5 Yoga Moves to Get You Through The Start Of The Semester

A new semester is here! Despite the preperation for the eventual mass of essays and exams in our paths that might push our brains to their limits, there’s no reason why you can’t schedule a bit of relaxation into your study plan. 

After speaking with my yoga teacher (that is my mother), I’ve gathered some of my favourite yoga poses that are super therapeutic especially during times of stress.

And, because mother always knows best, there are a couple of things to pay attention to when practicing yoga for stress release. 

First, your practice should engage in “deliberate rest, not distraction,” meaning it’s important to engage in poses that focus on your breath, not your fitness level. 

Secondly, music can be soothing, but try to avoid music that “brings you nostalgia or triggers memories or trauma.” 

Third, make sure to stay warm to “allow a heaviness to enter the mind and body.” 

Lastly, do what feels right for you! Don’t engage in any movements that make you uncomfortable or stretch the limits of your body. Everybody is different, and yoga should be tailored to you. 

A Quick Word on Practicing Yoga

Yoga has become a buzzword for many in wellness, mental health, and even fitness spaces. Part of the practice’s allure is its ability to simultaneously strengthen the mind and body. However, the original philosophy of yoga is getting lost in the West’s prominent fitness culture. 

Yoga teacher, author, and activist Nadia Gilani says that yoga has become tragically commodified to extremes that meet the quota of a fitness guru, not a yoga guru. 

She writes that “[yoga] was never meant to fit into a power hour on your lunch break, or as something to be combined with beer or puppies — as some classes do, charging an eye-watering £35 for the privilege.” 

Gilani outlines a deep issue with current yoga trends: cultural appropriation. Though a strict definition of this phenomenon fails to exist, many of its principal attributes include the exploitation of a culture for aesthetic, comedic, or ill-informed personal reasons.

Yoga is currently undergoing mass cultural appropriation, with teachers being trained by Western spiritual philosophy inspired by “traditional” South Asian practices.

Here are a few tips to avoid engaging in this disrespectful performance of yoga:

1. Avoid gimmicks like puppies, wine, and goats. These are purely capitalistic schemes set out by the non-South Asian fitness community in order to get you into the studio. Respectfully, yoga is the practice of solitude between you and your body, not you and a billy goat. 
2. Question your teachers. Prior to starting a yoga class, be mindful of the training your teacher has received. Neha Tandon writes for Women’s Health that a teacher dedicated to “learning about the origins of what [they’re] doing [and] the meaning of the words [they’re] speaking” is conscious of the ancient philosophical undertones of yoga practice. You can tell what a teacher’s intentions are by even little things like the music they play or instructions they give. Never be shy to ask your teacher where or how they were trained.
3. Address your place. Yoga is meant to be shared, and you don’t have to be South Asian or Hindu to practice or teach yoga. However, it’s important to address who you are in yoga spaces and what knowledge you seek or spread. By recognizing your body’s differences, you not only experience a more deeply tailored yoga experience, but you are also more respectful of traditional yoga culture.

5 De-stressing Movements

Bālāsana

A great pose for any beginner, Bālāsana or “child’s pose” offers a great release of tension in the spine and back. It may even help with your digestion process!

To get into the pose, get on your hands and knees, spreading your knees wide and allowing your toes to touch or come as close as possible. Bend the knees, resting your belly between your thighs and bringing your forehead to the mat/blanket/floor. You can stretch your arms out in front of you, although I love to bring mine back and wrap them around my body, cocooning for warmth. 

Your hips should be resting on your heels but feel free to make any adjustments necessary. Breathe deeply and relax any tension in your legs, torso, hips, or even your tongue.

You can remain in this position for however long you like. When exiting the pose, slowly roll up, making sure to bring your neck and head up last.

Cat/Cow

Cat and Cow is a classic yoga movement guaranteed to soothe your body because it’s meant to match your breath.

Once again, get on your hands and knees. On natural inhale, come into Cow. Bring your pelvis backward, arching your tailbone to the sky. Your shoulder blades should come together naturally as you lift your neck back and look up towards the ceiling.

Coming into Cat, during a natural exhale, gently press your hands and knees into the mat, bringing your pelvis forward and rounding the spine. At this time, drop your head to complete the semi-circular formation. 

Move between Cat and Cow with every natural breath cycle — exhale and come into Cat before inhaling and coming into Cow. Make sure to be gentle on your spine and move slowly. 

When you’ve completed enough breath cycles, bring your hands beside your knees and slowly roll up. These poses are great for grounding your breath and mind!

Suptakapotāsana 

Suptakapotāsana, or “reclined pigeon pose,” provides a soothing stretch in the hips, glutes, and pelvis.

Come onto your back with your knees bent and the soles of your feet planted firmly on the floor. Pick up your right leg and place your ankle overtop your left knee. It should look like a figure “4” in front of you. Next, gently bring your left foot off the floor and bring your left knee towards your chest as far as you can go. You can either loop your arms through the opening of your legs or let them fall naturally. Applying some gentle pressure to your thighs will provide a deeper stretch.

Stay and breathe here for however long you like before gently bringing your leg back down to the floor. Switching legs, you can come back into the pose and hold it for a similar amount of time. Once completed, bring your feet back to the floor and stretch completely out before turning to the side and rolling up.

Supta Konāsana

For supta konāsana, also known as “reclining bound angle,” you want to gather some blankets and pillows as support.

Following the image above, make a type of incline with your pillows. Now, lie back, making sure that your spine, torso, and head are supported. Bend your knees and bring the soles of your feet together — if they don’t touch completely, that’s okay! Next, take your blankets, roll them up, and place them under your knees. You shouldn’t be stretching your thighs here, so use as many blankets as you need. 

Breathe deeply and sink into the materials around you. Let them coat your body in their warmth. Notice any tension in your body and, if needed, add more support under your spine, neck, or knees. You can even drape a blanket over yourself! Do what feels comfortable, and don’t feel the need to “push” yourself. This is your time to relax.

When you feel finished with this pose, bring your awareness back to the room around you and your breath pattern. Bringing your knees together, carefully roll over off the support to your right side before rising back up to a seated position.

Śavāsana 

This is one of my favourite poses because it is so relaxing! Śavāsana, or “corpse,” is what my mom would call your “return to the Earth whence we came.”

It’s completely your choice to be supported or not in this pose, so grab your pillows and blankets again if you’d like!

To come into the pose, lie slowly on your back, arms positioned beside your body and palms facing up. Your legs should be stretched in front of you and allow your feet to fall naturally. Basically, become a starfish.

Relax all the muscles and joints in your body — this includes your brows, jaw, and tongue. Settle into the mat/blanket/floor that you’re on and notice what parts of your body can feel the ground beneath you. Breathe deeply, slowly.

If you want or need some support, you can add a pillow or rolled-up blanket under your knees to ease your lower back. If you need support under your neck, add support underneath. Add a blanket over yourself again for extra warmth. You can even place a weighted pillow or blanket over your eyes to seal the light.

Stay here for a while. When you’re ready to come out of the pose, engage in small movements. This could be a wrist or ankle rotation or wiggling your fingers. Then, take a full body stretch and slowly turn to your side before rolling up once again.

If my beloved mama bear has taught me anything, it’s that you must listen to your body and do what is right for you. So, make sure to take study breaks this semester and rather than horsing around on your phone, take a moment for yourself and engage in a relaxing, therapeutic yoga practice. After all, the most important thing to truly study in this world is yourself.

• #yoga
• culture
• health
• new semester
• school
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• wellness