Gutsy flow

SUMMER DEHYDRATION
During the summer months it can be hard to stay well hydrated. The body is constantly perspiring to regulate your body temperature, and even if you are drinking plenty of water you can still end up feeling a bit dehydrated. The recommended amount of water per day varies – depending on how much exercise you do, and if you have eaten enough fruit and veg. In general aim for a minimum of 2 litres per day, which is about 8 glasses of water.

THE EFFECT OF STRESS
Stress can also be the root cause of constipation. When the body goes into fight or flight mode all the blood rushes from the organs to our extremities ready for action. This means that the organs of the body, the digestive system included, have a reduced blood supply and are not working optimally. Yoga reduce stress by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system through breath awareness; slow mindful movement; and repetitive flows – which allows the mind to quieten and bring increases blood flow to all the organs of the body again.

There are many different reasons why you might be feeling bloated or constipated. This gutsy flow sequence will benefit you, regardless of the cause, if you find your bowel movements are a bit sluggish, or to keep everything moving and prevent getting constipated. As the saying goes ‘prevention is better than cure’. The specially chosen asana promote good gut health by stretching and compressing the whole digestive system.

BACKBENDS
Backends place pressure on your gut and stimulate peristalsis in the muscles of the colon which help to push waste food along. They also compress the blood vessels of the digestive system, and on releasing the backbend, bringing a rush of fresh blood flow to help remove toxins. Click this link to get a full list of backbends.

TWISTS
Twists wring out the digestive system and massage the digestive tract. In yoga we twist to the right first to stimulate the ascending colon first, and we twist to the left after to stimulate the descending colon – aiding regular elimination and toxin removal from the body. Similar to backbends, when we twists we constrict the blood flow, and on releasing a surge of blood rushes back – bringing with it a fresh supply of oxygen and flushes out the system. Click this link to get a full list of twists.

EXPLORING STAYING REGULAR IN YOUR PRACTICE
This sequence will help to stimulate the walls of the gut and bowels. It is best not to drink water during your practice so that the body is not trying to multi task. As soon as you have finished drink plenty of water to help all the good work you have done on your mat.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Print out the above sequence and have it at hand for those mornings when you feel your bowel movements have slowed down, or if you ate late and feel you’re digestive system is still struggling to process last night’s dinner:

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Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Summer backbends

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SUMMER OPENINGS
Backbends are the ultimate expression of openness and gratitude to the long, sunny summer days. Stretching wide across the chest area, and rippling through the whole length of the back, is very liberating and loosens built up tension in the spine. Backbends are energising; stimulate the nervous system; aid digestion and constipation; ease stress, tension, anxiety, fatigue and depression; and boost the immune system. You might notice the breath can be slightly inhibited in backbends. Although this might feel a bit uncomfortable, rest assured it is very good for your lungs. It cultivates an expansive breath, by stretching and stimulating all the fibres of the respiratory system, and enables you to flood more oxygenated blood into every cell of your body. If you find deepening your breath in breathing exercises challenging, backbends will help to warm up the muscles of the diaphragm and help expand the breath with more ease. Click this link to get a full list of backbends.

WHEN BONE MEETS BONE
This sequence starts with some gentle twists to wake the spine up, and open up the space between the vertebrae. When the vertebrae are compacted together you reach bone to bone sooner and limit your capacity to backbend. When you find space between the vertebrae, and lengthen up through the spine first, there is more room for the bones to arch into a lovely even curve.

EXPLORING BACKBENDS IN YOUR PRACTICE
To maximise your potential ability to open up in your backbends this sequence has minimal forward folds. When you take your transitional Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Dog keep a deep bend in your knees, and look for keeping the natural curve in your lower back. Often when we reach the heel down with straight legs we bring our pelvis into a backwards tilt, which flexes the lumbar spine and flattens out the curve. Similarly keep a deep bend in your knees in Uttanasana/Forward Fold and Ardha Uttanasana/Half Forward Fold. In the end of the sequence You will bring balance back and neutralise the spine with some seated and supine twists.

ALIGNMENT CUES
The alignment cues below will give you tips for some of the backbends that you’ll find through the sequence. Remember to lengthen up through the spine first before you come into any of the backbends.

