Frik-Shuhn Yoga & Coaching

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Frik-Shuhn Yoga & Coaching

200, 300 & Continuing Ed Yoga Alliance Certified Yoga trainings and Retreats🩷 | Inclusive & safe🌈

07/25/2025

Seated Forward Fold (Paschimottanasana): Functional vs. Aesthetic 🪷

This seemingly simple pose is a powerful example of how aesthetic-driven yoga can actually cause more harm than good — and how functional movement supports long-term flexibility, spinal health, and nervous system regulation.

❌ Aesthetic Yoga says:  ✔️ Keep your legs straight at all costs  ✔️ Pull yourself forward to get the chest or head to your knees  ✔️ Reach your hands past your feet  ✔️ Round the spine — as long as it looks like you’re going far  ✔️ Push for depth, even if it strains your back or hamstrings

✅ Functional Yoga says:  ✔️ Bend the knees as much as needed to keep the spine long  ✔️ Hinge from the hips, not the mid-back  ✔️ Let the chest reach forward, not down  ✔️ Keep the head neutral, gaze to the toes or top of the mat  ✔️ Focus on sensation, not shape — stretch the back body without pulling or forcing  ✔️ Root the sits bones and lengthen through the spine — it’s about elongation, not collapse

What we often see:  ⛔ Rounded spine → puts stress on vertebrae and spinal discs  ⛔ Tight hamstrings pulling on the low back  ⛔ Neck strain from dropping the head  ⛔ Disconnection from the breath due to efforting

The truth: Paschimottanasana is not about getting your forehead to your shins — it’s about creating space through your whole back body. 
When you prioritize hip flexion and spinal length over external appearance, this pose becomes therapeutic instead of punishing.

Functional yoga supports somatic awareness, honors your body’s structure, and rewires your nervous system for healing and resilience🩷

Want to learn this approach to yoga? Join us inside the Inclusive Yogic Path App — where ancient wisdom meets modern movement science and every body belongs🧘🏼‍♀️

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07/23/2025

Bridge Pose (Setu Bandhasana): Functional vs. Aesthetic

Let’s break down Bridge Pose — a pose meant to strengthen, stabilize, and restore, yet too often becomes a source of strain when we’re chasing aesthetics over alignment.

❌ Aesthetic Yoga says:  ✔️ Walk your heels as close as possible to your glutes  ✔️ Grab your ankles or heels  ✔️ Get your hips as high as you can — by any means  ✔️ Push through the low back  ✔️ Tuck the chin deep into the chest

✅ Functional Yoga says:  ✔️ Knees stacked over ankles → protects the knees and distributes weight evenly  ✔️ Lift your toes to activate the front of the legs and stabilize the feet  ✔️ Engage your glutes to lift the hips, not your back muscles  ✔️ Core stays active to prevent dumping into the lumbar spine  ✔️ Chest moves toward the chin — but the chin lifts away to avoid cervical compression  ✔️ Arms press into the ground — not pulling on the heels

What we often see:  ⛔ Knees splaying out or caving in → leads to instability  ⛔ Low back compression → causes pain over time  ⛔ Glutes disengaged → hips lifted by strain instead of strength  ⛔ Neck collapsed → puts pressure on the cervical spine

The truth: Bridge Pose is a strength-building backbend, not a flexibility contest.  When done with functional alignment, it supports spinal health, activates the posterior chain, and teaches integrated movement.

Functional yoga helps your body move better off the mat — not just look a certain way on it🩷

Want to learn how to practice in a way that feels good, honors your body, and is rooted in both yogic tradition and modern science? Join us in the Inclusive Yogic Path App — your one-stop home for nervous system-safe, trauma-informed yoga🧘🏼‍♀️

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07/21/2025

Standing Forward Fold (Uttanasana): Functional vs. Aesthetic

Let’s break down Standing Forward Fold — a pose that’s often taught to look deep instead of feel supportive.

Done with awareness, this pose decompresses the spine, stretches the entire back body, and soothes the nervous system. But when alignment is sacrificed for appearance, it can cause strain — especially in the hamstrings and low back.

❌ Aesthetic Yoga says:  ✔️ Keep the legs straight at all costs  ✔️ Pull your head to your knees  ✔️ Fold from the spine, not the hips  ✔️ Prioritize depth over integrity  ✔️ Push through discomfort for flexibility

✅ Functional Yoga says:  ✔️ Add a generous bend in the knees to support the low back  ✔️ Focus on lengthening the spine instead of rounding it  ✔️ Hinge at the hip joints, not the vertebrae  ✔️ Let the upper body drape, not force  ✔️ Soften the neck and jaw, breathe into the back body

What we often see:  ⛔ Overstretched hamstrings → leads to injury  ⛔ Rounded spine → pulls on the low back  ⛔ Tight neck from trying to “go deeper”  ⛔ No breath awareness → nervous system stays tense

The truth: A forward fold isn’t about touching your toes — it’s about meeting yourself where you are.
  A long spine and a deep breath will always serve you more than a forced shape ever could.

Functional yoga supports your nervous system, your fascia, and your actual lived experience — not just what a pose looks like on Instagram🧘🏼‍♀️

Ready to re-learn yoga in a way that’s kind, safe, and rooted in science? Come practice with us inside the Inclusive Yogic Path App — where every class is built for every body🩷

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07/17/2025

Camel Pose (Ustrasana): Functional vs. Aesthetic 🐪

Let’s talk about Camel Pose — a beautiful heart-opener that often becomes a low-back
cruncher when alignment gets sacrificed for aesthetics.

