As you learned in my Small Steps for a More Gorgeous You post, I am an avid Yoga proponent. I’ll admit that I have been very on and off with Yoga through the years and during my ‘on’ periods, I notice that I feel and look so much better then when the off switch is hit. Yoga has a lot of Big-Picture benefits- increased strength, flexibility, better muscle tone as well as a glorious inner calm. There are also many quick and easy poses you can do whenever for insta-results to combat every day aches, pains, and frustrations.
Read on for tips from expert Yogi, Kathryn Budig, from Yoga Works, for suggestions on alleviating every day issues, be it sore and achy feet, commute-induced exhaustion, or the after-effects from a long night of partying.
ISSUE #1: Are your feet sore from those four-inch Louboutins?
“Alleviate the pain of wearing high heels by ascending and descending to chair pose, balancing on the balls of the feet with the arches and heels lifting,” suggests Kathryn. “The pose will help you conquer the discomfort of this season’s soaring heel heights.”
How To Solve:
* Place the feet together and lift both arms parallel to the ground, palms facing down
* Find one point to gaze at and lift up onto the balls of the feet
* Continue to reach the heels away from the ground, creating lift in the arches
* Keep the gaze on one point, heels lifted, and begin to bend the knees
* Keep the belly gently pulling to the spine as the body descends until the bottom lands lightly on the heels
* Take five breaths without placing the heels on the ground and make a slow return back to standing
* Place heels back down
ISSUE #2: Tired from your taxing commute (or any other stressors)?
“Stay calm and peaceful no matter what the roads are like with alternating nostril breath work,” Kathryn recommends. “Concentrating on breathing keeps you from fidgeting and helps you relax.”
How to Solve:
* Begin with a calm pattern of breath in and out through the nose, keeping the mouth closed and relaxed
* Exhale the air out and then on an even count, inhale to the count of eight
* Once you reach eight, retain the breath for the count of eight and then exhale back with slow control through the nose in eight counts
* Repeat this 3-5 times or until the nerves are calmed
ISSUE#3: Do you need to detox from last night’s (or week’s) revelries?
“Perk up with a heat-inducing chair pose twist, taking the opposite elbow to the bent knee,” says Kathryn. “The pose gets the blood flowing to help flush out built-up toxins.”
How to Solve:
* Begin with the feet together
* Bend the knees, keeping the weight in your heels
* Take your hands into prayer at the heart and revolve the chest so that the left elbow lands onto the right thigh just above the knee
* Press the prayer hands together until the right elbow faces the ceiling
* Lean back to revolve the chest
* Take 5-8 breaths and switch sides
For more tips and tricks and anything else yoga-related, visit Kathrynbudig.com
Written by Sabrina Alexis