Print out the below tips, along with the sequence, and open up to summer:

  • In Anjaneyasana/Eight Crescent Moon find your two pointy hip bones and lift them up to lengthen before you arch back into a mini backbend with arms in cactus position.

  • When you are in Ardha Chandrasana Chapasana/Half Moon Sugarcane press your hand into your foot and your foot into your hand. Lengthen through the thigh of your lifted leg and reach your knee up and behind you. Extend through the whole spine and gently arch your head back.

  • For the peak pose Natarajasana/Lord of the Dance spread the sole of your standing foot. Press your lifted foot into your hand and your hand into your foot. Broaden through the collarbones and extend your sternum forward and up. Lift your pointy hip bones up and check that they stay squared to the front of your mat. The hip on the lifted leg side will naturally try to lift up, see can you work towards bringing it level with the other hip.

  • Before you come into Ustrasana/Camel lift your torso out of your pelvis and lengthen up through the spine. Move into the pose by arching through your whole back, starting with your lumbar, all the way to your cervical spine. Lightly draw your navel to your spine to support your back like a girdle, and protect you from going too far into your backbend.

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Fluid movement

THE FLUID BODY
The human body is made up of between 60-70% fluid. This fluid acts as an important transport system for all bodily functions and a lubricant for movement. It decreases as we get older, but practising yoga keep you juiced up and minimises this naturally lose of fluid.

I am not naturally a very fluid person in my movement or, I have to admit, in my life off the mat. Routine is great but when it inhibits your ability to flow freely through life you need to dig deep and look for balance. The mind follows the body, and so, when we move with more fluidity in our practice we become more adaptable in life, less resistant to change, and find it easier to go with the flow in the yoga practice of aparigraha, or non grasping.

EXPLORING FLUID MOVEMENT IN YOUR PRACTICE
This sequence will give you the opportunity to flow through your practice. Use your breath to initiate your flowing movement. Think of the the breath as the ebb and flow of the tide – it takes it’s time and is never rushed; it pauses before it changes direction; it flows with ease and adaptability around any obstacles. Move from the inside out – yoga doesn’t care what you look like from the outside, it is busy working it’s magic on the inside! Be guided by what it feels like on the inside rather than what it looks like from the outside. Pay particular attention to bringing some fluid movement into your transitions. Pause, and work out how your are going to move from one pose to another, with muscular integrity and a slow and steady pace. Your time on the mat can double in benefits to the mind, body and spirit connection, if you link your poses with conscious transitions.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Think of yourself as fluid rather than solid as you move through the sequence. Become more pliable and explore working out how to adapt to obstacles you encounter in your time on the mat, and off the mat too. Let go of expectation of yourself in your practice. Everyone is different and everyone has different body proportions too – your leg may never be physically long enough to wrap around your head, and that person who can most likely struggle with other areas of their practice on or off the mat.

Print out the above sequence and move like a liquid rather than a solid form:

  • Start by lying on your back and tilting your pelvis forward and back. Notice the effect this movement has on your spine – when your pelvis is tilted forward (anterior tilt) the spine arches and the lumbar becomes pronounced; when you tilt your pelvis back (posterior tilt) the spine flattens out and you lose the natural curve of your lumbar. Look for a tilt between the two where you can just about fit your hand between the ground and your lower back to build a blueprint for the natural curve of your back. Revisit this curve throughout your practice to ensure you are flowing in sympathy to the spring system of your back.

  • As you flow from bent leg Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Dog to Phlankasana/Plank Pose ripple from your pelvis to your shoulders and move with your whole spine.

  • From Ashta Chandrasana/Eight Crescent Moon inhale, and on your next exhale, bend your back knee and hover it a few inches off the ground. Hug your outer hips to the midline to stabilise the pelvis. Inhale and lift back up to Ashta Chandrasana/Eight Crescent Moon. For the second set of three take a gentle backbend with the arms in cactus position on your exhale.

  • Try flowing through the Virabhadrasana II/Warrior II sequence with the breath cues as suggested in the sequence. Visualise the lungs filling up with prana as you lift up on the inhale and emptying out as you dip the pelvis down on the exhales.

  • For the final flow in Ashta Chandrasana/Eight Crescent Moon, with hands in prayer position, strongly draw your navel towards your spine and press into your standing foot to activate the lift of the leg. Move slowly with the breath. On your final leg lift see can you come up onto the balls of your standing foot.

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

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