The Story of Spooky Bendy Yoga Skelly

The Spooky Bendy Yoga Skelly story is really cool.  I bought a few dozen of these flexible 5 inch skeletons to share with my friends who I go to the Gathering of the Vibes with.  Since we are all into the Grateful Dead, I thought it would be a nice toy to play with during the festival.  Fortunately I had bought a dozen since they were cheap and I only needed 7 or 8 for my friends, so I took 4 out to play with.
     My live-in girlfriend's daughter was 8 at the time and we started playing a game where one of us hides the 4 skellys and the other one has to find them.  When all 4 are found we changed roles, so the finder becomes the hider for the next round.  Another rule is some part of he Skelly has to be visible with out opening anything or looking under things.  Some part has to be in plain sight.  Well, this game went on for days and days.  Before school and work, after school and work, many times over the weekend.  We found it endlessly amusing.  Sometimes we would even pose the figures doing comical things like using a soup bowl as a hot tub or doing a difficult yoga pose.  Hey wait did someone say yoga pose!  What a cool idea.  I wonder if Skelly can really do a lot of them?  Well it turns out he can!
       So now he became Skelly with a purpose.  I realized I could cut him a little 6 inch yoga mat and it would be proportional and really cute and cool.  Since I had a line on getting the flexible skeletons inexpensively there was room to make this a product, so I bought a couple of hundred Skellys, cut a few hundred mats and took some photos of them in poses.  Well, it caught the imagination of my customers when I shared the photos and we sold out right away and I had to get more.  Eventually my supplier ran out of Skellys and we had to stop.  During the year since I had been hunting for more Skellys till I finally found a supplier who could help me and well now they are back and there is no risk of running out ;--)
     But wait you say, what happened to my friends getting Skellys and how long did the game with my girlfriends little girl continue.  Well, if there is a sad part to this story, this is it.  I sold hundreds and hundreds of Skellys and when my supplier ran out I was caught off guard.  I needed every available Skelly to fill orders.  I didn't even have any to play with anymore.  I had one or two that I needed to hold onto to help me find the exact ones I needed.  No more playing and no gift Skellys.  Until now of course.   Here's what my girlfriends little girl found at her place at the breakfast table this morning.

     And my Vibes Tribe will get get thier Skellys this year, but don't tell them.  Let's keep it a surprise!
     The poster at the top was my idea to show off Skelly's incredible flexibility and how cool he looks on the mat.  If you want a printable version or more information about Skellys here's a link to their page on my site.
http://www.yogalifestyle.com/MISpookyYogaBendySkeletons.htm
   

Tadpole and Salamander Bolsters Help Bodyworkers Stay Healthy

Tadpoles and Salamanders Support Craniosacral Practitioners New Yoga Bolster Embraced by Craniosacral Community! I love creating and sharing items that are helpful in therapuetic yoga settings, restorative yoga classes and regular yoga studios too. Recently I discovered that some of the newer items I've been making for yogis are super useful for therapists of all stripes that lay hands on their patients for extended periods. These therapists include craniosacral, chiropractic, osteopaths, reiki practitioners and others. It is exciting to me to have something that these therapists find aids them in their work. How I Learned About Cushions and Craniosacral Therapy: A Big Misundertanding Now it seems so simple, but at the time it sort of boggled my mind. In early 2014 I started getting orders for Tadpole and Salamander yoga bolsters from an unlikely source: Turtleback Craniosacral Therapy near Saratoga NY. One time when Margery the owner/director of Turtleback Craniosacral Education was placing an order I asked her how she was using the cushions and she told me that they were used to support the arms in therapy sessions. For some reason I assumed that they were for the clients arms and imagined that having raised arms made the treatment recipient more comfortable. I even started telling people about this! I Learned How The Bolsters are Really Used for Craniosacral Therapy Just In Time! In early June of 2014 I was scheduled to be an exhibitor at the Symposium for Yoga Therapy and Research. I was very excited about meeting a lot of people who care deeply about the proper use of props and who are working at the cutting edge of yoga and healing. I also thought it would be instructive if I could tell them exactly how the Tadpoles and Salamanders were being used in Craniosacral Therapy, so I emailed Margery and asked her if she could make a fuller explanation that I could share with other therapists. The Real Story: Proper Use of Tadpole and Salamander Bolsters for Craniosacral Therapist Support Here is what Margery wrote me back: Hi Ray— As craniosacral therapists, we make light touch contacts and often stay in one position for several minutes or even more.  Therefore, correct ergonomics are critical.  We use all shapes and sizes of pillows to support our arms so we can sit in as comfortable a position as possible, shoulders relaxed, spine aligned. My sister, Ellen Mossman, who lives in the Bay Area, CA, but often teaches with me, is a yoga teacher, too.  She discovered the Bheka Tadpoles and found they provide the perfect arm support for craniosacral practice.  She talked about them in class, so I ordered a couple from you to try, and the rest is history. :-)  Now almost all our students are using them, too, or they will be soon. They’re especially good for working around the face.  We put one tadpole on either side of the client’s head and can rest our raised forearms on the cushions, keeping the touch light without strain.  I’ve been playing with the salamander at the side of the table in the same way.  It’s been fun figuring out how to use them creatively. I don’t know how helpful this will be for attendees at a Yoga Therapy Conference, but there are plenty of bodyworkers who teach yoga.   Have a great time at the conference and thanks for getting the order out so promptly. Be well, Margery _________ Margery Chessare, LMT, BCST, RCST, PLLC Turtle Back Craniosacral Education Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy The Definitive Word on Tadpoles and Salamanders for Craniosacral Support: Thank You Margery Wow! What a great explanation and a nice story. Since then I have learned from Margery that she likes three things in particular about the Tadpoles and Salamanders: their size, shape and the materials they are made with. The sizes and shapes make them versatile in fitting where she needs them.   Excellent Materials for Outstanding Bodywork Support Products As to the materials, the shells of the Tadpoles and Salamanders are either flocked polyester, which cleans easily but has a deliciously soft hand feel or cotton canvas dyed with AZO free dyes which has a rugged natural feel. The solid colors (eggplant on the Tadpoles shown above) are all polyester and the India Print is cotton (used on the Salamander shown above). They are all stuffed with organic buckwheat hulls which mold to your body. So Tadpoles and Salamanders are comfortable against your skin and really embrace and support you when you sink into them.

