How to prepare for relaxation before practicing yoga

Relaxation exercise is an introductory exercise that beginners should generally learn and master first. It is a static exercise practiced in positions such as lying, sitting or standing. It was also a basic skill that should be mastered before learning advanced cultivation techniques in depth.

When it comes to relaxation, it is easy for ordinary people to understand it as just relaxing muscles. In fact, relaxation does not require simple muscle relaxation, but also mental relaxation. It can even be said that mental relaxation is the precursor and foundation for practicing relaxation. Only when the spirit is truly relaxed can the muscles relax well.

The so-called mental relaxation is mainly manifested in two aspects: First, try to get rid of distracting thoughts that have nothing to do with practice as much as possible. This mainly means that when learning to Qigong, your thoughts often fail to achieve single-mindedness for a while, and sometimes the more you want to single-mindedness, distracting thoughts will come in. The second is to prevent and eliminate the tension caused by relaxation. The so-called tension caused during relaxation means that some people want to achieve their goal as soon as possible because of their eagerness to practice. In fact, the haste will lead to failure. The more they want to relax, the more tense their spirit and muscles will be. One way to eliminate these two states is to focus your mind on one part of your body that is relaxing one after another, and carefully examine the feeling of relaxation in each part. In this way, the generation of other distracting thoughts is naturally blocked and spiritual relaxation is achieved. The so-called relaxation of muscles is to relax relatively while maintaining the posture of the exercise. This kind of relaxation does not mean slackness, because to maintain a certain training posture, the muscles must have a certain degree of tension. However, this kind of muscle tension is not stiff, it is only necessary to maintain just the body momentum. This muscular state is commonly referred to as "loose but unremitting, tight but not stiff."

Here are specific methods to practice relaxation:

Breathing: Breathe naturally.

Posture: recumbent position, sitting position, or standing position.

Thought: Imagine the muscles in each part of your body in the order described below, try to relax the muscles, and at the same time carefully examine how they feel when they relax.

How to relax your muscles: Gently close your eyes, imagine and relax one part at a time starting from the top of your head.

Top of head, forehead, eyebrows, eyelids, eyeballs, nose, lips, face, jaw, neck, shoulders, upper arms, elbow joint, forearm, wrist joint, hands, ten fingers, chest, flanks, upper abdomen, lower abdomen, neck and back, waist, buttocks, thighs, knees, calves, ankles, feet. This relaxation can be repeated many times. To enhance the relaxing effect, you can recite the word "loose" while you imagine each part, or you can play light music at the same time.

Relaxation has a good effect on eliminating fatigue and restoring physical strength. It is also very effective in eliminating tension and promoting sleep. Insomniac patients can practice relaxation after going to bed at night, and often fall asleep quickly as the body and mind relax. (Internship Editor: Lili)