Almost every article related to eliminating stress suggests trying yoga. I have always wanted to do that, but rarely have extra time to teach myself. Luckily, my school offers a yoga class and it just so happens to fit a general education category that I needed to fulfill before graduation. So I signed up, got on the waitlist, and somehow made it into the class. This means I had a free yoga class once a week, I got graded to show up for attendance, and I was able to learn quick positions to implement whenever I have free time at home. How amazing is that?
With school, work and everything in between we can get easily stressed and spend way too much time sitting down. It’s important to stretch your body and release some built up tension in your muscles. Yoga has helped my body relax and loosen up. I recommend yoga to every person, especially those who keep their anxiety and stress in their body like me. Your shoulders need to relax and you can unclench your jaw. Get into the pattern of taking care of your physical health and it’ll also contribute to your mental health.
Here are a couple of my favorite yoga things to do.
- Breathing during each movement. I will always preach breathing techniques to decrease stress and anxiety. 4×4 breathing is what I’ve been doing lately: inhale and count to four, hold and count to four, exhale and count to four, hold and count to four. Repeating that while in different poses instantly calms you down and brings you to a place of stability.
- Getting into child’s pose. This is my favorite pose since I always hold stress in my back and this helps alleviate some of that. You can see in the picture how the stretch helps release tension in the shoulder area. It’s also nice just to relax and take a moment.
- Doing the mountain pose. I love this pose for a couple of reasons. One of the most obvious being the name. If it has anything to do with a mountain then I am 100% down for it. I mean I have a tattoo of mountains so I have them permanently on me! Besides the name, this pose is awesome to just take a minute and breathe. I do the 4×4 breathing and instantly feel empowered. You can read more about it here.
- Saying affirmations while I breathe and transition poses. Affirmations are the BEST. If you say it enough you believe it. If you believe it then it changes your life. Empower yourself and know your worth. Here’s a list of affirmations I found that are so important to believe and repeat. You are amazing and it’s time you know it.
- Maintaining peace. Life is so damn hectic. I barely have time to eat and sleep let alone time to relax. That doesn’t keep me from preaching about self care because it is so important to take care of your mind and body. Taking care of yourself and relieving stress within your body and mental state is crucial to avoid burnout. Life is stressful enough and you don’t need to add on to it by keeping all of that extra nonsense in your body!
Now you know two of my poses and three reasons I love to practice yoga. It doesn’t take much room to do a couple of poses and then continue on with your day, you don’t even need a yoga mat! Close your eyes and center yourself. Yoga is all the hype and everyone should take a moment to try it. You don’t have to be flexible or knowledgable, just a couple of simple poses will help tremendously. Go on and turn into a yogi!