Om Mantra Deep Meditation for individual trains the mind and induces a ...

Balasana!!!!

Step by Step:

Kneel on the floor. Spread your knees to the width of your hips big toes together.

Exhale and bring your belly to rest between the thighs, lowering your buttocks towards your heels. Lengthen your spine away from your tailbone. Breathe into your lower back.

Lay your hands on the floor alongside your torso, palms up, and release the fronts of your shoulders toward the floor. Feel how the weight of the front shoulders pulls the shoulder blades wide across your back. Rest your forehead into the floor.

You can stay anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes in this resting pose.

To come up, first lengthen the front torso, and then with an inhalation lift from the tailbone as it presses down and into the pelvis.

Beginners Tips:

If you can't reach the floor because your back is stiff, if your belly is too big, you can widen the stance of your knees and try again.

If your forehead still does not rest easily onto the floor, if your neck is flexing forward and your head does not touch the floor at all place a block to rest your head on. You can also bring your arm around and rest your head on your forearms.

You can also place a pillow between the feet and hips if the buttocks don't reach the heels.

Benefits:

Stretches the hips, thighs, lower back, ankles and knees.

Helps relieve fatigue.

Calms the mind and the body.

Increases blood circulation to the head.

Watch out for...

If you have neck injuries, make sure that your neck stays in a neutral position. If your head does not rest easily on the floor, rest your head on your forearms, doubled up fists, pillows or blocks.

This pose should be avoided if you are pregnant of if you have diarrhea, high blood pressure, ankle and knee problems.

Pose alterations / adaptions:

If you feel too much of a stretch in your ankles - place a small roll at the bottom of your shins to relieve tension.

If your buttocks does not sit on your heels, and you wish to rest here for a while as a restorative pose, place a pillow/blanket between your feet and your buttocks.

To increase the stretch in your spine and side body, stretch out your arms and hands, up over your head, reaching forward. It's also helpful to open the upper body and shoulderblades. Make sure your neck stays soft.

Majaryasana!!!!!

Step by Step:

Start on your hands and knees (all fours). Knees directly under hips and wrists, elbows and shoulders in line with each other. Fingers should be fully spread and grounded. Head resting in a neutral position with your gaze resting softly on the floor.

Exhale and round your spine towards the ceiling.

Pull in your abdominals and tuck your tailbone, gently contracting your glutes. Try to keep your shoulders and knees in the same position.

Release your head towards the floor and press firmly into your hands.

Inhale and come back into your neutral starting position.

Beginners Tip:

If you find it difficult to know whether your back is rounding correctly, have a friend place their hands on your upper back to help activate that area.

Benefits:

Stretches the back and neck.

Gently massages the spine, increasing mobility.

Helps relieve stress.

Increases circulation of spinal fluid.

Massages your digestive organs.

Stimulates blood circulation in the wrists, especially helpful after a lot of computerwork.

Watch out for...

If you have a neck injury, keep your head in the neutral position.

Pose should be avoided in the event of recent wrist or knee injuries.

Pose Alterations / Adaptions:

You can adapt this pose for when you are sitting  - even in an airplane. Place your feet flat on the floor. Place your hands on a table, chair or wall in front of you. Preform the same movements with your spine.

Double your mat if your knees are sensitive.

Bitilasana!!! (Cow Pose)

Step by Step:

Start on hands and knees (all fours) - in a tabletop position. Your knees directly below your hips and you wrists, elbows and shoulders are in line. Spread your fingers and check that the crease of your wrist is in line with the top of your mat. Place your head in a neutral position, your gaze resting softly on the floor.

Inhale, lift your sitting bones up towards the ceiling. Open your chest and allow your belly to sink towards the floor. Lifting your head to look straight forward or look up (whatever is comfortable for you)

Exhale, come back into your neutral 'tabletop' position.

Beginners Tip:

It can help to do this pose in front of a mirror to check for correct alignment.

Benefits:

Stretches the front of the torso and neck.

Helps relieve stress.

Massages the spine and internal organs.

Watch out for...

Protect your neck -drop the shoulders down away from ears.

Neck injury - keep your head and neck in a neutral position.

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

Step by Step :

Lie on your back with your arms next to the body palms down.

Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the floor, close to the buttocks, hip width apart.

With the feet parallel to each other, press the upper arms into the floor, press your feet into the floor, inside and outside equally and begin to lift the hips up to the ceiling, moving your breastbone to the chin, but not the chin to the breastbone.

Firm your tailbone in towards the pubic bone and your pubic bone moves slightly towards the belly.

Actively bring the knees out in front of you, to keep the lower back extended. Keep the knees above the ankles.

Your buttocks are firm but not clenched. Your hips are lifted as high as is available to you with these principles in place.

You can clasp your hands behind the back and firm the arms into the floor, shoulder blades are down along the spine. Make sure you keep your chin up a little to not flatten the back of the neck.

