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Astrologically, July is a month with a powerful transition. We’re leaving Cancer season, where our emotions have been plentiful, and entering fiery Leo season, where confidence and boldness reigns. This year, the start of Leo season has aligned with a full moon in Aquarius on July 23. And this moon rises with a message: To accept ourselves where we are in this moment, and manifest abundance in all areas of our lives, including in our yoga practice.
Aquarius is an Air sign that is all about embracing your individuality, and its energy is calming, indecisive, and deeply introspective. Thus, with the full moon in Aquarius during the transition from Cancer to Leo season, we are shifting the way we think about ourselves. Leo season exudes confidence, while Aquarius is all about self-acceptance. What do you want to manifest to create abundance? What areas in your life seem to be lacking, and how can you change your scarcity min
The glutes are the largest muscles in our body. Underusing these important tissues can ultimately lead to knee and back pain. And when we sit for long periods of time, they can basically “forget” to fire and support the pelvis a condition known as gluteus medius tendinopathy, gluteal amnesia, or dead butt syndrome (DBS). That’s right: Dead butt syndrome is real! And although it mostly affects the sedentary, active people may also experience DBS if they sit for hours at a time.
Our glutes are responsible for acceleration and balance when we move. They’re also key for supporting our back, our sacrum, our core, the healthy functioning of our lower joints, and even for stimulating the pelvic floor. Lack of effective glute engagement may tilt the pelvis and cause strain on the low back or knees even in some of our favorite yoga poses.
“Take a breath.”
That’s the first thing people suggest when someone seems anxious or agitated. It’s not only good instinct, it’s solid science.
Andrew Huberman, PhD, a Stanford University neurobiologist, offers a calming breathing technique called the physiological sigh: Breath in through the nose, then breathe in a little more. Then take a long exhalation through the mouth. Repeat three times.
His research found that this technique can noticeably slow a racing heart in as little as 40 seconds.
This practice seems to be hardwired in all of us, Huberman says. We often do it in our sleep or unconsciously throughout the day as a form of self-calming. It’s the body’s way of addressing the imbalance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the lungs and bloodstream, caused by stress.