Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Stick your neck out!

“I have everything now I had twenty years ago - except that now it’s all lower.”
Gypsy Rose Lee


I once caught one of my sons, then aged six, examining my profile very intently. Thinking that I had perhaps forgotten to wipe the toothpaste off my face, I asked him what was wrong. And he replied with a question: “Mom, why have you got just skin around your neck and I have skin AND bone” Well, I guess I would rather be regarded as neckless than spineless, but it didn’t do much for my ego.

So today’s exercise is for all those who need to stick their necks out a bit. It is not a yoga asana as such, but a very good exercise for relieving strained necks and releasing tension in the area. Caution: if you have had a severe whiplash injury, please do not do these exercises.

Stand tall, pulling in your tummy and lifting your chest. Stretch your left arm down the side of your body, stretching into your fingertips. As you inhale stretch your right arm out to the side and up above your head keeping your shoulder down away from your ear. Give yourself a good asymmetrical stretch. Then bend your right arm over the top of your head and place your hand on your left ear. Gently pull your head over to your right shoulder, all the time stretching down into your left hand at your side. Do not use force and do not stretch your neck further than it is comfortable to do so. Hold the position for several seconds, then move your right hand slightly behind your ear, drop your chin straight down onto your chest and slightly to the right. Once again, using your hand, gently pull your head down towards your right breast. Keep stretching into your left fingertips to keep that shoulder down. Release your hand and repeat the exercises to the opposite side.


Holding your head up higher?

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Yoga with Viv von der Heyden

Yoga with Viv von der Heyden
A HEALTHY MIND IN A HEALTHY BODY…



A motorcar, left standing unused for a long period of time, will take a while to get started and then will splutter and jerk spasmodically until all its systems have warmed up and begin to function in unison. Likewise, our bodies. Joints that are under-utilised become stiff and rheumatic, muscles lose their tone, putting strain on our skeletal system, particularly the spine, our skin loses its vitality and we suffer digestive and various other ailments. In other words, dis-ease sets in.

Hatha yoga is an ancient system of physical exercise originating in India more than two thousand years ago. It can help to alleviate many of the symptoms of dis-ease. The word “yoga” means “union”- of body, mind and spirit. The asanas (postures) are held for some time, rather than vigorously repeated, creating strength and balance, increasing one’s powers of concentration and one’s awareness of how one’s body works. The postures increase the movement in one’s joints and stretch and release tight muscles, thereby improving one’s posture, blood circulation and the transmission of nervous energy. Mental and emotional tension is released through working in the postures, as well as through the breathing and relaxation techniques. The practice of Hatha Yoga allows us temporarily to withdraw from the hectic bustle of life to find tranquillity and a quiet space within ourselves. It is not a religion, but a way of life that enhances one’s vitality and one’s feeling of physical and mental well-being.

This article presents just a brief overview of Hatha Yoga and is the first in a series on the asanas. In future articles I shall be dealing with specific postures and their particular effects on different parts of the body, starting with postures that are particularly beneficial for the spine.

Finally, please don’t be daunted or intimidated by the pictures you might see of experienced yoga practitioners standing on their heads or wrapping their legs around their necks. Just as we all can’t climb Everest or paint Picasso-esque pictures, so too we cannot all sit in the lotus position or bring our heads to our knees. That is the beauty of yoga- we all work according to our own abilities and with our specific limitations and still can derive great benefit from every position. And it is worth bearing in mind that…

“Even among the insects, in this world,
Some are good at singing,
Some bad.”
( Issa - Japanese Haiku Poems)

but they all still have fun just singing!
Viv

Viv@scenicsouth.co.za