Yoga relaxation

Yoga can not only exercise the body's flexibility and reduce some body fat, but also can adjust a person's breathing to enter a state of complete relaxation, thereby achieving the effect of relaxing the body and mind. There is a type of yoga called yoga relaxation, which is different from traditional yoga in that it makes the body feel like it is entering a sleeping state. So how should yoga relaxation be performed specifically?

Yoga Nidra is an effective relaxation art from the ancient yoga practice. Throughout the practice, you need to fully concentrate your mind and relax your body to let it rest. But this kind of rest is fundamentally different from sleep in the general sense. Because in correct practice the practitioner can control it with consciousness and wake up from consciousness. For people who are too busy and lack sleep, about 15 minutes of yoga relaxation can restore energy. Practicing yoga relaxation techniques before bed until you fall asleep naturally can significantly improve your sleep quality. In yoga classes, resting techniques are added between each movement and at the end of the class, which helps practitioners to recover physically and mentally.

Introduction

It is generally believed that relaxation is one of the keys to achieving physical health and mental stability. If your body is not tense, your movements will be easy and natural. In the long run, you will be better than others in terms of health, flexibility and comfort. With a relaxed body, the mind will always be clearer and calmer, and work more efficiently.

Unfortunately, many people never experience true relaxation. Relaxation is a feeling of peace and rest in a clear-headed state, not sleeping, groggy or intoxicated.

Supine relaxation exercise is the best position for yoga relaxation. This is the most effective posture for complete mental and physical relaxation. Yoga nidra performed in this pose can quickly relieve insomnia, heart disease, high blood pressure and respiratory problems. Relax muscles, nerves, bones and every cell in the body, relieve tension and stress, and radiate positive spirit and consciousness throughout the body.

Practice time

Yoga Nidra can be practiced at:

·Practice while doing yoga poses (yoga asanas)

Practice between yoga poses

After finishing yoga posture practice or individual practice

Practice with yoga breathing

Practice with yoga voice meditation

Training Method

There are two ways to train in the Rest Technique. One is to be conducted under the guidance of a coach, and the other is for the practitioner to induce himself in his mind. People have to go through this first step before they can do the second type of yoga relaxation, which is to silently guide themselves in their hearts.

When practicing yoga relaxation, you must avoid direct wind and strong light. The surrounding environment should be relatively quiet, and loud noises should generally be avoided when practicing.

According to the convention of many yoga classes, the rest time after class plus the finishing time is only 10 to 15 minutes. Here, we provide you with some words to induce rest.

Practitioners, classmates or family members can follow this induction, that is, read it aloud and take turns to induce everyone to do yoga relaxation exercises. One person reads, and the rest lie on their backs and do what he says. If there is not enough space to lie down, the practitioner can sit on a chair with a straight back (of course, the leader or inducer will have to modify the exercise slightly). You can directly select the audio file of Huilan Yoga Relaxation, which is very convenient and you can listen to it at any time. After a period of time, when the practitioner has memorized the basic steps, he or she can do yoga relaxation silently in his or her mind whenever he or she needs to rest during the day or before going to bed at night.

Asanas of Rest

(1) Supine relaxation exercise

Supine relaxation is the most effective yoga rest pose, usually used at the end of a class, and can also be used as a transition from sitting movements to supine movements. Practicing supine relaxation exercises before going to bed can improve the quality of sleep, and it is also the most ideal sleeping position. Lie on your back with your back flat on the ground. Untie your hair accessories so that they do not affect the position of your neck. Pull your chin back slightly and stretch the back of your neck closer to the ground. Place your arms diagonally down at your sides, palms facing up. Expand your lumbar spine, move your hips slightly outward, turn your thighs, knees and feet slightly outward, and let your whole body sink naturally. Close your eyes, relax your whole body, and breathe calmly and naturally.

[Benefits] Supine relaxation exercise is a posture that is very easy to relax. It slows down and smoothes breathing, soothes nerves, calms the mind, restores the body's abilities, and creates a harmonious feeling in the body. Therefore, it is very beneficial for treating insomnia, neurasthenia, and body dysfunction. Supine relaxation exercise is also a very suitable practice method for patients with high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer.

