Shifting tension

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PHYSICAL & MENTAL TENSION
Tension can be felt physically and menatlly. It can show up in muscle aches, headaches or digestive issues and can also be a general sense of feeling overwhelmed, stressed or anxious. Physical tension can be caused by mental tension and similarly mental tension can cause physical tension. Prolonged periods of stress can also cause physical and mental tension to accumulate and can be shifted by regulating the nervous system. Yoga works on both physical and mental manifestations of tensions through gentle movement and conscious breathing. As we stretch and move through our practice we release tension from problem areas like the neck, shoulders, lower back, hips. The poses in our yoga practice take focus and concentration and sometimes it can be as simple as distraction is the best cure for washing away our stress, tension and anxieties. Yoga also makes us more aware of our breath, the breath is one of the most powerful tools for releasing stress and tension. The breath stimulates the vagus nerve which is the main cranial nerve associated with the parasympathetic rest and restore response. It travels to and from the brainstem straight to the throat, heart, diaphragm, stomach, kidneys, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, sphincter and reproductive organs. It is responsible for slowing heart rate and reducing blood pressure, relaxing our airways, stimulating digestion and reproductive organs, inhibiting adrenaline production, stimulating endorphin production and relaxing the muscles.

RESTORATIVE YOGA AND TENSION
Restorative yoga in particular helps to initiate the parasympathetic rest and restore response and is a direct pathway to the nervous system. The poses in restorative yoga are designed to deliberately shift you into relaxation and is considered a ‘non sleep deep rest’ or NSDR practice. NSDR are practises which are scientifically proven to give more benefits than even a good night's sleep in terms of less time required to achieve better brain and body function. Taking a restorative pose, or Savasana, at the end of your practice, teaches the body to let go of the physical challenges of the practice and cultivates a malleable nervous system ready to return to balance after a period of stress.

EXPLORING SHIFTING TENSION IN YOUR PRACTICE
The sequence starts with a gentle warm up, moves into some standing poses to shift habitual areas of tension, and finishes with two restorative poses to assimilate and optimise your chance to shift both physical and mental tension. The standing flows will target the front of the hips and the shoulders which can both be tight from prolonged periods of sitting with the pelvis tilted back and the shoulders hunched forward, or from moving throughout your day without awareness of good posture. As you move through the sequence bring your attention to the areas that you find you might habitually hold tension. Scan down through your body from the tip of your crown to your toes and see if you can root out any areas that you weren’t aware you were tensing and gripping. Pay particular attention to your neck, jaw, shoulders, lower back and hips, which are renowned areas that we all hold tension.

ALIGNMENT CUES
The peak pose of this sequence is Viparita Virabhadrasana/Reverse Warrior, a pose I find I am adding to my practice lots recently. It gives a lovely side stretch to realign the spine, opens the hips, inner groin, frees up the shoulder joint and encourages light core activation.

Have a read of the tips below and either print out the sequence or save it onto your device:

  • From Virabhadrasana II, inhale, turn your right palm to face up, hinge to your left from your waist, reach your right palm up and over your ear.

  • Rest your left hand on your left thigh or your lower calf, draw your navel towards your spine.

  • Lengthen through your right side body all the way to your fingertips, keep your right leg deeply bent, gaze up to your right fingertips.

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

Natarajasana - Lord of the Dance

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FOCUSED STRESS RELIEF
Natarajasana/Lord of the Dance is named after the third god of the Hindu trinity Nataraja who performed a dance to restore the cosmic balance of the universe. Similar to our last pose of the month Hanumanasana/Monkey or Splits it is a hip opener and eases tension in the hip flexors of the lifted leg. A muscle that can get very tight on runners, cyclists and those who sit for extended periods of time. It is also a muscle that can get very tense when you are feeling stressed or anxious. Extending this region of the body sends signals to the brain to release physical and emotional tension and help relieve stress.

The pose also requires focus to stand on one leg which also works as a distraction from a racing mind. The muscular activity of standing, and lifting the leg back, stimulates circulation through the whole body. The combination of the focused effort and increase in circulation is very energising and uplifting. You also get a lovely heart opening stretch through the chest which not only improves shoulder posture but helps to lift your spirits.

THE BENEFITS OF NATARAJASANA/LORD OF THE DANCE
Natarajasana/Lord of the Dance is an advanced balancing pose. It is also a standing backbend pose that requires equal amounts of strength and flexibility. It strengthens the spine and legs; tones the abdominal organs; and stretches the chest, hips and quads of the lifted leg. It is a great pose to add in if you are working with your proprioception and everyday balance. With the leg reaching back you need to focus your attention on finding your centre of gravity.

EXPLORING NATARAJASANA/LORD OF THE DANCE IN YOUR PRACTICE
This sequence kicks straight in with a targeted warm up which will start to open up the hip flexors and prepare the shoulders for arm flexion. The warm up is followed by two standing flows. The first one starts with a quad stretch and will get your standing leg warmed up and ready for your peak pose. It also prepares the back with a gentle extended arm backbend. The second standing flow starts with your peak pose and is followed by a series of Warrior II style flows to enjoy the opening created in the chest area and spine.

The standing sequence ends with two backbends. You can repeat Salabhasana/Locust if Dhanurasana/Bow is not part of your practice. You then transition into your cool down which opens the chest and closes it, twists the spine as a lovely counterpose to the backbend and finally Salabhasana.

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ALIGNMENT CUES
You can choose to flow through this sequence and pause in each pose or you can use the breath cues to link the poses and flow with your breath.

