Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live. – Jim Rohn
Happy Saturday Yogis! We are restarting the Niyamas for our daily practices with Saucha or Purity Day. We are going to keep our practices synchronized with the challenge group!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is a deep cleaning or pampering of our bodies for SauchaDay. Need some ideas November is Healthy Skin Month. I recommend focusing on skin today – I am going to do a face mask and at-home pedicure!
Relax with a face mask and cucumber slices over your eyes.
If you want to try a new Ayurvedic practice, maybe try oil-pulling (I recommend 2-15 minutes, not 20-30) with coconut oil.
If the days of social distancing are done, maybe book a last-minute facial or salon treatment of your choice.
Clean your insides with a clean-eating day – no junk food, or perhaps try another clean eating diet method or cleanse of your choice.
Whatever practice feels right for you to integrate Saucha into your day.
Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself, and all opinions expressed here are our own. This page contains affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.
Want more Self-Care Ideas and hacks? Check our Self Care Board On Pinterest!
Please comment and share how you decided to practice Saucha today. How did it make you feel? Always remember, be kind!
Happy Sunday Yogis! We are celebrating a special Yamas / Interpersonal Ethics focused month starting a bit later this week for the Holiday Season! So, before we get started today is a KISS (keep it super simple) Day for Pranayama Day today! We are going to revisit Yogic Breath, a Pranayama Practice. This is one of my favorite Pranayama techniques!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is Yogic Breath, a Pranayama Practice. Most of us have tried diaphragmatic breathing, which is part one of this three-part breath. We recommend incorporating this breath technique into your Asana practice, and bringing it forward into meditation! This is also a great calming technique for anxiety – keep this practice in mind to use throughout this month if needed, since the holiday season can be stressful!
Diaphragmatic Breath
Start in a comfortable seat by evaluating your current breath pattern. Place one hand on your chest, and the other on your belly. Breathe in and out, and notice when the hands resting on your belly and chest move to indicate expansion. You SHOULD use your diaphragm and breathe into your belly, so your belly expands on the inhale and contracts on the exhale. Most of us breathe shallowly into our chest only, and our belly hand never moves!
Breathe in and make sure your belly expands, pushing your hand out as your entire torso fills with air
Breathe out, contracting the belly, making sure you empty the lungs completely
Continue breathing in to a full count of 6, and out to a full count of 6, using your diaphragm to fill your lungs with air, and contract the belly to empty lungs completely. Focus on keeping your chest hand fairly still, and using your diaphragm to breathe into your belly.
Yogic Breath / Three Part Breath
PART 1 – Belly: Diaphragmatic breathing is the first part of three part breath! Make sure you complete 10 full inhalations and exhalations, counting to 6 for each inhale and exhale.
PART 2 – Ribs: After 10 complete belly breaths, after expanding into your belly – try expanding your rib cage outwards on inhales and allowing to compress on exhales.
PART 3 – Chest: After 10 full inhale and exhalations with rib cage expansion – first fill your belly, then expand rib cage, then try allowing your clavicle (collar bone) to rise as you fill and empty your lungs completely for another 10 breaths.
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Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Pranayama exercise! Do you incorporate diaphragmatic breathing like this, or other Pranayama into your Asana practice? Have you tried this full three-part breath? Do you have another Pranayama practice you particularly enjoy? Always remember, be kind!
Happy Tuesday Yogis! National Hydration Day was in the middle of my first month of entries, which is now my 30 Day Intro Challenge. I am glad to revisit this during the year, because I always forget to prioritize this! I have mentioned that I love resolutions, and “drink more water” has been at the top of my New Years’ Resolutions list every year for at least 20 years. I also love holidays and any reason to celebrate, so I hope you all enjoy recognizing some of these random national and international holidays.
Lake Dillon, Colorado
Today we will focus on hydration again before restarting our 8 Limbed Yoga practices, since I personally DO need to revisit my resolution to drink more water and many of you may also struggle with this. So, maybe this is the key to my finally keeping my resolution to drink more water.. roundabout method, but yay! I also completed my Ayurveda Continuing Education, so I am covering both since they do have some correlations.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to track, evaluate, and possibly increase your hydration levels. If you are like me and need help with this, maybe get a new water bottle to keep water with you and help track oz you drink during the day. If you have a favorite bottle already, perhaps try the Ulla clip which will blink to remind you if you have not drunk for a while (thanks to SEB for this tip!). Try adding fruit, mint, tea, cucumber, etc to your water if that encourages you to drink more during the day. Or perhaps try an app like Drink Water – Daily Reminder (free version is fine) to help with tracking and pop-up reminders, and a tool for personalized recommended oz of water per day.
