chapter three
Career Counselors
You work hard for the money! Sometimes, though, work is a little harder than you’d like. Sigh. You can’t control gossiping coworkers or getting a massive assignment at the last minute; however, you can manage your own cubicle aches and work stress without taking up a lot of time in your work schedule.
Studies show that a little mindful movement throughout the day can make a big difference in both mental and physical health. There’s also research from Harvard claiming that certain “power poses” can help you build confidence for that job interview or big presentation. Who knew? Well, the yogis did, long ago…
If you need to, schedule a Happy-Go-Yoga minute or two on your calendar, and make an appointment for a well-deserved and critical health break. (Yes, it’s okay if your smartphone alarm reminds you to do yoga. Just choose a soothing ringtone like a harp or something, please.)
When you feel ready to work again, you’ll be more productive. You’ll also be easier to work with… which is always a good career move.
In this chapter:
Wrist Wrestling
■ relieve
■ refresh
It’s time for computer detox. No doubt you’ve been typing like a maniac, trying to finish your project, but an endless stream of emails keeps interrupting you. Give your hands and wrists a little boost so they can keep going. Challenge them to a wrist-wrestling match right at your desk.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Look away from your screen (at something calm, like a plant).
2. Gently reach both arms in front of you and keep your elbows slightly bent.
3. Interlace your fingers and press your palms together steadily, without gripping hard.
4. Draw a slow figure eight shape with your knuckles in one direction, moving from your wrists.
5. Breathe slowly, too.
6. Switch directions (this might be harder than you think).
7. Try it for twenty or thirty seconds—the wrestling match doesn’t have to last long to be a good one!
About Wrist Wrestling
Wrists are pretty small joints compared to the rest of the body, but we ask them to do a lot in our device-obsessed world: typing, texting, emailing, gaming, and more. If they’re in the same position for long periods of time as you type at the keyboard, you’re not letting your wrists enjoy their full range of motion. They’ll get stiff and lazy, which is a recipe for pain. Yogis don’t have a Sanskrit name for this one, but they know how to take care of the wrists. We do this all the time in class after balancing on our hands and after many Downward-Facing Dogs. Wrist Wrestling is a simple motion, but by giving your wrists a little twist and flow, you bring blood flow back to your hands, allowing you to wrestle your project with renewed spirit and vigor flowing from your fingertips.
Confidence Booster
■ de-stress
■ inspire
■ focus
■ empower
The boss is in the room, you’re hoping for a raise, and your coworker is throwing you a fake grin that’s making you uneasy. You need to look and sound like you’re on your game. Take two minutes—just two minutes—go somewhere private, and let your body tell your mind, “You got this.”
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Stand with your feet parallel to each other. They can be slightly apart.
2. As you reach your arms downward, feel your chest and the very top of your head lifting to the ceiling.
3. Try not to bend your back a lot or throw your chin to the sky; instead, feel like you’re growing taller—soaring, maybe!
4. Breathe deeply. Your exhale can be a little longer than your inhale to help calm your nerves.
5. Do this for just two minutes to feel a real confidence boost.
About Confidence Booster
Standing tall is the basis of yoga’s Mountain Pose (Tadasana: tuh-DAHS-uh-nuh). Harvard researchers have actually put their stamp of approval on these types of poses, which mimic the body shapes of winning athletes: chest high, head high with an upward motion in their bodies; in a word, victorious! When you put your body in a shape that’s victorious, you emit more testosterone, the dominance hormone, and less cortisol, the stress hormone. Confidence Booster puts you in this shape and empowers you to pay better attention, remember more clearly, perform well, and sense your surroundings. Physically, by bearing weight evenly in the feet, the rest of your body can be lighter, and your mind can soar with agility and a winning attitude.
Twist, Don’t Shout
■ relieve
■ relax
■ refresh
Knots in your stomach from the meeting you just left? You kind of want to shout out “@!$%#&” to release frustration. This would not be good for your job review. Instead, sit down for a twist on stress relief and wring out your worries. Let go of the toxic feeling that’ll just eat away at you for the rest of the day.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Sit in a chair that rotates, but scoot forward a bit toward the edge of the seat.
2. Face the desk and put both feet on the floor with your toes also facing the desk.
3. Put your left palm on the desk and press your right palm on the seat next to your right rear, with fingers pointing outward and away from your body.
4. Inhale, and reach the crown of your head to the ceiling so you feel your spine getting longer.
5. Exhale, and twist your torso to the right as you draw your belly button deeper into your center.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 a few times, twisting deeper with each exhale.
7. Reposition your body to face your desk and switch sides.
About Twist, Don’t Shout
Happy-Go-Yoga’s Twist, Don’t Shout is the upright version of a reclined twist called Stomach-Revolving Spinal Twist (Jathara Parivartanasana: juh-TAR-uh par-EE-var-tuh-NAH-suh-nuh). Twists are detoxifying and sometimes can help get rid of that sinking feeling in your gut. They also have the ability to restore or keep suppleness in your lower-back muscles, which get stiff and sore from sitting in those long meetings. Twisting is a basic part of any yogi’s life, meant to calm anxiety and relieve sluggishness by bringing a “wring-out-and-release” action to your body’s digestion and nourishment organs. When stuff keeps moving in this area, you regularly purge the toxins that don’t support your vitality while you circulate the energy and fuel that does. It’s true, sometimes shouting just feels good, but twisting might be a better way to avoid being called to Human Resources.
