Shakira knows those honest hips deserve lots of attention.

Your hips don’t lie! And because of that (and a plethora of other reasons) you should treat them with respect, love, and proper yoga pampering.

Those hips of yours are the single most important factor in your posture, and play a huge role in your ability to balance. One of the major goals of any yoga practice is to extend the range of motion in your hips, and this is accomplished by doing a dichotomy of exercises: on one hand, building strength and stability, and on the other, stretching.

Last Thursday evening I had the pleasure of trying out Crunch Gym‘s extremely popular “Hippie Yoga” class with instructor Ilaria Cutolo (Union Square NYC location), who’s been teaching the class for over two years now. No, this isn’t a flower power hour of Beatles music and bell-bottoms, it’s a yoga class that revolves around that all-important pivotal point located in your body’s ultimate intersection.

The moves we did in Hippie Yoga were fairly similar to the ones I do in my regular Monday yoga classes – it’s amazing how so much of yoga really does focus on your hips. In this class, additional moves and poses were included to target the glutes, quadriceps, and surrounding areas.

After class I chatted with Ilaria, who shared some of the best reasons to take your hip flexors seriously: For New Yorkers (or ANYONE who’s doing a lot of walking!), you’re over-strengthening and not doing enough stretching. For anyone who works at a desk and sits for long periods of time, your hip flexors are in a state of mild contraction which warrant stretching to balance it out. I absolutely love half pigeon pose – nothing opens up my hips quite like it and I can feel a dramatic change in my body afterwards. You BET yoga can also benefit the elderly who are quite prone to breaking their hips, which sadly often leads to a rapid decline in overall health.

How should you go about treating your hips right? It’s all about striking a balance of strengthening and stretching for ultimate hippie health. But – be mindful when stretching to MOVE SLOWLY and be very aware of all your joints. If you feel strain on your knees, adjust your position. As we were reminded by The New York Times’ “How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body” story, pushing yourself too hard can be harmful.

Ilaria Cutolo’s 4 Simple Poses to Stretch & Strengthen Hip Region

Two yoga poses for stabilizing and strengthening: The side plank (left) is great for upper body strength, but the focus here is really on the glutes and waist. Balance for as long as you can. At right, the “Jane Fonda” leg lift targets the outer hips. Try 20 pointing your toes followed by 20 flexing your feet on each side.

For stretching, here are two very straightforward poses you can do to target your outer hips (left), and your inner thigh (right). There’s a very good chance that you may have to physically cut your body in half to achieve a split like Ilaria. Only split and lean forward as much as your body will allow!

PS. Ilaria just had a baby a few months ago – would you believe it? Which brings me to one more super benefit of yoga: sweating it out and dropping lbs for a less hippie figure. It all comes full circle.

PPS. You can get a FREE week at Crunch and try out Hippie Yoga class when you buy and of the spa deals on TheRightDeal.com throughout the month of January!

The New York Times has started a war. The most peaceful, zen-like war to ever transpire, but still.

As an avid yet fairly casual yogi, I was caught way off guard after reading their recent viral “sensation” entitled: “How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body.” Every Monday I do my down dogging at Yoga To The People on St Marks in NYC, and last night I checked out “Hippie Yoga” at Crunch Gym, focusing on stretching and strengthening the hips, which I’ll be doing a blog post on soon. Now, this Times story reveals that some over-yogi’d instructor degenerated her hips so much that she had to have a hip replacement. Seriously?

Yogis new and guru’d across the Internet have soared to the defense of their beloved practice. Why not publish “How Running Can Wreck Your Knees?” or “How Moving A Refrigerator Can Crush Your Toes, Break Your Back, and Rip Your Rotator Cuff?” (Thanks Paul Raeburn.) This seems to be a pattern in our society – anything that sounds good has to be bad. Antibacterial gel can make you immune to antibiotics, tuna is healthy but too much will poison you with mercury, and sunscreen is bad for you! The truth is, there’s no fail-safe sport, activity or product on the planet. However, in this 5 page article, William J. Broad decided to collect every example of negative yoga experiences (fishing back to random incidents from nearly half a century) and jolt the 20 million Americans who have turned to yoga for fitness, mind/body renewal, and inner peace.

