Archive for February, 2009

As physiotherapists and long time yoga teachers Bianca and I believe that incorrectly performed upward facing dog poses are the cause of many lower back and neck problems in yoga. We also feel that most people do not perform this quite difficult posture safely or effectively, and although when practiced properly this is a really fantastic exercise and can actually relieve back pain, only relatively few people have the necessary  understanding or abilities to do.

In this short video I point out that safe and effective practice of the upward facing dog pose requires the understanding and application of the principles of at least three or four other postures.

1. Tolasana / San Tolasana (the scales or plank position): In these positions, like upward facing dog pose,  the arms are used to lift  the body off the ground as high as possible.  Lifting the collar bones as high of the floor as possible is generally important to activate the muscles under the armpits which reciprocally relax and release many neck muscles and help to trigger  a reflex activation of chest and abdominal muscles co-activation (uddiyana and mula bandhas).

2. Ardha Bhujangasana (half cobra pose): In this position, like upward facing dog pose,  the arms are used to pull the chest forward towards the hands. The pulling action of the hands is meant to lengthen the front of the body without shortening the back of spine. It also has the effect of activating the back muscles (spinal extensors). Ideally the pulling action of the hands is meant to extend (bend backwards) the spine selectively at the stiffest part  of the spine (which is often around the middle spine rather than the often over-stretched lower back. This movement is relatively easy to do in the half cobra pose and much harder to do in the actual upward facing dog.

3. San Calanasana (the lunge / front groin stretch): In the lunge position the muscles at the front of the groin (hip flexors) are lengthened. This lessens the strain on the lower back for several reasons that i wont go into here. The upward facing dog can be practiced like ‘double-legged lunge’ that helps to lengthen the spine rather than simply squash it.

4. Dhanurasana (the bow posture): This posture is improved significantly if you can rotate the shoulders outwards. Once the outward rotation of the shoulder  is learned then this practice can be adopted for use in the upward facing dog pose (I did not mention this last point in the video shown here).

If you have any comments or questions then please share them on our facebook discussion group

Best wishes to you all, Simon Borg-Olivier

This is a short (3 minute) video is of Simon teaching alignment and mechanics of upward facing dog pose for the Vibrant Living Yoga Teacher Training Course in May 2008 in Bali. www.RadiantlyAlive.com .

Posted on our facebook site by Genevieve Godwin on February 18, 2009 at 3:14pm

I’m a bit of an outsider because I’ve only seen Simon doing a demonstration: I haven’t actually attended any classes (I live in regional NSW).
I attend a weekly Ashtunga class and do as much as my rather short hamstrings will allow.
I’d like to buy a YogaSynergy DVD to start learning that style but don’t know what sequence to get.
Any advice?

Posted on our facebook site by Simon Borg-Olivier on February 18, 2009 at 7:01pm

Hi Genevieve – any sequence is fine for you but knowing you as i do for so long i suggest getting one of the dvds i made last year which have a one hour lecture on how to practice followed by a 10 minute beginner sequence and an instructed one hour class done at a reasonable slow pace. i suggest maybe DVD entitle “Dynamic Rejuvenation and Relaxation: Beginner Instructed AIR sequence”
Best wishes and lots, Simon

Posted on our facebook site by Genevieve Godwin on february 19, 2009 at 1:55am

Many thanks – I’ll let you know how I go!

Posted on our facebook site by Genevieve Godwin on May 4, 2009 at 5:47pm

OK so now I’ve got the DVD – watched the DVD – and actually done the introductory sequence (just the first bit of the 1 hr class) a couple of times.

The good news is that it’s easier than it looks….

but I am pretty stiff and sore around the shoulders and hips now – I think I overdid the pushups.

At least I’ve made a start!!

Posted on our facebook site by Bianca Machliss on May 11, 2009 at 5:25pm

Hi Genevieve,
Glad you found the DVD easy to follow – i think if you take it slowly you will be following it all really easily in no time. Go easy on the push ups!! In classes we always give the options to either stay in plank, or kneeling plank, or…to do a kneeling push up and stay on your tummy for the simple up dog.
I always tell my students that its better to do one or two excellent push ups than lots of really sloppy ones – and build that up slowly over time and depending on how you are feeling on the day. Some days it just isnt appropriate to do many push ups, or any at all, depending on your energy level. At YogaSynergy one of the main things we try to teach our students is how to practice appropriately in response to what your body needs.
Good luck with your practice,
namaste
Bianca

Posted on our facebook site by Genevieve Godwin on May 11, 2009 at 6:33pm

Thanks Bianca,

Simon’s narration is very reassuring. I’ll take it easy.

