Yoga at Home for Absolute Beginners!

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: Closing Your Eyes Can Enhance Your Practice

A couple of years ago I read an excellent, detailed book on yoga, The Spirit and Practice of Moving into the Stillness by Eric Schiffman.  This thick tome, excellent for the serious beginner and intermediate yoga student, contains many suggestions for how to maximize your yoga practice.  Schiffman talks at length about how to listen inwardly to your own guidance.  One of his tips that I began to incorporate was to close my eyes while doing neck rolls.Schiffman advises that doing this will enable you to become better attuned to the relaxing sensations of the neck rolls. 

Because the weather in the Washington, DC metro area has become too freakin' frigid the past couple of days, this morning I decided to imagine I was back on one of the spectacular beaches in Kauai that I visited as a college junior for winter break.  I also chose to do yoga in absolute quiet and to close my eyes throughout all the poses - not just the neck rolls.  The result?  I felt more deeply relaxed and noticed my body more and energy I awakened as I went through my usual regime. 

If you'd like to try this approach, I recommend that you wait at least a few weeks or so after learning a pose so that you know exactly what you are doing with your eyes wide open.  And, be aware that you may not be able to do this with all poses - particularly active poses that require more coordination and balance. Once you feel comfortable, give it a whirl and see how you feel.  I believe that if you are going through a stressful time, practicing with your eyes closed will more rapidly defuse the stress.

You can read chapters from Schiffman's book at: www.movingintostillness.com

Enjoy!

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: Revelations not Resolutions for Change in 2010

Ah - we are on the cusp of not only a New Year, but a NEW DECADE!  Remember when we were anticipating all types of computer glitches when 2000 was dawning?  And, our worst fears were luckily not realized?  Have you been generally happy with the direction of your life in the past decade?  Are you feeling great most, if not all the time - in mind, body, and spirit?  

Are you, like many people, hurriedly writing down your New Year's Resolutions for 2010?  Are you determined for once and for all to whip your body into shape, manage some anger issues that you may have, and try to approach life with less stress?  If you are, then learning and practicing gentle hatha yoga can lead you to success in these areas!

However, as several commentators on the morning news edition of WTOP yesterday and today asserted - the stats are out and 4 out of 5 people fail to keep their New Year's resolutions - it's just too hard.  Of the 1 out of 5 who do succeed- apparently many of these individuals break up their goals into bite size pieces or baby steps and find it easier to stick to their commitment this way.  I have recommended applying the gradual, baby step by baby step process many times in my blog posts for people wanting to learn yoga and to make it a permanent part of their life.

I have an additional suggestion for creating permanent change in the New Year that doesn't depend on "resolutions." - Resolutions rely solely on human willpower - most of which is a head game.  I suggest you tap your inner wisdom to create the changes you want in 2010.  I believe inner wisdom is linked to heart power which is more effective than mental power and effort alone.

How do you tap your inner wisdom?  You take a minute or two (and 10-15 minutes in the morning and/or evening is especially effective) a few times a day to rest and relax in silence and open yourself to receiving inner revelation about how to create the changes you seek. You can ask your inner wisdom a question such as - "What is the best way for ME to make hatha yoga a daily part of my life while maintaining my work and home responsibilities?"  

Ask with the expectancy that you WILL receive an answer that best suits YOU.  You may not receive an answer immediately or the first time you do this process - but, if you keep asking intently with expectancy - you will be amazed at the wise answer you receive. The answer will be personalized to meet your unique needs because it is coming from our inner wisdom.  Such answers are "revelations."  Revelations create more powerful, lasting changes than resolutions ever can because they come from inside you - not from external "shoulds."  However,  don't take my word for it - just try it!

Wisdom of the Day:  "Knowledge is always changing, but wisdom, through the heart-activated intuition , is deeper and wider in its scope..." Freeze Frame by Doc Lew Childre.
  

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: Holiday Eating in the Spirit of Yoga

My dinner table won't be quite as laden with culinary delights tomorrow, Christmas Day, as this one. However, my family will have holiday fare and more festive and higher calorie choices than we usually do for dinner.  What does holiday food and eating have to do with yoga?  Well, the cliche is that people tend to overeat and over drink during the holidays because of the myriad delectable and often highly caloric choices that are hard to resist (although, hopefully, in your home you have been cooking more healthfully using more natural, organic choices with less added sugar, salt, or preservative....)

If you want to enjoy the holidays without gaining the proverbial extra 3-5 pounds- just apply the yoga techniques and approaches I have discussed in this blog.  It's okay to indulge a bit  (notice the word, bit!) However, just as I recommend doing your yoga poses with total mindfulness - do the same with your holiday eating. Be AWARE as you eat!  Ask for small or modest portions (like taking baby steps when you learn a pose) When you lift your fork to your mouth with that piece of warm pumpkin or apple pie - inhale the fragrance of the pie, look at it, and then chew it - and chew s- l - o - w - l - y.  as you SAVOR the succulent flavor. If you do this with all your holiday meals over the next 10 days, you will eat less while enjoying your food more.  PLUS - you won't wake up to extra poundage when you swing back into your usual routine after the holidays.  May your holidays be happy and healthy!

