I’m doing a thing!
So I’ve decided to do 108 sun salutations a day for 108 days. I decided I really needed to give myself a bit of a shake up as I begin some new projects. Knowing that I can do hard things on the mat will help me do hard things off the mat too.
I started on the 19th February and I’ll finish on June 7th. 108 days is 15 weeks or 31/2 months, that’s a big challenge.
The postures that make up the sun salutation or surya namaskar sequence move the body in so many directions, giving you a very comprehensive practice. It is a balancing sequence and involves all of the chakras. I flow through 8 poses, linking breath with movement.
I know it will be a real challenge for so many reasons… but it will be so worth the effort. There are so many benefits to sun salutations and to having a regular daily practice.
For a bit of fun, here are 108 reasons!
Body Benefits
It will help me get stronger.
It will give me a bit of cardio work, this is missing from my life right now.
It will introduce a robust hardening and strengthening component to my Yoga.
It will help me develop stamina to finish each session.
It will help me build a more stable core.
It will build up my ability to do more intense work rather than opting for gentleness all the time!
Opposing muscle groups are stretched and contracted alternatively which means that there is no muscle strain.
I’m doing stretching poses that I normally avoid in between each set of 12 salutations. This means I will be working on releasing into the postures that open my hips.
Increases circulation
Helps to lengthen the spine and release tension
Lubricates the joints
Repetition will help me to improve my range of movement
Breath Body Benefits
I’m using the practice to get fully present and move with my breath.
Moving with the breath lowers the heart rate.
Breath body movement is good for moving and releasing emotions that are stuck in the tissues.
The diaphragmatic breathing is a great stress reducer.
Boosts steady and even energy throughout the day
The increase in prana helps to remove energy blockages
Oxygenated blood helps to clear toxins
Calms the nervous system, especially when done in the vata hours in the morning
Prana will be moved around the body, clearing the nadis or energy channels
Conscious breathing while performing Surya namaskar increases prana into our system and makes us feel more alive
Sun salutations increase oxygen to the brain
Regular breath body practice increases lung capacity
Mind Benefits
It will give me staying power to keep at it when I’m tired, bored or distracted
I can clear out some kapha that has accumulated through the winter.
Helps me to unwind and ground into my centre
Awareness of the breathing pattern increases deep conscious relaxation to the body and mind.
Repetition helps to relax the mind and sharpen the senses.
The practice increases self-awareness and this releases blocked energy
Reduces moods swings and brings more emotional stability
Reduces mood swings and helps to maintain a more balanced emotional state
Deep breathing helps to improve brain functioning like memory.
The practice helps to balance the right and left sides of the brain, creating more emotional stability and increases your creativity and mental capacity.
The backbends help to open the heart
Forward bends help to relieve stress and anxiety
Wisdom & Balance
I can take my time when vata is high.
I can push myself when kapha is high.
I can be moderate when pitta is high and I need to burn off some energy without overdoing it.
Upward salutes open the throat chakra and improves communication and promotes better self-expression.
Yoga helps to improve self-esteem
Helps with emotional regulation
It helps improve sleep and therefore helps to make wiser choices
The postures help to build confidence
Routine calms vata down and this means I make better choices
Regular practice helps to cultivate insights
Daily practice cultivates conscientiousness
The practice of sun salutations, enables you to connect to a deeper level of intuition, greater internal wisdom and a sense of higher knowledge.
Spirituality & Bliss
It’s a spiritual practice and I can combine this with my intentions and prayers.
I use the experience to practice gratitude.
Upward salutes connect me with the Divine and helps to connect me to my sense of spirituality.
Practising sun salutations helps me to accept things as they are with the ability that I have now
The backbends can reduce the tendency to curl in on ourselves when we feel depressed or overwhelmed
Regular practice of Surya Namaskar can release the blockages from the koshas and therefore free up the bliss body
You do not get bliss, you are bliss. Regular practice helps you to peel back the layers and discover your true essence, which is bliss. Practice helps to peel the illusions of each sheath away to reveal your true nature.
