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For a long time, I thought my body was something I had to manage. 

Living with Type 1 diabetes meant numbers, routines, and structure. What I didn’t realise at the time was that I was learning something much deeper. I was learning how to listen. Not perfectly.  Not consistently.  But over time, I began to notice patterns.

 Energy shifting. Tension building. Moments when something didn’t feel quite right.

 And that awareness has shaped everything I now do — through yoga, neuromuscular therapy, and the way  I help others understand their bodies.

 The body is always communicating. One of the biggest things I’ve learned is this:

 Your body is never working against you. Even pain, tightness, or fatigue — it’s not random.

 It’s information. But most of us have been taught to:

• push through

• ignore it, or 

• “fix” it quickly. I did that too, until I started paying attention instead.

What I see now in my work, whether someone comes to me for yoga or a sports massage session, the pattern is often the same. They’ve been dealing with something for a while. It comes and goes. They’ve tried different things. But no one has really helped them understand why it keeps happening. That’s where everything starts to change.

 Not just treating the area — but looking at the whole body, the habits, the patterns.

A simple place to start. You don’t need to overhaul everything. Just begin here:

• Pause and notice. Where do you feel tension right now?

• Is it always in the same place?

• Does it show up at a certain time of day?

No judgment, just awareness.

A different way of approaching your body. Over time, I’ve come to see the body less as something to control and more as something to work with. That shift changes everything. It brings a bit more ease, a bit more understanding. And often, less pain. If this resonates, I’ll be sharing more here.

Simple insights, small practices, and ways to better understand your body.

Emma

It might sound like a strange question, but is it really?

 When you feel safe to move, hold poses, and let your breath flow, you're operating from a place of comfort and ease.

 But if your body feels tight, it tends to rely on its compensation and survival patterns—often engaging smaller muscles to balance the effort of larger, stronger ones—and your breath becomes shallow, stressed, and aching.

 So, let's ask again: where in your body is tight, resisting release, and holding onto pain?

Your body is the most incredible thing you will ever own and the only place you will ever truly live. Yet most of us only start paying attention when something feels wrong. A dull ache in your neck, a tight shoulder that catches when you move, a lower back pain that shows up out of nowhere.

 You pause and wonder… Where did that come from?

 We often explain it away:

• “It’s an old injury.”

• “It’s just age.”

• “I sit too much… or maybe I’ve overdone it.”

And yes—sometimes those things are true.

 But what if your body is trying to get your attention? Pain isn’t random; it’s communication.

 Of course, pain relief has its place—sometimes it’s necessary to get through the day.

 But what if there was another layer to explore? What if you could begin to understand why your body feels the way it does and gently guide it back to balance? Because here’s something I see time and time again:

The place you feel pain is often not the place where the problem starts.

 Does that sound familiar?

“Why does my ankle hurt when I walk or run?”

Why does my shoulder tighten after the gym?”

I’ve asked all of these questions myself.

 And instead of accepting, “It’s just getting older,” I’ve learned to get curious.

 Take the ankle, for example.

 Yes, it could be an old injury, it could be wear and tear, but it could also be something less obvious—like your psoas muscle (in your hips, which helps move your body and legs) not doing its job properly.

 Think of it like this:

 When a strong, important muscle “switches off,” The body asks other muscles to take over, and then those muscles ask others for help. Until suddenly, smaller areas—like your ankle—are doing work they were never designed to do, that’s when tension builds.

 That’s when pain shows up. Your body isn’t breaking down, it’s adapting. And the beautiful thing is—

It can adapt back.

 When you start to understand how your body moves, you stop fighting it and start working with it.

 So today, pause for a moment, tune in.

 What is your body trying to tell you?

Here’s your reminder that yoga does not have to look perfect.

 The link here from my Instagram is to a 23-minute practice I recorded after falling out of my usual rhythm. I started with centring, moved through Ashtanga Sun Salutations, and then into standing poses.

