Ann SEibertis a rock climber and passionate yoga enthusiast. Her classes are intended to help athletes of all types avoid injuries caused by strong tight muscles and to increase performance through improved range of motion. Archive
November 2019
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NOTE: You should consult a medical practitioner before starting any new exercise regime. This is particularly important if you are overweight, pregnant, nursing, regularly taking medications, or have any existing medical conditions. Content shown on this website may not be tailored to your current physical and mental health. Please consult a medical professional before attempting any of the poses listed here.
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Warrior: The Story Behind The Pose5/28/2017 In Sanskrit "vira" means hero and "bhadra" means great. So Virabhadra was the greatest, most fearsome warrior ever known. Here's his (very) abbreviated story:
Lord Shiva (also know as the Destroyer and considered the most powerful god of the Hindu pantheon) was married to a beautiful woman Sati. Unfortunately, Sati's father, Daksha, didn't like that she was married to Shiva and set about doing his best to exclude Shiva from family events. This upset Sati and after frequent snubs and insults Sati couldn't take it anymore and threw herself into a ceremonial fire. Shiva was grief stricken. He didn't realize just how much her father's insults were hurting Sati. He was terribly angry. He loved Sati dearly. So with deep sorrow and anger, Shiva tore out his hair and threw it to the ground. There upon that spot the earth split open and Virabhadra (and Kali) were born. Virabhadra was tall and muscular, his body was dark as storm clouds. He had three burning eyes, and fiery hair. Around his neck were a garland of skulls and he carried terrible weapons. Virabhadra was the manifestation of Shiva's grief and anger. Virabhadra bowed his knee and raised up his arms in service to Shiva. (Warrior I) Shiva looked at Virabhadra and said, "Lead my army against Sati's father. Destroy him and all those that side with him." So off Virabhadra went with his huge swords and weapons. When he arrived at Daksha's palace (Sati's father). He began to wield his swords, slicing off the head's of Shiva's enemies. (Warrior II). The battle raged on and Virabhadra continued to fight. Eventually he found Sati's father and in one final act of rage and vengence, he cuts the head off of Daksha. (Warrior III). What a story! However, when you dig deeper. Virabhadra is simply a bloody warrior. Like Shiva, Virabhadra destroys to save. His real enemy is the ego. His cutting the head off Daksha is symbolic of cutting off the head of the ego. Virabhadra is there to remind us to be humble. So, the next time your thighs are screaming and your arms are shaking in Virabhadrasana (Warrior Pose), reflect on the story of Virabhadra, for whom this pose is named. Tap into the strength of this great warrior. Put that fierce energy into the pose and remember to set aside your ego as you practice and throughout your daily life. To read more about the mythology of Virabhadra, Shiva, Sati, and Daksha, check out these resources:
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Wednesday's Workout: Feel The Burn!5/25/2017 Some of you expressed just how much you loved last night's flow session (who knew you folks liked so much pain?!...challenge accepted!) So, should you want to revisit the torture I descended upon you, here's a couple of the flow sequences we did: Flow 1 - Building up the BurnFrom Standing:
Flow 2 - My Leg's on Fire From Downward Dog:
Kickin' Up the Core Workout
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Drills To Build A Strong Core5/18/2017 Its a common mistake for people to associate a strong core with strong abs. Instead, think of your core as the muscles connecting your upper and lower body. No matter what you're doing (climbing, practicing yoga or cleaning your house), the motion to make those movements originates and/or moves through your core. Thus, a weak or inflexible core can significantly affect how well you move. This makes building up a strong core critical to crank up your power, performance, balance and stability. Below are six of my favorite drills to build a strong core. Photos and links are from YogaJournal.com. And,...if you're looking for a great flow sequence, give this Twisting Core Flow by Baptiste Yoga a try. It'll kick your butt!
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Handstand Prep Drills5/12/2017 For those brave souls that attended Wednesday's Yoga for Power & Flexibility class, you all did amazingly well! Before we started practicing handstand, we discussed how important it is to maintain strong straight arms during the inversion. Below are four of the arm drills we did to help prepare for adho mukha vrksasana (aka handstand) and to ultimately make achieving the pose a bit easier.
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Easing belayer neck pain5/8/2017 We spend a lot of time looking up while we belay. This sometimes causes too much pressure in your neck, resulting in pain. One way to help easy the pain of belayer's neck is to actively training your neck muscles to engage, rather than just dumping the weight of your head into your spine. Here are some exercises to help:
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4 Great Shoulders Stretches5/2/2017 Your shoulders are intricate machines. Lots can go wrong if you don't treat them well. Here are some of my favorite stretches to help keep shoulders limber and healthy.
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