Inspire Yoga

We are all conscious beings, but how many of us live in consciousness? Are you aware of your own thoughts? Do you get carried away with your emotions? Are you present to your surroundings or lost in your inner world? Our minds are so sophisticated we tend to go along with the ebb and flow of our stream of thought not realizing that we are greater than this current. When we are just with ourselves, our breath, our energy we feel a deep sense of connection and vitality, this is the point that yoga is reaching. We do poses and breathing exercises to eventually silence the mind and connect with our innermost energy, our life force, this brings us the peace and fulfillment that we go on searching in the outside world. But somehow we get stuck, fixating on the benefits yoga has on the body many of us aren’t able to explore deeper and access is deeper value. Our  breathing and meditation program  is designed to bring you to a state where you are functionally optimally in every ...

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...

To practice YOGA means to choose to evolve and produce transformations in the being, that will quickly become healthy and purified because of the energies that pass through the body. Even though this passing of the energy is produced, without a proper awareness of the processes that are triggered in our inner universe – when we do our practice – effects on the body, our psyche and mind are much reduced and it takes a longer period of time until energies become visible in the physical plan. The awareness of energies, which are received in our being, will purify by transformations of the body and mind. Out of the whole complex of techniques and procedures that the YOGA system includes, the most well-known are ASANA-s, the body postures. During the practice of ASANA-s we will regard each body posture that we realize as a gate open towards profound spirituality. The practice of ASANA-s must be carried out in a perseverant, effortless and patient way. If the execution of each ASANA will...

Inspire Wellness is a 6 part series of lectures exploring the effects of lifestyle on our health and what we can do to slow down aging. Experts from some of Hong Kong’s largest institutions in health and wellness will be sharing their research and knowledge in the areas of sleep, stress management, brain health, movement, beauty, nutrition, mental and physical well being. You will be leaving with practical tips to gain control over your health now and prevent aging diseases in the future. Mark Your Calendars!  19 April – Nutrition 3 May- Stress 10 May- Move 24 May- Sleep 7 June- Learn 14 June- Beauty The talks are held twice each day, 10am-12pm OR 6:30pm-8:30pm at Alive Wellness in Central, Hong Kong Thursday 19 April: TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT? Clear the confusion on intermittent fasting and time restricted feeding. Learn what to eat and how best to nourish your body to slow aging. Experience shifts in your mental patterns that encourage he...

Have you ever noticed yourself slouching at your desk or during a meeting? For those who sit in front of a computer 8-10 hours a day, it is inevitable that your body suffers from stiffness around the neck, shoulders and back areas. If stiffness is not timely released, the physical stress could eventually lead to other issues, such as chronic pain and potential risk in restricting blood flow. More than often than not, many living and working in this hectic city have limited time on hand to go out of their way to attend yoga classes in a studio; because of this, home practices and private yoga lessons become crucial and beneficial to sustain a healthy work-life balance. Further, spending 15 minutes a day –  whether in the morning, midday before the lunch break, coming out of a dreadful meeting, or late in the evening –  is one of the best ways to release stiffness, improve posture, and foster this lifelong habit. After a long night of sleep, your body needs time to adj...

Feeling a dip in energy in the middle of the day is inevitable, especially when you already had your morning cup of coffee and wanted to limit caffeine is a new years resolution. The great news is that there are many ways to give ourselves a nudge and stay focused for the rest of the day.  Controlled breathing techniques are arguably the most powerful tool; as a quick fix to brain fog, there are different ways to breathe to reach different results. One of the easiest ways is to close your eyes softly, take 10 long deep breaths, and count down in your heart. Stay seated at your desk with your spine neutral, avoid leaning toward the back of your chair.          With your right hand, use the thumb for the right nostril and the ring finger for the left side, and feel free to fold the index and middle fingers down.          To begin, take a full breath with both nostrils first.    ...

