It is no coincidence that Yoga is traditionally practiced in the morning. Doing a Yoga session at the jump of the bed is ideal to wake up gently and give yourself energy before starting the day. A Yoga teacher tells us about the benefits of morning Yoga and gives us her advice to integrate it into our wellness routine.

With our increasingly intense and hyper-connected pace of life, it is not always easy to slow down and find a moment to take care of yourself and your body. Morning yoga is a good way to keep fit while reclaiming time for yourself. Whether you want to wake up gently, give yourself energy for the day ahead, or tone your body... Regular yoga practice in the morning provides many benefits to the body and mind. If the Yoga studios and gyms offer yoga classes from 7 a.m., it is possible to practice at home, when jumping out of bed, to give yourself a more intimate and instinctive session, without constraint.

How to practice morning yoga?

Traditionally, Yoga is practiced at dawn, at sunrise, when the mind is not quite awakened or polluted by the thoughts and events of the day. It's up to everyone to find a moment of calm and tranquility just for themselves, in a room where you are not likely to be disturbed. Create your own playlist or choose to practice in silence, to the simple sound of your breath. It is better to be fasting or not to eat two hours before the practice, to avoid being in full digestion during the session.

Softness is de rigueur because the body is more rigid in the morning than in the afternoon. "You don't have to start with a competitive way of thinking and aim for the top of the mountain. Everything must be done gradually. Beyond the physical aspect of Yoga, we must take into account its spiritual and mental dimension," advises Aurélie Louis-Alexandre, Vinyasa Yoga teacher and co-founder of Flawless Yoga. "The first morning, we try a sequence and we observe if it makes us feel good. If you already have a good foundation of Yoga and practice regularly, you can set goals to find your rhythm and challenge yourself.

If a daily practice can be very beneficial, you should always respect your limits and listen to your feelings. "We can practice every day, as long as we vary the frequency of the sessions. For example, one can do an intense flow of 45 minutes one morning, then alternate with a gentler session of 30 or 15 minutes the next day, simply to stretch and relax the neck and back. The body also needs rest!" She adds.

What are the benefits of morning yoga?

If the benefits of Yoga on the body and mind are no longer to be proven, a morning practice allows you to wake up on positive waves and warm up your body for the day: "It's a different awakening than usual, when you get out of bed barely stretched before going directly to work. It's a way to maintain oneself, to keep fit. When we adopt a good routine, there is something healthier that settles in our daily lives, confirms Aurélie-Louis Alexandre, before adding: "From a mental point of view, morning Yoga also allows you to better start and live your day. We listen to his sensations and what is happening in our heads. It is a therapy of the soul and the body. Even if it's difficult sometimes, it always feels good. We take care of ourselves and we never regret it!'.

What morning yoga postures to wake up your body gently?

To start the day smoothly, no need to embark on complex and challenging yoga positions. 'One can do simple stretches or sun salutations repeated 5 times. The goal is to warm the body and relax the pains' advises the teacher, who recommends that we integrate two essential positions into our morning practice:

The dog upside down

This inverted posture involves placing the head lower than the heart, with the pelvis raised to the sky, while the hands push the ground away. "This is the most classic and accessible Vinyasa Yoga recovery posture, which helps to stretch the body up and down. It helps to relieve in particular the back and lumbar'. Hold 5 dog breaths upside down to feel the benefits.

The child's posture

Sitting on the heels with the big toes together, open the knee hip-width. Place the forehead on the ground, with the upper body between the thighs. "This is one of the most gentle and comforting postures in yoga. The upper body stretches forward. The arms are forward or along the body to drop the shoulders. This opening of the hips and flexions of the knees helps us to let go. We are not trying to engage the muscles. We close our eyes and drop everything.' For 10 breaths, this position stimulates the organs of the digestive system and relieves tension in the back.

What yoga postures give you energy in the morning?

