Building resilience

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THE RESILIENCE FORMULA
Resilience isn’t just about pushing through a challenge – it’s about meeting them head-on and then being able to come back down after. It’s your ability to regulate your nervous system’s response to physical or mental stress. Stress is not all bad – it helps train the nervous system to adapt, motivates us to start our day, and drives productivity. While short periods of manageable stress are a natural part of life, chronic or unmanaged stress can lead to inflammation and disrupted sleep.

When stress takes over, the brain shifts into ‘bottom-up’ emotional regulation, where the amygdala – our internal alarm system – goes into overdrive, leading to impulsive decisions. In contrast, when we’re calmer, ‘top-down’ regulation takes the lead, allowing the prefrontal cortex – the thinking brain – to make more thoughtful choices. Just like a muscle, the nervous system can be trained through repetition to recover after stress and strengthen ‘top-down’ responses, fostering better emotional balance and decision-making

In the cycle of physical and mental stress, the recovery phase is where growth occurs – this is when you become stronger and more adaptable to life’s demands. As Tiffany Cruikshank of Yoga Medicine advises, “To feel and perform better, you must prioritise relaxation.” This balance between stress and recovery is the key to building resilience: stress + recovery = positive adaptation.

By applying this formula both in yoga and in daily life, we can train the nervous system to rise to a challenge and return to a state of calm. Just like a dimmer switch, learning to regulate between stimulation and relaxation prevents the body from getting stuck in a constant state of high stress or low energy, promoting long-term resilience and well-being.

BUILDING RESILIENCE WITH YOGA
Incorporating small doses of both stimulating and recovery practices into your yoga routine creates manageable cycles of stress and recovery. This not only builds resilience but also enhances your ability to handle stress in daily life.

You can introduce stimulating elements through strengthening poses, balance drills, eccentric movements, isometric holds, and slow, controlled flows. Then, balance these with recovery practices such as gentle flow, exhale-focused breathwork, myofascial release (MFR) self-massage, meditation, and yin or restorative poses. By alternating between stimulating and relaxation, you train your nervous system to adapt more effectively, fostering long-term resilience and well-being.

In daily life, it’s essential to have a personal toolkit of recovery practices to support resilience. Your active recovery might include restorative yoga, meditation, myofascial release (MFR), gentle stretching, breathwork, short naps (before 3 PM), or spending time in nature. These intentional practices allow your nervous system to truly reset. On the other hand, inactive recovery – such as watching TV, reading, scrolling through social media, or other screen time – still involves some level of stimulation and doesn’t provide the same restorative benefits.

I encourage you to create your own resilience formula by identifying activities that challenge you and listing your favorite active recovery practices. True resilience comes from a well-rounded approach that includes quality sleep, proper nutrition, hydration, movement, time in nature, and meaningful social connections.

EXPLORING BUILDING RESILIENCE IN YOUR PRACTICE
This sequence combines challenging poses with recovery. It starts with one of the best MFR techniques for stress and tension relief – the shoulders. The first row has a progression of mini flows that gets more challenging followed by a propped Malasana/Squat to recover. Rows two and three are the two standing flows which incorporate core and balancing challenges. You will step your right leg forward first then repeat the flow with the left leg forward. You can repeat these flows two to three times depending on how challenging you want your practice to be and how long you want to practice for. Row four has two more core mini flows and a breather in Apanasana/Knee to Chest. This is followed by two more MFR techniques on the hips and glutes – the perfect way to recover the hips. Finally you will finish with a short seated pranayama practice.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Below are the MFR and pranayama techniques used in this sequence. The props you’ll need are:
2 x MFR balls - or 2 tennis balls.
2 x yoga bricks - or 2 thick similar sized dictionaries.

MFR
No.1 - Shoulders (trapezius & supraspinatus)
Compression - from supine with knees bent, place 2 x balls in the centre of each upper shoulder, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly circle arms overhead and back to the ground x 5. 

No.2 - Hips (gluteus medius)
Compression - from side lying up on your forearm, stack  2 x balls behind your frontal hip bone on your outer hip, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly lift and lower your leg x 5.
Roll & cross fibre - roll up and down on your outer hip.

