Healthy Living Ideas: Yogic Lifestyle in the Modern Age

Yoga lifestyle and healthy living can be rather simple, returning to harmonious living with your bodies, animals, humans and the world around us.

I was blessed to be born into a family that raised us vegetarian and taken to meet yoga masters at ashrams, exposed to yoga chants and healthy living ideas, vegetarian (now vegan) healthy eating that does not kill nor harm animals, and exercise and yoga asanas (poses) and practices for optimal physical health.  I want to share this with others, which is why I teach yoga for over 25 years (Sivananda Yoga Certified since 1995, Kundalini and Gentle Integral yoga instructor certified).

Some of my suggestions for a healthy life based on yogic principles for optimal and harmonious living (with a few of my own added in):

Practice. Practice. Practice.
-Breathe. Yogic pranayama practices can give you energy or calm the nerves and mind. Or simply practice slow, deep breathing for calming the mind and learning to be present and focus in the moment.
-Meditate. Sitting in stillness, observing the breath or an internal sound (mantra) can calm the busy mind, bring creativity, clarity and a sense of inner peace. Start with 5 minutes a day and build up to 30-60 minutes. Meditating the same time and place each day can create a habit and allow for a consistent and effective daily practice. (Turn off your cell phones!)
-Do your yoga asanas (poses) for radiant health. These poses can be adapted in a chair or wheelchair if needed (called "Chair Yoga") because truly yoga is for everyone!
-Practice 10-20 min a day of conscious yogic relaxation to calm the nerves and the mind (different then a nap, stay awake!). It is important to recharge the body and mind with stillness, as much as it is important to move the body for physical wellness and radiant health. Make sure to do both daily!
-If you practice mantras, chant, dance, sing or pray, add that during or after meditation. Devotion, faith and joy are healing and improve the immune system and our mood. Focused intentions help us sustain our good habits for physical and mental health.
-Practice creative arts and hobbies that bring you joy. What did you do in childhood that you loved, that have not done in a while? How can you create time or energy to start that again? Don't wait! Start today. 
-Eat your plant based, vegan, healthy foods: eating lots of of vegetables and no animal products (dairy or meat ) for yogic diet (harmony within the body and with all living beings) can decrease the risk of disease, heal current ailments and bring more energy. Learn from a  plant based nutritionist or doctor to make sure you get the nutrients you need. I am a Stress management Specialist of the Ornish Heart Disease Reversal Program and Alzheimer's Research in N. CA. This is based off of reasereach that a vegetarian or vegan plant-based diet can not only prevent disease. but it can reverse it. Ethically as well, you are not killing innocent animals or supporting an industry that keeps animals in captivity and then kills them for human food choices. Plus it helps the earth, as less land and resources are taken to feed animals raises for food. This promotes a feeling of inner peace, when we live in accordance with our values of cmpassion and harmony.
-Exercise! If your yoga posture practice is more relaxation based, do cardio, walk, exercise and add 30 minutes or more a day of that for physical health and energy. Get outside if you can! Feel the sunshine and wind. Energize yourself in nature.
-Keep your thoughts positive. Meditation helps you notice the thoughts and makes you aware that you can change the thought to a positive one, if the negative ones are arising.
-Think Positive: Learn what is doubt, fear, insecurity, self-hate, anxiety and switch your habits or thoughts and create habits to get the opposite effect (love, courage, peace, confidence). Positive affirmations can help with this too. I like the Scientific Healing Affirmations from Yoganandya and recite those mentally before or after morning meditation.

Yoga can increase energy, flexibility, strength, balance and bring inner peace (that is already there, but we are just paying attention to it). Yoga has so many benefits so the more you practice, the more you will want to, especially when you feel how much your life can improve. By daily practice and taking daily steps to establish good habits, this creates more optimal peaceful and healthy living.

Here is a little song of the Yoga of Synthesis for daily practice from Swami Sivananda: 
Eat a little, drink a little, Talk a little, sleep a little, Mix a little, move a little, Serve a little, rest a little Work a little, relax a little, Study a little, worship a little, Do Asanas (yoga postures) a little, Pranayamas (yogic breathing exercises) a little, Reflect a little, Meditate a little, Do Japa (mantra repetition) a little, do Kirtan (devotional chanting) a little, Write Mantra a little, have Satsanga (gathering of spiritually like minded people) a little.
Serve, Love, Give, Purify, Meditate, Realize. Be Good, Do good; Be kind, Be compassionate. Enquire ‘Who am I?’ Know the Self and be Free.
From www.sivanandaonline.org

Author Bio: Stacie Dooreck, is a yoga a instructor since 1995 and owner of SunLight Yoga (onsite wellness programs at work ), author and creator of SunLight Chair Yoga: yoga for everyone! books and teacher trainings. She is also a lifelong vegetarian, and daily meditator.
Namaste,
Stacie
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For yoga videos and books go to www.sunlightyoga.com