Authored by Shraddha Iyer, SARVA Yoga instructor
Are you caught up with a never ending to-do list? Do you struggle to keep calm while juggling between work and home? Are you finding it difficult to sleep or suffering from restless sleep cycles? Do you see yourself stressing over everything coming your way?
Then here are 5 yoga practices that will help you calm your mind and body, and boost energy.
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1. Mindful meditation
This meditation entails simple observation of the senses. How do you perform it?
a. Sit with the spine erect on the mat or on a chair, and close your eyes.
b. You can start by focusing on your breath, noticing the breath at the tip of your nose.
c. Notice the movement of your chest with every breath. Keep the focus there for a few seconds and then move on to other senses like listening to the sound in the environment, sound of nature or in the room, sound of the breath or heartbeat, observe different sounds and move on to the next sound.
d. Similarly, focus on the temperature of the environment by noticing the temperature of your breath or the air on your skin, and then feeling the taste in the mouth and observing the area behind the eyelids as the eyes are closed.
e. Continue simple observation and every time you get distracted come back to the things you are observing at that moment.
This practice helps reduce rumination, and hence reduces anxiety and stress. It helps improve your focus and keeps the mind strong. Research says that people who practice mindfulness are happier in life.
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2. Tratak
a. Sit on a chair or on the mat with the spine erect facing a wall or a lit candle at eye level. With your eyes open, look at one point (you can make a dot) on the wall or the flame of the candle.
b. Try not to blink and keep looking at the point of focus till your eyes water or you feel like resting your eyes.
c. You can gradually increase your time with practice.
Some of the benefits of this practice include improved brain functionality, improved sleep and freedom from negative thoughts. It can also help people with insomnia and sleeping difficulties.
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3. Yoga detox flow
These are sets of asanas which are practiced in a flow (one breath per movement) which help detox the body, and make the mind light and calm. Some of the asanas include
Parivrtta trikonasana, parivrtta parsvakonasana, uttanasana, parivrtta janu shirshasana and parivrtta utkatasana.
You can find the detox flow on the SARVA app and practice the same. As the name suggests the flow helps in releasing any toxins in the body by working on the cleansing of the digestive system and the spinal cord which is like the remote (spine) to the TV (brain).
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4. Yoga nidra
A must-do practice especially for city dwellers. There is no denying that city life is chaotic, hence a practice like yoga nidra is apt.
Practice this step by step:
a. Lay down on the mat in shavasana (corpse position).
b. Set an intention towards the practice, it can also include achieving a goal or a desire.
c. Connect to your breath and breathe deeply to relax the body and mind with every exhalation.
Scan your body one by one from toe to the head, relaxing every part of the body.
Welcome the calm and relaxing feeling as you use your breath as a tool of relaxation.
Enjoy the experience for some time before you come out of the pose
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5. Sukh purvak pranayama
‘Sukha’ means ‘easy’ and ‘purvak’ means ‘to precede’. This pranayama brings the body and mind to a calm state, and also improves the oxygen levels in the body. More oxygen to the body, more functional body and mind.
Here are the steps:
Sit in a meditative position, breathing into the lower, middle and then the upper lungs to the count of 6 or 4; and breathing out from the upper, middle and lower lungs to the count of 4 or 6.
Make sure you are using the full capacity of the lungs and breathing slowly without compressing your nose. You can practice this for two to three minutes.
Following the attitude of gratitude also helps a lot. Instead of consuming repetitive and anxiety-feeding content, you can listen to affirmations or recall the things you are grateful for every morning and night. This practice has been proven to combat stress, increase life satisfaction and feeling of contentment, which is a great way to keep the mind calm. So, take the first step by following one of the above practices.
Lead image credit: Instagram/MalaikaAroraOfficial
