In the past, we here at Antaryami have already spoken a number of ways that you create the perfect yoga space at home and the benefits that doing yoga at home can provide. Of course, practising yoga every day is extremely beneficial, but are you using this beautiful and tranquil space that you’ve created to its full potential?

While you may use this space in the mornings as soon as you wake up or when you get home after a strenuous day, there are so many uses your yoga space can have that will bring so many more benefits into your day, positively affecting your mental and emotional well-being, as well as your stress levels.

Let’s dive straight in!

First Thing in the Morning

The best and most essential way to use your yoga space is, of course, to practice yoga, so let’s start with the obvious. There’s no better way to start your day than practice between 5 and 10 sun salutations to get the blood pumping around your body.

This is the best way to wake up, and you’re sure to carry the benefits of your session with you onto the rest of your day.

Getting Ready for Bed

No matter what you’ve been up to in your day, having a nice and calming stretch before bed is a great way release any stress you might have had built-up from the rest of your day. This is the ideal way to relax your muscles, and you’re sure to have an amazing night’s sleep because of it.

Any Other Times of the Day

Before we move onto the other kinds of benefits that your yoga space can provide, remember that it’s your studio, so feel free to practice any other kinds of yoga you want to try at any other times of the day.

Whether you’re having a lunch break, preferably before you eat, or even just randomly in the afternoon, feel free to practice yoga at any time of day, even if you’re just looking for a peaceful break between the jobs on your to-do list.

Meditation

Of course, you’ve spent so much effort creating a beautiful yoga space; this will naturally make it the ideal place to meditate. Light up some incense, grab your favourite pillow or chair. Close the door, play some soft ambient music (the Spotify Yoga & Meditation Playlist has a great selection of tracks), listen in silence and shut off the world, if only for a few minutes.

I love to start my own yoga sessions by meditating ten minutes before and ten minutes after, meditating once in the evening and perhaps the odd occasion throughout the day. This helps me stay completely in tune with my body, my mind and my emotions. I’m not going to bore you now with all the other incredible benefits that meditation provides.

Reading & Writing

Your yoga space has been designed to be your space and your space of peace at that. Why not fully optimise your use of this space by including other peaceful activities, such as reading and writing? Reading is renowned for its therapeutic properties, and there’s no better way to escape the stresses of the modern world than this.

Likewise, journaling, or keeping a diary, is a great way to find synchronicity with your emotions and your mental state, so much so that it’s considered by a lot of professionals to be a form of meditation in itself.

Get Creative

We spend the vast majority of our lives in front of screens and digital devices. Whether that’s our smartphones, laptops, computers, televisions or tablets. Try making your yoga space a device-free zone and take a break from your gadgets by using your yoga space as a creative space.

You could make vision boards, scrapbooks, dreamcatchers, draw, paint, or anything you enjoy! Not sure what kind of activities suit you? Try them all until you find one that you enjoy!

Summary

As you can see, there is a tonne of opportunities you can enjoy when it comes to the yoga space you’ve created in your home. While it’s nice to have a dedicated space, don’t forget that you can use for all manner of peaceful activities that will help you find a calming and positive balance in your life

As avid lovers of yoga, we are constantly aware of the fact that yoga is a great way to start our days and relieve stress after it’s been a long one. Naturally, this decreases the amount of anxiety that we have in our everyday lives, which is essential in an age where anxiety and depression have reached the point of epidemic.

With this in mind, it only makes sense that societies of the world are proactive in minimising these cases. Earlier this week, Forbes reported on the fact that US schools are now starting to implement yoga in their curriculums in the hopes of reducing the number of anxiety and depression cases among their students, one of the most affected demographics.

This stems from a new study that was released by Tulane University earlier this year. Within the study, a randomized group of third-graders who were suffering some degree of anxiety were given yoga and meditation practices over the course of eight weeks.

