Yoga Flavored Life » Yoga Stick Figures

Why do you Love Yoga?

Charlotte Bradley — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 13:41:34 +0000

This weekend it’s Canadian Thanksgiving. There are many things I am thankful for – my awesome boys and family, that I get the chance to pursue my interests (like stepdancing and cognitive science), the beautiful sunny morning and of course my yoga practice. Yoga has kept me healthy and sane and made me see the world in different ways – really things look different when you are in a headstand

My friends over at @Carleton_U are running a contest encouraging students to share why they think Carleton is a great university. I thought it would fun to do the same with yoga.

If you would like to share some of the reasons why you love yoga, leave a comment here or tweet them using the hastag #iLuvYoga. You will be entered in a draw for a set of downloadable yoga pose drawings. On Sunday, October 9, I will compile the comments and tweets and randomly select the winner!

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Surya Namaskara – A gift for you

Sean Rogders — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 02:15:04 +0000

Believe it or not, it was a little difficult coming up with a satisfactory way to start this article. I’ve wanted to do this piece ever since Charlotte (this beautiful website’s creator) was kind enough to send me her 108 Yoga Pose Drawings as a gift some time ago. In looking for that perfect article start, I happened upon the last thing Charlotte has to say about these artistic and helpful drawings…and so it begins:

(Quoted from the 108 Yoga Pose Drawing information and order page, by Charlotte)

“P.S. In case you’re curious …why 108 poses? The number 108 has spiritual significance across many different cultures and is considered a sacred number in yoga. Malas (meditation beads) have 108 beads plus a guru bead. Yogis sometimes do 108 sun salutations to honour something special (such as spring equinox). So in honour of our home yoga practice and in gratitude for the privilege of teaching, 108 yoga drawings it is!”

Honour and gratitude

Today Charlotte is going to give all of you a gift (she will find out about this when she reads it before posting…unless she just posts it!), and I am going to assist in handing it out – to honour you and your home practice, and in gratitude for your support and your own Yoga teaching. Not a teacher? I beg to differ. We are all students and teachers to each other in all of life’s aspects – our Yoga included. If you are anything like me, at this point you just want me to shut up and get to ripping open the present, so without further ado…

And the gift is…

Surya Namaskara – or Sun Salutation – and the Adobe PDF download of all eleven postures from Charlotte’s 108 Yoga Pose Drawings! Why Surya Namaskara? It is short! I love it for those mornings when nothing is going the way it should and there is a million things you need to do before jumping off to work, or school, or wherever you may need to go. Sun Salutations are also fantastic for coffee breaks or lunch breaks at the office too.

Surya Namaskara is a series of eleven asanas (many add prayer pose as a start, increasing the number of poses to twelve) which may be performed on various levels of awareness, from the purely physical to fully incorporating Pranayama, and specific Mantras and Chakra meditation during each pose. We will focus on the postures themselves, each illustrated directly from the Adobe document you may download at the end of the article. Please note: Performing this series twice is considered one round of Surya Namaskara, but it is not necessary if time does not allow.

Surya Namaskara A

Asana (Pose)	108 Yoga Pose Drawings Image
Tadasana – Mountain Pose: This pose promotes happiness, improves posture and creates space within the body. It also strengthens the abdomen and legs, reduces sciatica and helps flat feet among many more benefits.
Utthitta Tadasana – Raised Hands Pose: This pose relaxes the back and neck muscles, strengthens shoulders and spine, as well as positively affecting the Thyroid gland.
Uttanasana – Standing Forward Bend Pose: This pose stretches legs, spine, and hamstrings. The mind is calmed, and the liver and kidneys are stimulated to help improve digestion.
Ardha Uttanasana – Half Standing Forward Bend: This pose stretches the front torso, strengthens the back and improves posture It also stimulates the belly and is a good pose for those with back problems.
Chaturanga Dandasana – Four-Limbed Staff Pose: This pose strengthens the arms, wrists and abdomen, and helps prepare for more difficult poses.
Urdhva Mukha Svanasana – Upward Facing Dog: This pose opens the chest and is very valuable for asthma sufferers. It also helps relieve mild depression and fatigue, as well as stimulating the abdominal organs.
Adho Mukha Svanasana – Downward Facing Dog: This pose energizes the body, calms the mind, and strengthens the digestive system. It also can help relieve backache and strengthen the back.
Ardha Uttanasana – Half Standing Forward Bend: This pose stretches the front torso, strengthens the back and improves posture It also stimulates the belly and is a good pose for those with back problems.
Uttanasana – Standing Forward Bend Pose: This pose stretches legs, spine, and hamstrings. The mind is calmed, and the liver and kidneys are stimulated to help improve digestion.
Utthitta Tadasana – Raised Hands Pose: This pose relaxes the back and neck muscles, strengthens shoulders and spine, as well as positively affecting the Thyroid gland.
Tadasana – Mountain Pose: This pose promotes happiness, improves posture and creates space within the body. It also strengthens the abdomen and legs, reduces sciatica and helps flat feet among many more benefits.

