Yoga

Anxiety coping. 4 exercises that help

Posted on by Sergei_Bst

Anxiety, fear, irritation, depression live in the lumbosacral region. This area is associated with the passage of important energy channels and is responsible for life satisfaction. The Svadhisthana chakra or “pleasure center” is also located here.

All the suppressed emotions, childhood traumas, experiences accumulate in this zone and over the years excite anxiety in a person, lead to panic attacks, depressive thoughts and a bad mood.

Most often these are spontaneous “storms”, but sometimes a person experiences so much (even unconsciously) that he completely blocks this center.

This bundle of exercises strongly affects the work of the lumbar region, where negative emotions live. This is the first level of our unbalanced energy.

Therefore, it is worth practicing these exercises in this order:

1. Bending to one leg from a standing position

 

2. Tilt to two legs from a sitting position.

3. Tilt to one leg from a sitting position.

4. The half-bridge pose.

These exercises have a beneficial effect on the internal organs, normalizing their work as much as possible.

The digestive and excretory systems fully restore their functions. Qualitatively improve the work of the reproductive organs.

Strengthen the muscles of the legs and glutes. There is a rejuvenation of the spine. Working on your own body, certainly in addition to physical benefits, you will feel the psychotherapeutic effect. Anxiety and irritability will pass. You will have confidence in your own abilities.

Provides an excellent stretch for the muscles and fascia of your entire back body, from your heels to the back of your head. In general, many of you will also find the poses soothing to your nervous system and quieting for your mind and emotions.

The exception to this that some of you who experience intense stretch sensations in your back body in the pose #2 due to muscle tightness may feel agitated instead. Two of our variations, however, can help even some of you stiffer people find a more peaceful experience.

You need to hold each position according to your own comfort. The best retention is from 1 to 3 minutes.

Deep breathing and holding attention in the lower back area, when performing exercises, will contribute to high-quality practice and the disclosure of the energy center (chakra).

I prescribe this poses for:

  • Improving flexibility in the spine, hips, hamstrings and calves 
  • Stimulating your digestive system 
  • Soothing your nervous system 
  • Quieting your mind 
  • Managing stress 
  • Reducing anxiety 
  • Improving insomnia 

Cautions: 

Two vulnerable areas can potentially be aggravated or injured in these poses: the lower back and the starting point of the hamstrings near your sitting bones. Therefore, if you have lower back disc problems, lower back pain, or a torn hamstring tendon, you should avoid these poses altogether.

Fascia. How to work with the body?

Posted on by Sergei_Bst

Fascia is a component of connective tissue, a three-dimensional network of connective tissue that covers and separates muscles. Fascia helps us to keep our posture and move optimally without losing balance.

Role of fascia in the body.

Fascia is a film of elastic fibers that form an entire fascial network. Deep layers of it form the support of organs, support points for muscles, tunnels for blood vessels and nerves.

This tissue helps to maintain a structural balance in the body. The fascial fibers connect not only muscles with bone, but also muscles with muscles, as well as all the structures and supports of the body.

Muscles don’t attach to bones. The fascia is attached to the bones, which, entwining muscle fibers, passes through the muscle and around the muscle.

Now this subject is actively being discussed by osteopaths and body therapists. It is also very important  for all coaches and people who have been injured or are engaged in rehabilitation.

Why is it important to understand the role of the fascial connective tissue?

There are much more nerve endings in the fascia than in the muscles. This makes the connective fibers sensitive to pain and sensations. Most sports injuries are actually injuries to fascial structures, not muscle tissue.

Tension in the fascia or their weakness can lead to a violation of posture, to uneven wear of the joints and intervertebral discs, to protrusions and back pain.

To restore the elasticity of the fascia and flexibility in the body, special exercises are needed.

Myofascial massage will work well (you can use a roller, balls) with a deep study of clamps and painful seals.

How seal or glue together?

The fascial tissue can be dehydrated, since it consists of water (due to lack of movement or repeated muscle overload) and its fibers come together and “stick together”, forming a knot or seal. If you leave them in this state for a long time, the adhesions of the fascia thicken, and the muscle “freezes”, which can be very painful.

Stretching can also be very useful, but it is important not to tighten the fascia when they are in chronic tension and not cause even more harm.

When we work with connective tissue, it gives a rejuvenating effect and significantly improves the psycho-emotional state, erases the negative from the memory of the fascia.

With the help of competent and proper work with the body, you can remove a lot of chronic pain, violations of posture, gait and even align the lines of the face.

Hatha yoga asanas are ideal for working with fascial tissue. These exercises lengthen the chains of the fascial tissue in various directions.

In addition, yoga effectively affects the entire nervous system and the body as a whole.

Difficulties in practicing meditation

Posted on by Sergei_Bst

The difficulties in practicing meditation happen to many beginners. This is absolutely normal, because you are trying to master a new skill for your body and mind, and it is always not easy.

A lot of people think that meditation is not for them. Therefore, there is a clear conviction in consciousness that everything that we have not explored is inaccessible to us.

But it is worth paying at least a little attention to this and understanding the issue and everything will immediately become available.

Moreover, meditation is something that is inherent in everyone and is natural.

Let’s look at the most common difficulties in practicing meditation.

    • “I don’t know where to start.”

Now there are various schools of meditation, teachers, with some it is possible to study personally. There are many good books and a huge number of articles, websites and applications. Just try to start somewhere.

    • “When I meditate, I fall asleep.”

Often our body perceives relaxation as a call to sleep. Drowsiness is a natural initial reaction of the body. Keep practicing and this complexity of meditation practice will gradually go away. As an option, you can always try another type of meditation.

    • “It hurts to sit for a long time.”

You don’t need to endure the pain. Any suffering will lead you to resistance. You can use pillows for meditation, or at first you can meditate on a soft surface( but always sitting), on a chair, for a short amount of time. Over time, the practice will deepen, the spirit will strengthen and the consciousness will know how to meditate. In order not to hurt your back and not to numb your legs, yoga provides a step for working with the body – this is hatha yoga.

    • “There are a lot of pictures, images, unpleasant experiences in meditation.”

This is another stage in the evolution of the meditator. When you first look into your subconscious, you may encounter accumulated painful experiences of the past, which pops up in different images and can cause different emotions. Treat it as a cleansing. Do not get attached and continue, this is a good sign if you can not hang on this stage.

    • “I don’t have time.”

Time for yoga appears if you do yoga. As soon as you give yourself a whole hour to practice, meditation, you may be surprised to notice that there is more time in your life. Yoga gives a slowing down of time and a conscious moment of now.

If your soul is interested in meditation, reads this article, then you are definitely ready and you have time for everything that you really want.

    • “Nothing is happening, I don’t see anything.”

This most often indicates stress, which could block certain nerve and energy centers responsible for visualization and emotionality. Perhaps there is a complete disbelief in oneself or in the spiritual world and this statement blocks the perception of another reality.

Asanas form the body for years, making it strong and hardy, breathing techniques strengthen health and energy in a few months, and meditations act instantly.

To achieve real meditation, calmness and goodness, it is enough to practice 2-4 times a week. Make sure of this for yourself by starting to practice regularly.