It has been over 60 years since Eastern schools of meditation became widely known in the U.S. and Europe, and meditation became widely practiced, with over 14% of Americans having meditated at least once. If we include those practicing mindfulness techniques, using meditation apps, and attending yoga classes with a meditation component, this figure goes far higher.
The effects of sitting in meditation
The potential benefits of meditation are well known, and include a calmer, clearer mind, lower levels of stress, better sleep, improved relationships with others, and better mental health.
From a posture perspective, whether you sit in meditation regularly or are just getting started, you want the experience to be as healthy for your body as it is for your mind. Read more
In my experience, people are often unaware that their posture has greatly contributed to their muscular problems and damage.
In this blog post I would like to talk about a frequently injured group of muscles that attach the arm to the torso at the shoulder blade—the rotator cuff. The rotator cuff helps rotate the arm and lift it sideways and is also responsible for stabilizing the shoulder joint. Read more
In this blog post I am excited to introduce a wedge for stacksitting to our students and readers. It’s possible to experience and take pleasure in sitting as you work at your desk, eat at your table, or play an instrument. If this is not the case for you, the Gokhale Wedge could make it so. Read more
As we transition from the winter months into spring, many of us will search in our wardrobe for lighter weight clothing and perhaps some lighter colors. One thing we often overlook when it comes to choosing clothing is how it affects our posture—including whether it risks giving us back pain, or helps to resolve it. Read more
Do you suffer from neck tension, muscle knots, or tingling in your fingers? Do you get frequent headaches?
Or maybe your neck is fine most of the time, but seizes up periodically, leaving you unable to function normally in your job, family life, and recreational activities.
Most neck pain involves compression.
In modern cultures, the head often drifts forward as we slouch and crane our necks towards our computer screens. The weight of the head, (typically 11 lb. or 5 kg—think bowling ball), then requires the muscles at the back of the neck to contract strongly to keep the head up. This contraction compresses the relatively delicate tissues in the area. Not a recipe for a healthy, happy neck. If you have forward head carriage but are symptom-free so far, keep reading for tips that will prevent future problems with the discs, nerves, blood vessels, and bones in your neck. Read more
Welcome to our second post on navigating steps and stairs. Our first post looked at how to power yourself up stairs—however, we often hear from our students that their most pressing concern is how to come down stairs.
Are you starting to worry that you may need to set up your bedroom downstairs, or find yourself compromised when visiting places with stairs? Perhaps you have a friend or older relative in this position? Is it possible to maintain or even improve your fitness and mobility in the years ahead? “Life exercises” such as descending stairs, done skilfully, can be transformative and can give many benefits beyond getting you where you want to go. Read more