Yoga Therapy A Personalized Approach for Your Active Lifestyle

442 Pages·2017·6.65 MB·English

by  Kristen Butera

Yoga Therapy
A Personalized Approach for Your Active
Lifestyle
Kristen Butera
Staffan Elgelid
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
How to Best Engage With This Book
Part I: Fundamentals of Yoga Therapy
Chapter 1: What Is Yoga Therapy?
Yoga vs. Yoga Therapy
Yoga Therapy as a Lifestyle Practice
Growing Evidence Base
Healing: Holistic Model vs. Medical Model
Yoga Therapy as a Call to Personal Action
Movement: A Key to Health and Longevity
Why Yoga Therapy in the Modern Age?
Individualism and Inquiry
Chapter 2: Training Movements
Overview of the Movement System
Bones, Muscles, and Fascia
Nervous System
Efficient Movement: What It Is and How It Benefits Us
Quality of Movement
Learning New Activities and Improving Old Ones
Importance of Exploring Movement
Improving the Efficiency of Activities
Chapter 3: Connecting Brain to Body
Yoga Therapy and Somatic Education
Identification, Differentiation, and Integration
Importance of Renewing and Developing New Patterns
Movement Habits and Injuries
Chapter 4: Developing Focus
Yoga Therapy Beyond the Asanas
Power of the Breath
Breathing and Stress Reduction
Sensory Awareness
Visualization
Bhava or Mental Attitudes
Mindfulness
Tying These Concepts Together and Applying Them to Life
Part II: Foundations of Practice
Chapter 5: Basic Practices and Props
Honoring Our Differences
Creating a Practice Based on Inquiry and Curiosity
Your Practice Space
Getting Started With Props
Putting It All Together: Identification, Differentiation, and Integration in
Mountain Pose
Chapter 6: Breathing and Relaxation
Breathing and Yoga
Relaxation and Meditation
Chapter 7: Preventing Injury
Take Charge of Your Health and Safety
Staying Injury Free in Any Activity
Part III: Poses for Lifelong Fitness
Chapter 8: Intentions and Connections
What Is Intention?
Making Connections
Putting It Into Practice
Overview of the Asana Differentiation Categories
Joint Differentiation
Chapter 9: Spinal Movement Poses
Overview of the Identification Process
Overview of the Differentiation Process
Overview of the Integration Process
Forward Fold
Backbend
Side Bend
Twist
Chapter 10: Variations on Traditional Poses
Core Poses
Standing Poses
Balance Poses
Hips
Chapter 11: Maintaining Fitness and Activity Levels
Setting Goals for Your Practice
Transitions
Agility in Transitions
Transferring Agility to Daily Life
Asana Practice for the Proprioceptors
Staying Active Throughout Life
Final Words on Identifying, Differentiating, and Integrating
References
About the Authors
Acknowledgments
From Kristen
Writing a book is no joke. I first witnessed and participated in the process years
ago when I edited my husband’s books, The Pure Heart of Yoga and Meditation
for Your Life. In general, writing takes a serious willingness to explore yourself
and your ideas. Then it takes time, patience, prayer, revisions, and more time. It
also takes a village of support and love, which I had in spades. That means that I
have a lot of gratitude to express!
My Family and Friends
Writing a book can sometimes be an exercise in being alone. For the grace that
they gave me in terms of extra time, I have to thank my family and friends for
being loving and supportive forces in my life, giving me the space that I needed
to work on the project, patiently missing me, and listening to my challenges as I
sorted through the process of writing. I especially want thank my husband, Bob
Butera, for his ongoing kindness, patience, and encouragement.
My Colleagues
Thank you to my writing colleague, Staffan Elgelid, for the incredible
experiences we had together collaborating on this work over the last 5 years. Our
paths intersected at just the right time, and our interactions have changed the
way I think about and see the world. I look forward to continued collaborations
and explorations in the years to come.
