Yoga to kick-start your day

I came to the 200hr yoga teacher training by Tirisula yoga because I was interested in deepening my asanas and learning how the yoga lifestyle can improve everyday life. I have not completed my training yet and I have already noticed positive changes in my life after introducing some yogic rituals in my daily routine. In the training, we have been taught to wake up a bit before sunrise and cleanse the nostrums using the ‘jala neti’ technique. Then proceed with active Kapalabhati breathing to cleanse the skull from the night’s dreams. Continue with Nauli – the intestine cleansing technique and finish with a series of asanas. This sounded like a lot for me, who I never woke up before 8. In the yoga teacher training that I so much wanted to follow, I learned that my life will be drastically improved if I do something that seemed a bit awkward and – I admit – useless to me. Why not just perform some asanas after I come back from work and be done with my daily practice? Despite my second thoughts, I did not let my logic be the judge again. I trusted my teachers and I decided to push myself wake up between 6 and 7 (not too early still) and start my day with the above ritual.

I have been practicing this ritual for 4 weeks and I am astonished by its positive effects on the rest of my day! Cleaning my nose in the morning in this natural way leads to balanced breathing and opens my mind. After I complete the whole practice, I am very awake, in a positive mood and I feel that I have increased energy for the day, compared to the past. I start my day thinking of yoga. Connecting with my feelings and with my body. So far, apart from the high mood that I experience, I have seen two more improvements:

  • At my office, during work, I am happy, because I had a great beginning of the day. My ideas flow, my energy stays high and I am much more productive than I used to be. In the event of a difficult task, I am far less stressed than I used to be. If I cannot finalize the task one day, however hard I try, I don’t fall desperate (as I used to). I just accept that I am just not there yet – like for a yoga pose: we need to make space to allow this pose to happen. In the past, I was getting very frustrated when I could not get into a pose. This has changed over the past month… I work in research, so there are rarely strict deadlines. Effective work is based on self-motivation. In moments of no inspiration, I just take a break and let the problem brew inside me. One of the coming days I easily see the solution right in front of my eyes! I honestly attribute this ability to my morning openness and awakening of all my senses.
  • I have always had a problem with expressing myself. Things often get very complicated in my mind and I cannot find the correct words to say what I think. I feel very ashamed about this. My relationships with friends and colleagues are affected. I have noticed a small improvement during the last month. Since I take time in the morning to listen to myself, I feel that I successfully take the first step towards expressing myself verbally. I usually feel embarrassed or ashamed of my emotions, or hide them completely. During and after the morning yogic ritual, I have a good perception of how I feel and what I think. I cultivate ‘mindfulness’. This comes by listening into my mind and into my body. It is amazing what I have learned from paying attention to the parts of my body that are tensed, and which I ignored before.

 

I am very grateful for the positive changes I experience in my life through yoga. I see that I become more true to myself and true to others, and I cherish this. I am looking forward to all the rest goodies that this start in my day will bring to me as I continue doing it!

 

Eleni C. (200hr Yoga Teacher Training, April-May 2017)