❌ Aesthetic Yoga says:
✔ Tuck the toes to bring the heels closer
✔ Reaching for the heels is the goal
✔ Lean all the way back and hang the head
✔ Arch the back as much as possible
✔ Use momentum instead of intention

✅ Functional Yoga says:
✔ Keep the tops of the feet flat on the mat → this engages the core naturally
✔ Progress slowly into the posture — don’t chase depth
✔ Begin with hands on the sacrum, fingers pointing upward
✔ Squeeze the elbows toward each other to activate the upper back
✔ Engage the abdominals to prevent dumping into the low back
✔ Neck stays neutral or slightly lifted — no collapsing
✔ Expansion comes from the thoracic spine, not the lumbar spine

👀 What we often see:
⛔ Toes tucked and back arched → causes sacral compression
⛔ Head thrown back → collapses cervical spine
⛔ Obsession with touching the heels → disengages the front body
⛔ No engagement in the glutes or core → invites injury

💡 The truth: Backbends are not about “going big”
— they’re about going deep with integrity.

Camel Pose, done functionally, strengthens the spine, opens the chest, and improves posture — without sacrificing the nervous system.
🌿 In functional yoga, we don’t force the shape — we build it from the inside out, with
breath, muscle tone, and presence.
🌀 Learn how to backbend safely and intentionally inside the Inclusive Yogic Path App —
where we break down every pose to meet your unique body.

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07/15/2025

Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana): Functional vs. Aesthetic 🐍

Cobra and Up Dog are not the same pose — and treating them like they are can lead to
compression, not transformation.

Let’s break down what this backbend is really meant to do.

❌ Aesthetic Yoga says:
✔ Cobra = just a low version of Up Dog
✔ Legs zipper together
✔ Glutes should stay soft
✔ Push through the hands to lift as high as possible
✔ Neck strains back to “look up”

✅ Functional Yoga says:
✔ Cobra is a low spinal extension — not a full backbend
✔ Legs stay hip-distance apart
✔ A tone in the glutes supports sacral stability — not squeezing, not flaccid
✔ Lift the chest primarily with back-body strength, not arm push
✔ Elbows stay bent, shoulders away from ears
✔ Press into the tops of the feet to activate the legs and float the knees
✔ Gaze stays forward or slightly down for neck integrity

👀 What we often see:
⛔ Arms doing all the work → creates tension in shoulders and wrists
⛔ Legs zipped and glutes off → dumps into the lumbar spine
⛔ Neck cranked upward → compresses the cervical spine
⛔ Confusion with Up Dog → leads to improper transitions and risk of injury

💡 The truth: Cobra is a subtle strength-builder.
It targets the paraspinal muscles, glutes, and posterior chain to support long-term back health — when done with care and presence.

🌿 Functional yoga honors that not every backbend needs to be big — sometimes, low and strong is the most therapeutic choice.

🌀 Want to explore how yoga can heal, not just look good? Join us in the Inclusive Yogic Path App, where we guide you through intelligent, anatomy-informed yoga for every body.

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42784 South Sumas Road
Chilliwack, BC
V2P6V4

Telephone

+1 604-854-0574

Website

http://www.frikshuhn.com/

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My Story

The true question is, when does your story really begin? At birth? 5 years ago? Or 1.5 years ago? Anyway it goes, I am going to start with last August. I had been a nurse for 17 years in the ER mainly, I owned my own home, had 2 beautiful children and had a decent relationship with most people in my life. Yet, I was still unhappy. Even worse, I felt super guilty about being unhappy when I had everything I had ever “wanted”. I was going to Medical School, teaching yoga, received a promotion at work and was just about to run my first successful international yoga retreat.

I asked for assistance, from the Universe. LOL... really. I literally said in my head, if you are real, help me find happiness, and bing an email. It was an email from a coach for retreat leaders. I had my own opinion about coaches, but at that moment vowed to take all of the chances I could get at feeling happy. The session with my coach was very impactful and she asked if I was interested in meeting again. I said yes and we did. The conversation was about sales. When she told me her prices, I panicked. And then laughed. Her cost was the same as my yearly income. Yet, somehow I said yes. I paid her a down payment and immediately my income doubled. Don’t ask me how. I had all of my same bills and her payment. I started to search. For the money, for happiness, for more out of life. AND.... I found it. I paid her in full in less than 3 months, put the balance remaining on my Line of Credit. Yes, with debt. It scared the s**t out of me, but all I knew is that if I kept doing more of what I had been doing, I was going to get more of what I had been getting.

I chose to quit nursing at the end of December and quadrupled my income. No joke. Quadrupled. I quit Med School as well and life has not been the same. I quadrupled my income with yoga alone. Not only that, I have maintained that income and even exceeded it a few times (yes 5-6x). I made the decision to be part of a teacher training in September and loved it so much that I chose to no longer teach yoga to students, except online. So that is what I do. I teach yoga teachers and other spiritual entrepreneurs to run successful businesses, to bring in serious money, to do things differently than they ever have, BUT... that means you need to do things differently. And it’s not cheap or easy or always fun. I am looking for serious people that are serious about changing their lives.