Yoga for Stress Management
Are you interested in yoga? Has your partner recently started yoga lessons? Maybe your doctor has suggested you take up yoga as a form of stress management.
Are you interested in yoga? Has your partner recently started yoga lessons? Maybe your doctor has suggested you take up yoga as a form of stress management.
A regular practice of Yoga asanas and breathing exercises can greatly ameliorate chronic stress and tension. When we live in a state of…
This posture is sometimes called “Half Lord of the Fishes pose.” The name can be traced to Sage Matsyendra. Ardha Matsyendrasana can be confusing to some, but it releases physical tension within the entire body. Physical tension stored at a desk, in a car, and on the couch is a recipe for stress overload.
Yoga training methods remove mental baggage that burdens the spirit and body with unnecessary worry and unresolved issues. In the yoga state of mind, the practitioner develops a unique ability to view thoughts, which were formerly blocked or restricted by immediate issues.
Yoga students may be able to reach these states naturally. Others will need a great deal of patience and guidance from you as their teacher. By focusing on asanas that promote relaxation, practicing meditation and incorporating Yoga Nidra into the routine, stressed out students will find it much easier to obtain the deep state of relaxation they are longing for.
The asanas also re-align the spine, which helps to increase the free flow of prana or life-force energy throughout the entire body. Stress and muscular tension often cause us to feel more tired than we really are and contribute to mental tension as well. As the tension is released, optimal spinal alignment is restored and energy flows more freely. At the completion of a Yoga class a student will feel that the sensation of tiredness and stress is eased and replaced with a feeling of lightness, expansiveness, and complete well-being.
Forward Bending Yoga poses are particularly soothing and nourishing. Forward Folds also help to calm you down because they encourage you to relax into the pose while pulling your senses inward, which allows you to rest for a few moments in your own inner essence. Forward Bending Yoga poses also allow you to curl your body into itself while protecting your heart and abdominal areas. Additionally, Forward Folds open up your hips and first chakra area, which releases stagnant survival energy and helps you to feel more empowered and grounded.
This practice can have a profoundly healing effect on Yogis and Yoginis who may be struggling with self-defeating thoughts and beliefs that create fear and anxiety within. As we continue to gently pull our minds away from repetitive thoughts that create anxious feelings and focus our minds instead on positive, true and uplifting thoughts, we are literally restructuring the synaptic connections in our brains.
Mental clarity can increase, along with focus on intent, allowing the yoga student to be more present during his or her practice. This heightened sense of presence will also encourage a student to become more committed to his or her yoga training sessions. This boost in confidence can have an amazing upward spiral effect.
A regular practice of Yoga asanas and breathing exercises can greatly ameliorate chronic stress and tension. When we live in a state of…