Have a read of the tips below and either print out the sequence or save it onto your device:

  • From Tadasana, hands on hips, inhale, pour your weight into your left foot, bend your right leg back and lift your heel up towards your right buttocks.

  • Reach your right hand back and hold onto the outside of your right foot, lift your right foot up and back, press your foot into your hand and your hand against your foot, hips level and squared forward, right knee in line with right hip.

  • Extend your sternum forward and up, broaden through the collarbones, shoulders level.

  • Reach your left arm up high, press your thumb and forefinger together, gaze to the fingers of your left hand.

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

Restorative for stress relief

DON'T STRESS ABOUT STRESS
Stress is not always a bad thing and has its time and place where it is an essential part of everyday life. Stress is the response of the sympathetic nervous system which makes us alert, energetic and increases cognitive function to create and get tasks done. When the nervous system is balanced we have periods of stress and periods of rest and we are able to move smoothly from one to the other. But when we tip the balance into constant, or chronic, stress we start to feel depleted. In a period of period the hormones adrenaline and cortisone are released to help us perform tasks. When the body completes the task the body clears these stress hormones out of our systems. In chronic stress we get caught in a loop, these hormones don’t get cleared out, our immune system is put under pressure and we become more susceptible to disease.

RESTORATIVE YOGA
Restorative yoga targets the parasympathetic nervous system, or the rest and restore nervous system response. Amongst its long list of benefits is that it helps relieve stress. It enhances the malleability of the nervous system – which is our capacity to move easily from activity to rest, and similarly from rest to activity – by rewiring the brain's response to stress and enhancing our ability to heal and find balance. It supports you physically, mentally and emotionally and can be used therapeutically or as a preventative measure. It is a practice of conscious relaxation which gives a deeper replenishment than even sleep and at the same time helps establish good sleep cycles. It comes under the umbrella of ‘non sleep deep rest’, or NSDR, which optimises brain and body functions.

Restorative is a practice of passive poses which consciously relaxes the body. The poses are held for longer periods of time and are supported with props to help you feel effortless comfort. In this practice we look for gentle openings rather than strong stretches. The nervous system responds better to gentle stimuli, less is more!

EXPLORING THE SEQUENCE
Anytime you feel rushed, exhausted or overwhelmed use this sequence to help you relearn how to relax and restore your nervous system. Consider the four pillars of restorative yoga when you are setting up your space – quiet, dark, safe, warmth. The body will cool down quickly so layer up and stay warm. Hold the poses for the suggested minute on the accompanying illustrated sequence. Remember to do both sides in an asymmetrical pose. Stay warm and be completely comfortable throughout your practice. Discomfort will reduce your ability to rest your nervous system. If a pose isn’t working for you just move onto the next one. Use a phone on a low volume to time your holds. As you settle into the pose, scan down from head to toe to make sure everything is happy. Use the gentle rise and fall of your breath if you find your mind wandering. Remember to take 10 minutes of resting pose at the end of your practice to let everything settle in a symmetrical pose before you reintegrate into your day.

PROPS SETUP
Props bring restorative to another level. But you don't have to have a huge array of official yoga props to get started. You can improvise with household items that can do just as good a job.

RESTORATIVE POSE ALIGNMENT CUES
The props you’ll need for the restorative poses are:
1 x bolster - or 2 towels, wrapped around a horizontally rolled pillow and tied to secure.
2 x yoga bricks - or 2 two thick similar sized dictionaries.
2 x yoga blankets - or any wool, thick cotton or fleece blanket with density.

No.1 - Constructive rest
Start lying on your back, your knees bent, feet mat distant apart and knees knocked in together. Place your hands on your belly and feel the breath move through you. Take four rounds of 4/6 breath, inhaling for the count of 4 and exhaling for the count of 6. Keep the breath as gentle as possible, notice if you are holding any tension in your shoulders and upper chest. Pause after and notice any change this simple breath observation has made to your body and mind.

No.2 - Star stretch
From lying on your back reach your arms overhead and stretch your feet away in a star shape. Stretch your right arm and left foot away, hold for 3-4 deep breaths. Stretch your left arm and right foot away, hold for 3-4 breaths.

No.3 - Supported bridge
From lying on your back, lift your hips up and place the bolster horizontally under your hips. Settle your hips down onto the support of the bolster. Knees bent, feet hip distance apart. Arms in cactus position or extended either side of your body, palms facing up.

No.4 - Prone twist
Place your bolster vertically along the top centre of your mat with a folded blanket at the far end. Sit with your right hip up against the short end of the bolster. Place your hands either side of the bolster. With an inhale lengthen through the whole spine and on your exhale gently place your front spine along the length of the bolster. Place your right cheek on the folded blanket and let your arms gently hang either side of the bolster. Repeat on the left side.

No.5 - Reclined bound angle
Place your bolster vertically along the top centre of your mat with a folded blanket at the far end. Sit with the back of your hips against the short end of the bolster. Bring the soles of your feet together and let your knees drop out to the sides. Prop your legs with a brick under each thigh or use a yoga belt to secure your feet and support the legs. Gently lie back onto your bolster and place your head on the folded blanket at the top.

No.6 - Resting pose
End your practice with at least 10 minutes of Savasana or Resting Pose. Lie on your back, legs stretched out, arms slightly away from your body, palms facing up. Legs slightly apart and feet fall out to the side, soften your shoulder, back of the neck long. Gently close your eyes, let the body become heavy and melt into the support of the ground. Soften the muscles across your forehead, releasing all tension, gaze inwards. Let all the muscles and bones of your body release.

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