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Partner Yoga Pose: Double Gate

FitSugar — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 13:30:00 PST

If you love opening your hips and hamstrings, then you must love Gate pose. You can get an even deeper stretch in your spine and the sides of your body when you do it with a partner though.

Keep reading to learn how to get into this pose.

Strike a Yoga Pose: Beginner's Gate

FitSugar — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 10:00:21 PDT

I really appreciate the meditative nature of this seated pose. Not only does it calm my mind, but my hips crave the internal rotation offered by the position of the bent leg; moving the hip joint in this way makes for healthy hips and knees. This variation of Gate offers benefits to the joints by moving them in a direction we don't often do, similar to Hero pose, but this beginner Gate is easier for yoga newbies. Beginner's Gate also provides a gentle stretch for the inner thighs (aka adductors) and hamstrings, making it great for runners and cyclists.

Sanskrit Name: Parighasana
English Translation: Cross Beam of a Gate Pose
Also Called: Gate

Learn the finer details of the pose when you

Sit on your mat and open your right leg out to the side.
Bend your left knee, bringing your left toes behind you and as close to your body as possible. If you can, press the arch of your foot against the curve of your bum.
Very Important: If your left knee is in any pain, straighten out your left leg and bend your knee in the opposite direction with your left foot in toward your right inner thigh.
Press your hands together in front of your heart. Relax your shoulder blades down your back away from your ears. Ground firmly with your pelvis, and if you can, try to tuck it in slightly using your lower abs. Soften your lower ribs so they are not poking forward. Concentrate on lengthening through your spine.
Stay here for five or more breaths, and then switch sides.

Game of Thrones Season Premiere: What We're Still Talking About

Becky Kirsch — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 14:18:40 PDT

After a year of waiting for the aftermath of Ned Stark's beheading, Daenerys Targaryen's dragons hatching, and war brewing in Westeros, Game of Thrones made its triumphant return this week, and the season two premiere did not disappoint. I was thrilled to catch up with the likes of Tyrion Lannister and Jon Snow, though less-than-enthused to be reunited with Joffrey and his evil ways.

I don't want to give too much away for those of you that haven't seen it yet, but there are plenty of new developments (and characters) to break down - as well as a few omissions from the episode. Let's talk about the major moments we're still dissecting when you

Is Tyrion Lannister the new Ned Stark? With Ned (Sean Bean) gone, it seems that Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) may have replaced him, as far as screen time goes. And with good reason - Tyrion has the best lines as usual, and I ate up every scene as he settles into King's Landing as the new Hand of the King.
Joffrey is becoming more infuriating by the minute. Maybe it was the long hiatus, but I wasn't prepared for quite how evil Joffrey is coming out the gate in this episode. His lack of sympathy for Sansa is expected, but his cruelty has gotten worse than ever. Watching him try to drown someone with wine is hard enough, but the murder spree on Robert's bastards in the closing moments of the episode is shocking and heartbreaking.
Jon Snow's Big Love moment. I'm happy to see Jon Snow off the Wall (I'm happy to see him anywhere, really), and his ventures into the North get interesting really fast. We thought the Lannister incest storyline was bad, but the Wildling and his long line of wives/daughters makes Jaime and Cersei look like saints.
More Arya, please. I've been dying to find out what will happen to Arya now that she's posing as a boy and is riding with the Night's Watch, but she's only in the episode for a very brief moment. Hopefully that will change next week, as we see what will become of Gendry, Robert's only remaining illegitimate child.
Robb and Jaime's showdown. Ned may be gone, but Robb's growing nicely into his new role as the head of House Stark. He already seems light years more confident with three major wins under his belt, and it all builds up to his tête-à-tête with Jaime. Jaime's still got a sharp tongue for a prisoner, but he fails to shake Robb's swagger. (It probably helps that Robb has a now-extraordinarily-large wolf on his side.)
The dragons. The Stark family direwolves aren't the only animals in Westeros - Dany's dragons are in full effect, though they aren't exactly as fierce as one might think. For now, they're more like accessories that add to Dany's khaleesi garb. Cute, yes? Imposing? Not so much.

How'd you feel about the big premiere? Weigh in on your favorite moments in the comments!

Photo courtesy of HBO