September 27, 2007

Even Animals Meditate!

Hello from the Yoga Journal Conference in Estes park, Colorado!

I am engulfed in yoga, dance and meditation workshops, yet I wanted to write a quick note and let you all know that I will have some new blog material in the next few days on my experience here at the conference that you won't want to miss.

There are people from all over the world, who came to do yoga and learn how to eliminate stress from their lives.

I have to admit I was suprised to see the little cute furry animal (photo on the right) when I drove in to the conference.  He or she was simply sitting on the side of the field taking a moment and sitting in the basic yoga posture - it appeared that this furry being was meditating.

I guess animals have stress like the rest of us! 

September 24, 2007

Hair Pulling Can Do More For You Then You Realize!

Yoga has been a great help in relieving headaches for centuries. A few of my yoga students have told me they started yoga initially to get some headache relief. The pattern was the same – the headaches would start mid-afternoon and stick with them all the way home from work! They tried over the counter pain medications, which helped at first. But, when they got tired of their desks looking like bathroom medicine cabinets, they knew something had to change. That’s when they looked into finding a more balanced, fit lifestyle.

Not everyone’s athletic, so the idea of doing anything that sounds like yoga might be a bit daunting at first. But most beginners agree that these exercises are really easy. It’s so relaxing at the end of the day. You can get complete relief in just a few minutes, without having to swallow a pill.

Here’s our routine: We start by sitting in a chair with pillows in our laps. We lean over the pillows and let our heads hang down towards our knees. We take a few deep breaths there. We slowly roll up.

Next, we make soft fists and tap our bodies from our heads down to our feet. Then, we gently pull our hair; just like the hair dresser does before they wash and cut it.

We end by lying on the floor or in bed on our backs. We put our legs straight up the wall and just hang out. The whole thing only takes us 10 minutes! Deep breathing and putting your head so it’s below your legs really helps the pressure. If you do it regularly, you’ll find yourself having headaches less and less often, until they become just a memory.