You can take between the 5 and 15 breaths in this pose.

To come out, release the arms and lower the hips down to the floor on an out breath.

Beginners Tips:

Remember to pay attention to your alignment. Pay close attention to your knees, dont allow them to splay wider than your feet as you rise upwards.

If you want to make the pose more restorative, place a suport under the sacrum and let your weight rest on the support.

Try interlacing your hands and stretching them down towards your feet. It can help stabilise your pose and it's a nice extra stretch on the shoulders.

Benefits:

Stretches neck, chest and spine

Strengthens legs, upper back

Improves digestion

Reduces backache and headache

Calms the mind, relieves mild depression

Can help to open the sinuses

Watch out for....

Your neck - as your raise up higher make sure you don't flatten the back of the neck into the ground. If you have a neck injury avoid this pose unless you are being supervised by a professional.

Your feet - make sure your feet are parallel with each other and try not to let your knees fall away from each other.

Pose alterations/advancements

Roll your spine - you can come out of the pose by slowly coming down, vertebrae by vertabrae. Allow the spine to slowly roll it's way down. You can come up again into the pose the same way. This is a lovely 'spine massage'.

If you start to feel comfortable in this pose try relaxing the buttocks and keep the thighs engaged and lift the hips up higher.

You can lift one leg straight up to the ceiling.

Paripurna Navasana (Boat Pose)

Step by Step:

Sit with your knees bent, feet on floor, hands behind you, fingers  pointing towards the feet.

Lengthen the spine, draw the belly in and widen the collar bones  to open the chest.

Lean back on the tripod between sitbones and sacrum and lift your  feet off the floor, bringing the shins level with the floor.

Maintaining the lift through the spine and keep the chest open, arms extend to the front parallel to the floor.

When possible straighten the legs out, still keeping the lift through the spine.

Stay for 2-5 breaths, work up to 10 breaths.

Beginners Tips:

You can prepare for this pose on a chair. Sit on the edge of a chair, knees at right angles. Hold onto the sides of the seat and lean forward  a little. Firm your arms, lifting your buttocks of the seat slightly. Raise  your heels off the floor. Let your body feel the pull of gravity but dont forget to keep your chest open and relaxed!

For the full boat pose you can start with a strap around the soles of your feet to help straighten your legs. You can also hold the pose for longer with this support.

Benefits :

Improves core strength

Strengthens the hip flexors and spine

Helps to relieve stress

Stimulates digestion

Watch out for....

If you have neck issues/injury, perform this pose with your back near a wall . When you tilt your torso rest the back of your head against the wall.

If you suffer from lower back problems/weak core you should follow the beginners tip until you feel strong enough to do the boat pose. Start with variation 1 - where your legs are bent at right angles.

It's best to avoid strong core work when you are pregnant.

Advance pose alterations

Full Boat is often presented as an abdominal strengthener, which it is to a certain extent. But more importantly this pose  strengthens the deep hip flexors that attach the inner thigh bones to  the front of the spine. Learn to anchor the heads of the thighs bones  deep in the pelvis and lift from that anchor through the front spine.  Remember that the lower front belly should never get hard.

Baddha Konasana!!!!!( Butterfly Pose )

Step by Step :

Sit with your legs outstretched in front of you, you may want to sit on a blanket  or pillow to raise your hips, so you can sit with a straight back.

Pull in your feet and place the soles of the feet together, as close as possible  to your pelvis, let the knees fall out to your sides.

Release your groins, the head of the thigh bones, and allow the knees to relax down as well, don’t push them.

Hold your big toes with the first two fingers and your thumb, or hold the  outsides of your feet.

Keep your pelvis level, sit with a straight back.

Firm your shoulderblades into your upper back, to help open your heart.

You can stay in this pose anywhere between 1-5 minutes

To come out you lift your knees and straighten your legs again.

Beginners tips:

Are you finding it difficult to sit up straight, is your back rounding? Place  a folded blanket or block  under your hips to keep the pelvis and spine  upright.

Ankles sore? Try moving your feet further away from your groin.

Strain in your inner thighs and groin? Place some supports under your  knees or raise your feet on a block or pillow.

Benefits:

Helps in opening your hips

Stretches groins, inner thighs and ankles

Uplifts your mood

Stimulates abdominal organs

Beneficial for menstrual pains

Stimulates the circulation in the pelvic area

Watch out for...

Fatigue.... if you are nearing you limit, one tends to forget about posture. Keep your chest open and lifted and your back straight.

Pose alterations / advancements:

If you are comfortable in the bound angle pose, on an exhale bring your chest forward between the knees. Hinge from the hips not the waist.

Remember to keep your back straight. Your arms can be stretched out in front of you (depending on flexibility) or place your elbows  against your inner thighs or calves. If your head does not reach the  floor, use a block or pillow for support