How can my practice help me today?

BUILDING A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR MAT
In my recent article ‘10 Reasons to build a home practice’ I shared the benefits of stepping on your mat when it suits you, and practicing exactly what you need, as often as you like. In this article I use my own personal practice as a case study to show you how you can tailor your practice to your needs and get the most out of your time on your mat. You will find an accompanying tutorial for this article called ‘Tailoring your practice’ in my YouTube channel. If you’d like to download a fresh ‘Practice self inquiry’ and ‘The benefits of yoga’ go to ‘10 Reasons to build a home practice’.

When I started home practice I noticed the closer I got to my practice the better I became at tailoring to my ever changing needs. With time I learnt which poses to practice to support me with whatever I brought to my mat. My mat has become my comfort blanket that has seen me through over 20 years of life's ups and down and I hope it will continue to support me for many years to come. My relationship to my practice is a give and take relationship. If I don’t show up on my mat I don't get to experience the many benefits of yoga, if I push too hard I increase my chances of injury. I hope to help you establish your relationship to your practice, reap the fruit of your efforts and enjoy every minute.

HOW MY PRACTICE HELPED ME TODAY!
This is my self inquiry which I filled out at the start of this week. I used it to help me get the most of my time on my mat with more directed pose choices. Each day I step on my mat I check through the list to remind me what my focus for my practice was and revised ‘What is the rest of my day like?’ for each day. I usually review it at the start of each week and fill in another inquiry if other needs and issues arise. When I have the inquiry filled out I start to build a picture of which pose families will best suit me each day.

Here is the translation of my self inquiry into ‘pose families benefits’ from the benefits list below. I have highlighted:
Ease headaches - headache relief.
Eases stress & tension - overall muscle tension relief, stress relief, clenching jaw in sleep.
Builds strength - glutes, ankle.
Aids relaxation - mood balanced but teetering some days.

For my sequence I picked warm ups, standing poses, backbends, forward bends, twists, seated, gentle inversions and a restorative Savasana. I also picked a peak pose of Natarajasana/Lord of the Dance which is a standing, backbend pose. It will help open my chest, strengthen my glutes and ankles, and stretch my shoulders and hamstrings. It also deeply stretches the hip flexors which are a family of muscles deeply connected to the sympathetic nervous system (fight & flight response) addressing my underlying stress levels.

I go back to my list again to check that I addressed all my needs. My energy levels are not bad but because I have a busy day ahead I am going to practice gently and leave out arm balances which are a more strenuous family of poses. Seated poses are ticking lots of boxes for me at the moment so I will spend more time than usually in my seated poses and be sure to include some seated forward bends and seated twists to tick two families in one pose. I also remind myself of my two injuries that I need to consider throughout my practice.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
Below is the sequence which I created with an overlay of the pose family symbols and muscle group symbols. You will find the symbols guide in your 108 Asana deck or you can go to the asana section. This illustration gives you an ‘at a glance’ reason behind why each poses features in the sequence. Its important to note some of the multiple benefits are retrospective bonuses. There are many benefits to each pose. Poses you pick for one issue from your self inquiry will most likely address other issues too. For example I picked the last pose on the first row to prepare my quads and hip flexors for my peak pose, but you will see from the benefits list it will also help relieve stress and tension because it is a backbend.

ALIGNMENT CUES
The peak pose for my practice at the moment is Natarajasana/Lord of the Dance. This sequence stretches you in all the right places and strengthens you in all the right places to prepare you for Natarajasana/Lord of the Dance. If this is a pose that you struggle to balance in stand by a wall for support. If you can’t quite reach the back leg you can use a belt to extend your reach.

Have a read of the tips below and either print out the sequence or save it onto your device:

• From Tadasana, hands on hips, inhale, pour your weight into your left foot, bend your right leg back and lift your heel up towards your right buttocks.

• Reach your right hand back and hold onto the outside of your right foot, lift your right foot up and back, press your foot into your hand and your hand against your foot, hips level and squared forward, right knee in line with right hip.

• Extend your sternum forward and up, broaden through the collarbones, shoulders level.

• Reach your left arm up high, press your thumb and forefinger together, gaze to the fingers of your left hand.