(ii) Prone relaxation exercise

Lie on your stomach with your arms stretched upwards and your head slightly tilted to the side. Do not rest your head on your arms, but you can lightly lean on the sides of your arms. The whole torso is relaxed, and the lower limbs can be placed in two ways: one is to put the feet together, then keep the toes still, turn the heels outward, and let the outer side of the calf sink; the other is to spread the feet wide apart, with the heels facing inward and toes facing outward, and the inner thighs, knees, and inner sides of the calves sinking. As you breathe, feel a gentle squeeze between your abdomen and the ground. When you relax, turn your neck to the opposite side.

[Benefits] Prone relaxation exercise also gives people a comprehensive feeling of rest. It stretches the shoulders and back, helps eliminate stiffness in the neck, and treats stiff neck. This pose is suitable for relaxation for people who have hunched back or lumbar spine problems. At the same time, studies have shown that people who lack psychological security prefer this relaxing pose.

(iii) Baby pose

Child's pose mimics the position of a fetus in the womb. Kneel on the ground, place your arms on both sides of your body, sit back on your heels, lean forward, place your forehead on the ground, and let your arms sink completely on both sides of your body, with the backs of your hands touching the bottom, and your shoulders sink completely above your knees. If it is difficult for your hips to touch your heels, or if your body has a strong feeling of leaning forward, you can stretch your arms forward and sink down. If your head cannot touch the ground due to excessive body fat, or if you have a serious eye disease, make fists with both hands, place one fist on top of the other, and place your forehead on top of the two fists. Pregnant women should spread their knees apart when practicing. Do not attempt this pose if you have varicose veins or severe knee problems.

[Benefits] Relaxes the entire spine, especially the waist, and calms the nervous system, which is suitable for physical recovery during the practice of asanas.

Simple induction words

It is best to lie on your back, but sitting is also OK. Both palms facing up,

After lying down or sitting down, stop all body movements, close your eyes, and start doing yoga relaxation.

Pay attention to breathing in and out, breathing in and out, making your breathing even and slow.

With each inhale, silently say “Oh-Hari-Oh”. With each exhale, chant "Om-hari-Om" audibly. Extend this sound to the same length as the exhalation process. Feel this sound echoing in your lips, face, and neck - feel this peaceful and quiet sound spreading throughout your entire body.

Do this together a few times. Inhale and chant silently, exhale and chant "Oh-Hari-Oh" aloud.

Continue chanting “Om.” Continue chanting “Om.”

Breathe in silently and breathe out loud “Om-hari-Om”.

·Okay, when the instructor names the various parts of the practitioner's body, the practitioner also silently recites that part in his mind and feels that part relaxing.

But don’t stay on one part; let your awareness loosen in each part for a while.

If the practitioner cannot catch up with the instructor, don't worry. Just pay attention to the next part he mentions.

Start with your feet: Your two big toes are relaxing. The rest of the toes on both feet should be relaxed. The insteps, soles, ankles, and heels of both feet. The ankles are very loose, the shins of the lower legs, the calf muscles, the knees, the popliteal fossa, the front thigh muscles, the back thigh muscles, the pelvic area, the buttocks, the abdominal area, the entire stomach area, the liver, the kidneys, the ribs, and the heart. Feel your heart relaxing and your heartbeat slowing down. The chest is relaxing. Shoulders, upper arms, elbows, forearms, wrists, hands, two thumbs, and all the fingers of both hands.

Pay attention to your back and feel it relax and rest.

The back of the head, the sides of the head, and the top of the head. The scalp is relaxing. Forehead, eyebrows, eyelids, eyeballs, cheeks, cheekbones, nose, upper lip, lower lip, teeth, tongue, upper lip, lower lip, chin, facial muscles, two ears, both sides of the neck, the front of the neck, and the back of the neck.

