Yoga for Stress

Are you a hockey fan? Do you know who the Vancouver Canucks are? Well if your like me and you've followed them this season you'll know they are right in the middle of playoffs and our beloved
"Presidants Cup" winning team is going into game 7 against the dreaded Chicago Blackhawks, 2 years prior they eliminated us in game 7 and last year Chicago Blackhawks went on to win the Stanley Cup. So what does this have to do with yoga? Well yoga is life and right now, life is
hockey stress and I need help with all the anxiety and panic that these playoffs have brought me.

So I'd like to point with a great stress reducing poses any Canucks fan can use while they watch Roberto Luongo  and his teammates battle towards victory! You can try this either before the game or between periods!

Lie down on the floor and let go. That is all. And that is Yoga? It is indeed. It is called SAVASANA or the CORPSE POSTURE. Not a very pleasant name I agree but all the same it is one of Yoga’s most valuable and powerful weapons against ill health and playoff stress.

Try it. Lie down on the floor, no pillows, just a rug or the carpet. Leave off your shoes and wear as little clothing as possible. Whatever you wear must be light and loose fitting. Now stretch your arms above your head and stretch out your legs and feet. Go on, have a good stretch like your cat does before it settles down to sleep. Close your eyes and let your head roll to one side. Let your hands flop where they will and imagine that your body has no bones and that you are giving your whole weight to the floor. Imagine you are on a cloud and that your body is slowly sinking through it. Keep your eyes closed and think of something peaceful, a lovely piece of music perhaps or the sound of the sea. Put on a soothing record if you like or open the window and listen to the birds. Tell yourself that you are drowsy and comfortable over and over again.

Now then, what about those knots of tense muscles around your mouth, your eyes, your stomach and your legs? Go over all areas of your body and locate any knots of tension there might be. Be stern with them. Make them loosen up. Very likely they will tighten up again as soon as your back is turned so to speak but keep your mind’s eye open and consciously and repeatedly relax any clenched muscles. The worst offenders by far are the muscles of the face. The Canucks have you clenching your teeth and your jaws right now are you not? You would be surprised at the number of people who do that, even in their sleep.  The counter measure is yawning. Open your mouth as wide as you can, stretch your jaws, tense your facial muscles and then suddenly relax them. Keep practicing that movement and you will soon rid yourself of teeth clenching. That in itself is a good start.

So you are lying on the floor in the Corpse Posture and you are finding that it isn’t as
easy as it looks to relax. It is easy to lie down on the floor but you think I am unreasonable to ask you to relax every muscle, do you not ? But it can be done. I can do it and so can many other people. It takes constant practice but how worthwhile is time spent towards this end for Savasana is one of the greatest vitalizers known to man. Perform it whenever you are tired, angry, upset, or fatigued. Perform it whenever the playoffs get to you. It is not time wasted. It is Yoga’s ‘masterly inactivity’ working for you.



Nameste and Go Canucks Go!!

Why I choose Yoga

I've experienced neck pain as a result of and accident which contributed to many years of pain which was extremely difficult to manage.  I couldn't live the active lifestyle I enjoyed for so many years before the accident; I had a hard time concentrating and had difficulty a work driving and sitting behind a computer. I tried chiropractic adjustments but that was too costly to keep up.  Eventually I turned to pain medication which ended up leading to other health issues. Finally,  I gave all that up and tried Yoga. At first I thought I'd try Yoga for  stress management but  quickly realized I could move with greater ease, my joints started to improve and my posture corrected itself. I quickly felt less pain and was less fatigued and best of all....I learned how to manage my stress! and of course the pain is now more manageable! I can tell you right now, I have never felt better mentally and physically and I've found some amazing poses that give me instant relief anywhere!  I encourage you to read my ebook, it will give you some valuable tips for any health issues you may currently be experience and I guarantee if you practice these poses you will experience the results you desire!


For more in-depth study of yoga and how it can help your specific areas of concern download my ebook "Yoga For Your Health", Go here for your instant download now! www.yoga-pose-benefits.com

Why practice yoga?

Why Practice Yoga?


The law of Yoga is the law of Life. What does a statement like that really mean and why do so many of us want to practice yoga these days? I will explore what yoga means to us nowadays as I delve deeper into the sometimes mysterious and mystical side of an art form that has come into it's own in our western culture.What did yoga mean to the ancients?   Where did this passion for a body mind and soul connection originate and how it can benefit us in our busy western culture.

It is said that Yoga embodies the secrets of successful living and combines profound age-old truths with a way of life embraced by the modern mind. Yoga was evolved from the Veda (Sanskrit,"knowledge"), one of the most ancient scriptural books known to mankind in which Indian saints and sages taught that the Universe is one and that all religions are paths ascending the same mountain towards Eternal Truth. The great modern saint, Sri Ramakrishna, is quoted as saying, ‘As many faiths, so many paths.’

But Yoga is not a religion, nor is it a strange mystic cult with chanting and heavy breathing. It is a Hindu system of philosophic meditation and training designed to effect the connection of the student’s soul with God. It is a philosophy which integrates the student’s life and the world surrounding us to achieve a basic harmony and bring balance in the heart and mind of the yoga student.

One of the fundamental belief systems of Yoga is that God is within each one of us but He reveals Himself only in conditions of purity, both spiritually and physically. To function on a higher level, either mentally or physically, the first step must always be to rid the body of the harmful habits that cause disease and which can stifle spiritual development. In other words the yoga student is on a path towards changing behaviours for the better.

This basic principle of yoga aims at establishing a balance in the body so that it functions normally.  When this state of physical balance is achieved the student can gain control of their mind and can realize more lucid thought and reason. It can be very difficult for anyone to gain clarity of mind while battling with indigestion, asthma, a thumping headache or any ills and stress symptoms which we struggle with in the modern world. So the ancients realized that physical ills could drag a person down and the disciplinary science of Yoga was evolved so that the body would be freed from pain and disease.

While the body and the mind cannot be separated and the healthy body affects the mind, not everyone has a goal to achieve union with God or Universal Spirit, which is the primary objective of Yoga, but everyone, would like to know how to improve overall health.

~Namaste

For more in-depth study of yoga and how it can help your specific areas of concern download my ebook "Yoga For Your Health", Go here for your instant download now! www.yoga-pose-benefits.com

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