Yoga_Journal_-_June_2016_

Will a vigorous

evening vinyasa class

disrupt my sleep?

It can. Sleep largely depends on lowering

your core body temperature, and vigorous

exercise has the opposite effect. In a healthy

sleep pattern, your body temperature drops

when the sun sets, reaches its lowest point

just before dawn, and starts to elevate at

sunrise. But an after-dark high-energy yoga

class under bright lights suppresses melatonin

production and activates your sympathetic

nervous system, which increases blood flow to

your muscles, making you feel more awake. If

the evening is your only window for practice,

choose a slower-paced yoga class, such as

Yin or restorative, that emphasizes deep

breathing and prolonged pose holds. You

might also seek a class that’s held in a candlelit

or low-light room to avoid stimulation. These

options engage your parasympathetic nervous

system, which is associated with relaxation.

Rubin Naiman, PhD

Clinical and sleep-health psychologist,

Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine, Tucson, Arizona

Have questions for the experts?

Send them to [email protected]

How can I keep my yoga

practice strong when I travel?

For starters, remember that yoga can help alleviate the aches and pains that tend to pop up when

you’re on the road. Any chance you get, focus on lengthening the lumbar spine, which gets com-

pressed after hours spent sitting slumped on an airplane or in a car, a posture that can really sap your

energy. Try five minutes of Cat-Cow Pose to extend and stretch your lower back. Also, try hanging in

Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend): Place your feet parallel and hip-distance apart, bend your knees

slightly, and lower your head toward the floor, grabbing opposite elbows and allowing the weight

of your head to create space between your vertebrae. Gently sway side-to-side here for two to three

minutes. To make longer practices more feasible once you’ve reached your destination, pack a light-

weight yoga mat. Don’t have your entire practice memorized? Take a free 20- to 30-minute class

at yogajournal.com.

Krissy Jones

Co-owner of Sky Ting Yoga, New York City

My muscles feel weak in yoga class.

What can I do to feel stronger?

You may need to better fortify them after your last yoga class or workout.

During any activity, muscles use glycogen, a simple form of sugar that fuels

movement. The more intense the exercise, the more glycogen you use. To

restock glycogen stores in your muscles, you need to replenish with carbs

and protein—the main sources of glycogen. Within 30 minutes of any exer-

cise, eat a 150- to 200-calorie snack that contains a ratio of carbs to protein

ranging from 3:1 to 4:1. One example: 8 ounces of chocolate milk, which

has been shown to contain the optimal blend of muscle-fueling carbs and

protein to prevent muscle-protein breakdown and weakness or fatigue.

Michael Ormsbee, PhD

Director of the Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine,

Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida

Twisting helps move stool through your colon, which contains four

main parts: the ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon,

and sigmoid colon, all named for the way your colon moves waste

toward your rectum. An initial twist to the right widens the ascending

colon, which gets stool moving up and across the transverse colon.

Then, a twist left encourages stool to move down the descending

colon, into the sigmoid colon, and toward elimination.

Helgrid RandolphAyurvedic practitioner and yoga teacher, Denver

Answers to your questions about muscle fatigue,

yoga for sleep, twisting protocol, and more.

To the right.

Which way should I twist first to aid digestive cleansing?

live well

ASK THE EXPERTS

26

june

2016

yogajournal.com