When you order Charlotte’s 108 Yoga Pose Drawings, you receive everything as outlined on the following information and order page, but I want to draw your attention to the Sun Salutations of which you receive the classic Surya Namaskara, an “A” and “B” variation, as well as Chandra Namaskara. The download below provides you with a complete page of all the postures as illustrated above, in order. When learning Surya Namaskara, I took my laptop outside with me and sat it in a chair so I could reference the drawings and order of Asanas as I practiced. Any of these wonderful drawings may be printed as well.

Final words

Charlotte’s 108 Yoga Pose Drawings will allow you to:

Create “notes” that you can easily follow when practicing or teaching a class
Illustrate yoga postures (even if you aren’t an artist)
Create fun, useful, educational materials for your students
Get inspired when creating sequences
Organize and save your yoga posture sequences
Learn the names of yoga poses in English and Sanskrit

On a personal note, I found the drawings to be of great benefit in quickly remembering how the poses are to be performed and in what order; whether you choose to make your own posture sequences or order the postures according to your existing practices. Wonderful artwork and certainly in touch with the ‘flow’ of Yoga! I give Charlotte’s 108 Yoga Pose Drawings a perfect score of 5/5 and would recommend them to anyone.

Namaste…

Twisting Poses (Yoga Stick Figures)

Charlotte Bradley — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 01:30:51 +0000

Twisting has so many great benefits; strengthening the spine, aiding digestion, stimulating the chakras, relieving muscular tension and releasing toxins to make room for a flood of nutrients. So many great reasons to include twisting postures in your yoga practice!

I’ve just added a few twisting poses to my collection of yoga stick figures. These simple drawings are a great way to help sequence a yoga practice(both for home and when teaching) that makes it easy to follow along at a glance. Feel free to download and use these to help build your own sequences.

I will continue to add poses so you may wish to bookmark this page or subscribe to my rss feed for updates.

Forward Bending Poses (Yoga Stick Figures)

Charlotte Bradley — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:21:42 +0000

I’ve just added some yoga stick figures below in forward bending poses. Forward folds are amongst my favorite of all poses. Besides the amazing stretch in the spine and backs of the legs, they are also very relaxing. Forward bending poses make me feel like I’ve come home.

If you have tight hamstrings you may find forward bending somewhat frustrating. This is an opportunity to work on patience and ahimsa – showing kindness and compassion towards yourself. Fold only as far as is comfortable. I really like the saying “go to your intelligent edge”. And remember that edge may not be the same everyday!

Note: If you have any back issues, move slowly and gently into forward folds. It may help to keep a bend in your knees.

Benefits of Forward Bending

Stretches the upper back, shoulders and neck
Stretches the pelvis and legs (especially hamstrings)
Stretches and strengthen the entire spine
Massages abdominal organs and intestines; improves digestion
Regulates blood flow to the brain
Activates the parasympathetic nervous system which helps to destress

Feel free to use these stick figures to guide your personal practice or create class sequences. I’ll continue to add more as I draw them so you may want to bookmark this page or subscribe to my rss feed.

Elongation Poses (Yoga Stick Figures)

Charlotte Bradley — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:00:29 +0000

Here is my collection of yoga stick figures where the main focus is on elongation of the spine. Although all yoga postures are elogation postures, the emphasis in these poses is to bring the spine into maximum vertical alignment and create space between vertabrae.

Please feel free to use these drawings to help guide your home practice or to create a yoga class. I will continue to add more drawings as I create them so you may want to bookmark this page or subscribe to my rss feed.

Benefits of Elongation Poses

Build strength and flexibility in muscles, ligaments and connective tissue around the spine and rib cage.
Strengthen abdominals.
Create space between vertabrae.
Help to improve posture (posture meaning integrity and structural alignment of the spine not yoga posture/pose).
Improve circulation and respiration.

Backward Bending Postures (Yoga Stick Figures)

Charlotte Bradley — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 01:54:52 +0000

Below find a collection of yoga stick figures in backward bending yoga postures. Please feel free to use these to create a sequence for home practice or to help plan out a yoga class. I will add more drawings as I create them so be sure to bookmark this page!