Inspire Yoga

he 7 Chakras is a yogic system of energy, the first chakra keeps us rooted and grounded, something most of us lack living in high rises, away from nature and competing in the rat race of Hong Kong’s urban lifestyle. The first chakra, or root chakra, is important as it brings us the power to manifest, whereas the 7th chakra, the crown chakra, governs the power of transcendence. If we are working towards fulfilling objectives and creating a change we want that change to manifest and thus the root chakra needs to be balanced and aligned. The First Yoga Chakra is the Most Important & Needs to be Balance Probably the most common chakra to be in a weakened state is the First Chakra. The Root Chakra is located at the very base of your spine. It deals with issues of physical survival, safety, and security and is blocked and weakened by fear and insecurity. The first chakra acts as a pump at the base of the 7 wheels of energy that help energy rise and flow because it is at the...

Downward facing dog is a basic pose that is accessible to most beginners, for advanced practitioners this posture is considered a resting pose! In setting up the pose make sure your arms are shoulder distance apart and your knees are hip-distance apart, tuck your toes under and actively push your hands and feet into the mat. Straighten your legs and push your hips upwards as your back cascades downwards. A Relaxing Yoga Positions for Beginners That Increases Stamina There are 3 stages of advancement of reaching the full pose: straight arms, straight back and straight legs. Take each stage as a prerequisite to moving on to the next; there is no point trying to straighten your legs if your elbows are bent and your back is rounded. If you feel tired do not compromise the posture by bending your arms and hunching your shoulders forwards, instead feel free to bend your knees and allow your back to lengthen further. Push your hands down into the mat with your fingers spread apart...

In yoga, there are two aspects for your mind to focus on: the stretch and your breath. Bringing all your attention to your breath has meditative qualities as it frees you from any other thoughts that preoccupy your mind. When stressed or burdened by emotions it is advised to take a minute to focus on your breathing; taking deep inhalations and slow exhalations, bringing a sense of calmness and lowering your heart rate.  Pranayama,  yogic breathing , influences the flow of energy throughout your body using your nervous system (especially your spine) as the pathway of energy movement.  Our breath is affected by our circumstances and moods. We take more forceful breaths when angry and slower breaths when relaxed. The ratios in which we inhale and exhale vary depending on what state we are in. During sleep, exhalations dominate bringing rest, and during the day inhalations predominate as it is influenced by activity and the external environment. Furthermore, the flow of...

From the time we enter the world to the time we leave; our breath is with us every moment. Breathing is the critical sign of vitality- however if we are not breathing correctly it can drain our energy. The breath itself can help bring life and energy to the body- that is why in yoga we treat it as the fabric of health and wellness. The human body can go 3 weeks without food, 10 days without water but only 3 minutes without breathing- our breath is our most important source of energy. In yoga, breathwork is called Pranayama, Prana means energy, so these breathing exercises facilitate the movement of energy. Stress causes tension and tightness around the neck and shoulders, affecting our posture to slouch which restricts our breathing. The full contraction and relaxation of muscles is thwarted causing the volume of the chest cavity to increase and decrease to a much smaller proportion than their capacity. The result? The breath becomes shallow and short, to compensate for the small...

Intermittent fast and time-restricted are popular trends, we recently held a seminar discussing the body’s natural biorhythms and how shortening the window of eating helps to aid digestion and optimize metabolic functioning. In addition to outlining the best timings to eat, we also delved into being mindful about why we are eating. Have you felt upset and reached straight for food to fill a void? The concept of ‘comfort food’ addresses the disconnection of mind and body, the need for our attention may be on a mental/emotional level but we suppress this by seeking comfort on a physical level instead. The talk, hosted by Neelam Harjani, the founder of Inspire Yoga, highlighted the importance of self love and being aware of the root cause of binge eating or eating out boredom or out of distraction. When there is awareness we can consciously choose when we want to eat and select health promoting foods so we don’t trap ourselves in a cycle of guilt and self sabotage revolving the esse...