i am sam

thesumofmypartss:

Child’s Pose, Balasana

How-To:
1. Kneel on the floor. Touch your big toes together and sit on your heels, then separate your knees about as wide as your hips.

2. Exhale and lay your torso down between your thighs. Broaden your sacrum across the back of your pelvis and narrow your hip points toward the navel, so that they nestle down onto the inner thighs. Lengthen your tailbone away from the back of the pelvis while you lift the base of your skull away from the back of your neck.

3. Fold over your upper body and bring your forehead to the ground. Stretch your arms over your head and place your palms on the floor for active child’s pose. For passive child’s pose, rest your hands on the floor along your body with your palms up. Now your torso and legs are balanced on the backs of your upper arms. 

4. Balasana is a resting pose. Stay anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes. Beginners can also use Balasana to get a taste of a deep forward bend, where the torso rests on the thighs. Stay in the pose from 1 to 3 minutes. To come up, first lengthen the front torso, and then with an inhalation lift from the tailbone as it presses down and into the pelvis.

Benefits:
This is a restful pose that is kind and gentle to your body. It gently stretches the thighs, hips, & ankles. It also calms the brain and can relieve stress and fatigue. Women can use this pose to relieve the pain of menstrual cramps - I can tell you from personal experience that it works!!

(see previous “healing through yoga” entries here!) 

(via yogabloga)

warbyparker:

Bike shelf by Knife & Saw. Perfect for small spaces.

Bike Love: Shelf Edition

(via loveyourchaos)

eatsweatsleep:

yogarunloverepeat:

5 simple steps to headstand

This is exactly what I need!

thesumofmypartss:

Crow, Bakasana

How-To:
1. Squat down from Tadasana with your inner feet a few inches apart. If it isn’t possible to keep your heels on the floor, support them on a thickly folded blanket. Separate your knees wider than your hips and lean the torso forward, between the inner thighs. Stretch your arms forward, then bend your elbows, place your hands on the floor and the backs of the upper arms against the shins.

2. Snuggle your inner thighs against the sides of your torso, and your shins into your armpits, and slide the upper arms down as low onto the shins as possible. Lift up onto the balls of your feet and lean forward even more, taking the weight of your torso onto the backs of the upper arms. In Bakasana you consciously attempt to contract your front torso and round your back completely. To help yourself do this, keep your tailbone as close to your heels as possible.

3. With an exhalation, lean forward even more onto the backs of your upper arms, to the point where the balls of your feet leave the floor. Now your torso and legs are balanced on the backs of your upper arms. As a beginner at this pose, you might want to stop here, perched securely on the bent arms.

4. But if you are ready to go further, squeeze the legs against the arms, press the inner hands firmly to the floor and (with an inhalation) straighten the elbows. Seen from the side the arms are angled slightly forward relative to the floor. The inner knees should be glued to the outer arms, high up near the armpits. Keep the head in a neutral position with your eyes looking at the floor, or lift the head slightly, without compressing the back of the neck, and look forward.

5. Stay in the pose anywhere from 20 seconds to 1 minute. To release, exhale and slowly lower your feet to the floor, back into a squat.

Benefits:
This pose is a bit of a challenge but has many benefits! It strengthens your arms, wrists, upper back, & your abs, and stimulates the digestive, respiratory, & nervous systems It will also help you develop focus & concentration, and the feeling of satisfaction you get after doing your very first crow is amazing!

(see previous “healing through yoga” entries here!) 

(via yogillama)

(Source: workshoperotica, via yogabloga)

Warrior II

Le Louvre, Paris, France

RUN.