Ayurveda – Water with Meals
This week is Thanksgiving in the US. This is basically an eating holiday, so I want to revisit Ayurvedic wisdom that resulted in a huge improvement in my digestion. Although drinking a large glass of water before a meal is often recommended for weight loss, this weakens (by dilution) your stomach acid and therefore digestion. I try to time my water intake 30 min before or 60 min after a large meal. This seemingly simple and small adjustment allowed me to reduce and then completely stop extremely strong stomach medications (Dexilant), and improved my gastro paresis.
Need help hydrating? Check out our recommended tracking bottles and reminders
Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself, and all opinions expressed here are our own. This page contains affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.
Please comment and share your thoughts on today’s hydration discussion. I hope you are doing better than I am keeping up with your hydration goals than I am 🙂 Always remember, be kind!
Breathing well means breathing more slowly and deeply. Relax, feel your breathing, and breathe comfortably. Once aware, it naturally becomes deeper and slower. – Iichii Lee
Happy Friday Yogis! Before we get into our detailed review of the Sun Salutations Asana Series discussed yesterday, we will take two days to cover the remaining 8 Limbs of Yoga. We are going to review Diaphragmatic Breathing today, along with our challengers, with a slightly different approach.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is Diaphragmatic Breath, a Pranayama Practice. Today we are going to try either standing in Tadasana, or laying down, rather than in a comfortable seat as we have done in the past. I love practicing Pranayama laying down in Shavasana, as I feel I can breathe deeper into my belly. We recommend incorporating this breath technique into your Asana practice, and bringing it forward into meditation! This is also a great calming technique for anxiety.
Diaphragmatic Breath
Start either standing in Tadasana or laying down in Shavasana. Begin by evaluating your current breath pattern. Place one hand on your chest, and the other on your belly. Breathe in and out, and notice when the hands resting on your belly and chest move to indicate expansion. You SHOULD use your diaphragm and breathe into your belly, so your belly expands on the inhale and contracts on the exhale. Most of us breathe shallowly into our chest only, and our belly hand never moves!
Breathe in and make sure your belly expands, pushing your hand out as your entire torso fills with air
Breathe out, contracting the belly, making sure you empty the lungs completely
Continue breathing in to a full count of 6, and out to a full count of 6, using your diaphragm to fill your lungs with air, and contract the belly to empty lungs completely. Focus on keeping your chest hand fairly still, and using your diaphragm to breathe into your belly.
Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Pranayama exercise! Did you try standing in Tadasana or laying down in Shavasana today? What did you think? Always remember, be kind!
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Better keep yourself clean and bright; you are the window through which you must see the world. – George Bernard Shaw
Happy Saturday Yogis! We are restarting the Niyamas for our daily practices with Saucha or Purity Day. We are going to keep our practices synchronized with the challenge group!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is a deep cleaning or pampering of our bodies for SauchaDay. Need some ideas November is Healthy Skin Month. I recommend focusing on skin today – I am going to do a mask! Also, in honor of Healthy Skin Month and its focus on skin cancer prevention, I am putting a reminder in my phone to schedule a dermatologist check-up.
Relax with a face mask and cucumber slices over your eyes.
If you want to try a new Ayurvedic practice, maybe try oil-pulling (I recommend 2-15 minutes, not 20-30) with coconut oil.
If the days of social distancing are done, maybe book a last-minute facial or salon treatment of your choice.
Clean your insides with a clean-eating day – no junk food, or perhaps try another clean eating diet method or cleanse of your choice.
Whatever practice feels right for you to integrate Saucha into your day.
Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself, and all opinions expressed here are our own. This page contains affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.
Want more Self-Care Ideas and hacks? Check our Self Care Board On Pinterest!
Please comment and share how you decided to practice Saucha today. How did it make you feel? Always remember, be kind!
