1. Relaxation &Yoga
A MONTHLY MIND, BODY, AND SPIRIT NEWSLETTER
Yoga for Beginners
The Origin
In this month’s
issue....
The Health Benefits of Yoga
Yoga for Flexibility
Strength
Continued on page 3
THE WORD YOGA has its
roots in the Sanskrit language
and means to merge, join or unite.
Yoga is a form of exercise based on
the belief that the body and breath
are intimately connected with the
mind. By controlling the breath
and holding the body in steady
poses, or asanas, yoga creates
harmony. Yoga is a means of bal-
ancing and harmonizing the body,
mind and emotions and is a tool
that allows us to withdraw from
the chaos of the world and find a
quiet space within. To achieve this,
yoga uses movement, breath, pos-
ture, relaxation and meditation in
order to establish a healthy, vibrant
and balanced approach to living.
Yoga is one of the original
concepts which today would be
labeled as holistic. That means that
the body is related to the breath;
both are related to the brain; in
turn this links with the mind,
which is a part of consciousness.
The essence of yoga is to be in
the driver’s seat of life. Control is
a key aspect of yoga: control of the
body, breath and mind.
Yoga poses work by stretching
your muscles. They can help you
move better and feel less stiff or
tired. At any level of yoga, you’ll
probably start to notice benefits
soon. In one study, people im-
proved their flexibility by up to
35% after only 8 weeks of yoga.
Some styles of yoga, such as
ashtanga and power yoga, are very
physical. Practicing one of these
styles will help you improve mus-
cle tone.
But even less vigorous styles
of yoga, such as Iyengar or hatha,
can provide strength and endur-
ance benefits. Many of the poses,
such as downward dog, upward
dog, and the plank pose, build
upper-body strength. The standing
poses, especially if you hold them
for several long breaths, build
strength in your hamstrings, quad-
riceps, and abs.
Poses that strengthen the lower
back include upward dog and the
chair pose. When done right, near-
ly all poses build core strength in
the deep abdominal muscles.
When you’re stronger and
more flexible, your posture im-
proves. Most standing and sitting
poses develop core strength, since
you need your core muscles to
support and maintain each pose.
With a stronger core, you’re more
likely to sit and stand “tall.”
Better Posture
• Health Benefits of Yoga
page 1
• How to Meditate
page 2
• Tune Up your Charkas
page 2
• Breathe Easy
page 3
• Health Benefits of Yoga cont.
page 3
• Meditation Coloring
page 4
• Willow Tree Yoga Classes
page 4
• Got Grim
page 4
October, 2015

2. page 2Relaxation & Yoga
This is Your Brain on Meditation
A Beginners’ Guide to Meditation
Meditation is a simple but
life-transforming skill that can help
you to relax, enhance understand-
ing about yourself and develop
your inherent potential.
1. Choose a environment
Find a nice, quiet place where
you won’t be disturbed for fifteen
minutes or longer. Sit down, relax
and rest your hands on your lap.
You can sit on the floor cross-
legged with the support of a medi-
tation cushion, or on any chair with
your feet resting on the ground. It
is not necessary to force yourself
into a lotus position if you are not
used to it.
2. Breathe slowly and deeply
Close your eyes softly. Direct
your soft, unfocused gaze down-
wards. Begin by taking a few slow
and deep breaths — inhaling with
your nose and exhaling from your
mouth. Don’t force your breath-
ing; let it come naturally. The first
few intakes of air are likely to be
shallow, but as you allow more air
to fill your lungs each time, your
breaths will gradually become
deeper and fuller. Take as long as
you need to breathe slowly and
deeply.
3. Be aware
When you are breathing deep-
ly, you will begin to feel calmer
and more relaxed. That is a good
sign. Now, focus your attention on
your breathing. Be aware of each
breath that you take in through
your nose. Be mindful of each
breath that you exhale with your
mouth. Continue focusing on your
breaths for as long as you like.
If you find your attention stray-
ing away from your breaths, just
gently bring it back. It may happen
many times. Don’t be disheartened.
What’s important is to realize that
you have wandered and bring your
attention back to where it should
be. As you develop greater focus
power, you will find it easier to
concentrate.
4. Ending the session
When you are ready to end the
session, open your eyes and stand
up slowly. Stretch yourself and
extend your increased awareness to
your next activities. Well done!
How to Meditate
TUNE UP YOUR CHAKRAS
What is a Chakra?
According to yoga tradition,
the subtle body is a part of you that
you can’t see or touch—it’s where
your energy flows, which is why
it’s also referred to as the energy
body. There are seven key points
in the subtle body that are thought
to be vortexes of energy, known
as chakras. When energy becomes
blocked in a chakra, it triggers
physical, mental, or emotional
imbalances that manifest in symp-
toms such as anxiety, lethargy, or
poor digestion.
Great for feeling more alert,
secure, and stable. The Muladha-
ra governs your family ties and
feelings of survival, belonging, and
guardedness. Your earliest mem-
ories are stored here, including
whether or not your basic needs
were met. When it is blocked or
out of balance, you can become
needy, have low self-esteem, or
have self-destructive behaviors.
When Muladhara is in balance,
you feel strong and confident; you
can stand up on your own two feet
and take care of yourself.
Root Chakra
Tree Pose: This pose is great for
opening up your root chakra
Source: YogaJournal.com

