Christmas stress relief

STRESS & THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
Stress is fast becoming an epidemic in modern society, and the main cause of increasing health issues. Stress compromises our immune systems and makes it harder to fight diseases. The immune system is already under constant attack from external toxins that bombard our system from the air we breathe; the water we drink; the processed foods we eat; the personal care and household products we use; and the computers and phones we spend most of our waking hour in front of.

SYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
The two nervous systems – the sympathetic and parasympathetic – both have their purpose. The sympathetic nervous system causes the fight or flight response. It raises our blood pressure and heart rate; our muscles tense ready for action; the digestive, reproductive and organ system function decrease to increase the blood flow in our limbs. The problem comes when stress puts us in this heightened state of alert all the time the system starts to break down.

PARASYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
The parasympathetic nervous system causes a relaxation response in the body and has a very calming effect on the system. Blood pressure and heart rate decrease; circulation  increases to the digestive, reproductive and organ systems and function returns. The mind calms and relieves stress, anxiety and muscle tension.

YOGA & STRESS
One of the main reason which brings people to yoga is stress. Yoga stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system through breath awareness; slow mindful movement and repetitive flows which allows the mind to quieten.

BACKBENDS
Backbends are energising – they stimulate the digestive system; stretch and expand the lungs and help relieve chronic pain. The digestive system (enteric nervous system) produces 95% of the serotonin (the happy hormone) of the body. Backends compress and stretch the digestive system – stimulating serotonin production and helping to counteract symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress. Click this link to get a full list of backbends.

FORWARDS BENDS
Forward bends are very grounding and relaxing – stimulating the digestive system to boost the immune system; remove toxins from the body and compressing the organs in the trunk of the body which bring new blood flow and oxygen. They also relieve symptoms of sinusitis, insomnia, headaches, anxiety and stress. Click this link to get a full list of forward bends.

TWISTS
Twists are warming and energising – stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system and relieving stress and tension. They also relieve constipation which helps the body stay toxin free. A good judge of a toxin free system is at least one ‘elimination’ a day! Click this link to get a full list of twists.

Click on the sequence above and find some quiet time for yourself over the Christmas period. Take a few extra breaths in your backbends, forward bends & twists. Mix it up with the Immune System Boost sequence to keep you fighting fit through the winter months.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Immune system boost

YOGA & THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
You might notice, at this time of year, a natural urge to move towards certain asana in your home practice, and these same asana cropping up in sequences your yoga teacher guides you through in class. This is no coincidence! Our bodies are more intelligent than we give them credit for. Nature is in tune with the seasons, and sometimes we forget we are part of nature. Winter moves us into darkness and colder weather, and is the time to explore grounding (forward bends & seated) and warming asana (twists & inversions).

Late nights, Christmas parties, foods you may not usually indulge in and the mayhem of Christmas prep – all put a strain on our immune system. Yoga stimulates four systems which boost our immunity – circulation, digestion, nervous & endocrine. Twists and inversions tick all four of these boxes. The practice also brings our attention to the breath – expanding and slowing our breath down soothes the nervous system and helps our lungs fight off respiratory infections over the winter months.

TWISTS
Twists massage and bring fresh blood flow to all the internal organs – stimulating the digestive system for maximum nutrient absorption; the liver and kidneys to remove toxins; and the lymph system which supports white blood cell production. It also stokes your internal prana (life energy) generator and helps you stay warm from within over the colder periods from within. Click this link to get a full list of twists.

INVERSION
Inversions can evoke different responses. For many of us turning the world upside down can be a bit daunting and make us feel quite vulnerable. But you don’t have to spend your day Instagramming yourself in handstand to take an inversion! Inversions are any asana where the heart is above the head – standing forward bends, Downward Dog, Bridge and of course the lovely restorative Viparita Kiranai. Inversions get the blood flowing through your whole body – stimulating the digestive, nervous & endocrine systems. They also relieve stress and help with infertility, insomnia and sinusitis. Some inversions are grounding (forward bends, shoulderstand & headstand) and others are energising (handstand & peacock). Click this link to get a full list of inversions.

AMRITI
In yoga philosophy it’s said that there is a fluid secreted by the pineal gland in the head called Amriti, also known as the ‘fluid of immortality’. In our everyday upright position the Amriti flows down the body and is burnt up by prana energy. Inversions pool the Amriti back into the crown of the head and bring with them regeneration and vibrant health, allowing us to experiencing life at a higher resolution. This is a lovely idea and it's easy to see why inversions are considered the king of all yoga asana! Practising any of the inversions on a regular bases definitely brings a yoga glow to your complexion and gives you a different perspective on the world.