Good morning Yogis! Or actually, perhaps ohayou gozaimasu – おはようございます is more appropriate! We are changing our daily post times to 7am Toyko Time, so Yogis in Asia and Australia can stay coordinated with US and Europe-based Yogis. PS US Yogis – did you know Japan does not use daylight savings time? We now have initial and reminder posts for Instagram – our initial posts will move up to late morning for Yogis in the east / late evening for Yogis in the US, and Instagram reminder posts will post in late morning for Yogis in the US. Daily e-mails are moving forward. For the moment, app notification reminder times will not change, but may move up next week for our intro challenge. This should be our last post time change.. we will keep our post times coordinating with the Date Line!!
Either way, let’s get started for Thursday’s Pranayama Day Practice!
This is our last Pranayama Day for our special meditation month, so today we will cover a meditative Pranayama practice – Nadi Shodhana (NAH-dee show-DAH-nuh). This literally translates as “channel-clearing” but we frequently use a more descriptive translation of alternate-nostril breathing. This technique is meant to clear the body’s energy channels, and I find it is super cleansing for the entire respiratory system – you may want to keep some tissues handy for this technique, and do not perform if you have a stuffy nose!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is Nadi Shodhana or Channel Clearing, a PranayamaPractice. Most of us have tried diaphragmatic breathing, which is part one of this alternate-nostril breath. We recommend trying this breath technique during meditation! This is also a great calming technique for anxiety.
Diaphragmatic Breath
Start in a comfortable seat by evaluating your current breath pattern. Place one hand on your chest, and the other on your belly. Breathe in and out, and notice when the hands resting on your belly and chest move to indicate expansion. You SHOULD use your diaphragm and breathe into your belly, so your belly expands on the inhale and contracts on the exhale. Most of us breathe shallowly into our chest only, and our belly hand never moves!
Breathe in and make sure your belly expands, pushing your hand out as your entire torso fills with air
Breathe out, contracting the belly, making sure you empty the lungs completely
Continue breathing in to a full count of 6, and out to a full count of 6, using your diaphragm to fill your lungs with air, and contract the belly to empty lungs completely. Focus on keeping your chest hand fairly still, and using your diaphragm to breathe into your belly.
Get in position – you will want to come into a comfortable seat. Place your left hand on your left knee. Bring your right hand into a Vishnu Mudra, folding your first two fingers to your palm (or if this is not comfortable, bring all three center fingers to the palm, or rest your index and middle fingers on your forehead/third eye)
Use the right thumb to close the right nostril. Exhale and then inhale fully through your left nostril only, keeping your diaphragmatic breath technique, breating into your belly.
Move your right ring and pinky finger to close the left nostril. Exhale and then inhale fully through your right nostril only.
Continue this alternate-nostril breathing for 3-5 minutes. Remember, exhale and inhale, then switch sides.
This technique can be quite confusing – you may want to follow along our recommended video this first time!
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Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Pranayama exercise! Have you tried this alternate-nostril breath? Do you have another Pranayama practice you particularly enjoy? Always remember, be kind!
Good morning Yogis! We just wrapped up practice of each of the Niyamas, and we are now on to Asanas, the 3rd Limb of Yoga. Today we will cover my absolute favorite hip opener and one of my favorite Asanas – Supta Kapotasana (SOUP-tuh kah-poe-TAH-sa-nuh) or Reclined Pigeon Pose.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to try today’s Asana– Supta Kapotasana or Reclined Pigeon. This pose is great for lower back pain, and especially for sciatic nerve issues.
Supta Kapotasana – Reclined Pigeon Pose
This is a deep hip opener – make sure to practice on both sides! There are many Kapotasana or Pigeon Pose variations. This is considered the easiest version, but I find it the best and most versatile. I enjoy moving my legs around a bit to find and target different tight spots in the hips.
Start laying on the ground face up in Shavasana – Corpse Pose. Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the ground.
Begin with your right foot on top – bring your right ankle to your left knee, making your legs into a figure 4.
If you are a new Yogi or have very tight hips and already feel a stretch.. stay here! Breathe deeply into your hips in this pose.. I find new male Yogis may need to practice this for up to a year before being comfortable enough to move into the full expression of this pose below!
If you are staying here in Ardha Supta Kapotasana or Half-Reclined Pigeon Pose, hold this pose for as long as comfortable while taking deep breaths into any tension you feel in your hips. I usually hold 30-60 seconds per side in my regular practice.
Switch your legs so left leg is on top, and repeat on the other side.
Reach your hands around your leg and clasp around your left knee.
Exhale and hug your left knee in towards your chest. Breathe deeply into your belly and hips, and let your hips and lower back release.
