22 Apr One Quick Exercise To Instantly Calm Your Stressed Out Mind

Remember the last time you had one of those days? Where everything seems to go wrong and is just too much? Work emails keep piling up, the hot water ran out, your car wouldn’t start, and now your phone has frozen.

All you want to do is hide under the doona with Spotify’s Yoga & Meditation playlist on full volume. Don’t worry yogi we’ve all been there and we’ve got your back!

Did you know that with a conscious pranayama breathing exercise you can quickly reset one of those days? Often it may seem impossible to withdraw yourself from that stressed out feeling. It may feel as if your bodies and mind is out of control and, to a certain degree, it is.

When we bring our focus to our breath, we can escape the cyclical nature of stress and hit reset on one of those days. Try this quick pranayama breathing exercise below to see for yourself.

 

Pranayama How-To


1. Find a comfortable seated position, with your spine tall and shoulders relaxed. You can sit on the ground with the support of a cushion, bolster or block. Or you can even sit on the edge of a chair, with your feet firmly planted on the ground.

2. Close your eyes and become aware of the rhythm of your breath. Let your breath flow naturally in and out of the nose for a minute or two. Without changing its speed or depth.

3. After a minute or two of your natural breath flow begin to inhale for a count of four and exhale for a count of eight. Try to distribute the breath evenly throughout the entire count of your exhalation.

4. As you exhale, visualise your breath like a thin thread passing through the eye of a needle. This visualisation will help you to distribute the breath evenly and keep the flow steady.

5. Repeat several times without strain and without holding your breath.

6. When you’re ready to progress, increase the counts of your exhalations to twelve. Your inhale remains to the count of four.

7. To end this breathing exercise, take three deep breaths in through your nose and sigh the breath out through the mouth. And then let your breathing return to its natural rhythm.

 

This quick and easy breathing exercise is like your own little reset button to help you keep your calm while the world seems too much to handle. As a result of taking a few moments to sit down and consciously focusing on your breath, you will begin to feel less stressed and more connected to yourself. 

Not only will pranayama breath benefit your mental health, but it will also help you with a night of deep sleep. #winning

Just remember next time when it all seems to get too much, take a few moments out of the chaos and reset yourself with conscious deep breaths with a guided meditation on Yogaholics.

 

Written by Yogi Ram