Feel a sense of relaxation spreading down your entire spine. Pay close attention to your spine and feel it relaxing.

Become aware of a sense of relaxation throughout your body.

After your body is relaxed. At the beginning, there is a heavy feeling in the pine, a very heavy feeling.

Pay attention to the parts of your body that touch the ground: your heels, your calves, the backs of your thighs, your buttocks, your back, your shoulders, your arms, your hands, and the back of your head.

Start again with your feet. Focus your attention on your feet. The two big toes are becoming very heavy, all the other toes, the insteps of both feet, the soles of both feet, both ankles, heels, both ankles, both shins, calf muscles, knees, popliteal fossa, front thigh muscles, back thigh muscles, pelvic area, buttocks, abdominal area, stomach area, liver, kidneys, ribs, heart, chest, shoulders, both upper arms, both elbows, forearms, wrists, both hands, both thumbs, all fingers.

Pay close attention to your back touching the ground. It felt very heavy, very heavy. The back of the head, the sides of the head, and the top of the head. The whole head was relaxed and felt very heavy. The scalp, forehead, eyebrows, and eyelids are very heavy. Two eyeballs, two cheeks, cheekbones, nose, upper lip, lower lip, teeth, tongue, upper lip, lower lip, chin, facial muscles, two ears, two sides of the neck, the front of the neck, and the back of the neck.

The entire spine feels very heavy, very heavy. Very loose.

Pay attention to your whole body, from head to toe, from head to toe. I felt like my whole body was almost sinking into the ground.

When the instructor mentions each part of the practitioner's body again, the practitioner feels that it becomes very light, lighter than a feather.

Start with your feet: your two big toes, all the other toes on your feet, the tops of your feet, the soles of your feet, your ankles, and your heels, all as light as feathers. Both ankles, shins, calf muscles, knees, popliteal fossa, front thigh muscles, back thigh muscles, pelvic area, buttocks, abdominal area, stomach area, liver, kidneys, ribs, heart, chest, shoulders, both upper arms, both elbows, both forearms, wrists, both hands, thumbs, and all fingers.

Notice how light the back is, it's almost floating off the ground. The back of the head is lighter than a feather. The sides of the head, the top of the head, the entire head, the scalp, the forehead, the eyebrows, the eyelids, the eyeballs, the cheeks, the cheekbones, the nose, the upper lip, the lower lip, the teeth, the tongue, the upper lip, the lower lip, the chin, the facial muscles, the ears, the sides of the neck, the front of the neck, the back of the neck, and the spine. My whole body from head to toe feels lighter than a feather.

· Feel that your whole body from head to toe is full of energy and vitality. It is lighter than a feather. It almost seemed to float off the ground.

At this time, the practitioner is still awake and not dozing off.

The instructor should say some words and pictures, and the participants should look at the pictures in their minds. Move from one picture to another without stopping at any past picture.

· The practitioner is still awake when looking at the pictures.

The practitioner maintains a heightened awareness of the body while lying down.

When the body is completely relaxed, you will feel that the whole body is filled with energy. The practitioner's whole body, from head to toe, is full of energy, all strength is restored, and he is full of energy again.

The practitioner begins to pay attention to breathing. With every breath, say to yourself, "Oh-har-Oh." Every time you exhale, say "Oh-Hari-Oh" to yourself. Don't say it out loud, just repeat it in your mind. With each exhale, mentally chant “Om-Hari-Om.”

Maintain heightened awareness of your entire body. Start wiggling your fingers and toes.

Close your eyes and gradually turn to lie on your side. Slowly turn into side lying position.

When the body and mind are completely rested, the yoga relaxation practice is completed.

Sit up gradually, keeping your heels closed.

Then slowly open your eyes.

·The yoga relaxation exercise is completed. Just focus all your attention on the yoga mantra that follows - "Oh-Hari-Oh" - "Hariponi Tagor"

benefit

Improve perception

·Boost immune system function

Relieve stress and nervous tension

Helps improve flexibility and coordination

Restore strength and overall health