Holiday Yoga: Embrace the Present
Holidays are colorful, joyful and...stressful.
How can you stay calm and prioritize what matters? Yoga postures, breathing, peaceful music and personal quiet time may help.
Isn’t it ironic that the middle of winter, so-often called “the most wonderful time of the year,” is actually incredibly stressful for so many of us? Between buying, wrapping and delivering presents, going to parties (whether we want to or not), visiting relatives and entertaining the kids on school break—on top of all our usual obligations—or for those already experiencing loneliness, the month of December is as likely to be thirty days of dread.
If you are one of the many people who might be feeling overwhelmed by it all, yoga is a perfect way to decompress and replenish the energy you need to get back to the holiday grind.
What makes yoga such an excellent way to relieve stress? It’s because the entire philosophy of yoga is predicated on living in the moment. That is, focusing on where you are and what you’re doing at the present time, instead of ruminating on the future or dwelling on the past.
Yoga can be done in person or online.
Try the format that suits your temperment and schedule.
The seventh and eighth limbs of yoga are dhyana (meditation) and samadhi (enlightenment). Dhyana refers not to the act of meditation itself, but to the sense of peace that comes over us during meditation. Asana, the third limb of yoga which is the practice of the yoga postures, is a perfect way to achieve this peace, because when we perform yoga, we are forced to concentrate on our bodies, not our troubles or the world around us.
Meditation may use the breath for focus, tools like sound, guided meditation or simply being quiet.
Reaching samadhi means you’re able to live constantly in the present moment. Rather than being heedless of the future or past, samadhi means honoring the process of any action without dwelling on the outcome. Yoga asana encourages being present, because the poses require complete focus to do them well.
Physical balance allows the student to work from the outside inward.
When we start paying attention to the body, the process teaches us to begin paying attention to the mind and emotions.
Any exercise will relieve stress, but there have been times I’ve gone on a walk to try and feel less upset about something, dwelled on my unhappiness the entire time, and came back feeling worse! That has never happened with asana, because I can only think about how I’m moving, not what’s making me stressed. It’s a great way to get out of my head and back into my whole being.
If you don’t have time for asana, there is always pranayama, which is breath regulation and the fourth limb of yoga. Mindful breathing is a fantastic and quick way to relieve stress. There’s something both soothing and invigorating when you take deep, filling breaths and focus on the lifegiving air moving in and out of your lungs. Try it the next time you’re at a traffic stop, or at your desk, or when your family leaves you alone for a few minutes.
Take a deep breath and a slow exhale.
Deep breathing engages your parasympathetic nervous system, the rest and digest system, facilitating relaxation and calm.
This is the season for giving, so why not give yourself the gift of mindfulness and calm? Chances are, your loved ones will appreciate the gift of your calmness too.