Yoga class closure. Home Practice 3.

 

… ……….. I set my timer for an hour when I “move” then set my timer for 10 mins with an alert in the middle and sit and breathe changing the cross at the alert….and then I lie in shavasana for 5 mins . And I get up feeling better and having really enjoyed it. …

………….I favour little and often, so daily or every other day even 5 minutes will help. Your body will tell you if it wants to do more on a particular day. Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a day…………..

Also the joy of keeping things simple:

……The most simple is best as we all don’t have huge amounts of technology knowledge. I went through one of my yoga sessions in my head talking about it and I think some of it is very simple and it can do No harm, only good………

More Tips from readers: Helpful Apps:

• Insight Timer (https://insighttimer.com/meditation-app) . The free version allows you unlimited access to the timer.
• Down Dog and Daily Yoga – these can reinvigorate your practice and give you new ideas…
• I use the Headspace app to meditate each morning – they have just introduced a ‘weathering the storm’ section which has lots of great things in it

 All helpful.  So where does one start??

In class we often settle on the floor in semi-supine, relax the body and back then press into the feet etc.  This helps, I think, to move focus from the busy brain to the feet; to begin the process of grounding from the base; to remind us of balance.  It’s a lovely entree into awareness of breath and the movement of breath.  I wrote about this and mentioned home practice in Active rest if you are interested.

Starting here seems to suit quite a few people:

…….I like the breathing exercise with the mimicking of the breath lungs and belly. Then with the pressing of the feet and the holding of the breath halfway. ….. All this is lovely…….

There is much to process at present; you are being bombarded with information; it behoves me to be brief.  I started with shoulders and some mention of dog pose in Yoga class shutdown. Home practice 1 so have a look at Pete Blackaby’s teaching. of Downward Dog Variations.

This video illustrates so clearly how important it is to make adjustments to classic yoga poses.  The practitioners have an awareness of areas of their body which don’t move as freely as others and they make their own adjustments – based on Pete’s teaching.  There is a wonderful connection here with the feet and our sensing the footprints in semi-supine at the start of a session.

With thanks to Pete for his generosity in sharing his teaching and ideas. You will have links to other teachers whom you trust and from whom you learn.  Your teachers will learn from you.

We are all on the same path, I feel

Stay safe and take on the wise advice give by a reader above:

….Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a day…..