For a more energizing awakening and to be in shape for the day, the idea is to practice a few sets of sun salutations. This dynamic sequence of yoga postures makes it possible to mobilize and soften the muscles and joints. By synchronizing movements and breathing, we also develop our attention and concentration. "I particularly recommend the 'B greeting' which circulates energy throughout the body. This sequence includes the postures of the mountain, the chair, the slit on the ground, the board, the Chaturanga, the dog head up, and the dog upside down. It awakens and stretches every part of the body, including the hips and shoulders. It also helps us to hold a good posture and tone at the level of the abdominal belt. After 5 repetitions, we can finish with the posture of the child' advises Aurélie Louis-Alexandre.

Finally, do not forget to breathe during practice! "Breathing is very important and makes all the difference. Before getting out of bed, sitting cross-section, start by taking 3 large breaths and exhalations to recreate space in the rib cage and abdomen. During practice, use fire breathing, also known as 'Ujayyi breath'. ' Inhale and exhale only through the nostrils. This creates warmth and tones the deep muscles of the belly," she adds.

To push this wellness ritual to its climax, why not end the practice with a meditation session? "There is already a meditative aspect to integrating these exercises into a daily routine. It's a new habit that we try to focus on every morning. At the end of all these efforts, one can lie down and close one's eyes to relax and be in the moment, which is a form of meditation. When you start, 3 minutes are enough to assimilate the practice and meditate.' Are we getting started tomorrow morning?

 At what age to start yoga? What postures to adopt? How to start yoga at home? Check out our comprehensive guide to getting yoga started.

Are you looking to tone your body, gain flexibility or release tension? Yoga is definitely for you! To get started safely, Emma Champion, yoga teacher and ambassador of the Yoga Searcher brand, gives us all her advice. 

How do I get started with yoga?

Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Hatha, Bikram, or Iyengar: there are many types of yoga targeting various needs. To calm your tensions, reconnect with your breathing, or gain tone, each yoga practice is different and it is important to find the one that suits you before you start. "The advice I will give to a yoga beginner is not to stop at a first experience," explains Emma Champion, who also recommends "testing different classes to find out which one suits you best". Always favor yoga classes corresponding to your level, that is to say, level 1 or beginner. To start, a 60-minute session is preferable, less, it is too short for a complete practice and more, it can be a lot. Also, you will get more benefits from doing yoga every day rather than 1h30 every 15 days. Do not forget that the internet is full of good addresses. Take a look on the Web to find the perfect yoga for you.

How to start yoga at home?

Taking a class is necessary to learn the basics of yoga. However, it is not imperative to go to a gym since it is now possible to practice yoga at home. Thanks to online classes, on YouTube, or via applications, yoga becomes accessible to all, thus facilitating its practice by novices in the field. Among these free or paid applications, we like Daily Yoga with a real personal trainer, 5 minutes of yoga for a quick and effective session, as well as Down Dog Yoga to vary the workouts.

Can anyone practice yoga?

Emma Champion's answer is unanimous: 'of course, yoga is adaptable to all bodies'. Whatever your level in yoga, just find the class that suits you, according to your desires and needs. It is a discipline that can be practiced every day, by both men and women. The same observation about the ideal age to start yoga: there is none because this sport can be practiced by everyone, whether you are 20 or 50 years old. Moreover, yoga is even recommended for seniors because it can be very gentle on the body. Anyone over 60 will turn to Hatha yoga or Yin yoga, offering a calm pace and slow stretches, perfect for avoiding injury.

However, note that there may be contraindications for some yoga postures. "It's up to the teacher to inform you during the practice," says Emma Champion. Thus, if you are new to yoga and suffer from pathology or pain, do not hesitate to take a physical class, in order to inform the teacher of your physical health.

What postures to start yoga?

For beginners, Emma Champion advises practicing 'sequences of movements coordinated with breathing. Soliciting a large number of muscles of the body, they allow to let go and offer a full awareness of the movement. "To begin with, I would advise knowing the sun salutation A then B"," explains the yoga teacher who recommends this easy posture in the morning to give 'good energy to start the day.

