Child's Pose (Balasana) is a great way to help relieve stress and fatigue as well as calming the brain. In addition you'll get a nice stretch in the back, hips, thighs, and ankles.
Start on your hands and knees. As you sink your hips back towards you heels, continue to actively lengthen your arms forward. Draw your shoulders away from the ears as you lengthen the neck and continue to glide your shoulder blades down your back. Rest the torso on the top of your thighs or widen the knees to release the torso in between. Turn inward and forcus on thr rhythm of your breath. Hold for 30-60 seconds.
Mountain Pose
I went hiking with a friend yesterday, exploring a local ravine. We retreated into the meandering narrow gorge... discovering and observing the beautiful erosion running water had created. I took several opportunities to stop and have myself captured in a yoga pose within nature.
With little trail along the gorge, much of our travel entailed hiking through it as opposed to beside it. Deep into the gully, I felt completely immersed. Amongst wet soil and leaves... and water rapidly flowing over rocks, it was challenging to find a place to firmly place my feet. Focusing and considering my next placement, our excursion became quite a meditative experience.
At certain points along our journey, however, I felt timid. With one foot securely anchored upon one rock and the other hovering ...I found myself wondering where my next step should be. Once I decided, uncertainty arose... and I questioned it's security. Conjuring up my courage and belief that I would land firmly on my feet...I would leap. And as we progressed through our hike, I found myself moving more freely and confidently.
My experience yesterday mirrors my life at times...especially now. I am grateful that I practice yoga and take trips into nature to help me remain grounded. Mountain Pose, a basic standing pose in yoga, is simply standing strongly on your own two feet. Sometimes knowing that the ground is solid beneath us is just what we need to take our feet away!
Yea...it looks silly. And yes, you may feel a bit ridiculous... but think about how great you'll feel as you roar away built up tension. It's time to shed your inhibitions and any barriers that no longer serve you.
I do this pose frequently in my kids yoga class. Guess what? Kids have no inhibitions. I also do this pose in my senior yoga class. They LOVE it! I attempt it in my regular hatha yoga classes...I barely hear a peep. We don't want to embarrass ourselves and look silly. Lion Pose is out of our comfort zone.
Let's do it together while no one else is watching. Here's what you do:
Sit comfortably in a chair and place your hands on your knees with your fingers spread far apart. Take a nice deep breath in through the nose. As you exhale, open your mouth wide and stick your tongue out with the tip stretching towards your chin. Simultaneously, stretch your eyes wide open and raise the eyebrows. Say "Haaaa".
To get extra toning, alternate with Prune Face. Tense and squeeze the muscles in your face, pursing the lips. Repeat each 3 times. Have fun. Feel great!
Yoga offers many metaphors for life. The further we can stretch in yoga class, the more we Stretch in Life. Learning to establish a solid foundation in our standing poses helps us to Remain Grounded when chaos disrupts our calm. Similarly, Finding Balance in our yoga poses reflects the balance we have created, or lost, in our lives.
It is a very distinctive feeling when our lives are out of balance. Nothing feels good about teetering on the edge.
There is a constant ebb and flow. The conditions that existed yesterday maybe different today. The key is to not remain rigid but to be willing to shift your weight, so to speak, and Be Open to Change. We may need to make different choices today to Maintain Equilibrium.
There is a similar approach to establishing and maintaining our balance in yoga class as we do for our lives. Here is a basic yoga pose that helps increase our balance: Tree Pose
Start in Mountain pose with your legs hip width apart and your feet in a parallel position. Begin to shift your weight to one foot as you ground and root downward. As you bend the opposite knee, begin to rotate your knee externally towards a 90 degree angle. If you are feeling balanced, begin to lift your foot away from the floor and place the arch of your foot on the calf muscle of your standing leg. Be sure to avoid the knee area.
Strengthen your pose by firming up the muscles in your standing leg as well as the muscles in your core. Continue to keep lifting and lengthening your entire body upwards. The palms of the hands can come togther in prayer position in front of the chest or you can extend the arms upwards towards the ceiling. If your balance feels compromised, be sure to hold onto a chair or wall.
Enjoy the Grace and Elegance of this beautiful pose. Learn to Be Patient and Kind to Yourself if you begin to lose your balance. Simply come back into your pose whenever you are ready.
Perhaps I am stronger than I think
Thomas Merton quote
I love the standing postures in yoga. I enjoy feeling Anchored and Grounded into the earth. Feeling solid in your standing yoga poses help you to be more solid in life. That comes in handy with so much unexpected coming our way.
The Warrior Poses in Yoga give us an opportunity to not only build physical strength but to acknowledge and access our Personal Power and inner strength.
There are three Warrior poses. Today we will focus on one in particular... Warrior II.
Start in Mountain Pose with your legs hip width apart and your feet in a parallel position. Lengthen both arms out to the height of your shoulders. Step your feet out wide in a straddle stance, approximately to the width of your wrists. Turn your right foot out 90 degrees and bend your right knee so that it is aligning over your heel or ankle. Root your feet down towards the earth as you continue to lift and lengthen through your body. Keep your shoulders relaxing down away from the ears and the chest open as you lengthen both arms out long and strong. Turn inward and discover your breath.
Think about an area of your life that you need to access your innate Inner Strength. As you draw this into your minds eye, feel the strength in your body and your Warroir stance. Repeat an affirmation that reflects your intention of personal power such as "I stand strong despite any challenges I face".
As you lengthen your right leg, turn your foot forward and repeat on the left side.
Get a quick natural energy boost. Stand or sit with your fingers interlaced behind your back. If this causes too much discomfort, draw the arms and hands to the rear of your body with the palms facing inward towards each other as if you were holding a beach ball behind your back. Now with the chest expanded, take in a deep breath. As you exhale, return the arm back to a neutral position to the side of your body. Repeat 2 more times then shrug your shoulders up towards your ears on an inhalation and release your shoulders down on an exhalation.