To save the images for personal use on your phone click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Malasana - Squat

HIP MOBILITY & STABILITY
Recently I’ve been sitting writing articles more than I usually would and my hips are feeling it. This spurred me on to explore Malasana/Squat as my pose of the month. When I first practiced this sequence I found the repeated rounds of Malasana/Squat tough going but as the week progressed my hips started to feel stronger, more flexible and I was able to hold Malasana/Squat for a longer period of time. I have been practising this sequence for the last two weeks now and my hips are singing with glee. Malasana/Squat has so many hidden physical and mentally benefits and I’m definitely feeling them all.

Malasana/Squat was once the way we all sat before we invented the humble chair and is still the sitting method for many cultures. It is very strengthening on the leg, core and pelvic floor muscles. The ability to squat is important to maintain for everyday mobility. We squat down in our day to day life when we pick something up from the ground or tie our shoes. My son is a keen rugby player and squats for five minutes everyday as a way to keep his hips, knees and ankles strong and injury free. You don’t have to be on your mat to take a squat. Malasana/Squat teaches the body to find the natural curves of the spine again and is perfect to add into your movement breaks if you are sitting for long period and working from home.

THE BENEFITS OF MALASANA/SQUAT
Malasana/Squat stretches the inner groin and hips, strengthens the hip flexors, lower back, knees and ankles. It is a very good pose for keeping the knees and ankles flexible and strong at the same time. It encourages strengthening of the pelvic floor, increases circulation to the abdominal organs, aids digestion and eases constipation. As with backbends and twists it stimulates a healthy gut which has a strong link to our moods and emotional well-being. Stress leads to gut issues and similarly gut issues lead to stress. 95% of serotonin (the happy hormone) is produced in the bowel, stimulating the gut and releasing these happy hormones into the system relieves stress, tension and anxiety.

EXPLORING MALASANA/SQUAT IN YOUR PRACTICE
This sequence will gradually prepare your hips for Malasana/Squat. Malasana/Squat mini flow is preceded by a Utkatasana/Chair mini flow. Utkatasana/Chair is a perfect prep pose for Malasana/Squat. It strengthens the glutes and has many of the same muscular actions as Malasana/Squat – hip and knee flexion, spinal extension and grounding down through the three points of the feet. For the first three Malasana/Squat mini flows move in and out of the pose with a steady and lengthened breath. Look for the point in your descent where you want to speed up and try to consciously slow it down. For your final Malasana/Squat before you come to your seated poses, pause for three to five deep breaths and feel the full opening of the pose.

You can also check out my Instagram post on Malasana/Squat to play around with different versions of the pose. If you notice your knees collapse in it is an indication that you might have tight inner groins and weak glutes – squeeze your outer glutes to externally rotate your hips and only go down as far as you can keep your knees in line with your feet. If you notice your lower back rounds forward you might have a weak lower back – place bricks under your hands and press into them to lengthen up through the spine.

ALIGNMENT CUES
You will come through three rounds of Malasana/Squat and a final one before you come down to your seated poses. Notice how the first round feels compared to your final round in terms of comfort and depth of the pose. If you practice this pose for a week or two you will start to notice great improvements in your hip mobility.

Have a read of the tips below and either print out the sequence or save it onto your device:

• From Tadasana/Mountain, inhale, feet wider than hip width, feet slightly turned out, hands in prayer position, exhale, bend your knees and sit down in a deep squat.

• Press your elbows against your thighs, hug your outer hips to the midline, let your pelvis become heavy down towards the back of your heels. Lift your inner arches and inner ankles.

• Broaden through the collarbones, draw your navel towards your spine, lift your pelvic floor. Lengthen through your spine to the tip of your crown, gaze forward.

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To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

10 reasons to build a home practice

MEETING YOUR NEEDS ON YOUR MAT
Home practice gives you the freedom, in the safety of your own home, to step on your mat when it suits you and practice exactly what you need, as often as you like. Putting aside some time for yourself and developing a home practice gives you the tools to take ownership of your wellness through yoga. Building a relationship with your practice, and getting to know your strengths, your limitations, your favourite asana, helps you tailor your practice to suit your needs.

