by Christa Bedwin, Calgary PWAC member. Christa Bedwin has been a science, math, and general editor and writer for a decade and is a certified yoga instructor. She lives with her son and two cats in a cute little house west of the city.
“In yoga, ‘flexibility’ is an attitude that invests and transforms the mind as well as the body.”
— www.yogajournal.com
Adding a little unorthodox movement is a good edit to your day! Sit on the floor during a coffee break, touch your toes (with knees bent) and hang there awhile on the way to the coffeemaker, or stretch to the side while you’re in your desk chair… anything outside your normal range of movement is good. Yoga need not be complex or formal to feel good, and to be good for you. Much of it is simply a matter of listening to your own body, paying attention to your breath, and twisting, bending, and elongating your body in a way that will make you feel better. Lighter. Shinier.
It might extend your life, improve your concentration, alleviate your aches and pains, improve your digestion and immunity, and help you focus on your work. Or maybe, it will just make you feel good.
At the root of all yoga, as with all life, is breath. And as I thought long and hard about what pose to give as the first yoga gift, I realized that no pose is yoga if it does not involve your breath. So observing your breath must be the first lesson.
Pose: Breath Observation
Benefits: reduced physical effects of anxiety and stress, improved concentration and immune function, improved sleep
Though breathing may be the simplest thing of all, most people forget to pay attention to it. Simple attention to your breath can work wonders; some of the most advanced, complex yoga techniques involve the breath. You can heat up or cool down your body, heal illnesses, and change your heartbeat with ancient breathing techniques. The simplest thing to do is sometimes the most complex to master.
When we are anxious, nervous, or stressed, we breathe faster and shallower. Taking a few minutes out of your day to concentrate on slowing and deepening your breath can improve your concentration, your digestion, and your health. The more you practise this at home, the more automatic it will be to drop into this calm state when you encounter a stressful situation.
How to Do It:
Personally, I am a strong believer of sitting on the floor when you get a chance. Some yogis put rolled towels beneath their buttocks to make a simple cross-legged pose more comfortable. Allow your spine to float up straight.
When I say to sit straight, do not imagine that your mother or your grandmother or your piano teacher is observing you. In yoga, never imagine that anyone is observing you. Instead, look inside yourself. Close your eyes and examine the entire length of your spine, from the floor (or your chair) to the top of your head. Now observe how it moves as you breathe. How does your body move when you take a breath?
Watch yourself breathe from the inside for a while. If it pleases you, put on some music (no need to buy it — many nice playlists of meditation music on YouTube). Or go outside on a breezy day or a hot day or listen to the rain as you sit. Just breathe. Concentrate on the speed, the depth, the clarity of each breath. Feel your ribs expand up and out as you inhale, float back in as you exhale. As you pay attention to your body, you might notice that you want to stretch up, elongating your spine, or move your rib cage forward or back, or curve like the letter C from side to side. Listen to your body and do what it asks. After five minutes or so, ask your breath to slow down. Focus on lengthening the exhalation. Let your thoughts drift. Stop when it suits you. The more you practice, the longer you’ll be able to go and the more you’ll notice. This exercise is very healing for the body, the emotions, and the mind.
Modifications
The most important thing for any breathing observation and exercise is comfort, so if your body will not yet allow you to sit comfortably on the floor, then sit comfortably on a chair that allows you to sit straight up. I do not advise the couch, since you will want to be able to float up very, very straight with a free spine, so that you can feel the elongation of your body and the movement of your rib cage as you breathe.
Further reading:
Go to www.yogajournal.com and enter “breathe” in the search window (note that if you enter “breath” you will enter a whole ‘nother advanced world… learn how to breathe simply, first!)
Further listening:
Go to www.youtube.com and enter Deva Premal or Krishna Das in the search window.
Click play.
Listen. Breathe. Evolve.
The author looks forward to your feedback and/or questions at ChristaBedwin@gmail.com.