Hold this pose for as long as comfortable while taking deep breaths into any tension you feel in your hips. I usually hold 30-60 seconds per side in regular practice. I occasionally hold this Asana for up to 5 minutes, moving my knees closer or away from my chest, or side to side slightly to target problem areas.
Switch your legs so left leg is on top, and repeat on the other side.
Supta Kapotasana – Reclined Pigeon Pose
PS If you are comfortable with variations of these poses, please tag us with your pictures on Instagram!
CHECK OUT OUR Other Top 5 lists TOP 5 YOGA Equipment and Yoga MATS!
Good morning Yogis! Or actually perhaps good evening is more appropriate.. we are changing our post times to 2am Mountain Time along with our instagram posts to make it easier for Yogis overseas to stay on time with us! Daily e-mails and app notifications will not change. Other than this posting time change, today is a KISS (keep it super simple) Day! So, we are going to revisit Yogic Breath, a Pranayama Practice.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is Yogic Breath, a Pranayama Practice. Most of us have tried diaphragmatic breathing, which is part one of this three-part breath. We recommend incorporating this breath technique into your Asana practice, and bringing it forward into meditation! This is also a great calming technique for anxiety.
Diaphragmatic Breath
Start in a comfortable seat by evaluating your current breath pattern. Place one hand on your chest, and the other on your belly. Breathe in and out, and notice when the hands resting on your belly and chest move to indicate expansion. You SHOULD use your diaphragm and breathe into your belly, so your belly expands on the inhale and contracts on the exhale. Most of us breathe shallowly into our chest only, and our belly hand never moves!
Breathe in and make sure your belly expands, pushing your hand out as your entire torso fills with air
Breathe out, contracting the belly, making sure you empty the lungs completely
Continue breathing in to a full count of 6, and out to a full count of 6, using your diaphragm to fill your lungs with air, and contract the belly to empty lungs completely. Focus on keeping your chest hand fairly still, and using your diaphragm to breathe into your belly.
Yogic Breath / Three Part Breath
PART 1 – Belly: Diaphragmatic breathing is the first part of three part breath! Make sure you complete 10 full inhalations and exhalations, counting to 6 for each inhale and exhale.
PART 2 – Ribs: After 10 complete belly breaths, after expanding into your belly – try expanding your rib cage outwards on inhales and allowing to compress on exhales.
PART 3 – Chest: After 10 full inhale and exhalations with rib cage expansion – first fill your belly, then expand rib cage, then try allowing your clavicle (collar bone) to rise as you fill and empty your lungs completely for another 10 breaths.
Follow us on Instagram – easy access to our daily positive practices Plus second daily reminder photo / edit On INSTAGRAM Only
@dailyyogi.world tag us with your Asana pics! enable notifications for pop-up reminders!
Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Pranayama exercise! Do you incorporate diaphragmatic breathing like this, or other Pranayama into your Asana practice? Have you tried this full three-part breath? Do you have another Pranayama practice you particularly enjoy? Always remember, be kind!
Good morning Yogis! We just wrapped up practice of each of the Niyamas, and we are now on to Asanas, the 3rd Limb of Yoga. Today we will cover my Top 5 Positions or Asanas for Meditation.
Please try all of these meditation poses, at least briefly and see which feels best for you! Please note there is no right or wrong here.. I am sharing MY Top 5, but many others may disagree with me. For example, I find Virasana / Hero Pose comfortable for an extended time only with a block under my seat, and occasionally find Lotus Pose enjoyable, which is too intense for many Yogis.
I enjoy Siddhasana (sid-DAH-sa-na) or Adepts Pose for Meditation. This is basically my comfortable seated position, and that is just how I always envisioned meditating! This Asana is basically a slightly more difficult version of Sukhasana / Easy Pose.
Start in a comfortable cross legged position. Then spread your knees a bit further, and bring your feet in towards your groin – keep your leg on the mat and tuck your ankles/shins over each other. Look down and make sure there is no empty space between your legs and feet. Keep your torso straight and tall over your hips. Take note of your rib cage. If you notice the bottom of rib cage is sticking out, pull back in and down to correct your posture. Next notice your shoulders. Try to gently roll your shoulders back and down, away from your ears. Notice how this helps your chest open. You can put your hands on the ground and gently press to lengthen your back, or rest your hands on your knees. You can pull a bit on your knees to help open your chest and help keep your back straight. You should keep your head, neck, and shoulders aligned over your hips in any seated pose. Your hands can either gently rest on knees and/or in your favorite mudra/placement for meditation. PS if any poses are uncomfortable, try with a couch pillow or block under your seat! Try not to move your body while meditating, I find it helps to switch my legs each day of practice for any cross legged positions to even out my posture!