Total Brain Power
■ focus
■ balance
■ empower
You can’t quite put your finger on it, but you feel like a part of your brain isn’t working, and you really have to concentrate to get the job done on time. It’ll only take a minute to make a positive hand gesture to clear your mind and spark mental power throughout all parts of your brain.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Sit comfortably.
2. Join your hands at your fingertips and thumbs.
3. Bring this shape toward your forehead and touch your thumbs to the space between your eyebrows, but just a little higher.
4. Close your eyes, and imagine a midnight-blue sky that’s clear, with no clouds but maybe a few bright stars.
5. Inhale for a count of four.
6. Exhale for a count of four.
7. Repeat steps 4 and 5 ten times.
About Total Brain Power
Hakini is the god of the forehead, and the inspiration for Happy-Go-Yoga’s Total Brain Power. This is Hakini mudra (HAH-kee-nee MOOD-ruh). Mudras are yoga of the hands, and this one supports mental clarity. By putting all your fingers and your thumbs together, you balance all the natural elements and energies of the body, uniting the creative and analytical sides of the brain. When signals are crisscrossing randomly, Total Brain Power can help promote cooperation instead so everything works together as a unit. This mudra is also said to improve breathing. You’ll need that oxygen to feed your brain for maximum productivity. Totally.
Stand Your Ground
■ empower
■ strengthen
■ balance
There’s a lot of change happening at work, all at once! You’re feeling a little off balance, unstable, and worried about many things. It’s time to get grounded so you have a foundation to be flexible, no matter what happens. Don’t worry. It’s going to be okay.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Take your shoes off, and stand with your feet together.
2. Lift your toes off the ground, then lower them to feel the ground beneath you.
3. Keep your legs straight, and imagine that your ankles are hinges.
4. Start to sway to one side, keeping your whole body firm as if it were a board.
5. As your sway gets to its farthest point, your other foot will peel off the floor.
6. Keep your legs firm, your lifted foot flat, as if it were standing on the floor still, and balance momentarily.
7. Start to sway the other way, keeping the legs firm and transferring the weight to the other foot. (Your other foot will lift in similar fashion as the first did in step 5.)
8. Sway side to side a few times, taking the motion to your edge each time.
9. Then, start to reduce the motion until you are still and standing—as in steps 1 and 2.
10. Picture yourself firmly grounded in your own situation.
About Stand Your Ground
When you’re rooted firmly at the base, you can handle anything that blows your way. Happy-Go-Yoga’s Stand Your Ground is a blend of the traditional foot lock called Pada Bandha (PUDD-uh BUN-dah) and a balance technique to connect your entire foot base to the earth for maximum stability and steadiness in the midst of really challenging yoga poses. Just doing Stand Your Ground helps strengthen your spine and core to improve posture. As you sway, you’ll strengthen your legs, core, and ankles, too. When you come back to stillness, you’ll be more aware of the difference between being off balance and being stable, which will help you be more aware of how to come back into balance when things knock you off your feet a little. One of my favorite inspirational quotes is an old Japanese proverb: “The bamboo that bends is stronger than the oak that resists.” Root deeply, but be flexible!
Let It Roll
■ relieve
■ brighten
■ relax
You just noticed that the knots in your neck are the size of your ears. (Maybe this is an exaggeration, okay, but it sure feels tight up there.) You’re probably not letting enough roll off your shoulders, and those knots are blocking your creative energy. Let it roll and release the weight of the world so you can express yourself.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Inhale and shrug your shoulders to the ears.
2. Exhale and roll your shoulders back, letting them fall away from the ears gently.
3. Inhale, and tip your head gently to the right, bringing your right ear a little closer to your shoulder without lifting the shoulder to it.
4. Exhale, and roll your head so your chin gets a little tucked toward your chest (but don’t strain).
5. Inhale, and keep rolling your head in the same direction, to the left, so it lands in a tipped position to the left, and your left ear is a little closer to your shoulder without lifting your shoulder to meet your ear.
6. Exhale and roll your head back to the middle. Tuck your chin gently.
7. Inhale, and roll your head to the right.
8. Repeat steps 3 through 7 a few times. You should start to notice the difference in just a few rolls, so let it roll.
About Let It Roll
When something unexpected happens, the body’s natural nervous-system response is to tense up and/or hunch over to protect and get ready to defend. If you keep doing this, though, your muscles will start to think that fear is the new normal and will stay stiff and knotted. Keep it rolling, and your neck muscles soften. Over time, they’ll just be more adaptable and flexible. Let It Roll, Happy-Go-Yoga style, to relieve neck tightness right away. Do it regularly to retrain your muscles and your mind to manage the unexpected stuff a little more easily. By the way, giving your neck space also helps creativity flow, because it unblocks the subtle energy of the Vishuddha Chakra (vish-YOO-duh CHUH-kruh), which rules one’s ability to express, be creative, and communicate confidently.