 And yes… I fell out of Half Moon (Chandrasana), but that’s yoga too. Your body is allowed to wobble.

Your balance is allowed to change, your practice is allowed to meet you exactly where you are. If a pose doesn’t feel right, you modify. If your body says no, you listen. If you haven’t practised in a while, you begin again.

 Yoga is forgiving. It is not about forcing yourself into shapes. It is about breathing, moving, noticing, and permitting yourself to adapt.

Your body was designed to move — not stay still for hours at a time. 

Most people don’t notice it happening at first. It begins as a little stiffness—a tight shoulder, a neck that feels heavy by the end of the day.

 Then, over time, the body starts adapting to long hours spent sitting at desks, looking at screens, driving, commuting, and working through stress without enough movement in between. One of the most common issues I see in people working at desks is Neck, shoulder, and upper back tension, especially around the tops of the shoulders, between the shoulder blades, and the base of the neck. It makes complete sense.

 Many of us spend hours:

• leaning slightly forward

• typing with lifted shoulders

• looking down at laptops

• breathing shallowly during stressful moments

The body begins holding tension as a way of coping. The body adapts to what we repeatedly do. The important thing to understand is this: Your body is not “bad” or “wrong," it’s adapting.

 If we stay in one position for long periods, certain muscles work harder while others become less active.

 That can lead to:

• headaches

• shoulder tightness

• reduced mobility

• fatigue

• tension in the jaw and neck

• discomfort in the lower back

Often, people think they need intense stretching or stronger workouts to fix it. But very often, the body responds best to small, consistent movement throughout the day.

 Why chair yoga helps: 

One of the reasons I love chair yoga is that it removes the barrier of needing a yoga mat, lots of space, special clothes, or even a full hour. You can reconnect with your body in just a few minutes.

Chair yoga helps by: encouraging movement in stiff areas, improving circulation, supporting posture awareness, calming the nervous system, and helping the body breathe more fully again. And perhaps most importantly, it reminds the body that it doesn’t have to stay braced all day.

3 Simple Chair Yoga Movements to Try at Your Desk 

1. Shoulder Rolls

• Sit tall in your chair.

• Slowly roll your shoulders up, back and down.

• Repeat 5–10 times.

• Then reverse the direction.

This helps release tension that builds from typing and stress. 

2. Seated Warrior

• Sit comfortably with both feet grounded.

• Turn the right knee towards the right and drop the left knee to the floor.

• The right hand holds the back of the chair, and the left arm is raised upwards.

• Hold for 3–5 breaths on each side.

• This creates space through the upper body, opening the hips and supports easier breathing.

3. Figure 4

• Sit tall with both feet on the ground. Place the right on the left thigh.

• With the right hand, gently ease the right knee in line with the foot. If there is resistance. Hold the pose and go no further.

• Keep the breath soft. Hold for a few breaths and repeat on the other side.

After long periods sitting, this is wonderful for the lower back, inner thighs and glutes.

 A small reminder, your body doesn’t need perfection. It simply needs moments of movement, awareness, and support throughout the day.

 Even two minutes of gentle movement can change how you feel physically and mentally. The body is always responding to what we repeatedly do. The good news is that small positive changes add up too.

 Emma

If you've ever stood up after a long day at a desk and felt your hips, lower back, or even your shoulders complain, there is one muscle that may be playing a role.

 It's called the psoas (pronounced so-az).

 Most people have never heard of it, yet they use it every time they walk, climb stairs, get out of a chair, or lift a leg.

 As a yoga teacher and neuromuscular therapy practitioner, I often see people struggling with tight hips, lower back discomfort, poor balance, or difficulty in certain yoga poses. The psoas isn't always the cause, but it is often part of the story.

 When I first started teaching yoga, I thought everyone with tight hips needed to stretch more. Years later, working hands-on with clients through neuromuscular therapy, I realised the picture was much more complex, even with my own hip issues. This is my constant learning to help others.