Make sure you keep your back straight, not rounded in any seated position! If you notice your back rounding in this pose, move your legs back out to Sukhasana / easy pose, making a small triangle of empty space between your legs. I prefer Siddhasana over Sukhasana, because bringing in my feet helps me maintain a straighter back. I also prefer Siddhasana over Padmasana / Lotus Pose for meditation, since Lotus can get a bit strenuous on my ankles for an extended time.
2. SEATED IN A CHAIR – SEATED MEDITATION
Chair Yoga is very common, and chairs are often the most comfortable seat we can find! It is important to be comfortable and maintain your posture if you will be sitting for an extended period of time, and a chair can help with both. Driving is also my favorite meditative activity, so sitting in a chair (driver’s seat also counts to me) makes this #2 for my Top 5!
3. SHAVASANA – CORPSE POSE – RECLINED / SUPINE MEDITATION
Shavasana – Corpse Pose
Shavasana or Corpse Pose is often considered the most important Asana, especially after Asana Class. I occasionally enjoy deep meditations if I need help to fall asleep, and it is absolutely required to be in bed in Shavasana for those guided meditations! One of my favorite things about meditation in Shavasana is that I can breathe more deeply into my belly than I am able to in a seated position.
Lay on your back, and allow your legs and feet to gently splay open. Rest your arms a few inches away from your body, with palms facing up. Close your eyes, and allow your entire body to relax and sink into the mat. You can use a couch pillow under your head and/or knees, or any modifications to make this pose more comfortable for an extended time. I occasionally take Shavasana with knees bent and feet on the floor, and/or with elbows bent and hands under my head or cactus-arms to the side.
To come out, gently roll onto your right side, then press your hand into the mat to come back up slowly into a seated position.
Virasana / Hero’s Pose is actually the most comfortable seat for many Yogis. However, this is my Top 5, and I find kneeling positions strenuous on my feet and knees for extended periods of time. I can only hold kneeling positions comfortably with a block under my seat! I do enjoy meditation in a kneeling position, resting my hands on my knees.
This is a kneeling Asana, and usually much more comfortable for Yogis with tight hips than the cross legged posses above. Start kneeling with knees and toes together. Then, bring the toes apart, and sit yourself down between your legs. Make sure to keep your back straight, with hips, shoulders, and head in line. This pose can be rough on my knees, and sometimes bothers my heels and tops of my feet if I’ve been wearing high heels. I find this pose much more comfortable with a block under my seat as pictured below.
Virasana – Hero’s Pose with Block
CHECK OUT OUR Other Top 5 lists TOP 5 YOGA Equipment and Yoga MATS!
I would recommend a block, couch pillows, or perhaps a folded-up blanket for support under the seat. Pick your favorite chair for a seated meditation, or comfortable shoes for a meditative hike or walk!
Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself, and all opinions expressed here are our own. This page contains affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.
There you have it, my Top 5 Meditation Positions! Please comment to share if your Top 5 would be different.. I know many Yogis enjoy seated positions other than Adept’s Pose, or prefer Shavasana to any other position. Always remember, be kind!
We are continuing on with weaving practice of each of the Niyamas into our day, and today is Tapas (self-discipline) Day. Each Tapas Day, we are making and/or checking a goal that was important to us. It has been a little more than four months since our first Tapas Day, and I would say I have successfully formed my new habit of (almost) daily Duolingo language practice, and have moved on testing daily Asana and Meditation habits. If you have not kept up with your daily habit goals, examine why you did not, and consider if you want to keep this goal or set a new one. Evaluate the electronic and visual reminders and/or rewards you set for yourself, and perhaps modify these systems to ensure your success!
Bonus Daily Meditation Challenge
If you are having a hard time keeping up with the daily habits you have set for yourself, consider trying and sticking with a 30 Day Challenge! We are in the middle of a bonus Daily Meditation Challenge for October! For Tapas day today, try a Morning Motivation Guided Meditation.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to monitor our daily habit goals, and set a new one if needed. Also, let’s practice some of the recommended activities to support mental health for Mental Health Daytoday! We have covered many of these practices on the graphic on past days, but I can see get plenty of sunlight and get enough sleep have been missed – perhaps evaluate your sleep and sunlight intake, and take steps to make time for more sleep and sunlight each day! If you want to get an extra Yoga Workout for Tapas Day, I recommend Tiger Crunches – a great Ab and Glute workout!
