Month: April 2022

Yoga

5 minute evening yoga for improved sleep

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A Few poses a night, keeps the insomnia afright

Alright, maybe I made up that phrase, but it’s true. Just a few yoga positions can relax your mind and body and prepare you for an amazing night of sleep. In this blog, I’ll go over my favorite yoga positions that I have found relaxes my muscles, eases my mental turmoil, and allows me to sleep peacefully through the night.

If you’re brand new to yoga and all things to do with stretching, then don’t fret. In fact, I’m happy you’ve decided to take the plunge and start to learn about the amazing health benefits that yoga can provide. Just be careful not to stretch yourself into a pretzel that you can’t unstretch back from. Jokes aside, definitely make sure to stay relaxed and comfortable through the exercises. If you feel pain or unease, then stop and don’t overexert yourself. Yoga is about peace and calm. 

Supine spinal twist

Supine spinal twist

  • Lie on your back
  • Bring knees to your chest
  • Rotate legs and let to fall to your right or left side. 
  • Ensure your shoulders and head are square to the ground
  • Use a pillow under your head for additional support. 

Maintain the supine spinal twist for 1 minute or more. Take a moment to enjoy the stretch, and revel in your calmness. Repeat this same pose on the other side for another 1 minute, or the equivalent amount of time. While your in this pose, breathe slowly in and out and allow the tension and stresses to float away from your mind and soul.

Legs up the wall pose

Legs Up on the Wall is a “restorative” yoga pose that promotes peace and harmony in the yoga community. It’s a fantastic stretch that promotes blood flow in your veins and throughout your body. Legs, hamstrings, and calves knots and tension are released, allowing you to move easily. Finally, you’ll feel calm, which will assist you in falling asleep more quickly.

Take the following steps:

  • Locate a wall and take a seat next to it.
  • Keep your right hip pressed against the wall.
  • Lie down and lean against the wall with your legs up.
  • Make sure your back is against the wall.
  • For added comfort, I recommend placing a pillow under your back. Hold this position for a long time (around 5 minutes). Ascertain that you are at ease and that you are not in discomfort.
  • To finish the stretch, softly lower your legs back to the floor.

Pose of a child

When you’re feeling worried and want to relax, this stance is ideal. Straighten your spine, relax your neck, and lower your brow to the ground. “My forehead won’t reach the ground,” you might be thinking. Don’t be concerned! It is going to happen. The speed with which it occurs will astound you. There is no need to hasten this process; simply allow it to unfold organically. You can deepen your breath here by inhaling and exhaling slowly, counting each inhale to five and then each exhale to five.

It’s normal to fall asleep in child’s pose, and we encourage it! Don’t resist it if you find yourself drifting off while practicing this stance. Allow yourself to wake up feeling rejuvenated after a short power nap.

Stay motivated by getting your Friends involved

Motivation on your own is tough. If you’re finding that you can’t seem to get in the habit of doing yoga each night, then it’s time to call on your friends to help. Why not make a daily event out of it. Call a friend to join in on facetime, and do some nighttime yoga together. It wil be both inspiring to you, as well as your friend. It’s conceivable that doing yoga with a friend will be both motivating and fun! Even if they aren’t keen to do yoga, you may find that they willingly join just to spend some time together. 

Even better, find a friend who already does yoga. Most yoga connoisseurs love to teach others, and they can help you master new poses and peace. 

At the very least, it will be fun to see how you and your friend compare with each of the stretches and poses. You may learn a lot by watching another, or you can discuss what is working and what’s not. Just make sure you find a friend who doesn’t judge you. You need full support!

Good sleep equals good health

Rest is essential for good health. It’s not simply about feeling energised for work or feeling less fatigued in the morning. Sleep is essential for good health, and not getting enough of it is harmful to both your body and mind.

The body may mend and regenerate itself with deep sleep and several REM cycles. It’s when your brain can form new neural connections, consolidate memories and learn new things, and heal muscular tissue. A good night’s sleep can also help you stay stress-free and keep your immune system robust so you can fight off the typical cold or even Covid.

Yoga is vital for a restful sleep. By promoting blood circulation and release of tension and muscle aches, your body can more easily access a deep REM sleep, leading to countless health benefits, quality of life, and body health. So don’t wait. Call a friend, and start a new nighttime ritual. 

meditation

Why you need to Meditate every day 

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It assists you in making better decisions. 

By assessing the benefits and drawbacks of your options, meditation can help you make sensible judgments. It’s easy to get caught up in the present, but meditation can help people learn not to make decisions solely on emotion; instead of focusing on short-term needs, they can evaluate the long-term consequences of a decision. In both children and adults, meditation has been related to increased emotional intelligence. When making a decision, these people are more prone to consider the sentiments of others as well as their own. It’s a valuable skill to have in many aspects of life, from personal connections to your professional life!

Helps you deal with anxiety.

