The Emerging Yogi

A series of yoga progressions and pose tutorials that can be done at home and work for the #EmergingYogi 

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Stretches for Office Workers and Students Pt 2: Arms

This is a continuation of the ‘Stretches for Office Workers and Students’ series, make sure you scroll down the blog to see previous posts from this series!

Have you ever had to take notes at such speed that you’re almost entirely certain that your hand would fall off? Ever had your hand STUCK in the position you hold your pen in? What about those seemingly random forearm cramps that just. don’t. go. away?

I have the solution(s), read on

DISCLAIMER: I am not a trained professional, these are the stretches I use when I’m required to use the computer for long periods of time. If you feel any sharp pain or discomfort discontinue the stretch immediately.

Stretch No.3: Forearm Flexor:

I know, this doesn’t sound like the most exciting of stretches, but often I see it demonstrated in a way that doesn’t give me a satisfactory stretch.

1. Put right arm out in front of you, palm facing away from you, fingers pointed to the ground. 

2. Using left hand, gently pull fingers back towards your body to create a stretch in the forearm. 

3. To create a deeper stretch, have the arm being stretched aimed vertically at the ground.

4. Hold the stretch for 10 seconds and repeat on each side 2-3 times. 

Stay tuned for future posts!!

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Monday Morning Methods to Feeling Fresh and Full of Life Pt 2 

Tomorrow morning, when you wake up, regardless of the number of hours you slept, try this stretch in combination with my previous tutorial in this series!

The Stretch: Legs & Arches 

These stretches that’ll be touched on in this post are very modifiable, however, a tennis ball or something of similar size is required. For the most part, a beginner with very little to no yoga experience and limited range of movement and flexibility will be able to follow along with this tutorial.

However, some may not be comfortable with the ‘arch’ component. That is absolutely fine. If you aren’t comfortable completing a certain stretch or movement at any point in any of my tutorials, don’t beat yourself self up for needing to modify it to a stretch you CAN do, or even bypassing it altogether. Everyone is at different skill levels.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a professional. These are stretches and poses I personally do in the mornings. If you feel any sort of pain or discomfort while completing this progression, discontinue immediately, I don’t want any emerging yogis becoming injured!

1. Start by sitting on the floor, feet together in front of you in what is commonly referred to as a ‘froggy’ pose. The trick here to get the deepest stretch is to not have your heels as close to your body as possible, but far enough away so that your legs mage a diamond shape. 

2. Lean forward, hinging at the hips (keeping your back straight and head neutral), ‘til you feel a stretch down the side of your butt. You may need to play around with the distance your feet are from your body, it can be different for everyone!

3. Once you've found your foot positioning, hold the stretch for about 30 seconds. Remember, you should feel a pleasant muscle stretch, NOT PAIN.

4. Release, and repeat. You may even find that on the second stretch, you can lean further forward with less discomfort, but don’t push yourself if you can’t!

5. Put your legs out in front of you, toes pointing upwards. Again, with a straight back and neutral head position, lean forward, hinging at the hips, until you feel a stretch in your hamstrings and calves. If you do not have very developed flexibility, this stretch may be very uncomfortable. If you can only lean forward a few centimetres, don’t fret! Just do what you can, and keep practising, gradually, you will develop flexibility, but forcing yourself will only cause muscle soreness and risk injury!

  6. I like to hold this stretch anywhere from 10 - 30 seconds and repeat about 5 times, I have quite tight hamstrings due to a lack of warm-up stretching before weightlifting, so this is often a stretch I pay close attention to and make sure I complete with correct technique.

7. From here, I lay on my back. Raise knees to a (roughly) ninety-degree angle, feet flat on the ground. and raise your butt to create a clean diagonal line from your knees to your chest, squeezing your butt. 

8. Repeat twenty times, or to make it more difficult, raise one leg in the air and complete 10 on each leg. 

9. This step is optional, only attempt if you feel confident you can complete it. Return back to a laying position, and form a back arch, slowly walk your hand and feet as close together as possible and push upwards to deepen the arch (and the stretch in your back). It is very important to maintain a neutral head position here and to release the arch if you experience any discomfort or dizziness. 

