chapter two
Travel Buddies
Very rarely do I finish a flight or a train ride, emerge, and say, “OMG, I feel amazing!” Mass-transit travel is one of the hardest things on your body and soul.
For a national health blog, I interviewed a White House doctor, Connie Mariano, MD, who had been the presidential physician during three administrations (George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush). She gave high marks to President Clinton for power napping, because, she told me, the more you sleep, the more you let your body restore itself. I couldn’t agree more!
I say, use transit and flight time to give yourself that little health nap. On a train, close your eyes (but obviously don’t miss your stop).
When you’re not napping, make the most of your transit time with Happy-Go-Yoga Travel Buddies—poses that are good for the mind and body, from point A to point B.
In this chapter:
Eagle Perch
■ relieve
■ strengthen
■ focus
■ empower
■ relax
Stuck in a middle seat, your neck and shoulders are already tight, and you just started the flight. Two armrest hogs are making you feel worse. A few minutes start to feel like hours, and the dread is building for the journey ahead. Assume the perch of an eagle about to take flight and let your spirits soar (a little more).
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Strap yourself in. Scoot your tailbone into the seat back so you can sit taller and be supported.
2. Don’t arch your back to sit up, but lift the top of your head as if it could reach the ceiling of the plane.
3. Bend your arms at the elbows and raise your elbows to the height of your shoulders (stay within your space, please).
4. Choose one of the options below:
Option A: Stack one elbow inside the other and connect the backs of your hands.
Option B: Double wrap your arms and connect your palms.
Option C: Press your arms together, elbows to palms.
5. In all options, feel the tops of your shoulders dropping away from your ears. Move just your elbows forward slightly toward the seat in front of you without changing the height of the arms.
6. Feel the stretch in your shoulders, upper arms, neck, and back.
7. Breathe easily and evenly. Count to ten slowly.
8. Switch sides (for option C, release and repeat).
About Eagle Perch
Based on Eagle Pose (Garudasana: GAH-roo-DAH-suh-nuh), Happy-Go-Yoga’s Eagle Perch helps alleviate tight shoulders, stretches the upper back, and supports blood flow to help prevent muscle cramps and stiffness. With your arms in front of your eyes, you’re forced to reevaluate your focus and concentration, which you’ll need to resist the urge to elbow your rowmates. By the way, in yogic mythology, Garuda is the king of birds, eager to help humanity battle demons (aka inconsiderate fellow travelers).
Eagle Twist
■ relieve
■ de-stress
■ relax
You’ve been staring at the seat pocket in front of you for quite some time now and studied the appropriate pictures in case of a water landing. Your lower back is tight and you start to wonder if the flight attendant would let you lie down in the aisle after beverage service ends. Here’s a little twist on a tough yoga pose to melt the tight spots in your back.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Strap yourself in. Sit forward in your seat a little; sit up straight and comfortably (don’t slump).
2. Cross your right knee over your left.
3. Put your left palm on your outer right thigh; hold on to the armrest with your right hand, but don’t let your shoulder creep up toward your ear.
4. Inhale, and apply slight pressure with your left palm onto the outer thigh.
5. Exhale, and rotate your ribs, chest, and shoulders around to the right, keeping your chest as broad as possible.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for two to four more breath rounds (inhale/exhale), always rotating on the exhale.
7. Switch sides by crossing the other leg on top and repeating the process.
About Eagle Twist
Eagle Twist helps wring out the tightness in your lower back, a common place of discomfort on long flights and in general. The twist gently stretches the main back muscles that support the spine but are often overworked. Compressing the center of your body and your calf muscles helps send refreshing blood back into the muscles, organs, and spine when you untwist. Happy-Go-Yoga’s Eagle Twist is a blend of the legs in Eagle Pose and Ardha Matsyendrasana (ARD-uh MOTZ-ee-un-DRAH-suh-nuh), a seated spinal twist, but it has an added health twist for travelers: It can also help encourage better digestion, which is always a plus when you’re traveling and out of your regular routine.
Bird’s Eye
■ relieve
■ focus
■ relax
■ refresh
Feeling headachy, you wonder if the airplane air is drying out your eyes. Between the track lighting and overhead reading light, your eyeballs hurt. Time to stretch your eyeballs (yes, eyeballs) instead of reaching for aspirin or a shot of vodka. Use this for a shot of relief instead.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Sit up and feel like you’re growing taller.
