5 Yoga Poses To Help You Live With Ease & Grace
A
beautiful, introverted offering. Heels under hips, knees together for a
bigger low back release, open wide for more opening. Rest with hands by
your feet in a soft shoulder release and a deep nod of respect to
yourself and to the earth on which you dwell. Become aware of how you
treat yourself in your most tender moments. Are you able to be soft in
taking care of yourself, encouraging and comforting when you need to be?
Just observe.
For
any knee or sensitive hip issues, this pose can be done lying on your
back, crossing right ankle over thigh in a figure four position,
reaching hands for the back of your left thigh if flexibility allows.
This is also yummy on a wall.
From down dog,
bring your right knee forward just outside your right wrist. The right
shin does not have to be parallel to the top of the mat, if it feels
better to line up your right heel in front of your left hip crease, take
it. Tuck left toes and inch left leg back, keeping the hips facing
forward, top of the left knee, thigh and foot rooting straight down,
rather than sickeling off to either side. Use a block or blanket under
right hip for support if needed, a block or bolster at the top of your
mat to rest your head.
Observe any tension in
your body. Soften where you can. Witness the thoughts that arise, any
emotions that stir. The hips often carry the brunt of old emotional
baggage, and like a basement, we sometimes throw what we'd like to
forget down there, thinking it's forgotten. To truly move forward, we
must clean out the basement. Merely be aware of what you'd like to
release for good, in your mind, body or heart. Slowly grant permission
to let go.
The
king of all asanas! Fold up mat or place a thinly folded blanket down,
come to hands and knees. Knees over hips, shoulders over wrists, lower
elbows in place of wrists and interlace fingers. Gently place the crown
of your head in the space between your palms, your fingers will support
the back of your head. Root the forearms down as the shoulders soften
away from your neck. Tuck toes and lift hips, walk the feet in and
pause. Breathe here and become aware of whatever shifts occur in the
mind, body and breath. This is a beautiful place to be, but if you wish
to take it further, try lifting your right leg and keeping the hip
square. Without hopping, push into your left toes as your right leg
stretches further into the air and behind you, teetering your weight
until the left foot rises. Pause in a split or engage the inner thighs
and bring the feet together over your head.
This
can also be practiced with the knees tucked into the chest and the feet
lifted off the ground if the full expression isn't quite available yet.
A
beautiful alternative for inversions and heart openers, this soft
posture allows the heart to rest above the head, relaxing for the spine,
calming for the mind. Place a block under your sacrum, align your feet
just a few inches in front of your sitting bones, allow the body to feel
heavy. Arms can go anywhere from above the head for a side body and
clavicle opener, hands soft on the ribs to connect deeper to your
breath, or by your sides, palms up or down.
Close
the eyes and feel the breath. Become aware of both the logical and
emotional aspects of you, the practical and the whimsical. Become aware
of the dominant force, do you more readily listen to your head or your
heart? Are you happy with this balance? What would you shift? Without
needing answers, just allow yourself to remain in calm observation of
what lies within.
Start
lying on your back, take right knee into your chest and gently roll
onto your left hip, stacking right over left. You can place the right
knee onto a block or blanket to support a more rigid spine. Open the
right arm out like a T, or with a bent elbow like a cactus arm. Allow
gravity and breath to take the weight of the shoulder closer to the
earth with each exhale.
Breathing fully into
your gut, become aware of what gnaws at you. What are your sources of
anxiety? Your future based worries? Recognize the impossibility in
living past one breath at a time, inhale into the moment, exhale to
diminish the nerves in your solar plexus. Be kind to yourself, don't
remove the gift of the present because you are worried about the future.
It cannot possibly be controlled, so surrender and find a joy in just
being here now.
Poses take on a special meaning
to each of us, so in practicing these suggestions, open to your unique
experience being alive, being in your body, breathing your breath, aware
of the energy within. Become in awe of being you. All it takes is a
little awareness.
