Secrets of the Happy Traveler - Part 2
With holiday travels around the corner and many people sick right now, how are we going to keep our bodies healthy, purified, and vibrant? Here’s another idea to add to the blog post Secrets of the Happy Traveler – Part 1.
2. Energization Exercises
Once I am all checked in for my flight, I find my gate, go to the bathroom, and fill my water bottle. Then I look for a gate without a plane taking off for a while. I love it if I can find a quiet private spot by a window. Now you do not have to find privacy but then you have to be ok with people looking at you funny. Most of the time I think they just wish they had the courage to join in because what you will do is so invigorating.
Here’s three Invigorating Energization Exercises:
These were developed by the great yoga guru Paramhansa Yogananda to help people feel more energy in their body, focus their mind, and get ready for meditation. Always tense from a low to medium to high tension, relax high, medium, low, and then take a quick moment to feel your body. Putting all focus on each body part being worked is more important than feeling the muscle isolation. That comes with practice. “The greater the will, the greater the flow of energy,” as Paramhansa Yogananda would say.
Double Breathing: There are three components to this exercise to integrate simultaneously. Repeat 3-5 times.
Take a short inhale followed by a long inhale, and a short exhale followed by a long exhale. Breathe in through the nose and then out through the mouth and nose.
Tense the muscles in the body in a wave-like motion upwards while you inhale. Relax them in a wave-like motion downwards while you exhale.
Tense the arms out to the sides with fists while inhaling. Then bring the arms in front of you and open the hands to press the palms together while exhaling.
Twenty-Part Body Recharging: This exercise has four stages.
Tense all the muscles in your body at once from low to medium to high tension with a double inhale and then relax high, medium, low on a double exhale.
Tense and release each body part one at a time; left side first and then right side. These are the twenty body parts counting the left and right sides: Feet, calf and shin, thigh and hamstring, buttocks, lower abdominals, upper abdominals, forearm, upper arm, chest, the sides of the neck, front of neck, and back of neck.
Tense and hold each body part starting with the left side and then the right side until everything is tensed. Inhale and vibrate with energy. Exhale and slowly lower the head to release the neck. Keep the head lowered while you release each body part--first the right side and then the left side.
With the head still lowered, double inhale and tense everything. Double exhale, release everything, and lift the head.
Four-Part Arm Recharging: Repeat the following sequence 3-5 times.
Starting with fists in front of the chest, take a single exhale and tense the arms out to the sides. Relax them as you bend the elbows and bring the fists in front of the chest again.
Single exhale as you tense the arms straight in front of you, and then relax them back in.
Double inhale and tense the arms overhead. Double exhale and relax the arms back down to your sides.
You may notice you can use these anytime, not just when you are traveling. They do not have the highs and lows you get from caffeine nor inhibit your body’s ability to absorb nutrients like coffee does.
Keep your eyes open for ideas 3 and 4! Subscribe to my blog in the top right of this page to get notified when they are released.
Here’s a video sharing the above Energization Exercises and a couple more:
Happy Travels!