 What is the psoas?

 The psoas is a deep muscle that connects your lower spine to the top of your thigh bone.

 Unlike many muscles we can easily see or feel, the psoas sits deep within the body.

 Think of it as a bridge between your upper and lower body.

 It helps:

• Lift the leg when walking.

• Stabilise the lower back.

• Support posture

• Help transfer force through the body when moving.

Because it connects directly to the lumbar spine, it has a unique influence on both the hips and lower back.

 Why does it become problematic?

 The modern world asks us to sit far more than our bodies were designed for.

 Hours spent:

• At desks

• Driving

• Looking at screens

• Sitting on sofas

can place the hips in a shortened position for long periods.

 Over time, the body adapts.

 This doesn't necessarily mean the psoas becomes "bad" or "damaged". It simply becomes accustomed to the position it spends most of its time in.

 The result can be:

• Hip stiffness

• Lower back discomfort

• Difficulty standing fully upright

• Reduced hip extension when walking

• A feeling of tightness at the front of the hips.

Research suggests prolonged sitting and reduced hip extension flexibility may contribute to these patterns.

 Why do some yoga poses feel difficult?

 Many students assume they have tight hamstrings when they struggle with yoga.

 Sometimes the psoas is the missing piece.

 Common poses that may feel challenging include:

 Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana): 

The back-leg hip is moving into extension, which asks the psoas to lengthen.

 People often compensate by arching the lower back instead.

 Warrior I: 

This pose requires both stability and length through the front of the hip.

 Many students feel compressed in the lower back rather than open through the hip. Sometimes the glute of the back leg needs to press against the hip bone, and foot placement is important as well.

 Bridge Pose:

While often thought of as a backbend, the bridge asks the front body and hip flexors to lengthen/extend.

 A stiff psoas can make the pose feel restricted. Supporting muscles like the glutes (medius and minimus only) and the quads must activate to help lift the hips.

 Boat Pose: 

I have a love/hate relationship with this pose. The psoas works hard in this pose.

 Students often feel a shaking or gripping sensation at the front of the hips.

 This doesn't necessarily mean weakness or tightness. It may simply mean the muscle is being asked to work in a way it isn't accustomed to. It's like a creased shirt. Once the cool iron smooths out the creases, it glides. Boat Pose, when practised, does the same.

 Is stretching enough?

 This is where things become interesting.

 Many people spend years stretching their hip flexors without seeing lasting change.

 Why? Because muscles don't work in isolation.

Sometimes the body needs:

 Better breathing patterns, improved glute activation, more core support, and greater awareness of movement habits. In other words, the goal isn't always to stretch the psoas. Sometimes the goal is to help it stop doing everybody else's job.

 How I help clients. 

Whether through yoga or neuromuscular therapy, my approach is rarely to focus only on the area that feels tight.

 Instead, I look at:

• How someone stands

• How they walk

• How they breathe

• Which muscles are overworking

• Which muscles may need support?

Sometimes the solution involves gentle mobility work.

 Sometimes strengthening.

 Sometimes awareness.

 And sometimes simply helping a client understand why their body has adapted in the first place.

 Three simple things you can do today. 

Take movement breaks. Stand up every 30–60 minutes if possible.

 A short walk is often more effective than another stretch. 2. Practise gentle lunges. Focus on length through the front of the hip rather than pushing deeper into the pose.

 Less effort often produces better results. 3. Breathe. The psoas sits close to the diaphragm and deep core structures.

 Slow, relaxed breathing can reduce unnecessary tension throughout the body.

 Final thoughts: 

The psoas is not a villain.

 It is not the source of every ache and pain.

 But it is an important messenger.

 When the hips feel stiff, the lower back feels tight, or certain yoga poses seem impossible, it may be worth paying attention to what this deep and hardworking muscle is trying to tell you.

 Your body is always adapting.

 The good news is that it can adapt in positive ways, too.