How to build up to Split-leg Arm Balance, Eka Pada Koundinyasana 2 Yoga classes in Milton Keynes with Yoga Lily. Eka Pada Koundinyasana 2 – Split-leg arm balance is a demanding arm balance, easy to incorporate into any yoga flow. The split leg arm balance is also a great transitional pose; it can take you into or out of many other arm balances. Once you have this one under your belt, the sky is the limit as to where you can go. Remember to be playful with arm balances: It’s just yoga, and the pose always comes to you when your body is ready for it. Here’s how to get your body (and mind) prepped for this one. Happy Baby Pose with Legs Extended Warms up your body Lie on your back, bend your knees, hugging them in toward your chest, and then take the outer edges of your feet in your hands, reaching your knees toward your armpits. Rock softly from left to right if that feels nice, and then slowly start to straighten your right leg. Stay here for 5 deep breaths. Bend your right knee and extend your left leg and stay for 5 more deep breaths. Bent Arm Plank Push-ups Strengthens your arms and makes holding your body weight in the arm balance no big deal From plank, reach back through your heels, engage your core, and soften through your elbows, reaching them straight back until your forearms graze the sides of your rib cage. Stay here for 5 deep breaths. Lower all the way to the ground, inhale back to plank, and repeat 5 times. Thigh Taps Activates your core and essentially puts you in the pose before you even know you are there From down dog, inhale your right leg high, open the hip, and tap right thigh to your right shoulder, keeping the leg straight if it’s comfortable (if not bend the knee). Bend your elbows, making a shelf for your thigh, and inhale back to down dog split. Do this five times and then repeat on the left. Devotional Warrior Opens the hips and prepares the shoulders From down dog, step right foot forward, spin left heel down, and inhale arms up to frame head in warrior one. Allow hands to fall behind you, clasp them behind your sacrum, take a big inhale to open chest, and use your exhale to fold yourself inside of your right knee. Stay here for at least 5 deep breaths, then repeat on the other side. Lizard Pose Opens the hips From down dog, lift your right leg high to down dog split, open your hip, bend your knee, and step your right foot outside of your right hand and tap your left knee to the ground. If it feels good, gently lower your forearms to the ground and breathe here for 5 deep breaths, then repeat on the left side. Runner’s Lunge Opens your hamstrings   From a lunge with your right foot forward, tap your

Small Group Yoga for Beginners Course – Starting Monday 16th October for 6-weeks New time and venue added for our very popular small group yoga for beginners courses! Taking your first step onto the yoga mat is an exciting new beginning. On this course you will be introduced to fundamental yoga poses, concentrating on healthy alignment and establishing a deeper awareness of your body through breath, movement and focus. We will build the practice week-by-week and also introduce meditation and relaxation techniques to cultivate a feeling of calm and the ability to better deal with stress. So, if you are looking for a new challenge to boost your health and wellbeing, help yourself stay in shape, or simply have a little ‘me’ time; We look forward to welcoming you to our 6-week, fun, relaxing and de-stressing Yoga for Beginners course with David at Oxley Park Community Centre, Milton Keynes. Small Group Yoga for Beginners Course This is a small group course, giving you a better teacher / student balance.  It is aimed at complete beginners or those with a little experience who are looking to improve their understanding and build a strong foundation of Yoga. This course is not suitable during pregnancy but is a fantastic postnatal way to rebuild flexibility and muscle tone, as well as some precious ‘me’ time. As places are limited please book today to avoid disappointment. Slow Flow Hatha Yoga Anyone can do Hatha Yoga because its practice is aimed toward relaxation, stress reduction and management. The Yoga for Beginners Course will cover the basics of this ancient Eastern tradition; so you will learn how to breathe properly and centre your attention on clearing mental clutter – all the while staying fit, improving posture and reaping the physical benefits of the yoga tradition. Find out more about the benefits of yoga and how yoga changes your body, starting the day you begin.   Course Details Starts Monday 16th October 2017 Time: 6:15pm – 7:15pm Duration: 6 weeks Course cost: £66 Maximum 12 people These courses are very popular and spaces are allocated on a first come first served basis, book now to avoid disappointment.   Courses Before committing to a course, we recommend you can attend the scheduled number of sessions to get the most out of the programme as it is not possible to roll-over classes missed.   Venue: Oxley Park Community Centre Redgrave Dr, Oxley Park, Milton Keynes MK4 4TA  

