Beginner course
Yoga as a Lifestyle
Yoga is more than exercise. It is a whole active lifestyle philosophy, which means you are invited to participate, change your life, maintain your improvements and accept ageing with grace. Remember, no one will live your life for you, so take ownership.
We will explore how Yoga can improve lives with its understanding and practice.
The main components of your healthy lifestyle are:
Achar - regular healthy activities, like Yoga Asana
Vichar - right thoughts and attitudes towards life, like the Yamas & Niyamas
Ahar - healthy, nourishing diet (intakes): fresh, organic, plant-based, low processed, and plenty of water
Vihar - proper recreational activities to relax body and mind, like non-violent, uncompetitive community engagement, volunteering work, nature activities and other relaxation
Vyahar - good interpersonal relationships
Conduct
Conduct is related to the Yamas and Niyamas. These have changed through the centuries, but it is agreed that the main self-practices are non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, sensory control (customarily taken to sexual restraint), and non-possessiveness/entitlement. Social conduct is to do with cleanliness, contentment, discipline, self-development, and contemplation on (a higher) reality.
Exercise is the series of movements and postures you learn with your yoga teacher, which is your most safe type of exercise - provided you are uncompetitive with others and yourself; otherwise, you can, of course, hurt yourself.
Breathe & Relax - life is busy with our interpersonal relationships, work demands, and worries about the present and future. Therefore, you should engage in activities that provide you with inner gratification and peace, not more stress. For example, we all love body-pumping, but after someone shouts at you and loud, fast-paced music, you think you will feel good, but you keep inundating your body with stress hormones. You think you helped yourself, but, most likely, you are hyper and causing violence to your Moby and mind.
Focus - is a crucial element of our life. We need to have attention and focus on our work, homework and others, significantly if our output influences others (lives). For this, you have to train yourself not to be distracted by every sound, light, cold snap, and smell. Stay focused
Enjoy life - we call this bliss. When you take care of all the others, you enter this state where everything is meant to be, and you are neither happy nor sad. You feel you are floating and enjoying every moment, the good, the less good and even ready to face the horrible, which, let us be honest, will come sooner than we want it to arrive.
Dandasana
Forward fold
Head-to-knee
One-foot back stretch
Pillar posture
Sage Mirichi
Closed twist (half-lord of the fish)
Cow-face Posture
Boat (& Variations)
Shoulder stand
Fish
Side-planks (pos of sage Vashita)
Wind-release postures & Single leg extended
Reverse Plank
