Back in the nineties, I bought a yoga video that ended up becoming a big part of my life. The gentle poses featured in the video that taught me how to relax and be kind to myself in my twenties have even more significance to me now that I’m a mother.
Yoga physically gets all the aches and pains out, gives me something quick to turn to, and reminds me that taking the time for myself is always worth it.
When you find something that works, you keep doing it.
Yoga’s gentle poses got me through the pressures of college and graduate school. It traveled with me to hotel rooms and tiny apartments. Yoga hugged my soul after a miscarriage and made me feel normal enough to try again. Most of all, yoga kept me glued together during some stressful life changes: moving three times; leaving work to stay at home full-time; returning back to work part-time; coping with health emergencies; and maintaining sanity in the daily challenges of parenting.
For the last 20 years of my life, yoga was my one constant.
Today, in addition to feeling well, yoga gives me the confidence to know that I can handle whatever comes my way as a mother. When my day is stressful, my back hurts, or I don’t feel particularly beautiful (or all three!), I know I just need to take a few minutes to do a yoga stretch and I’ll feel better. Since yoga can be practiced so easily and effortlessly (virtually anywhere), it doesn’t feel like a great inconvenience to stop, drop, and pose to just clear my head for a minute.
I remember looking at my wrinkly muffin top a few days after giving birth and thinking, “Ugh. How will this go away? Seems like never.” Lacking any desire to exercise or lift anything other than my six-pound baby, I just lay on the floor and hugged my knees. This simple Wind Removing pose that I learned from video made me feel good. So, with my baby napping on the floor beside me, I was able to do something for myself in just 60 seconds.
Here are six gentle poses from that yoga video that I find most effective for stress relief and gaining a sense of control. I slide them into my day whenever I feel I need a lift.
[box]For a full description on how to do these poses correctly, check out Pocket Yoga’s Poses Dictionary. And please get your doctor’s permission before performing any new physical activity.
The cards pictured above are from Yoga Spinner–a fun game to play with the kids![/box]
Yoga on the Seacoast
The Seacoast is home to many yoga studios. Check out this list of some of our local friends, and if your favorite studio is not listed, please leave a comment below to share it with other readers!
I didn’t do much yoga until after I had my baby last year. I try to do a least a few poses a day if I can’t make it to a class. I admit I’ve been slacking. Thank you for the reminder.
You’re welcome, Kyla! I’m so happy you found yoga. It’s amazing how even one pose can ground you and give you the much needed break you are looking for. Enjoy!
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