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YOGA

simple steps to lead a healthy life
FITNESSWellnessYOGA

3 Simple Steps to Amazing Results: World Health Day Inspiration

by Roopa
written by Roopa

We focus easily on assets that are visible and tangible, while overlooking the truly essential things that can’t be seen or touched—like our health, for instance. Today, World Health Day, would be a good day to bring our focus on this topic and make a beginning, wherever we are on this journey.

3 simple steps we need to do:

  1. Nourish Our Body – Eat Right
  2. Exercise – Move Our Body with Joy to Keep Fit and Strong
  3. Rest & Reconnect – Sleep well and recharge in Nature and in Silence.

1. Nourish Our Body
Eat right, choosing real food for health, not just for taste. Eat when hungry, eating mindfully with adequate hydration. Let our meals be a celebration of wellness, not just a routine.

2. Move with Joy
Whatever be the choice – yoga, power walking, dancing, sports or cycling – energizing, strong movements should be a daily joyful ritual. Not as a burden, obligation or punishment, but a celebration of what our body can do and be.

3. Rest and Reconnect
It is essential to prioritize sleep, unplug from screens, and reconnect—with ourselves, with nature, with silence, our friends and families.

Good health doesn’t demand perfection. It begins with intention, followed by consistent action. Consistent small smart choices accumulate into a life of good health.

So today, let us set our intention firmly to :

  • Eat only that which truly nourishes us.
  • Move our body every day, in a way that brings us joy.
  • Disconnect from useless energy and time drainers to reconnect with ourself, with nature, with stillness.

सर्वे सन्तु निरामयाः ! May All be Healthy, Disease-Free!

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Bend down to touch the toes
FITNESSWellnessYOGA

Magic In The Journey Down To Touch The Toes!

by Roopa
written by Roopa

In Yoga, the asana where one bends down to touch one’s toes is Paadahastasana. Some people, and even some kids do not find this easy to do. Over time, with practise and improved flexibility, this asana becomes possible. It can be quite a journey down there, one of exploration, self-discovery, awareness and improvement. This first post of 2025 is about the journey the kids from my Sunday Kids Yoga sessions are enjoying !

Yoga for Kids

Teaching yoga to kids four and a half decades younger than me is the joy and highlight of my Sundays. If people wonder whether kids can practise yoga as the two seemingly don’t go together, the answer is a resounding ‘yes, they can, and indeed should’.
It is easy to complain that with the exposure to the digital world very early on, the children of today lack focus and mindfulness. Most adults think that kids are hyperactive and restless, incapable of sitting still and silent let alone observe their minds. My experience with the children at my kids’ yoga classes prove otherwise. Children take to yoga naturally and joyfully. The body and mind awareness they cultivate brings a world of benefits to them.

An Exciting Journey!

Laughing and talking noisily, the girls, aged between 8 and 10 years come running up the stairs a few minutes ahead of the class. Rolling their yoga mats out, they are eager to experience what I have in store for them. Only after they excitedly tell me all about the ‘interesting happenings’ of the week, they are ready to ‘settle in’ ! With my instruction to inhale and exhale deeply as they close their eyes, our class begins. They observe their breathing and sit still and composed as we chant. Yes, occasionally a kid will get distracted and open her eyes to see what the others are doing but most times, the chanting immerses them deeply.
Even as newbies, the kids quickly get a hang of what comprises a yoga class and follow the instructions attentively. They soon want to progress to the advanced versions of the asanas. The balancing asanas being the trickiest, there’s much giggling as they watch each other wobbling about while they learn to focus their gaze on a single point.
Not only are the kids able to focus, chant, meditate and breath mindfully while enjoying the physical exertions, they are also able to observe the calmness and stillness of their minds after the pranayama. The mindfulness games I play with them are much in demand.

Adults usually come to yoga when their mental or physical health fails.

Unfortunately, in the case of adults, most enroll in yoga classes after they are diagnosed with lifestyle diseases like hypertension, diabetes and other stress-related or mental issues. They come because they have no go but to finally take care of their health, and then, when they stay on this path and practise sincerely, realise that their yoga practise gives enormous mental as well as physical health benefits, beyond their expectation.
Since adults already carry a certain amount of baggage when they enroll in these classes, they take time to build confidence in themselves as well as in the practise itself. Children are spontaneous in their learning and responses; they do not analyze what they are asked to do nor are they self-conscious. They are also more intuitive and with gentle nudging grasp the purpose of the activities we do in class.

A World of Benefits!

Few parents are aware of the benefits of yoga for children. Some know about the benefits because they practised when they were younger, some send their kids to yoga class to get some free time for themselves!

Whatever be the reason, kids benefit enormously from yoga classes that include pranayama, asana, relaxation and mindfulness practices. When children learn to recognise their mental states and are empowered to regulate their moods and emotions through breathing and mindfulness techniques, they grow up to be balanced teenagers and adults. This is the kind of generation we need in our society. “More yoga in the world is what we need” – Diane Lane. And it would make a wonderful difference if we start with yoga for children.

As the kids bend down to touch their toes, they discover more than just flexibility on the journey down. There’s a world of wellness and joy there. Indeed, for these little ones, the journey down to touch their toes is a magical one.

Happy New Year Everyone !!

Wish you all a year filled with good health and all else you desire.

Do share your thoughts on this post here below !!!

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Mind MattersPersonal GrowthWellnessYOGA

The true essence of Yoga lies beyond 108 Surya Namaskars

by Roopa
written by Roopa

On International Yoga Day, June 21st, the commonest activity we see all around is the announcement of 108 Suryanamaskar ‘challenges’! Yes, performing that many Suryanamaskars (Sun Salutation sequences) at a stretch requires stamina and long-term practise. Such publicity, however, gives a layperson the impression that Yoga is perhaps about doing a certain number of Suryanamaskars! The essence of Yoga, however, lies beyond physical practises.

Going beyond Sun Salutations in Yoga

Yoga is much more than practicing or performing Suryanamaskars. Indeed the physical or exercise aspect of Yoga finds only a brief mention in the Patanjali Yogasutras as well as in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, both revered texts of Yoga. Traditional yogic practices are all directed towards finding the calmness and stillness required to sit and meditate. These practises encompass a) Pranayama which includes breathing in a variety of ways to energize, balance or calm the mind and body b) full body relaxation techniques, c) mindfulness practices like chanting & japa d) meditation, the ultimate goal of yogis and d) Yoga Nidra which rejuvenates the mind and body. Yoga thus includes practises that combine mental, physical, spiritual, emotional, and ethical aspects of a human being.

The different limbs of Yoga !

A typical yoga class

Only a portion of an hour-long yoga class by a good teacher is directed to physical postures or asana practise. Yes, the practise of Surya Namaskars is a part of the class, depending on what the teacher wants the student to do on that particular day. The rest of the class is used to direct the students’ awareness to their inner self, to find a balance in their emotions and responses with the tools described above.

Finding Equanimity

In Chapter 2, verse 48 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says that Yoga is finding ‘equanimity’. “Samatvam Yogah Uchyathe”. This relates to many aspects of life.

For example, it takes time and maturity to treat success and failure, acceptance and rejection with equal composure. In the meantime, we can turn inward to recognise and celebrate our Divine side. Being able to feel One with Nature, and recognizing our Oneness with the Universe can make a great difference to our attitude to life, our relationships, our words and our actions. This is the basic aspiration of a Yoga practitioner.

While doing 108 Suryanamaskars is definitely a physical feat worthy of admiration, consistent and sincere practise of all the limbs of Yoga by many can lead to a peaceful and joyful society.

The real test is off the mat

While the asana or physical practise is essential to make our bodies strong enough to be able to sit still for long periods of time, finding true ‘balance’ needs an inner and outer awareness that should hold strong in all our interactions off the mat, outside the yoga class as well.

Do share your experiences with Yoga practise in the comments section below 🙂 ! What part of your practise do you find challenging/easy ?

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