Airplane Yoga AKA Yoga for Stress Relief
AKA, a story of woe.
There exists a tension in my mind right now between where I "should" be-- and where I actually am. I "should" be in Miami Beach, toes in the sand and working on my mid-winter tan. I "am" (no wait, no "s) in Ithaca, NY. Where it's 30 degrees. And cloudy, always cloudy.
Two days ago I boarded a plane in Ithaca, NY to Detroit. I was to have a 45 minute layover, and then catch a plane to Florida. Instead, my flight was canceled and there wasn't another flight until three days later. Between the options of chilling in Detroit for three days and going home and canceling my one vacation, my one precious, short vacation, I went with going back to Ithaca (sorry, Detroit). So, I left Ithaca around 5p, got back around midnight that same day. Talk about needing the miraculous powers of breath, focus, and (duh) yoga.
In case you ever find yourself in one of these most anxiety-raising, stress causing situations (hello running through the Detroit airport as fast as you can to beat 150 angry passengers to the closest rescheduling kiosk... PS I was first in line, yay exercise regime!) here's a brief sequence to help calm you down.
There exists a tension in my mind right now between where I "should" be-- and where I actually am. I "should" be in Miami Beach, toes in the sand and working on my mid-winter tan. I "am" (no wait, no "s) in Ithaca, NY. Where it's 30 degrees. And cloudy, always cloudy.
Two days ago I boarded a plane in Ithaca, NY to Detroit. I was to have a 45 minute layover, and then catch a plane to Florida. Instead, my flight was canceled and there wasn't another flight until three days later. Between the options of chilling in Detroit for three days and going home and canceling my one vacation, my one precious, short vacation, I went with going back to Ithaca (sorry, Detroit). So, I left Ithaca around 5p, got back around midnight that same day. Talk about needing the miraculous powers of breath, focus, and (duh) yoga.
In case you ever find yourself in one of these most anxiety-raising, stress causing situations (hello running through the Detroit airport as fast as you can to beat 150 angry passengers to the closest rescheduling kiosk... PS I was first in line, yay exercise regime!) here's a brief sequence to help calm you down.
- Take three deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth. In fact, do this right now. NOW.
- Better already, right?
- Tadasana, Mountain Pose. The temptation might be to explore all of your favorite nervous habits. Stop biting your nails. Stop raking your hair. Stand in your power and breathe.
- Uttanasana, Forward Fold. Folds tend to be calming. Close your eyes and try to be present in your body.
- Take your thumb from pointer finger, to middle, ring, and pinky and then back again, tapping each one at a time. This is a meditation technique. Focus on your hands.
- Take three deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth. In fact, do this right now. Do this as many times as you need.
- Breathe.
