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Are you trying to make sense of all the conflicting narratives about fitness? Learn how to ground your teaching practice in science-based research instead. The Yoga Research & Beyond Podcast helps yoga teachers and fitness professionals discern popular messages about the benefits and dangers of how our bodies move. Co-hosts Ariana Raven and Jules Mitchell discuss published research on yoga and exercise, challenge dominant trends about the human body, and teach research literacy in a fun and ...
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In this episode, Ariana and Jules discuss the significance of Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) in understanding patient experiences, particularly in the context of pain management. They delve into a specific study focused on the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS) and the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK), exploring the methods used to vali…
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In this episode, we discuss a randomized pilot trial on synchronized breathing for chronic nonspecific low back pain. We highlight key features of the study, such as the exercise program, the patient reported outcome measurements, and the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of adding synchronized breathing. We also discuss the importance of trial …
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In this insightful episode of the Yoga Research and Beyond podcast, hosts Jules Mitchell and Ariana Rabinovitch dive into the research paper, "Pain reduction, physical performance, and psychological status compared between Hatha yoga and stretching exercise to treat sedentary office workers with mild/moderate neck/shoulder pain: A randomized contro…
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Join hosts Jules Mitchell and Ariana Rabinovitch in this new episode of the Yoga Research and Beyond podcast as they discuss the research paper, "Not All Yoga Styles Are the Same: An International Survey on Characteristics of Yoga Classes." They explore: The various categories and styles of yoga classified in the paper The advantages and limitation…
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In this episode, we dive deep into the methods of an observational study on the effects of Yin Yoga on anxiety. We explored these key topics: 1. Understanding Anxiety: Anxiety is a psychological, physiological, and behavioral state triggered by perceived threats to emotional security and survival. 2. State Anxiety vs Trait Anxiety: Anxiety can be a…
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Slow Breathing: Samavriti and Visamavriti Pranayama for Reducing Stress In our first podcast episode under the new format, we review the paper Slow breathing for reducing stress: The effect of extending exhale. Our main focus was the methods section. Here are some basics we covered: Randomization and blinding challenges in yoga research Slow breath…
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Welcome to the Yoga Research & Beyond Podcast! 🎧 Struggling with all the conflicting fitness advice? Ariana Raven and Jules Mitchell have got you covered! 🧘♀️📖 Join them as they break down the latest research on yoga and exercise, debunk myths, and teach you how to apply scientific findings to the way you teach yoga. Perfect for yoga teachers and …
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How often do your students ask for help with tight hamstrings? In this episode Jenn Pilotti and I discuss a study that compared 4 stretching techniques for greater hamstring flexibility. This study from the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research compared two active stretches and two passive stretches in 100 people over the course of 8 weeks.…
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How can Buteyko breathing help with asthma? Research shows 6-30% of asthma sufferers use breathing methods to alleviate their asthma symptoms in the UK. Catherine and I discuss a paper from the Complementary Therapies in Medicine journal about Buteyko breathing and asthma. Buteyko breathing technique (BBT) is a method that is used in some practices…
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What are Ground Reaction Forces (GRFs) and why are they important? In biomechanics GRF is the force exerted from the ground onto the body when they make contact. It's basically Newton's 3rd law: for every action there is a reaction. Measuring these forces helps us understand how yoga poses impact bones and possibly bone mass.…
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Can virtual reality technology affect pain perception? Well, yeah. Catherine Cowey and I discuss a fun study about this co-authored by Lorimer Moseley in 2015 in the Psychological Science Journal. The researchers used VR technology to give subjects (with a history of neck pain) the illusion that they had moved their neck more or less than they actu…
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Proximal hamstring tendinopathy (PHT) is a pathology of the tendon with a combination of tissue damage, inflammation, and possibly pain at the proximal tendon where the hamstring attaches to the ischial tuberosity. PHT is very common among yoga practitioners as well as in other populations. Jules Mitchell and I talk about our own experiences with h…
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Breathing is a hot topic for yoga teachers and fitness professionals. Jenn Pilotti and I talk about a study on the 90/90 breath technique with ball and balloon. Postural Restoration Institute (PRI) practitioners use this exercise to help people of all ages with musculoskeletal pain, including low back pain. We discuss the relationship between breat…
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How does Kinesiotape® affect balance and athletic performance? Cat and I discuss a study from the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy done in 2016. The authors hypothesized that there would be improvements in athletic performance but it didn’t work out that way. There are many claims about the benefits of ktape. Cat and I discuss all o…
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Can 12 minutes of yoga a day reverse osteoporotic bone loss? The title of this study "Twelve-Minute Daily Yoga Regimen Reverses Osteoporotic Bone Loss" might lead you to believe so, but the results and data are incomplete and inconclusive. Jules Mitchell and I talk about this complicated, underwhelming study published in the Geriatric Rehabilitatio…
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Catherine Cowey and I discuss an article on chronic pain and hypermobility syndrome (HMS) from the Journal of Pain Research. This article gives a thorough overview of the many kinds of hypermobility conditions and symptoms and makes it very clear that it’s a complicated subject. There’s a wide spectrum of hypermobility syndromes and symptoms which …
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Are headstands safe? Jules Mitchell and I discuss a study about headstands from 2014. This is the first study of its kind that assessed loads on the neck and head in headstand. We had different reactions to this study. When I read it, it reinforced my decision to exclude headstands from my practice and group classes. When she read it, it didn’t cha…
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How does ankle instability affect the knee? In the previous episode Jenn Pilotti and I discussed proximal stability for distal mobility - how core stability affects the knees and ankles. But what about the other way around? How do distal joints affect more proximal ones? Many movement professionals work from the ground up, thinking about how the fo…
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Proximal stability for distal mobility is a principle that’s often used in corrective exercise, manual treatment and personal training. Generally, it means that working on core stability can affect distal joints, providing more mobility. This is logical. A stable core may allow for less chaos in the periphery. In this episode Jenn Pilotti and I dis…
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Does Yoga improve athletic performance? It might, but we don't know exactly how. Jules Mitchell was researching how yoga affects athletics performance for her upcoming book and discovered a gap in the literature. There's plenty of research about the SAID principle and adaptation, but not enough about yoga's impact on sports performance. In this epi…
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Yoga and Movement Research Series How does Bikram yoga affect heart rate and core temperature? To be completely honest neither Cat nor I are fans of Bikram yoga or hot yoga in general. Nonetheless, we did our best to discuss Bikram yoga and this study as objectively as possible. In this episode we reviewed an ACE (American Council on Exercise) spon…
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Jenn Pilotti and I discuss a thorough review of 29 studies that answers this question: Are core stability exercises the best for back pain? The meta review was conducted in 2014 and is entitled, "An update of stabilization exercises for low back pain: a systematic review with meta-analysis." The studies compare core stabilization techniques (side p…
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In this bonus episode Jules Mitchell (biomechanist and yoga educator) asks me questions about my new workshops for teachers called the Yoga Re:Alignment Workshop Series. We also talk about the role of movement science in yoga asana and whether or not yoga is about more than the poses...of course it is.…
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Whether or not to use mirrors in yoga classes is a popular topic of discussion among teachers. This is the first episode in my new yoga and movement research series. I talk to Jules Mitchell about the efficacy of using mirrors when learning yoga asana. We discuss a study entitled, "Effect on performance of learning a pilates skill with or without a…
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Dan John has been lifting weights since 1965 and coaching for more than 30 years. He holds the American record in the Weight Pentathlon event, won the American Masters Discus Championships several times, and has competed in Olympic weightlifting and the Highland Games. Dan has a common sense approach to fitness that appeals to most of the strength …
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