Carol Krucoff

This is an excellent introduction to yoga. It’s geared towards seniors but I think it would be beneficial to anyone learning the poses and setting up a home routine for themselves.

The book starts off with several chapters detailing the benefits of yoga, particularly for seniors. It talks about the vicious cycle of inactivity as we age. Movement hurts so people stop moving. Unused muscles become weak, which leads to more pain and immobility so people move even less. Not moving leads to weight gain, increased pain, plus the increased risk of heart disease and other health issues. The basic message of those first chapters is to keep moving and yoga is a great way to do that. Those first chapters also delve into what movements you should or shouldn’t do if you have specific health problems, such as heart and circulatory problems, osteoporosis, joint problems and arthritis, joint replacement, lung disease, cancer or chronic pain.

This is a six-week program so that yoga positions are separated into six sections. The first section describes the foundational practices that should begin and end each yoga session. That includes the three-part breath and range-of-motion sequence that would start your session to relax you and loosen you up. Also it describes the relaxation pose that you would end each session with.

For the remaining five weeks, you would start off with the three-part breath and range-of-motion sequence, then add that week’s poses, ending with the relaxation pose. Some of the poses require a chair, most don’t. Each of the poses have very detailed instructions, including tips you should remember as you do the pose and cautions that you should take if you have limited movement or a particular health issue, including a picture of the pose. The book ends with additional practices to enhance vigor and relaxation and also how to set up your own personal program. I haven’t finished all six weeks yet but I haven’t come across any that I’ve found hard to do.

What makes this book unique from any other yoga book that I’ve had is ability to download audio guided practices. You should look through each pose explanation very carefully so you have a good understanding of what you will be doing in the session and then download that week’s practice and just follow the very calm, relaxing voice of the instructor who will slowly walk you through each pose. The only thing I wish they had done with the audio downloads is to include the beginning and ending poses with each week’s new poses so you don’t have to first listen to the beginning of week one, switch to the week you’re on and then go back to the download of the first week to end. I’m sure as you keep practicing, those beginning and ending poses will become routine and you’ll no longer need to listen to them. These audio downloads are like having your own personal yoga instructor in your home.

Highly recommended to anyone beginning a gentle yoga practice.

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway and have no obligation to write a review.… (mere)

Everyday activities such as using the computer, driving, or even curling up with a good book can create tension in the neck and shoulders. It's no wonder that so many of us have persistent discomfort and pain in these areas. Healing Yoga for Neck and Shoulder Pain presents simple, yoga-based practices that you can do at work and at home to release muscle tension for immediate relief. After suffering from chronic neck pain for years, author and yoga therapist Carol Krucoff developed the unique self-care program found in this book. Now you, too, can free yourself from neck pain by practicing simple yoga exercises to stretch tight muscles and strengthen weak ones and by learning to properly align your body when performing everyday activities that may be contributing to your pain. This fully illustrated, easy to follow guidebook also addresses common problems that may accompany neck tension, including headaches, upper back pain, and stress.… (mere)