutes a day. Here, renowned yogi Kino MacGregor presents a basic, self-paced plan to encourage you to try each of the thirty foundational poses included and slowly build a regular yoga practice. Through step-by-step instructions, over two hundred color photographs, and modifications for different body types and abilities, Kino makes yoga possible at whatever level you may be. By challenging yourself for just five minutes a day, you will end up learning a strong, basic yoga sequence that you can grow and adapt for a lifetime of yoga.

Your Spine, Your Yoga is the long-awaited second book of the Your Body, Your Yoga series. Focusing on the axial body, from the tip of the tailbone to the top of the skull, Your Spine, Your Yoga will explain how your body is unique and how this uniqueness affects your yoga practice. The latest anatomical understanding of the spine and its biomechanical abilities is described in varying levels of detail, for the novice to the experienced reader. Applying these principles to a safe and effective yoga practice holds a few surprises: you may discover that not every pose in yoga is a good idea for you, given the nature of your spine and the way we have previously been taught to stress it. Stability is more important than mobility for the vast majority of people, although many yoga classes promote the opposite view. Your Spine, Your Yoga offers alternative perspectives and prescriptions for a yoga practice that is spine sparing and strength building, based upon your unique biology and biography and your unique intentions

A full-color illustrated exploration of the body in motion during yoga practice • Examines anatomical patterns and body mechanics in specific asanas, such as forward bends, twists, external hip rotations, arm balances, and back bends, to inspire confidence in students, deepen practice, and prevent injury • Provides detailed images and photos overlaid with anatomical diagrams, allowing you to see clearly what is happening within each asana discussed • Explores how various yoga postures interrelate from the perspective of functional anatomy In this full-color illustrated guide, David Keil brings the anatomy of the body in yoga asanas to life. Writing in an accessible, conversational tone, he outlines how practitioners and yoga teachers alike can utilize a deeper understanding of their anatomy and its movement and function to deepen their yoga practice, increase confidence, prevent injury, and better understand their students and their challenges. Providing detailed images and photos overlaid with anatomical diagrams, allowing you to see clearly what is happening within each asana discussed, Keil shows how the muscles, joints, tendons, and structure of the body work together to support integrated movement. He discusses the basics of functional anatomy, exploring the workings of the foot and ankle, the knee, the hip joint, the pelvis and SI joint, the spine, the shoulder, and the hand, wrist, and elbow. He examines anatomical patterns and body mechanics in specific asanas, such as forward bends, twists, external hip rotations, arm balances, and back bends, such as, for example, how a wide-legged forward bend shifts the position of the femur and the pelvis, allowing students with tight hamstrings to accomplish a deep forward bend--something they struggle with when the legs are together. Keil also shows how various yoga postures interrelate from the perspective of functional anatomy. Revealing in detail how everything in the body is connected and how your anatomy functions holistically during yoga practice, this book helps you to understand the body better and connect and integrate yoga postures in a completely new way.

Transform your yoga practice into an intimate, creative, and healing experience in this refreshing guide to yoga in the modern world “An inspiring read for all yogis.” —Michael Franti, musician, filmmaker, activist What if, instead of constantly pushing yourself beyond your limitations, you paused to really listen to your body’s needs? In Gravity & Grace, innovative yoga teacher and trainer Peter Sterios shares a unique set of practice principles to help anyone—from beginners to advanced practitioners and teachers—revitalize their approach to yoga by tuning into the subtle body. When our yoga practices become too rigid, overly focused on technique, or dependent upon ideals that are not suited to our bodies, we lose the full potential of what yoga offers—a truly personal pathway to physical well-being, emotional unfolding, and spiritual awakening. In this groundbreaking book, Sterios helps you embrace the full, healing potential of yoga as he shares wisdom gained from over 45 years of exploring yoga and the subtle body. He teaches that by developing a sensitivity to how the natural forces of gravity and grace are at work physically and psychologically, we become empowered to confidently decide how to practice each day. Through an insightful blend of practical theory and direct instruction, Sterios will guide you to incorporate awareness of physical and subtle anatomy into your practice, utilize the breath for greater well-being, and create flowing sequences that naturally meet your unique needs in each moment. For teachers looking to deepen their offerings, students who want to bring a more personalized and healing experience to their yoga practice, and anyone working with physical limitations (from injury, body type, age, or any of the myriad obstacles humans face), Gravity & Grace is the “no-style” yoga guide you’ve been waiting for.

Explore the physiology of 30 key yoga poses, in-depth and from every angle, and master each asana with confidence and control. Did you know that yoga practice can help lower your blood pressure, decrease inflammation and prevent age-related brain changes? Recent scientific research now backs up what were once anecdotal claims about the benefits of yoga to every system in the body. Science of Yoga reveals the facts, with annotated artworks that show the mechanics, the angles, how your blood flow and respiration are affected, the key muscle and joint actions working below the surface of each pose, safe alignment and much more. With insight into variations on the poses and a Q&A section that explores the science behind every aspect of yoga, this easy-to-understand, comprehensive book is an invaluable resource to achieve technical excellence in your practice and optimize the benefits of yoga for your body and mind.