Yoga is a practice, and successfully changing our habits is about consistency, so we will keep checking in on our goals on Tapas Days.
Please comment and share how you are doing. Have you kept up with your new habit? Are you changing your systems or perhaps setting a new meaningful goal? Is there another 30 Day Challenge theme you would like us to try? Always remember, be kind!
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Good Morning Yogis! We are restarting the Niyamas for our daily practices with Saucha or Purity Day.
Bonus Daily Meditation Challenge
We are in the middle of a bonus Daily Meditation Challenge for October! For Saucha Day today, my meditation for the day is a Cleansing Guided Meditation.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is a deep cleaning or pampering of our bodies for Saucha Day. Need some ideas?
Good morning Yogis! Today is World Heart Day! This holiday was created by the World Heart Foundation 20 years ago to help combat and raise awareness for cardiovascular disease. Please take the time today to consider your heart health, and consider any positive steps you may want to take to improve your heart health such as limiting salt intake, quitting smoking, or scheduling a medical check-up. If you are 40 or over, consider scheduling a lipid panel if you have never had your cholesterol checked. So, for World Heart Day today, we will talk about another new Asana commonly referred to as Melting Heart Pose: Uttana Shishosana (OO-ta-na she-SHOW-sa-nuh) which literally translates as Intense or Extended Puppy Pose.
I usually practice with the Yoga Studio App rather than streaming services, so I can download my favorite classes and use in areas without Wifi or phone signal. Today I am doing one of my favorites – Intermediate Flexibility (30 Minute).
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to try Uttana Shishosana or Melting Heart Pose, or perhaps try an Asana series working into this pose for World Heart Day! This is a common pose for all levels Yogis and all styles of Yoga, especially restorative classes. This pose is often considered a hybrid between two common favorites: Balasana / Child’s Pose and Adho Mukha Svanasana / Downward Facing Dog. This pose is easiest to enter from Table Top.
Legs, Hips and Feet – Start in Table Top, with your knees under your hips and feet hip distance apart. Your legs will stay in place as you move into the pose. Hips should stay neutral – try to keep your hips right over your knees! I often end up relaxing back into my hips as I relax into the pose. Take note of your booty – it should be almost tucked under rather than sticking out.
Torso – Keep your back, neck, and head in a straight line – notice any rounding in lower back, and adjust your tail bone and ribs.
Arms and Head – Start in Table Top, with your hands under your shoulders. To come into Uttana Shishosana, slowly walk your hands forward as far as possible as you bring your chest to the mat. Make sure to keep your shoulders down and back, away from your ears. Rest your forehead or chin on the mat.
Hold this pose for as long is comfortable. Walk your hands back up to Table Top to come out.
Uttana Shishona – Melting Heart Pose
PPS If you are comfortable with Uttana Shishosa, please tag @dailyyogi with your pictures on Instagram!
Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself, and all opinions expressed here are our own. This page contains affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.
Please comment to share your experience or any questions! Have you tried Uttana Shishosana / Extended Puppy Pose before? Always remember, be kind!
Good morning Yogis! National Hydration Day was in the middle of my first month of entries, which is now my 30 Day Intro Challenge. It has been only two months… but I’m already ready to revisit this! I have mentioned that I love resolutions, and “drink more water” has been at the top of my New Years’ Resolutions list every year for at least 20 years. I also love holidays and any reason to celebrate, so I hope you all enjoy recognizing some of these random national and international holidays. Today we will focus on hydration again before restarting our 8 Limbed Yoga practices, since I personally need to revisit my resolution to drink more water and many of you may also struggle with this. So, maybe this is the key to my finally keeping my resolution to drink more water.. roundabout method, but yay!
