Festive Season De-Stress – Be the STAR!

Be the STAR of Christmas day, with some self care yoga.

The festive season is here!  Christmas is so close, the excitement is building, It’s full of love, laughter, family, cooking, guests, cleaning, you name it!  This my friends, is a frenzy of energy!  And when energy is used properly, it starts an amazing day.

Being a STAR means you are calm, rested, yet resilient and ready for the day.  So how can you look after yourself so you can be that star?

My suggestion?  Yoga of course!

Let me tell you a bit about Star Pose, before you try, as the warm up is just as important as the pose itself.

It’s an amazing strong and grounding pose, it reminds you that when you focus on yourself, nothing else matters.  The pose has so many benefits, the standing pose is great for centering, and the side plank pose is core centred, muscle activation, and gives you the sense of focus and purpose.

Yoga itself can bring internal peace and this brings about a sense of joy, happiness and peace during your festive season.

Let’s start this warm up in Child’s Pose

• Begin on all fours, or table top position, with hands and knees equal space apart.
• Bring your feet together, and then your knees together.
• Press your bottom back towards your heels.
• Lower chest down to thighs.
• Rest your forehead down on the mat.
• Hands can be stretched out in front with palms facing down to give your upper back a good stretch out, or you can rest them beside legs with palms facing up.

This pose stretches out your spine, and relieves general body aches and pains.

Bring yourself into Butterfly Pose

• Sit on your mat with your spine nice and straight.
• Bring the soles of your feet together by bending your knees, allowing them to go wide.
• Start off with your legs in a diamond shape with the soles of your feet touching.
• Hold both your feet tightly with your hands.
• Take a deep breath in and lengthen through your spine.
• Exhale, mentally press thighs and knees down to the floor. (Yes, it will happen with an intention).
• If you feel more stretch is an option for you, sit tall and bring your feet closer in the direction of your groin.
• Hold for 5 breaths:
• Still holding onto your feet, start moving your legs up and down like a butterfly flapping its wings.
• Start slow and gradually increase speed to around 15 seconds.
• When you feel ready, slow the movement down.
• Bring legs to stillness.
• Now press your elbows onto your thighs or knees – this presses the knees and thighs closer to the floor.
• Hold here for 10 seconds.

Come onto your stomach for Cobra Pose

• Lay on your stomach.
• Engage your thighs, pressing them firmly onto the mat.
• Maintain a nice long spine here, before the next part.
• Bend elbows, hands beneath shoulders, tuck elbows in towards ribcage.
• Press palms down firmly, lift your chest while keeping your ribs down on the floor.
• Extend your elbows half way and roll your shoulders back and down.
• Gently lift your head and gaze straight ahead.
• Stay here for 5 rounds of slow controlled breathing, in through your nose counting to four, out through the nose counting to five.

Now for the main pose!

Star Pose can be practiced in a few different ways.  So let’s dive into two of them.

1. Standing Star Pose.

• Stand with your feet wide.
• Take your arms out to shoulder height.

There you go, you are a five pointed star!  See how easy it is!

Now breathe deeply and remind yourself that you are an amazing star.

Ready for the next one?

2. Side Plank Star Pose.

Here’s for the fun part – how to get there.

• Start from a side plank position.
• Engage your core – belly button to spine.
• Flex both feet.
• Raise your top leg.
• Raise your top arm.
• Hold only for as long as your body says is OK.

To exit the pose –

• Keep your core engaged.
• Lower top leg.
• Bring hip to the floor.
• Come onto your bottom, cross your legs, rest your arms and breathe.

Did you notice that it is challenging?  Did you wobble?  Did you fall?

From memory it took me 6 attempts to get this photo.  Mainly because I couldn’t stop laughing at myself!

Variations:

Get really close to the wall, use it to help with balance as you come into the pose.

You can also use props, like a chair, and yoga blocks to assist you in this pose.

It can be a challenging pose, so grab whatever you think you may need.

Benefits of this pose 

• Improves posture
• Lengthens the spine
• Opens up the chest, and sense of expansion at rib cage.
• May assist in reducing back and shoulder pain.
• It’s a strong balance pose.
• Strengthen of internal focus.
• It CAN make you laugh while intending to hold!

Contraindications 

Pre-existing injury to wrist, elbow, shoulders and neck should avoid side plank star pose, but instead revel in the goodness of standing star pose.

More tips from me 

Yoga is a great stress reliever for the festive season. Try to get up earlier than everyone else, and the house is quiet.  This quietness is for self care time, this will help to focus on you, the most important person, about what is truly important, while strengthening you both physically and mentally.

Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Walk away from anything which does not serve your soul.

Remember that YOU are the most important person in YOUR life.

Finish your practice in Savasana Pose

• Lay on the floor with all touch points of your body weighing evenly on the floor’s surface – shoulders, hips, calf muscles all relaxed and with no part taking more weight than another.
• Allow your arms to rest out by the sides of your body with your palms facing up.
• Relax your shoulders down and away from your ears.
• Bottom relaxes.
• Legs relax.
• All your feet to fall out to the sides.

Happy festive season everyone!

Always be kind to yourself, move with ease and grace.  You are the most important person in your life.

Namaste

For more information from Trudy Vains, visit here.

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