Why Practicing Yoga Is More Important Than Ever

Let’s talk about the state of the world and the corona virus, or covid-19. Thousands of people have died, and entire countries are under “shelter in place”. I live in California, and the entire state is under “shelter in place”. I think last week everyone in the US did start to feel a little bit anxious. Needless to say people are trying to make the best of this situation. However I know stress, anxiety, and all the feels are coming up at different times. I wanted to take a moment, and just remind everyone of a few things that could help get you through the day, hour, minute or second, depending on your level of stress/anxiety.

I want to share that I have stress/anxiety. I think if you are alive at this moment, and an adult, you carry some level of stress or anxiety with you. With all of that being said, thankfully there are many yoga techniques that could help you through the moment.

First tip- take a deep breath, and exhale. Get all of that air out of your lungs. Then breathe in even deeper, and exhale even deeper. Slow down your breath. Way down. Pause. Then sip in another deep breath, and exhale. Do this over and over until the moment passes.

second tip-focus on things you can control, your posture, where you have your hands, where your eyes are looking. Take 10 seconds and do a quick scan of your body, where are you holding tension? adjust your posture, take your hands out of your pockets, and maybe close your eyes.

third tip-Think about clenching your fists, and then stretching your hands. You could even squeeze a tennis ball, if you have one handy. Do this 10 times.

fourth tip-take a forward fold, you can do this standing or sitting. Getting some blood flow moving differently in your body is so good for you! And taking the pressure off of your neck and back is important. You probably don’t even realize you’re holding tension there

last tip-do 1 or 10 half sun salutes. Forward fold, half lift, forward fold, roll all the way up. Stay in forward fold for as long as you need to get that blood flowing. Pro Tip-Try this sitting in a chair even, and see how it changes in your body.

Choose 1 or do all 5 to help with stress and anxiety. Of course keeping up with your regular yoga and meditation practices can also help with all of this craziness too! I have free yoga on youtube, all of my videos are 15-40 minutes. I’m sure you’ll find something that will work for you.