Trisoma^® Yoga - "It's okay to wiggle and sway"™

Trisoma Yoga, home of the Cobbler Wobbler™ ^[3], has a slogan "It's okay to wiggle and sway™" because the focus is to intently keep the body flowing smoothly while moving through poses that are safely modified to the student's condition and choice at the time, and allowing pauses, modified stretches, jiggling and wiggling, shaking hands, etc.; naturally slowing the breath with optional unforced pauses, and avoiding ascetic fundamentalism. Wearing loose clothing, and bringing your mat or large towel, the location may be a room, studio, park or beach. Music is optional.

Trisoma Yoga typically begins with a Taichicise™ standing warm up, with tai ji and qi gong type movements with limited range to warm up the muscles and joints and to increase circulation, and change student's focus from the external to the internal if indoors; or if outdoors, an emphasis on concordance, omneity and integrity with the natural surroundings.

The main portion of the yoga session is "mountains and valleys" (per YogaFit®) progressing into stretching and strength poses of varying difficulty appropriate to the students, where levels of physical and mental exertion increase and work the body and mind. Modifications are encouraged, as well as rolling shoulders, gently moving heads, flexing wrists, shaking hands, etc.

The final phase of the session is stretching on the floor, ending in sitting or laying poses, to reach deepening relaxation and parasympathetic dominance. The last pose is typically the corpse pose, where is it desired that students who must leave early, should be gone, so that there are no distractions. After maybe 3-4 minutes, students are encouraged to begin moving slowly with fingers and toes, and then further proximally, and later drink water.

Beginning a session at any time of day, the student should be aware of any part of the body that needs extra care, and if there are questions, should inform the instructor so that modification may be suggested and explained.

Breath should be smooth and slow, not forced, as higher breathing rate and less CO₂ in blood actually decreases oxygenation of tissues due to the Bohr effect.^[5] Thus beware of some instructors who teach students that Pranayama is to breathe deeply and forcefully, such that their yoga classes sound like an aerospace wind tunnel, with students huffing and puffing as through they were following Lance Armstrong in the Pyrenees. There are thousands of types of "yoga breath", and fallacies abound about their meanings and physiology. True pranayama breathing involves a goal of increasing the duration of the breath retention.^[6] Ujjayi breath is frequently taught as an audible "rushing" of air, however ujjayi breathing by an experienced practitioner is soundless, smooth and slow. Have you ever seen a Buddhist monk panting? Have you noticed that healthy older people do not breathe noticeably, nor with an open mouth? (Click here for more information on breathing, and then ask your doctor.)

Body Awareness is an essential part of getting more out of yoga. Instead of just moving to the next pose, the instructor will help guide transitions between poses. Instead of jumping and flinging around as in calithenics, with every motion, concentrate on what each part of your body is doing, and respond with intention and feeling. Modifications, substitutions, moving fingers and toes, wiggling and swaying are encouraged at the student's discretion. Notice where tensions remain, and focus release there. Ideally, you will forget what happened an hour before your session, and will be entranced into a partially meditative state, allowing your body to concentrate on its condition. The converse of this would be running on a treadmill while reading a magazine.

Yoga, derived from the Sanskrit root yuj, "to control", "to yoke", or "to unite", ^[1] is a group of ancient spiritual practices (tapas, sutras, etc.) originating in India, concentrating on aspects such as meditation, abstinence and poses. Trisoma Yoga is a modern exercise format based on yoga that uses various poses, transitions between poses and awareness of breath and body to build strength, endurance, balance, control, awareness, flexibility and relaxation. There is no competition involved, and it is understood that variance in strength and flexibility is normal and not necessarily associated with health or beneficial results.

Paul Svacina was trained by YogaFit® which combines fitness moves with traditional asana postures in a vinyasa (flowing series of poses) yoga style, both being beginner-friendly formats, which can also challenge more experienced students. This has also been termed "power yoga". Using English names for poses, the student is not expected to learn Sanskrit, with no "oming" nor chanting as included in some traditional yoga practices (such as Kundalini yoga). Tools are optional, but Trisoma prefers simplicity, to keep concentration of the body. The student should not be uncomfortable in any poses, but should expect a revitalizing workout.

Ask about our "Acrolicious™" partner yoga classes.

Yoga is now recommended by, and health benefits of yoga are being researched by the National Institutes of Health, Department of Health & Human Services, Mayo Clinic Foundation for Medical Education and Research, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, National Parkinson Foundation, American Academy of Dermatology, International Myeloma Foundation, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine and others:

• Complementary medicine techniques such as acupuncture, meditation, and yoga could be a helpful addition to your regular breast cancer medical treatment (breastcancer.org)

• Modest, regular exercise, particularly when combined with stretching and relaxation, or approaches such as yoga and tai chi, provides another essential element for optimum health. (Beth Israel Medical Center Department of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care, New York)

• Other complementary pain relief techniques include massage, vibration, heat or cold packs or pressure, diet, exercise, relaxation training, yoga, reiki (a natural healing process using the hands to tap a universal life energy) and Jin Shin Jyutsu. The quality of research supporting these approaches varies from therapy to therapy. As with any treatment approach, use of complementary therapies should be discussed with your doctor. (The National Pain Foundation)

• Physiological changes promoted in transcendental meditation ^[4]

• Should people stretch before exercise? ^[2]

• Breathing is an important part of yoga practice, but some people, even some Pilates and yoga instructors, think that breathing more will ineluctably increase oxygen levels in the blood. This is not the case, and breathing too quickly and too deeply may decrease the CO₂ levels to unhealthily low levels.

• Tips on choosing a yoga class for you.

For questions on yoga, visit fora below:

• www.yogafit.com/forums

• www.yoga.com/forums/

• www.yogaforums.com/

An ancient sage said:
When the body is upright
The breath will be smooth
When the breath is smooth
The mind will be still

- from Complete Tai Chi by Alfred Huan

References

1. Definition given by Gavin Flood, Academic Director of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies ochs.org.uk (Return to Reference 1 in text)

2. The Western Journal of Medicine. 2001 April; 174(4): 282–283. Copyright © Copyright 2001 BMJ Publishing Group Should people stretch before exercise? Ian Shrier1 1 Department of Physiology McGill University Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Community Studies Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research SMBD-Jewish General Hospital Montreal, Quebec H3T 1E2 Canada (Return to Reference 2 in text)

3. Coined by Rebecca Young (Return to Reference 3 in text)

4. Med Hypotheses. 2000 Apr;54(4):660-2.Click here to read Links Ketosis with enhanced GABAergic tone promotes physiological changes in transcendental meditation. Elias AN, Guich S, Wilson AF. Department of Medicine, University of California at Irvine, California 92868, USA. (Return to Reference 4 in text)

5. Buteyko Institute research by Dr. Konstantin Pavlovich Buteyko, et al. (Return to Reference 5 in text)

6. http://www.yogaatwork.co.uk/pranayama.htm (Return to Reference 6 in text)

"clothes on, no oil, pain gone™"