Di Hickman – Blog

When it comes to yoga teacher training, I feel very fortunate that I learned from a team of highly skilled and evolved trainers. My lineage includes Judith Lasater and B.K.S Iyengar, and my own mentor trained in Hanna Somatics as well as yoga and other fitness modalities. As such my training is rooted in personal antomy, and somatic experiencing. One thing that has always felt 'off' to me was the warrior 1 to warrior 2 transition. It feels awkward and clunky. Through my own education and …

The warrior 1 to warrior 2 transition why I don’t like it and don’t teach itRead More

Quite often in yoga we are told what alignment "should" be. However, alignment is an entirely personal thing. What works for me, may not be the right alignment for you. This is especially true in the transitions in yoga. The movement between the poses. Something explored in this 12-minute Anjaneyasana sequence. In this sequence for beginners we explore the movement of the hips in the transition from all fours to low lunge. It's important to notice the subtle differences on how your body …

12-minute Anjaneyasana Sequence for BeginnersRead More

Quite often in yoga it's not the tricky poses that trip us up, but the ones that look deceptively simple. Whether because we assume we're doing it right, or we simply let our ego get the better of us. This is one of the reasons I started the yoga tutorials videos. Today I want to discuss how to do anjaneyasana, or low lunge. While these basic pose tutorials are aimed at beginners, they are really for all levels. In the tutorial we'll go step-by-step through the pose. Plus some common …

How to do anjaneyasana, low lunge for beginnersRead More

As a personal trainer, I'd encourage my clients to do self-myofascial release (SMFR). It's a great way to release tight muscles, increase blood flow, and reduce injury. However, most people hear SMFR and think foam rolling. I've seen grown men cry rolling out tight IT bands. Well my friends there is a gentler way, the somatic way! Instead, try this 12-minute yoga for tight lats and IT bands. Stop using effort and foam rollers, and activating the sympathetic nervous system. Instead, use …

Somatic Yoga for tight lats & IT bandRead More

Whether you are practicing yoga simply for physical activity, to reduce stress or as a spiritual practice, there are many benefits to a yoga. However, each pose in of itself has many benefits. Because if this, we may want to choose particular poses to suit the needs of our practice. In this post I want to discuss 7 benefits of tree pose, vrksasana. There is a lot going on in tree pose. If you haven't explored the pose then I highly suggest checking out my step-by-step tutorial of tree …

7 benefits of tree pose, vrksasanaRead More

In my previous post I shared a step-by-step tutorial on how to do side plank. While a tutorial gives you the how-to, putting things into practice is sometimes challenging. To that end, I created a 20-minute side plank yoga sequence to help build on what you learned in the tutorial. Not only will this core yoga routine build upper body and core strength, but it will stretch out the muscles used afterwards. Side plank is a tough pose so that is definitely needed after a few repetitions. …

20-min Side plank yoga sequence for strengthRead More

Besides plank, one of the most common core poses in yoga is Vasisthasana, side plank. However, it's a very strong pose requiring a lot of upper body and core strength. If you think you can't do a side plank, think again! In this beginners side plank tutorial, I'll show you the step-by-step progressions to take to side plank like a pro! Now, as well as strength, the side plank requires balance. Again, there are modifications to progress towards balancing side planks. If you have any issues …

Can’t do Vasisthasana? Beginners side plank tutorialRead More