1. Mindfulness Meditation:
    Mindfulness Meditation is being Present to, and at peace with, all that Is surrounding us in every moment: scenery, feelings, emotions, voices, food, etc. An increase in mindfulness will result in a decrease in burnout, both in daily life events, as well as in the gym and on the mat.
    Often, it is our habitual negative thought patterns which arrest our Present-moment awareness. Inside the capture of negativity we unconsciously sabotage our potentials, while also making ourselves and others wrong, instead of recognizing the possibility of receiving useful insight from less than satisfying circumstances and situations. Practicing meditation, we become aware of our persistent negative thoughts, and in this awareness awaken our Observer, the one who watches all that Is. In the space of observation, or Witness Consciousness, we experience ourselves as peace, joy, inspiration, creativity, and the list of possibilities goes on and on.  With the realization that the thinking will never stop, but that we can watch the thoughts and choose our reactions, we become skillful at handling stressful situations, create compassionate relationships, and invite all of life’s juices into our experience: the pain, the pleasure, the joy, the sorrow, the highs and the lows. We emanate Laughter, Light, and Love, and those around us begin to reflect us as a mirror.
     
2. Breath:
    The breath is the river of life which flows through us. The breath hungers for deep inspirations and long expirations so to ensure it’s delivery of oxygen to every cell and system in the body, and release of toxic substances and emotions. If breath is stagnant and short, the body and mind react with resistance, fear, contraction, feelings of being overwhelmed, and an abandonment of sensation. When breath is full, when it originates in the engagement of the diaphragm, the body and mind behave with peace, acceptance, grace, fluidity, and relaxation. On each inhalation is the creation of vibrancy, relaxation, and heightened awareness. On every exhalation tension is released and the body-mind let go.

3. Asana (Postures):
    The body is a shape maker. We have all the ingredients to create triangles, semi-circles, squares, boxes, wheels and more. Through an Asana, or posture, practice we create elongation, strength, flexibility, and balance in our physical bodies. This language of bodily shapes translates into the languages of mind and spirit. As we sustain a posture, or flow through a series, we allow our blood to circulate, our ankles to strengthen, our backs to bend, our organs to receive a massage, our hamstrings to stretch, our hips to open, breath to flow, our minds to focus, our hearts to brighten, and our spirits to lighten.

4. Coordinating Breath with Movement:
    The breath behaves as a catalyst for movement. You can watch this as the belly rises on an inhalation and falls on an exhalation. The same is true for more expressive movements, such as that in a yoga posture flow, as well as in sustaining a posture as the breath stimulates blood flow and motions the mind towards stillness. Inhaling as you elongate will allow fresh blood and breath to flow through neglected areas of muscle and bone, and exhaling as you fold or bend will create space for deeper stretches as well as expulsion of toxins from lungs, muscles, and other organs or systems involved in the specific movement/posture. Harmonizing breath and movement invites ease and grace into your yoga practice and into your life.

5. Alignment:
    Proper alignment creates the condition for possibility, in movement, in states of being ness and consciousness, as well as in opportunity. When you are aligned with your purpose, with your life’s calling, the universe conspires to fetch all necessary resources for your success. When you are aligned with your heart, you emanate inspiration and in so become the possibility of inspiration for others. When you are aligned with your sleep/wake cycle, you are alert when you need to be, and ease into slumber. When you are aligned with your proper nutritional needs, you are vibrant, energetic, and well.
    The same is true for the physical body. The possibilities of safety in posture, opening fully in physical expression of a shape, stretching and twisting deeper, and carrying yourself with an upright posture rather than collapsing forward, are realized through proper alignment. Often we engage in compensatory movement. As we sit at desks, utilize various forms of transportation, carry multiple bags, and consent ourselves to numerous other variations of posture and activity, we burden one muscle group with all the work, while the other groups remain in a state of laziness or inactivity. When the burdened group compensates for the inactive group, alignment is compromised. Also, the inactivate muscles weaken as the over active muscles become unhealthily stressed and tightened, creating imbalance in the body. Alignment is the Supportive expression of posture.

