10 Outstanding Yoga Videos

I have talked about movement and exercise as a way to help you achieve more of a flow state.

Yoga is an excellent way to help cultivate the flow state.

With that in mind, here are 10 outstanding yoga videos that you can watch right here – feel free to watch one or all.

They can all help you to realize the flow state.

1) A guided meditation with Bridget Woods Kramer, a leading Anusara yoga teacher, filmed on the clifftops of Cornwall, England.

2) The breath and body move as one in the Ashtanga Yoga tradition. This classical path harnesses the power of the postures to reveal the pure awareness, freedom, and depth of all that is yoga. Renowned teacher Richard Freeman masterfully guides you through this precise union of breath, alignment, and flowing postures as taught to him by master yogi K. Pattabhi Jois of Mysore, India.

3) Intro to Ashtanga with Richard Freeman.

4) Yoga for Beginners with Patricia Walden.

5) Vinyasa Flow Yoga Intro with Seane Corne. Vinyasa Flow Yoga is an experience to reconnect you to your personal sense of Spirit and strengthen mind and heart, as well as your body.

6) Morning Yoga – Tara Stiles shows a yoga routine that is great for waking up in the morning.

7) Everyday Yoga: Letting Go of Tension – with Rodney Yee.

A silent film of Krishnamacharya, granddaddy of modern yoga, in 1938. He was the teacher of BKS Iyengar and Sri K. Pattahbi Jois.

9) Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, the founder of Ashtanga Yoga, in 2002 at age 87 in London teaching an Ashtanga Yoga Primary Series Class. Here he helps a student in GarbhaPindasana while counting in Sanskrit…

10) B.K.S. Iyengar 1938 silent newsreel. Here is a young Iyengar doing advanced poses that constitute the advanced A & B ashtanga series. This is well before Iyengar dropped the vinyasa aspect from his practice and rebranded it as “Iyengar Yoga,” putting greater emphasis on alignment.

If Only Elvis Stuck With Yoga

Ah, Elvis. You were the King. At one time you were so young and nimble and moved with such grace and agility. You shook those hips and moved in ways that could make young girls swoon.

But what happened? Towards the end of your life everything you once were vanished, leaving you a shell and a parody of who you once were. You were bloated and addicted to drugs. You lived your life in a drug-addled haze.

You lived the dream and everyone worshiped you. But obviously, something was missing.

And now, 32 years after your death, the truth can be told.

You sneered at yoga.

Yes, you sneered at everything, but even more specifically you gave the raised lip to yoga.

If only you stuck with it, it could have changed your life. You could have been healthier, happier, and even more importantly to your legions of fans, still alive.

And you could have become Yogi Elvis, the guru of country and western, rockabilly, yoga loving fans everywhere.

And you would have been an inspiration to all those yearning to live a Low Density Lifestyle.

But instead, you got sucked into a High Density Lifestyle.

And all because you refused to take yoga seriously. You had your chance, but you walked out the door when yoga beckoned.

If you don’t believe me, watch the above video and see for yourself.

Movement: A Key to a Healthy, Happy Life: Part 2

Yesterday and today are introductory articles to this series on Movement and Exercise – the theme of this entire series on movement is that movement is an essential key to healthy and happy living, and to living a Low Density Lifestyle.

I discussed in yesterday’s article on movement and exercise, part 1, how  movement of and by itself is important, and that the best approach was one that focused on a number of things: the body, the mind, the energy system, the breath and stillness.

I concluded the article by saying that whether you’re seeking spiritual harmony, soulful pleasures, or just want to sweat, training the body is as important as training the mind and spirit—you can’t have one without the other, and they are deeply interconnected.

Now, that is not to say that you have to have abs of steel to attain good health and a Low Density Lifestyle; instead what is important is an approach to movement that focuses on flexibility and strength, and touches on the components that help to make us FREE (FREE=Flow/Relax/Effortless Effort): the body, the mind, the energy system, the breath and stillness.

You may wonder why stillness is mentioned when it is movement I am talking about. Stillness gives the body a chance to rest and regenerate, and for the internal computer that runs our body and mind to reset the hardware and software within us.

