Modern day living has separated us from our natural state. With high-stress levels, we have lost touch with ourselves and our mind and bodies are suffering a disconnect. To bring ourselves back into the flow, we need to discover and live by the 12 Laws of Transformation. When the laws become part of our lives, we rediscover our inner power and life becomes more meaningful. With the 12 Laws, we can be who we are truly mean to be.

The 12 laws guide us to reconnect with ourselves and nature. When we live separate from the laws, we lose sight of our full potential. No longer guided by nature, we struggle to get by, not knowing that there is a better way, an easier way.

When we submit to the 12 Laws of Transformation, we discover a new perspective. Our view of the world changes and we can now understand our own place in the bigger picture. When we strive to live in harmony with our higher purpose, life becomes easier. We can live each day to the fullest, achieving more than ever before, and what we achieve would be more purposeful and for the greater good of all.

The 12 Laws of Transformation

1.     Seek the truth: It is only in truth that we can exist without the need to hide from the world.
2.     Be willing to come apart: We need to open ourselves to the possibilities life has to offer.
3.     Step out of your comfort zone: Very often, the thing that we need the most is just beyond our comfort zone. Have the courage to embrace the change.
4.     Commit to learning: For it is in learning that our minds grow and we can accept a new reality.
5.     Shift your vision: Open your eyes to things that you have not seen before for there lies hidden the answers to life.
6.     Drop what you know: Let go of your old limiting beliefs and make way for new empowering ones.
7.     Relax with what is: Do not resist the change, relax and let it come. Accept your new reality.
8.     Remove the rocks: Let go of all that is holding you back and holding you down. Let go of your problems, they will take care of themselves.
9.     Don’t rush the process: Patience is a virtue that we must all strive for. Let the process unfold naturally, you will see the positive change.
10.   Be true to yourself: Let go of what doesn’t feel right. The answers are all within you; open yourself to your own truth and live by what your heart tells you.
11.   Be still and know: Stop, take a deep breath and listen, let go of all that does not serve you and hold on to what you know is right.
12.   Understand that the whole is the goal: We live life in a complete circle. Any misdeed breaks the circle and we are no longer whole. To stay whole, we must live truthfully in all areas of our lives.

Live by the 12 Laws and watch your life transform into one of harmony and flow. Stay tuned to samadhiyoga.net for more insights and tips.

There are many people who think that yoga doesn’t build strength. The truth is that there are plenty of yoga postures and positions that can help you greatly boost your strength, such as the forearm plank.

But, we aren’t going to look at the forearm plank today. We’re actually going to find out how to do the Plank Party.

This is a typical plank pose that’s going to help you build some serious strength.

Start!

You can begin by getting into a neutral tabletop position. For this, you need to get on all fours with your shoulders positioned parallelly above your wrists and your hips over your knees. Now, make sure your hands are firmly placed on the ground.

Spread your fingers and create more pressure beneath the index finger and the thumb as opposed to the rest of the fingers. Now, as you push down, straighten your arms and flatten your upper back from shoulder to shoulder, while expanding the collarbone.

Make sure your head and neck are aligned with your flattened back. No drooping whatsoever. As you move down, start energizing your core. Your stomach must be sucked in so as to push the navel up to your spine. The sides must be brought towards the midriff as if you were in a corset.

Important Tip: To avoid injury, be sure to align your ribs, hips and sacrum with your heels. This will activate your core area even further.

The final step is where you step your feet back to realize the complete plank pose. The back of your legs must face the sky. When doing this, energize your legs and use all your strength.

Now, imagine your strength flowing from your heels to your head, as it crosses each chakra.

Lastly, don’t forget to breathe.

Advantages

The Plank Party Pose offers a range of benefits. For starters, it makes your wrists and hands stronger and more flexible. Then, your spinal muscles receive a good workout too, especially the extensors, which aid us in achieving an upright position when standing.

Your neck muscles benefit as well, as they are stretched and extended. This can be more useful than you think. We use our necks for a range of functions such as reading or writing.

Your glutes are also strengthened, which, in turn, keeps your hips from sagging and your lower back from developing problems.

On the whole, it’s like a full body workout.

Modify

You can also modify the Plank Party in many ways. For instance, if you want to go the extra mile and really boost your core strength, lift your knees up. This will create extra resistance and make the pose even more challenging.

In fact, you can do the same while still maintaining the tabletop position.

To know more about the Plank Party Posture, visit Samadhi Center for Yoga.

