LIFESTYLE
. . . Yoga Fitness
B
UCKLE Up -
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Do you know what to do when you’re traveling: near or far, in a car, on a train, or on a plane? Buckle up and do some yoga on the go! Whether you’re going to your local surf break, on a long adventure, or to a far away land, you can get there feeling good by doing some fun and easy yoga techniques that will soothe your body, mind, and spirit. Scan your body and be aware of where you hold tension. Focus on keeping those areas relaxed. You’ll enjoy your trip so much more when you know what your body needs to feel good and relaxed. Make sure you have taken care of all your external comforts for your journey, such as comfy clothes, good music, and healthy treats. Don’t forget to bring the latest issue of WSSM on your voyage. It’s so much easier to focus on going within when you’re comfy externally.
If you’re driving, you can still do a lot to keep your body and mind at its best, just as long as you can keep both hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. For example, you can tense and relax all your muscles to improve circulation. You can also breathe deeply to keep your mind calm and body relaxed and at ease. When among other people, be subtle and mindful of those around you, especially on an airplane. For example, it feels great to stretch your arms up, but make sure the movie isn’t running while lifting you’re arms up, as the people behind you might miss a good scene. Instead, you can reach your arms forward with your fingers interlaced and the palms out. This is also good to do when you’re in a car, since there isn’t much room to lift your arms very high.
Zofia Karubin Zofia Karubin is a Certified Yoga Instructor who resides in Los Angeles, California where she loves to surf and do yoga on the beach. She has been teaching yoga classes for adults, teens, and children for over a decade. Zofia’s life-long passion for yoga has been passed down from her mother who is also a yoga teacher. Currently, Zofia is working on a book for surfers “Surfboard Yoga Warm-Up” inspired by waterman Erik Nordskog. Look for more yoga poses with Zofia in the next issue of WSSM.
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yoga on the go!
Here are a few ways to help you feel energized and relaxed when you reach your destination.
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Breathe: The breath is so important. We hold our
breath when we stress causing more stress due to a lack of oxygen to our brain. Breathe deeply from the bottom of your abdomen, and expand the rib cage out, then fill the chest area and feel the collar bone lift up as you continue to inhale. Then exhale all the way down from the chest, rib cage, and contract the abdomen muscles to let all breath out. Place one hand on the belly, the other on your rib cage or chest, to feel the breath flowing in and out.
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Laugh and sigh: One way to improve your breath
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Stretch the wrists and hands: Clench the
fists, then stretch out the palms and fingers while breathing deeply, and repeat several times. Rotate the hands and stretch the wrists. Massage your wrists, hands, and fingers and see how much better you’ll feel – get in between the bones and massage the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. It’s so good to do this before and after you drive a car or work on the computer to release all the tension.
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Stretch the ankles and feet: The ankles and is to laugh joyfully. You’ll feel the abdomen confeet need a lot of stretching because they do so much tract and relax naturally for us. By rotating your ankles as you laugh and exhale. and flexing the feet, you are Then on the inhalation increasing your blood circuthere is no effort because lation and bringing healing your body will naturally energy to your legs and feet. draw in a full breath. Stretch your toes out and That’s why laughter is so move them around. It’s also healthy, plus your brain good to massage the feet and Rather than getting will release endorphins ankles before bed for a good tense and stressed out about traffic which will increase your nights rest after your trip – it’s sense of well being. so relaxing. or unexpected delays, just switch Another way is to sigh your mood and perspective-Relaxing the neck deeply. Again, your body and shoulders: Keep you have a choice. You can waste will naturally draw in a breathing while rolling the breath when you sigh. It’s your energy thinking about what a shoulders up and down. Genso refreshing and cleanswaste of time it is, or you can use tly stretch your head to the ing for your blood, your left, roll your head down and this time as a creative and positive mind, and your mood, so then to right and look up. keep breathing and laughhealing opportunity by visualizing Rotate a few times in both diing deeply. yourself succeeding in your goals, rections. This will help relax Relax the face: your neck and shoulders, and or catching the perfect wave. We don’t realize how it will free the blood flow to much tension we hold in your brain. our faces. Simply put on a sweet smile and feel the tension Next, look left and right slowly, and then subtly move into melt away from those facial muscles as you continue to a gentle spinal twist on the exhalation, lift up and twistbreathe deeply, feeling good, looking good, and staying ing back. Spinal twists will relieve so much tension along young at heart. The more we smile, the better we feel. This the spine, which is very beneficial for your entire nervous really helps when driving because we’re focusing so much. system, and brings calmness to your mind.
Most importantly when traveling, focus on what you love; on your surf stoke...
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Relax the jaw: The jaw muscles need stretching
too. Drop your lower jaw down, lift the eyebrows up and bring the jaw forward. Releasing tension in the jaw will relax the nerves in the face and will bring more energy flow to your eyes. This makes driving or reading so much easier when the eyes are relaxed.
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Tense and relax all muscles:
When you’re sitting there in the car, on the plane, or the bus for several hours, the best thing to do is to tense and relax the major muscle groups, especially the buttocks. By tensing and relaxing the buttock muscles, you will be improving your circulation and calm all the nerve endings in the tail bone. After a long trip, you’ll be grateful you did when you stand up for the first time after several hours.
It’s always good to do a yoga session before and after your trip. Many professional athletes do
yoga to prevent jet lag and stay in shape when they travel. It may not be easy to find time, so just do a few poses that will stretch the entire body and that’ll make a big difference. Namaste: My inner light bows to your inner light.
NOTE: If you have health concerns, check with your health care provider before doing this or any other exercise program.