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The Fundamentals

Breathing.

Body Alignment.

Contemplation.

Brian Henderson Yoga

You’ll take around 16,000 or 17,000 breaths today, and likely not think about any of them. Yet we would begin to die in less than two minutes if we stopped breathing. Quite literally, breathing is our minute-to-minute life force. I teach pranayama – breathing techniques – as a fundamental part of any yoga practice. No matter what class, how long it is, who is in it, where it’s located…pranayama is a key part of the lesson.

You’ll take around 16,000 or 17,000 breaths today, and likely not think about any of them. Yet we would begin to die in less than two minutes if we stopped breathing. Quite literally, breathing is our minute-to-minute life force. I teach pranayama – breathing techniques – as a fundamental part of any yoga practice. No matter what class, how long it is, who is in it, where it’s located…pranayama is a key part of the lesson.

BREATHING

In North America, this is often where most yoga lives – in the poses, or asana – and you can align your body in hundreds of different poses. Having the proper alignment for your body, understanding variations and modifications to poses, and moving in and out of poses safely are all key to getting the benefits from any yoga practice, and to staying safe and injury-free.

BODY ALIGNMENT

We get remarkable physical benefits from practicing yoga – particularly relating to flexibility, strength and balance – and those benefits have been repeatedly scientifically proven. But, for me, the ultimate benefit of practicing yoga is the calming, quiet reflection, without judgement, that breathing and the poses cultivate. Yoga cultivates meditation – or dhyana. So, centering and contemplation are a part of every class I teach.

CONTEMPLATION

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