Recently my mother and father have been riveted by the benefits that yoga can have for the mind. Specifically, they are very invested in yoga for the mind. They have a yoga instructor that they consult to learn about yoga for, and recently they have been recommending this to other family members and close friends. As a result, my father believed that the stress both my brother and I receive from school can be best dealt with, with a stronger mind. Hence, he has introduced us to his yoga instructor in hopes that we learn how to manage stress and anxiety. With my father showing concern I felt it was only right to have faith in what he believes and try it out. I felt better that my brother was there doing it with me.
From my classes so far, I have been learning the beginner poses of something called the “Surya Namaskar”, also known as “Salute to the Sun”, which is a 12 step practice of gracefully linked 12 asanas together. Asanas are essentially yoga poses or forms of posture. The list of the asanas used in the Surya Namskar are as follows:
- Surya namaskar
- Namaskarasana
- Hast uttanasana
- Hast padasana
- Ashwsanchalsana
- Dandasana
- Astang Namaskarasana
- Bhujangasana
- Parvatasana
- Ashwasanchalasana
- Hastpadasana
- Hast uttanasana
- Namaskarasana
Other than these poses I have also been doing some other forms of meditation in the class. One of them is where we try to visualize our breathing. This is done by exhaling all of our oxygen from the lungs and when we breathe, we have to visualize the path from the center of our chest up to our throat, to the nose, and finally in the middle of both eyes. It was hard to visualize past the back of my throat onwards, hence I am still working on it. The other is a meditation where we relax our bodies and pay attention to what the instructor says. He usually describes a very peaceful scenery and we continue to think about what he says while imagining it. Finally, my favorite exercise is the “Instant Release” technique. This involves tightening each muscle in your body piece by piece, starting from the toes to the foot, then the ankle, calves, etc. Once the whole body is tightened (in one breath), you release all at once. The relaxation received from this is very satisfying and it is a great way to calm down.
Learning Outcomes Achieved:
LO1 – I realized how I am stressed and that I need a proper way of dealing with it, hence confiding in my father.
LO2 – Yoga for me is extremely hard as I am not very flexible, however I have been pushing my limits in order to the asana’s correctly and receive the benefits. I have memorized the 12 step process and am able to incorporate it daily
LO4 – I do classes with the instructor every Thursday and Saturday as a way to show my dedication. I also try a few asanas as a way of relieving stress from time to time
