Why do we pay more attention to the alignment of our cars than our bodies? We align our wheels to maximize their lifespan, improve car performance, and most importantly, for safety.

Shouldn’t the same hold true for our bodies? Read on to find out how the Gurugrid alignment mat can help you get the most out of each pose AND, most importantly, perform them safely.

Think of the shoulders and hips as the wheels. If one of our joints is out of balance with the others, we can reduce its lifespan (hip replacement), impact the general performance of our bodies, and most importantly, put our safety in jeopardy ("I've fallen and I can't get up!").

Most people would not consider yoga as a risky activity. However, doing repetitive poses incorrectly can create or exacerbate problems in our joints and have an impact on the entire body. The right/left poses in yoga present a golden opportunity to reinforce and create stability in your body. Conversely, these poses can actually contribute to or create imbalances.

As we age, maintaining strength, flexibility, and stability, is essential to our enjoyment of life.

A little anatomy:

Hip Muscles

Do any of these muscles sound familiar? Maybe your physiotherapist mentioned one, while you were being treated for a shoulder or hip problem.

The point is, there are more than a dozen muscles criss-crossing the shoulder joint and over 20 in the hip that are responsible for their strength, flexibility, and stability. If one of those muscles is pulled, torn, or tight, it can affect the other joints in the torso, other torso muscles, even extending to your arms and legs. 

This is one of the main reasons I invented the Gurugrid.

By using the lines and numbers on your Gurugrid, you can place your limbs in the exact same position for both the right and left sides of your pose. This helps you equalize the flexibility and strength on both sides and avoid reinforcing any imbalances. 

12 Poses Right / Left Poses: 

 Warrior                 &                 Triangle

Pyramid                 &                 Spinal Twist

Splits                 &                 Side Plank

Lizard                 &                 Side Split

Cow Face                 &                 Janusirsasana

Thread the Needle                 &                 Hanumanasana

I worked as a personal trainer for 8 years and I can’t overstate the importance of this idea. Having to undo imbalances takes a lot of work, so if we start working on it now, on a regular basis, we can look forward to a body that functions comfortably and reliably in old age. 

I don't want to freak out anyone in their 20s and 30s but, if it is not in good shape, the body will start to deteriorate in your 40s.

On that note...have a great day! Lol!

Heather :)