Every September, National Yoga Month inspires us to climb our mats and reminds us of the magic inherent in body-mind connection, but for many practitioners, COVID-era courses have taken their course.
Syed Aqeen
We can all admit that there are times when we feel like the last thing we want to do is look at a computer screen. If Zoom and pandemic fatigue nearly dulled your senses, Brooklyn-based Latham Thomas, founder of the Mama Glow maternity logo and writer of Own Your Glow, suggests some other way to reinvigorate your practice. “This moment presents an opportunity to lean into the branches of yoga and focus on the philosophy rather than the physical,” he says. Collectively, we are restless, anxious, even lazy; Full of uncertainty about the future. In addition, he adds, “many other people get bored with their practice and say it is not as satisfactory. ” But there is a silver lining to the coronavirus lockdown, according to Thomas: By slowing down and leaning on unpleasant and uncomfortable feelings, we are adapting to what we wish to prosper. This “reprogramming” can help us rekindle our inner spark and regain our lost yoga glow. “Your emotional frame wants to rest, so how can you practice active rest?” she asks. “How much area can you make for yourself? How would it feel to focus on your desires, not your physical desires, but your psychic desires? Use this as a compass for wisdom. Regaining your yoga glow is expanding your ability to receive. “
see I also tried to fast to dopamine and this helped me appreciate the present
Everything we would do to anchor ourselves in times of stress, anxiety or tension, such as meeting in our yoga classes, kissing our friends and family, and being close to other living bodies breathing, has disappeared from our lives for months. “it’s a collective duel, a weight, a weight similar to everyone’s, we all feel the effects of the same set of circumstances, but in other tactics all at the same time,” he says. “We’ve been blocked internally, however, we’ve also had to deal with what’s happening in the world around us, and we’re not getting the increase in the network we’re used to. “
Thomas says the invitation now, for all of us, is to pay attention to what’s going on inside us. “What does our inner landscape look like right now?”She asks: “There is a way that is also yoga – it goes beyond the situations that demand us in a way that is not necessarily physical. “
For a yoga mat to help you locate your alignment, refer to the Ewedoos Eco yoga mat with alignment lines.
For Thomas, the practice of active rest begins with giving himself permission to feel rather than think. “In this moment of quarantine and confusion, it is vital to anchor in possibility, revel in grace and embrace the power of tranquility, ” he says. By channeling emotional intelligence, we rely on the parasympathetic nerve formula to discover the taste of incarnate practice that will be the most productive painting for us right now. “We can perform an intentional practice around rest that is more considerate and less robotic,” Thomas says, adding that active rest can come with movement.
see also How Yoga Nidra Can Sleep More
It is imaginable that our yoga practices have mentally prepared us for this very moment in human history. Thomas says that in 2020, practice reminds you that it’s general to stay in bed and sleep a little longer and that it doesn’t matter if you’re exhausted, because there are so many reasons to be exhausted. “It is wise to hear what your frame needs,” he says. Do not show yourself on your mat, show yourself to your life and adhere to the landscape that teaches us the philosophy of yoga. “
Thomas says his COVID-era practice is very different from what it used to be: it’s quiet and lonely and helps keep going up and down. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we started seeing more active rest categories in 2021 when we can go back to the world,” he says.
For a journal to track gratitude, see Good morning begins with gratitude: a 52-week consultant to cultivate an attitude of gratitude
The somatic paintings Thomas has explored in recent months, especially moments of anxiety and uncertainty, connect the framework with a higher consciousness. For National Yoga Month and just in time for the essentials of autumn, Thomas divides his practice into 3 portions for active rest. relaxation. The practice deserves to last between 15 and 20 minutes from start to finish, or longer if you wish. “The framework is so resilient because it’s the arbiter of safety, security and belonging, and this practice invites us to sing with our bodies, fight your way and locate the trail that makes the most sense to you,” Thomas says.
It’s not too late to enroll in our National Yoga Month program to re-engage you in your practice, whether it’s five minutes of active rest a day, a quick pranayama or meditation, or a full class of asanas.
Syed Aqeen
1. Self-research
Organize a sacred area in your home, if you haven’t already, and stretch out on your mat using all the accessories you want to be comfortable and cozy. You can also see this outdoor practice, measuring on the floor to recharge batteries. As he deepens his breathing and opens up to the wisdom of his structure, he creates sending breathing to each and every component of his structure, starting with the feet, legs, knees, etc. , to the head. While breathing and listening, you can learn about your frame when you take the time to listen. Ask yourself the following questions for self-reflection:
Where do I joy in my body?
Where am I calming down?
Where do I do a constriction?
