Supta Baddha Konasana

	prep with belt

During the busy holiday season, I hope you will find a few minutes to practice the classical restorative pose, Supta Baddha Konasana, or reclining bound angle pose. It can be wonderfully relaxing and refreshing when you are feeling stressed or exhausted, and is perfect for a break at the end of your workday or before bed.

As illustrated in the photo, use your yoga bolster or a stack of blankets folded to the size and shape of a bolster. Sit on the floor at the end of the bolster so that your hips are against the end of it and the corner edge supports your low back curve. Make a big loop in a yoga belt and bring it down over your head so that it loops across your low back, over your inner thighs, and under your feet, which you've pulled in close to your hips. If you feel too much stretch or discomfort in your hips or inner thighs, place some support (blocks, pillows) under your thighs.

	if you are short on props

Place another folded blanket or firm pillow to support your head, with your chin a little lower than your forehead, which helps to lengthen the back of your neck, thereby releasing muscle tension there. This head position also helps direct your inner gaze in and down into the center of the pose, so that you can focus on your breathing. Smooth, slow, steady breathing has a calming effect on your nervous system that has been well documented by research.

If you're very comfortable, you can linger in the pose for 15-20 minutes, reaping the soothing benefits. If time is short, however, even a few minutes can produce a relaxing effect that can stay with you for hours afterward.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed their good wishes and ideas for us to consider as we make our way through the transition process. Teams from Gudmestad Yoga and our friends at Rain and Shine Holistic Healthcare have been working together on our next steps and searching for a new space for our businesses. We have enjoyed meeting with members of our yoga community who have generously shared their time and ideas. We will continue to keep you updated with any significant developments in our process and welcome any other thoughts, inspirations and ideas that you may have.

The Transition Team at Gudmestad Yoga

Honoring Transitions Using the Breath

Often when we think of transitions we think of big change. We hear people talking about being in transition from one job to the next, to a new house, a new school, divorce, childbirth, the loss of a loved one. The truth is, we are constantly in transition. Our bodies are constantly in motion from one thing to the next whether or not we notice. Our heart is always beating, our internal systems are always moving toward harmony. We are always moving from one breath to the next.

The breath may very well be the most constant transition that we encounter on a daily basis in this life. In fact, it is from the breath that we can learn the most about transition. In essence, the breath is our built-in training manual for transition. The breath is what announced our aliveness when we entered this world and it is the lack of breath that will announce our way into the next.

Transition means we are alive, we are participating in life. The quality of that participation depends on us. Are we opening ourselves up to the change before us? Are we taking time to pause and allow time to slow down while we choose our next step with intention? Are we surrendering into the exhale of our transitions as we move toward the next pause?

Take time to pay attention to one small transition in your day. Use the breath to slow things down as you move out of bed, for example. How will you approach your next move from your warm covers? How will you decide to show up for yourself and others? As we practice in the very small transitions of life, we get better at the big ones. We learn how to use the breath as our teacher and as our tool, the breath becomes our pause, our magic before we take action.

Rachel Lundberg E-RYT 500, YACEP