BACK ON THE MAT!

The new year is upon us and lack of any routine in the holidays may mean that we have not been on our yoga mat as much as we’d like.  If children are at home, there may be more interruptions than usual!  The warm weather beckons us down to the beach and to drinks and barbeques with friends and so getting on the mat for a practice becomes less available or we just fall into a holiday routine (read getting up late or drinking an extra glass of wine perhaps at night if we don’t have to get to work next day!)  Although my practice hasn’t waned too much, I have found that getting outside on my mat has been harder with lack of routine, so it is just later in the morning (not for much longer as school is back next week!)  However, it is so enticing with the warmer weather, the sound of the birds gathering seeds and chatting to each other that gets me outside to practise. 

My cat watches and as she arches her back and then dips her belly to the ground, I found myself copying her movements to warm up and establish my breath.  I’ll do a practice for at least 40 minutes and include four to six sun salutes, some standing poses such as Warrior 1 and Warrior 11, Parsva Konasana (side angle)  and Parvritti Parsva Konasana (rotated side angle), followed by a balance pose such as Garudasana (eagle pose) and then Dolphin for strength building in the shoulders.  Depending on what I feel like, I’ll do some abdominal work and end with doing a headstand or for a modified inversion -Viparita Karani (legs up the wall).  Inversions really help to feel energised as you are reversing the blood flow especially in the morning!  I hope you can get some yoga practise in before the holidays end and that the poses above have given you some ideas for your own home practice!  Until next time on the mat – Namaste, Jenni