Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

Understanding Fascia: A Practical Guide for Yoga Teachers {Part II}

Understanding fascia helps yoga teachers approach the body in a more holistic, integrated way. When we honour fascia’s role in our students’ movement, emotions, and postural patterns, we can teach in a way that supports true, long-lasting change—on and off the mat.

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Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

Understanding Fascia: A Practical Guide for Yoga Teachers {Part 1}

Fascia is a connective tissue—a continuous, three-dimensional web of collagen-rich fibres that wraps around every muscle, bone, nerve, blood vessel, and organ in the body. Think of it as a full-body, internal cling wrap system. It binds structures together while allowing them to move independently.

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Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

Understanding the Vagus Nerve and How Yoga Can Influence It

As yoga teachers, we guide our students to reduce stress and impact the nervous system, for the better. But how can we deepen our understanding of the body’s physiological processes to enhance our teachings? One powerful player in this process is the vagus nerve—a key component of the parasympathetic nervous system

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Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

The Benefits of Proper Breathing Mechanics on our Nervous System

We all know that when we breathe in yoga we feel better physically but also mentally, do you know why? What is happening to your nervous system to allow you to feel better when you breathe better?

By learning to control the breath, yogis can activate a profound change in the nervous system, promoting relaxation, and reducing stress.. heres how:

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Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

Physiologically why does yoga making us strong?

Ever finished your yoga practice and wondered why you feel stronger?
Yes, you’re using your improving your flexibility, range of motion and strengthening your muscles.. but what’s happening to your bones?

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Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

Shoulder Biomechanics

Tips on becoming a safer yoga teacher by understanding the shoulder biomechanics when we lift our arms up.

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Sophie Toland Sophie Toland

Rethinking Knee Alignment Cues in Yoga

Heres some thinking for you..

Why would you cue chair pose (where the knees travel over the ankles), and then in the next breath cue that the knee must stack over the ankle in a pose such as warrior 2 or high lunge?
It doesn’t make sense does it?

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