Recent Articles in Strength

Duration: 18 minutes

Emphasis:  Work on your arm strength and shoulder mobility whilst sitting in your chair. We'll move the arms in all directions and then do some exercises using a brick which include twists and a core strengthener. A brief seated meditation finishes this practice.

Props needed: A chair and a brick.

Mat direction: n/a.

Duration: 40 minutes

Emphasis:  There are 4 rounds of Sun Salutations in this class - the first is a basic one to help you warm up then the following 3 rounds feature variations of Warrior 1 Pose (Virabhadrasana I) which will take your shoulder joints through their range of movement and help to release tension and tight muscles. After the standing flows you'll move to the floor for a short supine sequence featuring Side Reclining Leg Lift Pose, also known as Vishnu's Couch Pose, (Anantasana) and Supine Bound Angle Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana). The practice finishes with a few minutes lying on a rolled blanket to allow the muscles surrounding your shoulder blades to relax and the chest to gently open, and a few minutes flat on the floor for Savasana. Please note: You can use this class as a stand-alone practice or, if you'd like to do a bit more warming-up first, you could also do the Shoulder Mobility Sequence that can be found in the Hatha Yoga section.

Props needed: A yoga belt and a blanket.

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

Duration: 18 minutes

Emphasis:  All the poses in this class are done sitting or lying down. Slow and steady repetitions of twists and a supine variation of Crow Pose (Bakasana) will work your abdominals without putting weight on your legs - a useful class to do if you have a leg/knee/ankle/foot injury but still want to do your practice.

Props needed: Two blankets to put under your knees.

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

Duration: 43 minutes

Emphasis: This class is all about the hips - you'll start sitting down for some warming up, moving the legs from internal rotation and external rotation and having a bit of fun moving up and down the mat. You'll then move into the sequences which include Balancing Table Pose (sometimes known as Balancing Cat Post) (Dandayamana Bharmanasana), a hip-circling lunge, Lizard Pose (Utthan Pristhasana), Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana), Sphynx Pose (Salamba Bhujangasana) and Locust Pose variations (Salabhasana). Then there's a bit of a challenge for you - making a stack of blocks to sit on and practising standing up and sitting back down again. A bit of balancing follows, standing on a block and swinging one leg, before lying down to rest in Savasana.

Props needed: A blanket to kneel on and a stack of blocks and bricks to make a seat.

Duration: 43 minutes

Emphasis:  This class features 5 rounds of Sun Salutations - 2 basic ones to warm up and then 3 more rounds, each with a Hand to Big Toe Pose (Padangusthasana) varation at the end of the sequence. Usually Padangustasana is done with the lifted leg straight, but in this class you'll do it with the leg bent. You'll then come down to the ground and repeat the shapes of these 3 poses lying down, before relaxing in Savasana.

Props needed: No props needed except maybe a wall to put your hand on to help you with the balancing poses.

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

Duration: 34 minutes

Emphasis:  We start this class with modified Sun Salutations - no stepping back and forward. The sequence progresses with Locust Pose (Salabasana) variations and some shoulder openers then, after setting up the mat and blanket, comes Shoulderstand (Sarvangasana). Once settled into the pose some variations are offered, including Plough Pose (Halasana), and then the counterpose for Shoulderstand, Fish Pose (Matsyasana). Happy Baby Pose (Ananda Balasana), a supine twist and Reclined Bound Angle Pose( Supta Baddha Konasana) follow next before we finish the practice with Savasana. Please note: Although there are many benefits to practising Shoulderstand (calming to the nervous system, stretches upper back and neck, regulates the thyroid gland, helps digestion, restful for the heart as it doesn't have to pump the blood up to the legs, stimulates the lymphatic system and strengthens the whole body), it also has some contraindications (high blood pressure, eye, ear and neck problems, heart problems, pregnancy and menstruation, hiatus hernia) and should be practised with care.

Props needed: A blanket, 2 blocks and 2 bricks plus a yoga belt if you need it to join your hands together behind your back.

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

Duration: 40 minutes

Emphasis:  You won't use your hands or arms at all in any of the poses in these sequences. It's a useful class if you have an injury or just want to rest your arms, and it's also interesting to see how the poses feel when done in this slightly unfamiliar way. Expect two sequences of standing poses and one sequence of seated and supine poses.

Props needed: None except for a blanket for Savasana if required.

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

Duration: 38 minutes

Emphasis:  Enjoy some empowering Sun Salutations with the added arm strengtheners of Revolved Lunge Pose (Parivrtta Utthita Ashwa Sanchalanasana) and Side Plank Pose (Vasisthasana) followed by some arm and wrists stretches and Bound Hands Warrior 1 Pose (Baddha Hasta Virabhadrasana I). There's also some seated and supine stretches too.

Props needed: A yoga belt and a blanket to kneel on if required and for Savasana.

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

Duration: 21 minutes

Emphasis:  This short class offers poses that will strengthen your arms, stretch your arms and help the mobility of your shoulder, elbow, wrist and finger joints. It's a great sequence to practise regularly if you sit at a computer for multiple hours a day and also just for general maintenance of your arms too. You can do the poses sitting on a chair or standing if you prefer.

Props needed: A chair (optional), a brick or block, a yoga belt.

Mat direction: n/a.

Duration: 1hr 15 minutes

Emphasis:  Liven up your vinyasa flow practice with some hand-weights. After a dynamic warm-up, these Sun Salutation based sequences will help to strengthen your arms and your core as we flow through familiar poses but add repetitive arm movements with weights. You'll then come to the floor for some seated poses which will stretch out your arms before relaxing in Savasana. Note:  look out for the cameo appearance by Flo!

Props needed: 2 hand-weights, or small water bottles, or even tins of food, and a blanket for Savasana if required.

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

Duration: 23 minutes

Emphasis: Often in yoga there is a focus on flexibility and stretching but it is equally important to keep the muscles strong and in good condition to support the joints and keep them stable. The Sun Salutations in this flow include Locust Pose (Salabhasana), an accessible low backbend which strengthens the entire back of the body from your neck all the way down through the back, buttocks, back of thighs, calves and ankles.  Regular practice of this valuable backbend will be really helpful for preventative back care.

Props needed: A block, a blanket and a yoga belt.

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

Duration: 41 minutes

Emphasis:  Move your spine in all directions in this Sun Salutation based challenging flow. After warming up with two rounds of straight Sun Salutation A, which moves the spine repetitively from flexion to extension, the next three rounds include a variety of standing twists to rotate the spine. Moving down to the floor, you'll enjoy a couple of seated twists including Gate Pose 2 (Parighasana II), the supine Stomach Twist (Jathara Parivartanasana) and then a lovely long Savasana to help you relax after your hard work.

Props needed: Two bricks.

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