Self-Myofascial Release & The 8 Limbs of Yoga
Digging In & Exploring Self-Myofascial Release
Written by Jen M.
Alright Funky Friends, at this point we have alllll heard about foam rolling. Maybe you even have a foam roller at home. But did you know that you can harness the goodness of this pressure-style stretching right at the studio? We even have a few clever tricks up our (sweaty) sleeves on how to use props on hand.
But first, let’s back it up and take a look at why we know foam rolling so well, and learn a bit about SMR, or Self-Myofascial Release.
What is Fascia & Why do we want to Release it?
Fascia is the amazing web-like tissue encasing your muscles and connectors (joints, tendons, ligaments), layered under your skin, and even encasing each muscle fiber. It is silky, elastic, and well-structured. However, in areas of repetitive overuse, underuse, postural distortion, or injury, the fascia can become… sticky and chaotic. This stickiness often translates into the aches, knots, and icky movement feels we run into here and there.
Here’s where Self-Myofascial Release comes into play-
You can help improve the functionality of your fascial system (and thus the functionality of, like, ALL your systems) by applying pressure through various methods to these tissues. This is Self-Myofascial Release! Ahhhhhh…… The best part about it is the “S”- self. You can do this work yourself, no need to book an appointment!
When we look at the “how” of Myofascial Release, we’re mainly focused on the application of deep, sustained pressure to a single point of tension for 30-90 seconds. We then look to target 2-3 areas within a single muscle group to maximize the benefits of releasing that tension.
SMR methods can help restore your body’s more optimal functioning, improve range of motion, reduce pain, and activate your “rest and digest” nervous system response.
One more funky fact: SMR can be even more effective when you stretch afterward and then take part in fuller body movements. Oh wait… that sounds a lot like… yoga!
Moving forward again-
Let’s explore three amazing funky ways to incorporate this practice on your yoga mat:
Use a block. You know we love blocks at Funky Buddha Yoga- and here’s another reason. You can use the edges and corners of a yoga block plus your own bodyweight to apply pressure, looking for moderate sensation.
Try it out! Sit or lay with one block corner tucked under the upper, outer area of your right glute muscle. This will help you access your piriformis. Cross your right ankle over your left thigh like a figure 4, and breath fully and slowly through any sensation for 30-90 seconds. Then, switch sides.
Use a mini mat strip. You may have noticed the dark colored mini mats strips as you enter the studio. These are free to use any time for extra padding during your practice!
Here’s a hack- roll up a mini mat strip tightly and Voila!– you now have a small soft roller, perfect for SMR on the thigh area. Don’t have a mini mat at home? A tightly rolled towel will do the trick!
Try it out! Lay belly down, tuck your mini mat roller under one thigh a few inches above the knee, and slowly bend and straighten your leg as your body weight presses into the roller. Move the roll up a few more inches and repeat (30-90 seconds per spot is a best practice).
Use your thumb. Yeah, we’re taking the “Self” in SMR literally here and digging in, hands first!
Try it out! Sitting in an easy cross-legged seat, press your thumb firmly into your calf muscle on the inside edge, an inch or two below the knee. Explore the muscle group and keep palpating until you find an area of tenderness. Then stay there, with sustained pressure, as the sensation reduces over 30 seconds or so. Now try on the calves of your arms (er, I mean, your forearm muscles).
All three examples above target muscle areas that tend to be overactive, and that’s no coincidence. SMR helps decrease muscle excitability when used on these chronically overworking areas- and this can help restore more optimal movement patterns in the body. Score!
This November at Funky Buddha Yoga, Self Myofascial Release is our focus of the month, and we’ll dig in– pun intended- with many more ways to utilize this method; Join us in studio, try out some new techniques, and spend your month loosey goosey thanks to released Fascia!
The 8 Limbs of Yoga: Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi
Written by Larissa
We’ve been exploring the 8 Limbs of Yoga for a few months now, beginning with the Yamas and Niyamas, which are the foundations of our way of being and then our actions. We then explored how to take care of our body and energy with Asana, Pranayama, and Pratyahara. We’ll move from these amazing tools that invite us to be in our bodies, to exploring the Innermost Quest with Dharana and Dhyana.
First, let’s revisit the 8 Limbs as a whole.
