Wellness Haven Yoga

Tag: Pranayama

  • De-stress Yourself The Right Way

    De-stress Yourself The Right Way

    How do you de-stress yourself?

    When you are tired or frazzled or anxious or feeling low, what do you do?

    Do you reach out for salty, sugary and fatty food?

    Do you sit in front of  the television and eat salty, sugary and fatty food?

    Do you hide under the blanket?

    or

    Do you go for a walk in fresh air?

    Do you indulge in some deep breathing /pranayama exercises?

    Do you relax with yoga asanas?

     

    Deep Breathing / Pranayama, Meditation and Yoga Asanas are the best drug for frazzled nerves.

    Everything comes naturally once they become a habit. It takes not 21 days, but 3 months to form a habit. Know that you are worth the habit that .will keep you healthy for years to come. Everything starts with the first step. Begin with something small like sitting down in silence just for 5 minutes even before you get out of bed or before you go to sleep. Breathe deeply from your belly.  Then do this everyday for 90 days and see for yourself what happens!

    You will appreciate yourself more than ever before. This is one of the best ways to stay de-stressed on a daily basis.

    Try it out today! ~ Umang Goel

     

    We would love to read your comments below.

     

     

  • Yoga Props

    Yoga Props

    Yoga Props

    Yoga props not only help the beginners realize the asanas but it also enables us to deepen our body explorations and enhance our yoga asana, breathing and meditation practice. But understanding of how and when to use the props without becoming ‘attached’ to the props is very important in the yogic journey.

    Props should be used effectively and wisely.

    –          A restorative yoga asana session seems incomplete without props.

    –          A flow session on the other hand minimalizes the use of a prop. One has to have a clear understanding of the use of a prop to be able to use it effectively in a flow yoga practice.

    –          A Breathing/Pranayama and Meditation session becomes enhanced with use of props by providing back support and posture support.

    1. What are the very basic yoga props?

    Mat, Blocks, Wedge, Strap, Bolsters, Blankets

    The Wall proves to be one of the most effective prop for a new yogi.

    The Ball helps the yogi in many ways to enhance their yoga asana practice.

    The chair is a wonderful prop for many.

    The backjack chair provides the much needed support to a meditative sitting yogi without wall support.

    2. Characteristics of a good quality yoga mat:

    –          Moist sticky  surface

    –          1/4th inch thick

    –          Compact

    –          Durable

    –          Hypoallergenic

    Those new to yoga are not aware and end up buying cheap quality yoga mats that have a plastic like surface, are very dry, and very thin! All of these prevent a beginner from getting the full benefits of a yoga practice for they are slippery and prevent the yogi from finding stability and balance. When the mat is very thin, it does not provide enough support for the bones and joints.

    3. How are Block, Wedge, Strap, Bolster, and Blanket helpful?

    All the above props provide support to the yogi providing balance, height, stability and comfort.

    –          Blocks help by allowing the yogi to reach the earth when they are still working on stretching and lengthening their ligaments and muscles to become more flexible.

    –          Straps/Belts are very handy when tight hamstrings prevent the arms from reaching the toes in any forward bend or when tight shoulders prevent the fingers from finding their way together in the Gomukhasana pose.

    –          Wedge enables the heels to get grounded and to provide the much needed lift to the pelvis for an aligned posture.

    –          Bolsters and Blankets help cushion and support the body in a restorative asana.

    If you have invested yourself in a well-supported yoga asana session, go a little further and provide your body the much needed support so that the body develops in the most optimal and correct manner. Your body deserves all the love and attention you can give it.

    At Wellness Haven we believe in guiding you to find your optimal support through some of the best props from HuggerMugger. ~ Umang Goel

    We would love to read your comments below.

  • Breathing And Meditation

    Breathing And Meditation

    Breathing and Meditation

    “All of man’s difficulties are caused by his inability to sit, quietly, in a room by himself.” ~ Blaise Pascal

    Did you know that anxiety is one of the root causes why many feel “stuck?” Anxiety does not let you move forward with your life for it keeps you in a place of pain and stress. Incorporate a daily practice of Breathing / Pranayama and Meditation so that the mind gets to relax. In this relaxed state of aware mind, you will be able to actually see the “problems” as challenges and as opportunities for growth; you will be in the space of mind which is relaxed and able to let things unfold naturally. With this meditative and calm mind, you will be able to take corrective action steps without feeling burdened.

    Become more creative, more productive and stress free by practicing breathing and meditation regularly. ~ Umang Goel

  • Yogic Breathing

    Yogic Breathing

    Yogic breathing expands our lung capacity inviting a healthier body

    Breath is the prana or the life force. As long as we have breath, we are alive.
    In general as we go around our daily life, many of us use less than 30% capacity of our lungs and no wonder we feel tired and lethargic. With a sound yoga practice we are able to increase our lung capacity immensely with the help of simple postures, movements and even more so through controlled breathing techniques or pranayama practices.

    It is very important that we learn to breathe correctly.

    In our yoga classes students are often in doubt about when to inhale and when to exhale. We also see students incorrectly moving the belly in during inhale and moving out during exhale.

    With inhalation we breathe oxygen into our body and through exhalation we release carbon dioxide out. During inhalation, the diaphragm (serving as buffer between the organs in the abdomen and the organs in the chest cavity) contracts or moves down to bring air in and relaxes or moves up during exhalation pushing air out. During shallow breathing, the diaphragm stays in a raised position.

    During normal breathing the lungs expand as we inhale and contract as we exhale.

    During belly breathing, also called diaphragm breathing, we use our diaphragm to push as much air out of the lungs as possible during exhalation so that we can completely fill our lungs with more oxygen as we breathe in. Our belly pushes out during inhale and moves in towards the spine during exhale. The chest stays more or less still. We do belly breathing when we want to breathe in and out deeply.

    Confusion also exists around how to breathe when we crunch our belly in the various yoga asanas. We are still breathing just not through expansion of our belly! ~ Umang Goel

  • Yoga Asanas Help Deal With Sinusitis

    Yoga Asanas Help Deal With Sinusitis

    Yoga and Neti Pot help with Sinusitis

    Millions of people suffer from the common sinusitis which is primarily due to inflammation of the nasal passage, caused by atmospheric irritants like dust and pollen, resulting in pressure on the sinus wall and difficulty in breathing.

    The first thing to do is to get consultation from your doctor to make sure there is no infection.

    Yoga asanas helps one deal with sinusitis like many other physical ailments, since it is a natural healing practice without the outside use of chemicals.

    Yoga asanas that have been proven to be effective in sinus problems are those that involve a form of inversion or forward bend that are effective in clearing out nasal passages, as they act as natural flushing mechanism.

    Some effective asanas are:
    Forward bend, downward facing dog, plough pose, shoulder stand, plough Pose.

    Kapalbhati/breath of fire are also effective – quick exhalations that emanate from the abdominal muscles rather than the chest and cleanses the lungs and the nasal passages.

    Neti pot is also an effective tool for clearing nasal passages.

    A regular, consistent yoga practice that includes all asanas and breathing techniques is a wonderful prevention method for physical and mental ailments. Get yourself into a healthy practice. 

    If there is joyous health, there is everything else!!  ~ Umang

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