Bed time yoga with Rhoda – just what the doctor ordered

Rhoda’s voice is so sweet and light, it is the perfect encouragement to rinse out and wind down before bed.  The standing poses get all the nervous energy and toxins flushed out ready to fully absorb the relaxing benefits of the restorative forward bends.

She says at the start to take some breaths for yourself, remember to offer this time and energy and practice as a gift to yourself.  This was timely advice as I find when I get busy and a little overwhelmed with what is going on the first thing to slide is my time to take care of myself.  This just tells myself that I am not as important as this task or that project, which doesn’t reinforce that I am worthy and special.  I have learned the lesson time and time again that it is in trying times in which my practices and self care are the most imperative.  So this is me getting back on track with my self care and self love practices and feelings; also today I made myself the most spectacular smoked salmon, asparagus and goats cheese salad, booked a hair appointment for tomorrow and booked time with myself to do a mini spa and nails this week, all to reconnect with myself.  Just little things feel so good, and rather than expecting others to ‘make me feel good’ I can take responsibility for how I feel leaving me more space to love others rather than blame them.

A good day! xxx

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Intro to Meditation

Reminded that meditation is natural and we all do it, even without realising, which for me makes it feel much less out there and New Agey.  As someone who is learning to bring meditation into my daily practice being reminded of the history, science and methodology is very grounding.

Clare gives us three core aspects of guidance to meditation; presence, breath and the witness effect.  Time to practice 🙂

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Yoga nidra for vata in the morning

I am certainly feeling the effects of the vata season.  Vata is one of the Ayurvedic doshas (combination of elements) and governs movement in the body.  Movement, change and activity are aspects of vata.  Autumn is the vata season with changing temperature, increased wind and a dryness in the air.  The season being of vata qualities makes it much more likely that the vata in each of us will shift into excess.  This likelihood of excess is increased even more if you are busy, over active and have some stress during the autumn.  Which can manifest itself as anxiety, insomnia, digestive challenges and weakness, among others.

I have been sleeping less than usual and which leaves me feeling more prone anxiety, worry and feeling weak.  So this morning after the clocks changing and waking up at ridiculous o’clock I decided to deeply rest my body and mind with a yoga nidra practice.  It was soothing, calming and restorative for my body, afterwards I feel my energy is smoothed and softened rather than jagged and angular.  This helps me to be more soft and open as I go about my day, rather than spiky and haphazard.  It was the perfect practice to prepare me for my busy ahead.

xxx

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Relaxation with …. myself!

There was going to come a time when I practiced with one of my own videos, as in a video that I am featuring in and teaching.  It has intrigued me as a couple of my teachers have recommended following your own practice as a very good way to learn and grow as a teacher.

I started small with a 15 minute relaxation, called Savasana with Gemma.  It was interesting and a couple times my mind did wander to judgement of myself, but to be honest I was so wrapped up in the relaxation that 90% of the time I completely forgot it was me!  The practice originated with the Sivananda tradition and is very effective at encouraging deep relaxation in a short period time.  In a Sivananda class savasana is at least 15 minutes long to give the body and the mind time to rest and restore, which is easily overlooked in many asana classes.

My experience of the practice today was so effective that I fell deeply asleep for a whole hour, luckily waking up with some time to spare before I need to head to my next class.  It was the kind of sleep my whole being so desperately needed, when I awoke I was a good colour, all my muscles felt like they had been reset and my skin feels smooth and soft.  I didn’t realise how exhausted I was until I tool the time to properly and deeply relax – I must I recommend it!

Love xxxx

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