The Yoga Prescription

I needed this book! At a time while I am grappling with the changes in my body due to recent life altering diagnoses, I have been spending several weeks focusing on self healing, and changing my mindset about my health and well-being. One thing that I have added to my life is yoga. The Yoga Prescription was the perfect validation for me as a new yogi. Cory Martin teaches some of the key components to yoga, while showing readers what the principles of yoga mean to someone dealing with chronic illness.

This short read got down to business, made starting yoga accessible to anyone, and provided a deep understanding and reflective look at how to mentally deal with the daily struggle of health. Much like yoga, Cory points out that wellness is a practice. Each day, as long as we are listening to our body, maintaining it in the present, accepting our bodies for what they are capable of, and first doing no harm to the body we have - living with illnesses is manageable. She doesn’t paint it as a pretty beautiful cure or overshadow the struggle of living with daily struggle, but this book does provide hope for a way to acceptance to what we are capable of today.

My favorite part through this introduction to yoga and my own personal introduction to beginning yoga practice is that yoga is all about listening to your body and always assessing where you are in the moment. Yoga is so individual, and even when I find myself in a yoga class surrounded by people, I am alone with my practice, alone with my mat. Yoga is not a competition or an end game: “The point of yoga isn’t to covet what someone else has, but to celebrate our own individual strengths.”

I have osteoarthritis in my back. I was diagnosed at 50 and it has only gotten worse in the last 8 years.

I have tried yoga, but always felt inadequate because I was never that girl who could contort her body into impossible positions.

Reading this book was like sipping a nice cup of herbal tea. Despite the fact that the author does discuss her own medical issues, which obviously needed to be talked about considering the premise of this book, I never stressed out reading her words. She was honest, but also brave and I am so happy that she wrote this book.

I have gotten a much deeper understanding of how my pain can be incorporated into a loving yoga session, where I feel grateful for my body and not want to fight it.

Lovely way of writing and of making everything honest, but hopeful.

I LOVED THIS BOOK.

This is a beautiful book and should be included in the reading matter of everyone struggling with chronic illness. I've been a yoga teacher for five years and most of my students come to me with pain in their bodies: injuries, illnesses, past wrongs expressed physically. Not all yoga is about fitness and cute workout clothes. In The Yoga Prescription, Cory Martin has written a poignant and honest account of how to move your body through yoga to manage your symptoms and feel better, especially for those living with chronic illness. What I loved about this book is the simplicity of the poses, and the explanations of why they will help you. You won't find any lengthy sequences filled with lectures in this book. This isn't a workout guide. There is nothing intimidating about this approach with yoga. All ages and abilities can do it. I also appreciated the practical nature of the The Yoga Prescription's approach: it's compassionate and oh so smart without falling into the trap of new age woo woo.

I've read a great many yoga books but none are like this one. There is hope in Cory's quiet, steady voice and practical application of yoga poses for wellness and healing. This book is a a wonderful resource on how to be well when you're not well. I found solace in these pages and will be recommending The Yoga Prescription to friends and yoga students.

This would make a wonderful holiday gift this year: Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus, etc. I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review and am happy to recommend this book.