No article about boosting the immune system would be complete without mentioning the relationship between stress and its effect on the immune system. Stress-related illness, ranging from the common cold to obesity, heart disease and depression, are unfortunately rapidly increasing. It is well documented that yoga has a very calming and grounding effect – reducing stress, anxiety and tension in the body, a topic warranting a post of its own which will follow soon.

Click on the sequence above and try to get onto your mat as often as you can over the coming months to support your immune system. Just 10 minutes of Sun Salutations over the festive period and into the new year will make a difference you'll notice.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Anatomy 101 - find your hands

EXPLORE THROUGH TOUCH
From a very early age we explore the world through our sense of touch. The pads of our fingers are especially sensitive, telling us the difference between hard and soft, hot and cold, rough and smooth. We use our hands to comfort ourselves, protect ourselves from danger and express ourselves in good and bad ways!!!

The anatomy of our hands is not dissimilar to our feet. Like our feet, the hands have two arches that runs from the outer edge of the palm to the space between our thumb and index finger. However, our hands are more refined and co-ordinated, enabling them to carry out the many jobs we ask of them.

YOGA HANDS
We bear weight on our hands a lot in our yoga practice, from Downward Facing Dog to the more physically demanding Handstand. Hands were not built to bear weight for extended periods of time. When we practise our asana, we need to respect the delicate architecture of the hand and bring our awareness to building a good practice that supports the hands and wrists.

The key to protecting the wrists is to bring core awareness into your practice and broaden through the collarbones. When you lightly draw your navel towards your spine, activating a soft core lock, it carries some of the weight of your body and takes it out of your hands and wrists. Shoulders hunching forward in our daily activities, and in our practice, can also cause problems in the wrists. It reduces the blood flow to the arms and brings extra weight into the hands, even in something as simple as sitting at your desk.

HASTA BANDHA
In your next practice, bring your awareness to your hands; spread your fingers wide and line your middle finger with the centre of your wrist. Press into the knuckles of your fingers and your thumb and lightly press into the pads of your fingers and thumb. Notice the arch of your palms lifting and, in turn, the point where the palm meets the wrist. This is the area that can cause repeated pressure issues such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Tendonitis. This engagement of the hand is called Hasta Bandha (hand energy lock). It brings a bound and rebound action of energy travelling from the support of the earth up through your body.

Illustrated above is a short sequence you can incorporate into your home practice to support your hands and wrists and keep them healthy and happy. Start with a few Cat & Cow to wake up the spine. From tabletop, reach and extend your right hand forward and your left foot back. Draw your knee in towards your elbow and use your core to lift your knee up as high as you can towards your chest. From Naraviralasana, press into your forearms and lower legs to lift your hips up. Play around with where your gaze is – under your chest, between your elbows and between your forearms – and notice the subtle differences to the core action. Adho Mukha Svanasana with knee tucks warms up the hands and the core at the same time. Finally, Plank to forearm plank can be a very challenging flow and helps to strengthen the arms and shoulders, in preparation for asana such as Chaturanga.

Most of us subject our hands to long periods of repetitious movement at a keyboard, with our shoulders slightly hunched. To get the blood flow back into the wrists and hands make your next practice about supporting them. Print out the sequence above and explore how your wrists and hands feel after bringing your attention to them.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Anatomy 101 - find your feet

BUILDING A STABLE FOUNDATION
The human body is a spectacular feat of nature. Each body part is unique, yet works in complex symbiosis with all the other parts. Even after years of study we’re only just touching the surface of understanding the specific roles of each element of the body. The feet, one of the most fascinating body parts, often get ignored until we have an issue with them! They carry our entire bodyweight on a very small surface area, which through the invention of shoes, is reduced even further.

Our feet were cleverly designed to carry our bodies barefoot. Back when we were barefoot, the intricate muscle and bone structure rose to the challenge of constantly changing surface areas and textures. These days, our feet are constricted in shoes for most of the day and rarely experience anything other than perfectly flat, hard surfaces. When we walk or run, our feet flex and extend; they also rotate from supination (outer rotation of the foot) when we connect with the ground, to pronation (inner rotation of the foot) when we push off from the ground. This circular movement absorbs the force of impact and stores energy to propel you forward into your next stride. Notice this complex movement of your feet the next time you’re walking or running.

To keep our feet healthy, it’s important to give them a chance to spread their surface area and breathe at the end of the day. Take your shoes off when you get home and make a connection with the earth, even if it’s with socks on in your kitchen while you make dinner. Lift and stretch your toes out as wide as you can and place them back down one by one; feel your inner arches become light and listen to your feet sing with happiness!