How to do Viparita Karani or Legs Up the Wall Pose (easy inversion) – restorative yoga inversion. Yoga classes in Milton Keynes Viparita Karani – Legs Up The Wall Pose is a passive pose that relieves congestion in the legs and is restorative for the entire nervous system. Many inversions are not beginner’s poses but this pose can be safely practiced by those new to yoga. 1. Sit with your right hip and shoulder touching a wall and have your knees bent and heels close to your buttocks. 2. Keep the hip near the wall as you lean back on your hands. Take your legs up the wall as you lower onto your elbows. Then lay on your back on the floor and check your body is symmetrical. 3. With the buttocks close to the wall and legs vertical, choose your arm position. Take your palms to the abdomen or your arms out to the side. Alternatively, take the arms overhead, elbows softly bent. If you wish, tie a soft belt around the mid thighs so the legs are passively held together. Allow the shoulders to soften and relax into the floor. Keep the back of the neck long. Tune into the rhythm of your breath. 4. Allow the tongue to rest on the floor of the mouth and the eyeballs to sink toward the base of the skull. Stay here for up to 10 minutes (slowly working up to 20 minutes over time), breathing deeply through the whole body.   5. To vary this pose, bring the soles of the feet together and slide the heels down the wall, so the outer edges of the feet are against the wall and knees wide apart [A]. Alternatively, you can let the legs fall out to a wide ‘V’ shape to stretch the inner thighs [B].   TIPS Gaze: Close the eyes and focus on releasing with the breath. Counter Poses: Any standing posture. Lighten: Bend your knees a little if it is difficult to bring your buttocks against the wall. Bend the knees down to the chest if your feet get numb. Effect: Restorative, calming. CAUTION Inversions should not be practised by anyone who is suffering from high blood pressure or has eye problems, such as detached retina or glaucoma. They should be avoided by women during menstruation. In the case of previous neck injuries, heart problems, or pregnancy, the advice of an experienced teacher should be sought. Most inversions are not beginner’s poses and it is strongly recommended that the postures are learned from an experienced teacher.

Restorative Yoga Evening is now fully booked Yin Meridian Restorative Yoga Evening for the Summer Solstice (夏至 Xia Zhi) We warmly invite you to join us and take time to de-stress and unwind with a wonderfully relaxing and blissful, 2 hour Yin Meridian Restorative Yoga evening to celebrate the longest day, Summer Solstice (夏至 Xia Zhi), influenced by the Chinese Solar Calendar. With nature now in full bloom and the sounds of new life fill every bush and tree, there is an unmissable heat of Yang energy in the air. Bring the body and mind back in to harmony with our cooling Yin Meridian Restorative Yoga Evening as we celebrate the tenth solar term. For 90 minutes Lily will take you slowly through a relaxing Yin Meridian Restorative Yoga practice which unwinds deep tensions helping you slowly let go of stress; Then David will guide you through a 30 minute Yoga Nidra—known as yogic sleep—a meditation and conscious relaxation practice that induces total physical, mental, and emotional relaxation. Who is it for? Restorative yoga is suitable for ‘every body,’ whether you are new to yoga or a regular yoga practitioner. Just bring yourself, warm stretching clothes and socks, and if preferred your favourite warm blanket (blankets not required as we supply, but if it feels more cosy with your own, your welcome to bring one). Cost: £22 Places are limited so book your space today for this special event. FULLY BOOKED Note: You don’t need a PayPal account to book Date & Time: Thursday 22nd June at 7:45PM – 9:45PM Venue: St John Ambulance HQ. 21 Blackmoor Gate, Furzton, Milton Keynes MK4 1DA   CHINESE SOLAR CALENDAR RESTORATIVE YOGA SEASON: Follow our seasonal solar journey in to restorative yoga as we transition through the 24 solar terms. “When we take the time to create ease in our lives, we not only affect ourselves and our own bodies, we also affect the quality of our actions…and the choices we make…and then we begin to affect the world. When we act from deep ease, we will affect people we haven’t even met!”   What is Restorative Yoga? Sometimes you’ve just got to slow everything right down. When your life is racing full-speed ahead, so is your mind. Restorative yoga helps provide that physical and mental balance to prevent stress and anxiety, through the use of props that allow you to hold poses longer, giving you all the benefits of deep, passive stretching. Poses like Child’s Pose, Legs-Up-the-Wall, and Savasana are held for up to 15 minutes using bolsters, blankets, pillows, straps, blocks, sandbags, walls, chairs and eye pillows, to support your body in a full, long, and comfortable, relaxing stretch so that tension can slowly be released. The more fully your body is supported, the deeper your sense of relaxation and surrender will be. Because the body and mind relax, literally becoming softer, we also create space to get in touch again with our natural qualities of compassion and understanding of others and self. Benefits of Restorative Yoga Here are the top reasons to spend a little extra time opening up and breathing in the benefits of this nourishing yoga practice.