office yoga | St. Louis Corporate Yoga

5 Minute Breathing at the Office

There are many benefits associated with taking five minutes at the office place to breathe deeply. Let’s explore the topic of breathing a bit further in the office environment. When we take our breath for granted, most of us as adults tend to breath shallow.

There are many negative side effects to short, shallow upper chest breathing. Our body interprets this kind of breathing for one foot on the gas and one foot on the brakes. When we do not breathe correctly, we tend to have more dominant, intrusive, fearful thoughts. Simply put, we think too much and become anxious, irritable or depressed. No wonder modern life is still trying to catch up with nature. Computers and globalization still leave us all feeling as if we are wanting something more…

Did you know? We are breathed correctly as babies!

The importance of utilizing proper breathing not only provides us with oxygen, one of our primary nutrients for all metabolic function. It also allows us to activate the cleansing process in the alveolar sacs which exchange oxygen for carbon dioxide. Each day alone, we get 22,000 breaths and if we placed all the alveolar sacs together: they would take up the size of over half a tennis court. Just by comparison, our skin or largest sensory organ is only 3 square feet by 3 square feet. What a difference!

We had this perfect yogic breath when we were babies! Our whole body expanded as we breathed on an inhale and softened as we exhaled. According to yoga, we are not quite sure why we began breathing incorrectly. Maybe it is our tendency to look outside too much. We do know that we during the course of reaching adulthood, most of us lost have lost the art of deep breathing.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Using our primary muscles of breathing, we inhale, expanding the abdomen, allowing the diaphragm to release, the lung tissue to expand and the deep, rich oxygenated breaths to flow. The diaphragm muscle has been associated with courage. In yoga, we understand that as a living healthy organism, we must undergo change in order to remain healthy. When we stay connected to our breath, we let life unfold without attaching to results. We circulate the body with life force energy and wire our brain to stay calm, confident and centered right in the center of change.

From the first breath, we feel lighter, more at ease, more connected to our natural vitality and joy. As we exhale, we allow the belly to soften; the diaphragm will lift up back under the heart and push air out of the lungs. Placing our focus on the breath, we practice meditation, we let things fall apart and we stay centered.

The way you know your yoga is progressing is your ability to take on more stress with less effort. True mastery is really living your everyday life sweetly.

For more information on how to train your employees on how to breathe or to bring corporate onsite yoga to your workplace, please contact, Michelle, at 314-630-1677. Let us help you design a special program for your organization’s unique needs today.

You Need To Stop

If your company is caring enough to organize and invest in corporate yoga programs, make sure you make the most of those classes! We gathered a few behaviors you need to STOP doing during your on-site yoga class to benefit the most.

Stop the comparisons

It is very attempting to check out how your colleagues are doing during class. We all do it from time to time, don’t we? It is OK to peak once in a while… but don’t waste much time and energy on this.

Pay attention to your body instead. Our bodies always try to communicate with us well ahead of time that an illness manifests in symptoms. We just don’t have time and patience to listen. A class can give you this precious opportunity so focus on yourself!

In yoga we are all on our own path. What another student does is not relevant. Judgment or criticism have absolutely no place in a yoga class.

Stop the hard work

Practicing yoga is supposed to be fun. Lighten up a bit, this is no performance sport! You are doing awesome if you make it to the class, practice focused on yourself and enjoy this special hour of the day. Keep your expectations realistic. One class will change your state for some time but will not be able to remedy all your troubles. The longer you practice, the more beneficial changes you will notice in your life.

Stop pushing through the pain

If something hurts, stop. If you feel slight discomfort doing a pose, you might try it again after waiting a few seconds. If you feel pain, stop and ask your instructor how to proceed. She might have a modification that fits your body better or can show you a different pose that will deliver similar benefits to the original. You are taking a yoga class to relax and nurture yourself not to suffer.

Stop the thought carousel

All the problems, the worries, the questions from your work and private life might scream for attention when you finally take some time off your schedule. Why? It is easy to hush away those worries when you have 100 things on your to-do list.

Yoga class might be the only 60 minutes in a week when you have a single focus: you are doing yoga so it is impossible to call somebody while reading email and trying to put some files away. Of course problems and life’s big questions will try to take over this sacred time! If this happens, focus on your breath again and again. This can be a challenge, we know. Please try again… and again…and again.

Stop being late or leaving early

Arriving too late or leaving minutes before a class finishes is not very considerate to your fellow yogis. We know that it is sometimes not easy to get away from your desk! And there might be very good reasons for leaving the class early. But please do not make a habit of this behavior!

It disturbs the flow of the class for all participants. And it also kills the whole purpose of you taking these classes. Make a commitment to respect yourself and your fellow yogis!

Can’t wait to meet you in a corporate yoga class very soon!

What exactly is Meditation and Can I Begin Practicing in the Office, too?

This blogpost is a description into the everyday magic and natural easefulness ongoing meditation can bring to the workplace. With so many people feeling overwhelmed with their workload today, meditation is a great practice and only requires five minutes when you know what to do.

When you train your mind to stay focused on the breath, you begin to feel at one again with the present. It is this place, that you are likely to feel more calm, empowered and able to make clear choices. Ghandi once said “you must be the change you would like to see”.

It is not about the mistakes or being perfect or pleasing others.

Meditation frees up energy so that we can clearly remove those criticisms and reflect on all the good. And with ‘loving metta’ or awareness, we begin to touch this wisdom that interconnects us all.

Breathing with conscious awareness brings the mind into greater balance, ease, vitality and awareness. We learn through the practice of “meditation yoga” directly that we are always connected. We use this inner faith and apply transformation into any area of our life by seeing the ‘vritti’ or chatter of our mind and not getting caught. The metaphor as being a fish, seeing the hook, but not taking the bite.

So, we come back to our breathing, that indivisible wellspring of goodness and bring it into our everyday life to discover that the power, and faith has always been within. Letting go of our need to know why things happen or unfold as they do and practicing this prayer of surrender reconnects us to our ‘inner mystic’.

With more continuous practice sessions of 5 minute witnessing our breathing throughout the day, we become more confident that a healthy attitude is the way to accessing true potential, wisdom and health.

Meditation reduces stress, anxiety and depression. Other benefits include increased energy, more confidence in reaching goals, greater clarity, improvement in our decision making and better sleep patterns. It is from this harmony that is there all the while, we just need to be still, that we attract the right people, the right circumstance and all abundance. Rumi has said once that all we need to do to tap into this infinite strength is “to sell our cleverness and purchase bewilderment”.

According to spirit, the source of all problems begins when we believe we are separate from spirit. It is when we believe that we are somehow separate that we create problems. The heart of any compassionate practice is to shift your focal point away from these worrisome and distracting thoughts back onto the present moment.

When we place our awareness in the breath, we train the mind to remain neutral. The truth is always that in order to make a difference in the world, we must first make the change from within.

Start a corporate wellness program in the workplace today. Please get in contact so we can help you find the best solution for your company’s needs! Call 314-630-1677.

One Minute Meditation at Work

“A few times per day, while sitting at my desk, tension begins to creep in and take over. I may be sitting too long and working too hard.” Most people agree that work related stress is the single worst contributor to poor health.

Did you know there is a way to transform our tension without having to get to a yoga class? Research shows that deep breathing is the single best way to counteract anxiety and keep the mind calm, clear and empowered. When we breathe with more awareness, we breathe deeply and nourish our heart, support better digestion and even improve our immune system too!

How about One Minute Meditations? When we breathe deep even for one minute, we find our center, and have greater access to sustained levels of energy throughout the day. Try this, as soon as the moment of tension arises, take a step back, and notice your own unique breath move through the nostrils. Take a few deep and natural breaths in and out. Allow yourself to sit comfortably with your back to the office chair. As you begin to make any adjustments, give yourself permission to sit tall, and relax the shoulders.

Notice any muscles that are still tense, the shoulders, face, arms and see if you can release their tension on the exhale breath. Begin to notice how the breath slows down and lengthens the more you place your focus upon it.

Continue to breathe a few more rounds. Take the breath from the belly first, and also exhale from the belly first. If you like to try a counting breath, think of 4 on the in breath, pause and 8 on the out breath.

Small moments of meditation at key moments when tension is arising can be very useful in finding again greater ease at work. This will flood the body with feel good hormones such as serotonin. We can increase peace of mind and take good health back into our own hands.

Everyone has a unique breath and different lung capacity and tidal volume. Allow your breathing to feel natural and supportive to you. If your mind begins to wander and you have gone away too, simply reassure yourself that every one of us does the same thing too. It is as if we have two brains, one that is intimately connected to our peace and one that is hardwired for distraction and survival.

Staying with the breath reminds us how to access the higher mind and simply experience what is actually happening. For each of us, life is constant change, and there is no amount of controlling it, that will stop this unfolding process. When we stay with our breath, we can witness without attachment, and experience greater space, inner security, pleasure, and joy!

St. Louis Corporate Yoga currently offers 9 weekly yoga onsite wellness classes to various companies throughout St. Louis. If you would like to get a yoga class started, please contact us at 314-630-1677 or info@claytonyoga.com.