Wisdom of the Day:  Developing a sense and appreciation of what is good and satisfying to eat, and of what is a proper portion, is a matter of practice and gradual conditioning.~ Mireille Guiliano - author of Why French Women Don't Get Fat.
  

 

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: The "A" in Yoga -Awakening, Attuning to Your Body, and Feeling Alive

I had a recent epiphany....I realized that one of my paths in live is to share ancient and ageless wisdom and techniques.  Hatha yoga is a system of physical poses and breathing techniques dating back at least 4,000-5,000 years ago. Unfortunately, so many of us overlook the simple, powerful tools and philosophies of the past, like hatha yoga, that can enhance our lives. 

Hatha yoga practice awakens your innate wisdom leading to harmony and oneness in your mind, body, and spirit. Regular practice attunes you to your body so that you more easily recognize its capabilities and limits.  You learn that gradually easing into poses over time yields maximum results.  You also become more conscious of how to hold yourself and how to move gracefully off the mat to feel your best most, if not all the time.  The more you do yoga, the more easily you can read the nuances of your body's messages. You will hear its whispers before it starts shouting warnings of pain.  As I have said in many previous posts, sometimes your progress will be slow.  But, I guarantee, if you are patient, you will within at least a few months, if not a few weeks, feel better than you have ever felt.  For me, the "A" in yoga stands for awakening, attuning to your body, and feeling more alive than ever before....

Thought of the Day:  "Remember, yoga is not a competitive sport.  Progress may be slow, but with time, your body will become flexible."~ 101 Essential Yoga Tips.

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: Yoga Poses for a Straight, Graceful, Energizing Posture

I always read the Tuesday fitness section in the daily Washington Post Express paper to see if I can add new tips and techniques to my yoga practice from other regimes.  I often get new subtle pointers to enhance my practice.  Today's article, "6 Ways to Straighten Up:  Get out of your slump with these exercises that improve posture," however, did not refer to any yoga poses.  What an oversight!    But, at least the article reminded me how yoga can improve posture as well as increase flexibility.

I see far too many people in my office and in my daily commute on the metro train who slouch and slump. Not only does it detract from their appearance making them look older, they don't realize how it depletes their energy and can lead to myriad skeletal and other physical ailments!  

If you slouch regularly and paid little heed to how you hold yourself, tension starts to accumulate in your neck, shoulders, and lower and upper back.  Poor posture can even aggravate conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome because, according to yoga teacher Mary Dunn, the nerve impulses that are disrupted in the wrist may originate in the neck, shoulders, and chest!  Apparently, rounding your back can compress nerves and blood vessels to the arm and wrist.

Here's where Hatha Yoga comes to the rescue!  Yoga poses such as the backward hand clasp and the arm and leg stretch can enhance your posture by releasing tension in the neck, shoulders, and upper back as well as add grace and poise to your physique.  As I discussed in an earlier post, an erect posture can enhance your energy and confidence.  As you practice hatha yoga regularly and increase your awareness of your body, you will gain an elegant posture and poise that others will admire.  And, your energy will feel a boost!

Thought of the Day:  "Your posture often reflects your general psychological outlook o life.  Good posture works wonders for you.  It Improves your appearance, brings out your beauty, raises your morale, and boosts your confidence."~  Yoga for Beauty and Health

  

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: How You Breathe IS Important in Yoga

  

Last week I met up with a classmate, Ann, from way back in junior high school.  We lost touch after we went to different high schools.  In catching up on the past decades, I learned that Ann also practices yoga and first took a class in high school (and she looks great - I must add - slim and trim). She said that she has noticed that over the years some of the essence of yoga has been ignored or overlooked by some yoga teachers.  She told me that she had been at loggerheads with one yoga teacher who dismissed the importance of focusing on and synchronizing the breath with poses.  

Wow - that surprised me!  I re-watched the lecture part of Deepak Chopra's DVD, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga for beginners the other day, and attention to synchronizing the breath with yoga poses was emphasized. A key point the DVD makes is that correct breathing in yoga relates to the "Law of Giving and Receiving" because as you inhale and exhale deeply, you are creating an energy exchange. As you inhale deeply you are infusing all the cells of your body with fresh air and as you exhale deeply your are eliminating the stale air.  The awareness of your breathing that you gain from your yoga practice also allows you to maximize your energy level because you are increasing your oxygen intake.

Some other key points I have learned in my yoga studies is that when you do yoga poses, inhale and exhale through your nostrils.  Apparently, an Indian yogi once said that the nose is for breathing and that the mouth is for eating and kissing.  I agree!  So, if you take a class or read a book about yoga that doesn't stress proper breathing - you are missing some of the essence of true yoga.
 

Thought of the Day:  Synchronize your breath with your yoga poses for maximum benefit from your practice.  ~Laura Venecia Rodriguez