Yoga at Old Main

07/21/2025

Rope dog: This is a great way to relieve stress, all you need is a belt and a door handle.

Using a belt attached to a door handle as Iyengar Yoga wall ropes substitute for Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward facing dog pose)

Yoga ropes Iyengar style, let you stay in yoga poses long enough, using their support, and additional support like blocks, to get immense benefits.

The benefits of yoga with ropes are improved flexibility. They also help decompress the spine. So, they help address lower back issues. They allow you to conserve energy & quieten your nervous system…

Repost:
Find a school or teacher near you to experience the benefits of practicing with Iyengar yoga ropes: iyengaryoga.asn.au

06/24/2025

05/17/2025

So much you can do with a chair. Give it a try!

This class offers a gentle and accessible approach to backbends, ideal for aging bodies, stiffer practitioners, or anyone seeking a more supported and energising practice. Rather than placing strain on the lower back, the sequence emphasises opening the thoracic spine—helping to counteract kyphosis and age-related stiffness in the upper back and shoulders. Core actions drawn from Salabhasana are revisited across a variety of asanas, including standing poses such as Parsvottanasana and Virabhadrasana I. Supported variations of Ustrasana and Urdhva Mukha Svanasana further enhance upper chest and shoulder mobility. This class builds strength and vitality while maintaining a light and mindful approach to the spine and major joints. Weekly Intermediate Class 390 has just been released. Head to the website to stream the class.

05/06/2025

The body is more than muscle and bone—it is the dwelling place of spirit. When we nourish, move, and rest with intention, we create space for clarity, vitality, and peace to rise. Practice becomes devotion when we treat the body as sacred.

04/26/2025

Hello, my dear friends,

Have you ever brought
home a beautiful, vibrant potted plant, only to find that over time, the leaves started to turn
yellow or brown, the soil would not keep moist, and the stems started to droop?

If you removed the plant from its pot, you may have noticed its roots had become thickly entangled, with no room to grow. What happened?

The plant’s life-system had become blocked. The yellow and brown leaves were only the symptoms —the blocked roots were the real issue. With the roots blocked, no matter how much water and nutrients you poured into the soil, none of it was absorbed — it merely ran off, never absorbing and nourishing the roots. This, in turn, affected the strength of the stems and leaves.

When we re-pot our plants, we remove the plant and soil from their container and we gently release the compacted dirt from the roots.
We then place the plant into a bigger container, to give the roots room to grow. We add in fresh soil and then provide water and nutrients to nurture the plant back to health.

At first, the plant may still seem a bit droopy and “in shock,” but in no time, new growth appears and our plant is back to being beautiful and vibrant again!

But if we just focused on plucking the dying leaves or just added plant food, the plant would continue to deteriorate and eventually die, because we would not be addressing the real issue of the bound and entangled roots.

Just like our plants, we also can become energetically “rootbound.”
If our Qi is unable to circulate freely throughout our body, our energy stagnates — just like with the roots of the plant. Our life-system becomes blocked… and then we
begin to experience significant health issues.

At that point, if we do not take positive action to get the Qi moving again, the consequences can be very serious.

That is why, in Spring Forest Qigong, we use Healing Movements to help awaken and move
the Qi, clearing the physical and emotional stresses that are blocking the energy flow in the
body.

Qi is our life-wisdom, the blueprint of our healthiest self.
When we are able to move our Qi throughout our body, we can “re-set” the energy system and open up those tightly bound energy “roots.”

Then, when Qi is flowing freely again, the body can absorb more energy where there may
not be enough, release energy where there is too much, and repair damaged cells.

Many Blessings,
Chunyi Lin

04/20/2025

Great sequence for back pain 🙏🏻

This 60-minute class is designed to support spinal health while offering a safe, effective practice for those experiencing lower back discomfort. Originally developed for a student recovering from a back spasm, the sequence includes a carefully curated blend of poses that create space, traction, and softness in the lower back. You’ll explore gentle standing poses such as Trikonasana and Parsvottanasana to promote spinal alignment and balanced mobility, along with soothing seated and standing twists that gently unwind tension. Reclining poses like Supta Padangusthasana further support the release of tightness in the lumbar region, while the class concludes with therapeutic restorative postures, including a lower back-focused variation of Viparita Karani, to encourage deep muscular release. This class serves as both a well-rounded practice for general spinal care and a go-to sequence for times when your back needs extra support and sensitivity. Weekly Intermediate Class 387 will be released soon. Head to the website to stream the class.

04/07/2025

Yoga and movement is medicine 💓

😰 How Stress Impacts Your Lymphatic System

The hidden connection between cortisol, inflammation, and lymphatic stagnation

We all know stress can mess with your mind and mood — but did you know it can also clog your body’s drainage system? 🌀

That’s right. Chronic stress doesn’t just affect your emotions — it can seriously impact your lymphatic system, making it harder for your body to detox, heal, and feel balanced.

Let’s break it down.

🧬 What Is the Lymphatic System?