Remember the days where we all huddled around the TV to watch the weekly episode of the X-files? Getting together and watching a favorite show as a family was a time of bonding, we waited the whole week for it and would excitedly discuss how the story would evolve in the next episode. We would go to the toilet only during the commercial breaks and sshh anyone who spoke during Skully and Moulder’s dialogue. Fast forward 15 years, we all have our own personal devices that we can watch a show on, there is a plethora of options available to us to choose, we can access hundreds of episodes immediately and commercial breaks during shows don’t exist anymore. Wow, this is a real change, moving from an addiction to screen time, a mode of isolation, binge watching for hours at a time- all this has drastically affected our relationship with screen time, our health and our family, all in the name of innocent entertainment. We are at a tipping point where more is no longer better, our overdos...

Have you ever noticed that sometimes your thoughts can run on autopilot? The incessant mental chatter is what is addressed in  stress management . Entertaining the same thoughts day in and day out which corroborate with our routinized behaviors and causing the same experiences as a result which feedback to reinforce the same thought patterns. This is a cycle of thinking, behavior, and results. The input takes place on a mental level and the output is experienced on a physical/material level. Have you ever dreaded a meeting? Thinking you can’t stand the person, the upcoming meeting that you’ve been resisting is stressing you out putting you in a bad mood (behavior), as a result the meeting goes terribly and this reinforces the initial seeded thought that this person infuriates you, do you see how this cycle of thought, behavior, and result is affecting so many aspects of your life? It can also be a beautifully  virtuous cycle , thinking “I am healthy” and the corresponding ...

This took a lot of introspection before I could admit to this. Looking back when I was working in finance in Hong KongI would get a real rush from a volatile day in the markets as a derivatives trader. It was the rush of all that movement, a flurry of emotion, the unpredictability of the day, the irrationality of the price reactions, it made me feel alive. So much so that I began to seek it, looking for high-risk activities, volatile relationships, in total belief that faster is better, more is better, louder is better. I normalized a high-stress environment in my work and personal life and this constant mental chatter just couldn’t get enough. But what happens when you don’t switch off? I lost my ability to switch off, it started to show in my health, chronic stress meant that my  sleep quality  suffered, I was experiencing acute lower  back pain  in my mid 20s, my digestion was impaired, and I could see my body breaking down as a result of the mental agitation ...

Yoga Postures to release Tight Hips From an anatomical perspective, the hips are the site of coordination between movement in the back and legs. Our bodies are made to move, when we are waking we are biologically designed to have our muscles active, either by running, walking, standing or squatting. Or all these movements require fluid hip joints. However, what happens when we spend most of your lives slouched in a chair, either at our desks, in front of the TV, in the car or at a meal? The last 50 years have dramatically changed our lifestyle, due to automation very little physical labor is required causing a predominantly sedentary lifestyle especially in a city like Hong Kong. This is certainly less energy consuming and more comfortable in the short term but the inactivity is causing our muscles to waste away resulting in long term health ramification for the entire population. The first sign that you are sitting for too long is that you will feel a tightness in around y...

In today’s busy pace of life, we can be so consumed by our own goals that time and energy needs to be consciously invested to ensure we stay healthy, emotionally, physically and mentally. When we are off kilter the main aspect of our life that usually help to support and sustain us begins to deteriorate- our relationships. Have you noticed in times of stress and pressure you have snapped at your partner only to regret your hasty actions? Or that you are so focused on yourself that you forget to even ask them about their day? Or that your energy is zapped from the day that the thought of physical intimacy is tiring?   You are not alone, these are all signs of stress causing an imbalance in our emotional wellbeing. When we are chronically stressed, overstimulated by the influx of information and bombarded with daily demands we operate from a state of emergency. Physiologically our body is in the fight-or-flight response more, focusing on immediate threats, directing energy only...

We have all heard that its good to meditate, but do you know why? If you are convinced by the scientific facts behind meditation chances are you are more likely to dedicate consistent time towards the practice. Let’s start with a reflection, are you truly happy? Would your life to be more joyful and peaceful? In the modern day, we are plagued with the notion that more is better. That if we emulate a certain lifestyle, acquire certain possessions, embody a certain fashion it will lead us to happiness. Living in a fast-paced city of Hong Kong, with a sensory overload of stimulus and advertisements we are bombarded with a value that we need ‘x’ to feel better. That somehow right now, as we are, we are not enough. This sense of unworthiness is deep-rooted in our society, take a look at the rising rates of anxiety and suicide amidst the climb in the standard of living, the amenities, the healthcare, the education, the availability of food and water. With more the basic needs provided,...