Stay tuned for further tutorials on morning stretches! 

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Stretches for Office Workers and Students Pt 1: Neck

My last post touched on the importance of stretching while at work and studying. The next posts will walk you through some very basic stretches to do while at work to maintain blood flow and minimise tension in muscles. 

As a student myself, I find that sitting in the same position for hours, using a select few muscles to perform very repetitive movements (I’m talking typing and writing) can quickly turn into a mental battle between staying where I can to complete my work, and getting up to do literally anything but sit and type. 

My dad, a health nut himself, is very into yoga and doing everything he can for his body’s nourishment. He often comes home from work in the evenings to find me sitting hunched over my laptop, typing furiously, and knows without a doubt that I have probably not moved from that position for several hours. Needless to say that I have been told by him hundreds of times that ‘It’s important to get up every twenty-five minutes to have a walk or a stretch’. But do I listen? I didn’t. 

But since giving my wise health nut of a father the benefit of the doubt, and actually getting up every half an hour or so to walk around, grab a tea or a snack and do the following stretch routine, I can tell you that not only do I feel like I WANT to do the work, but I feel so much more energised and less tense.

So...Let’s get started!

DISCLAIMER: I am not a trained professional, these are the stretches I use when I’m required to use the computer for long periods of time. If you feel any sharp pain or discomfort discontinue the stretch immediately.

Stretch No.1: Neck

1. Start by sitting on a chair with feet flat on the ground, head neutral and back straight. 

2. Place chin as close to your chest as possible, keeping shoulders relaxed, not raised. 

3. Interlock fingers and place both palms on the back of your head, pushing down gently.

4. You should feel the stretch up the back of your neck. Hold for 10 seconds, release the stretch and return your head to a neutral position.

 5. Repeat three - five times depending on the level of initial discomfort prior to commencing the stretch. 

Stretch No.2: Neck pt.2

1. Similarly to the first neck stretch, start seated, feet flat on the floor, neutral head and spine. 

2. Slowly tilt head to the left, not too fast or you may cause strain to the muscles in your neck. 

3. You should feel a stretch of the right side of your neck. Hold for 5 seconds, and release, returning back to the neutral position.

4. Slowly tilt head back to the left. This time placing your left hand on the left side of your face. gently apply force to your head while pushing back on your hand with equal force. This should create a tension on both sides of your neck.

5. Hold for 10 seconds then slowly release, returning back to neutral position.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 three times on each side. 

Stay tuned for more posts on stretches for office workers and students! 

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The Importance of Stretching for Office Workers and Students - A Series: Introduction

Have you ever sat at your desk at work, home or school and felt an uncomfortable amount of pressure on your neck and shoulders? Are twitchy, restless legs a familiar sensation? What about general tiredness and lack of motivation to get anything done?

If the things mentioned above or anything similar applies to you, keep reading. I am going to share with you some stretches that can be done at your desk to keep you focused and comfortable. No equipment required, no advanced skills! 

Before I get into these helpful habits, however, read this short article from shape.com on The Importance of Stretching at Work

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21 reasons to practise yoga in the morning – Ekhart Yoga

Make yoga part of your morning for 21 days in a row and feel the difference it makes to your day. Here are 21 reasons why ...

This article, written by yoga teacher and blogger, Emma Newlyn, lists 21 reasons why yoga in the mornings should be apart of your lifestyle, none of which I could argue with! Click the link to read the full article.

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Monday Morning Methods to Feeling Fresh and Full of Life: Pt.1 

As promised, here is the first of a series of energising stretches to help minimise the burden that is a Monday morning - or any morning for that matter. These poses aren’t only helpful on Mondays, but are good to build a habit around in order to develop flexibility and mobility! 

The Stretch: Inhale, Exhale.

I like to do this as soon as I wake up in the morning. First thing. Even better done outside at this time of year when the sun is warm but the air is cool! This isn’t so much of a stretch than it is a breathing exercise.

1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart or slightly closer together. Have arms relaxed by your sides, palms facing inwards towards your thighs, shoulders back but relaxed and head forward. 