6. Six Movements of the Spine:
    The spine moves six ways: a forward bend, a backward extension, laterally on each side (right and left), and in a twist on each side. In an asana practice one explores these movements with mindfulness and balance, so as to safely and equally distribute breath and blood, create flexibility and fluidity, and release toxic thought and substance from the body-mind.

7. Strength:
    What is the source of your strength? Where does your Power reside: in confidence, love, compassion, and creativity, or in anger, pain, frustration and restlessness? In yoga, we not only create strength in our muscles and bones through sustaining postures, flowing through shapes, and breathing deeply, but we also achieve strength of heart and spirit as we skillfully apply what we discover about ourselves through the observation of our mind’s behavior in response to our body’s movement in asana practice, to our daily lives.

8. Balance:
    Yoga harmonizes the body by pulling and stretching, releasing and contracting, twisting and decompressing, and massaging and expanding every organ and system. Inside the atmosphere of harmony is the weather of healing: calm mind, bright heart, supple muscles, flowing breath, and fresh blood.
     In our posture practice we utilize balancing of the physical body, such as sustaining a posture on a single leg, as a mirror for creating focus and balance in our lives. The internal conversation we engage in during a balancing posture often reflects our reactions to situations in life that appear beyond our control. As we learn to concentrate our mind on the yoga mat, we transform our relationship to our world. We create the space of balance and focus.

9. Flexibility:
    The sages who pass down the wisdom written on the fortune cookies at Chinese restaurants once wrote that “when you learn to be flexible, amazing opportunities reveal themselves.” This simple truth translates through the body-mind connection. As we stretch our muscles in asana practice, we not only become flexible by the bodily event of creating space and elongation, but we also release stored toxins, some of which are residuals of emotional pain. As we often stuff our issues in our tissues, stretching the body through yoga postures is often like rubbing the bottle and freeing the genie after years of neglect. This freeing of physical tightness, as well as emotional contraction, creates the opportunity for touching your toes, and for receiving that which you have desired with your deep heart, now that it is open, free, and flexible.

10. Safety, Benefits, and Contraindications:
    Although yoga has a low occurrence of injuries, it is essential that you, and your clients and/or patients receive medical clearance before beginning any new fitness practice. Most injuries surrounding yoga occur as practitioners release from a posture rather than when they are entering or sustaining a posture. Unfolding the body slowly and with mindfulness will lessen the occurrence of injuries. Also, practicing with bare feet is significant so that all four foundational corners of the feet may connect with the earth, establishing balance and reducing injuries to the ankles and knees.

    Many benefits of yoga have already been mentioned within the topics explored above. However, to that list you can add: irrigation of the kidneys, increasing coordination, decongesting the spine, relieving menstrual disorders, toning the buttocks, legs, and arms, expanding the chest and rib cage, improving peristalsis, decongesting abdominal organs, bringing awareness to the breath, and calming the body and mind.
   
    Contraindications are often specific to postures. For instance, people with uncontrolled high blood pressure or heart conditions should not raise their arms over their heads or participate in long holdings of postures; people with acute sciatica should not practice forward bends; those with constipation need to be cautious when entering back extensions, and pregnant women should avoid constricting the abdomen and avoid sustaining postures in the third trimester.



11. Yoga and the Digestive System

    The digestive organs sustain the human body through the digestion, assimilation, and elimination of foods and fluids we ingest, which then form into our tissues, organs, and blood. Practicing postures, breathing techniques, and deliberate relaxation rejuvenates the entire digestive system by stimulating fresh blood flow through twisting (such as in spinal twist), releasing tension in the large intestine through side bending (half moon),   provoking peristalsis through compression postures (floor bow), and massaging the digestive organs by movement of the diaphragm (deep belly breathing and corpse pose). Creating harmony in the digestive system reduces occurrences of indigestion, excessive gas and bloating, constipation, and diarrhea.

12. Yoga and Nutrition

    Most modern day yogis and yoginis consume a largely vegetarian diet consisting of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans, legumes, nuts and seeds along with some fish, grass-fed meat, free-range poultry and eggs, and hormone-free dairy products. Practitioners often communicate they experience a drop-off of cravings for sugary foods and simple carbohydrates as a result of the balancing effects of yoga on the systems of the body. Stress related binge-eating also diminishes through the calming of the mind and skillfulness in handling stressful situations attained through yoga and meditation practice.