On the surface it may appear that yoga is yoga is yoga, but take a closer look and you’ll discover myriad different yoga systems and lineages. There are dozens of yoga styles to choose from, and while yoga is for everyone, not every style is the perfect fit for every person. But how do you choose between mysterious-sounding names such as Ashtanga, Kundalini, Bikram, and Kripalu? As Meagan McCrary discovered when she began exploring different classes, finding the right style is essential for establishing a steady yoga practice. Pick Your Yoga Practice is the first book to describe the most prominent yoga styles in depth, including teaching methodology, elements of practice, philosophical and spiritual underpinnings, class structure, physical exertion, and personal attention. Those new to yoga will discover they have options and can confidently attend a class of their choosing, while experienced practitioners will expand their understanding of the vast world of modern yoga, and perhaps find themselves venturing into new territory. Ashtanga * Iyengar * Kundalini * Integral * Kripalu Bikram * Jivamukti * Sivananda * Ananda Viniyoga * Svaroopa * Power * Forrest * ISHTA Anusara * Moksha * AcroYoga

Survivors of trauma—whether abuse, accidents, or war—can end up profoundly wounded, betrayed by their bodies that failed to get them to safety and that are a source of pain. In order to fully heal from trauma, a connection must be made with oneself, including one’s body. The trauma-sensitive yoga described in this book moves beyond traditional talk therapies that focus on the mind, by bringing the body actively into the healing process. This allows trauma survivors to cultivate a more positive relationship to their body through gentle breath, mindfulness, and movement practices. Overcoming Trauma through Yoga is a book for survivors, clinicians, and yoga instructors who are interested in mind/body healing. It introduces trauma-sensitive yoga, a modified approach to yoga developed in collaboration between yoga teachers and clinicians at the Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, led by yoga teacher David Emerson, along with medical doctor Bessel van der Kolk. The book begins with an in-depth description of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including a description of how trauma is held in the body and the need for body-based treatment. It offers a brief history of yoga, describes various styles of yoga commonly found in Western practice, and identifies four key themes of trauma-sensitive yoga. Chair-based exercises are described that can be incorporated into individual or group therapy, targeting specific treatment goals, and modifications are offered for mat-based yoga classes. Each exercise includes trauma-sensitive language to introduce the practice, as well as photographs to illustrate the poses. The practices have been offered to a wide range of individuals and groups, including men and women, teens, returning veterans, and others. Rounded out by valuable quotes and case stories, the book presents mindfulness, breathing, and yoga exercises that can be used by home practitioners, yoga teachers, and therapists as a way to cultivate awareness, tolerance, and an increased acceptance of the self.

Your Upper Body, Your Yoga is the highly anticipated final book of the Your Body, Your Yoga trilogy -- the definitive investigation of how your uniqueness affects your movements, postures and your yoga. This remarkable trilogy looks at the variations of human anatomy and its effect on the body's biomechanics. Used as a standard text for many yoga teacher training programs it provides yoga students and teachers a system for exploring what asanas are possible and sensible and which postures should best be left alone. This third book in the series looks at the upper body: the shoulder complex, arms and hands. But, there is more. This final book also includes explorations of how asymmetries and proportions affect our practice. You are unique. No one else in this whole world has your biology or biography. Why suppose that your yoga practice should be, or even could be, the same as anyone else's? How far apart should your hands be in Down Dog? Where should they be pointing? Should you avoid hyperextension of the elbows? Is hyperflexion of the shoulders safe? The answer is -- it depends! Your Upper Body, Your Yoga looks at the upper body from both the Western anatomical/biomechanical point of view and the modern yoga perspective. It is filled with detail, discussion, illustrations and practical advice for bodies of all types. Proportions and asymmetries are highly variable from person to person. The implications of asymmetries for a yoga practice and whether these asymmetries need to be changed, accommodated or simply accepted is examined along with variability in our proportions and their effect on postures. Whether the reader is a novice to yoga and anatomy or a seasoned practitioner with an in-depth knowledge, this book will be valuable. For the novice, there are easily understood illustrations and photographs, as well as sidebars highlighting the most important topics. For the anatomy specialists, other sidebars focus on the complexity of the topic, with hundreds of references provided for further investigation. For the yoga teacher, other sidebars suggest how to bring this knowledge into the classroom. Your Upper Body, Your Yoga can be used as a resource when specific questions arise, as a textbook to be studied in detail, or as a fascinating coffee-table book to be browsed at leisure for topics of current interest.

Yoga is for everyone, not just the young and lithe! Guest-Jelley understands what it's like trying to force yourself into poses that won't take and feeling short of breath ... so she created Curvy Yoga to embrace all shapes and sizes. Discover how yoga can help you connect with your body. -- adapted from back cover.