Slim Calm Sexy Yoga: 210 Proven Yoga Moves for Mind/Body Bliss

and breathing, you can cultivate awareness and attention, and direct your energy toward your goals. Practicing this way reveals your unique qualities, and part of that yoga buzz everyone raves about is realizing how much potential and power you have. You have the power to live a happy and fulfilled life. You just need to practice—and keep practicing.
    I crafted these routines specifically to fit easily into your life. Work at your own pace and around your busy schedule. Five minutes here and 15 minutes there will make a huge difference from your very first deep breath. Just ask some of the clients I’ve worked with. I’m inspired every day by people who’ve wholeheartedly embraced a yoga lifestyle—and how it’s changed them for the better. On the following pages, I’ll introduce you to six real women (a lot like you!) who embody
Slim Calm Sexy Yoga.
You’ll see firsthand how a regular yoga practice can do the same for you.
    Ready to get started?

CHAPTER 02
bring on
the yoga buzz
Three yoga principles that will change
your life—and how to use them

    Want to start feeling better than ever?
    Want to check your stress at the door, fit into your skinny jeans, do a double take when you catch your reflection in a shop window? Good, because I want to help you get there. But before we delve into the fabulous ways yoga can help you embody
Slim Calm Sexy Yoga,
I want to introduce you to a few principles of yoga that will make your practice a hundred times more effective: breathing, meditation, and alignment.

just
breathe!
    Yoga won’t do you much good if you hold your breath through each pose. Your breath has a direct influence on your nervous system. The ancient yogis figured out how to harness it for maximum chill-out effect, and now modern science confirms it: Controlled breathing confers a host of health benefits, including lowering blood pressure, reducing panic attacks, and even minimizing asthma, according to studies presented at an American Psychosomatic Society conference. Slow, deep breathing can restore balance in your nervous system, which is impaired by a number of cardiovascular diseases and stress-related problems.
    How does the simple intake of air impart all these benefits? Harvard University’s Herbert Benson, MD, one of the first physicians to bring Eastern healing into Western medicine, has shown in his research on high blood pressure that harmful physiological effects can be alleviated by breathing deeply while focusing your mind on a repetitive sound, word, phrase, or movement. Benson dubbed this the relaxation response: a state of deep rest that changes your physical and emotional reaction to stress in a way that can improve health.
    If your breathing becomes short and fast during a challenging pose, try to guide it back to long and deep. Your body and mind work best with a steady and deep flow of oxygen. As with yoga, the effects of deep breathing spill over into everyday life. When you’re in a tense situation, such as a confrontation with a co-worker, what’s your natural reaction? If you tend to hold your breath and tense up, you’re like most of us. But if you can train yourself to breathe deeply through stressful moments, you will be much more prepared to think and act clearly than if you ball up until the tough situation passes. Deep breathing allows you to stay focused on what’s in front of you and deal with it in the most capable way possible. On the flip side, this practice lets you experience good things when they come your way, too.

THE NOSE KNOWS
    Breathing for yoga practice is done primarily through the nose. Why? For starters, the nose screens out dust and dirt particles that the mouth can’t. Just as you use a filter for drinking water, your nose is your very own natural air filter. Breathing through your nose also controls the amount of air you inhale and exhale. It leads to longer, deeper breathing, which helps you focus more than if you gulp air through your mouth.
    Breathing techniques guide and control the amount of air that circulates through your system, which helps to quiet your mind and leaves your body feeling calm and at ease.
     
    GO LONG
    Deep breaths bring you into the present moment to work through challenges and enjoy good moments equally. Check in on your breathing regularly. Whenever you notice yourself breathing short and fast, guide your breath back to long and deep.
    Ultimately it’s useful to learn a bunch of breathing techniques (like the