Eye Strain Remedies

Have you ever counted how many hours per day you spend in front of computers? Or any other screens for that matter? It is not just computer monitors stressing our eyeballs… it is your smart phone, iPad, and any other handheld device you use regularly.

With all the screen time, most people began suffering from the consequences. Itchy eyes, tearing, blurred vision and even headaches – this is the price we pay for too much time in front of these devices.

Let us give a few very simple eye “exercises” that will remedy the situation. The best part you can do these at your desk, you don’t even have to wait for your company yoga class.

Most of the time when looking at screen, you focus on things directly in front of you. This puts a lot of strain on your eye muscles. Just think about it: your eyes are designed for both long distance and short distance use.

When was the last time you actually gazed into to distance? Urban living and office work cuts back on the opportunity for this. No wonder it is so easy to lose sight of “the bigger picture” in our lives.

Why don’t you look at the clouds for a minute or two? Try to focus on the clouds one by one. Look behind them. If there is no cloud on the sky, concentrate on “dipping” your eyes into the blue of the sky. You prefer trees or sky-scraper? No problem. Pick an object that requires you to look into the distance.

Your eye muscles need some exercise, too. Those muscles help you focus and keeping them flexible might improve your sight and keep your eyes healthy.

Let’s get back to the cloud or skyscraper you were gazing at in the last exercise. Now try to move your eyes around the edges of the object. Use your eyes as a paint brush or pencil and paint/draw the edges of the cloud. You don’t have to draw every tiny edge, though. If you look at a tree, your draw the trunk and an outline of the crown – this will give your eye muscles the necessary workout.

Go ahead, roll your eyes! Slowly circle your eyes around an imaginary clock. Make the movement smooth and slow in a clockwise direction a few times. Then repeat in the counterclockwise direction, too. Breathe in deeply and exhale twice as long during this exercise.

When exercising your eye muscles, speed is not desirable. You might get dizzy as a result. Take your time and rather do only 1 repetition than rushing to do 4.

It is best to practice these easy to do eye-loving movements every day. It takes only a few minutes at most and your eyes will thank you for it.

An extra tip: when looking on the clouds, get your creativity going. Try to come up with names for the clouds on the basis of how they look. Create a short story. Do you see any images, even faces? After taking a few minutes of creative gazing, you come back refreshed to your projects. Don’t be surprised if you find a few extraordinary solutions…
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Office Yoga Poses of the Month – Shoulder Openers

We understand it is not always possible to get to your yoga class with more and more work piled up on the desk. That is why we bring to you our monthly blogpost with easy to follow in the office or at home stretches.

This month, we wish to feature shoulder openers. All of us carry a great deal of tension in our upper back, shoulders and even arms.

Practicing shoulder openers will diminish tension headaches, fatigue and provide the brain with a much needed boost of oxygen. This will then help release tension converting it back into its natural state or vitality. With new energy, you will be able to tackle new projects and have more creative ideas.

SHOULDER OPENING YOGA POSTURES 101

1) Right now in your chair, bring your hands interlaced and above your head. Take 8-10 breaths and feel that stretch through your thorasic and upper back muscles.

2) For the second pose, bring one hand around the opposite elbow and pull that over the crown of the head, stretching the tricep muscles of the arm. Again, hold the posture for 8-10 breaths. Change sides.

3) For the third and best yoga pose in the office place, stand next to the office chair and interlace your hands behind you. Stretch downward through the arms and the hands. Keep rolling open the collarbones and feel the top of the chest open, the key is to soften the rib cage down and back and feel the top of your chest opening like ‘Superman’ with the collarbones smiling big and bright.

4) From a seated position, lift the arms out to the sides and above the head, palms touching. Exhale slowly to the count of 5 and bring the arms back down.

Some other suggestions for inviting yourself to practice include an at home practice too. Create a sacred part of your house where it is solely dedicated to quiet time. Quiet the distractions and light soft candles, or tea lights throughout your home. Play soft music, and clear away any clutter.

Navigating our way back to compassion and spirit requires us to stay grounded. Yoga is a system of tools designed to bring our fragmented selves back into wholeness and balance.

The interesting thing about being grounded, is that your empathy and team building skills go through the roof.

The most important step in yoga is to try. If you do not practice, you will not receive benefits. Secondly, give yourself space to be gentle and learn from the different postures and techniques. Every single yogi begins their practice with resistance and tension in the body. Be gentle as you bump up against your edges.

Your company doesn’t have yet a corporate yoga program? Let us help you create a unique program for you! Please call us at 314-630-1677.