Your Instant Chill-Out Practice: Alternate Nostril Breathing

Alternate Nostril Breathing, Nadhi Shodhana Pranayama, is a calming and grounding breathing exercise.

This simple yet powerful practice is a wonderful way to chill out the nervous system. Alternate Nostril Breathing is a holistic way to wind down after a stressful day or event.

Just a few minutes of this practice will leave you feeling balanced and restored.

See below for the step-by-step video guide, list of benefits, and written instructions. Give this balancing practice a try to replenish energy and find instant stress-relief.

Alternate Nostril Breathing offers a variety of benefits. Give this calming pranayama a try to relieve stress and anxiety.

Benefits of Nadi Shodhana:

• Reduces stress & anxiety

• Balances the right and left hemispheres of the brain

• Rejuvenates the nervous system

• Improves respiratory function

• Replenishes energy

Let’s Try it:

1. Find a comfortable seat

2. We will use the right hand to guide the breath: Curl your index and middle finger into the palm of your hand.

3. Lightly place your ring and middle finger on your left nostril and you thumb on your right nostril.

4. Close off the right nostril. Breathe in through the left nostril.

5. Close off the left nostril. Breathe out through the right nostril, then breathe in through the right nostril.

6. Close off the right nostril. Breath out through the left nostril.

7. Repeat Steps 4-6 for 5-10 reps. *

8. Sit in meditation and bring your breath back to a natural cadence. Take note of how you feel post-pranayama practice.

• Discontinue the exercise if you become dizzy or light headed. Avoid this practice if your nasal passages are congested.

Alternate Nostril Breathing offers a variety of benefits. Take a few minutes to connect your mind, body, and breath with this powerful pranayama.

Use These 4 Restorative Yoga Poses for Immediate Stress Relief

When we are at ease in body and mind, we feel open, expansive, and grounded. We are able to show up for ourselves, others, and our work fully, and we are our best selves.

However, when we experience stress, we tend to feel scattered, uncomfortable, and unsettled. The physical manifestation of stress might express as inconsistent and short breaths, tightness in the body, and tension in the face.

Stress is a mindset that we adopt (either consciously or unconsciously) in response to a given situation. More often than not, stress is an unsupportive addition to our daily lives.

Restorative Yoga is an antidote to the harm caused by stress, offering an opportunity to step back and reset the mind and body. A restorative practice offers a reprieve from stress that allows us to reframe our approach toward external stressors.

 
It can feel counterintuitive to take a time-out from our day when we feel pressed for time or burdened by an approaching event or deadline. Perhaps the very reason we feel stressed is because we feel short on time.

However, there can be value in taking a few minutes to change the channel in our minds and slow the pace of our inner dialogue. By taking the time to reassess, we might recognize the stress we carry to be unnecessary, and we can address the role of stress as an obstacle to our end goals.
 

Use These 4 Restorative Yoga Poses as Your Go-To Yoga for Stress Relief:

The Restorative Yoga poses below offer a holistic approach to stress relief. Restorative Yoga can imbue our lives with a fresh perspective, introspection, and a broader understanding of our response – a stark contrast to the narrow-minded thought pattern imprinted by stress.

Taking a moment to pause and break the cycle of tension can do wonders for your day, offering ease in the body, mind, and breath. The next time you need to recenter, give one or all of the poses below a try.
 
Props You Will Need: 4 blocks, 2 blankets, 1 bolster, optional eye pillow.
 
If you do not have the yoga props listed, please feel free to supplement with items found around your home. Firm pillows and/or a couch cushion can be a great substitute for the yoga props used in the poses listed below.

1. Restorative Twist

This Restorative Twist is a wonderful way to quiet the mind and gather grounding energy. Support under your belly offers a soothing effect, which alleviates feelings of worry and strain.

Let’s try it:

• Place two blocks on your mat, the first block on its lowest height and the second block on the second height

• Lay your bolster over the two blocks so you create a slope with the bottom edge of the bolster touching the floor

• Snuggle your right hip at the base of the bolster with your knees bent to the left and your hands framing your props

• Keep your navel as close to center as possible and lie down so the front of your body is supported by the bolster

• Tuck your arms underneath the bolster and between the blocks

• Your head can turn toward or away from your knees. Choose whichever option feels best for you neck

• Enjoy each side for up to five minutes

Check out the other poses and the full article on YogiApproved

Stop the Negative Self Talk! Thank Your Body With This Gratitude Meditation

full article published on YogiApproved

A body scan meditation mixed with a gratitude meditation is an excellent way to promote a harmonious mind-body connection. In this simple meditation, you have the unique opportunity to thank your body for all it does for you on a daily basis to radically improve your body image in a new way.

Your body is an incredible system, one which offers you the ability to live and enjoy your life. However, it can be all too easy to forget this and take your body for granted.

By switching up the dialogue and offering your body this gratitude meditation, a different perspective emerges. This newfound perspective focuses on the amazing capacity of the human body rather than on shape or size.

Here’s How to Practice Your Body Scan Meditation:

Find a quiet place. Either sit in a comfortable cross-legged posture or lie down on your back. Begin by taking a few deep breaths.

As you go through the body scan meditation, start at the top of your head and move down through your body. First, create awareness in the body part you are focusing on. Tune into how it feels and all sensations that arise there.

Then, offer it thanks as you bring in the gratitude meditation . . .
 
 Continue reading this article on YogiApproved

a restorative yoga sequence for some seriously sweet dreams

Who doesn't wish they could squeeze in a few more zzz's? Sleep is incredibly important for our wellbeing, proper immune function and lowering our stress levels. Although we might be aware of the health benefits of a good night’s sleep, sometimes it can be challenging to transition from the busyness of everyday life into a restful slumber. If you could use a bit of help winding down for bedtime, check out the restorative yoga sequence below. Taking 20 minutes before bed to slow down and unwind could be your ticket to snoozeville. 

For this practice you will need:

2 blocks or firm pillows, some wall space, a blanket (optional), and an eye pillow (also optional)

Short and sweet meditation

Begin in a crossed leg seated position, back facing the wall. You might want to sit on your block or blanket for additional support. You can also use the wall for back support if this is helpful. Close your eyes and draw your attention to your breath. Before you change your breath in any way, notice the natural rhythm of your breath. Take note of where the breath wants to live in the body and the quality of the breath. Be aware, there is no right answer to these questions. This is not about judgement but rather building awareness. Take this time to check in how you are feeling at the beginning of your practice.

After a minute or two gradually begin to deepen your breathing and begin:

3-part breath (dirga swasam pranayama)

Divide the inhale into 3 equal parts, breathing into the belly, the ribs, and the chest. If it is helpful, you can use your hands to guide your inhale as you move the breath up the torso. Allow the breath to be continuous as you initiate your inhale from the low belly, lift the breath into the rib cage/diaphragm, and then the chest. Once you reach the top of your inhale, take a long, continuous exhale, following the same path in reverse. Repeat 5-10 rounds. You may slowly start to lengthen the breath as you feel ready.

*as with all pranayama (breathing exercises), stop if you become dizzy or lightheaded

Legs up the Wall:

Snuggle one hip next to the wall, knees facing up toward the ceiling

Lay on your back as you simultaneously swing both legs up the wall. You can place your hands behind you to help this action.

Cover your eyes with an eye pillow. 

Take long deep breaths into the belly. Enjoy this pose for 5-10 minutes

*If the legs fall asleep, you can either come out of the pose or hug the knees into the chest for a few breaths and re-stretch the legs when you are ready.

*If the hamstrings are tight, the knees can stay a little bent in this pose. 

Supine Twist

Bend the knees into the chest 

Rock the knees over to the left with your feet  gently pressing into the wall

Stretch your arms out on the floor, in line with your shoulders, chin turned towards your right shoulder

Optionally place your left hand on top of your right thigh to gently encourage the leg toward the floor, thus deepening your twist. 

Breath deeply, finding a smoothed out version of that same 3-part-breath with which we started practice. Hold 10 breaths, then switch sides

Supta Baddha Konasana

Lie on down on your back with an optional low folded blanket under your head. 

Bring the soles of your feet to touch, open your knees to the sides, laying the thighs on either your blocks or firm pillows. 

Gently place an eye pillow over your eyes and a blanket over the belly. A blanket placed on the abdomen adds a sense of grounding, which is very helpful as you ease your way towards dreamland.

Enjoy this pose for 10 minutes. 

When you are ready to finish your practice, draw your knees together and rock side to side a few times. Roll to one side to press yourself up to sit.

Take a few breaths in a seated position, take note of how you feel. Then head to bed for some seriously sweet dreams!

legs up the wall: the cure-all yoga pose

Legs up the wall is sometimes know as the cure-all yoga pose. It boasts healing benefits for ailments ranging from anxiety to headaches to insomnia, making it a go-to yoga pose for just about anything.

I practice this pose almost every day as I find it to be a brilliant way to rest my legs after running around the city all day. It is also a wonderful way to find a bit of energy when you feel like you could use a boost.

Check out the video below for a rejuvenating, relaxing 5 minute restorative practice. This video includes a short and sweet meditation followed by legs up the wall with optional variations. You can practice this sequence any time of day, but it is especially helpful as an afternoon pick-me-up or an evening wind-down at the end of a busy day. I hope you enjoy this powerful healing pose as much as I do!

wishing you a bright new year!

As we bid farewell to 2017 and say hello to 2018, I would love to share with you a practice I have found to be a powerful way to ring in the new year.

A few years ago, I started the tradition of closing out the year by listing all the positive aspects of the past year. No matter how big or small the event, the accomplishment, the blessing, I sit with my journal and list all the beauty that has entered my life. This has proved to be both a wonderful way to reflect on the past year as well as a way to embrace a positive perspective for the year to come. 

Not only does this practice frame the closing year in a positive light but it is very telling as to what IS working in our lives and how we can grow the positive aspects of our lives rather than being overly focused on what we need to change, uproot and shed. 

I encourage you to give this exercise a shot for a happy and positive transition into 2018.

Wishing you and your family a bright and happy New Year!

Much love,
Jenny

City Calm in 3,2,1 with 2-1 Breathing

My yogi toolkit is a collection of short practices I count on to bring balance and calm to my day. These practices are a great way to supplement a yoga practice when I have a few minutes to spare.

One simple practice I carry in my yogi toolkit is 2-1 breathing, or Rechaka Pranayama. This simple breathing exercise doubles the length of the exhale, bringing stress relief to body and mind. It is the perfect antidote for anxiety, insomnia and stress. Unlike other pranayama techniques, this practice can be done anytime, anywhere, without the supervision of an instructor.

Practice this yoga gem the next time you have a few minutes to spare and want to quiet the mind and regain focus. It is a great exercise to have in your back pocket and I highly recommend adding it to your yogi toolkit :)

The how to:

Begin by taking a tall seat, with the legs crossed. Ideally the hips are higher than the knees. Feel free to sit on a blanket or yoga block if this makes this alignment possible and/or feels better for your back. Close the eyes and begin to breathe evenly in and out through the nose.

Once you feel you have established a consistent rhythm, breathe in for the count of 2 and breathe out for the count of 4. Take a few rounds of this breath ratio. As you are ready, increase the breath ratio by inhaling for the count of 3 and exhale for the count of 6, then progressing to a ratio of 4 to 8, and so on. Take care not to push past your breath capacity. This exercise should feel calming and should not create strain.

Take this 2-1 breath for a few minutes, or until you feel the mind settle. Once you feel ready, take a few even breaths, bringing the breath back into a steady, equal rhythm. Open your eyes and continue your day, with a bit more calm and clarity. 

Just a few minutes of Rechaka Pranayama has the ability to quiet the mind. Try it out the next time you need to recenter, such as the next time your train is stalled! Give it a try for instant calm.

A Meditation for When You Feel like You are Going to Lose it!!

It would be lovely if your yoga and meditation practice spared you from that moment that occurs every now and then, when you absolutely feel like you are just going to lose it.

Yoga allows us to process stress in a healthier way but it does not negate the actual feelings that arise both in every day life and on the mat. The practice does, however, give us some tools to better cope with some of the stronger reactions we might have.

Whatever your triggers might be for said potential freak out, we could all use a rescue plan for when we feel like we are at our wit's end and need to keep our cool.

See below for a super simple meditation that can be done anywhere, anytime. Eyes can be open if you prefer and you don't need to fold your legs into a fancy position (unless you want to!)

Breath Count Meditation:

Sit up tall and bring your attention to your breath. Eyes can be closed or open, with a soft gaze.

Begin to count the breaths up to the number 10:

Inhale: one
Exhale: two
Inhale: three
And so on..

Once you reach 10, begin again. No worries if the mind wanders- just bring the breath back to the number you were last on and continue.

Repeat as many times as you like, whenever you need.

Ocean Gazing Lessons: Dharana, the Art of Concentration

Last month at The Shala we took an in depth look at Pratyahara, or the withdrawal of the senses. The limbs of yoga are systematic, the limb preceding the next providing you with the tools you need to enable your best shot at tackling the limb to come. As we flip our calendars to September, and we shift our focus to the 6th limb, Dharana, or concentration, we are uniquely prepared to practice single pointed focus, having taken a big step back from external distractions.

So often as New Yorkers we pride ourselves on being able to focus in the form of working very hard but we often ride the stress train to meet our goals.

When we practice Dharana, the goal is to maintain the calm energy that we developed through Pratyahara while still directing our attention to one place. In yoga this focal point is the breath.

The other day I went to the beach and the tropical storm making its way up the east coast had brought these huge, beautiful waves. When I looked down the beach, 90% of the beach goers were sitting up, gazing out at the ocean. Everyone shared a collective, calm focus directed towards the water. We want to find a similar balance of serene focus in our practice.

There is sometimes a misconception of yoga and meditation that its practitioners are spaced out or ‘out to lunch’. In actuality the practices advocate just the opposite and encourage a tuning in rather than a checking out.

So the question is, how do we collect our attention in a concentrated yet peaceful fashion while maintaining a stress-free mind and demeanor?

Yoga is the union of opposites so the effort and action placed towards achieving this pure attention while maintaining a chill mind is the goal itself. Just like a muscle, the skill of concentration is strengthened the more you ask of it. This limb is attained by the continuous intention to return the mind back to its focal point while at the same time keeping an easy mind about it. Just like the buoyancy and consistency of the ocean waves, your mind can find steadiness through the practice of Dharana with calm, steady practice over time.

Practice Dharana with a Breath Based Meditation:

Sit up tall, close your eyes and bring your attention to your breath. No matter how many times the mind wanders from the breath, bring it back to your breathing in the most loving, kind, gentle way possible. No berating yourself, no guilt, just simply try again and again. The process is the goal and over time this task will become easier. Eventually you will find yourself with not only the ability to focus more acutely but with more energy as your mind is a little less scattered and a little more serene, setting you up nicely for the next limb meditation.