2. Close your eyes.
3. Lift your shoulders to try to meet your ears, roll them back toward your seat, then let them relax away from your ears.
4. Let the skin around your eyes and your jaw soften.
5. Slowly and softly open your eyes.
6. Visualize an imaginary warm, indigo-blue line forming a box shape around your face.
7. Moving just your eyeballs and nothing else, send your gaze to the upper right corner of the box. Inhale and exhale.
8. Still moving only your eyeballs, shift your gaze to the upper left corner of the box. Inhale and exhale.
9. Then, lower right. Inhale and exhale.
10. Then, lower left. Inhale and exhale.
11. Repeat steps 7 through 10. Try three rounds your first time.
12. Reclose your eyes softly. Imagine a soft, soothing indigo-blue light in between your eyebrows.
13. Feel it melt across your forehead, like warm massage oil.
About Bird’s Eye
Indigo blue is the color representing the wise energy point known as the “third eye” (Ajna Chakra: ODJ-nuh CHUH-kruh), related to focus, knowledge, and intuition. Moving the eyeballs on a course for all four corners of your imaginary box is a variation on Kundalini eye kriyas (KREE-yuhs), in which repetition of a certain movement or breath is meant to cleanse. The idea of a warm massage oil spreading across your forehead is inspired by shirodhara (Sanskrit for “head” and “flow”; SHEER-oh-DARR-uh), a traditional treatment that can be used to help a variety of eye diseases and promote relaxation. Consider Bird’s Eye a way of relaxing, cleansing your eye discomfort, and clearing the clutter in your head for better focus and intuition.
Bird of Prey
■ de-stress
■ focus
■ empower
■ brighten
■ strengthen
Crumpled in your seat, you feel listless and zoned out, but not in a good way. You need to perk up and get some work done while you’re in the air. Take a cue from powerful birds of prey, such as falcons and owls, and use special wings to posture yourself for productivity.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Scoot forward in your seat, leaving about three or four inches between your back and the seat back.
2. Wrap one arm behind your mid-back with the elbow bent so that your palm faces the seat back. Roll that shoulder slightly up and back toward the seat back.
3. If you feel comfortable, wrap your other arm behind in the same way. Grab opposite elbows.
4. Puff up your chest, but don’t strain into a backbend.
5. Pretend that your collarbones are wings and they are reaching out to expand your wingspan on either side of your body.
6. Breathe deeply.
About Bird of Prey
If you’ve ever seen a bird eyeing its prey, you’ll notice concentration and poise. Raptors, for example, generally have well-developed senses and great vision, making them swift and effective in their tasks. Happy-Go-Yoga’s Bird of Prey helps you take that shape and character as you lift up your body and strengthen your posture, based on a well-loved yoga arm position that opens up the front of the chest and shoulders (like a bird about to take off with purpose). By the way, did you know owls have a special feather structure that reduces turbulence, making for smoother flight? Let’s hope you have a smooth flight, too.
Hang Time
■ relieve
■ calm
■ refresh
■ strengthen
You’re craning your neck to see when the drink cart is coming down the aisle, and you think maybe a little cocktail would help release the crimp in your neck. Let the cart pass, take a breath, and head for the space at the back of the plane to release your neck instead. (You can do this waiting for the bus or in the train terminal, too. Just find a wall and a little space.)
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Toward the back of the plane, find a small space where you can have your rear end against a wall.
2. Step away from the wall about ten to twelve inches.
3. Step your feet about eight to ten inches apart, and keep them parallel to one another.
4. Bend your knees a little bit.
5. As you lean your rear end against the wall for support and stability, fold your upper body over your legs, but lift your belly up into yourself a little to support your back.
6. Let your upper back feel softly rounded.
7. Let your head hang.
8. Hold your elbows with opposite hands.
9. Gently nod and shake your head to let some tension go.
About Hang Time
Happy-Go-Yoga’s Hang Time is a gentler version of a deep, calming pose, Standing Forward Fold (Uttanasana: OOT-uh-NAH-suh-nuh). Lifting your belly as you fold over your body helps strengthen your core (think fab abs). Bending your knees slightly gives your legs and rear end a little workout while the plane wall supports your balance. As you grab opposing elbows, your shoulders, upper arms, and back get a stretch from the gravity you create with your hang time here. Blood flows to the brain when you hang your head, quieting the mind and refreshing you from mind-numbing travel. As you jet across time zones, see if you can opt for some hang time instead of a Bloody Mary.
