Yoga Tune Up^® Blog

My massage therapist dug her thumbs into two quarter-sized attachment points on either side of the very top of my shin—the exact spot my tailor says a hem hits most flatteringly for a woman because it is the slimmest part of her leg. Apparently slim = painful. As I winced, writhed and hyperventilated on the massage table, she suggested my pes anserine and biceps femoris attachments were a bit adhered and, thus, “a little trigger pointy.” No kidding.

The pes anserine is the convergence of the semitendinosus of the hamstring and two adductor tendons—the gracillis and sartorius (aka the tailor’s muscle—ha! hemlines, tailor, get it?). It anchors on the front big-toe side of the shin. The biceps femoris (another hamstring) attaches opposite the pes anserine on the pinkie-toe side of the knee.

In recovering from a full knee reconstruction, I had diligently followed my surgeon’s instructions to strengthen and tighten my thighs, but no one had told me to work my adductors or release these  attachments to balance out the work. As a result, I overused my quads and hamstrings, ignored my inner thighs and stretched nothing. The good news was I had a pretty stable knee, the bad news was it hurt because it was compressed on three sides and weak on the fourth. The better news was now that I had, ahem, embodied my pes anserine and biceps femoris attachments, I could use the YTU Therapy Balls, instead of my massage therapist’s thumbs, to relieve my hamstring tightness and stimulate my adductors in order to begin strengthening them. See the video I’ve attached to do it yourself.

Ok, I know, it doesn’t exactly work, and tendon grafts aren’t the stuff of childhood playground taunts, but the point is, if you or your student has had tissue harvested from the patella tendon to replace other tissue damaged beyond repair (severed ACL, anyone?), it’s critically important to rehabilitate the graft site.

After a portion of the patella tendon is removed, scar tissue builds up and deadens sensation below the knee. It feels like your cheek after the dentist has shot you up with Novocaine. Thick and fuzzy. So I can’t feel much in that little divet below my knee—so what? The ’so what’ is that the patella tendon can rupture. It doesn’t happen often, but it’s is more likely when the tendon is already compromised (as in, half of it is being used somewhere else). If it ruptures, your knee buckles and you can’t stand.

The patella tendon is a continuation of the quadriceps tendon. So to get that thick and fuzzy fascia feeling good again, knead your knees with YTU Therapy Balls all the way around the kneecap from the quad tendon to the patella tendon. The gripping, grabbing, twisting and wringing of the balls will help break up scar tissue, restore sensation, circulation and health. Here’s a how-to video:

Knee pain, ranging from general discomfort to consequences of traumatic injury, is one of the most common reasons people seek medical attention. Treatment often includes physical therapy and sometimes includes surgery (according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 600,000 knee replacements are performed every year in the United States alone). But people are also  increasingly looking to yoga. A recent Yoga Journal survey suggests over 15 million people currently practice yoga and at least that many more are very interested in beginning a practice. These populations will likely collide. If you do not have a client with knee issues in class now, chances are you will. And soon.

As a yoga teacher you are uniquely capable of helping your students address the pain, fear and frustration associated with injury, surgery and recovery. You can be even more effective, however, if you understand knee anatomy and mechanics. There’s a lot going on in that hinge between the thigh and shin. Let me introduce you… Read the rest of this blog post »

It’s a little embarrassing when a friend 10 years your senior (and you are already middle-aged) can beat you in just about any athletic endeavor. But I have such a friend who, when she finishes one triathlon or adventure race, immediately trains for the next. Although she can kick my butt, she was having problems kicking her own, so to speak, when she asked me for help. In training for an upcoming half marathon, she felt her hamstrings were getting tight because her stride was getting shorter. Her healthy hip flexion with bent knees suggested the restriction might instead be coming from the hamstring-gastrocnemius connection (what I call the hamstroc) where the two muscles interlock like a square knot on the back of the thigh just above and below the knees. When the leg straightens, they pull against each other, when the knee bends, they let go.

I showed her Sitting Seza adapted for the balls. We placed one therapy ball in the middle of her calves about an inch or two below the backs of her knees (warning: never in the hollow behind the knee!). She sat back on her heels, toes tucked under (ankles in dorsiflexion), and shifted her weight side to side to cross fiber the heads of the gastrocnemius and the semimembranosus. The wide bunny-eyed look she gave me suggested we were on the right track. We did the same thing in plantar flexion.

She didn’t thank me at the time, but later that day, after her 9 mile training run, I got a very nice email saying she felt great and knew this exercise was going to help. Here it is below:

A new client of mine is a land surveyor who spends the majority of his time walking properties or standing in town hall vaults researching historical land records. He came to me complaining of difficulty walking up hills and debilitating back pain while standing. In fact, he had curtailed his walking significantly and often had to lie down in record vaults because his back hurt so much. He was taking 6 Aleve a day when I first saw him.

