For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing
them. - Aristotle
Having a daily yoga practice is very hard because it is not a simple
exercise, it is a lifestyle. You need to make all kind of
adjustments in your life so you can do it in the right way.
You have to be
rested, with an empty stomach but not hungry. Yoga does not tolerate
sugar, so you must be careful of your diet. Actually, whatever you have ate the previous day will be influence how well you will do yoga.
You have learned that by doing something the next day will be better and easier. Yoga is not really like that. There are strength and health benefits that comes with the practice but that is the case with any
physical practice.
Yoga stretches all muscles and it is hard to maintain in longer period. The muscle's overstretched is an usual problem in yoga. My advice is to
just do it with smile if possible.
I struggle with my ashtanga yoga practice. The main reason I struggle is
because I still holding on to my imagination and laziness. It's hard to start the practice. I tend to delay and procrastinate the moment I step on mat.
I keep in mind that ashtanga yoga is a simple tool intended to
support my well-being and happiness. If I want a consistent daily ashtanga
yoga practice, I need to let go of my laziness and my clever ways of
avoiding and delaying the practice. I must be
able to practice every day, even through illness, injury, fatigue and tiredness.
Ashtanga Yoga is really hard. This traditional, 6 days a week, practice is
quite challenging on many different levels. The longer you practice the
more you forget what it is all about. It is utterly intimidating,
defeating, boring and challenging.
It takes me on average 60 minutes to complete the Half Primary Series. In
2024, I am 59 years old and no, the Full Primary is out of question for
me.
Ashtanga Yoga method asks you to practice in the morning, six days a week,
which is a daunting task. This practice is not for everyone. Lazy people
cannot do it.
Half Primary Ashtanga Yoga starts with 3 sun salutations A and 3 sun
salutations B. And this very start is so tough. It gets you heart going,
it increase your inner heat so after just 5 minutes you get the first
drops of sweat.
The real magic of the ashtanga practice happens through the breath. Deep
Ujayi breathing - the breathing with harsh sound, inhaling through the
nose and exhaling through the throat, is the link that make you conscious
of your existence, of the I AM sense.
The yoga poses are never meant to be goals in this practice. In fact you
never really master a pose. Instead, when you practice, the real intention
is to bring awareness into every cell of your whole body. Once the body is
literally filled with your attention, you slowly realize of who you really
are. This awareness is happening in any pose, so no need to try and do all
the advanced poses.
Daily yoga practice results in boost of immunity at a
cellular level. Yoga helps to boost immunity by simply increasing overall
health. Research shows that migraine become less painful after
three months of yoga practice. The cause of migraines isn’t fully
understood, but it is suggested that could be a combination of mental
stress and physical misalignment that create migraines and other
issues.
Studies have found that 12 weeks of yoga can improve sexual desire,
arousal, performance, confidence, orgasm and satisfaction for both men and
women. Physically, yoga increases blood flow into the genital area, which
is important for arousal and erections and strengthens the body
core.
Eight weeks of daily yoga significantly improved sleep
quality for people with insomnia. This can be attributed to yoga’s ability
to help people deal with stress
Finding a daily routine to include yoga in our life isn't easy and excuses
can sometimes prevent us from creating a healthy and regular yoga routine.
Time is not always on our side in yoga.
The more you practice, the better. Ashtanga yoga is a journey, not competition or expectation of
achievement.
Practicing
ashtanga yoga daily into our senior years is a goal to aspire to as it will
keep you fit, confident, strong, flexible, mentally and physically balanced,
and self-disciplined.
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