Circulation
Oxygen gives life to every cell in the body: it heals our wounds, kills germs, and ensures the strength and vitality of all our tissues. Blood carries oxygen throughout the body, and physical activities like yoga increase the circulation of oxygen rich blood.
Yoga is beneficial because the postures boost blood circulation to often neglected areas of the body like joints, connective tissues, and internal organs.
Detoxification
Toxins are everywhere – we breathe them, we eat them, and we drink them. Fortunately, our bodies can eliminate these poisons through the skin, the breath, the blood, and the organs of elimination. Yoga practice stimulates each of these mechanisms. During yoga, you sweat, you breathe deeply, your circulation increases, and you massage and stimulate the organs of elimination. A regular yoga practice is an extremely effective method of detoxifying.
Strength and Flexibility
Yoga postures strengthen and lengthen the body’s connective tissues through physical postures that have been practiced for thousands of years. Whether you are flexible or stiff, weak or strong, yoga can transform your body and mind and improve your overall health.
Stress Relief
Chronic stress and pressure can lead to serious illness and disease if ignored. A regular yoga practice calms the body and mind, boosts the immune system, and eliminates the toxins that stress creates. Yoga is the body’s elixir after a hard day at work.
Self Confidence & Self Esteem
Yoga makes you feel healthy, strong, and limber which will boost your self image and self confidence. Learning yoga postures creates an enormous sense of pride that you will carry with you in your daily life.
Breath Control
The quality of our breath reflects how we are feeling. When we are upset, the breath tends to be fast and shallow. When we are at ease, the breath is usually slow and deep.
We can learn to control the breath through yoga practice by maintaining deep consistent breathing through all the postures. Once we achieve this “moving meditation” we are more able to calm our mind and body regardless of the daily stresses we encounter.
Weight Loss
A regular yoga practice may reduce your appetite and will encourage better food choices. Yoga cleanses the body, increases metabolism, stimulates waste elimination, and reduces cravings.
Aerobic Benefits
Aerobic exercise occurs when an elevated heart rate is sustained for twenty minutes or more. Aerobic activities are particularly helpful for strengthening the heart, burning excess fat, and increasing the body’s metabolism. Yoga can be a great aerobic workout, but it depends on you, the class, and your level of participation.
Overall Fitness
Some physical activities such as running, tennis or weight lifting are a mixed blessing. They are good for your health, but they often create imbalances like knee and back problems and arthritis. Yoga promotes whole body wellness – physically and psychologically – without creating injuries that could lead to complications later.
General Info: Getting Started
Class Guidelines
You can help us offer a peaceful and nurturing environment by starting your yoga practice the moment you enter the Bodhi Tree. The following guidelines will help:
Arriving at the Studio
Please arrive 10 – 15 minutes before the class begins. This will allow you time to sign in and prepare for class. You will not be allowed to join the class once it has begun.
Personal Belongings
Although we lock the front door for the duration of every class, we encourage you to leave valuables at home. The Bodhi Tree is not responsible for any lost or stolen articles.
How to Prepare
Bring a mat and a towel. You may rent these if you forget yours or don’t own them.
Come well hydrated and be prepared to drink water throughout and after class.
Since yoga is best practiced on an empty stomach, eat lightly or not at all for 2-3 hours before class.
Tell your instructor about any injuries that may require modified poses.
Beginners’ Steps to Success with Yoga
Going to your first yoga class can be overwhelming – different studios, various styles and philosophies, class schedules, rules and so on. Here are a few steps to help you ease in:
Step 1
Come well hydrated and with an empty stomach (do not eat 2-3 hours before your class). Arrive 10 minutes before the class starts so you have plenty of time to register, change and settle down.
Step 2
Start with a basic class and let your teacher know it is your first class. You should also tell your teacher whether you have any health concerns or injuries.
Step 3
Ask questions before and after class to better understand the practice. We all have different questions, so ask yours. Create a relationship with your teachers so they can help you.
Step 4
Practice regularly to get the best results. Once a week will feel good, but three times a week will bring changes. And don’t go overboard – two classes a day are excessive, especially for beginners.
