Recent Articles in Strength

Duration: 42 minutes

Emphasis:  This class focuses on lifting and lowering the legs in lots of different ways - lying on your back, front and side, hands and knees, standing and seated postures and also in Downward Dog. It will use your core muscles and strengthen your legs too. Finish off this dynamic class with a lovely, long 8 minutes of Savasana.

Props needed: 2 blocks or bricks (or 2 equal sized thick books if you don't have blocks), a strap (or a tie from a bathrobe), and a blanket for Savasana if required.

Mat direction: Long side of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 8 minutes

Emphasis:  Learn how to do Wild Thing (Camatkarasana). This deep backbend, although less challenging than Wheel Pose (Urdhva Dhanurasana), can be difficult if you have any shoulder or wrist problems so there are also two modifications to make it more of a possibility if needed. Take care, listen to your body and have fun with this invigorating pose. Any questions, please leave a comment below and I'll endeavour to help.

Props needed: Possibly a blanket to put under your knee if you are practicing on a hard floor but make sure it doesn't slip!

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 45 minutes

Emphasis:  Practice familiar standing poses in the precise 'Iyengar' style for strength, focus and good alignment of your body, and enjoy a nice long Savasana afterwards.

Props needed: 2 blocks, a blanket and a strap to loop around your foot if needed.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 36 minutes

Emphasis:  Your core is made up of muscles in your back and abdomen. They help keep your body stable and balanced and protect your spine. In this class of seated, kneeling and supine poses we will engage the 4 sets of muscles that make up your abs - Transverse Abdomini (the deepest layer that wraps around your middle, front to back, like a girdle), the Internal and the External Obliques (that lie diagonally on either side of the torso) and the Rectus Abdomini (which lies over the top of the others extending vertically from the ribs to the pubic bone) - some of the muscles of your back (Erector Spinae, Multifidis, Quadratus Lumborum, Semispinalis and lower Latissimus Dorsi), the Iliopsoas in your hip and your pelvic floor muscles. Phew! What a lot of muscles are involved in keeping your core strong and stable!

Props needed: A flat block to go under your heels in Malasana, two bricks or big books to go under your hands in Tolasana and a blanket if you need it to pad your knees and to put over you in Savasana.

Mat direction: Long side of mat facing the screen so you can see it while you are lying down.

Duration: 48 minutes

Emphasis:  This class focusses on working your arms and shoulders in slow and steady Sun Salutations. In each round there is an added Warrior 2 (Virabhadrasana 2) pose with a different arm variation.

Props needed: Blocks or a thick book to put under your hand in Half-Moon Pose (Ardha Chandrasana), blanket for Savasana. 

Mat direction: Short edge facing the screen.

Duration: 41 minutes

Emphasis:  A slow and steady flow of standing poses with one seated and one supine twist to finish.

Props needed: 2 blocks or books.

Mat direction: Long edge facing the screen.

Duration: 20 minutes

Emphasis:  Strengthen your core muscles in this floor-based sequence.

Props needed: None required

Mat direction: Long edge facing the screen.

Duration: 1 hour, 5 minutes

Emphasis:  Stretch the front of your body with this class featuring multiple vinyasas with lunges and leg stretches, Standing Splits and Half Moon Pose, Pigeon and Bow Pose. This is a strong class and might not be suitable for you if you have delicate knees. Please use props to adjust the poses if necessary - blanket under the knee or blocks under the hands - and don't push past your edge into strain or pain.

Props needed: Blocks and a blanket

Mat direction: Short edge facing the screen.

Duration: 55 minutes

Emphasis:  Strengthen your bones and your muscles with this sequence using hand weights.

Props needed: 2 light handweights (if you haven't got these use bottles of water like I did), 2 blocks and a blanket. Extra blanket for Savasana if required. 

Mat direction: Short edge facing the screen until we get to the seated poses then option to turn the mat sideways if you like to have it under your heels for Wide Leg Seated Forward Bend.

Duration: 46 minutes

Emphasis:  Build your strength with this sequence which blends the use of hand weights with familiar yoga poses. It's really important to continue to do strength and resistance work as we get older - it helps to prevent osteoporosis and muscle loss (sarcopenia) - and incorporating it into your regular yoga practice, which already offers a good amount of weight-bearing, is an easy way to make sure you're doing enough.

Props needed: 2 light handweights or 2 small plastic bottles full of water, a belt.

Mat direction: Short edge facing the screen.

Duration: 11 minutes

Emphasis:  A quick tutorial on this balancing pose - some tips and warm-up exercises that will help you wrap your arms and legs a little more easily and stay still and focussed like an eagle fixed on it's prey!

Props needed: None required but if balancing is proving too challenging then stand next to a wall to help steady yourself.

Mat direction: n/a

Duration: 30 minutes

Emphasis:  Move in and out of Bridge Pose variations to strengthen the back, core, glutes and hamstrings, while stretching the front of the body and opening the chest. We will then counterpose with gentle forward bends to stretch the back out.

Props needed: 2 blocks, a blanket for Savasana.

Mat direction: Long side of the mat facing the screen - you'll be lying down and will need to turn your head to see the screen.