Monthly Archives: August 2012

Yoga For Emotional and Mental Stability

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In Class This Week, we’ll focus on three things:
  1. Lunges – We’ll practice variations of the lunge pose, including Warrior 1 modifications, low lunge and high lunge. These poses stretch the groin and legs, strengthen your legs and arms and increase your balance.
  2. Emotional and Mental Stability – We’ll do an 8-minute, 4-pose soothing Kundalini Yoga set (kriya) that does wonders for your nervous system in a very short amount of time and will leave you feeling mentally and emotionally calm, relaxed and stable. It’s my favorite – works every time! Oh yeah!!
  3. Pranic Meditation – In this 5-minute meditation, you’ll focus on your breath and the prana (life force) that is carried by your breath. According to Yogi Bhajan, this meditation “fertilizes the brain” to help eliminate depression and fatigue, provides a constant flow of energy, and boosts your health and intuition.
I hope you will join me this week for this very beneficial practice for your physical, mental and emotional health!

3 Easy Steps To Improve Your Health and Well-Being

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The other day, I was thinking how important two things are: breathing and posture. I thought “If I could get everyone to breathe better and to have better posture, what a difference that would make!” Well, I happen not to know everyone, but I do know you, so we’ll start there! :-)

Then a bit later, I thought “Oh. And move! Gotta add that one!”

So, let me encourage you (and me) on these three things and allow yourself feel the difference in your health and well-being!

First, stop throughout your day for “breathing breaks” and just focus on your breath. Notice if you’ve been holding your breath or breathing shallow. Deepen your breath and take time to draw the life in on the inhales and relax as you exhale. Do this for 15 seconds to a minute several times throughout your day.

Second, take mind of your posture! Stand and sit up nice and tall! Draw your lowest shoulder blade tips down your back as you lengthen the base of your skull up. Lengthen your sternum (breast bone) up as you draw your lower front ribs down. Notice how much easier it is to breathe! See how this goes hand-in-hand with the first thing?!

Third, move your body!! We were designed to move. Moving helps every system in your body. Be grateful you can move and do it! Move in a way that’s fun to you whether it’s yoga, running, swimming, taking a walk, dancing in your living room… just move! Start with five minutes, then build up to 30 minutes a day if you can – any amount of movement is better than none!! By moving your body, you are increasing your health and well-being and you are honoring the One who designed you to move.

Be blessed in your breath, your posture and your movement.

Written By: Cheri Harvey, Owner/Founder Yoga For Real

3 Tips For Better Sleep

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I think we are a sleep-deprived people. Uncomfortable sleep… not enough sleep… not realizing the importance of good sleep…. The results are not good, but the great news is that we can reset our sleep by doing a few things better.

  1. Set your bed time. Good parents do this for their children because we want them to feel good and perform well during their day. Hmmm… why don’t we do this for ourselves? I know I need to set my bed time a little earlier because I have a tendency to sit down about 9:30 or 10:00 to read or watch a little TV before I go to bed and the next thing I know, I wake up on the couch at 3:00 a.m. – ugh! So, I need to start getting ready for bed at 10:00 instead of sitting down to watch TV ;-). I heard a good tip last week – set your alarm to remind you it’s bed time.
  2. Get comfortable. Check what you wear, the temperature in your house, the clutter in your bedroom, the state of your mattress and pillow. These all contribute to a good night’s sleep. I need to buy an new mattress big-time (this means shopping – heeellllllp!!) and I’m trying out different pillows because some go flat or “dead” very quickly. What can you change in your environment to make your sleep more comfortable?
  3. Do some gentle yoga poses, stretches, breathing and meditation before you sleep. It really makes a great difference! Even just a few stretches and three minutes of quiet meditation releases tension from your body and generates calm in your nervous system to help you get a good night’s sleep. Try it and let me know how it works for you!
Here’s to your better night’s sleep starting tonight!

By: Cheri Harvey, Owner/Founder Yoga For Real