HOW CAN MY HOME PRACTICE HELP ME TODAY?
Learning to listen to what you need each time you practice and having no expectations of yourself, is an important part of home practice. Each time you turn up to your mat is a new experience and is best treated with fresh curiosity and self inquiry. When you step on your mat take a few moments to work out how your practice can help you today. Ask yourself these questions:

You may not have the answer to all the questions but it will help remind you if you have an injury you are minding, if you need to go easy because you have a full day ahead or if you are dealing with something else in life that might require you to be extra kind to yourself. Using the benefits list below and the answer to your questions you can start to build a practice unique to you and your needs.

10 REASONS TO BUILD A HOME PRACTICE
1. Covid friendly! - Yes, my number one reason to build your home practice is to build resilience in a world that is in complete turmoil. Covid, and all the anxieties of uncertainty that come with it, will be with us for some time to come. Your wellness is in your hands, it is your responsibility. Investing in your home practice will help you feel stronger physically, mentally and emotionally. You will feel more able to deal with this unprecedented and challenging period in time. It is also a sole practice, an added Covid bonus!

2. Your home practice is there to support you, when it suits you, as often as you like - now that lots of us are working from home it is the perfect time to build a home practice into your day. We all know that building good routines is an important part of wellness. A morning home practice will get you up at a set time, start your day off the best way possible and you will feel the benefits for the rest of the day. Alternatively an evening home practice will set an end time to your home working day and help you wind down for the evening. You can also take bite sized movement breaks of a few seated or standing poses during your working day without inquisitive eyes on you! You choose, you are the boss of your practice.

3. You can create a practice relevant to your needs - your home practice is all about you! You have the freedom to practice exactly what you want each time you practice. This can be as simple as reading your energy levels and practising accordingly, or going into more depth and working out which poses will support your specific needs using the benefits list and the self inquiry questions above.

4. You get the most out of your time on your mat - in your home practice you can get straight to the point and address your needs in a shorter practice to make the most of your time on your mat. Your morning practice can be as simple as a 10 minute mobilisation of your whole body to sit more comfortably if you are working from home.

5. You can play around with your favorite poses - you can practice at your level and not feel you need to sit out poses that don’t suit you the way you might have to in a class scenario. You can also spend more time breaking down and playing around with poses that you find more challenging or poses that you just love.

6. You get the ‘feel good factor’ at your fingertips - for many reasons yoga has the ‘feel good factor’. We all need as much feel good factor as we can get at the moment. Developing a home practice means that you have this fabulous benefit available at arms reach. Yoga doesn’t take up much room and doesn’t require expensive equipment. Fancy yoga gear is optional, all you really need is a yoga mat and you are ready to go.

7. You can practice in private - with the best will in the world we are naturally curious to see what everyone else is doing in a yoga class and comparing ourselves to them. In your home practice you are less inclined to get stuck in self judgement and are more able to practice what is right for you in the privacy of your own home.

8. You build a relationship with your practice - taking ownership of your practice deepens your self awareness. When you build a relationship with your practice it gets easier to notice what feels good v’s what doesn’t, and what feels like enough v’s what feels like too much. In a class setting we are very subservient and are inclined to do as we see or as we are told, even if the poses don’t suit our level of experience or our anatomy.

9. You can support other hobbies and sports - whether you are a cyclist, runner, golfer, hiker – yoga can support you. In your home practice you can incorporate poses that specifically target areas that need strengthening or stretching to support and help you excel at other sporting interests.

10. It is free! - need I say more. With the cloud of uncertainty looming over many of us, free and ready when you need it self care is music to our ears.

JUST GET STARTED
My mission is to help you evolve and develop your home practice. On my website you will find every tool you could ever need to get you started. Have a read of How to build a home practice for a step to step guide to get you started, with YouTube videos to guide you through each of the Home Flows. You’ll also find tips on building good practice routines in 10 Tips to develop a home practice. There are over 100 FREE downloadable sequences in my Sequences section with pose breakdown, pose prep and pose versions too.

My 108 Asana sequencing cards and posters are also the perfect tool to give you alignment cues on each of the poses and a simple method for building sequences tailored to your needs. The best thing about your home practice is that each time you step on your mat you are moving in a way that will support and nourish your unique needs.

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru