Yoga Pose - Slacking Off And Getting Stung

Ouch!

This weekend, I didn't do any yoga poses.
Monday, I payed for it big time!

I have sort of a lump of muscles in the
back of my neck, on the left side, that
feels like it grows when I tense up.

I did some yoga poses today, and I can
feel my shoulders slowly falling back down
into place -- with the result that the
uncanny lump of stress in the neck shrinks
again.

What I did, was a very simple breathing
exercise.

Stand in front of a window.

Feel connected to the floor. Feel the weight
of your body being in your legs and feet --
I want your balance to be down there, not in
your stomach or in your chest or anything.

Feel that your feet are heavy, and that you
are in balance, and connected to the floor.

Okay, now, slowly breath in through the nose.
Usually, we breath in fairly quickly, so take
note to breath in slowly.

Hold your breath for a couple of seconds --
this should not be uncomfortable --
then release it through your mouth.

Repeat a couple of times.

Pay special attention to your stomach. We
all seem to pull it in all the time -- maybe
we think we are too fat.

When you do this breathing exercise, let your
stomach go. Come on, nobody's watching you. Be
yourself, as fat or skinny as you are.

Your stomach is probably full of tension.

Let go!

Let relaxation come to you, don't chase it.

Let go! Breath...

Love,
Sten

Yoga Pose - Deep Relaxation 2

Yoga Pose -- Deep Relaxation Continued

...Okay, so when you tighten, then loosen all your muscles, you'll feel how the muscles are connected to each other. Clench your fist, very hard, and then let go. Feel how muscles connected to the muscles you were using voluntarily, also let go.

Having familiarized yourself with your muscles in this, way, the next part of this yoga pose is where the actual relaxation comes into play.

Breath in, slowly, through your nose. Pause. Then let the air out, slowly, through your mouth.

You are ready to enter the state of deep relaxation.

Start with your head. Relax your forehead, your ears, your eyes, your tongue, your jaw.
Releax your shoulders. Your arms, your hands, your fingers.

Relax your torso, your behind, your legs, your feet, your toes.

Become acquainted with your muscles. Know what they feel like when they are tense, and when they are relaxed.

Start over again with your head, and feel residue tension being relieved -- all the way back down to your toes.

You may do it a third time, and feel how you are even more relaxed.

Only when your body is really relaxed in this yoga pose, you can start meditating.

I'll talk about that next time.

See you then!

Yoga Pose - Deep Relaxation

Yoga Pose - Deep Relaxation

Usually, my shoulders are up over my ears. Today, I find them somewhere around the waistline. Oh bliss!

The yoga pose book I'm reading is telling me one thing from the start: Do things very slowly.

That means two things. It means:

- Learn one pose at a time.
- And do that one slowly.

So slowly, in fact, that you do it correctly. Don't worry about learning and mastering a new skill. This is more about letting go. Do it, do it slowly, and care about whether you get your yoga pose right or not, but don't care too much.

Let go.

So I'm letting go.

I haven't bought a yoga mat yet, I'm just using a blanket on the floor, because our floor is too cold (and you cannot relax when you're cold). (Don't let the small things stop you!)

I lay on the blanket. First I tighten all the muscles in my body (that I can find), one by one. And then I notice how it feels when I let the muscle relax again. I get to know my muscles when they relax.

This is the first part of deep relaxation.

Just try it, see what you find.

Don't rush. We'll continue with this yoga pose tomorrow.

Yoga Pose

Hi, welcome to my Yoga Pose blog.

My name is Sten Andersen. In my day job, I'm a programmer, and, as you may guess, leaning over a keyboard all day long leads to a lot of stiffness in a programmer's body.

Recently, I discovered a book full of Yoga Poses that has been transforming my life. Every morning, I do two or three yoga poses. I've done this for a couple of weeks.

Already, my neck is much better. It doesn't hurt as much.
My shoulders aren't up under my ears any more.
I have a lot more energy.

So I thought I should share my thoughts and experiences as I go along.

I'll tell you what every yoga pose does for me.

I hope you'll tag along!

Sincerely,
Sten