Monday, September 28, 2009

SoHam Meditation

September 28, 2009 Yoga Session #7
Monday Week 5

Ive done yoga for the full hour and a half six times now in the last five weeks and I feel great. I definitely feel like my balance is better, my flexibility is better I can almost touch the floor with my fingertips with my legs straight, I’m sweating more, my stamina is increasing even when I'm running. And surprisingly my back is getting better.

Today in class we did a lot of yoga poses that I have talked about and today I think ill run through some of the basics of how to do them. We also did Sun Salutation B, we did the So ham Mantra Meditation, and we did a visualization of a tropic beach on our own. We did the half-moon today first against the wall and than on the floor. That was actually really hard for me I kept falling and tipping over.


But physically it is suppose to be really good for you. If you do it properly and enough it strengthens and tones the legs, opens your hips and it’s even suppose to build confidence. How to do it: Begin in Triangle pose with the right leg in front, lower the left hand to the left hip, place your right fingertips on the floor a foot in front and to the right of the right foot, slightly bend the right knee, and as you straighten it lift the left leg off the floor until it’s in line with the left hip, roll the left hip open toward the wall behind you, lift the left arm straight up, spread the fingers.

The soham mantra meditation we did today was really cool. Sharkie put on some music so that I could visualize a tropic location...I did. It was actually somewhere I had been before or a couple places all in one. I visualized a beach off of Italy, on one of the smaller islands, with one of those cabanas like in Las Vegas with the big chairs, and the type of sunsets you see over the beach. It was amazing. Very relaxing, but I wasn’t alone. It was weird like a dream but I was awake. All my friends were there and we were all just relaxing each in our own day bed. It was perfect.

We did the bridge pose today which is becoming one of my favorite poses along with child’s pose. The bridge strenghthens the gluteals and hamstrings and stretches the abdominal and chest. To do the bridge we start on our back and bend our knees, we lift the hips and push down on our heels and we open and expand our chest by pressing our shoulder blades together.

Yoga is easily my favorite part of Mondays and Wednesdays. Physical the bridge feels amazing on my hips, but I think its because I’m doing it wrong I think I am suppose to do it with my fingers pointing inwards (towards my head) because it should strengthen the neck and back, build wrist flexibility and open up my hips.

How to do the bridge: Lie on back, feet flat on floor, palms down, lift hips and torso off the floor, pressing into palms and feet, interlace hands and press shoulders and upper arms into the floor, lift hips higher toward the ceiling

No comments:

Post a Comment