Named ‘Yoga Ed’, the group had 10x 40-minute sessions that took place before the school day had started. One group practised this in the Spring term, whereas another group practised in the autumn.

During the sessions, the class practised breathing exercises, several Vinyasa and Ashtanga poses that were specially selected for third-graders and guided relaxation. On the other hand, students in another control group received the normal care they would normally receive, which involved social-worker activities and interactions.

Students from both control groups then filled out custom questionnaires that asked them about their personal opinions on their quality of life and their overall life satisfaction levels using a range of different variables. These were designed so the third graders could answer them naturally without being confused.

The results?

The group who studied yoga and mindfulness training had a dramatic improvement when it came to their overall quality of life, including improvements in their psychosocial and emotional aspects of life, confirming that yoga and meditation are beneficial for reducing stress and anxiety, even in people as young as third-grade.

The team explained that they picked third-grade students for the research trial because this was the year when academic pressure is turned up, and stress is much more likely to occur and the subjects they are learning about become more complex.

However, this isn’t the first-time studies have found that mindfulness training can help children. Past studies have shown that mindfulness can have a very positive effect on children suffering from ADHD. Others showed a dramatic increase in children’s general happiness and their overall wellbeing.

So, while these results are hugely surprising, it’s yet another step forward into implementing mindfulness practices into schools, overall improving the current well-being and conditions of our younger generations during the stressful times in their lives.

Do you suffer from tight hips?

I’ve always found that when I first wake up in the mornings, and then increasingly throughout the day, my hips seem to get tighter and tighter. Even when practising yoga, I find that even touching my toes into a forward fold can prove difficult and it’s all because of my hips.

However, it isn’t just yoga that tight hips effect. Think about how sedentary many of our lives have become. We go from laying in bed all night to sitting in our kitchens, in the car, at work, in the car, living rooms and then back to bed.

It’s no wonder there’s so much tension in this area! Scientifically speaking, when we sit down, our hip flexors are constantly contracted, the main cause of this tightness that we can all sometimes feel. Over time, this can lead to much larger health problems, especially in our lower backs and even in our knees!

However, this doesn’t need to be the case, and there are many yoga poses we can practice, either in a session or just now and then throughout our days, that can help. Today, we’re going to explore three of the best, so get ready to open those hips!

#1 – Bound Angle

This is perhaps one of my favourite hip openers because you can really feel the tightness release when you’ve finished. Ideally, try sitting in this position every day, throughout the day, just whenever you can, for maximum benefit!

All you need to do is sit on a chair (careful not to fall off) or on the floor and sit with the soles of your feet touching. Then, gently – as much as is comfortable – push your knees down, as though you’re aiming to get them touching the ground.

You should immediately feel the tightness pull, just be careful not to hurt yourself. Hold for five deep breathes and you’re done!

#2 – Seated Spinal Twist

Another one of my favourite yoga poses, the seated spinal twist engages your entire body, so is great to include in any yoga practice. Simply sit on the floor with your legs out straight in front of you and your back straight.

Then, bend one leg up over your other leg, so your foot is parallel to your knee. If you’re folding your right leg, put your left elbow against your folded knee and push gently, making sure that you push gently to keep your knee pointed towards the ceiling.

Use your right hand to gentle prop yourself up from behind and look in the direction of your shoulder. You should feel your entire spine twist, from the back of your neck, all the way down to your lower back and hips.

Hold for five deep breaths and swap over to do the other side.

#3 – A Low Lunge

Finally, to conclude my list of effective hip openers, we have the low lunge, another favourite. This pose is really simple but really beneficial for your hips. Put yourself in your usual lunge position.

This is one leg extended out behind you with your front knee bent directly over your ankle. Make sure your knee does not extend forward over your toes! Make sure your extended leg is flat on the floor and try to sink your hips as low as you can.

Do this slowly because you’ll feel the stretch almost instantly and you don’t want to cause damage. When you can find your balance, put your hands into prayer position and hold for five breaths before swapping over to the other side.