Thank you to my colleague and friend Erin Byron, who worked as a content
editor. Her enthusiasm and tireless championing of the work has been an
ongoing source of inspiration to me. The guidance and insights she brought to
the writing process were invaluable, and the final product was very much
improved as a result of all of her contributions.
The Team at Human Kinetics
My thanks to the team at Human Kinetics. Acquisitions editor Michelle Maloney
My thanks to the team at Human Kinetics. Acquisitions editor Michelle Maloney
asked for a manuscript proposal at just the right time. Her willingness to discuss
and explore our interests ignited the potential themes of the book, and her belief
in the value of our work made the book possible. Developmental editor Tom
Heine’s insightful comments and attention to all of the details shaped the
structure of the work. Photographer Neil Bernstein’s keen eye brought it all to
life in pictures. I know that there are even more people behind the scenes who
came together to help bring our vision into reality, and I thank you all.
To My Significant Teachers
When you accumulate the amount of yoga education that I have over the years,
you owe a debt of gratitude to all who forged that path of expansion of yoga in
the West. There have been many teachers over the years to whom I am grateful,
but a few stand out as having helped me become who I am today. Darlene
DePasquale helped me create the foundations of my practice and inspired me to
become a teacher. Trailblazer Paul Grilley introduced me to the concept of
structural variety and changed my approach early on in my teaching journey. Gil
Hedley helped me to connect the study of anatomy to a sense of sacred inner
knowing. Movement maven Jill Miller profoundly inspired my leadership and
movement skills at a crucial time in my personal and professional development.
Bill Harvey guided my somatic journey and helped me to integrate my
experience of self. My extraordinary husband, Bob Butera, continues to be my
greatest teacher. His commitment to our marriage and the work that we do
together in the world has given me a true partner on the path of enlightenment.
The YogaLife Institute Community
As the book was being written, we moved our beloved YogaLife Institute studio.
So many people helped us clean, pack, move, unpack, and pull the new location
together. The contribution of the YogaLife community offered support during a
time of tremendous transition for me. The work they do keeps YogaLife a
thriving hub of consciousness and transformation, and for that I am eternally
grateful.
In particular, senior teachers Libby Piper, Erika Tenenbaum, and Jennifer
Hilbert were early readers of the manuscript as well as early adopters and
contributors to the developing methodology. Collaborating with them is one of
the great joys of my life. The YogaLife studio manager, Erica Saellam, helps
keep all of the trains running on time, and her hard work and dedication improve
keep all of the trains running on time, and her hard work and dedication improve
everything that she touches.
Asana models Erin Byron, Al Cochrane, Derek Hopkins, and Libby Piper
brought a tremendous amount of positive energy into the photo shoot sessions.
Working with them was a joy, and the quality of the photos in the book was
expanded by their clear intentions and contributions.
And finally, a huge offering of gratitude goes out to anyone and everyone who
has participated in my classes, trainings, seminars, and asana labs over the years.
Your dedication and willingness to learn and explore continually inspires,
uplifts, and drives me forward. Seeing you discover your potential, and then
share it with others, makes me feel like I am on the side of the angels. Many
blessings to you all!
From Staffan
I doubt that anyone who has written a book can thank all of the people who have
helped in various ways. There simply isn’t enough space to thank everyone. The
people I will mention are just a fraction of all who have supported me.
First, I want to thank my coauthor, Kristen Butera. It was a pleasure seeing our
ideas move from the yoga studio to the page, back to the studio for refinement,
and then back to the page in refined form. What a joy to muck around with the
concepts until we felt that they were ready to be written down. I am looking
forward to continued mucking around with you and bringing these concepts to a
bigger audience.
To the people at Human Kinetics, you have all given us amazing support.
Thanks, Michelle Maloney, for contacting Kristen and getting the book off the
ground. Thanks to Tom Heine for editing and editing and editing. You did a
phenomenal job. Thanks to Neil Bernstein for showing us how a real
professional photographer works. It was an eye-opening experience to work with
you.