No.3 - Glutes (gluteus maximus & piriformis)
Compression - from supine with knees bent, place 2 x balls in the centre of each buttock muscle, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly lift and lower one knee at a time towards your chest x 5. Place your right foot on your left knee and lower and lift your right knee.
Roll & cross fibre - roll around the whole buttocks area.

Pranayama
Sit in supported Baddha Konasana/Bound Angle or your preferred seated position.  Inhale for the count of 4, exhale for the count of 4, pause for the count of 2 x 3 rounds. Inhale for the count of 5, exhale for the count of 5, pause for 4 x 3 rounds. Inhale for the count of 6, exhale for the count of 6, pause for 6 x 3 rounds. 

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Christmas hols flow

SIMPLE AND ACTIONABLE
I’ve written lots of articles with sequences for Chritsmas  and New Years over the years. From The ultimate Christmas flow and Christmas mini flows to Step gently into the New Year and Mini flows for 2020. This year I’m going to keep it really simple and give you a sequence which includes all my favourite techniques I’ve been using recently in my own practice, my classes and with my private students. I’ll keep it short and sweet and divide it into a few different sections to make it easier for you to proactively make time to step on your mat to do the full sequence or to pick and chooses some of the different techniques if you are short on time or just need an SOS moment to yourself before resuming your festivities. You could choose to practice the breath work first thing in the morning or the standing flow, some MFR or a restorative pose in the evening to help you relax. Catching a few minutes to yourself each day makes all the difference to help you continue to enjoy your Christmas hols. 

MY FAVOURITE TECHNIQUES
We know that doing yoga makes us feel good physically and mentally. It increases our mobility and strength, helps with good posture and balance and even reminds us to breathe better. Along with yoga poses I love to add MFR (myofascial release), pranayama (breathwork) & restorative poses (relaxation) to my practice. By using this multi faceted approach I ensure that I am optimising my time on my mat in a holistic way. Pranayama and MFR are quick and potent tools for stress relief while restorative yoga can be used to build an adaptable nervous system and rewire the brain's response to stress. Pranayama breathwork is the fastest way to reduce stress. It has an immediate effect on mood and energy – increased breath rate is invigorating and energising, while decreasing breath rate is calming and relaxing. It can also be used to manage pain by stimulating the relaxation response and pain signals. MFR has many benefits but is used mainly to increase range of movement and ease aches and pains. It also stimulates receptors under the skin called ruffinis that initiate our relaxation response and can be used at the end of the day to help switch off in preparation for sleep. Restorative is considered the king of all yoga when it comes to stress resilience. It is a relaxation practice that turns down the dial on the stress response and helps you consciously relax. By practising restorative poses you teach the nervous system to recognise and deal with stress in everyday life. When stress is reduced the body can focus on the functionality of the immune, respiratory, cardiovascular and endocrine systems. Helping the body as it strives for balance.

EXPLORING CHRISTMAS HOLS FLOW IN YOUR PRACTICE
This sequence starts with a pranayama practice as described below. You can also do the pranayama at the end of your practice if you prefer. This sequence has an outer hip focus so you will start with MFR on the outer hips and the glutes, as detailed below, to prepare the area and allow you to access its strength as you flow through the standing flows. The second and third row are the two main standing flows. In row two you will step the right leg forward first, do the full flow and then repeat it with the left leg forward. Do the same for the second flow in row three. The final row starts with MFR on the shoulders as detailed below to help initiate the relaxation part of your practice. Followed by two gentle two pose flows and two restorative poses. Practice the whole sequence or mix and match sections to meet your changing demands over the festive period.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Below are the pranayama, MFR and restorative techniques used in this sequence. The props you’ll need are:
2 x MFR balls - or 2 tennis balls.
1 x bolster - or 2 towels, wrapped around a horizontally rolled pillow and tied to secure.
2 x yoga blankets - or any wool, thick cotton or fleece blanket with density.

Pranayama
Sit in a comfortable position – cross legged, sitting up on a brick or straddling a bolster.  Inhale for the count of 4, exhale for the count of 4 x 3 rounds. Inhale for the count of 4, pause for 2, exhale for the count of 4, pause for 2 x 3 rounds. Inhale for the count of 4, pause for 4, exhale for the count of 4, pause for 4 x 3 rounds. 

