Our culture is known now for multi-tasking. We are on the phone while driving, eating breakfast and also brushing our hair. Though doing a few things at once can be good for a short-order cook, it can be distracting for many of us. Yoga has some tools for helping the mind focus without wandering to something else. For instance, in many classes the teacher will say to put everything else out of your mind for forty five minutes. If you want to, you can think about all your worries once class is over. It is hard to focus initially. Our mind constantly wants to think about everything from who we need to call back later, whether we are out of laundry detergent or what to do later in the day. There can also be more disturbing types of thoughts that intrude such as anger towards a roommmate, sadness over a difficult phone conversation or frustration with fixing a house appliance.
In many of the yoga poses, the instructions are to hear and feel one's breathing. This is a way to stop the mind from going on and on with it's dialgoues. As we do this and get more relaxed, it is a very nice feeling. What initially we resisted, becomes a positive state. We can start to feel that the negative thoughts aren't who we are but are actually intrusive thoughts.
Often at the end of a yoga class, the benefits are enhanced further by a meditation. In the meditation, the mind will focus on a mantra, a breath or visualization. This is another way the mind is trained to go deeper and not jump around. Often people find that when they then return to work or their family, the inner calmness will carry into their conversations and decisions.
Find Out More About How Yoga Can Enhance Your Body, Mind and Spirit
Learn about the becomeayogainstructor.org/benefits-of-yoga.html Benefits of Yoga and the becomeayogainstructor.org/sun-salutation-sequence.html Sun Salutation Sequence.
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