Step 5
Try a few (or all) the different styles of yoga we offer. We have an introductory special of unlimited yoga for 1 week for $20. This gives a newcomer the opportunity to experience more than one class. Find the practice that best suits your personality and personal objectives.
Frequently Asked Questions from Newcomers
Is it important to be on time?
Yes. Yoga practice is based on a series of postures. The warmup postures are a fundamental part of the entire series of postures, and trying to perform deeper postures without them may result in injury. In addition, coming late is disruptive and distracting to the other students.
Can I leave the class early?
We discourage you from leaving before the practice is finished because you will miss out on the benefits of the practice, and may risk injury leaving without a proper cool down. Leaving early is also disruptive to the class. We do welcome you to take savasana any time you feel fatigued or dizzy.
Why is it important to take savasana?
Savasana provides the time your body needs to absorb the benefits of the asana (physical) practice. It allows your heart rate to slow down and the oxygen in your blood to circulate to your entire body. It offers a chance to still your mind and accept feelings that may have come up during practice.
Why do we breathe through our nose?
Breathe through your nose to encourage stillness in the body and mind. Breathing through the mouth ignites the “fight or flight” response, which elevates the heart rate, blood pressure and blood acidity levels. When this happens, muscles tighten to protect you. When muscles tighten you move further from the goal of surrendering to the posture you are working on.
Will yoga change my life?
It depends on you. An extended period of regular yoga practice (3 to 5 times a week) will help you manage your stress, build confidence, strengthen your body and deepen your awareness.
What if I can’t do all the postures?
You know what your body can and can’t do. Our teachers will encourage you to explore your limits, but ultimately, you must decide how far to go. You will decide when to work through something, and when to avoid it. You are your own best teacher.
Do teachers correct our postures?
Our teachers strive to assist you to further understand the postures. They may help with your alignment to help you prevent injury or to simply connect on a deeper level.
In busier classes, when possible, there may be an assistant who is a certified teacher present.
Is yoga only for adults?
There are certainly types of yoga that are suited to children and young adults, but there are a few things to keep in mind. Sweating keeps the body from overheating and adults sweat differently than children do. We strongly advise anyone whose sweat glands have not matured (this generally takes place during puberty) to steer clear of the hot classes. Kids often have shorter attention spans as well. Even adults sometimes find it difficult to stay focused for 90min and this can be a real challenge for a “busy” young person. Parents you know your children and teenagers, please use your discretion.
Can I practice if I’m pregnant?
Certainly! We offer both pre & postnatal yoga at the Bodhi Tree and there are several other classes thar are suitable for pregnant women. However we reccomend that you do not practice any of the classes that are heated. It is also your responsibility to consult a physician before you practice and to let the teachers know you are pregnant before the class starts.
Yoga Q & A
What is the meaning of yoga?
Commonly translated, yoga is a union of the body, mind and spirit. It is the union of prana with apana; the union of the sun with the moon, or light with darkness. It is a union of masculine and feminine, inhalation and exhalation, the union of the thoughts of all people. In using the word union, what is truly meant is unification of dueling energies or opposites, creating balance.
Ultimately what we are striving to learn is that it is not possible to have no thoughts and so we seek to still the mind down to simply one thought. “yoga citta vritti nirodha” translates as “yoga is the control of thought waves in the mind”.
What is Ashtanga?
According to Patanjali (the 1st ancient sage to document this tradition), ashtanga refers to the 8 limbs of yoga. These limbs evolve from the physical and mental to elevated states of meditation. The limbs are complete upon reaching “samadhi”, union or enlightenment. The limbs are listed in Patangali’s text known as the Yoga Sutras. II:29
- Yama (restraint)
- Niyama (observances)
- Asana (steady posture, or posture easily held)
- Pranayama (science of breath)
- Pratyahara (withdrawal from the senses )
- Dharana (concentration)
- Dhyana (meditation)
- Samadhi (union with Brahma)
It is important to become aware that the two primary ethical limbs of ashtanga are the first two limbs, Yama -Restraints and Niyama-Observances. These limbs help us to cultivate greater awareness.
What is asana?
The Sanskrit meaning is posture held in stillness, both mentally and physically and yet conscious of the subtle shifts that arise during this practice. Asana is used to strengthen and heal the physical body. It takes practice and dedication to cultivate calmness, concentration and lightness.
Asanas evolved in ancient India as Rishi’s (knowers or seer’s) observed the movement and stillness of all life forms, especially that of animals as they healed. It is from this profound observation that asana evolved.
What is a Chakra?
The Sanskrit word translates as wheel and represents the psycho-spiritual junctions and pathways in the body. Although there are said to be over 1000 energy centers in the body they have been broken down to seven centers branching out from the spinal column.
Is yoga a religion?
Yoga is not a religion. It is a philosophy that began in India an estimated 5,000 years ago. The father of classical ashtanga yoga (the eight limbed path, not to be confused with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois’ Ashtanga yoga) is said to be Patanjali, who wrote the Yoga Sutra. These scriptures provide a framework for spiritual growth and mastery over the physical and mental body. Yoga sometimes interweaves other philosophies such as Hinduism or Buddhism, but it is not necessary to study those paths in order to practice or study yoga.
It is also not necessary to surrender your own religious beliefs to practice yoga.
What is mantra and how is it used?
Mantra has been used for thousands of years. The vibration created emanates and stimulates energy in the body. A mantra is like an affirmation and can be used in many ways. The most common mantra used is of course OM.
What does Om mean?
Om is a mantra, or vibration, that is traditionally chanted at the beginning and end of yoga sessions. It is considered to be the primordial sound and vibration of all things.
Somehow the ancient yogis knew what scientists today are telling us–that the entire universe is moving. Nothing is ever solid or still. Everything that exists pulsates, creating a rhythmic vibration that the ancient yogis acknowledged with the sound of Om. We may not always be aware of this sound in our daily lives, but we can hear it in the rustling of the autumn leaves, the waves on the shore, the inside of a seashell.
All Vedic mantras start with OM. It is written and pronounced by some as ‘AUM’ with the letters “A” & “U” becoming an “O” as in ‘tone’.
Chanting Om allows us to recognize our experience as a reflection of how the whole universe moves, the setting sun, the rising moon, the ebb and flow of the tides, the beating of our hearts. As we chant Om, it takes us for a ride on this universal movement, through our breath, our awareness, and our physical energy, and we begin to sense a bigger connection that is both uplifting and soothing.
What does Namaste mean?
The gesture Namaste represents the belief that there is a Divine spark within each of us that is located in the heart chakra. The gesture is an acknowledgment of the soul in one by the soul in another. “Nama” means bow, “as” means I, and “te” means you. Therefore, Namaste literally means “bow me you” or “I bow to you.”
The 6 Paths of Yoga
What is meant by the paths of yoga?
Although there are many paths, they all lead to a common place. Typically a practitioner will choose one path that they relate to and it will inevitably lead to another.
For example as westerners we commonly choose hatha yoga, a physical path liberating the body, but that can lead to Bhakti yoga, a yoga of devotion or Karma yoga, a yoga of selfless service (often the result of bhakti). The different paths are:
Bhakti Yoga: yoga of devotion to the divine, surrendering the ego. Those who follow this path often do so through song and chanting as they seek oneness with all creation.
Yoga does not tell you where to direct that devotion, or the specific methods by which you should do it. That is left to personal religious preference.
Karma Yoga: yoga of selfless service to those who are in genuine need of it. Someone who practices karma yoga also removes the ego from their service as they serve without need for thanks or personal benefit.
Hatha Yoga: all yoga classes that combine pranayama (breath technique) and asana (postures) are renditions of Hatha yoga. Ha means sun and Tha means moon. The goal is to liberate the body leading to a path of self awareness.
Jnana Yoga: is about cultivating knowledge. Followers contemplate scriptures in combination with meditation. “Through knowing that I am the same as pure consciousness, I achieve realization”. Jnana yoga is known as the “treacherous path” and being so deep, it is commonly the last path achieved.
Raja Yoga: In short, concentration and meditation, and is outlined in the eight limbs. If one is able to follow the five; yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, and pratyahara… dharana, Dhyana and Samahdi-bliss will inevitably follow.
Kundalini Yoga: a study of Tantric concepts, which surround raising energy and the chakras. This energy cannot be raised intellectually it must be experienced.