MFR
No.1 - Hips (gluteus medius)
Compression - from side lying up on your forearm, stack  2 x balls behind your frontal hip bone on your outer hip, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly lift and lower your leg x 5.
Roll & cross fibre - roll up and down on your outer hip.

No.2 - Glutes (gluteus maximus & piriformis)
Compression - from supine with knees bent, place 2 x balls in the centre of each buttock muscle, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly lift and lower one knee at a time towards your chest x 5. Place your right foot on your left knee and lower and lift your right knee.
Roll & cross fibre - roll around the whole buttocks area.

No.3 - Shoulders (trapezius & supraspinatus)
Compression - from supine with knees bent, place 2 x balls in the centre of each upper shoulder, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly circle arms overhead and back to the ground x 5. 

Restorative
No.1 - Supported childs
Come into a kneeling position with your hips on your heels. Nestle a bolster between your knees, vertically along your mat with a folded blanket on the far end. Place your hands either side of the bolster. With an inhale lengthen through the whole spine and on an exhale gently place your front spine along the centre of the bolster. Place your right cheek on the bolster. Feel the breath in the back of the ribs and lungs. Swap to your left cheek half way through the pose.

No.2 - Mountain brook
Half roll a four fold blanket and place it at the top of your mat. Accordion fold the other blanket and place it below your top blanket where your shoulder blades will lie. Place the bolster towards the bottom of your mat where your knees will be. Lie supine on your back, nestle the rolled part of the top blanket in the curve of your neck, place the accordion folded blanket under the lower tips of your shoulder blades and the bolster under the creases of your knees. Legs and arms extended, palms facing up, feet fall out to the side. Feel the rise and fall of the props supporting your back body.

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.
Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Morning routines

SETTING A PRECEDENT
Starting your morning with a solid foundation to build on will set you up for a productive and enjoyable day ahead. The predictability of kicking into a familiar morning routine is very soothing for the nervous system and eases you into the day's activities. Putting aside time for yourself in the morning gives you a sense of personal space and fulfilment beyond work and deadlines and helps you value your down time. For most of us the morning is a set amount of time. When you set yourself a certain number of routines to get done in that time you need to be quite particular about how long each task takes. Establishing a routine makes you more disciplined and organised and helps with time management too. These important skills will help you feel less stressed and more in control of your day.

Some elements to your morning routine are personal preferences – like eating brekkie or fasting till later, having a tea or coffee ritual, meditation or journaling. Other elements are universally recognised recommendations – like starting the day with some sort of movement, hydrating first thing, going to bed and getting up at the same time everyday, getting natural light within the first hour of waking. Some of the world's most successful people have a no compromise morning routine including rituals like exercise, walking the dog, coffee rituals and meditation.

WHERE DO YOU START?
Be realistic about how much you can fit into your morning before your day starts or your routine will quickly become a source of stress. Stick with a simple routine for a few weeks, and if you have time, you can add another element to your routine. You can start with really simple tasks like ritually making your bed in the morning as soon as you get up or planning your day ahead to start the day off smoother and calmer. A morning routine starts the night before by getting to bed at a time that will allow you to get between 7 to 8 hours sleep. Don’t be tempted to scroll on your phone in the hours before bed, it reduces your deep sleep which is the period of sleep where your brain replenishes and your immune system strengthens. Try not to have weekend lie-ins, it has been scientifically proven that they are a fallacy. You can’t catch up on missed sleep at the weekend, it actually throws off your circadian rhythm and makes you even more tired on a Monday. Planning some self care into your morning ensures that you get your daily fix of ‘me time’ which will stand to you for the day ahead. Pick a few of the following morning routine suggestions, start modest and add as you get into the rhythm of you new rituals:

• Wake up and get up at the same time, no snooze buttons!

• Make your bed.

• Drink a glass of room temperature water.

• Meditation.

• Journaling.

• Breathwork.

• Exercise, yoga!

• Sunlight.

• Cold shower if you are brave enough!

• Plan your day ahead.

• Shower and get dressed, try not to get into the habit of staying in PJs.

MORNING EXERCISE ROUTINES
When you wake up in the morning your body has just completed a min hibernation. When we are asleep the brain stores new information and washes out toxins, while the body restores energy, repairs muscles and fights infections. But with extended hours of minimal movement the body can feel a bit slow and stiff in the morning. Getting moving first thing in the morning will help blow away the cobwebs and wake up all the muscles so they can support sitting, standing and moving posture. Exercise releases the happy hormone endorphins, increases respiration which brings in more oxygen, and boosts your circulation to distribute the oxygen around the body to make you feel more buzzy and energised.