On my Intro Hydration Day, I also introduced Ayurveda (EYE-your-VAY-duh), which literally translates as “science of life” and can be thought of as a sister science to Yoga. I completed my Ayurveda Continuing Education a couple months ago. Last time I discussed some of the Ayurvedic Hydration recommendations, and I think I will keep talking about Ayurveda on these Hydration days. But first, let’s stay on track with our daily hydration!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to track, evaluate, and possibly increase your hydration levels. If you are like me and need help with this, maybe get a new water bottle to keep water with you and help track oz you drink during the day. If you have a favorite bottle already, perhaps try the Ulla clip which will blink to remind you if you have not drunk for a while (thanks to SEB for this tip!). Try adding fruit, mint, tea, cucumber, etc to your water if that encourages you to drink more during the day. Or perhaps try an app like Drink Water – Daily Reminder (free version is fine) to help with tracking and pop-up reminders, and a tool for personalized recommended oz of water per day.
Ayurvedic Morning Routine – Intro
Ayurveda recommends a daily morning self-care routine. One of the first recommended morning ritual practices in Ayurveda is tongue scraping. I tried this practice during my Ayurveda training, and this is one that I continued. If you want to try a new Ayurvedic practice, perhaps add this to your morning routine and see what you think!
Need help hydrating? Check out our recommended tracking bottles and reminders
Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself, and all opinions expressed here are our own. This page contains affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.
Please comment and share if you tried a calculator to see your recommended oz per day.. do you usually drink too much or not enough water?
Before we get into twisted and modified versions of poses in the detailed breakdown of the Sun Salutations Asana Series discussed yesterday, we will take two days to cover the remaining 8 Limbs of Yoga.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is Yogic Breath, a Pranayama Practice. Most of us have tried diaphragmatic breathing, which is part one of this three-part breath. We recommend incorporating this breath technique into your Asana practice, and bringing it forward into meditation! This is also a great calming technique for anxiety.
Diaphragmatic Breath
Start in a comfortable seat by evaluating your current breath pattern. Place one hand on your chest, and the other on your belly. Breathe in and out, and notice when the hands resting on your belly and chest move to indicate expansion. You SHOULD use your diaphragm and breathe into your belly, so your belly expands on the inhale and contracts on the exhale. Most of us breathe shallowly into our chest only, and our belly hand never moves!
Breathe in and make sure your belly expands, pushing your hand out as your entire torso fills with air
Breathe out, contracting the belly, making sure you empty the lungs completely
Continue breathing in to a full count of 6, and out to a full count of 6, using your diaphragm to fill your lungs with air, and contract the belly to empty lungs completely. Focus on keeping your chest hand fairly still, and using your diaphragm to breathe into your belly.
Yogic Breath / Three Part Breath
PART 1 – Belly: Diaphragmatic breathing is the first part of three part breath! Make sure you complete 10 full inhalations and exhalations, counting to 6 for each inhale and exhale.
PART 2 – Ribs: After 10 complete belly breaths – after expanding into your belly, try expanding your rib cage outwards on inhales and allowing to compress on exhales.
PART 3 – Chest: After 10 full inhale and exhalations with rib cage expansion – first fill your belly, then expand rib cage, then try allowing your clavicle (collar bone) to rise as you fill and empty your lungs completely for another 10 breaths.
Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Pranayama exercise! Do you incorporate diaphragmatic breathing like this, or other Pranayama into your Asana practice? Have you tried this full three-part breath? Do you have another Pranayama practice you particularly enjoy? Always remember, be kind!
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Good Morning Yogis! We are restarting the Niyamas for our daily practices with Saucha or purity Day. We are going to keep our practices synchronized with the challenge group!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is a deep cleaning or pampering of our bodies for Saucha day. Need some ideas?
Good morning Yogis! We are waiting another couple of days to start our cycle through the Limbs of Yoga to sync up with our 8/1 30 Day Challenge group! I learned July is National Anti-Boredom Month and today is the last day of the month. Since it is the last day of July, it’s Friday, and most of us have been struggling with quarantine boredom, let’s honor this national month today with some fun!
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to have some Friday fun for Anti-Boredom month! Need ideas? I always recommend getting outside and enjoying nature, and perhaps get some bonus Santosha practice by staying present and enjoying the moment! Or check out 21 Ways to Reduce Boredom or 100 Ideas for Quarantine Fun. There are SO many virtual performances, tours of world-class destinations, and continuing education courses available online.. staying at home does not have to mean staying bored!
Please comment if you’d like to share how you had fun this Friday! Always remember, be kind!
Good morning Yogis! It is Pranayama Day today, the Fourth Limb of Yoga. Today we will be learning Ujjayi (oo-JAW-yee) Pranayama. This is literally translated from Sanskrit as Victorious Breath, but is commonly referred to as Ocean Breath due to the sound of this technique. This is another great cooling and calming breathing technique, and is ideal during Asana practice. You may have learned this in Yoga class before, especially if you have attended a Hot Yoga class.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is trying Ujjayi Pranayama or Ocean Breathing.
Open your mouth and inhale and exhale through your mouth. Contract your throat to slightly say “HA” on the exhales. Keep this light contraction in your throat so you slightly say “SA” on the inhales. You will start noticing the ocean sound from which this technique gets its name.
Now, close your mouth. Inhale and exhale through your nose, while keeping this contraction in your throat to keep the ocean sound continuing on both inhales and exhales. As you become comfortable with this breathing technique, try your Asana practice with this Ujjayi Pranayama.
Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Ujjayi Pranayama exercise! Have you ever tried this technique as a standalone or during your Asana practice? Always remember, be kind!
Good morning Yogis! Did you know today is National Hydration Day!? I have mentioned that I love resolutions, and “drink more water” has been at the top of my New Years’ Resolutions list every year for at least 20 years. I also love holidays and any reason to celebrate, so I hope you all enjoy recognizing some of these random national and international holidays. Today we will focus on hydration before restarting our 8 Limbed Yoga practices, since I personally need to revisit my resolution to drink more water and many of you may also struggle with this.
Ayurveda
This is also a good time to introduce Ayurveda (EYE-your-VAY-duh), which literally translates as “science of life” and can be thought of as a sister science to Yoga. You may be familiar with some Ayurvedic practices such as neti (sinus rinsing), oil pulling, or tongue scraping. Many of these practices are recommended first thing in the morning, along with drinking water. Ayurveda recommends drinking warm water to start the day after cleaning the mouth, but I personally prefer tea rather than water to start the day. Ayurveda also recommends drinking less water or other liquids at/with meals to aid digestion.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is to track, evaluate, and possibly increase your hydration levels. If you are like me and need help with this, maybe get a new water bottle to keep water with you and help track oz you drink during the day. If you have a favorite bottle already, perhaps try the Ulla clip which will blink to remind you if you have not drunk for a while (thanks to S for this tip!). Try adding fruit, mint, tea, cucumber, etc to your water if that encourages you to drink more during the day. Or perhaps try an app like Drink Water – Daily Reminder (free version is fine) to help with tracking and pop-up reminders, and a tool for personalized recommended oz of water per day.
Need help hydrating? Check out our recommended tracking bottles and reminders
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Please comment and share if you tried a calculator to see your recommended oz per day.. do you usually drink too much or not enough water? Did you enjoy this self-care focused practice?
Good morning Yogis! We are taking a short break from our regularly scheduled breakdown of the poses in our Sun Salutations Asana Series, to celebrate the Summer Solstice! Since it is likely very warm today and will stay warm for the next few months, we will kick off the first day of summer with Sitali (Sih-TA-lee) which literally translates from Sanskrit as cooling or soothing, a cooling Pranayama / Breath exercise.
Today’s Daily Yogi Practice is trying out a cooling breath Pranayama Practice. We recommend trying this after drinking water so your mouth is moist, and as a stand-alone technique when you need to cool down!
Next, open your mouth into a small o. Stick out your tongue a bit more than half way, and roll your tongue. Picture either an unfurling leaf, which helped inspire sages to develop this breathing technique, or a hard taco shell, which is probably a more familiar and descriptive image.
Breathe in deeply through your MOUTH, drawing the air over your tongue almost like you were using a straw.
Close your mouth and put your tongue flat on the roof of your mouth, and breathe OUT through your NOSE keeping your mouth closed.
Form an o with your mouth at the end of your exhale, and curl your tongue outside your mouth again for your next INHALE. Continue this for 10-20 full breaths.
If you want to continue, keep your mouth closed to return to diaphragmatic breathing for 10 full breaths before repeating. You may continue this cooling breath exercise for 10-15 minutes. I recommend doing Pranayama on its own whenever you need to cool down, or after a vigorous Asana practice. I would not recommend practicing this particular breathing technique during or before Asanas or other exercise.
Make sure to drink plenty of water before and after this cooling breath. Cooling breath can leave you with an especially dry mouth if you are not hydrated.
Please comment and let me know what you thought of this Sitali Pranayama exercise! Have you ever tried this or another cooling breath? Always remember, be kind!
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