We tried Leg Stretch #1 but his knee wouldn’t straighten. I immediately thought “tight hamstrings,” but the gastrocnemius, the prominent calf muscle, will limit knee extension when it’s tight. Indeed, when I palpated above and below the back of his knee, his calves were crankier than his hamstrings. But there was more to the story (is there ever not more to the story?). Not only were his calves (plantarflexors) tight, but the opposing muscle—his tibialis anterior, which lifts the toes (dorsiflexes the ankle) was weak and restricted. All three of these muscle are incredibly important for walking hills due to the  massive dorsiflexion required to step up an incline and strong plantarflexion required on the push off.

I gave him Sitting Seza for homework. He complained vociferously, but in just a few weeks, he was off the Aleve, on the hills, and off the vault floors.

See the attached Yoga Tune Up® video (Sitting Seza) for this great lower leg stretch. It’s also on the 5 Minute Quick Fix for Feet and Ankles with other great lower leg work.

Early in my practice, I renamed Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana Quaking Vulture. You know the look—bent knees, rounded back, furrowed, sweaty brow, hand desperately grabbing for the foot. It wasn’t pretty. I know, yoga isn’t about looking pretty in the pose, but I was struggling with some serious tightness from my heels to my skull. For my own comfort and health, I needed to stretch out my entire back line and figure out how to keep it that way.

I started from the bottom with the muscles of the calves and shins—the soleus, gastrocnemius and tibialis anterior. The soleus attaches to the heel, via the Achilles tendon, and in addition to plantarflexion (pointing the foot), it holds us up—contracting while we stand to keep us from pitching forward. The soleus lives underneath the gastrocnemius (the prominent, obvious calf muscle that plantarflexes your foot and bends your knee), and while the two are not attached, per se, they share fascial tissue. So if the soleus is tight, it will likely transfer that tightness to the gastrocnemius. Never before had I noticed tightness in my calves because I didn’t need to recruit length in them for many poses—in fact, the turned out rear foot in many standing poses bypasses these muscles. Read the rest of this blog post »

While teaching one of my senior privates recenty, she started off telling me how stressful her weekend was since she had some problems with co-workers.  She needed something to help her to calm down.

I proceeded to do some very slow, 3-minute poses that help to unwind and regenerate. Half way through she told me that in the midst of her upset she realized that she wasn’t breathing. What a great realization!  First hurdle, down! Then she went on to tell me that in her distress she couldn’t breathe even as she saw that she wasn’t breathing. Hmmm, I thought to myself.  This told me that she was still harboring stress even though she had the insight of her lack of deep breathing.
In cases like this student, it is the lack of deep breathing that keeps her stuck in her emotional mess, locking her out of her body and away from true peace of mind. My clients are mostly fifty and older, successful type A personalities who rarely stop to eat, no less breathe.  So, my new prescription for them is to TAKE A BREATHING BREAK.
When seniors start yoga, many of them have no concept of what it is to take a full breath. Starting to explore yoga later in life, their body is usually pretty well established in holding patterns and bad habits. Without a full breath, it is very difficult to get movement to penetrate into the upper thoracic/chest and side ribs.  Because of this, the attempt to wake up the upper back, chest and ribcage becomes intellectual, contrived and distorted.  When they begin to see how taking a deeper breath will reshape the architecture of their body, without a lot of effort, lights start to flash and big smiles are beaming.

Taking a breathing break is simple.  Nothing is needed but awareness to stop and breathe for 5 or 10 breaths. So many students have the feeling that they need special props, a beautiful environment, or special talent to practice yoga but the breathing break only requires oneself and a quiet moment.  It is available to every one regardless of what level of student they are.

Remember the Sanpalka ‘I am a student of my breath.’   It goes beyond the classroom, beyond the asana, but it is our very spark of life and we are simply harnessing a power that is going on all of the time.
I always want to enlighten my seniors on the common sense of yoga.  During your breathing break why not experience how the Yoga Tune Up® pose Bridge Arms (standing or sitting) enhances your breathing break experience.  Bridge Arms is a pose that embodies the elements of a backbend, but can be employed at any time, any place, and in any situation to partner with simple deep breathing, to bring you out of the slouchy mood, or just too much work and remind you to remember your breath and take that breathing break. It’s included in the second half of the video below and on the 5 Minute Quick Fix for Shoulders video.
I recently read a quote by an actor being interviewed.  He was asked what was his favorite saying. He responded: “Breath in Breathe out… and repeat.”

Once every hour remember your breath, feel the energized transformation, the magic shift from chaos to calm and have a nice day!

The tissues of the hips and pelvis are a postural roundabout between the legs and feet below them and the spine above them. Improving the hips’ mobility and stability will directly impact the whole body, and your basic upright posture will be a bit more uplifted and balanced. And it can be done in just a few minutes per day!

Do this Leg Stretch Series on a block 3-4 times weekly (up to six times per week if you are extra active) and you will see a significant difference.

1. You will need a yoga block, a strap and a wall.

2. It is also helpful to have a timer so that you can time your holds. Hold each pose for the exact amount of time. Time your poses anywhere between 45 seconds and 2 minutes.