Deep concentration and mindfulness helps me to touch into bliss of the present moment
The practice of Yoga helps to awaken me to the presence of bliss
Bliss can be experienced in savasana after a good Yoga practice
We are more likely to tap into the bliss layer when the mind is still, and the mind becomes still after a good Yoga practice. This is also known as sat-cit-ānanda—absolute truth-wisdom-bliss.
“Tapas” is a way of describing a challenging yoga practice. Tapas derives from the root word “tap” meaning “to burn” and has been translated as heat, fire, unwavering zeal, and passion. When we do tapas, we cleanse ourselves by burning away impurities with regular practice of Yoga asana.
Mindfulness
I’m dedicating my practice to my lovely friend Caron and her husband David.
It can be done as a meditation.
Forward folds soothe the nervous system and encourage introspection.
Forward folds help to get out of flight or fight mode and develop more witness consciousness
Helps build mental focus
Builds mental flexibility
Improves overall mental health and equanimity
Helps with physical balance which helps with mental balance
Focussing on the counting and the breath helps me to stay in the moment
My practice of remaining mindful of how I’m moving and the shapes that I make keeps me focused on what is happening in the here and now
Awareness on the postures automatically sheds light on other areas of life too
I can experiment with timing, closing my eyes and setting various intentions to create a moving meditation and increase mindfulness.
Habit Changing
It’s a challenge and I feel like rising to and completing a big challenge right now will help me to do other hard things I want to do too.
It will help me to stay on my mat for longer periods of time, my sessions have been getting shorter and shorter throughout COVID while I’ve not been practising at the studios.
Choosing poses that I normally avoid because they are uncomfortable will help me face other things in life that are uncomfortable.
It will help me to get into a solid routine of doing a good practice every day.
Moving through the sequence helps to counteract all the forward and rounded shapes are a great antidote to office slump
Daily practice builds concentration
Commitment to the practice, come-what-may helps me move away from what isn’t good for me and choose what is deeply nourishing instead
The repetition of the same practice will help to remove samskaras or patterns that are deeply ingrained in favour of new patterns
The repetition can lead to new neural pathways or neuro-plasticity-change your brain, change your habits
It increases my ability to feel what’s happening in my body, heart, and mind. The more aware I become, the more I want to change unhelpful behaviour.
Regular practice helps me to observe my habits and understand what they are doing to me, and help me get to the point where I’m ready to change. This desire to change often just arises naturally.
Yoga practice has self-regulatory effects on cognition, emotions and behaviour both on and off the mat.
Benefits from the Postures
Tadasana -Mountain pose increases awareness of the mind and body connection.
Opening the collar bones in mountain pose helps me to drop into my vulnerability.
Urdhva hastasana (upward salute) strengthens the legs and creates an excellent whole body stretch.
Upward salute also improves posture
It also stimulates the digestive system and eases bowel movement.
Uttanasana (standing forward bend) creates a wonderful whole spine stretch and tones the internal organs.
Low lunge (anjaneyasana) releases tension in the hips, stretches the hamstrings, quads, and strengthens the knees.
Plank pose helps with core stability and determination
Ashtangasana (eight-limbed pose) is a brilliant hip and shoulder opener, a backbend, and a heart opener.
Urdhva mukha svanasana (upward-facing dog pose) strengthens the wrists, arms, and back.
Backbends like updog help me to access the extroverted part of me and balance my very strong tendency to introversion
Adho mukha svanasana (downward facing dog) helps to strengthen and balance the foot muscles and get into the backs of the legs
Happiness
Yoga increases my sense of personal power
Regular practice increases self-esteem.
Sticking to the challenge helps me to build trust in myself.
Yoga makes me feel stronger physically and this helps me feel stronger and happier.
Having more energy makes me feel so much happier because I am much more able to handle life’s challenges.
The practice of Yoga helps me to get in touch with my true essence and my sense of happiness. Not the kind of happiness is the result of things that happen in life, rather the happiness that is our natural state of being, our birthright.
The breath body practice facilitates deep relaxation which combats stress and this makes me happy.
As I learn to listen to my body, I become happier. A daily practice helps me to listen deeply.
Regular practice increases serotonin, oxytocin and GABA levels, increasing feelings of happiness.
Daily Yoga practice decreases cortisol which helps increase happiness.
Happiness is a skill and a practice, it is a choice.
Santosha, or contentment comes from self-discipline