Yoga delivers the physical and mental health benefits they promise if you take care to ensure that your poses and breathing are on point. A common mistake rookies make is not inhaling and exhaling correctly. When you inhale, your chest and stomach should expand, and when you release your breath (exhale), they should contract. What about poses, where many body parts are involved? Here is a look.

Tadasana: Standing Mountain Pose

This yoga exercise requires you to stand tall with your spine straight and the big toes of your feet touching. A common mistake that people tend to make is straining their body too much such that their spine and butt stick out. The idea is to keep the top of your head to your tailbone in one straight line. Stand purposefully without strain, planting your feet firmly and feeling all four corners, and relaxing your shoulders a bit. Draw your tailbone down and look straight ahead, ready to climb every mountain and feel powerful!

Bhujangasana: Cobra pose

This pose mimics the posture of a cobra with its hood raised, and is known for strengthening the lungs as well as the digestive and reproductive systems. In this exercise, you pull your torso back slowly and off the floor, with your hands for support. Try to straighten your arms by arching your back as much as you can, without exerting undue strain, and tilt your head back gently.

The problem occurs when you force your lower body down hard to push up your upper body. This can cause unnecessary stress on your back and neck, canceling any benefit that you may have received by performing the cobra pose correctly. What you should be doing is keeping your shoulders relaxed and bending your elbows slightly while ensuring that your feet are close together. Push your pelvis down on the mat gently and look in any direction of your choosing.

Uttanasana: Standing Forward Bend

Uttanasana is performed by beginners and advanced practitioners for its strengthening effect on the thighs, knees, hamstrings and calves. Advanced students are able to bend forward intensely till their face touches their legs, while beginners may try this after weeks of practice engaging the right muscles.

It is often seen that beginners tend to keep their legs very straight and in the process, roll their spine instead of keeping it straight and long. Remember that it is fine to bend your knees and keep them soft (instead of locking them), but important to maintain a straight spine as you fold over forward.

Virabhadrasana II: Warrior Pose II

Warrior Pose II gives your leg, chest and groin a potent stretch, strengthening thigh and butt muscles, improving digestion, increasing stamina and helping alleviate back aches. A common mistake made here has to do with alignment: the goal is to tug your hip back not up, while keeping your hip bones facing forward. Bend your front knee as much as you want- this will assist with balance and prevent your knee from locking. Keep your back leg straight and relax your neck. Voila, you have mastered the warrior pose!

Now that the holiday season is here there’s almost no time to waste. There are presents to be bought, decorations to be placed, gifts to wrap and meals to make. During these few weeks, yoga should be further up on your to-do list!

Yoga has been proven to reduce stress and anxiety in your life in a variety of ways. Take a look for yourself at just a few.

Pain Relief

Physical pain can get worse with more stress and physical activity. With all the shopping and planning you can develop everything from sore feet to headaches. Yoga has been shown to reduce the longevity and intensity of physical pain symptoms in people even when practiced just once a week. Even something as simple as back pain can be reduced significantly, which can do wonders for your mood and energy levels.

Mental Peace

Yoga shouldn’t be approached like a chore. It’s an opportunity to zone out of the day and take time for yourself to relax and recharge your batteries. Studies prove that one of the biggest stress relieving elements of yoga practice is the mental relaxation that it provides.

According to one scientific study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, levels of chemicals that help reduce anxiety and stress increased after doing yoga. In fact, the participants who did yoga had improved more than those that practiced exercise instead.

Disease Symptoms

Anxiety and chronic pain are usually just parts of broader problems. Many of us suffer from depression, generalized anxiety and so on, not to mention the daily stresses of work and life. These things can pile up and make the holidays seem even more fretful and difficult. They don’t have to be that way.

As mentioned in the previous studies, many practitioners found relief in physical pain and mental stress that stemmed from chronic problems. It’s so important to take some time out of your day to actively relax. Whether that’s asanas or just breathing exercises, you have great resources at your disposal to combat all the tension that comes with this time of year.

Bottom line – don’t let the holiday season bog you down. Come in and meet us for an appointment or a class today!

2. Happy Baby Pose (Ananda Balasana)

3. Legs Against Wall (Viparita Karani)

4. Supine Spinal Twist (Jathara Parivartanasana)

5. Child’s Pose (Balasana)

6. Locust Pose (Salabhasana)

8. Reclining Big Toe (Supta Padangusthasana)

9. Adept’s Pose (Siddhasana)

10. Standing Forward Bend (Uttanasana)