Yama Your Prana: breathwork in the yoga tradition

Yoga is more than movement or postures—it is the art of working with prana, the vital energy that animates our being.

When we step onto the mat, we aren't just stretching muscles or refining postures; we are cultivating our ability to receive, hold, and circulate prana.

What Is Prana?

Prana is often translated as "life force energy," but it is more than just breath—it is the essence of vitality itself. In yoga, we recognize two aspects of prana:

• Big "P" Prana – The vast, universal energy that flows through all of existence, a great and divine force, and the source of all life.
• Little "p" prana – The portion of that cosmic energy each of us can access and embody, influencing our health, emotions, and presence.

We strengthen our capacity to meet life's challenges by deepening our connection to prana. Whether it's supporting our immune system, steadying our emotions, or refining our awareness, more prana means more resilience, clarity, and vitality.

The Practice: Air Flow – Yoga for Shoulders & Increased Energy

To experience prana in motion, join me for this hour-long guided practice, Air Flow: Yoga for Shoulders & Increased Energy. This session is designed to open the shoulders, expand breath capacity, and invite a greater flow of prana throughout the body. As you move, breathe to receive prana on the inhale and circulate it on the exhale.

In this practice, I hope you'll leave it with a simple thing that you can do repetitively to yama your prana—what breathwork is called in yoga: Pranayama, to be aware of where your life force energy is going.

Through breath, movement, and awareness, we cultivate a direct experience of prana—both the vast energy of existence and our personal capacity to embody it. Show up, breathe deeply, and let prana flow.

Take some time for reflections after practice—where was your attention during practice? When you remember Breath + Attention = Prana, you can assess your attention to see where you might need to make adjustments to preserve and cultivate your life force.