Sheer undiluted fun – is the sole mantra during this festive time of the year, when the whole World takes a break from work and other chores and concentrates on enjoying life. This is the time to unwind, to socialize, to be with self, to be with family, to be without a routine, to be on a high with late night parties, with emotional bingeing, uncontrolled drinking (as you connect with friends & family over food & drink) etc., which is otherwise impossible during normal routine of life. The repercussions of these fun filled “breaks”, however, come at a cost and thus, begin the promises of never ending ‘New Year’s Resolutions.’
Holiday fun is yet to carry on for another two weeks and people have already started complaining about headaches, inadequate sleep, indigestion, phlegm, acidity etc. Such discomforts take away the charm of enjoyment and at times, obliterate the fun quotient.
Some yogic quick fixes
Cleansing the mess from your stomach
Eating out regularly, eating big portions, eating rich food, eating at odd hours, eating wrong combination of foods etc. leads to “Hyperacidity” – smelly burps, indigestion, nausea, bloated stomach, migraine (acidity induced) etc. It takes a while to settle down with these conditions and flow with the fun of holiday.
Following some basic health guidelines is definitely the best protection against such ailments.
Detox your body in 15 minutes
Vaman: ‘Expelling the unwanted” can be your best friend. As the name suggests, this yogic kriya expels what is not required. It cleanses the food pipe or the esophagus and helps deal with a lot of problems associated with this region, be it, accumulated phlegm in the throat, bad breath, acidity, indigestion or any other kind of digestive ailments and keeps the digestive track clean of impurities. Choose to do Vaman whenever you binge eat.
Suryanamaskar: Fifteen minutes of fast Suryanamaskars can help detoxify your body. The dynamic practice of Suryanamaskar will infuse the vigor of the Sun into you so that you can handle your day energetically. Suryanamaskar is a beautiful combination of forward and backward bends with rhythmic combination of inhalation and exhalation. Practice it twice a day.
Suryabhedan: The right nostril dominant breathing – Inhale and exhale every single time from your right nostril alone. Perform it empty stomach for 2-3 minutes. Research shows that practicing Suryabhedan 27 times each, after getting up in the morning, before breakfast, before lunch and before dinner helps you lose around 2 kg in a month’s time.
Catch up on your lost sleep with deep abdominal breathing
Abdominal Breathing – take out 5 minutes two to three times a day, sit or lie down in a corner which is clean, noise free & slightly dark. Watch your abdomen go up & down as if blowing like a balloon with inhalation and coming back to spine trying to take longer (than inhalation) with exhalation. This practice will keep your mind and body calm and help in recuperating from the lost sleep to a greater extent.
So have a guilt- free holiday by creating a tiny routine of these practices in your routine free holiday life.
Disclaimer: Check the contraindications for these practices.
For any query, write to “Ask Shammi” on www.shammisyogalaya.com For other blogs on related subject, check www.shammisyogalayablog.com
Shammi Gupta, founder of Shammi’s Yogalaya holds an MA in Yoga Shastra, is a certified Yogic Therapist and Naturopath, has completed an Advanced Yoga Course and holds a Diploma in Yoga Education from Mumbai University. She is a certified trainer from American College of Sports Medicine and holds an MBA in HR & MBA in Finance from The University of Akron, Ohio, USA. She conducts Health Awareness Workshops for Corporate, Yogasana Workshops for Athletes and Yoga Therapy Workshops on different medical issues for patients. Among the celebrities Shammi trains are eminent personalities from the film and television industry and corporate world.