Svaroopa®...Yoga that Opens...

At first glance the Svaroopa® approach to releasing tension in the body sounds like many other techniques available today.  Yet after just one Svaroopa® Yoga pose the student immediately realizes that it IS NOT like anything they have ever experienced before.  The gentle changes in the body, both subtle and obvious are incredibly different and vastly more powerful than any other type of bodywork.  It is the only approach to releasing tension in the body that starts at the very core of the body, at the root of our musculo-skeletal pain and ailments- at the tailbone.


Svaroopa® Yoga’s approach to the body:

• Release tension along the spine, starting with the tailbone.  This is very different than stretching. (See Release vs. Stretching below)
• The tailbone is the fulcrum point of the body.
• All of the muscle chains meet at the tailbone.
• The tailbone responds instinctively- just like a dog’s- tucking under in times of stress or anxiety.
• Tailbone tension strongly on all the muscle chains, causing deep tension throughout the whole body.
• We are constantly living with some degree of stress and anxiety, therefore our tailbones are always curled under, causing tension in all of our muscles.
• By releasing the tailbone we begin to unravel the tension throughout the whole body.

This results in:

• immediate, noticeable, sustained pain relief.
• greater circulation with the release of constricted blood vessels.
• greater lung capacity and ease of breath with the release of tension in the diaphragm.
• re-enervation of the body as pressure is taken off the spine and spinal chord.
• greater efficacy of all the organ systems, most immediately the digestive system.
• deep release of calcium trapped in the contracted muscle fibers, thus a strengthening of bones.
• strength, stamina, and so much more...

Due to the nature of the techniques used in Svaroopa® Yoga, we hold the primary spinal release poses for a relatively long time, which makes this a very meditative style of yoga.

This results in:

• immediate, deep and sustained stress reduction.
• greater awareness of the body and our current state of health.
• simple, unsurpassed pain management skills.
• deep and powerfully restorative rest.

The Svaroopa® Yoga techniques:

• Lots and lots of props: Support equals release.
• Precision alignments: By-passing the superficial muscles to release the spine.
• Hands-on assistance: When you lean weight into a bone you release the tension in the muscles around the bone.
• Posture reeducation: Building on the principles of sound structural alignment and spinal release.

Release vs. Stretching

The Release of muscle tension achieved in Svaroopa® Yoga are not at all the same as the well-known stretches of our workout regimes and other yoga styles. 


Stretching

• Stretching the muscle body actually tears at the contracted muscle fibers.  This tearing of the muscle fibers is what gives us that sought after burning sensation in the muscle while stretching.
• Muscles that have been stretched will immediately begin to contract back to their shortened length due to the deeper tensions in the body that are pulling on the muscle chain.
• The ligaments and tendons that have been involved in the stretch, being comprised of connective tissue, do not contract back.
• This results in an over-stretching of the tendons and ligaments, particularly in the hip joints.
• This destabilizes the pelvic girdle, causing structural misalignments and deep tension at the core of the body as the muscles along the spine contract to maintain our postural integrity.

Release

• When the body is properly aligned and sufficiently supported the muscles can rest into the angles of the pose and the contracted muscle fibers release on their own, in an easy, natural way.
• Releasing muscle tension through the use of support can be compared to settling into a big, solid, cozy armchair- you immediately begin to relax and unwind.
• Releasing the muscle tension through precision alignments is similar to a surgical procedure.  We are targeting very precise, very tiny muscles to cause a particular release, and affect the whole body with it.  We work systematically through the body, starting with the tailbone and carrying the changes up the spine.  The exact poses used in any given sequence are chosen with extreme care and attention to detail.  Each complete lesson is designed based on a reliable and specific outcome.
• Releasing muscle tension through the use of hands-on assistance is based on the same physical law that melts ice at the bottom of a glacier.  The bottom layer of ice, though it is the coldest and hardest, melts under the weight of the rest of the ice above it.  (This is shown simply by pressing an ice cube into a table.)  Just as ice melts under pressure so does the tension in the muscles.  Therefore when you lean weight into a bone you release the tension in the muscles around the bone.
• Releasing muscle tension through posture reeducation is the long-term goal of Svaroopa® Yoga.  Working through a series of twelve themes that teach the principles of leaning into our bones, activating our superficial abdominal muscles to support and lengthen the lower spine, standing and using our arms and legs properly, the students learn how to live, work and move without tightening their spines.