Lengthen then twist

SUMMER CLEANSE
Holiday are all about tasting regional specialities and immersing yourself in the local culture. This may mean that you are sampling foods that are not usually part of your diet. I sometimes find that on my return it takes a few weeks to reclimitise to my regular home routine. This year, with a touch of post travel tiredness and headaches, I embarked on a mini cleanse to reboot my system and reinvigorate my savoury gut microbiome. I practices my Gutsy Flow everyday and followed the Rich Roll cleanse for five days – which included 100% veg smoothies, mushroom broths, chlorella and lots of water. After the cleanse I noticed a spectacular increase in my energy levels, clarity of mind and fluidity of movement. I was bouncing out of bed at 5:30am to teach my morning class and was still awake at 9:30pm which is very unheard of! The cleanse encourages you to write notes on each day of your cleanse. My day five note to self was:

GOOD FOOD = ENERGY = HAPPINESS   

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.

FIND LENGTH FIRST
This sequence takes a step back from twists and looks at what you can do before you twist to maximise the rotation in the spine. When you twist a piece of cord you’ll notice that the more you twist it the shorter the cord gets. The same thing happens in the spine as you twist. You may reach an end point where you hit vertebrae to vertebrae before you reach the limitation of your muscle stretch. Lengthening up the spine through side bends first, and lifting the torso up out of the deep pelvic bowl, helps to find extra space between the vertebrae before you take your twist.

EXPLORING LENGTHENING THEN TWISTING
After you take your side bend make sure you come back to centre first before you move into the twist. When you are in a twist play around with placing the hand of the side you are twisting to on the small of your back and feeling for the position of your pelvis. Can you keep the hips squared forward to the front of the mat rather than following the rotation of the twist. See can you sense if both hips are level to each other too. The hip on the side you are twisting to can sometimes lift up which shortens the side of the waist and limits your twist.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Print out this sequence and explore the difference taking a side bend first can make to your twisting practice:

• In Utkatasana/Chair Pose check to see are the knees in line with each other or has the twisting side knee drifted back.

• In Anjaneyasana/Low Lunge & Ashta Chandrasana/Eight Crescent Moon notice how much harder it is to twist without the aid of something to press against.

• Parivrtta Trikonasana/Revolved Triangle is a very deep twist for the spine. Place your hand on your lower back and check to see is the top of the pelvis level and both left and right sides are in line with each other. Use a brick on the high level to help you keep the pelvis level and stable.

• If Balasana/Crow Pose is not part of your practice take the preparatory stage and you’ll get a lovely twist through the spine without having to master the full arm balance.

Remember to drink plenty of water after a twisting sequence to help the system flush out all the toxins from the organs.

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Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

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:

• Spend a bit of extra time in Anahatasana/Heart Chakra Pose and feel the stretch through the whole front body and gut.

• Before you take your twists lengthen up through the whole extent of your spine to the tip of your crown.

• Pause in Utkata Konasana/Goddess and let gravity do its work!

• Salabhasana/Locust and Danurasana/Bow press the whole weight of the body on the take five deep breaths in both these poses.

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

Summer backbends

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