Grounding Yourself with the Tree!

Are you feeling flighty, lacking in concentration and focus, feeling a little bit fidgety or hyperactive, or even a little lost?  Or do you have weakness in the legs?  Then working with Vrikshasana the tree pose is going to help bring back a sense of focus and grounding. 

1.Stand straight with the feet together arms beside the body and find a point of focus in front of the body, something that is not moving.

2.Breathe slowly from the abdomen.

3.Keep your point of focus and using the left hand bring the left foot to the inner right thigh and allow the knee to point outwards.

4.Feel grounded through the supporting leg and foot and lifted through the crown of the head as you pull in your abdominals towards the spine to increase strength.

5.When you feel secure in your balance, bring the hands together in prayer position in front of the chest and keep breathing deeply.

6.With an inhalation stay firm in the supporting leg and raise the arms up to make your branches.  Hold for about a minute or for as long is as comfortable whilst keeping the breath flowing.  Then release the leg down gracefully.

7.Repeat on the other side. And then repeat the whole thing again 2 more times.

This pose really helps to balance nervous energy or restlessness.  It increases your sense of focus and concentration and keeps you rooted to one spot for some time.  It is a very good preparatory practice for meditation.  It strengthens the leg, feet and ankle muscles and in turn as they become stronger helps to protect the knee joints and hips.  Through increased focus mental balance is increased or nervousness soothed.  Sometimes we have so much going on our minds become easily confused, tree pose is wonderful to bring back a sense of clarity and calmness.  So, can’t keep still?  Feeling anxious then tree pose it a great boon to bring the quiet side of you back and gives a sense of support from the earth.  Balancing poses can be difficult especially when the thought waves are coming fast and furious so don’t worry about what happens, have no expectations and just try, if you fall down, then get yourself back up and try again. Balancing can also be fun and builds on your sense of determination.  This is also wonderful for kids and teenagers to practice to help with calming and soothing the mind with all the demands that are placed on them these days. 

So enjoy making beautiful forests!

The image above is a variation with the foot placed to the front of the thigh making a half lotus tree.

Have beautiful days

Om shanti Om

Mangala / Nicky

International day of Yoga is coming up on 21^st of June, hmmm what shall we put together this year!