Alexa Lane | Dance Coaching and Wellness
Dance Technique & Conditioning | Theatre Arts
Easy Ways to Start a Meditation Practice
- It is ideal to practice in a clean, clutter-free and quiet room. It also helps to have the room dimly lit.
- Sit in a comfortable seated position with your spine held erect. If you choose to sit on the floor using a cushion or pillow will add comfort. You may also sit in a chair. The key point is comfort so that you feel good in your body.
- Breathing through the nose at a rate that is calm is essential during meditation. If nose breathing is challenging, simply breathe slowly and consciously to help relax the body.
- Choose a specific time and duration for your practice. If possible, try to meditate at the same time each day to build consistency. Start with shorter durations, 5-10 minutes, and gradually increase your time spent during each sitting.
- Live in present moment awareness. During meditation, it is common for people to experience a myriad of thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations. Include these things in your practice without trying to suppress or engage them. Let them come and go.
- It is also common for people to drift off into sleep. If you find yourself drifting off, bring your awareness back to your body, your breath, and your sitting posture.
- Lastly, some students may find it helpful to incorporate a focusing tool. Here are a few suggestions:
- A simple technique would be to follow the rhythm of your breath, focusing on the inhalation and exhalation.
- You may try silently repeating a short, positive affirmation, prayer, or mantra.
- Focus on a specific area of your body, Chakra or Marma Point.
- You may also try listening to soft, soothing background music that aids in relaxation and can also help you focus. Listen and focus on the vibration of the music and how it resonates in your body. Feel how your breath and the vibration of the music flow and intersect throughout your body.
It is most important that you find a technique that adds grace and ease to your meditation practice. Explore different techniques and remember there is no right or wrong. Each individual will have a unique experience. Each meditation practice offers an opportunity to explore ourselves without expectations, to quietly witness the subtle dimensions of our inner self, and to be open to what is present.
Here is a link to my guided meditation CD; Illumine , for you to practice at home.
Kale and Cacao Smoothie
- 1 ½ cup Water or Almond Milk
- 1 ½ cups Kale
- 1 tablespoon Chia Seeds or Hemp Seeds
- 1 Banana
- 2 Tablespoons Cacao Powder or Cacao Nibs
Blend all ingredients and Enjoy!
Side Plank for Scoliosis
According to a recent study published in “Global Advances in Health and Medicine” practicing the Side Plank Pose can reduce scoliotic spinal curvature. The study states that participants who held the pose for 1.5 minutes per day, 6 days per week, for approximately six to eight months significantly improved their scoliotic curve by 32%.
Practice Side Plank Pose/Vasisthasana:
- Begin in Plank
- Transfer your body weight to your left arm and left foot
- Rotate your body open to the right until your hips and shoulders are square
- Raise your right arm up and place your right foot on top of your left
- Modify by dropping your left knee to the floor
- Contract the abdominals, arms, and legs
Link to study: http://www.gahmj.com/doi/abs/10.7453/gahmj.2013.064
5 WAYS PILATES AND YOGA HELPS BOYS WITH SPORTS AND ATHLETIC TRAINING
Pilates and yoga exercises are highly beneficial cross training tools for boys who play a variety of sports. Specifically, pilates and yoga are examples of neuromotor exercise (proprioceptive training) and functional fitness that develops balance, coordination, gait, and agility. Adding pilates and yoga to a sport specific program can help young athletes gain balanced muscular development, flexibility and stability about joints, and reduce injury.
Below are 5 ways pilates and yoga can help boys increase their athletic skills:
- Reduces injuries due to repetitive motion. Pilates and yoga can help by strength training both sides of the body equally to prevent misalignments and to develop joints that have both stability and mobility.
- Improves precision and coordination needed to execute intricate movements in dance, tennis or baseball. Pilates and yoga focuses on the mind/body connection which enhances proprioceptive skills creating precise movement patterns.
- Increases flexibility essential to all sports. Flexibility training is necessary in sports, especially for dance and golf when the spine needs to rotate, flex, and extend.
- Increases abdominal/torso strength which will limit compensatory movements that can lead to wear and tear on the spine.
- Improvement with ADHD symptoms. Studies suggest that boys who practice mind/body exercises have greater concentration and show a reduction in ADHD symptoms.
Resource: http://jad.sagepub.com/content/7/4/205.abstract