Where do I open?
see also Try this restorative yoga series with hip opening for rejuvenation
2. Vocal toning Once calm and calm, continue to extend your breathing, but with each exhalation, emit a low hum with your lips closed. The vocal tone is not harmonic, Thomas says, but a single solitary note that looks a lot like your voice. Each hum generates an internal frame massage and stimulates the vagus nerve. The tone of the voice slows down the picture and brain waves and anchors the nervous system. The throat chakra (vishuddha) is also activated, expanding the ability to tell the truth. By strengthening his voice, he can pay attention to his inner voice, Thomas says: what has been buried beneath the surface that he has not said aloud will begin to be revealed. To begin with, Thomas advises starting with five minutes of toning and, over time, as plasticity increases, up to 10 to 15 minutes. When you allow yourself to feel rather than think and introduce a general rest state, you allow moments of clarity as you move from an active brainwave state to an altered state of rest (theta and delta waves). ).
By reaching this “spiritual resistance,” you bring to the surface what’s uncomfortable like taking a sponge, impregnating it, and draining it,” Thomas says. You can also hum with undeniable and repetitive drone sounds or ambient music. The YouTube app are resources. You can record the wisdom that looks like a voice note on your iPhone or write in a notebook: “Letting this happen is a medicine,” Thomas says.
The next phase of this procedure incorporates an undeniable mantra such as “Ah”. The throat and pelvic floor are neurologically coordinated, Thomas says, and when the throat chakra tells the root chakra to open, a path to artistic responses around what bothers you and what you want to fix will appear. This “artistic vortex” is a portal that opens when you enter your non-public “medicine melody,” according to Thomas. Enjoy the resonance of sounds and sensations in your frame as you go. is someone in his family with whom he can associate, Thomas says the pleasure of doing this practice face-to-face on the ground or sitting back to back is deep. – and you hear their voices and exercise your voices together,” she says. “Things happen simply by using your voice or voices unhindered – just start by letting the sound go by and adjusting the medication and the cleaning agent. “
For a thick blanket to use in your practice, see this Mexican blanket, Fake blanket
3. Establishment of intent To close the practice, ask yourself what steps you will take, not in a way full of life and goal-oriented, but in a loving, gentle and nourishing way to remain spiritually anchored. list, which is useful for setting goals, this moment requires freeing us from expectations.
Ask yourself what situations are necessary for it to thrive. ” We have a tendency to set beautiful and difficult goals, but then life is stratified: there are young people and schools at home, their work, etc. , that worry us,” Thomas says. . ” Don’t worry about what you didn’t realize or didn’t achieve. “Thomas reminds us that yoga in 2020 is not about pushing to the limit but about reorienting your approach. Ask yourself what it means to “practice” in all facets of your life, not just on the mat, advise. “It’s not about being on a posture set, it’s about creating a prostration to pay attention and you can get what’s for you with the equipment you’ve grown. “
Get out of this practice with new promises you’ve made to yourself, telling you what you really have the ability to do. Thomas recommends starting the day with an active rest in the morning, and if your body needs to move, look at a smooth flow at noon, although in the end, it’s up to you what you need whatever your practices are, use them as a team to be in direct contact with yourself and what’s going on around you, but do it in a sustainable way.
see also Deepen your self-awareness with this healing yoga and gentle and holistic meditation
About Latham Thomas (@GlowMaven)
Named one of Oprah Winfrey’s Super Soul 100, Latham is leading a revolution in radical non-public care, guiding women around the world to “value themselves first. “A celebrity specialist in wellness and doula at birth, Latham is the founder of Glow Mama, a global maternal and doula education society that serves others who give birth to the reproductive continuum, Mam Glow supports others who give birth during fertility, pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum by providing them with control through their personalized doula services. it offers a world-renowned doula immersion program that involves others from all over the United States and 6 continents. They are educating doula apprentices around the world to become the next generation of midwives who will reshape the modern physical care formula for childbirth. and babies. She is a strong advocate of equity at birth and works to fill gaps in maternal fitness policies.
Syed Aqeen
Get your own sparkle: a poignant guide to a luminous life
We independently purchase all the products we offer in yogajournal. com. If you purchase from the links on our site, we will possibly get an associate’s commission, which in turn supports our work.
Andrea Rice is a freelance journalist and editor of yoga journal, her paintings have also appeared in the New York Times, Verywell, The Wanderlust Journal, mindbodygreen, SONIMA and NY Yoga Life, among other publications. He has been yoga coaching since 2010 and his first book, The Yoga Almanac (New Harbinger; 2020), aligns a yoga practice with the seasons. Andrea lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she teaches categories of yoga, meditation and artistic writing and painting workshops. Connect with her on Twitter and Instagram.