Grounded in a Good Way
■ strengthen
■ balance
■ focus
Your flight is grounded, literally. Weary, defeated, and impatient, you feel shrunken by airports, long lines, and travel stress—but you’re not mentally grounded in a way that helps you cope, so you are primed to fly off the handle at everyone. You need both the strength and flexibility of a strong, graceful tree.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Stand next to your extended luggage handle, a wall, or a guardrail and hold it very lightly with your right hand. Don’t lean on it or put a lot of weight on it.
2. Put your left hand on your hip.
3. Put your feet together, toes and heels touching or close together.
4. Deepen your breath in the area of the lower rib cage, expanding your ribs, like a balloon, with breath.
5. Imagine your breath traveling slowly from the earth, up your legs and spine, and toward the crown of your head. Keep breathing.
6. Slowly slide your left heel up the ankle toward your calf. (You can keep your toes on the ground if it helps you balance.)
7. Don’t grip the luggage handle. Rely more on your standing foot and draw your navel into your body.
8. Keep connecting your standing foot to the earth and feel like the top of your head (not your chin) continues to lift.
9. Keep breathing fully in the middle of your body.
10. Switch sides.
About Grounded in a Good Way
Trees, like this pose, are rooted and grounded so they can stay stable in the midst of swirling winds and rainy days. Use this active standing pose to keep your mind off negative things—like delays and crazy travelers—or do it without the luggage to stay stable while waiting in long lines anywhere. Grounded in a Good Way is Happy-Go-Yoga’s take on the very popular Tree Pose (Vrksasana: vrik-SHAH-suh-nuh), which tones leg muscles and helps with stiffness in your legs and hips. It also gives you a sense of balance and poise as you breathe, grow tall, and focus on staying calm instead of obsessing about things that are out of your control.
Reach for the Moon
■ relieve
■ strengthen
■ brighten
■ refresh
You just missed out on getting a seat on the train, and you’re standing. You’re so tired that just sitting down would feel like a trip to the spa right about now. Time to stand your ground, give yourself a quick shot of energy, and reflect on the best parts of your day—rather than the worst—to arrive in peace.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Stand tall and inhale as you reach one arm above your head toward an overhead bar or handle. Let your other arm rest by your side.
2. As you reach for the bar, let the back of your shoulder drop toward your waist, and try to keep your arm straight, but not locked. (If you’re a tall person, you might reach beyond the bar and press your inner arm or wrist into the bar, keeping your arm firm and stretched to its full length.)
3. Inhale, get taller, and exhale into a gentle side bend reaching your extended arm up and over your head while your other arm stays by your side.
4. As you make this crescent moon shape with your body, try not to collapse into your chest, but keep it open; feel your ribs lift off your hips for more breathing room.
5. Inhale and exhale at least five times. On each inhale, gaze up at the train ceiling in the direction of your upper arm and remember something good from the day—no matter how small. On each exhale gaze in the opposite direction over your other shoulder and toward the floor.
6. On the last exhale, come out of the side bend.
7. Be a little flexible in your grip to accommodate any unexpected movement by the train.
About Reach for the Moon
Anytime you feel sluggish, you can refresh yourself with Happy-Go-Yoga’s version of a pose traditionally called Standing Half Moon. It strengthens the muscles along your spine and core and helps keep your back flexible in general as you make the shape of a crescent moon. The combination of neck and breathing movement is a Viniyoga therapy technique to break patterns of tense holding—here, we do it for your neck to alleviate neck and shoulder stiffness. The moon itself is calming and grounding. It also reflects the sun’s light, which illuminates your unique wisdom and intuition. The crescent moon can also symbolize new beginnings and dreams that will become reality if you can let go of what brings you down.
Walk Your Puppies
■ relieve
■ strengthen
■ refresh
All you want to do right now is kick off your shoes, but one glance at the subway floor… yeah, that’s not going to happen. Wherever you are, you can give your tired puppies some TLC. Walk ’em a little so you’re ready to trot to your next stop, which is hopefully home sweet home (or somewhere that will make you happy).
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Sit up tall wherever you are (even if you’re still checking your phone and email).