Namaste ♥

Posted on our facebook site by Slobodanka Cica Stojkovic on May 15, 2009 at 6:39pm

I have a similar question to Genevieve. I have done yoga synergy with Roman in Melbourne, and have attended two of Simon’s workshops. But I haven’t done any yoga synergy for a year, due to being pregnant and having a baby (unfortunatelly I wasn’t aware of your prenatal DVD).

I would like to get back into it, and would like to get a DVD to practise mainly at home, and once a week with Roman.
So, the question is – what sequence/DVD to get, but more importantly (excuse my ignorance), is there a particular time of the year for each sequence? How do you decide when to do each sequence?

I am planning to attend the workshop in Melbourne at the end of the month, looking forward to that.

regards
Slobodanka

Posted on our facebook site by Daniela Somasundram-Agnoletti (Malaysia) on February 16, 2009 at 3:25pm

Is the prenatal DVD out !? If yes let me know how to get it!
Namaste Daniela

Posted on our facebook site by Simon Borg-Olivier on February 16, 2009 at 3:29am

Hi Daniela, Yes our new Pregnancy DVD has just been released. Is it available from the shcool. You can get them from the school or if you ring the school on +61 2 9389 7399 you can order a copy and Amelia can post it out to you.

The DVD is really beautifully shot next to the water at Clovelly Beach and it is of Bianca practicing to the instructions of her own voice when she was in the 3rd trimester with her little boy Lorenzo in late 2007. The practice is suitable for most people who are able to come to classes. it is based on the YogaSynergy system and is appropriately adapted to the prenatal body.

Bianca also gives a short lecture at the start of the DVD explaining the sorts of things to be careful for when you are doing prenatal yoga and what you may expect to feel or not feel.

As soon as time allows we will put some more information on prenatal yoga on our website www.yogasynergy.com and we will notify people here. In the meantme there is quite comprehensive large section on prenatal yoga available in our book ‘Applied Anatomy and Physiology of Yoga’ in Chapter 11, which includes a lovely 2 page coloiur set of prenatal photos of my wife Vitoria Borg-Olivier practicing a similar sequence to what Bianca does in the DVD.

Best wishes to you, Simon

Posted on our facebook site by Daniela Somasundram-Agnoletti (Malaysia) on February 16, 2009 at 3:14pm

Thanks Simon,
Yes most of the info comes from the book,which I have and use . My students very much enjoy the prenatal synergy style-but I guess by learning it from the cd it could become more authentic-since I had to modify some of the poses to suit.
I hope you will be able to make your way to KL soon
Namaste Daniela

Posted on our facebook site by Simon Borg-Olivier on February 23, 2009 at 2:42pm

That is great you can use the book in that way Daniella. I think the yogasynergy prenatal dvd with Bianca will be really useful for you. I am coming to do a retreat for Ysynergy and James and Jaque in July – check with them for details – it would be great to see you there if you can get the time to come – best wishes, Simon

by Simon Borg-Olivier MSc BAppSc(Physiotherapy)and Bianca Machliss BSc BAppSc(Physiotherapy)

(A similar earlier version of this article has been published by ‘Australian Natural Health Magazine’, www.sportsblitz.net )

Click the following link to view/download a file (PDF) of the entire article with photos … Yoga Synergy Style article article for web update 14feb09

The Yoga Synergy style of yoga, also simply known as YogaSynergy, is traditional hatha yoga with an understanding from exercise based physiotherapy. This unique style of yoga is very fluid and dynamic and has been developed in Sydney since the 1980’s by Simon Borg-Olivier and Bianca Machliss. It incorporates all the postures seen in other popular yoga’s but also includes many novel postures and exercises that do not appear elsewhere. Although strength, flexibility and cardiovascular fitness can be by-products of practicing YogaSynergy, they are not the main aim. The main aim of yoga is communication and the realisation that we are all connected. The main physical aim of YogaSynergy is the enhancement of the flow of energy and information through the various channels of the body. When this is understood then a YogaSynergy practice can leave you energised yet calm, with a reduced need for food and sleep. In addition, because this system enhances the flow of information though the body it can be used to heal many injuries and illnesses, and can prevent many of the common yoga-based injuries from occurring.