PADA BANDHA
Start your yoga practice by exploring the three points of each foot: the ball of the big toe, ball of the little toe and middle of the heel; and root down into them equally, while at the same time feeling a lift in the arches. There are three arches in our feet: the familiar medial arch (inner arch), the lateral arch (outer arch) and the transverse arches (mid foot arches). When we root down into the three points, the arches natural lift into a triangular dome shape. This action is called Pada Bandha (foot energy lock) – it brings an awakening of the leg muscles that travels up the entire body. Building strong and flexible feet will help you find your foundation in your yoga practice, cultivating a flow of energy from the ground up. You’ll find that when you take time to focus on the placement of your feet in standing – and even seated – positions, the rooting-down effect will naturally help you achieve better alignment of your body.

Illustrated above are a few poses you can use to connect with your feet in your home practice. Start in a seated cross-legged position, lift up your right leg and hold onto your right knee. Flex and extend your foot a few times, followed by some foot circles to wake up the ankle joints. Repeat on the left side. In Adho Mukha Svanasana try placing a block under the back of your mat and notice the difference it makes when your heels have a surface to press into. From kneeing, tuck your toes under to stretch out your arches. Then place them nail side down to counteract the arch stretch and lengthen out the front of your feet. Place a brick between your calves in Utkatasana and press down firmly into your right foot; circle your weight into the ball of your right foot, the outer edge, the centre of your heel and the inner edge. Repeat on the left side. Staying in Utkatasana, lift your heels and feel the micro-movements in the balls of your feet at they work out where your balancing point is. Finally come into Malasana with your hands on the floor for balance, open your knees out to the sides and walk your feet together until the soles of your feet are touching. Slowly start to find your balance and work towards holding your hands in prayer position at your heart.

Having an awareness and appreciation of your feet will not only benefit your yoga practice but also your day-to-day activities. Print out this foot sequence and try to incorporate some of the asana into your home practice. Maybe even commit to giving your feet an Epsom salts bath once a week and feel the benefits of giving them the love and attention that they truly deserve!

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

The benefits of a morning practice

ONE STEP AHEAD
There’s a reason why the birds sing in the morning - they know that it’s the best part of the day! When you exercise in the morning, you take back a part of your day from all the phone calls, messages and emails. It’s a peaceful and sacred time, which these days is rare!

If you’re thinking ‘I’m not a morning person’, don’t worry, it gets easier the more you do it, and very soon it’ll be second nature to you! Early morning starts also encourage you to get to bed on time and, as a extra bonus, get a better night's sleep. When you have a morning routine it’s easier to stick to it, with the added benefit of leaving your evenings free. With the best will in the world, a busy day, or other evening commitments, can often stop you from getting onto your mat.

GET MOVING
Life is more static than ever before. In the past people were used to daily manual labour and physical activity. These days we have cleverly designed electrical devices to do all the work for us, and we’ve replaced this ‘free time’ with sitting at our desks. To every action there is a reaction, and physical labour has been replaced by overworking our poor brains in a very static environment. Businesses are starting to see the detrimental effect this has on the health of their staff, and are beginning to encourage more activity and mindfulness. In return, they reap the benefits of staff who feel cared for, more alert and productive throughout the day. The physical and mental benefits to your health are well-documented and a hot topic in the media.

THE BENEFITS OF YOGA
Yoga has an abundant range of benefits at any time of day – from an early morning stretch to a lunchtime de-stress or an evening wind-down. The time of day that works best for me is early morning, before I start my day. It resets my system and prepares me for whatever is in store. Starting your day with movement gets you ready for the day and, for those with desk jobs, helps you sit with ease for the rest of your day. Yoga breath awareness helps you use the breath throughout the day to cultivate calm and combat moments of tension in the workplace, with your children, or whatever your daily challenges are, reminding you to pause before you react to situations.

Because of the variety of movements yoga offers, it stretches and strengthens your whole body and helps alleviate morning stiffness. It lubricates and stretches all the connective fascial tissue, which supports the entire musculoskeletal system. It also helps to build a healthy spine - a spine that has been well oiled first thing in the morning is less likely to pinch or tweak during the day. All the supporting muscles have been switched on, and are ready to support the spine for the day. Yoga also improves balance and coordination, building spatial awareness which helps prevent injury.

We are all beginning to understand the importance of good digestion to all-round health. A morning practice wakes up the digestive system. Twisting, stimulating and massaging all our internal organs, it alleviates bloating and helps with a good morning elimination! It also raises the metabolism and keeps it elevated for hours afterwards.

Putting aside some time for yourself is the kindest and most nourishing gift you can give to yourself. This kindness encourages you to make healthy choices for the rest of the day by starting as you mean to go on. Set an intention or a focus and revisit it throughout your day. It’ll bring you back to your mat, your ‘happy space’, and give you renewed strength for the day.

The illustration below shows the huge variety of the benefits yoga offers. If we could start our day with even one or two of the benefits wouldn’t it be worth that little push to roll yourself out of bed and onto your mat to the tune of the early birds?

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru