Fitness with Yoga Exercises - Energy Meditation Zeal Rigour Excercise

Exercises to control the mind

There are many ways to make the mind one-directional and to stop it from its continual thinking. The mind should be the servant, and not the master. Similarly, a man should have control of his thoughts and not be controlled by his thoughts. The process of mediation is the process by which all thoughts that come into our mind involuntarily get deleted, and you are once again in a position to choose the subject of your thought. These meditation techniques will take some time, but will help you be relaxed.

Exercise 1

• Sit in padmasana, with eyes closed and body relaxed
• Inhale. As you exhale, chant 'Om', emphasising the 'M' sound for as long as you can
draw your breath out.  Listen to the sound vibration of 'Om' in the body as you chant.

 

Exercise 2

Exercise 2

• Sit in in the same position as Exercise 1 Close your eyes, relax and take a deep breath
• Inhale. As you exhale, recite/ chant the letter 'E' for as long as you can draw the breath
out. Listen to the sound vibration in the body as you chant.

Exercises to balance your hormones

The overall functioning of your body is not controlled by your brain alone but by the various endocrine glands, which secrete specific hormones. These hormones control not only the physical functioning but also your moods and emotions. Today's exercises put pressure on these glands and balance out your hormones. If you are regular with these exercises, you will begin to notice subtle changes in your body and in emotions, and you will feel more calm and relaxed.

 

Exercise 1
• Exercise 1

• Sit with your legs stretched out, and your back straight
• Bend one leg; place the ankle on the opposite thigh, close to the groin. Bend the other leg and place the ankle on the thigh of the bent leg, close to the groin. Place your hands on your knees
• Exhale completely; pull up the genital space and close the anal space. Keep the abdominal muscles tight
• Relax the lock and inhale
• Repeat only thrice.

Exercise 2

• Exercise 2

• Stand with your legs apart, and bend them slightly. Rest your arms on the thighs
• Lean forward and exhale forcefully
• Suck in your stomach to create a hollow space
• Hold as long as you can and breathe comfortably
• Release contraction and breathe in
• Repeat only thrice.

Exercise 3A, B

• Exercise 3

• Sit as directed in Step 1 and 2 of Exercise 1
• Inhale deeply. Keeping your chest high, hold your breath and lock your chin against the chest
• Hold for as long as you are comfortable
• Release the chin, look up and exhale
• Repeat only thrice.

Exercises to improve your cardiovascular system

According to yoga, there is an invisible electrical circuit in our body called 'nadis'. Any kind of disease is a result of a problem in this circuit. Apart from the asanas, pranayama or breath control techniques can remove blockages from this electrical circuit. Today's breathing techniques not only balance out your 'nadis', but also improve your cardiovascular system and detoxify your lungs.

Exercise 1 : Step 1 & 2

Exercise 1 : Step 3 & 4

•  Exercise 1

•  Sit in padmasana, with your legs stretched out and your back straight
•  Bend one leg, place the ankle on the opposite thigh, close to the groin. Bend the other leg and place the ankle on the thigh of the bent leg, close to the groin. Place your hands on your knees
•  Bend your forefinger and the middle finger of your right hand. Close your eyes and practice deep breathing
•  Close your right nostril with your thumb, placing your ring finger between your eyebrows, and inhale to the count of 5
•  Close your left nostril with the ring finger. Hold your breath to a count of 10
•  Raise your thumb and place it between the eyebrows. Exhale slowly through the right nostril to the count of 10
•  Now, breathe in again through the right nostril to the count of 5. Close the right nostril with the thumb and hold your breath up to 10 counts. Place the ring finger between the eyebrows and exhale through the left nostril to the count of 10
•  Repeat the complete cycle for 2-5 minutes.

•  Exercise 2

•  Sit back on your heels, as shown. Place your palms on your knees, as shown. Keep the back straight and close your eyes
•  Exhale forcefully and rapidly through the nose in quick succession, pulling the stomach in, towards the spine, as you exhale. Inhalation will be automatic and passive between every two exhalations
•  Practice 50 exhalations at a stretch
•  Repeat 3 times.

Meditation postures

It is as important to work hard and be active in our youth, but it is equally important to be able to sit quietly for some time and keep our mind silent. Constant thinking drains your energy. Today, try sitting in any one of the two meditative postures after practicing the first exercise which is an inverted posture. This will make you fall into a meditative state much more easily.

Exercise 1

•   Exercise 1

• Come on to your hands and knees, palms positioned below the shoulders, fingers facing forward, knees together, toes tucked in
• Exhale, push back on your arms and raise your hips up
• Tuck your chin towards the chest and look at your navel
• Keep your heels flat on the floor
• Hold for 10-30 seconds, breathing normally
• Resume start position.

Exercise 2

•   Exercise 2

• Sit back on your heels as shown
• Place your palms on your knees as shown, keep your back
straight, close your eyes
• Relax and breathe normally.

Exercise 3

•   Exercise 3

• Sit in padmasana, with palms resting on the knees, back straight, body relaxed, eyes closed
• Inhale deeply as the abdomen expands
• Now expand the ribs and chest lifting it up and out. Feel the air enter and expand your lower lungs
• Keep inhaling slowly and now feel the air enter and expand your upper lungs, so that your shoulders and collar bone rise slightly
• Slowly and gradually exhale, relaxing your shoulders, collar bone and upper chest
• Keep exhaling, relax your chest and gently pull the diaphragm up and the abdomen in towards the spine so that you empty the lungs as much as possible
• Hold the breath out and then start again
• Do 5-10 rounds.

Exercises to improving breathing

Your breathing determines your health. Slow, deep breathing rejuvenates your system, but for your breath to move back into its natural state, you will have to work on two things. First, your breathing will have to become deeper. Secondly, your rib cage and upper body will have to expand. Today's exercise improves both the aspects as it combines deep breathing along with chest expansion.

Exercise 1

Exercise 1

• Sit in padmasana. Sit with your legs stretched out and your back straight. Bend one leg; place your ankle on your opposite thigh close to your groin. Bend your other leg and place your ankle on the thigh of your bent leg, close to the groin

• Interlock your fingers at the chest level, with your palms facing towards you, and your elbows at the same level

• Inhale deeply as you turn your palms out and slowly stretch your arms out in front

• Exhale through the mouth as you turn your palms in and slowly bring your palms back to the starting position

• Repeat 5 times.

Exercise 2

Exercise 2

• Repeat Step 1and 2 of Exercise 1

• Inhale deeply as you turn your palms out and slowly stretch your arms, shoulders and chest upwards

• Exhale through the mouth as you turn your palms in, and slowly bring your palms back to the starting position

• Repeat 5 times.

Exercise 3

Exercise 3

• Sit back on your heels; keep your knees together, toes overlapping, back straight and palms on the knees

• Inhale, slowly raising both your arms straight over your head

• Exhale and slowly bend forward with your arms straight and in line with your ears. Rest your forehead on the floor and bring your palms together

• Hold the position for 30 seconds, keeping your body relaxed, breathing normal

• Inhale, slowly raising your arms and upper body. Exhale and lower your arms to the starting position.

Exercises for a supple spine

Rhythm is the movement of energy. When energy freely moves in the body, a sense of well being is achieved. The spine is the main channel through which energy flows into our body and due to this reason yoga emphasises having a supple spine. Today’s exercises focus on the forward and backward movement of the spine. This movement helps to increase blood circulation and eventually your back will become much more relaxed as well as strong.

Caution: Those with slip disc problems should avoid these exercises.

Exercise 1

Exercise 1
•  Stand straight, with your feet together, the palms joined in front of your chest.
Breathe normally
•  Slowly inhale, keep the palms together and slowly bend the back, stretching your arms over your head
•  Exhale and bend forward from the hip
Place your palms on the floor and your head on your knees
•  Keep your knees straight
•  Slowly inhale, keep the palms together and slowly bend the back, stretching your arms over your head
•  Repeat this cycle 10 times.

Exercise 2

•  Lie flat on the stomach with your legs wide apart
•  Bend one arm and place it under your forehead
•  Fold the other arm and place it over the bent arm
•  Rest the forehead on the folded arms
•  Close your eyes relax the body and focus on your breathing
• Do for two to five minutes.

Postures to energise your system
As we get older our energy tends to drop. From our muscular strength, to our stamina, to our mental abilities, we will gradually notice a drop in our capability. Certain yoga postures activate the various energy centres in our body and revitalise our entire system. This is why any practitioner of yoga remains energetic and youthful, even as he or she gets older. Today’s postures not only improve the overall strength of your body, they will help you to regain energy when you feel tired or lazy.

Exercise 1

Exercise 1

• Stand straight with the legs wide apart and the hands on the hips
• Turn one leg and the upper body to one side and bend the front knee
• Raise the arms straight up over the head, the palms together
• Lower the hip and bend it backwards as much as comfortable.  Look up
• Hold for 10-30 seconds
• Repeat with the other leg.

Exercise 2

Exercise 2

• Lie on the stomach, the legs straight, the feet together, the soles upward and the forehead on floor
• Place the palms below and to the side of the shoulders, the elbows tucked in close to the body
• Inhale, slowly raise the head and the upper body, straighten the arms and curve the back backward to a maximum, as shown
• Hold, breathing normally
• Exhale as you slowly return to the start position.

Exercise 3

Exercise 3

• Lie flat on the back, the arms beside you
• Draw both your knees to your chest
• Interlock the fingers below the knee and bring the knee close to the chest
• Hold the position for a few seconds
• Breathing normally, try and relax the back.

Exercises for the spine

You might be going for your daily walk or even swimming but these activities exercise your muscles and at the most your heart and lungs. Consider the fact that every organ like your stomach, pancreas, liver etc, have been working without any exercise. Today’s exercises not only twist your spine but apply pressure to your internal organs and ‘massage’ them and rejuvenate them by removing ‘bad’ blood and bringing ‘good’ blood to them. Be aware that yoga is not only for your muscles and joints but also plays an important role in keeping your internal system in good health

Caution: Practise these exercises very slowly without any jerks so that you don’t pull your muscles or overstrain your ligaments.

Exercise 1

•  EXERCISE 1

*  Sit with one knee bent on the ground and place the other leg across it
*  With the opposite arm, lock the knee from outside and grasp the foot
*  Fold the other arm behind the back, twist the spine and look back
*  Hold for 10-30 seconds, breathing normally
*  Repeat with the other side.

Exercise 2 : Step 1

Exercise 2 : Step 2

•  EXERCISE 2

*  Lie flat on your back with your arms stretched out and the palms down
*  Bend one leg, place the foot on the other knee
*  Gently twisting the spine, drop the upright knee towards the floor. Keep both the shoulders on the floor and look in the opposite direction
*  Hold for 10-30 seconds, breathing normally
*  Repeat with the other side.

Exercise 3 : Step 1

Exercise 3 : Step

•  EXERCISE 3

*  Lie flat on your back with your arms stretched out, the palms down
*  Bend the knees as shown
*  Gently drop the knees to one side twisting the spine
*  Hold for 10 - 15 seconds, breathing normally
*  Slowly come back to the start position and repeat with the other side.

Exercises for the spine

The joints in the spine are very intricate and the muscles surrounding them need to be stretched regularly to enable free movement and twisting. And as one grows old, this movement becomes limited and the muscles stiffen. Therefore it is important to start early and work towards increasing the flexibility of the spine.

Caution: Practice these exercises very slowly without any jerks so that you don't pull your muscles or overstrain your ligaments.

Exercise 1

•  EXERCISE 1

*  Sit with your back straight; place both your arms behind you, as shown, with fingers pointing away from the body
*  Bend one leg, place one foot below the kneecap of the other leg
*  Gently twist the spine and take the knee of the bent leg towards the floor on opposite side
*  Hold the position for 10-30 seconds, breathing normally
*  Repeat with the other side.

Exercise 2

•  EXERCISE 2

*  Sit with your back straight and legs stretched out. Bend your right knee
*  Place the right palm slightly behind the level of the hips
*  Bring the left hand to the outer side of the right leg and place it beside the right ankle. Look over your shoulder
*  Hold the position for 10-30 seconds, breathing normally
*  Repeat with the other side.

Exercise 3

•  EXERCISE 3

*  Lie on your back, with your arms stretched out, knees bent and hands wide apart
*  Twisting the spine gently, move the knees sideways towards the floor. Look in the opposite direction
*  Hold the position for 10-30 seconds, breathing normally
*  Repeat with the other side.

Exercises for the spine

Your ageing is directly related to the condition of your spine. Your spine being the most central part of the body has a 360 degree movement in all directions. If your spine is supple and flexible, your movement is smooth and effortless. This means your energy does not get stuck in any one place in your body. Yogis say that if you increase the flexibility of your spine, your age will begin to reverse. These movements work on the sideway movement of your spine.

Caution: Practise these exercises very slowly without any jerks so that you don’t pull your muscles or overstrain your ligaments.

Exercise 1

• Exercise 1

• Kneel on the floor with the knees a little apart
• Bend the body to the left side and place the left palm to the side as shown
• Raise the right arm and stretch it over the head, parallel to the floor
• Hold for 10-30 seconds
• Return to start position
• Repeat with the other side.

Exercise 2

• Exercise 2

• Lie on your back, your arms by your side, the palms facing down
n Bend your legs and position them a foot apart
• Place your hands below the hips and support them
• Raise one leg so that it is vertical
• After raising one leg, keep one hand supporting the hip and straighten one arm as shown
• Hold for 15-30 seconds, breathing normally
• Slowly lower the arm, leg and the hips to the ground
• Repeat with the other side.

Exercise 3

• Exercise 3

• Kneel on the floor with the knees a little apart
• Stretch out the left leg with the knee straight
• Bend the body to the left side and place the left palm to the left ankle, as shown
• Raise the right arm and stretch it over the head, parallel to the floor
• Hold for 10-30 seconds
• Return to the start position
• Repeat with the other side.