The YogaSynergy System has been developed over a 30 year period based on the teaching we have been lucky enough to receive from our yoga teachers and our understanding of the theory and practice of the yoga anatomy and yoga physiology as research based scientists and physiotherapists. The YogaSynergy System can be adapted to any system of physical exercise, but it is most easily and effectively applied in the five specific sequences designed and refined by Simon and Bianca over a 10 year period during from 1989 to 1999. These specifically designed sequences are named after the elements Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether and can be practiced by an experienced practitioner over a five day cycle that can also include a single day of long inverted positions and a day of purely meditation and rest to give a weekly cycle. Each sequence is taught and practiced at seven main levels ranging from Beginner to Advanced. Studies in exercise-based physiotherapy have shown that repetition is important for learning, therefore learning a set sequence is important, but because training is specific it is also important to vary the approach to learning something like a sequence of exercises. Initially each sequence is taught progressively over a nine week period and in each class the group level and circumstances such as weather, time of day and general energy at the time of the class taken into account. YogaSynergy encourages practitioners to approach their practice intelligently and use it as a tool to enhance their lives. One of the main methods of doing this is to have variations for each of the postures, ranging from a simple (easy) version to a more complex (difficult) version. All practitioners are taught the simple versions and are encouraged to use those when they are not feeling 100% and thus are still able to practice. As a result many different versions of the basic form of any of the sequences are available and we have classes of people with many different types of bodies and levels of experience enjoying their practice together.

It was never our intention to create a particular style of yoga. Initially we practiced the yoga we were taught our main teachers Natanaga Zhander (Shandor Remete), Sri B.K.S. Iyengar, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and Sri T.V.K. Desikarchar. These great masters helped us greatly in our own path of yoga. However, after many years of practice and teaching we realised that we had missed something in our understanding of the body. So we both went back to university and studied to become physiotherapists. This dramatically changed the way we approach our yoga practice and teaching and over the next few years a unique style, YogaSynergy, began to emerge almost by itself. The main features of YogaSynergy are:

1. Modification of traditional yoga postures and sequences to take account of the modern body and variations between practitioners
2. Gradation of postures with a personal choice ranging from simple (easy) to complex (difficult) versions of each posture or sequence
3. Use of active movements to enter each pose
4. Use of resistance work during each pose
5. Use of co-activation (simultaneous tensing) of the muscles around the nine main joint complexes of the body in order to stabilise these joints
6. Use of seven circulatory pumps to aid in the movement of energy and information through the body
7. Use of special mudras (energy control gestures) that can tension (stretch) nerves and acupuncture meridians
8. Use of specific breath-control to gradually reduce the amount of air required per minute in order to lessen the need for sleep and food, bring more oxygen to the brain and calm the nervous system

Click the following link to view/download a file (PDF) of the entire article with photos

Yoga Synergy Style article article for web update 14feb09

Read the article below for a simple to understand article by Simon Borg-Olivier and Bianca Machliss written for Well Being Magazine on The Anatomy of Yoga. It explains the four main things you can do in a yoga pose around the nine main joint complexes in the body. This concept is elaborated in the YogaSynergy Text Book ‘Applied Anatomy and Physiology of Yoga’

In the ultimate sense, the goal of yoga (which means union) is the realisation that the individual consciousness is one with universal consciousness. This is a very lofty goal for most of us. A more achievable goal in the short term is to maximise communications between the brain and the body through yoga practice. To make your yoga as effective as possible, it helps to understand the anatomy of what you are trying to achieve and what yoga can do.

Brain-body communication

Good communication between your brain and body allows you to enhance health and vitality and to recover from injury more easily. The main means of communication in the body is via the circulation of energy (prana) and information (citta) through the circulatory channels of the body. Hatha yoga is the physical form of the ancient Indian science of yoga that uses physical exercises (among other things) to help achieve the union of brain and body and enhance the communication between them.

The word hatha literally means force. Hatha yoga uses physical exercises to generate forces through the body that can enhance circulation. To achieve this, it helps to have complete control of the muscles and joints. A basic, practical understanding of anatomy can enhance your yoga practice immensely. This knowledge can also be used to improve your strength, flexibility, cardiovascular fitness and ability to heal injuries and to relax and meditate.

Yoga for ‘Western’ bodies

Traditional yoga is taught with the assumption that those practising it have typically Indian bodies. Generally, in the Western world, where yoga has become very popular, this is not the case. Generally, people living in India have a natural balance between their strength and flexibility. For example, they can very easily come to the squatting position, something they have been doing since they were children. Similarly, they can readily do the lotus position because of a lifetime of sitting cross-legged on the floor rather than on chairs.

Many traditional yoga sequences place deep squats and full-lotus or half-lotus postures relatively early on in the sequence without allowing much time to warm up the hips, knees or ankles. These postures are not considered deep or difficult stretches for the typical Indian body. Yet they are often quite difficult for Western bodies.

One misconception of yoga is that it’s all about stretching and relaxation. In fact, learning how to activate (tense) muscles and strengthen the body is as important as learning how to stretch and relax muscles. To achieve the healthiest physical body and the best physical yoga, you need to have a controlled balance between strength and flexibility as well as the ability to relax.

To read the rest of this article go to the Well Being Magazine Website by clicking here.