You can’t just push, push, push all the time—we do too much of that. Taking the time to be still and to relax helps the body get into the effortless effort mode, and when we are in that mode we are more capable of feeling the pulse of the universe vibrating deep within our soul.

We also can’t ignore the importance of the breath, and when we practice stillness we become more cognizant of the breath and our breathing patterns. Breath is essential to all the processes that occur in the body; in Eastern traditions breath is essential because it is known that being in tune with your breath connects you to your deepest inner knowing.

The breath also signals both the beginning and end of life. If you have ever been present at the passing of a life, you would have witnessed that the final sign of transition is a deep and freeing gasp. In contrast, if you have ever had the pleasure of being witness to a new life about to begin its journey, you would have seen that the first sign of life is the cry of a newborn baby as they claim their place in the world.

Author Tarthand Tulku in his book Tibetan Meditation notes that we have both an outer and inner breath: the outer breath is our physical respiration, while the inner breath silently moves through the body and is smooth and full of feeling, and as it circulates throughout, has powerful effects on our energy centers.

If all you ever do is push, push, push all the time with your movement approach, and for that matter in your everyday doings, and never practice stillness and awareness of breath, your body will just become tighter and more rigid.

That is not the way to be if you want to live up to your peak abilities and enjoy the bounty of life. There is a certain lightness of spirit and soul that is desired in order to live a more zestful life, and so your movement philosophy should make sure that is what is represented in your approach.

That’s not to say that at times you won’t sweat and strain and feel sore all over, but you should also make the time to do something kinesthetic that has a different orientation: one that encompasses stillness, quiet and awareness of breath, so that you can feed and nourish the soul.

There also are many times when your movements are just natural extensions of life. Gardening, walking, hiking, biking, baking, playing with your friends or kids, and many other things that are part of the everyday aspects of life are all important ingredients to a healthy life because they are part of the ebb and flow of the cycles of nature and the changing seasons.

Thomas Jefferson understood this very thing when he once said, “walking is the best possible exercise. Habituate yourself to walk very far.”

And the Zen proverb “chop wood, carry water” is a reminder that in the daily routines of life, we can find harmony, increased awareness, stillness and flexibility of body and mind – all of which are essential to living a healthy, happy and fulfilled life that will help point you towards living a Low Density Lifestyle.

Movement: A Key to a Healthy, Happy Life: Part 1

For the next few weeks I will be writing about the subject of Movement. Movement comes in all shapes and sizes, but the common unifying denominator of it is that it is an essential  part of living a healthy, happy and fulfilled life.

It is also an important ingredient for living a Low Density Lifestyle. The inverse of that is that a sedentary life is not conducive to living a Low Density Lifestyle.

We are born to move. Movement is essential to life—it helps get the circulation of blood and energy in your body flowing better.

Nothing in nature stays the same, as change is the only constant of life. And we are in constant motion in the dance of life: the world is a dynamic environment of energy exchanges.

Movement of and by itself, no matter what type, by virtue of its ability to get the heart pumping and blood flowing, can help to take lactic acid and other toxins that build up in the muscles, organs and connective tissue and assist the body in metabolizing and excreting them. This can help to dissipate the blockages and densities in the body.

But there is an art to movement. Even though we are always in motion, and always doing things, there is a certain approach to movement that can greatly enhance being in the flow state – which is the state of heightened awareness, a state where the mind is still and you are activating more of your potential.

The type of movement I am talking about can be any type of movement that touches your soul—what your passion is may be different from someone else. But the key is to do something that is aimed at the mind-body unison.

What would be best is if the approach focused on a number of things: the body, the mind, the energy system, the breath and stillness.

Granted, there may not be one approach you’re doing that may fit the bill and meet all these needs. But that’s ok. The trend nowadays is cross-training, to do a number of things that touch on each of the key areas that need attention.

The best philosophy in approaching what type of movement to engage in, in order to achieve a better chance of overcoming blockages and density in the body, and allowing you to attain a Low Density Lifestyle, is to practice an approach or approaches that both elongate your muscles and strengthen them. You need both—one creates flexibility and the other strength, and they go hand in hand in helping to create a dynamic flow in the body and mind.

