Can you feel your blood pressure rising with each new task on your holiday to-do list? Are you struggling to make ends meet this year, or feeling less than cheerful about the added burdens of the season? Is your schedule overflowing with appointments to please everyone but yourself?

Then take a moment for yourself right now. Breathe in slowly through your nose. Pause. Then breathe out all of that stale air, again through your nose. Close your eyes if you like, and repeat this process a few times. (When you are ready, open them and keep reading.)

Feel any better?

Your breath is the foundation of your life. When you were born into this world, your first-ever breath was a gasp, a gulp! Your lungs filled with a flood of air for the first time. That oxygenated air contained the elements that you needed to survive. Then, after your first inhalation, you probably let out an impressive wail. With that cry, your first exhalation expelled unwanted waste — the carbon dioxide byproduct of a healthy respiratory system.

Unfortunately for many of us, our breathing becomes shallower — and therefore less effective — as we get older. Gravity is somewhat to blame, of course. The worries of life (like the extra demands of the holidays) weigh us down as well. The good news is that restorative health practices like yoga can teach us how to inhale (and exhale) our way to a healthier, happier life.

Now some readers are probably saying, “Yoga? Are you kidding? Isn’t that for folks who can bend themselves in knots?” Yes and no. Yoga is for anyone who can breathe, think and move. So if you are reading this article, then yoga can work for you.

In fact, Americans who practice yoga report reduced stress, increased motivation to exercise, and improved overall feelings of wellness, according to a recent press release by the National Institute of Health.

More than 34,000 Americans were surveyed about their use of three specific complimentary health approaches: yoga, dietary supplements and spinal manipulation. The results? “Yoga users reported the most positive health benefits, compared to users of natural products and spinal manipulation.

More than 80 percent of these individuals stated that yoga lowered their stress levels, and over two-thirds felt greater inclination to other forms of exercise.

More than 80 percent of those who practice yoga — more than four out of every five people — are feeling calmer and healthier this holiday season. The good news (that we should spread with great joy) is that the Four Flags area has wonderful yoga instructors who can help you discover these benefits for yourself year-round.

From chair yoga for those with limited mobility, to power yoga for the more athletic among us, there is a format suitable for you. Did you know that the Niles-Buchanan YMCA offers a variety of yoga classes free with membership? You can choose to pay by the class if you prefer, but our YMCA staff will work with you to make membership an affordable option.

If you know that you should exercise more (and are planning a New Year’s resolution to match), studies show that yoga can help you stick to your resolution. But remember: if you can breathe, then you can start to feel better right now. Inhale through your nose for a slow count of four, then exhale for a slow count of four, again through your nose (sound familiar?). Repeat until you feel yourself calming. You are practicing pranayama, which is yogic breath control.

With each breath, may you enjoy a truly Merry Christmas.

Namaste.

 

Chrissie Kaufmann is a writer, certified group fitness instructor, wife and mother of three. She practices and teaches yoga at the Niles-Buchanan YMCA, and feels that yoga makes all her other workouts twice as effective.