Cool Yoga Tricks

Book excerpt: Craving yoga’s benefits but unable to perform even the simplest postures? Think yoga is only for rubber-limbed supermodels? If your yoga practice is giving you more stress than stress relief, Cool Yoga Tricks is the answer to your prayers. Although it seems like everyone from Madonna to your eighty-three-year-old Uncle Teddy is practicing yoga, most of us are unable to do even the simplest classic yoga poses without undue stress and strain. Now in this clear, understandable, easy-to-follow book, Miriam Austin offers alternative yoga routines that help you reap the greatest rewards from your yoga practice, and she reveals shortcuts to help you perform yoga like a pro. Using everyday items, such as chairs, walls, and blankets, Miriam Austin shows how those of us with normal flexibility limitations can experience the very real benefits of yoga—without dislocating our joints, overstretching our muscles, or giving up in frustration. She makes the basics simple, doable, and down-to-earth. Dog Tricks—lengthen your spine more fully with these Downward Facing Dog tricks, designed to relax your neck, shoulders, and back—and make your Dog Pose much more lovable. Befriending Backbends—increase your preztebility with a little help from your friends—and from some garden-variety folding chairs. Tweaking Your Twists—learn the techniques that will stretch your spine and give you more life energy. Super Stretches—feel as limber as your average bowling ball? Gently coax your muscles to new lengths by practicing the routines in this chapter.