A huge thanks to Erin Byron for editing the first drafts. I am sure that Tom also
thanks you since it made his job easier. Thank you to Erin Byron, Al Cochrane,
Derek Hopkins, and Libby Piper for volunteering your time. It was an absolute
treat working with you all. I wish I could make the asana look as easy and
elegant as you guys do.
elegant as you guys do.
I have been fortunate to have many phenomenal teachers throughout the years. I
especially want to thank some of my Feldenkrais teachers whose work, insights,
and encouragement have inspired me on my journey. Thanks to Larry Goldfarb
for giving me a Feldenkrais lesson in Wisconsin a couple of decades ago. It
really changed the way I looked at myself. I also want to thank you, Larry, for
all the great writing that you freely share with all of us. Thanks to Jeff Haller for
creating workshops and then putting the workshops on DVDs for those of us
who can’t make it to Seattle. Your insights about movement and strength are
second to none. As always, I have to thank my mentor, Yvan Joly. Thanks for
always taking time to answer my e-mails and meeting with me when I am in
Montreal. Without your guidance, Yvan, I would have been lost a long time ago.
All three of you have made an impact on how I look at movement and the
development of movement. If you had not freely shared your work with me, I
could not have written this book.
To Matt and Michael my “On Your Authority” buddies, chatting with you guys
and creating the podcast every other week is a true source of inspiration.
Hopefully one day we will even get people to listen to our podcast… Oh well,
we have so much fun chatting that we would do it even without an audience!
As always, thanks to all the students I have worked with; you have taught me
much more than I have taught you.
To Helena, thanks for putting up with my crazy ideas, traveling with me to
Springsteen concerts, putting up with me teaching on weekends way too
frequently, and giving me the space to write this book. (I hope I remembered to
tell you that I have signed a contract for my next book.)
Last, but not least, thank you to everyone I didn’t mention. Thank you for
supporting me as I fumble my way through life while creating my own path. As I
look back on the path, it looks winding and hilly, and there are dead ends here
and there, but it is full of all the many good memories that you all have
contributed. Much love to all of you!
Introduction
A Story of Collaboration, Innovation,
and Perspective
In the study of yoga, it is common to start in one place, only to end up
somewhere completely unexpected. The possibilities for learning through yoga
are as endless as the practice itself. Ultimately, this book is a story about one of
those unexpected journeys. It is the work of two people with similar interests and
completely different backgrounds coming together at exactly the right time to
influence each other and create a new perspective on yoga therapy practices.
My (Kristen’s) curiosity about yoga started in the year 2000. As a lifelong lover
of the arts, my first yoga classes fed my natural impulse to explore the varied
aspects of consciousness and the human experience. I dove wholeheartedly into
the study of yoga, and it changed my life for the better. In 2006, I took a leap of
faith and quit my corporate job to participate in an intensive yoga teacher
training program. That same year I met and married my husband Bob, who holds
a PhD in yoga therapy. My personal immersion into the yoga lifestyle was
complete. I began managing certain aspects of the YogaLife Institute, the yoga
studio and education center in Pennsylvania that Bob started in 1996, along with
editing Yoga Living magazine and teaching yoga classes full time.
My yoga journey toward becoming a teacher of teachers evolved at a rapid-fire
pace over the next five years. I accumulated thousands of hours of in-class
teaching experience and significantly expanded my yoga education,
accumulating some 2,500 hours of yoga and anatomy training. Around my fifth
year of teaching full time, I experienced a life-changing spinal injury, which
took me to physical therapy. The initial work with my physical therapist required
that I better understand my movement habits and compensation patterns, and I
spent the year completely focused on uncovering old habits and exploring new
movement patterns. During that time, I took a break from practicing yoga poses
and in doing so began to question some of what I had learned during my
intensive training period. As I healed and began to reapproach my yoga practice,