Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles

Do you confine your yoga to the times each week when you’re “doing” yoga?

That’s a shame. You can and should use yoga throughout the day. Yoga means “union” or “yoke.” In yoga, you’re uniting all the separate parts which make up “you” – your body, your mind, your emotions, and your spirit.

Take yoga with you every day

You can take yoga with you by taking note of your breathing as often as you can. Take a deep yogic breath as you sit at the computer, or while you’re waiting for a red light to turn green in your car.

Straighten your body, and do a modified Mountain Pose in the supermarket checkout line.

When you remember your breath, and breathe consciously, you return to yourself – to the present moment, which is all any of us have.

Combine breathing with a mantra

You can combine your breathing with chanting a mantra: try “let go”, or “breathe” or “relax.” Choose a single word, and say it silently as you breathe in and out.

If you’re familiar with Sanskrit mantra, say Om Gum Ganapatayei Namaha as you breathe – this is the Ganesha mantra. Ganesha is the remover of obstacles: remember him when you’re about to give a presentation, or make a phone call on an important matter and say the Ganesha mantra aloud or silently.

[tags]yoga, everyday, mantra, Sanskrit[/tags]

You can keep doing yoga for most of your pregnancy. However, do ask your doctor’s advice first.

“Yoga poses for pregnant women” offers a series of asanas:

Marjari asan (cat stretch pose) Sit with buttocks on the heels (vajrasan). Raise the buttocks and stand on the knees. Lean forward and place the hands flat on the floor. This is the starting position. Inhale while raising the head and depressing the spine so that the back becomes concave. Exhale, while lowering the head and stretching the spine upward.

[tags]yoga, pregnant, asana, poses[/tags]

If you’re new to yoga, it’s very hard to get your head around the fact that the more slowly and mindfully you do your yoga exercises, the more likely you are to achieve your aims of a healthier body, and healthier mind.

“When Yoga Hurts” notes:

… with more than 14 million people practicing yoga or tai chi nationwide, up 136% since 2000, orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists and chiropractors across the country are dealing with the increasing fallout from yoga gone awry. Over the past three years, 13,000 Americans were treated in an emergency room or a doctor’s office for yoga-related injuries, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Take beginners’ classes first

With yoga becoming so popular, many yoga “teachers” are physical exercise instructors who’ve taken a yoga course. Since yoga is an entire philosophy, it’s unlikely that anyone who’s been practicing yoga themselves for less than three years can teach the discipline.

So one of the first questions you should ask the instructor at your new yoga studio is “how long have you been doing yoga?” Next, ask whether the studio has an orientation class for new students. If you don’t get the answers you expect, don’t attend the studio. It’s better to learn basic yoga from a competent instructor in a book or from a DVD than to receive bad instruction.

[tags]yoga, yoga class, beginners[/tags]