I have not kept up a regular yoga practice in quite some time- years in fact. Long gone are the days, in China, when my regular routine was leave work at 5:15, catch a cab (and a nap) to the bumper to bumper car packed corner of Fuxing Xi Lu and Huashan Lu, where I would jump out of the cab, run inside, and make a 6:00 Flow class every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (I went on Saturdays or Sundays too, but that was a different routine). I have not since experienced the commitment, the zen, the flexibility or the yoga butt that I had at that time. Lord do I miss all four. In Latvia I went to several different classes and studios, but never found a place where I really felt at home, and therefore, never found a regular practice.
Since being in Angola, I have pulled out a yoga dvd (and done it!) a handful of times- not a lot. But, since I started going to the gym more regularly, I also added in one of my very favorite asanas (poses). The good ole headstand, as pictured above (and yes, I do my headstands close to a wall, in case I need the support, but, the whole time I am up in the headstand, I am unsupported by the wall- I am freely standing on my head/arms). It's good for lots of things- including but not limited to (according to yogajournal.com):
- Calms the brain and helps relieve stress and mild depression
- Stimulates the pituitary and pineal glands
- Strengthens the arms, legs, and spine
- Strengthens the lungs
- Tones the abdominal organs
- Improves digestion
- Helps relieve the symptoms of menopause
- Therapeutic for asthma, infertility, insomnia, and sinusitis
I read recently in one of the daily (or weekly?) yoga emails I receive that in order to receive the benefits of headstand, you must stay in it for 3 minutes. Since I go to the gym alone, I don't have a watch with a timer, nor a clock that I can see when I stand on my head, I don't know how long I stay up there.
Luckily, recently, I have been in the gym at the same time as the colleague of mine who's been supportive of my running. So I've asked her to time me. She lets me know each minute that passes, and then I come out of headstand at 3 minutes.
Today though, I felt strong, and after my 5k on Sunday (and 4k yesterday), I was ready to push for more. So, when my colleague told me three minutes had passed, I told her I was just going to see how much longer I could go. I actually muttered some incomplete phrase at her, using some of the words I wanted- because when you're as focused as you need to be to be safely in a headstand, talking is not a thing you want to do. Anyway, next I knew she was telling me it was 4 minutes, and then it was 5. My legs were starting to sway at that point (a sign of fatigue, when you can no longer hold yourself steady), so I decided to lower myself down.
I'm doing good with 5's these days.... 5k run on the treadmill, 5 minutes in headstand...hmm...5 um, ok, well, that's all. But I think both are cool.
10 minute headstands, here I come!
6 comments:
Sweet, Five min headstand thats super impressive. Keep it up sis, your fantastic!
Thanks, bro! I like compliments/encouragement like that!!
Never got around to doing the headstand in my yoga classes that I stopped in May when I was having a bunch of health issues. But I loved a pose where we would lay on the floor with our legs up against the wall. Straight up and down and then as close to splits as possible. It was the most relaxing, stress relieving pose. You reminded me that maybe I should try and do it soon as life is so chaotic and I could use the stress relief. I'm hoping that maybe once I get to Atlanta I'll be able to find good yoga studio and start up again.
Liene, Legs up the wall is a great pose, with many similar benefits as headstand. All inverted poses have some similarities. It's something to work towards once you get back in classes. Beginners should never try headstand on their own- you could literally break your neck! I've got 7 years of yoga behind me.
And yeah- the beauty of most yoga poses- they can be done anywhere, at anytime- use them to your advantage! :)
Really? break my neck? I was thinking maybe I would try, but now that you say that, perhaps I won't! I do a modified yoga routine a couple of times a week, and did Rodney Yee's Power Yoga yesterday for a change, but I don't think he can leap out of the DVD and help me to do a headstand.
I guess I'll just have to wait then!
And congrats on all your awesome fitness achievements lately! You're on fire!
Eileen- to do or not to do comes down to lots of factors... your fitness level, your comfort and knowledge of yoga alignment, etc. I have often read in yoga journals, etc that inversions such as headstand are sometimes not appropriate until you've had a regular yoga practice for as many as three years. I started doing inversions earlier, but I am SO drawn to them- and I always did it in a class, under supervision.
If you were to attempt doing it on your own, I would definitely do it against a wall. Have the boyfriend just be there to help you stabilize if you need it. When you are up in, focus on trying to distribute your weight along your whole forearm from wrist to elbow, and to keep your shoulders pulled away from your ears.
Yeah, if you fall out of headstand in a bad way, you could definitely break your neck! You're standing on your head!
I have that Power yoga dvd, and I think I've only ever done it like once. I just hate doing yoga by myself at home.
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