2. Inhale, in your mind, slowly count to three...then exhale, again slowly counting to three in your mind. 

3. Repeat step 2 until you feel nice and relaxed, then on your next inhale, slowly raise your arms above your head. Make sure your arms stay straight, but not rigid. When your arms reach shoulder height, slowly rotate your wrists so that your palms face upwards, and eventually come together at the end of the inhalation. 

4. On the exhale, lower arms slowly to return back to the starting position.

 5. Repeat steps 3 and 5 ten times, taking your time to slowly breathe in and out for three seconds each. For more advanced yogis, incorporate a lunge or squat at the exhale to work on mobility and flexibility.

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Monday Morning Methods to Feeling Fresh and Full of Life: A Series: Introduction

Lie to me by telling me that this isn’t a familiar sensation:

It’s Sunday evening, you’re in bed ready to sleep to recharge for a brand new week. But what does your mind want to do? Anything BUT sleep. Great. You know exactly what this means. You’re going to feel like your body has never had a minute of sleep in its life. You’ll feel heavy, and lethargic and sick of the day ahead before it has even begun. 

Fret not. 

My next posts will be short tutorials on ways to wake your body in the morning through simple poses that help in energising the body, as well as improving flexibility and mobility. No equipment required and no advanced skills. 

Stay tuned!! 

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What is the Emerging Yogi? It doesn’t have to be a stereotype or even a lifestyle. No, the Emerging Yogi has been created for the stiff muscled and tight limbed office workers, the students who compromise their posture or even their mental clarity and, above all other things, the humble beginner, new to the world of yoga wanting some extra guidance on places to start.

There is no assumed knowledge or seemingly impossible poses, just you, and the Emerging Yogi, slowly easing you into the absolute basics of yoga and the benefits it can have. 

I hope you enjoy my posts!!

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@alexzandrapeters on Back Stretchies 💋 ・・・ I get tons of questions regarding back flexibility, especially this one: “What poses can one do to increase back flexibility”. So I put together a short video with my top 13 favorite poses to help strengthen and open the entire back. For each pose, take you time getting into it, notice how each asana makes you feel – what it releases and invites into your body. If there is any pain while you are practicing, ease off. But also notices the difference from pain & stretching, some get confused with this, that’s why its important to really listen to your bodyand how its responding. Hold poses anywhere from 3-5 rounds of breaths. Also, I highly recommend going to www.yogajournal.com and typing in each pose individually to make sure you are doing it correctly and with love ☺️❤️ -Cobra pose - Seal Pose – Upward Facing Dog – Locust Pose – Superman - Bow Pose - Supported Locust – Supported Puppy Pose - Puppy Pose – Bridge – Wheel - Wheel Variations & Standing Backbend Wearing @aloyoga #yoga #yogatutorial #yogavideo

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@roxanne_yoga on Gettin’ Flexy ・・・ YOGA FOR FLEXIBILITY ✨ Recently I’ve been spending more time stretching because my body has become really stiff and tight from strength training especially when it’s legs day. The stretches here are a progression and I usually hold them for 20 breaths on each side. This sequence is suitable for beginners and anyone who wants to gain flexibility or release tightness in the lower body. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Inner thighs: keep chest lifted & spine long as you go deeper in butterfly pose. Outer hips: flex foot/feet to protect knee(s) & keep spine long. For 2nd & 3rd, straighten bottom leg forward if both butt cheeks are not on the ground. Hamstrings: keep knee(s) bent to protect lower back. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #yoga #yogatutorial

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@marysia_do on Nipping those Ribs in the Bud 🌷 ・・・ Nip those front ribs into your back body while kicking up and trying to stay up in your handstand! For more tricks of the trade join the upcoming 300HR ADVANCED YOGA TEACHER TRAINING 🎉🎉🎉- click the link in my bio for more information. .-designer @khalsomsom demonstrates and while we wear her cool yoga gear @ohsosom UPCOMING WORKSHOPS: COLORADO April 20-22 @yogavstudio MIAMI April 28-29 https://tinyurl.com/marysiado SWITZERLAND June 15-17 @yogatribestudio CYPRUS June 23-24 @yogaoungareza #yoga #yogatutorial #yogavideo