The 8 Limbs & Why They’re Important
The 8 Limbs can be broken into 3 broad categories:
- How to navigate the world, inner and outer
- Limbs 1 & 2: Yamas and Niyamas
- How to take care of your body and energy
- Limbs 3, 4, & 5:Asana (to sit, to pose), Pranayama (breath work, life force expansion), Pratyahara (sense withdrawal/enhancement)
- How to take care of your mind and spirit
- Limbs 6, 7, & 8: Dharana (pointed concentration), Dhyana (open awareness), Samadhi (freedom, bliss, wholeness). These 3 together are sometimes called the “Innermost Quest”
The purpose of the 8 Limbs is to give us concepts to understand through practice and ponder practical tools to apply to life. The whole system is meant to move us toward the ultimate goal of yoga: Freedom (Jivanmukti, liberation while still in the body). It’s said that a Jivanmukta, a person who’s reached this state through the practice of yoga, has perfect equanimity and contentment, unwavering peace, deep abiding joy, bliss, and mercy, exquisite gentleness, and is free from doubt, ego, greed, and fear. Phew! Sounds freaking sweet, right?? This doesn’t mean there are no more issues in life, just that a Jivanmukta is no longer swayed by every external event. Your ability to hold both suffering and immense joy increases, so you are no longer bound by trying to cling to joy or avoid suffering; you are simply and fully living.
What Do Dharana and Dhyana mean?
Dharana is usually translated as concentration, and in its simplest form, that’s it! Concentrate. Easy enough, right? Wellllll…. we have millions of things tugging at our attention. So our attention is often moving in many directions, which makes concentration difficult. It’s common for someone to think that concentration should be easy in meditation, but in reality, the brain will do what it commonly does. Wander.
We’ve all had a moment where we were in conversation with a loved one, listening to them deeply, and all of a sudden, your brain is like, “Do we have eggs? I should call and check before I stop at the store on the way home, which would be around 7, but only if my boss….” And as you catch their eye again, you suddenly realize you completely lost your concentration, and have no idea what they just said. That’s why this tenant is so important!
In Sanskrit, the language of Yoga, “Dha” means ‘holding or maintaining’, and “Ana” means ‘other’ or ‘something else’. So just like many of the other limbs, we’ve slowly set ourselves up to move into this one. Moving from Pratyahara, where we practiced moving our attention inward -rather than out- Dharana encourages us to maintain this attention on our focal point. Then, from practice in meditation, it becomes easier and easier to keep the mind’s attention on that conversation with loved ones. Which leads us right into Dhyana…
Dhyana is subtly different than Dharana, as it’s more about sustaining your concentration. Dhayana usually is translated as meditation, but that word tends to need its own translation. A clearer understanding of the word is sustained and effortless concentration or grounded and open attention on one thing while still being aware of everything else around you. That’s a lot! This open awareness practice requires exactly that, practice. It is why we begin with that simple concentration first.
Dharana is a little bit like trying to focus a camera lens on something while your body is moving. It takes action and adjustment many times to find your focus. Dhyana is the ease you find once the focusing is done, and now your focal point is clear. Dhyana is essentially a progression of Dharana. Deep concentration eventually settles into easeful and relaxed open awareness of your focal point.
Why is this an important skill?
Many studies have shown and are continuing to show that our attention spans in general are shrinking. Companies pay billions of dollars per year to learn how to harvest one of your most precious commodities: your attention and concentration. This is an opportunity draw your precious attention back to the things that are most important to you- to your health, your family, and important relationships in your life. Learning to hone your concentration can bring more positivity to so many areas of your life, a key one being your mental well-being. We’ve all accidentally got stuck in a worry/anxiety/fear/anger loop in the mind; being able to refocus, and then hold your new focus, is key to creating new neuropathways to get you out of that old loop.
It also helps us be more efficient with little things like household chores or tedious tasks. Deeper concentration can make you faster and more effective in your work, but more importantly, it can bring you closer to what you hold most dear. Take care of your mind, and your loved ones, by simply practicing a bit more concentration.
Try this on: Take a deep breath. Notice each part of your breath; the inhale and how your collarbones lift a bit. Then, notice how the fullness of your inhale starts to soften into your exhale; do you feel your shoulders relax? Finally, settle into the empty space at the bottom of your exhale. See if you can enjoy this experience of breathing. Count out 3 breaths like that. If your mind wanders before you get to 3, that’s perfectly normal. Just begin again, no worries.
We’ll continue to dive into consciously living these practices through practical application in our morning meditations. Join our morning sangha for support, connection, and deep mental rest.
If you’d like to dive deeper, we invite you to join us for our monthly meditation circle!
Check out our Youtube for an overview of these concepts or a meditation practice to try them on <3
As always, we hope that you join us M-F at 7:30am for Funky Buddha Yoga’s free, live, virtual meditation to learn more practices, nuances, and dive deeper into a plethora of tools that can bring your practice off your mat and into your daily life <3
