A Los Angeles yoga teacher reveals 3 secrets to make your body feel great when you travel.
My low back aches, my feet hurt, I feel constantly fatigued and stressed, and I want it to change. I can t live like this anymore, confides my new client Lindsay as she hands me a cup of earl grey tea and plops onto the couch. We are seated in her chic living room in Santa Monica, CA, discussing the effects of travel on her body. Lindsay works as a representative for a bio-tech firm in the area, and her job keeps her constantly on the road. I love what I do, I just hate the way I feel at the end of the week, she says.
Are you willing to spend fifteen minutes a day on the exercises I give you? I ask. I ll try anything, she says, shaking her head. But, I can t even touch my toes, she admits as she pulls her long red hair back into a ponytail. I m not sure about this yoga stuff. I mean, do I need a mat and a block and a strap and all that? I won t have any room left in my suitcase! No, I tell her confidently. You don t need anything except fifteen minutes. Lindsay s _expression softens. Ok, she says, What do I do? I spend the rest of our session together teaching Lindsay the three simple secrets that will help her body to feel better when she is on the road, secrets that you can benefit from even if you don t travel that often.
Secret #1. Deep Breathing Releases Stress. The average person uses about one tenth of their lung capacity. Just sitting here reading this article, your breath is reaching just the upper portion of the lungs. Since every cell in your body is nourished by oxygen, that means you are currently getting less nourishment than what your body is capable of receiving; it s just like driving your car around on a quarter tank of gas: it will get you by, but if you fill up, you go farther. A deeper breath means more energy becomes available for the brain and other body functions. But there s even better news, which is that deep breathing reduces stress.
Your body s nervous system is ruled by two functions, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic. The sympathetic nervous system is your flight-or-flight response. It is active when we feel stressed, frightened, angry, or nervous about something. The parasympathetic nervous system is just the opposite. It is what is active when we feel peaceful, and the best way to turn it on, is with the breath.
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