Mind, body, spirit .

Mind, body, spirit .

New yoga, meditation studio opens in Cortez
Monique Alvarez leads Noel and Robin Boykin in a yoga class
Monique Alvarez leads a yoga session at her studio.
Robin and NoEL Boykin follow the lead of Monique Alvarez during a yoga session.

Mind, body, spirit .

Monique Alvarez leads Noel and Robin Boykin in a yoga class
Monique Alvarez leads a yoga session at her studio.
Robin and NoEL Boykin follow the lead of Monique Alvarez during a yoga session.
Grand Opening

Cortez Yoga and Meditation, located at 1430 E. Main St., will hold their grand opening celebration on Saturday, April 6 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.. The public is welcome to stop by and enjoy live music from Noel Boykin, local wine and appetizers while viewing the new studio. There will also be giveaways that include free classes, t-shirts and gift certificates. Contact studio owner Monique Alvarez at 560-6238 for more information.

Benefits of Yoga

Physical Benefits:



Flexibility - Stretching your body in different ways will allow it to become more flexible over time, by bringing a greater range of motion to muscles and joints.

Strenth - Many yoga poses require you to support the weight of your own body. This can include balancing on one leg or supporting yourself with your arms. Some exercises are done by moving slowly in and out of poses which also increases strength.

Muscle tone - As a result of getting stronger, your body will increase in muscle tone. Yoga sculpts long, lean muscle rather than a large, bulky frame.

Pain prevention - Increased flexibility and strength can help alleviate back pain, knee strain, shoulder pain and many other ailments. Yoga promotes alignment improvement which can help keep away these types of painful issues.

Better breathing - Most of us breath very shallowly into the lungs and don't give a lot of thought to our structure of breathing. Yoga teaches us how to breath and how to better use our lungs. Certain breathes also help calm the central nervous system and clear the nasal passages.





Mental Benefits:



Calmness - Yoga practice is intensely physical while concentrating intently on what your body is trying to accomplish. This promotes a calming effect of the mind. Meditation techniques are also introduced by watching how you breath and disengaging your thoughts, all of which calm the mind.

Stress reduction - Physical activity is already good for alleviating stress. The concentration required will melt away daily worries, both large and small. The emphasis being placed on that particular moment helps relieve stress by taking away from future anticipation or past events.

Body awareness - Yoga will give you an increased awareness of your body by calling on small, subtle movements during poses to improve alignment. This will increase comfort in your own body and improve posture and self-esteem.