3. page 3Relaxation & Yoga
Yoga—Continued from page 1
Good for your Heart
Yoga also helps your body
awareness. That helps you notice
more quickly if you’re slouching or
slumping.
Yoga has long been known to
lower blood pressure and slow the
heart rate. A slower heart rate can
benefit people with high blood
pressure or heart disease, and peo-
ple who’ve had a stroke. Yoga has
also been linked to lower choles-
terol and triglyceride levels, and
better immune system function.
Yoga usually involves paying
attention to your breath, which
can help you relax. It may also call
for specific breathing techniques.
But yoga typically isn’t aerobic,
like running or cycling, unless it’s
an intense type of yoga or you’re
doing it in a heated room.
Pranayama, which literally
means “to extend the vital life
force,” or prana, is an incredibly
rich practice made up of many
breathing techniques that vary
in complexity from ones simple
enough for a child to do to those
appropriate only for advanced
practitioners. While the best way
to practice pranayama is under
the guidance of an experienced
teacher, there are simple tech-
niques—such as gentle diaphrag-
matic breathing and comfortably
lengthening the exhalation—that
can be used at any time to trans-
form not only your breath but also
your state of mind.
Try this twice a day, or as
needed during stressful times.
Sitali and Sitkari Pranayama are
particularly supportive when
you’re feeling drowsy in the morn-
ing or during an afternoon slump
when you need to improve your
focus.
Sit comfortably, either in a
chair or on the floor, with your
shoulders relaxed and your spine
naturally erect. Slightly lower the
chin, curl the tongue lengthwise,
and project it out of the mouth
to a comfortable distance. In-
hale gently through the “straw”
formed by your curled tongue as
you slowly lift your chin toward
the ceiling, lifting only as far as
the neck is comfortable. At the
end of the inhalation, with your
chin comfortably raised, retract
the tongue and close the mouth.
Exhale slowly through the nostrils
as you gently lower your chin back
to a neutral position. Repeat for 8
to 12 breaths.
Try this practice before bed-
time to help support sleep, in the
middle of the night when you’re
struggling with insomnia, or at
any time of the day to calm stress
or anxiety.
Begin by lying on your back
with your knees bent and feet flat
on the floor, hip-width apart. Place
a palm on the abdomen and take
a few relaxed breaths, feeling the
abdomen expand on the inhala-
tion and gently contract on the
exhalation. With your palm on
your abdomen, mentally count the
length of each inhalation and ex-
halation for several more breaths.
If the inhalation is longer than the
exhalation, you can begin to make
them the same length over the
next few breaths.
Once your inhalation and
exhalation are equal, gradually
increase the length of your exha-
lation by 1 to 2 seconds by gently
contracting the abdomen. As long
as the breath feels smooth and
relaxed, continue to gradually
increase the exhalation by 1 to 2
seconds once every few breaths.
Make sure you experience no
strain as the exhalation increases
and keep going until your exhala-
tion is up to twice the length of the
inhalation, but not beyond.
If your breath feels uncomfort-
able or short, or if you’re gasping
on the next inhalation, back off to
a ratio that is more comfortable
for 8 to 12 breaths. Then finish
your practice with 6 to 8 natural,
relaxed breaths.
Breathing Benefits
Busy Mind?
Sitali Pranayama
Breathe Easy: Relax with
Pranayama
The Long Exhale
How to position your body during the
Long Exhale
Source: YogaJournal.com

4. page 4Relaxation & Yoga
Find your Inner Child: Meditation
through Coloring
A mandala like the one shown here “reflects the
structural representation of the cosmos,” says Elena
Pakhoutova, curator of Himalayan Art at the Rubin
Museum of Art in New York City. “Its structure is very
ordered, so it creates a framework for directing the
mind to focus.” Everything from selecting your colors
to the motions of filling in the blank spaces calms the
mind, and when you finish a geometric pattern, you
can meditate on it, observing the Bindu—a symbol for
the unity of all creation—at its center.
The Shakti Coloring Book: Goddesses, Mandalas,
and the Power of Sacred Geometry
About the Newletter
Editor: Tim Crocker Publisher: Nicole Prokop
Columnist: Krysta Turner Layout: Brandon Diep
Photographer: Shannon Weeks Features Writer: Ty Smith
Source: YogaJournal.com
G o t G r i m ?
If your mat is lightly soiled, use a spray bottle,
damp sponge, or terry cloth rag to apply a solution of
two cups of water and four drops of dish soap. Rub
the soiled areas. Wipe the mat with clean water; then
rub with a dry terry cloth towel. Hang to air dry.
If your mat is heavily soiled, submerge it in a solu-
tion of warm water and mild detergent; use very little
soap as any residue may cause the mat to become
slippery during future use. Thoroughly hand-wash the
mat and rinse in clean water. After squeezing out the
excess water, lay the mat on a dry towel and roll the
mat and towel together. Stepping on the rolled up mat
will squeeze more moisture out of the mat and into
the towel. Then unroll and hang to air dry.
The Willow Tree, located in downtown Blooms-
burg, has yoga classes for all. Classes and series
offerings are appropriate for every level of experience,
from the newbie with no prior yoga experience to the
advanced yogi practitioner. Students of all genders,
ages, shapes, and sizes attend their yoga classes and
welcome everyone to try thier yoga offerings to see if
it’s the right fit for them.
They hold yoga classes every Tuesday from
5:30pm to 7:45pm and every Wednesday from 10 am
to 11am.
• Student @ Bloomsburg University - $13
• Willow Tree Member - $13
• Non member 6 week Series - $65
• Willow Tree Member 6 week Series - $55
Source: WillowTreewc.com
The Willow Tree
YOGA IN BLOOMSBURG Schedule
How to Clean your Yoga Mat
Rates