There are many approaches that aim for this: from the East we have Tai Chi, Aikido, Kung Fu and other martial arts, along with Yoga; from the West we have Pilates, resistance work using a ball or bands, and strength training.

Then, of course, there are the various sports, which can put you profoundly in the zone when you become deeply immersed in them; and there is also dance, a modality that has its origins in the primal rhythms of the universe.

Some people mistakenly think that living a Low Density Lifestyle means having a body without muscle tone; they picture the image of a blissed-out wandering mendicant who has not a care in the world.

That is because many spiritual traditions caution followers to turn away from the body because they believe it to be a trap set by the ego to hinder transcendence.

But this is far from the truth. Whether you’re seeking spiritual harmony, soulful pleasures, or just want to sweat, training the body is as important as training the mind and spirit—you can’t have one without the other, and they are deeply interconnected.

To be continued tomorrow…

10 Herbs That Are Good For Stress

Stress is such a major component of so many people’s lives – most people are stressed out to the max.

Stress is not good for the health, as it can cause many health problems. It does not allow you to experience healthy living. And it will also keep you in a High Density Lifestyle mode.

Everyone has stressors of one kind or another in their life. The key is to manage stress and channel it. Yoga, meditation, exercise, walking in the woods, and journaling are some of the ways to enjoy some stress relief.

There are also herbs that can help you manage stress. Here are a few of the herbs for stress relief:

1. Licorice Root contains a natural hormone alternative to cortisol, which can help the body handle stressful situations, and can help to normalize blood sugar levels as well as your adrenal glands, providing you with the energy necessary to deal with the stressful situation at hand. Some claim licorice stimulates cranial and cerebrospinal fluid, thereby calming the mind.

2. Passion flower is considered a mild sedative and can help promote sleep. Passion flower also treats anxiety, insomnia, depression and nervousness.

3. Kava Kava, an herb from the South Pacific, is a powerful muscle relaxer and analgesic. Kava Kava is also effective at treating depression and anxiety associated with menopause.

4. St. John’s Wort has been used medicinally since Hippocrates time. Even during the Renaissance and Victorian periods it was used for the treatment of mental disorders. Though it presents itself as an unassuming, flowering perennial, St. John’s Wort was shown to be more effective than Prozac, according to a recent study, in treating major depressive disorders.

5. Lavender is effective at reducing irritability and anxiety,

promoting relaxation, a sense of calm and sleep. It is also a powerful anti-bacterial agent, and can work to balance hormones and stimulate the immune system.

While lavender can be consumed in a tea, it may work best as an essential oil that is breathed in by way of a diffuser or, in the case of stress and sleeplessness, an eye pillow.

6. Valerian calms people who are agitated, but stimulates those who feel fatigued, according to one Italian study. During World War II, the British used Valerian tincture to treat nerves shattered during bombing raids on London.

7. Ginseng and Siberian Ginseng can help you handle stress by sedating or stimulating your central nervous system, according to your body’s needs. Studies conducted in China showed that Ginseng also increases your brain’s utilization of amino acids, which is important because when you are under stress, your body uses more protein than usual.

8. Schizandra has a regulating effect on the central nervous system. Studies show that this herb quickens responses and makes people more alert while actually stimulating the nervous system. A 1983 study conducted in China showed that Schizandra relieves headaches, insomnia and dizziness and calms a racing heart. It has also been reported to control anger and aggression.

9. Skullcap was originally a Native American herb traditionally taken for menstrual problems. Today, it is mostly used as a tonic and sedative for nerves in times of stress. It helps to support and nourish the nervous system, and calms and relieves stress and anxiety. It can also be used when stress leads to muscular tension and pain.

10. Lemon Balm has a long tradition as a tonic remedy

that raises the spirits and comforts the heart. It is widely valued for its calming properties. 17th century British writer John Evelyn wrote that Lemon Balm “is sovereign for the brain, strengthening the memory and powerfully chasing away melancholy.”

So there you have it – 10 herbs that can help you with stress and calm your spirits. These are all great tools to manage stress, give you stress relief, and help assist you in living a Low Density Lifestyle.

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You Wanna Laugh? Do Some Laughter Yoga!

