YJ Editors

Neal Pollack has learned to give his loved ones space to find and develop their own paths.

Here's how to do it.

Kathryn Budig shows how to open your heart wide in this swimmingly sassy pose.

Neal Pollack isn't quite ready to join the senior league, but he's happy to give up the faced-paced yoga of his early years.

Rituals make even mundane activities intentional and sacred. Here, Katie Silcox explains how to create rituals in everyday life.

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Conquer fear in a pose that combines an arm balance, hip opener, shoulder opener, hamstring stretch, and twist.

An invaluable tool for athletes, yoga provides insight into movement patterns of the body, the breath, and the mind.

Yoga can be a double-edged sword to those with eating disorders. A yoga teacher (and former sufferer) explains why.

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In this cute children's e-book, Santa adopts a yoga practice and finds it makes his job a lot easier.

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Urdhva Kukkutasana is one of those poses that reminds us good things come to those who wait.

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Find the sense of strength and security that evolves from being in this pose.

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Try the backbend that leaves Kathryn Budig in a state of goofy bliss.

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Check out YJ Editors's author page.

Check out YJ Editors's author page.

Check out YJ Editors's author page.

James Fox began teaching yoga to prisoners at San Quentin State Prison in California nine years ago, where he founded the Prison Yoga Project. Recently, he's been traveling around the country training others how to teach in a prison setting....

Rules of thumb to get the most out of your practice.

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Get out and celebrate Earth Day this year by practicing Ahisma (non-harming). We've collected some easy and fun ways to spread the eco-friendly mindset.

Last week, I started walking through the door of my Pilates class. Just as the door almost shut behind me, I heard the sound of funky world music coming from another room. I gave the teacher an apologetic glance, backed...

Learn why taking a yogic approach to goals may help you reach them faster. Then forgive yourself if you fall a little short.

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Check out YJ Editors's author page.

As I make my holiday list, I am reminded that the most meaningful gifts I've received were lessons that reveal something about ourselves and where we come from.

It's starting. The creeping feeling of holiday time, where everything speeds up, whipping up into a final frenzy. As if things weren't going fast enough already. During my meditation yesterday, I heard a voice loud and clear. A question, really....

Even though you swore that this year would be different, nothing is going to change unless you have a strategy in place.

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Feel the language barrier when you enter the yoga studio? These 5 words are a good place to start breaking it.

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Check out YJ Editors's author page.

Check out YJ Editors's author page.

Check out YJ Editors's author page.

The following gifts are my favorite silly yoga holiday gifts.

If you're like me it just dawned on you that the time to start planning for the holiday season is NOW. Earlier this week my husband started the frantic search for affordable plane tickets. And,  because I love handmade gifts...

One poetic translation of Camatkarasana means "the ecstatic unfolding of the enraptured heart."

In the yoga community there's an unspoken "don't ask, don't tell" rule when it comes to being a vegetarian, wrote vinyasa teacher and author Sadie Nardini in a recent blog post."Many of the most famous teachers are not only vegetarian,...

This online guide to sharing yoga with your family offers a respite from the school year hustle.

Yoga practitioners across the country celebrate Earth Day as a practice that relates to ahimsa, the yogic principle of non-harming.

There has been a lot of discussion in the yoga community lately about why women make up such a large majority of yoga students. Could it be because yoga clothing companies aren't providing appropriate attire for men? Could it be...

A recent column in the California Bay Area newspaper, Palo Alto Daily News, opposes the idea that yoga is beneficial for competitive athletes. The column, written by Dr. Phil Wagner, the director of SPARTA Performing Science (an athletic training facility...

Greensender.com recently unveiled a symbol designed to help you show your "green pride."

"How you begin something is of great significance," writes New York yoga teacher Dharma Mittra in an email newsletter to his students. "Begin 2009 committed to the attainment of Self-Knowledge." In a list of recommendations for 2009, Dharma suggests students...

The New York Insight Meditation Center is holding its fourth annual Holiday Fair, Saturday, December 6, from 11 am - 5 pm. Admission is free. Attendees can enjoy a craft sale, free body work sessions, entertainment, and homemade refreshments. For...

The next generation of young, gifted and talented yoga teachers in America.

Is there a better pose for me to meditate in if I can't comfortably stay in Lotus?

This side-reclining pose stretches the backs of the legs, the sides of the torso, and tones the belly.

When you practice Standing Splits focus on the stretch in your quad and hamstring, not how high you can lift your leg.

This arm balance, Bhujapidasana, relies more on precise positioning than on strength, making it more accessible for students beginning an arm balancing practice.

This pose gently brings a greater awareness to the hip joints.

According to Hindu lore, the Peacock symbolizes immortality, love, and patience. Peacock Pose, called Mayurasana in Sanskrit, works to lovingly strengthen the core while stretching the palm side of the wrists.

Low Lunge, or Anjaneyasana in Sanskrit, stretches the thighs and groins and opens the chest. It provides recovery post-workout, and boosts energy while consciously working to improve posture.

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana II allows you to stretch the entire front body and deep into the hip flexors to strengthen your back and improve posture.

This variation of High Lunge, sometimes called Crescent Pose, is a great preparation for the full version of Virabhadrasana I (Warrior I Pose).

Find length in front body before forward folding in Ardha Uttanasana.

Urdhva Hastasana translates to "Raised Hands Pose," but it is also sometimes called Talasana, the Palm Tree Pose.

Counteract the effects of Modern-Day Sitting Syndrome by lengthening your hip flexors in High Lunge.

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Kelly Neylan, a yoga teacher based in Columbia, M.D., has created an affordable line of yoga-themed T-shirts and tanks. "I was seeing $60 yoga T-shirts and just thought about how so many people who teach and do yoga can't...

If you're enjoying columnist Cyndi Lee's home practice series, then visit our online library of her sequences. You'll find each issue's sequence in an easy-to-read format with hyperlinks to detailed explanations of the poses.

Sometimes considered a preparation for pranayama, other times a formal practice in itself.

The Fire Log Pose stretches the outer hips intensely, particularly the piriformis, which is often the main culprit of sciatic pain.

A cross between Child's Pose and Downward-Facing Dog, Extended Puppy Pose lengthens the spine and calms the mind.

Practice this pranayama technique for increased breath awareness and control.

Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya II tones the belly and spine, strengthens the arms and wrists, and gives your self-confidence a big boost.

Eka Pada Koundinyasana I or Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya I has a lot going on—the twist, the legs going their separate ways, oh, and the arm balance. Master it.

An excellent facilitator of good pelvic floor health, Garland Pose, called Malasana in Sanskrit, stretches the ankles, groins, and back while stimulating proper digestion. No worries if your heels don't reach the floor—simply rest them on a folded blanket.

Can you practice Wheel with straight arms and Headstand without strain? Then, you're ready.

In Extended Hand-to-big-toe Pose, maintaining solid grounding through the standing foot helps keep you steady.

Kapotasana invigorates your body and gives your spirits a lift. This extremely deep backbend is appropriate for advanced practitioners only.

Sphinx Pose is the infant of backbends. It can be practiced with either an active or passive approach.

This pose gently lengthens and strengthens even stubbornly tight hamstrings.

Ease up into Half Frog Pose, called Ardha Bhekasana in Sanskrit. This pose strengthens the back while gently opening up the shoulders, chest, and thighs—a loving treat for the entire body.

Dolphin Pose strengthens the core, arms, and legs, while also nicely opening the shoulders.

Kumbhaka is the central practice of traditional Hatha pranayama; there are two types of retention: after an inhale (antara), and after an exhale (bahya)