Energizing yoga: start the morning right

The below yoga video would have been too much for me for the first several years of rehab and rebuilding after the iatrogenic injury. If you, too, are in the midst of psychiatric drug withdrawal or any sort of rehab from chronic illness be sure to trust your body and only do what is right for you. At the bottom of this post is a list of links to gentler yoga sequences that I started out with. Remember, I started doing yoga while I was bedridden. I started by lifting my leg and arms in the air and circling my wrists and ankles. Some of us have to start really slowly. Wherever you are you can begin to slowly move and gain strength.

I posted another morning yoga video a while back. That one was gentle so that one might wake up slowly and carefully. I love that video and and have used it several times now. It’s perfect for beginners and for anyone who wants to start the day with gentleness.

Today I wanted something a bit more energetic since I knew that I wasn’t going to be making it to a yoga class and I wanted to do something a little more vigorous. I found the below video. It’s really wonderful too. I did 17 minutes of it before doing my own warm down on the mat. The fact is, I’m still building stamina and so I generally don’t make it to the end of most classes or videos. Remember to always listen to your body first and foremost!

Practice this Energizing Morning Yoga Sequence to get the juices flowing! This yoga practice stretches and strengthens the muscles with a strong focus on breath and body alignment. Practice this in the morning on an empty stomach and notice how it sets the tone for the day ahead. Get your workout in early, connect to your breath, be mindful and find what feels good.

I really enjoy Adriene, too, the teacher in this video.

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This is the most vigorous video I’ve posted. As I get better I’m able to do more and more. On good days some of the yoga classes I go to in the community are really quite advanced. Still I always need to listen to my body/mind/spirit and I often leave classes early. My nervous system (and a lot of my readers who also have protracted withdrawal issues) is very delicate and so it’s not so much about strength of my muscles…it’s about some sort of threshold that is reached in my nervous system. When I get to that point I need to stop doing yoga. Period. And it’s often when I’m doing seemingly gentle stuff too. In fact sometimes I find that the most vigorous yoga triggers me less. It’s always a mystery…the moment. What will my body/mind/spirit be up to today?

Here is some gentle yoga for the challenged nervous system:

• Your yoga for today

• Calming yoga class for the central nervous system (good for those of us with psych drug withdrawal syndrome too)

• Yoga: Hormones/Endocrine System

• Yoga postures, breathing and waking-up

• Belly breathing and a bit of yoga  …pick and choose what feels appropriate for you…at bedtime I mostly do legs against the wall

• Yoga: changing the brains stressful habits

• Yoga for calming (very simple poses can help greatly)

• Yoga back bends: feels yummy on the autonomic nervous system

Remember you can always modify even more than the teacher suggests or stop entirely — even if it seems really easy and gentle our nervous systems know best. Be careful not to strain.