I told you in yesterday’s article that laughter and humor is good for your health, it makes you feel lighter of body, mind and spirit, and is an essential component of living a Low Density Lifestyle.

So, if laughter is something that is good for your body, mind and spirit, doesn’t it seem natural that it could become a form of yoga?

Absolutely! Welcome to Laughter Yoga.

It’s guaranteed to make you laugh, make you lighter, and make you healthier. Who couldn’t ask for more?

Laughter Yoga was the brainchild of an Indian doctor, Dr. Madan Kataria, who while researching an article on the health benefits of laughter, realized that he was too serious for his own good.

So he gathered some people one day in a park in Mumbai and began a Laughter Yoga club. The idea caught on and now there are Laughter Yoga clubs all around the world.

Watch the above videos and learn for yourself about Laughter Yoga. In the first video, a man who knows a thing or two about laughter, John Cleese of Monty Python fame, visits Dr. Kataria and his Laughter Yoga club.

Cleese even goes into a prison for a session of Laughter Yoga with the inmates. You’ll notice while the prisoners are whooping it up and having a grand old time, the guards look deadly serious.

Probably because they’re worried that there might be a prison outbreak of laughter that would infect them.

And in the second video from CNN, Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at Laughter Yoga and its health benefits.

After you watch the videos, make sure you let out a belly laugh or two. And if you can’t find a Laughter Yoga club in your area, here’s the website to go to find out more: http://www.laughteryoga.org

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30 Ways to Relax: Part 2

In yesterday’s article, I told you about 15 of the 30 ways to relax. In today’s article, I will tell you about another 15 ways to relax.

All told, if you put any of these into practice, it will give you much stress relief and give you a chance to experience healthy living.

And it will also help you live a Low Density Lifestyle.

I don’t know about you, but any opportunity to manage stress and have stress relief is fine by me. I’m sure you would agree with me.

So let’s go down the list and find out about more ways to relax and experience some healthy living.

Ok, so here we go with 30 Ways To Relax. Today, numbers 16 – 30.

16. Breathe. Breath is such a vital part of being able to relax and find your inner stillness. Try practicing slow and deep breathing for a 10 count: deeply inhaling and then exhaling, slowly and calmly. The more you do this, the more it becomes second nature. This will allow you to easily relax and slow down at any point.

17. Lavender. Lavender is an essential oil that is prized for its soothing and relaxing effects. Try spraying your bedsheets with lavender and laying down on them.

18. Yoga. Whether you are naturally flexible or find yourself tight and stiff when you try and do yoga, is not important. What is important is how calming and relaxing yoga can be. You owe it to yourself to do it.

19. Meditation. Sitting still and emptying the mind will slow your body down and allow it to enter into a state of stillness and quiet.

20. Basking in the Sun. Whether at a beach, a lake, or in your backyard, feeling the sun’s energy beating into your body can be very relaxing. Just make sure you’re wearing enough sunscreen. An additional treat is if you’re at the beach, then you can listen to the sound of the waves crashing as the tide comes in.

21. Walking in nature. Being in nature is very invigorating, quieting, soothing and relaxing. Next time you’re feeling stressed out, if you get yourself immersed in nature you will find yourself decompressing in no time.

22. Fishing. This one is for those of you who like to fish – though there’s always a first time to get into it. Fishing is something that teaches you patience. It’s just you, your pole and the water, and you just wait and wait until something happens. Or it might be that nothing happens. But it can be very relaxing and soothing.

23. Vegetable Gardening. Gardening has many rewards, and one of them is how it can focus and quiet your mind, and keep you involved in the cycles of the seasons. Each season has its own energy, and gardening can help you to feel more in harmony with the seasons.

24. Unclutter Your Living Space. If you allow clutter to take over your home, it can make you stressed out. Cleaning up the clutter and making order can create much more calm in your home.

25. Listen to Relaxing Music. Sure, it’s fun to rock out, and of course, as the famous saying goes, music soothes the savage soul. But to allow you to get deep-rooted stress relief, it’s best to listen to music that is calming and soothing. It can be classical, jazz, or some other melodic music. Or perhaps your relaxation will come from you playing on an instrument.

