R u OK? | A Life in Balance

A life in Balance
A balanced life means we take the time for the things we like to do along with the things we have to do! Assessing the “have to’s” with the “want to’s”! Can we take the time to balance all the “to do’s” to find that daily balance? Ensuring all the elements of our life are in the right proportion.

…and remember a little goes a long way. In the end, a few moments each day adds up to a lot of time over a whole year! There are immediate but also long term benefits for our health and well-being. Find the balance in putting down the “to do” list and move into “being”.

Carve out some time
So does that mean we always take the time for ourselves? A lot of you are working and Mum’s and put your family first, so I know it’s often difficult to take the time for yourselves, with caring for the family first. However, can you take some time to fill your cup so you do have the energy to give to the ones who need you too.

Ever snapped when you know you really shouldn’t have, lost patience when it was something small, been irritated by some small inconsequential comment or look, all because you’re overtired and not balancing your time…

Balance is different for all of us

Stay focussed on your own life and know what it is that makes you feel balanced. Our tipping point is different to anyone else’s. Stay in tune and in balance in your life.

Yoga on Demand: pre-recorded.
I get that you can’t always get to our classes so I’ve set up a pre-recorded section of classes for you. These are under On Demand on the www for when you can’t connect into our Live classes.

Balance poses: Stabilise and Strengthen

Continuing our theme of Spring Cleaning our poses – this week we’re looking at Balance Poses.

BALANCES

Balance poses are generally those that remove an element of support and can be practiced from a variety of foundations. We can be balancing from any part of our body and this encourages us to focus. We can be standing on one leg, balancing on one arm and one leg, arms or hands only, seated and also head balancing. They can be categorised by their foundations.

PHYSICAL BENEFITS

Balances strengthen us generally, they require us to activate our body in such a way to hold the pose, therefore we need to co-activate muscles to stabilise joints and the whole body, whilst weight shifts occur from one support being removed. This generally requires a core stability to maintain ourselves during the weight shift and whilst holding the posture.

The strengthening and stabilising requires integrating various parts of the body and is a learned skill. We must challenge our balance to improve it.

CAUTION
If we have any weaknesses around a joint or instability it will show up in our balances, and if we have injuries around an area of the body or a joint we are weight shifting onto it’s always wise to move in slowly and stay away from injuries and pain.

Hydration is also a key to helping us stay balanced so make sure you’re keeping up your water intake.

Colds and flu symptoms where we may have blockages in our inner ears and head will also have an impact on our balancing too.

FOCUS

The Drishti, eye gaze and focus points are helpful to note in a balance pose as they provide an anchor. If you’re competent in the posture have you ever tried closing your eyes whilst balancing? Notice what happens? And if you’re tired remember to keep a gentle gaze to the floor for stability and incase of dizziness too. Looking up will work the nervous system more energetically.

Balancing brings us into the present moment! Ever noticed how difficult it is to balance when we’re either looking around, up or focusing on something else! Balance brings our attention in, so if you’re finding it difficult to focus do a balance pose and see how you go!

Humility: I love this aspect of balancing. Our ego can go unchecked, but once you start to do a more difficult posture it can bring you back to earth with literally a BIG thud! So if you ever think you need some grounding then I encourage you to play with some more balance poses and play the edge – it’s always so nice to find that sense of learning again and taking in the opportunity to learn and notice how you respond in a new environment, do you embrace it, tense or stay away from going into it?

EFFECTS AND BENEFITS OF BALANCING

Increase our Co-ordination, balance and poise.
Builds and maintains our strength and bone density.
Improves reflexes.
Helps with fall prevention.
Improves our proprioception, relating to balance and joint health.
Teaches us to learn and hold our body weight.
Increases absorption of the mind.
Promotes calm and centering.
Increases our presence, alertness and clarity.
Increases our ability to dual task.

“Balancing in yoga and life is a reflection of our inner state.” – Shiva Rea

Let us build from the foundations up this week.

A Check in Reminder

R U OK?
On Thursday: R U OK? day, I taught a class for The YOGA Foundation. We did a mindfulness session for the DCJ Diversity Networks. Their day was amazing.

Hi Presenters,
I want to sincerely thank you for your prticiapation at the DCJ R U OK? Online Event. It was an absolutely fantastic event that I know helped our employees through this difficult time. It was an absolute honour to have each and everyone of you take time out of your busy schedules to join us and talk about mental health and wellbeing.

On behalf of the DCJ Diversity Networks and all the participants (which reached over 500) thank you so much!!! – Dept. of Communities and Justice.

Our yoga practice gives us time to find that inner peace and balance. It all comes from within. Make some time this coming week for you to balance your have to’s with want to’s and hopefully your yoga practice will have you feeling better to deal with the have to’s.

Have a lovely week and I look forward to balancing with you.

Namaste Lou xo