On paper, the holidays are a period of festivity, celebration, and relaxation, a time to indulge a little and let your hair loose. However, for all the lights and the bustle, Christmas and the New Year can pose a stressful time for the best of us. Luckily, however, yoga can be performed anywhere, and it’s an ideal way to get your body moving again or to stretch and iron out those kinks of holiday worries. So let’s add a little more mistle-to-your toe this holiday period with these 5 Yoga Poses You Should Do for an Even Merrier Xmas!
1. Virabhadrasana I (Warrior 1)
A grounding pose named after a mythological Hindu warrior, Virabhadrasana I (or Warrior 1) is the power pose we need in the hectic holiday period. Performed in a lunge stance with arms and chin raised to the sky, it acts as an affirmation of your control over your body and practices calmness in the face of a storm, literal or figurative.
2. Savasana (Corpse Pose)
To the novice yogi, Savasana may seem a feeble pose, but it’s the starting point for all yoga practices and places the body in the best position for healing and grounding.
Contrary to its other name “Corpse pose”, Savasana’s healing benefits include relieving stress, relaxing the mind and body, and helping to lower blood pressure. If the stress of the holidays become too much, simply lay back and let Savasana do its work.
3. Kapotasana (Pigeon Pose)
A pose to combat the bloating and indigestion that may accompany a change in diet over the holiday period, Pigeon pose is designed to open the hips while also stimulating the digestive system, promoting a happy tummy. So, if you have a few too many mince pies, this posture, which involves folding forward over one bent leg, will help to relieve some of the discomfort.
4. Uttana Shishosana (Extended Puppy Pose)
A time for reflection and gratitude for the past year, there is no pose better suited to Christmas and the New Year than the Extended Puppy Pose which bows down to the movements of time and looks forward to the future. With arms stretched forward in a “bow”, you can practice thanks for the memories passed in the last 12 months and decide your resolutions for the upcoming year.
5. Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose)
Once mastered, the Bridge pose, is the ultimate chest and heart-opening pose. As well as being energising, it can prepare you to open your heart to nurture connections with your close ones over the holiday period.
