Simple tips for eliminating stress
As part of my yoga teacher training, one of the subjects I’m studying is restorative yoga. Designed to help you de-stress and recharge, restorative yoga utilizes props to support the body through a series of relaxing poses. My “textbook” for this subject is Judith Lasater’s Relax and Renew, which details sequences for insomnia, jet-lag, pregnancy, menopause and more. She also offers the following tips on removing stress from daily life, which I think are pretty cool:
- Eat breakfast every day.
- Take a nap each Saturday.
- Take a walk in the park in the middle of the week. Do not wear your watch.
- Buy flowers for yourself once a week.
- Leave for your appointment 10 minutes earlier than usual and enjoy the trip.
- Take a walk with a young child. Walk at her pace. Stop whenever she wants to stop, for as long as she wants. Notice if you feel impatient. Let her teach you how to slow down.
- Do not take a working vacation, and be sure to use your vacation time in the year you have accrued it.
- Agree to meet someone between two times, for example, between 1:00 and 1:30 P.M., instead of at an exact time. Give yourself some leeway.
- Read a book not related to your work and which is not about self-improvement or any project.
- Take your lunch break away from your desk. There is always more to be done; don’t sacrifice nourishing yourself.
- Plan a “pajama day,” when you stay home in your pajamas and do whatever you want. You could spend time reading, soaking in the tub, or listening to music. Be sure to let your answering machine take your telephone calls.
- Write a letter to someone you miss. Use special paper and pen. Take your time.
- Lie on the couch for several minutes. Do not listen to music, read, talk on the phone or sleep. Just be there.
- Take a five-minute stretch break at work. Remember to breathe.
- Decide on one task that you would like to accomplish by a certain date. Write it down in your datebook. Make a realistic plan of how to meet your deadline and then stop nagging yourself about it.
Want more info on Judith and her techniques? Visit her site.
I think this list should be everyone’s guidline for life.
My restorative class last week was wonderful. We didn’t even use props–worked on feet and shoulders and just calmly repeated stretching them for an hour in very easy poses–the teacher reminded us we weren’t moving on to other things so to relax and just be in those poses. So nice.