For the more novices, start with the pose in a suit or Sukhasana who learns to sit properly. If the exercise seems simple, it is important to practice this position because sitting well allows you to enter meditation thanks to the immobility established. It is also an ideal posture to start the day: it offers calm and serenity essential to connect your body and mind.

Finally, among the best exercises to start yoga, there is also the posture of the cat, ideal for strengthening stretching, and relaxing the body before training. Repeated several times, this posture relieves back pain and improves flexibility without pain.

 Yoga is an ancestral technique that wants us well. What kind of yoga is right for me? What are its benefits? Postures, exercises... You will know everything about this wellness practice.

Yoga, born in India several millennia ago, is practiced by more than 2.8 million people in France. This philosophy of life that is more and more emulated consists of performing a set of postures and breathing exercises to acquire physical and mental well-being.  There are no contraindications. It is enough to adapt the exercises according to his state of health. Open your chakras wide to discover the different types of yoga.

What are the benefits of yoga?

Practicing yoga is ideal for the body and mind. In addition to improving breath and breathing, it helps to reduce stress and see life in a more serene way. It allows you to be more connected to the present moment and to work on concentration. If practiced regularly, it develops the flexibility and elasticity of the muscles. Obviously, some sequences and postures offer real muscle strengthening for a gradual weight loss but in the long term.

What yoga postures to start with?

• The lotus posture: sitting, folding your legs in lotus or suit. Stand upright and then join your hands in front of your chest before placing them on your lap.
• The posture of the tree: standing, fix a point in front of you. Anchor one leg on the ground. The other leg bends while the sole of the foot is positioned on the inner side of the opposite thigh. 
• The child's posture: on all fours, lower your hips towards your heels and ankles and then release your arms to the ground, palms towards the sky.
• The warrior posture: standing, spread the right leg to the side and rotate the foot 45°. The other foot does not move. Stretch them out at shoulder level, then bend your right knee as if you were going to make a slit. The gaze is in the distance.
• The Sun Salutation is one of the most well-known exercises. It combines 12 asanas (postures) and should be practiced 8 to 12 times a day.

What type of yoga to choose?

Marbled cupcakes with vanilla and bitter cocoa without butter, an easy and above all fast recipe.

Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F). Butter and flour the mini-cake pans or place muffin boxes in the pans.

In a bowl, beat the sugar and eggs until the mixture whitens and doubles in volume.

Pour the oil and milk as you go.

Stir in flour and yeast mixture. Divide the dough into 2/3 and 1/3. In the 1st dough, add the vanilla extract and the second the cocoa (if you find the dough too thick, add milk 1 tablespoon at a time to liquefy and facilitate the shaping of the marble).

Pour a layer of vanilla dough and add a small amount of cocoa paste. Repeat the procedure a second time.

With the help of a toothpick, make a random movement in order to create the marble effect.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the toothpick comes out dry.

Unmold on a grid until cooled.

Marbled vanilla, chocolate muffins

Prep Time 10 mins

Cooking time 20 mins

time Total 30 mins

 Recipe Type: Muffin

Cuisine: American

Serve: 8

Ingredients

220 gr of flour

120 gr of sugar

4 eggs

100 ml of milk

100 ml neutral oil

1/2 sachet baking powder

1 tbsp-at vanilla extract

1.5 tbsp bitter cocoa, soup

Instructions

Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F). Butter and flour the mini-cake pans or place muffin boxes in the pans.

In a bowl, beat the sugar and eggs until the mixture whitens and doubles in volume.

Pour the oil and milk as you go.

Stir in flour and yeast mixture. Divide the dough into 2/3 and 1/3. In the 1st dough, add the vanilla extract and the second the cocoa (if you find the dough too thick, add milk 1 tablespoon at a time to liquefy and facilitate the shaping of the marble).

Pour a layer of vanilla dough and add a small amount of cocoa paste. Repeat the procedure a second time.

