If I asked you what you considered to be the most difficult yoga pose, you might answer “Standing on my Head” or “Full Lotus”.
For those of you who have little or no knowledge of yoga, if I asked you what the most difficult thing was to do during your day, you would, more than likely reply, “Getting everything accomplished” or “Finding time to relax”.
It has been said that because we are a highly adaptive species, we assimilate actions that we repeatedly do into our lives, creating habits that re-route our day-to-day activities.
Sometimes we forget what life was like before our new habit took hold. What is “normal” to us shifts and evolves over time.
In this day and age of over-exertion, over-extension, a coffee hut on every corner and over-stimulation by the media, the most difficult thing to do is the exact opposite of how we spend most of our day. Can you guess what the most difficult thing to do is?
We have forgotten how to deeply relax. In the world we have created for ourselves, it takes great effort to resist turning on the TV or to turn it off once it’s on. For those of us who aren’t suffering from insomnia, we remember how to sleep but we have lost the art of how to truly rest.
For many yoga students the most difficult yoga pose in class is Shavasana or the Corpse Pose. Shavasana is the least physically challenging pose in the spectrum of yoga postures because you don’t have to do anything physically. In this position, the mind quiets down; the body sinks into itself and the internal organs have a chance to unwind. Breathing becomes slower and stress tends to evaporate.
The Corpse Pose can be mentally challenging though - the mind wants to, “get on with it” and believes yoga should be an effort because striving is what it knows. Students who practice Shavasana over time begin to relish the cumulative benefits of this restorative and rejuvenating posture.
They find that because their minds are relaxed they make better decisions during their work day and spend less time fixing mistakes.
According to the Mayo Clinic, if you are experiencing a great deal of stress in your life you need to make time to relax and just a few minutes a day isn’t enough to provide the stress reducing benefits of deep relaxation.
Daydreaming is also a relaxation technique which has many benefits but is different from Shavasana. With daydreaming the mind is relaxed but engaged, whereas with Shavasana the mind is quiet and observing without judging.
Deep relaxation allows for fewer headaches and less body pain. Other benefits include fewer emotional responses such as anger, crying, anxiety, apprehension and frustration. Improved concentration, reduced fatigue, elimination of insomnia, and lowering of blood pressure are other benefits of complete relaxation.
How often do you daydream? How often do you truly relax? Let your mind rest, your breathing slow, and make time to restore your self.
The Corpse Pose (Shavasana) and daydreams are ways to get your life back into balance. Turn off the TV and marinate in the quiet.
Notice how the quality of your life improves with Shavasana and the peace of deep relaxation. Turn down the noise and turn up the quiet!
Stacy Kamala Waltman brings a well-rounded blend of experience and personal development skills to her coaching practice. Bridging the spiritual world with the professional arena, Stacy draws from a rich and varied background to enhance her client's personal, spiritual and professional life.
After earning a B.A. in journalism at San Diego State University along with a minor in business administration, Stacy has worked in a variety of business settings including group/team facilitation, public speaking, marketing, promotions, corporate communications, sales, web site design, and public relations. In small, medium, and large companies, she has learned what it takes to succeed.
Stacy also serves her community as a consultant and volunteer, most recently as a Facilitator on the Bend2030 project and as a commissioner on the Oregon Governor's Commission on Women.
Stacy's real-world experience is a counterpoint to a 20-year history as a student of Swami Satchidananda's Integral Yoga, an ecumenical organization, located in Buckingham Virginia. Stacy is also a certified Yoga Instructor of Svaroopa Yoga based in La Jolla, CA.
From the postures of Hatha Yoga to breathe control, meditation and chanting, Stacy has developed a deep appreciation for the peace, centering and focus to be found in the world of spiritual studies. By combining these various disciplines with specific coaching training and advanced education at the Coaches Training Institute - accredited by the International Coaching Federation, Stacy provides an integrated approach to her coaching practice.
Her vision is to guide her clients and teams to a life of fulfillment and success by linking their spiritual, material and practical needs. Stacy's clients are those people striving for more in their lives; better communication skills, a healthy relationship with money and increased earning power while maintaining skillful life balance. Clients learn more effective time management skills and find a greater awareness of the world around them.
"In addition to being a wonderful communicator, Stacy is a gifted and powerful coach," says Jim DeLaurentis, CFO, The Andrew Lauren, Inc." She has wonderful energy and commitment."
Whether you participate with her in a teleseminar format, organizational team or individual coaching, Stacy's approach will illuminate blind spots and increase awareness of yourself while enhancing how you interact in the world.
If you are committed to living a life of choice - choosing to serve yourself, your community and the world - then you would be Stacy's ideal client. For additional information, visit client testimonials.
To schedule a sample session at Integration Coaching with Stacy Kamala Waltman, please send an email to ic@integrationcoaching.com