The ridiculous mocking photo with flannel and clown flowers is only half excusable because it’s the cast of Godspell. If those were just any old models, forget it! Many people in the yoga community look to the spirituality of yoga in an almost religious sense. If there are health risks associated with it, let’s keep that separate from the aptitude of the people who practice it.

The Times article certainly makes a lot of sense and is rooted in medical truths. Standing on your head for long periods of time for many years, what did you think was going to happen? The article should be taken seriously and remind you to take caution should you notice any strenuous moves, in yoga or any sport or workout you pursue. But do not let it discourage you from enjoying your yoga practice and reaping the many benefits of it. I, for one, look forward to continuing my Monday routine without hesitation.

Here are some general guidelines to follow to keep your yoga practice safe:

• A good yoga instructor will not “push” you like a personal trainer does. He or she will make it very clear throughout your practice that you should be doing what feels good for you at that moment. If you find yourself in a class with a pushy instructor, leave.
• If you have a particular joint problem or have had an injury, check with a physical therapist before practicing yoga regularly. Some look at yoga as therapy to heal injuries, but should always be at a doctor’s advisement.
• If you are new to yoga, invest in a few very intimate classes or one-on-one instruction to make sure you get off to a good start doing the positions correctly. If you do start with a larger class, sit up front and be sure to tell the instructor that you are new and are looking for any and all guidance they can provide.
• Be mindful of any pain or discomfort you may feel. Yoga is about balance and strength of mind as well as body, and that includes acknowledging what your body can handle. If something feels funny or awkward, take yourself a Child’s Pose.

Namaste!

THE HUG. It’s one of the simplest gestures in the world, and delivers some of greatest benefits human beings need and crave. Hugs build trust and compassion, they increase oxytocin levels (the bonding and happiness hormone), they reduce blood pressure, and hugs can even make you smarter! And, they’re 100% free. So in the spirit of this joyous time of year, we are thrilled to welcome Dashama, our brand new Joyology* Expert, who has a hug-filled holiday health challenge that you’re going to love!

And last week, she kicked it off at the Santa Monica Pier giving out free hugs to strangers – and filmed the whole thing for us! Don’t you just love her already?

*Joyology was coined by her friend, and the man who made the music in her Free Hugs video, Mr. A-to-Z himself, Jason Mraz.

Are you ready for CHALLENGE #7?

Here’s what to do:

Pledge to hug someone – anyone! – every day for two weeks.

When:

Monday, December 12 – Christmas Day

Who Says?

Dashama is an internationally known Yoga Teacher, Author, Healer and Healthy Lifestyle Coach. Founder of the Global 30 Day Yoga Challenge, Journey to Joyful TV, Perfect 10 Lifestyle and Pranashama Yoga Institute. She is an innovator in the field of yoga, mind/body transformation and healing… and believes in the power of hugs!

Why?

Straight from our National Hug Your Boss Day blog post (even CEOs need hugs!)…

5 Reasons Hugging is Healthy

1. REDUCED BLOOD PRESSURE AND RISK OF HEART DISEASE It’s proven that hugs lead to less stress; after hugging, there is a reduction in your body’s cortisol level. Cortisol is the hormone associated with stress. Less stress equals lower blood pressure, which significantly reduces your risk of heart disease.

2. OXYTOCIN INCREASE Hugs increase oxytocin – the “bonding” hormone. In a study, when couples hugged for 20 seconds, their levels of oxytocin increased. Those in loving relationships had the highest increases.

3. STRENGTHENS SOCIAL BONDS Hugs symbolize trust and compassion. Giving someone a hug has the potential to make them feel more comfortable around you in the future, to trust you more, and to make them feel that you are truly on their side.

4. IMPROVES MENTAL HEALTH Hugging, like therapy or yoga, can help clear your mind and make you happier. But, what’s more, is it can even strengthen your mind long-term. Hugging  and touch has been shown to reduce symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, such as restlessness, pacing, vocalization, searching and tapping.

5. HUMAN TOUCH IS IRREPLACEABLE In the same way a massage can deliver the healing, happy benefits of  human touch, a hug can really do a body good.