26. Do something creative. Write a poem, paint, play with clay, take photos, bang on a can, etc. Doing something creative can feed your soul. And by so doing, your soul will breathe a little easier and release any pent-up tensions and frustrations.

27. Just Say No. Create boundaries by saying no to other’s demands and requests. This allows you to not take on any more responsibilities and burdens, and allows you to take time for yourself.

28. Say Yes. Sex is very relaxing.

29. Tell Someone You Love Them. By doing this, it opens up your heart and allows your body to relax and let go.

30. Pet Your Dog or Cat. While you stroke your pet, tell them about all the stresses you are going through. Because they’re your pet, they love you unconditionally, so they’ll listen to you and always be there for you.

So that’s it for the 30 ways to relax. There are lots of other ways, and it might be that you have your own best way. Whatever that is, go for it and remember the more you relax and find stress relief, the more you will be on the path of healthy living and living a Low Density Lifestyle.

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The Coming Paradigm Shift in Health Care – Part 2

Being FREE: Flow/Relax/Effortless Effort

The secret to living a Low Density Lifestyle is becoming FREE. In an earlier post, I explained what the acronym FREE means. It stands for Flow, Relax, Effortless Effort.

Because it is a very important concept, I want to discuss FREE a little further at length.

The Flow state is known to athletes as being “in the zone.”  To an athlete, this is where everything just seems to go their way. And athletes will be the first to tell you that when they are in the flow state, they perform at higher levels.

Shawn Phillips, the well-known athlete, bodybuilder and author of Strength for Life, had this to say about the subject:

From the beginning, what I was connecting with in the gym was a universal energy source. I would just feel it flowing. Even when I was twenty years old, I called the gym my church. When I was there, it wasn’t about being social; it was about doing my practice. I was in it. I was in the zone.

Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist, said,  “Be like the fountain that overflows, not like the cistern that merely contains.” In essence, this is what Flow is about. You become a circuit of energy, flowing infinitely, much like an unimpeded electrical circuit in which the electricity freely courses throughout.

Relax is something that doesn’t always come easy for many people. Sure, everybody knows how to veg out. But do you know how to profoundly relax, to tap into the stillness within and the center of your being?

To find that calmness and stillness within, you can do any number of things or techniques.  These can be meditation, prayer, walking in nature, speaking silently, listening to quiet engaging music, yoga, along with many other mind-body techniques.

A recent scientific study even found that relaxation techniques can beneficially affect your genes.

Relaxation is about finding your peace within the turmoil and hubbub of everyday life.  Some of you may do workshops or go to retreats or go on vacations to help find that inner quiet. And that is a good thing. But the trick is to embed that knowledge into your body and mind and integrate that understanding into your daily routine, so that everywhere you go, wherever you are, you are immersed in your stillness.

When you are acting with Effortless Effort, you can labor for hours on end, at times functioning on little sleep, and yet feel full of energy and life. You are firing on all cylinders, and the universe seems like a giant playground. You love what you do and you do what you love.

Interestingly enough, there are times when stress has a positive connotation. There is a term, eustress, which is the positive aspect of stress. In this case, a person is very busy, doing many things, but they are thriving in the midst of it, and loving how productive they are. A person in this situation is in full Effortless Effort mode. To an observer, it would seem as if this person is pushing themselves far too much and burning themselves out. But to the person immersed in Effortless Effort, they are thriving because they are firing on all cylinders and feeling alive, vibrant and awake.

And so, this is what being FREE is all about. Remember the formula? It’s LDL = FREE.  Keep that in mind–it will help you to live a Low Density Lifestyle.

Feelin’ the Low Density Lifestyle

Ok, I’ve been telling you about the Low Density Lifestyle, and you may be getting it, or maybe you’re not. But today I’m going to tell you about it in a different way, through the power of images and music.
So sit back, click play and enjoy:

There are a lot of themes that the Low Density Lifestyle covers, and the video covers some of them. These themes include: flow, relaxation, effortless effort, creativity, imagination, genius, health and wellness, movement and exercise, longevity, spirituality, enlightenment, meditation, quantum mechanics, consciousness, stillness, happiness, peak performance, productivity, success and a lot more. So stay tuned as we continue to delve further…

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