Welcome to Yogi Sticks!

Do you know your Gomukasana from your Adho Mukha Svanasana? Is your Vrksasana all it can be? And how do you feel about Supta Baddha Konasana? Do you know what I'm even talking about?

Sometimes the Sanskrit - however beautiful it sounds - is not very helpful. So, to encourage my students to expand their yoga practice into their home, I sketch the poses we practice during class on a chart and add the Sanskrit and common name. Hopefully, this is a useful tool to help them along in their yogic journey. I also troll the internet, books, and journals to find interesting articles about yoga and the yogic lifestyle.

2-1-10 Sciatic Nerve

We have all experienced back pain, and most of us have had to deal with sciatica. This usually feels like a shooting pain through one buttock and radiating down the leg. Often, sciatica is caused by a pinched sciatic nerve (one of the largest nerves in the body) and the piriformis muscle usually is the culprit.


This drawing illustrates how closely the sciatic nerve and piriformis muscle are related:

As you can see, any tightness of the piriformis muscle can impinge on the sciatic nerve. So, in practice Monday evening we spent time stretching the area as well as building strength and stability.

Quote for the practice: "He who has a why to live can bear almost any how." Freidrich Neitzche

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