Your lymphatic system is your body's waste management network. It clears out:

Toxins 🧪
Dead cells
Inflammatory proteins
Excess fluids 💧
And even viruses and bacteria 🦠
It works closely with your immune system, acting like a filter and highway for your body’s defense cells. But here’s the catch: it doesn’t have a pump like your heart. It relies on movement, breath, hydration, and nervous system balance to keep flowing.

⚠️ What Happens When You’re Stressed?

Stress activates your sympathetic nervous system — the fight-or-flight mode — and tells your body to produce cortisol, the main stress hormone.

📉 Over time, high cortisol levels can:

Weaken your immune system
Promote inflammation
Disrupt sleep and digestion
Increase water retention
Slow lymphatic movement
Think of your lymphatic system like a stream. Under calm conditions, it flows freely. But add a storm of stress, and it becomes murky, stagnant, and overloaded. 🌫

🔗 The Cortisol-Lymph-Inflammation Loop

Let’s connect the dots 🔍:

Chronic stress = elevated cortisol
Cortisol suppresses immune function
Weak immunity = higher load of toxins and waste
Cortisol also increases inflammatory cytokines
Inflammation causes lymph nodes to swell and fluid to accumulate
Sluggish lymph = even more toxins staying in the body
And around we go… 🌀

😖 Common Signs of Lymphatic Stagnation Due to Stress

Puffy face and eyes
Swollen glands or sinuses
Bloating and water retention
Brain fog and fatigue
Cellulite or skin breakouts
Stiffness, especially in the morning
Feeling “heavy” or unmotivated
Sound familiar? You're not alone — many of these symptoms are written off as “just stress,” but the lymphatic system may be silently screaming for help.

💆‍♀️ How to Support Your Lymphatic System Under Stress

1. Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD)
Gentle lymphatic massage helps stimulate drainage, reduce swelling, and calm the nervous system. It’s especially helpful during burnout or adrenal fatigue.

2. Deep Breathing 🫁
Slow belly breathing activates the vagus nerve and boosts thoracic duct flow (the main lymph channel). Try 5 minutes of deep, diaphragmatic breaths daily.

3. Gentle Movement 🚶‍♀️
Walking, yoga, rebounding, or stretching helps “pump” the lymph through muscle contraction — even 10–20 minutes a day can help.

4. Dry Brushing & Hydration 💧
Dry brushing supports superficial lymph flow, while hydration ensures the lymph fluid remains thin and flowing.

5. Anti-Inflammatory Diet 🥬
Reduce processed food, sugar, and alcohol. Add turmeric, ginger, lemon water, and leafy greens to help flush the system.

6. Rest and Reset 😴
Prioritize sleep and boundaries. Lymph drainage works best when the body is in a parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) state.

💡 Remember

You can’t always avoid stress — but you can support your body while navigating it. Your lymphatic system is your silent partner in health, and caring for it is one of the kindest things you can do for your mind, body, and immune system.

When in doubt, breathe. Move. Drain. Detox. Repeat. 🌿

⚠️ Disclaimer
This article is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your healthcare provider before starting any new health regimen or therapy.

03/23/2025

This Is How Yoga Eases Depression and Stress https://buff.ly/KvCUD1L

Yoga has neuroprotective benefits, changes the neurochemicals flowing in your brain, and can help ease depression and lower stress.

03/20/2025

🌱🌱

Hello, my dear friends,

The energy signature of spring and summer is a growth filled with hope and joy and new opportunities. This is true for people and within all of nature.

The energy is excited and anxious to come out into the sun and fresh air.

Spring is a time of transition from the dormancy of winter to the promise of new life, rebirth, growth and change and infinite possibilities.

Like the new green shoots that sprout through the long dormant, cold soil of winter, spring is the time of active energy.

Spring is a time for all living things to get active, for clearing away and breaking through obstacles of the past.

So put some spring in your step, spring in your food, spring in your mind and heart and spring into life.

Like the tiny, green shouts that sprout through the newly thawed and once dormant ground know that the energy of this rebirth with its infinite possibilities are with you and all around you.

This is always true and this energy is even more powerful in spring.

Many Blessings,
Chunyi Lin

03/09/2025

🧠 Balance Your Brain’s Energy & Reduce Stress! ✨
Boost circulation, calm your mind, and bring balance to your brain with this simple self-healing technique.

HOW TO:
👉 Place your thumbs on your temples
🔄 Gently massage in a circular motion—36 times in one direction, then 36 times in the other
⏳ One full circle should take about one second

HOW LONG: 1-2 minutes in each direction
HOW OFTEN: As often as you'd like
BEST TIME: 5-9 AM & 3-5 PM (when your brain’s energy is most active!)

Your temples hold powerful energy points connected directly to your brain. By massaging them, you can enhance circulation, ease stress, and restore balance to your mind.

Try it and let me know how you feel in the comments! 💛

To learn more self-healing techniques >>>
https://www.springforestqigong.com/product/head-to-toe-healing-your-bodys-repair-manual/