2. Uncross your legs and unbend them so they’re at about a forty-five-degree angle from your knees as you sit.
3. Flex the top of one foot to bring your toes in the direction of your knee (up).
4. At the same time, press the entire bottom of the other foot on the floor.
5. Hold the positions from steps 3 and 4, and inhale and exhale deeply one time.
6. Switch sides, but don’t speed up your breath or your walk.
7. Repeat steps 2 through 6 about a dozen times.
About Walk Your Puppies
Based on yoga’s popular Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana: UDD-oh MOO-kuh schvah-NAH-suh-nuh), which calms the brain and helps bring back lost energy, this Happy-Go-Yoga pose also can help relieve pain in your feet and heels. It creates strength and flexibility in your ankles and legs, too. According to Chinese traditional medicine, healing and well-being is supported when you take care of your feet! As you breathe and pedal your feet, you’re basically “walking your (downward) dog.” Your tired puppies will be less stiff and more energized. Isn’t that what happens with dogs, too, when they get that long overdue stretch? Just remember to breathe while you walk, and wag your tail, always.
Pray to the Seat Pocket
■ relieve
■ relax
■ refresh
■ balance
You thought there was only an hour left in your flight, but turns out it’s only been an hour since you boarded. You’re a bit deflated. You’ll need some oxygen (that doesn’t come from the air masks in case of an emergency) to refresh yourself for the remainder of the flight. You can do this on a long bus or train ride, too.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Place both feet on the floor about hip width apart.
2. Put your hands together in a prayer position.
3. Lift up your prayer and keep your elbows shoulder width apart.
4. Rest your elbows lightly on the seat in front of you, and let your prayer rest on the top of your head.
5. Gaze at the seat pocket in front of you and imagine feeling light as air.
6. Inhale as much breath as you can into the section of your ribs right underneath your armpits. (You should feel a little stretch if you get a lot of air in there.)
7. Gradually walk your elbows up the seat back after a few breaths, keeping the elbows level.
About Pray to the Seat Pocket
The seat pocket in front of you becomes your peace altar in this Happy-Go-Yoga pose. Pray to the Seat Pocket opens up your shoulders and upper rib cage, stretching the muscles that surround your ribs, and increasing your ability to breathe deeply and relax. Yogis do this all the time in classes to get ready for a really hard upside down balance called Forearm Stand (Pincha Mayurasana: PINCH-uh-MY-ur-AH-suh-nuh), but, let’s be honest, we really don’t want to be upside down mid-flight, do we? This will do. Remember to let your elbows rest lightly on the seat in front of you. If you go a little too heavy and disturb the person in front of you, you’d better pray he or she is very understanding about your need for a little extra elbow room.
Smooth Landing
■ balance
■ calm
■ refresh
There’s nothing like coming home, getting to your destination after a long journey, or feeling like you’re safely back on the ground. If touchdown is a little bumpy, though, your nerves might get slightly shaken. Use this breathing technique to get calm and balanced, assuring a smooth landing, mentally.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. As you taxi to the gate, close your eyes and sit up straight.
2. Bring your right hand toward your face.
3. Lightly close off your right nostril with your right thumb.
4. Through your left nostril, inhale smoothly (no gasping) and then exhale smoothly. Do this three times.
5. Lightly close off your left nostril with the fourth finger of your right hand and open your right nostril.
6. Repeat step 4, breathing through your right nostril. Three breaths… slow and smooth.
7. Repeat steps 3 and 4, closing off your right nostril again with the thumb and breathing deeply three times on the left side. (You’ll do it twice on the left side.)
8. Release your hand from your face.
9. Place both palms on your thighs and breathe through both nostrils for a few breaths without counting.
10. Open your eyes and gather your belongings with composure, and try to send good vibes to fellow travelers who are less composed as they grab their luggage from the overhead bin.
About Smooth Landing
Learning how to control your breathing is a staple in yoga. Happy-Go-Yoga’s Smooth Landing is an adaptation of Alternate Nostril Breath (Nadi Shodhana: nah-dee SHO-dunn-uh), a particular breath technique used to create a balance between the dueling parts of the nervous system—one that kicks you into gear when you need to take action, and the other, which helps you rest and restore. Breathing through your right nostril is energizing, while breathing on the left side is more calming, which is why, in this version, we start and end on the left side. Smooth Landing helps stabilize a rattled mind and synchronize our systems, which, for most of us, is a little wonky during travel, especially after a not-so-smooth touchdown.