Meditation can help you deal with your anxiety. Here’s how:

  • Meditation is an effective stress management technique
  • Meditation helps you get in control of your emotions
  • Anxiety is a mental health issue
  • Meditation is a great way to reduce anxiety
  • Meditation helps you be more calm

Anxiety and meditation are two sides of the same coin. One calms the other down. Your mind needs to work out time and say a regular “Hello” to the rest of your body. It makes sense why scientists call it a practice when they talk about meditation, because it takes commitment for your body and mind to get used to it. You need to continually remind yourself and your body about this commitment for better health and better self worth. By doing just 5 minutes a day, you can build a habit that becomes part of your everyday activities. Once it becomes a habit, you’ll see immeasurable results your happiness, stress levels, and mental well being.

A peaceful Mind equals a peaceful sleep

Getting older leads to more health problems as well as poorer sleep. I remember the good old days where if I forgot to set my alarm, I actually slept well into the morning. And now it seems that even if I forget to set an alarm clock, I’ll somehow be awake at 3AM, wishing I could fall back to sleep. In fact, I hope for the day that I will sleep past an alarm and miss work. It would mean I had an amazing night’s sleep. The good news is that meditation can counter insomnia. 

If you’re consistently waking up with insomnia and want to enhance your sleep quality, consider this simple meditation exercise before your slumber. Lie down in your bed or on the floor on a mat. I prefer the mat. Repeat the numbers “one, two, and three” as you inhale three times, keeping your eyes gently closed. Picture the top of your head and slowly work your way to your toes, focusing on the differing parts of your body as you breathe in and out. Relax your legs, arms, and body as much as possible when you think about each respective area. After that, release your stresses, headaches, and stay focused on each inhale and exhale, ensuring that you breathe in through your nose, and exhale through your mouth. Do this for about 8 minutes, and you’ll enter an amazing relaxation state.

Dedicate some time to oneself for self-clarity

Taking care of ourselves is extremely important, and we’ve all heard the saying that one can’t help others until you help yourself. Often times, we believe helping ourself consists of taking more vacation days, visiting the beach or spa, or watching TV. We believe a mental health day will be enough to solve our problems. But the sad truth is they aren’t. Mental health isn’t a problem that can be solved by a one day or one time experience. It takes diligent effort and a daily habit. 

Enter meditation as a method of self-reflection. It’s the everyday practice of sitting quietly for a few minutes, focusing on your breath and allowing other ideas to pass by without becoming involved in them. If you add just 5 minutes of meditation to your daily routine, you’ll feel more calm and focused throughout the day—but it’s easy to say you don’t have time for it.

However, including meditation into your daily routine (which can be done while waiting for your morning coffee to brew) may be as simple as adding one minute to your morning ritual. It’s even possible to do it while multitasking! If you absolutely want an excuse not to do anything, then we can’t help you out there. You have to decide to want the change. Only then, will it actually happen. 

Meditation will save you money

“I don’t have time for meditation,” you claim every morning, while trying taking care of your busy morning routine. You want to prepare for the day, so you’ve made time to grab a coffee, or cook breakfast, shower, do some morning chores. That’s already too many things, so how can you afford another minute for another activity. 

Here’s the thing: meditation isn’t just another task you have to do. It’s the #1 thing you should do FIRST to help set the tone for the rest of your day. When you meditate, you have time to understand what is truly important in your life and what is not. Maybe you think you need to spend $5.99 on that cup of coffee. Caffeine equals productivity, right? But you may find that after meditation, you don’t need nor care for your coffee. Your mind has had time to sort through it’s challenges, and with it feeling more suited to face the day, you’ll find you won’t depend on coffee or other vices to get you through. 

This leads to a self improving feedback loop. Spending less on coffee makes you feel better about your spending habits, which makes your mind calmer, which allows you to incorporate other healthier habits into your lifestyle. All of this, because you introduced meditation into your lifestyle. 

Stay youthful! 

Most individuals who practice daily meditation do so to relax and de-stress, but scientists have actually learned that meditation can alter the structure and neurological pathways of your brain, making it more efficient and healthy! 

Studies have demonstrates that meditation increases the efficiency and functionality of our brains by boosting blood flow, which provides us with more oxygen and nutrients that can help us heal brain damage, reduce the onset of illnesses like Alzheimer’s and Dementia, and improve our memory. Our brain is composed of millions of synapses, all firing responses and thoughts. Meditation can help stabilize and strengthen these synaptic pathways in the same way that a good night sleep can. 

Meditation has unlimited benefits 

In this blog, I discussed all things meditation. Why it’s an amazing habit to incorporate in your life and all the health benefits that come along with it.

Since humans have existed on our planet, so has meditation. From the early Mayans to even scientology, meditation has made its way through our civilization and our culture, and history can attest to its effectiveness.

With all of the amazing health benefits, meditation is something that is not only a part of our past, but something that will stay in our future. In addition, a one minute daily meditation can make legitimate differences to a person’s health conditions. Heart disease, depression, and pain management have shown to be mitigated by meditation. If anything, meditation is the best prophylactic  activity one can implement to stay healthy. 

Implement just 1 minute of meditation to your morning for an overall happier and fulfilling life. And if you need some time to think about it, why not meditate about it :).