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Serving Women 50+ with Online Yoga Therapeutics & Meditation — Based in Lackawanna County, PA, including Carbondale, Mayfield, Archbald, Scranton and Clarks Summit — & students worldwide.
Yoga Therapeutics & Meditation for Beginners
Joy Zazzera'a Blog
Welcome to your trusted hub for yoga therapeutics, meditation, and body-wise support.
If you’ve ever searched online for help with yoga or meditation—and felt more overwhelmed than empowered—you’re not alone. This blog is here to simplify the science, remove the guesswork, and show you how yoga and meditation can truly support your body and nervous system.
Here, you’ll find clear, compassionate guidance rooted in therapeutic yoga, meditation made simple, massage-informed self-care, and my lived experience. Whether you’re navigating joint replacements, reduced mobility, chronic stress, or just beginning yoga and meditation after 50, this space offers real solutions—practical tools you can trust to feel better, move with confidence, and build a sustainable home practice.
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Online Yoga Classes: Yoga a New Way in the New Year
Build balance, mobility, resilience and confidence safety at home with follow-along beginner-level ONLINE YOGA CLASSES in a style and pace that truly meet you where you are.
Joy Zazzera
Nov 253 min read
Why Consistency Counts: The Science Behind a Home Yoga Routine (and How to Make It Stick).
If you’ve ever sworn, “This is it—I’m prioritizing my health!” only to slide back into old patterns days later, you are so not alone. Those lapses can sting—leaving shame, self-doubt, and the worry that maybe you just don’t have enough willpower. But inconsistency isn’t a character flaw; it’s a systems problem. The brain burns energy on daily decision-making, and when every practice depends on motivation and executive effort, we fatigue fast. This blog offers some good news a
Joy Zazzera
Aug 1610 min read
How to Practice Yoga Safely: For Older Beginners & Adults with Movement Limitations
Safe yoga for older beginners isn’t about avoiding all discomfort—it’s about learning to recognize your limits, respond to your body’s signals, and build capacity gently.
One of the most common concerns among beginners—especially older adults—is poor balance or feeling “unsteady.” This is often a result of disuse, outdated movement habits, or unresolved tension. The good news is that balance can improve with practice—especially when we focus on the foundational systems that
Joy Zazzera
Apr 203 min read
Yoga Therapeutics for Musculoskeletal Conditions
If you're seeking relief from pain, stiffness, injury recovery, or stress-related tension, it's important to work with a yoga teacher who understands how to safely and effectively support your body’s needs. Not all yoga instructors are trained in therapeutic practices, and not all certifications are created equal. Two of the most recognized credentials in the field are Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT) and Yoga Medicine® Therapeutic Specialist.
Joy Zazzera
Jan 305 min read
Yoga for Shoulder Pain and Injuries After 50: How Therapeutic Yoga Supports Healing and Mobility
If we’re fortunate enough to live a long life, some level of joint degeneration is inevitable. But degeneration doesn't have to mean pain.
In fact, shoulder pain in aging bodies is often less about the severity of the “damage” and more about movement quality, muscular imbalance, and how well the shoulder is supported by the surrounding structures. This is where yoga therapeutics—especially when personalized—can offer a profoundly healing approach.
Joy Zazzera
Jun 30, 20244 min read
Gentle Yoga for Low Back Pain Relief
Low back pain affects up to 80% of people at some point in their lives. And yet, no two experiences of pain are exactly the same. One person may feel stiffness or deep achiness; another may deal with nerve pain, instability, or postural strain. What’s important to understand is this: even when imaging shows degeneration, bulging discs, or misalignment, pain is not always directly tied to structure. And even when there are no structural issues at all, pain can still be very r
Joy Zazzera
Apr 27, 20245 min read
Yoga for Scoliosis: Supporting the Curved Spine with Therapeutic Practices to Improve Posture, Mobility, and Pain
From a yoga therapeutics perspective, scoliosis isn’t just about the bones. It’s about how the entire body adapts to the curve, especially the soft tissues that surround, support, and respond to spinal changes. Muscles, fascia, breath mechanics, and balance all play a role in how scoliosis is experienced and how it’s best supported.
Joy Zazzera
Mar 24, 20245 min read
Understanding Fascia Tightness: What It Means & How to Support It
You may have heard that your fascia is “tight,” “wound up,” or “needs to be released.” These phrases are common in wellness spaces—but are they accurate? What does it actually mean when we feel stiff, restricted, or like we need to “stretch something out”?
This blog explores what’s really going on beneath the surface—and how therapeutic movement, stretching, and self-massage can help.
Joy Zazzera
Feb 18, 20244 min read
Yoga Therapeutics for Pain Relief: Building Resilience & Reconnection
Pain often distorts our sense of where we are in space. Many people with persistent pain lose proprioception—meaning, they’re not quite sure how they’re moving. This can lead to imbalances, instability, and more discomfort.
A skilled yoga therapeutics approach brings awareness back online. By slowing things down, removing extra stressors (like balance or complex transitions), and noticing asymmetries with compassion—not criticism—you begin to re-establish a healthy relations
Joy Zazzera
Jan 7, 20243 min read
Yoga's discomfort zone and what it means to step into it.
If your reaction to trying yoga elicits a mindset that you don’t have an able-body for yoga, or you can't balance, consider reading on.
Joy Zazzera
Dec 14, 20225 min read
Hormones, Fascia, and Yoga: What Ovulation and Menopause Mean for Your Practice
Fascial changes in response to hormones is a topic that fascinates me and is now gaining attention in scientific research, especially...
Joy Zazzera
Dec 10, 20225 min read
How Stretching and Myofascial Release Improve Fascia Health, Mobility, and Internal Wellness
The human body is a complex tension-integral system where push and pull have a win-win relationship. More simply, the body is bones connected by soft tissue within a net of continuous tension creating stability without direct contact. When the tension network shifts, it affects the entire system and has impacts on efficiency of movement, and propensity to injury.
Joy Zazzera
Dec 7, 20226 min read
Yoga Sharpens Brain Health: Memory, Focus & Neuroplasticity
As we age, our brain actually atrophies in function. But did you know that practicing yoga as a regular part of your lifestyle can ...
Joy Zazzera
Oct 16, 20226 min read
Re-learning how to relax.
Increasingly things that feel easy and may not require a lot of brain power are often being confused with relaxation. Our learned...
Joy Zazzera
Jul 31, 20222 min read
Motivation for Movement Snacks
Hungry to move easier but don’t have much time or motivation to adopt a traditional workout regime? Or maybe you’re not sure how to work...
Joy Zazzera
Jan 21, 20223 min read
Manifesto for Yoga Misfits
Every year you consider trying yoga. And every year you label yourself a misfit and jest at the overwhelming messages about yoga and what...
Joy Zazzera
Dec 20, 20218 min read
What begins here, spreads.
What begins in a yoga practice can spread to other areas of life. Each and every yoga class I design is intended to leave you with...
Joy Zazzera
Nov 15, 20213 min read
Right Now is Everything
Our routines have the potential to ground us or the more unsettled feeling of being pulled in different directions simultaneously. A...
Joy Zazzera
Nov 11, 20213 min read
Ultimate Self-Care: The stillness and sensory experience of Restorative Yoga + Meditation
In the age of movement, nothing is more critical than stillness. Because we already to some degree understand that overdoing leads to...
Joy Zazzera
Sep 6, 20214 min read
CAPTURING PRESENCE: In the space of quiet contemplation, insight & clarity are revealed.
When I first set out to open my own yoga business, I knew ahead of time details that I didn’t want to over-look.
Joy Zazzera
Aug 26, 20214 min read
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