Systems: Structural Yoga Therapy

A systematic approach to feeling normal ROM, reestablishing muscle tone and alleviating joint pain. It appears to be centered on the physical body but it has far reaching implications for the subtle body as well

Assessment: Body Reading

• intuitive/instinctive
• looking for "perfect posture"
• if it isnt broke dont fix it
• look for hyper-mobility as well as restrictions
• skeletal shape
• male/female
• long/short waisted
• limb length
• carrying angle
• etc

Asana guidelines:

• adjust your body for comfort
• always extend your spine
• calm the physical and psychic effort required to hold a posture
• scan the body and relax the areas of unnecessary tension
• maintain steady, rhythmic, natural breath through the nose and an awareness in the changes in your breath movement patterns
• distinguish the feelings of contraction and pain from those of simply stretching
• coordinate your movements into and out of postures coordinated with your breath
• move with awareness of the position of your body without visual cues and develope pratyahara (withdraw senses from external objects)
• isolate the movements of major muscles with minimum effort

ROM and MT (range of motion and muscle tension) assessment and balancing is at the core of this therapy

Yoga therapies for each dosha