3. Breathe deeply and consistently throughout.

Leg Stretch #1

• Prop your pelvis on a yoga block and firmly place right foot on wall with toes pointing skyward.
• Wrap the fingers around the left big toe, or wrap a strap around the left foot’s instep while straightening the back of the left knee.
• Feel stretching in two places at once: the back of the left thigh (hamstrings) and the front of the right thigh (hip flexors).
• Breathe deeply for 45 seconds up to 2 minutes, then switch sides.

Leg Stretch #2

• Prop your pelvis on a yoga block and firmly place right foot on wall with toes pointing skyward.
• Hold onto the back of the left heel with the left hand, or wrap a strap around the left foot’s instep while straightening the back of the left knee without letting the pelvis lean off of the brick.
• Feel stretching in three places at once: the back of the left thigh (hamstrings), the left leg’s inner thigh (adductors) and the front of the right thigh (hip flexors)
• Breathe deeply for 45 seconds up to 2 minutes, then switch sides.

Few things outrage me more than bad posture. I get really bent out of shape when I see people who are literally bent out of shape. It is so simple to improve your posture, and it is totally free and requires no gym membership.

Here are some Don’ts:

1. Don’t lean into one hip and cock it off to one side.

2. Don’t slump your spine like a willow tree.

3. Don’t emulate the posture of Paris Hilton.

Here are some Do’s:

1. Stand up straight.

2. Point your toes forward.

3. Have some respect for your own structure.

Okay, good, glad I got that off my chest.

Why is bad posture bad for you?

The reason your posture hurts my feelings, and yours, is because poor posture creates significant changes over time in the soft tissues of the body – its muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia – as well as the hard tissues like bone, cartilage and discs.

The short form equation is this: Bad Posture + Time = Degeneration and Pain

The new normal?

Before this blog becomes too full of scolding, I also want to acknowledge that, for many people, their bodies have become so used to poor postural habits that walking the “straight and narrow” can actually be very uncomfortable and challenging to maintain as a “new normal” in their bodies. This is where corrective exercises like Yoga Tune Up® play a role on helping the body to lengthen the tissues that have become locked into an unhelpful holding pattern, or to strengthen tissues that are weak and unsupportive.

There are about a zillion different exercises that you can do to retrofit your body from inside out, but improving your posture can be dramatically affected by going after the largest joints in your body: the hips.

Tune in Friday for the “Hips Fix”!

[See Part 1 of this blog post here.]

Pop star salvation: Stick our your tongue like a rock god!

On Day #4 I was audible. I had one more special, two-hour Core Integration workshop to teach, all about the diaphragm, core strength, breath and cool gut stuff. At the end of the workshop, a blond pixie-haired Swedish lady introduced herself to me as Robyn and said that she was a singer and has toured for the last five years without getting hoarse by doing a special tongue massage. She told me, “Stick out your tongue and play with it, pull on it just like a baby. Put your fingers in your mouth and massage it, it will release your vocal chords … and massage your throat, too.”

Swedish pop star, Robyn. Photo: Lorne Thomson

I went back to my hotel, filled the tub and soaked while I massaged the base of my tongue from inside my mouth. It was so freakin’ tight! After 15 minutes (and a lot of drool), I started to have an upper register and a smoother tone. As the base of my tongue relaxed, the inner muscles of my throat gave way, allowing my vocal chords to vibrate again. Waves of tears also sprang out of my eyes, and I could cry out loud instead of in silence. This was the miracle I had been looking for! No lozenge, no inhaler, no steroid nor tea could substitute for fumbling through my own inner tension by taking a hold of it at the root — the root of my tongue.

Life on the road has been incredibly stressful for the past year (I have traveled for more than 140 days out of the last 365), and my inoperable voice is clearly trying to tell me something. Some of the many inner messages that I heard were: Slow down. Be still. Listen to love. Speak for silence. Sing more. (I really like that one!)

Lose your voice, listen with your heart

I am eternally grateful to Robyn. (Did you see her on Saturday Night Live with Katy Perry in December? She is awesome!) She is the best Swedish massage teacher on the planet. The student definitely became the teacher in this instance, and I am so glad she spoke up.

So the next time you lose your voice, go looking for it with your own hands, and keep your heart listening as you take the plunge.

[reprinted with permission from Gaiam Life.]

Last month I spent a week in Stockholm, Sweden, teaching my Yoga Tune Up® Integrated Embodied Anatomy module to a group of future yoga teachers at Yogayama studio. I arrived in icy-cold Stockholm late at night after a 22-hour journey. When I awoke jet-lagged the next morning, I was hoarse — very hoarse. With 20+ hours of teaching ahead of me over the next four days, I was concerned. There was no way to call in a “sub.”

Somehow I made it through the first day of yoga classes with some amount of pushing and strain. But on morning #2, the voice was completely shot. I mean 100 percent gone. For six hours, I pantomimed my way through the anatomy lessons … and liberally used Dagmar Khan, one of our European Yoga Tune Up® teachers who’d flown in from Ireland to attend the course. Like a versatile United Nation’s translator, she would speak aloud my whispered words so the crowd of 30 could hear me in the studio. Read the rest of this blog post »