yoga

Yoga Pranayama: The Art of Breathing

Yoga Pranayama: The Art of Breathing

Life can be tough, and at times, it can feel like too much to handle without healthy coping strategies. One of my personal go-to methods is simply pausing to take a breath. A deep, slow inhale and a long, heavy exhale always helps me take a step back and reconnect with my body. Breathing is invaluable for improving our well-being, especially when combined with practices like mindfulness, gratitude, savoring, self-compassion, and yoga. In the realm of yoga, this practice of breath control is referred to as pranayama. Also known as yogic breathing, it serves to deepen the connection between body and mind, furthering yoga's goal of unity.

Yoga: A Comparison Between Yoga and Mindfulness Practices

Yoga: A Comparison Between Yoga and Mindfulness Practices

Recently in my yoga class, I've noticed numerous conceptual similarities between the practice of yoga and mindfulness meditation. As the teacher guides us through the session, it resembles the structured mindfulness meditations that I’ve grown to love. At the start of each class, she prompts us to introspect and decide on a focus for the day. Throughout the session, she directs our attention to our breath, synchronizing our inhales and exhales with our movements. When we engage in "binds" — positions where our limbs intertwine — we reflect on the symbolic binds within our minds that may impede our progress. Towards the end of every session, we recline into savasana, also known as corpse pose, and concentrate on clearing our minds, breathing deeply from the diaphragm, and scanning our bodies for any areas of tension. 

Yoga: Overcoming My Stress and My Assumptions

Yoga: Overcoming My Stress and My Assumptions

For a long time, I had a lot of false assumptions about yoga. Before trying it out myself, the only examples I had of individuals doing yoga in my life were women, so naturally I thought it was mainly an exercise for women. Yoga seemed like a weird workout where you sweat and twist yourself into pretzels. I figured you had to be flexible to do it, and I have always been very inflexible. So all-in-all, I thought that yoga was not for me. As I got into college, I got very stressed with everything that I felt I had to do. While studying psychology, I learned that exercise is crucial to regulating anxiety and other symptoms like depression (APA, 2017). However, I have never been good at consistently going to the gym. At that time, someone recommended yoga to me, citing all the benefits of how it might help with anxiety. I was skeptical because of all of my misguided assumptions. I lingered on the idea and when the time to sign up for more college classes came, I noticed my school offered a yoga class for a credit. I figured if I had to attend a yoga class at school, then I would be more likely to consistently do yoga. 

Mindfulness Through Chaos: Why (and How to) Start Meditating

Mindfulness Through Chaos: Why (and How to) Start Meditating

Between pandemic updates and politics, I've found myself brain-fogged and on edge more than I care to admit. Instead of living in the present, I've let my mind get carried away with doomscrolling and imagining every possible worst-case scenario. It's not healthy to spend all of your cognitive energy trying to understand something that can't be understood. But how do you go from doom and gloom to savoring life again when there's just so much to worry about?

Yoga on a Budget: 5 Ways to Boost Your Practice During COVID-19

Yoga on a Budget: 5 Ways to Boost Your Practice During COVID-19

Yoga is a very popular form of exercise, and once you experience the benefits for yourself, it’s easy to see why. Coupled with good nutrition, yoga can help you fall asleep faster, alleviate chronic pain, and reduce stress and anxiety. But can you still practice yoga effectively while social distancing or quarantining? Thankfully, the answer is yes.