With the help of a toothpick, make a random movement in order to create the marble effect.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the toothpick comes out dry.

Unmold on a grid until cooled.

Clementine provides a touch of vitamin C. It can be replaced by orange or pomelo wedges, but it has the advantage of being softer and appreciated by children. Shortbread can be cooked the day before and stored in a metal box.

 INGREDIENTS 4 PEOPLE

.for shortbread.200 g of flour

.1 egg yolk.75 g of soft butter

.3 tablespoon(s) of white sesame seeds

.60 g of grated Parmesan cheese

. for puree

.2 avocados

.4 clementines

.1/2 shallot

.1/2 lemon

.3 sprigs of coriander

.1 tablespoon(s) of olive oil

 PREPARATION

1. In a bowl, mix with your fingertips the flour and butter cut into small dice. Add the Parmesan, sesame seeds, salt, and pepper.

2. Bind the dough with 1 egg yolk and 4 tbsp of cold water.

3. Form a ball and let stand in the cool, covered with stretch film.

4. Peel and finely chop the shallot. Rinse the coriander and strip it. Peel the clementines, separate the quarters and remove the film around them (optional). Peel the avocados cut them into pieces. Drizzle them with lemon juice.

5. Crush the avocado with a fork, pour the olive oil, salt, pepper, add the coriander and shallot. Divide the puree into 4 small bowls. Add the clementine weds on top. Place in a cool place.

6. Preheat the oven to150°. Spread the dough and cut shortbread with a cookie cutter. Arrange the shortbread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cook for 10 minutes and let cool on a rack. Serve the avocado puree with the cookies.

 Plan very reasonable quantities, knowing that this is a period when children tend to snack more than usual, and often accumulate snacks and invitations (school, family, friends).

Aperitif: 3 to 4 appetizers per child and raw vegetables to nibble on.

  The starter is optional and must remain light (based on vegetables, fish).

  Dish: 50 to 60 g of meat for a 6-year-old child and 150 g of vegetables, 70 to 80 g of meat for a 10-year-old child, and 170 g of vegetables.

  Dessert: cut the cake into very small pieces, they will eventually eat a second piece later in the evening.

  Available: water and cut fruit.

Realization

Difficulty Preparation

Cooking 10 min

Total Time 10 min

Easy 20 min

INGREDIENTS

.8 brick leaves

.2 slices of smoked salmon

.150 g fresh salmon

.1/2 bunch of chives

.60 g fresh cheese (fresh square type)

.2 tablespoon(s) olive oil

.Cooking twine

 PREPARATION

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Rinse the fresh salmon, blot it, and then cut it into small dice. Coarsely chop the smoked salmon. Rinse and blot the chives, chop them.

2. Mix the salmon, chives, and fresh cheese in a bowl. Salt very lightly and pepper.

3. Cut the edge of the brick leaves to get squares, then cut them into 4. Garnish the center of each square with half a teaspoon of salmon mixture. Roll each square like candy and hold the ends with kitchen string.

4. Using a brush, brush each candy very lightly with a little olive oil. Store the sweets on a baking sheet filled with parchment paper and brown, 5 to 8 minutes while watching. Enjoy warm, removing the string before serving.

THE TRICK 

As a starter or as an aperitif, these appetizers are decorative but also particularly rich in omega 3, fatty acids essential for brain development.

A SPECIAL CHRISTMAS MENU FOR CHILDREN 100% YUM

  It is not necessary to provide a cheese platter, because children are often no longer very hungry after the dish, but integrate dairy products into the preparations: diced cheese as an aperitif, milk, and grated cheese in a gratin, fresh goat in a puff pastry as a starter, yogurt sauce for raw vegetables, etc.

  Depending on their tastes, plan a slice of meat or fish. A small portion is enough, but choose quality products: farm or organic poultry, wild fish, etc.

  Impossible to remove the dessert, but you can lighten it! Avoid the traditional log made from buttercream, quite indigestible, and instead, garnish your cake with lighter pastry cream with snow whites or an aerial whipped cream.

  Plan fresh fruit, which they will nibble in the evening: fruit basket or plain cut fruit (drizzled with lemon to avoid browning).

  Limit chocolate treats, which are often very indigestible fillings. Instead, have the children prepare homemade chocolates in pretty silicone molds.

INGREDIENTS

.4 thin organic turkey cutlets

.150 g organic pork tenderloin

.1 onion

.1 carrot

.1/2 bunch of flat parsley

.2 slices of cereal crumb bread

.1/2 tsp gingerbread spices

. 2 eggs

.2 tablespoon(s) milk

.40 g whole grain petals (for breakfast)

.40 g hazelnut kernels

. 2 tablespoon rapeseed oil

 PREPARATION

1. Peel and cut the onion into pieces. Rinse, blot, and peel off the parsley. Peel, wash, and cut the carrot into pieces. Chop the onion, carrot, and parsley in the robot, not too finely. Pour into a bowl. Add the fine ground pork and crumbled crumb bread. Salt, pepper and add 1/2 tsp gingerbread spice. Bind the stuffing with 1 egg and 2 tablespoons of milk.

2. Spread the turkey cutlets on the worktop and flatten them with a rolling pin (previously covered with stretch film). Cut the cutlets in half and garnish them with stuffing. Fold them up to get squares (if necessary, tie them up).

3. Crush the cereal petals between your fingers. Mix them with chopped hazelnuts. Beat 1 egg in a bowl. Pass the turkey slippers in the egg, then in the hazelnut-cereal breading.

4. Heat the rapeseed oil in a large pan, add the turkey slippers and cook for 10 minutes over medium heat, gently turning them over halfway through. Place on a paper towel before serving, warm.

The TRICK 

If children are under 5 years old, half a portion (a slipper) is enough.

 Children are also entitled to their festive menu on New Year's Eve. For them, we imagine gourmet and original dishes, which will delight them almost as much as the arrival of Santa Claus! Easy recipes, which will leave children with a festive taste.

The holidays are a risky period for the little ones: end-of-term fatigue, cold and wet weather, and repeated overeating are the bed of flu and digestive disorders. So that they feast while staying in great shape, concoct a separate, simple, and gourmet menu.

  Watch out for appetizers: they love them and are often hungry.

Plan small vegetable-based bites (dips, mini-skewers of raw vegetables, etc.) to nibble with your fingers. Limit the amount and variety (two to three different recipes are enough).

  Provide water and fruit juice for the aperitif and meal (dilute with 25% water). Avoid sodas or limit them to one or two drinks at most for the evening.

INGREDIENTS for 6 PERSONS

.3 eggs.

80 g extra-fine sugar.

40 g corn.

20 g rice flour.

1/2 sachet Alsatian yeast.

1 mango

.25 cl of heavy cream for whipped cream.

emportepièce sapin.

200 g of pastry milk chocolate.

2 tablespoon(s) of milk. 

meringue and chocolate beads for decoration

 PREPARATION

1. Preheat the oven on.5/150°.

2. Separate the whites from the egg yolks. Beat the yolks with the sugar to get a sparkling and very clear mixture. Add the Maïzena, rice flour, yeast, and a small pinch of salt. Beat the whites with a pinch of salt in very firm snow. Gently incorporate the snow whites into the previous preparation.

3. Pour into a rectangular mold of 20 x 30 cm, lined with parchment paper. Bake the biscuit for 15 minutes in the oven. Let cool on a rack and remove the paper when the cake is cold. Cut it into fir trees, with cookie cutters.

4. Peel the mango and cut it into very thin slices, then tiny dice, keeping the juice. Cut the fir trees in half in thickness. Garnish the base with diced mango, and drizzle with a little juice.

5. Mount the cream in very firm whipped cream, then spread it over the mango. Cover with the other part of the fir trees, making it adhere well.

6. Melt in a water bath the chocolate cut into squares with the milk. Smooth the mixture and spread it on the fir trees. When the icing is taken, decorate with meringue and chocolate beads. This cake can be prepared the day before (to be placed in a cool place).

THE TRICK 

A fairly light cake because the biscuit does not contain fat. Do not sweeten whipped cream, it is useless. You can serve the fir trees accompanied by cups of cut fruit (mango, pineapple, melon, etc.) and fresh lychees.

 All COVID-19 vaccines authorized in Canada are safe, effective, and of high quality.

Name: Spikevax® Vaccine from Moderna against COVID-19

Manufacturer ModernaTX, Inc.

Type: mRNA

Status: Approved by Health Canada

Approved for: people 12 years of age and older

Method of administration: Injection into a muscle (usually the upper arm)

Number of doses: 2 doses

People for whom the vaccine is approved

The vaccine is approved for people 12 years of age and older. Its safety and efficacy in young people under 12 years of age have not yet been demonstrated.

Efficiency

Clinical trials showed that from two weeks after the second dose, Moderna's Spikevax® COVID-19 vaccine was 94.1% effective in protecting clinical trial participants from COVID-19.

Dosage

Two doses are required for maximum protection.

The dosage schedule approved by Health Canada calls for 2 doses at one-month intervals, based on evidence from clinical trials.

A booster dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Spikevax® vaccine may be given to people 18 years of age and older at least six months after completing their primary vaccine series.

Your province or territory decides when doses are administered.

These decisions are based on public health recommendations and the most recent data.

Mixed dose schedules

A different vaccine may be offered for your second dose. For example, you may have received the Comirnaty® vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech as the first dose and you may have been offered the Spikevax® vaccine from Moderna as the second dose. This is called a series of mixed vaccines.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommends getting an mRNA vaccine (Comirnaty® from Pfizer-BioNTech or Spikevax® from Moderna) for your second dose. Find out more about mRNA vaccines

For more information:

1. mRNA vaccines
2. Viral vector vaccines

Vaccine ingredients

Here is an entry that puts everyone in agreement: the scallops gratinées. Who doesn't literally melt in front of these seared scallops and return in butter, this sauce with fresh cream, white wine, shallots, lemon ...? Who has never tracked down the slightest remnant of sauce in his shell, armed with a piece of bread...? No, definitely, this starter is anything but a walnut starter! 

INGREDIENTS: 4 PERS.

16 scallops

20 cl of white wine

1 carrot

1 lemon

1 shallot

a few sprigs of chives (according to your tastes)

4 tbsp thick cream

100 g grated Gruyère

15 g butter

4 tbsp flour

Salt, pepper

4 empty shells (ceramic or other) for service

PREPARATION:

Preparation  25 min       Cooking   20 min

1. Before starting the recipe for scallops gratinées, preheat your oven to 180°C.
2. Sprinkle the scallops with flour. Heat the butter in a pan, add the nuts and color them for 1 to 2 minutes on each side. When cooking is finished and they are well browned, take them out of the heat and reserve them on a paper towel.
3. Then proceed to the realization of the sauce. Peel and thinly slice the shallot and sweat it in a pan, without adding fat. Once your shallot is slightly colored, add the white wine, the crème Fraiche and the chives that you will have finely chiseled. Then add the lemon juice and let the sauce sit.
4. Meanwhile, peel and then slice the carrot into very small dice. Cook them in slightly salted boiling water.
5. Now move on to the training of scallops. In a ceramic shell (or other), lay 4 nuts and small diced carrots. Season with salt and pepper at your convenience and cover with sauce. Finally, add a small pinch of grated Gruyère.
6. Bake the shells in the oven at 200 ° C for about 8 minutes and serve them hot, well gratinated, with a salad in which you can add some citrus fruits.

TRICKS

We give you a small variant, just like that, it's a gift: replace the carrot with a minced leek white... The marriage of scallops and leek works wonderfully! A good listener... ;)