Yogis often talk about the nervous system in terms of how it responds to stress. But if you’ve ever wanted to learn more about the science of how the nervous system works, this episode is for you! (Spoiler alert: It controls almost everything related to movement!)
This week, I talked with yoga therapist and PhD candidate Robyn Capobianco, who studies at the Neurophysiology of Movement Laboratory at the University of Colorado, Boulder. She explains how her research applies to yogis and offers practical ways to apply her findings to avoid yoga injuries and more. It’s fascinating stuff.
We explore:
- How the nervous system works and informs movement
- How the body responds to sensory input, and how it relates to yoga
- How the SI joint differs from other joints in the body and what yogis can do to avoid SI joint pain
- One simple thing you can do to engage the core more in Plank Pose
- Questions the science behind common beliefs like: Is it really unsafe to jump back from Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) to Plank Pose? And gets to the bottom of why teachers instruct you to lift your toes in Utkatasana (Chair Pose).
“I really believe in creating a sustainable yoga practice. That means doing the postures, not for the reward of doing the actual pose, but for being in our body, and being in our breath, and really trying to suck the juice out of yoga.” – Robyn Capobianco
“There are no bad movements. There are movements that are appropriate or not appropriate for a certain time and place.” – Robyn Capobianco
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RECOMMENDED AND RELATED LINKS
The Story of the Human Body by Daniel E. Liberman
Light on Life by BKS Iyengar
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