How to Do Yoga at Work
By Ashley Josephine Herzberger
There are times when doing yoga at work can be inappropriate. Yoga pants and built-in bra tops might not fit within the scope of your employer’s dress code. Bending over backwards, literally, might be taking it a step too far in your quest to get promoted.
But there are plenty of yogic applications you can take with you to the office. You may just have to expand your definition of yoga.
The most common definition of yoga is “union,” but such a simplistic definition leaves little room for a deeper understanding. Union with one’s SELF can come about in many ways. Through breath, through movement, through meditation, through passion, and the list goes on. There is no better place than the office to achieve such union. Union in the workplace will increase creativity, efficiency and productivity and produce better overall work. That’s a win-win for the employee and the employer.
How to Do Yoga At Work
Asana
Inhale your arms overhead and interlace your fingers together, turning your palms toward the ceiling. With your feet planted firmly on the ground, press down through the sit bones and take a moment to ground. Lifting from the heart, gently pull your arms behind you to stretch the front side of the chest. Keep the shoulder blades down the back the whole time.
Now, bring your hands behind you at the sacrum and interlace your fingers with the opposite grip. Press your palms together and press the fist down toward the ground to open up the chest some more. Look up and breathe in and out slowly. Keep the feet and tailbone grounded. These stretches help open up the chest and counter the effect of sitting hunched over at a computer all day long. You’ll likely feel energized after completing these stretches.
With your feet still planted firmly and your spine straight and long, bring your hands out in front of you and place your four left fingers, excluding the thumb, perpendicularly across the right four fingers. Your right fingers will be facing away from you and your left palm will be facing toward you. Press your left palm toward you to stretch the right fingers back and feel a nice stretch on the inside of the wrist. After taking a few breaths, face the right palm down and bring the left palm to the top of the right fingers, pressing the hand towards you to stretch the front side of the wrist. After a few breaths, switch hands. These stretches are great for countering the negative effects of typing for long periods of time.
