Even though I am The Yoga Diva on the Flying Carpet, and jutting around for guest appearances and Sports Yoga clinics, I always make time for my long time students, and each month treat them to a mini retreat which I call a Yoga Party. During this class I like to introduce something unique that our regular class doesn't allow time for, and this month I thought I'd love to share this idea with all of you 'Ask the Health Experts' blog readers.I wish I could claim the brilliance for this idea, but I cannot. I learned it more than 35 years ago from a brilliant behavior consultant during a Yoga retreat I was conducting, and later, saw that yet another inspired Yoga instructor was offering it at the Omega Institute. I've taught this over the years at various venues and each time, I seem to be able to uncover something that I hadn't thought of before. So, with no further ado, get out a piece of paper big enough to draw the outline of your body, find some markers and let's do a Yoga Body Map. The thing about a body map is that it relates perfectly to a Yoga setting in that once you're finished playing with it, you can set about to do the Yoga poses that will help to recover, relieve, strengthen, release whatever it is that the Yoga Body Map reveals. Here's how you do it:
1. Draw an outline of your body with the color of choice.
2. Identify any areas of your body that have been injured either physically or emotionally.
3. Identify areas of your body that you are just plain not happy with.
4. Any surgeries?
5. What parts of your body are just fine?
Now choose some colors and indicate all of those areas on the map. Use it as a meditation: think about healing those areas by re-coloring over them with a different healing color such as blue. Have fun with it! I drew a happy orange slice where my neck used to hurt because I love the happy look of orange slices...and 'orange you' just happy you can color over things too? The body map will reveal all of the joys of living in your body and it will help you in a lighthearted way identify where you are having some problems. By breaking the cycle of serious suffering, you can shake the negative energy and feel for these glorious fun moments that you have control over that last 5 pounds, the headaches (please don't draw an axe on your head!) and other aches, pains and illnesses as you color them away, draw sacred symbols on them. Have a broken heart? Color it blue and healed. The important thing is to have fun, even when dealing with sensitive areas. In this way, you get to move past them in ways you didn't think you could. Don't forget to dot yourself by putting the dot of enlightenment on your third eye to finish your masterpiece. Later, you can give it a great big send off in your outdoor chiminia with a few cones of favorite incense. You will be amazed at what the Yoga Map will reveal and release.
Khadi's website is www.yourstrulyyogatv.vpweb.com.
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