How to get started:

Join the Challenge Event on Facebook and tell us about your hugs! Maybe you’ll continue to hug your husband each and every morning and night, or perhaps you’ll hug a friend in need… or go Dashama-style and give them out for free in the street. Whatever you do, we want to hear it!

What’s in it for me? (HUGS & GIFT CARDS!)

Giving a hug = getting a hug! Everybody wins. Plus, once you join the Facebook event and start sharing your hug stories, you’ll be eligible to win one of two $50 Spa & Wellness Gift Cards by Spa Week.

More on Dashama:

Dashama’s personal approach to yoga as a lifestyle and life path to awakening to more joy, love and abundance on all levels is unique and highly sought after. Read more about it in her book, Journey to Joyful.

She developed Pranashama Yoga from years of personal practice as well as training with some of the greatest masters of our time. This fusion style is designed to help you heal, strengthen, tone and balance your body, become centered and balanced in your emotions and clear any blocks to accessing your highest potential in life.

Check her out in all sorts of positions!

And one of her favorite positions: Sun Salutations. Learn more about this ritual, which a big part of Dashama’s famous 30 Day Yoga Challenge, in this video.

Visit Dashama’s website and YouTube channel to learn more about this wonderfully spirited and inspirational human being.

Now, here’s a big virtual hug from the Spa Week team – for you Dashama, and for everyone!

Spa Week’s mission is to deliver affordable health and wellness to the masses, and what better time to remind consumers to slow down and de-stress than the Holiday Season? From over-indulging in festive food and drink piled on the financial burden of shopping and gift-giving, the holidays can be an extremely taxing time, both physically and mentally. In order to help alleviate this stress and to help you get back on track to health and well-being, Spa Week has partnered with our Whole Living Expert, Nutritionist and Author Keri Glassman, in order to give one lucky winner the chance to de-stress and feel their best this Holiday Season.
You have all of December to Celebrate Wellness and enter to win Spa Week and Keri Glassman’s Holiday Giveaway. Included in this fabulous prize package is a four nights stay for you and a guest in a premier room at the Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore Santa Barbara, including two signature spa treatments per person, private cooking classes with a resort chef, two dinners at the resort’s gourmet restaurants, yoga, Pilates, aqua aerobics classes and more!

Plus, the winner will receive an exclusive Keri Glassman wellness package including, two autographed copies of Keri’s book, The O2 Diet, two Nutritious Life water bottles, a three days worth of  Nutritious Life Meals delivered to your door, and a personalized nutritional counseling program for the winner, personally designed by Keri.

Not to mention, the winner will also receive a $100 Spa & Wellness Gift Card by Spa Week!

ENTER HERE!

Your mother always reminded you that it was polite to say “please” and “thank you.” However, when we grow up we tend to forget to mind our manners. It’s so easy to get lost in the real purpose behind Thanksgiving with all the consumption of food and 4am store openings. But taking time out of our busy lives to show thanks can prove helpful to our health and well being.

Research has shown that individuals who practice being grateful in their daily lives actually report fewer stress-related health symptoms, including headaches, gastrointestinal (stomach) issues, chest and muscle pains. Got your attention now?

Now, you don’t need to overdo it on the gratitude. Sometimes just doing a small act can mean the world to someone. Here are a few tips on how you can put a little more “thank you” into your lives:

• Practice meditation, yoga, or prayer. Anything that increases focus on the present moment will help increase gratitude. Be thankful for the small things and look for the beauty in everyday life.
• Re-frame your thinking. This may be the most challenging. Try writing “I am grateful” or “thank you” lists for noteworthy events in your life, such as a break up. Create a gratitude list of things you learned about yourself in that relationship rather than focusing on the negative.
• Keep a journal. Before you go to sleep, take a few minutes to write down what you’re thankful for that day or week. This Thursday, you can even be brave and share with everyone at the dinner table. Remember, gratitude is beautiful!
• Do something for someone else. What goes around comes around. Do a good deed, big or small, and you will probably see the good come back to you. Perhaps cook someone’s favorite dish for Thanksgiving rather than focusing on your own cravings.
• Write a Thank You letter. If you’re not good at talking out your feelings then maybe write your appreciation in a handwritten note for someone this holiday.

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