Improve Your Health with Music, Meditation and Mats
February 2, 2010 by Marcomé
Filed under Photo Gallery, Well Being & Self Growth
Say “mmm….” to improve your health. That’s right – when you practice yoga – music, meditation and mats can instantly lift your spirits, while jump-starting the flow of feel-good endorphins.
Yoga has quickly become one of the most popular and well-known health practices worldwide. Its easy on your joints and just about anyone can participate, regardless of fitness levels. Yoga poses are designed to result in digestive benefits, more restorative sleep, and overall flexibility and strength.
Yoga poses to stretch the body and mind (image from miiiSH on Flickr)
No longer regarded as a “fringe” – or, shall I say a “new age” – practice, yoga studios now can be found in just about any city or country. The practice is universally believed to be healthy for mind, body and spirit. Relaxing music is usually played while an instructor directs you through a series of poses, while reminding you to breathe properly.
This yoga quotation captures it all!
A photographer gets people to pose for him. A yoga instructor gets people to pose for themselves. ~T. Guillemets
Meditating in the sunshine (image from valentinapowers on Flickr)
Heart-pounding aerobic exercise is not the exclusive method to improve your health. No matter your age or physical condition, many people are turning to yoga as a way to gain strength, balance and flexibility.
You’d be surprised what a great physical workout a yoga class is, too! After only a week or two of classes, many will notice better posture and muscle tone, among other positive results.
Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape. ~Author Unknown
Serenity is within reach (image from lululemon athletica on Flickr)
Each yoga pose serves a specific purpose. Sure, there are comedic sketches in which a yogi is shown completely bent out of shape into a pretzel-like position. In reality, a yoga class or routine takes you through poses in a purposeful order.
Often, you’ll end in the corpse pose or child’s pose. Clear your mind and focus on meditation and restoration.
Chair pose is a defiance of spirit, showing how high you can reach even when you’re forced down. ~The Quote Garden
Don’t get bent out of shape… get bent into shape! (image from lululemon athletica on Flickr)
There must be a reason that yoga photographs depict peaceful, stress-free scenes. Practitioners enter a calm state of mind, often aided by ambient music and soft, encouraging direction from the instructor.
If you feel that you don’t have time to attend a yoga class, you can still benefit from the practice by taking 10 minutes of meditation in your own bedroom while holding several poses. Focus on both your body position and measured breathing.
Sun salutations can energize and warm you, even on the darkest, coldest winter day. ~Carol Krucoff
One Person: One Peace (image from jhoc on Flickr)
You can ditch the yoga mat, but still enjoy music and meditation outdoors. Some yoga classes are offered on the beach or in a park setting. Or, find a friend or spend some time in restorative solitude going through a series of poses. Choose your own MP3 music files to enjoy as background and inspiration to reach farther and stretch deeper!
Perhaps these inspirational yoga quotes and gentle encouragement will get you to the mat!
“Yoga has a sly, clever way of short circuiting the mental patterns that cause anxiety.” – Baxter Bell
Ready to take on the world! (image from lululemon athletica on Flickr)
Click here to get your free relaxing mp3 music songs by new age artist Marcomé ♥
If you enjoyed this post, be sure to see Uplifting Quotes About Music and Life and Fill Your Soul with Simple Pleasures, The sound of Silence, Ambient music therapy, Treat your body like a temple.
Click image to listen to Marcome’s music
Click image to listen to Zen Voices
Click image to listen to Seven Seas
Click image to listen to Ougainatso
Much research has been done on music and movement both have life in hancing effects.Mind and body work together
Absolutely. I liked this film Living the Matrix, New science of healing. Quite inspiring!
Thanks for reminding us all of the simple things in life that make our days AWESOME! Great music by the way!
Hello, Love the music. I am a novice at meditation but keen to develop. My question concerns an experience I had 2 weeks ago. I have Bipolar and thought it was a phase of mania – filled withe energy of universal love, very inspired and then body paralasis and dark thoughts in shadow and maybe psychosis- but i have read on net about automatic kundalini awakening and all the symptoms i had were the same – how can i know if it was illness or healing? And how could i carry it forward ito my life?
Many thanks.
Love & Blessings to you through the global collective mind of the WWW.
Pete
Dear Pete, I’m in no way certified to pose a diagnosis here but I can share my thoughts. I relate to your experience and here is the way I see it. I think that when my body frees up from past trauma, bad memories, it’s a purifying process that goes on. I would suggest Pema Chodron’s cd or book How to Meditate in which she brings forth that notion of wonderful experiences, sometimes frightening, something opening us up. The most important thing is to use love, inner love as your guide. I like St-Augustine’s saying: Love, and do what you want! Hope this helps! Take good care of yourself! Marcomé
See this article I did on Emotional Autonomy for more resources to read: http://evolvingbeings.com/posts/450/evolving-being-in-action-marcome/
Great photos and videos. Thanks for giving a very informative article regarding meditation. It really helps.
hey,
This is a great post. It is really inspiring ,every soul on this very planet would start doing yoga and meditation after reading this post. The video is awesome. The song is superb. I loved the whole post. I am getting no words to describe how good your post is…
I am starting yoga soon ( it is like i am starting again after 5 years) because of your post .
Thank you for the great post.
I’m glad you like my quote about Sun Salutations ability to warm you even on the darkest, coldest winter day! You may also enjoy my yoga audio home practice CD, Healing Moves Yoga, (available at both CDbaby.com and on my web site. Also my upcoming book, Healing Yoga for Neck and Shoulder Pain will be published by New Harbinger in May.
Tks for the info Bella Carol! May you bring us more inspiring thoughts! xxMarcomé