Yoga Supply Becomes Bodywork Supply I am delighted my bolsters are a wonderful aid to therapists as they perform their important healing work. Since learning about this I have been listening for and I have been told about various ways the Tadpoles, Salamanders and other of my props are being used. I will try to document uses here and on the Yoga Life Style web site. If you have anything you would like to share please comment below or write me at ray at yogalifestyle.com.

For further usage information on Tadpoles, Salamanders and wholesale and retail purchase information click here.

Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand with Chairs Using the Bheka Turtle

Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand with Chairs Bheka Turtle Makes Neck Free Headstand More Relaxed Than Ever! Sometimes unlikely combinations create something that is more than the sum of their parts. The Bheka Turtle was originally created as a meditation cushion and a chair cover for restorative and therapuetic poses. While it is wonderful for those things, I discovered it makes a very comfortable nest for your shoulders when doing chair assisted headstands as is often taught in Iyengar studios. Having the neck free makes the practice safe for people with cervical vertebrae issues and using the Turtle really relieves any pressure on the shoulders by spreading it as much as possible Into the deep cushion. Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand : The Setup All you need for this set up is two sturdy chairs and two Bheka Turtles. If you do not have any Turtles you can use blankets or folded over layers of yoga mats for cushioning but you will have much more pressure on your shoulders than with the Turtles. Notice the non-slip feet on the chairs. If you don't have that you can put them on yoga mats. I like the stability of these chairs facing forward but with folding chairs you may prefer to have them facing each other. Keep them near the wall so your feet can reach the wall for maximum relaxation. Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand: Getting Started Once you have the chairs set up you just need to insert your head and bend your knees. I call this the Ostrich pose and it is great for hiding from your yoga teacher. You won't be lingering here for long though. Press weight into the hands, tighten the abs and roll up into headstand. Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand: Doing it Right Rolling up into the pose means just that. First bring your knees to your elbows and rest there for a few breaths, getting used to the inversion and feeling whatever comes up for you. When you feel comfortable raise the knees to above your hips but keep your knees bent. Your feet may find the wall here and that is OK. Again relax, breathe and sense into the pose. Finally, straighten the legs for the full posture with the legs away from the wall. You can do split leg variations from here if you like. In the next step you will find the most relaxing way of doing this beneficial inversion. Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand: Relax Completely To find total relaxation let your feet rest against the wall, so balance is less of a concern. Then release your arms and just hang. Ahhh.... The organic buckwheat hull stuffing in your Bheka Turtles provides just the right amount of firm yet gentle support letting you maintain this posture as long as you like.

Neck Free, Pain Free Headstand: Go Down and Come Up Slowly When you are ready to come down, bring the hands back to the chair so you can engage your abs and slowly lower down the way you went up. First bring the feet away from the wall, then bend the knees, then bring the knees to your elbows and then slowly lower the feet to the floor. Stop. Stay in this position, the Ostrich pose, for a few breathes. The longer you are inverted the more slowly you should come up. Once you sense that the blood has truly stabilized then feel free to stand up. If you cannot tell what's happening with your blood pressure just count 12 breaths before coming fully up. If you have any questions or suggestions please post them below.

For further usage information on Bheka Turtles and wholesale and retail purchase information click here.

Intermediate and Advanced Mysore Yoga Strap Demo

The best in aerial yoga!

Mysore Yoga Strap Beginning Moves Video!

I never posted a You Tube video before but I've never had one about a great item like this that I wanted to share before!  As you will see the Mysore Yoga Strap is great for inversions, supported postures and just plain fun!  I plan to create intermediate and advanced videos for your viewing pleasure as well!