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Mindfulness off the Mat list)
I’m going to address a gender-specific question here, but one that comes
up often enough to warrant clarification. Specifically, questions are often
posed as to whether there are guidelines regarding yoga during…well, I like
to call it women’s “moon cycle.” Truth be told, there are suggestions that
you might find useful for when you are experiencing this. First, it is,
without a doubt, a good idea to be more gentle with yourself at this time;
your body is already in a state of turmoil and stress, so there is no reason
to compound this with trying to break any of your own yoga records. Be more
mindful during this time of which poses feel particularly soothing; you
might be able to use this information for future reference. The other
recommendation involves inversions—poses which allow your head to be
positioned lower than your hips. The general rule is to restrict your
emphasis on inversions during your moon cycle; while the reasons cited vary,
the most logical among them is rather common-sensical; you don’t want to let
gravity work against the flow. For some, this may mean eliminating these
type of poses altogether during this time. For others—and for risk of
over-share, I’m one of the them, it means cutting back on the cumulative
length of time spent in these poses. Examples of inversions would include
the A Triangle, Downward Facing Dog, and the Bridge. You can experiment to
find out which approach seems to work best for you. Õ
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