The addition of a simple yoga practice is the best way to start your day. It is one of the easiest forms of exercise to fit into your morning routine, just roll your mat out, and covers all the bases when it comes to preparing the body and mind for the day ahead. Yoga stretches and strengthens all the muscles of the body, moves the spine in all directions and mobilises the hips – which is particularly useful if you know you will be sitting for most of your day. Yoga also balances the nervous system, eases stress, tension & anxiety, aids digestion, increases circulation, boosts the immune system, and helps with focus and concentration. You can read more about the benefits of yoga in my pervious article.

My morning routine sets me up for the day ahead. I get up at the same time every day of the week. I have a shot of lemon and ginger elixir to wake me up and wipe down the already cleaned kitchen surfaces as a way to clear and prepare my mind for the day ahead. I put the porridge on, make school lunches and head out for a morning walk. I listen to podcasts or audible books on my walk which distracts me from procrastinating over the day ahead. When I get back I kick straight into my yoga rituals before I get distracted by work and emails. For my morning yoga ritual I have a formula that includes bite sized amounts of all my favourite wellness tools – MFR (myofascial release), pranayama breathwork and yoga mini flows. How long or how strong I practise for depends on how much time I have and how I am feeling that day. After my practice I’ll shower, have my brekkie and make my ‘to do’ list for the day ahead.

EXPLORING MORNING ROUTINES IN YOUR PRACTICE
Before you start, step on your mat and take a few moments to work out how your practice can support you today. Ask yourself how did you sleep, what you need physically, what do you need mentally, what your energy levels are, where do you feel stiff, where do you feel weak? Adjust your practice according to your answers. If you had a great night sleep go for it and maybe repeat the standing flow if you have the time. If you are feeling tired, focus on your breath to get your oxygen levels up to wake you up. If you have an injury, mind those areas and move slowly, adjust or leave out any poses that don’t currently suit you.

This sequence is some of my current favourite techniques and mini flows that give me a full body and mind floss. The first row starts with two MFR techniques followed by some mobility and breathwork flows. Row two and three and your two standing flows. If time is an issue you can just do one of them, if you have more time you can repeat each of them twice. Remember each standing flow is two rounds – one with the right leg forward and one with the left leg forward. If you don't have a brick you can do them without. If you do have a brick, use it as an opportunity to use the brick to refresh familiar poses, press into the brick when it's on the ground to lengthen up form and squeeze the brick between your hand or thighs in the poses where you are holding the brick. At the end of the fourth row is your third MFR technique and a short pranayama session which are detailed below. For more information on MFR go to my earlier article.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Below are the MFR and pranayama techniques used in this sequence:

No.1 - Feet
Compression - from standing or seated, place 1 x ball at position No.1, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths and move on to No.2. Continue to No.5. 
Roll & cross fibre - with the toes on the ground place 1 x ball at No.5, roll the ball across your heel x 5. Place 1 x ball at No.6, roll the ball across the knuckles of your toes x 5. Place 1 x ball at No.6, roll in one direction from toes to heel x 5. 
Scribble - roll and scribble across the sole of the foot. Repeat all steps on the other foot.

No.2 - Hips (gluteus medius)
Compression - from side lying up on your forearm, stack 2 x balls behind your frontal hip bone on your outer hip, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly lift and lower your leg x 5.
Roll & cross fibre - roll up and down on your outer hip.

No.3 - Lower back (quadratus lumborum & erectors)
Compression - from supine with knees bent, place 2 x balls above the back of the hips either side of the spine, gently press down with an inhale and release on the exhale x 5 breaths.
Sheer - slowly lift and lower one knee at a time towards your chest x 5.
Roll & cross fibre - roll up and down the lower spine below the ribs.

Pranayama
Sit in a comfortable position – cross legged, sitting up on a brick or straddling a bolster. Inhale for the count of 6, exhale for the count of 6, and pause exhaled for the count of 2. Continue through the three progressions in the sequence. When you get to the third progression repeat this count for 3 to 4 rounds. You can then take an optional Savasana if you have time. 

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru