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Yoga For Stress Management: Start The New Year With A Yoga Plan

By Paul Jerard

Any of us can make a lifestyle change, at any time, but most of us need mile stones such as a birthday, a new year, or a major event in our lives, for us to take the initiative and make a change. What can Yoga do to help you cope with the daily life cycle we know as stress?

If you plan to make Yoga a significant part of your life, you have to make it a regular routine - just like brushing your teeth. The main reason why some people see very little results from anything, is they say they have no time. Some of us make time to go to the liquor store, get lottery tickets, and then drink, but we have no time for our health.

At our wellness center, we have students and clients who practice Restorative Yoga, Vinyasa Yoga, Pilates, Personal Fitness Training, or a mixture of these methods. When we tell new Yoga students that they should practice Yoga three times per week, we often hear, “three times!”
A look of puzzlement comes over their face- as if Yoga should give instant results, when we attend classes once per week. I do understand that people are busy, but they do not take time for themselves. This cycle of stress, anxiety, insomnia, weight gain, and fatigue are interlinked, but can be broken by regular Yoga practice.

Some Yoga teachers adapt a “Spartan stance,” telling their students not to bother coming to class, if they are going to practice once per week. However, recent studies have indicated that Yoga practice, once per week, slowed down middle-age weight gain. The results are clear, but how did Yoga help with weight control?

My theory is Yoga, of any kind, will cause lifestyle changes within the student. Yoga opens an awareness of daily events that contribute to bad health. When you practice Yoga, you become much more aware of what you eat and drink, how you breathe, how you posture yourself, and much more.

This changing of lifestyle does not happen in Yoga class. A Yoga class is a lesson, but the student does the “homework.”

So, how do you incorporate a Yoga plan into your life and take control of your life? You have to make a list of what you want to change and write it down. Writing objectives down is much different from wishing for change. Writing and planning should be kept in perspective. We cannot spend our lives planning; but it helps to have some direction and purpose.

What you do at this moment does affect your future. When you take the time to plan your future, you will identify daily routines, which cause stress overload.

While you are planning your week, make sure to allow for some “open time.” You can use this for Yoga, visiting, having fun with your family, or just taking time for leisure. Make sure you plan each day with moderation and enjoy your life. Now, that is a good start to a Yoga lifestyle.
© Copyright 2006 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in Attleboro, MA. http://www.riyoga.com He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995.

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posted by Cheryl Levesque @ 3:36 PM