Spine Align
■ relieve
■ balance
■ refresh
You’re losing steam at your computer. Possible explanations for this: 1) your body is working too hard while sitting, or 2) just sitting there for too long is draining the specific type of health energy needed for important things on the job. Here’s one way that yogis restore that energy. You need a bath towel, a thick scarf, or a thin blanket for this one.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. First, get up from your desk and stretch (any stretch, I’m begging you).
2. Take a deep breath in, hold it at the top of your breath for a moment, then open your mouth and release a big sigh to let go of tension (or whatever is causing you tension).
3. Prep the roll: Roll up your towel/scarf/blanket as shown in the illustration. (Don’t rush this part: take the time to make it smooth and flat before you roll it up. You don’t want a bumpy roll—bad for the back.) Try to let the roll be about as long as the distance between your seat and the base of your neck.
4. Align the roll vertically along your spine, between your back and your chair back.
5. Scoot your rear back into the chair to secure the base of the roll where it touches the corner of the seat and the seat back.
6. Lean back onto the roll and feel your shoulders and chest stretch wider and open up.
About Spine Align
Happy-Go-Yoga’s Spine Align is based on a technique in the Restorative yoga practice, which helps your body find its natural comfort zone and restore energy. The roll itself can help align your spine to relieve neck, shoulder, and back tightness by readjusting your body so it’s not working so hard just to sit. All of this frees up energy for something better. Working long, consecutive hours at the computer robs your mind of energy and is one of the top zappers of prana vayu (PRAH-nuh V’EYE-yoo). Considered the most important movement energy, a balanced prana vayu supports your vision, hearing, creative thinking, reasoning, and enthusiasm. We need all of that to do a good job! I think that’s worth keeping a scarf, towel, or blanket handy at work, don’t you?
Forgive the Frenemy
■ de-stress
■ love
■ connect
Oh, there’s that coworker who pretends to be your friend, but you know she’s out to get you. (Okay, do you really know that? Really?) Maybe it’s time to release and make peace within you. The power is in your hands to shift your energies from negative to positive and release internal toxicity—the bigger enemy to your health.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Sit at your desk, feet on the floor.
2. Sit up confidently and close your eyes.
3. Inhale through your nose; exhale and sigh out through your mouth.
4. Close your mouth and breathe through your nose.
5. With the backs of your hands on your knees, palms facing up, make fists with your hands, with the thumb crossing over the rest of the knuckles.
6. Release your fists, lift your hands off your knees, and bring your hands together along the pinkies, and make a bowl shape by cupping your hands.
7. Inhale, make the fists.
8. Exhale, make the bowl.
9. Inhale, make the fists and think, “Let…”
10. Exhale, make the bowl and think, “… go.”
11. Repeat steps 7 and 8 a few more times, as needed to let negative feelings pass, or to feel a little forgiveness.
About Forgive the Frenemy
Your hands are expressions of the heart, so use them to make ancient, powerful gestures that can shift your energy. With your fists in Forgive the Frenemy, you create Mushti mudra (MOOSH-ti MOOD-ruh). When you release your fists, you release pent-up emotions. The bowl with your hands is Pushpaputa mudra (PUSH-puh-PUT-uh MOOD-ruh), which means “handful of flowers” and is a symbol of receiving and offering peace. When you bite your tongue at work (and let’s be honest, we’ve all been there), over time you hike your stress levels chronically and weaken your immune system. In other words, you hold it all in, and you’re pretty much a sitting duck waiting to get every bad cold that goes around the office. Let the little stuff go quietly, then choose appropriate moments to stand your ground instead (refer to Happy-Go-Yoga’s Stand Your Ground here).
Counter Pose
■ relieve
■ balance
■ relax
■ calm
Ever the dedicated worker bee, you’ve lost track of how long you’ve been plugging away. Your hips and lower back are telling you it’s time to take a break. In yoga, counterposes help even out the body after holding a certain shape. In real life, we need a counterpose for sitting at our desks for too long.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Stand, face your desk, and clear space right in front of you.
2. Stabilize yourself with your hands on the desk underneath your shoulders.
3. Lift your right leg and let your outer shin and calf rest on the desk. (Your knee should be on the desk, too, a little wider than the width of your shoulder. Move your right hand aside, but keep it on the desk.)
4. Flex your right foot, like you’re moving your toes closer to your shin, and firm your foot, as if you’re chopping the outer edge of your foot into the desk.
5. Lean a little (but not a lot) on your left hand.
6. Take the heel of your right palm close to the crease of your hip—on your thigh with your fingers pointing slightly outward toward your outer thigh.
7. Press down gently to rotate your thigh out and down toward the desk. (Do your best; this is challenging.) Try not to lean too much to one side or the other; keep your hips even to support your lower back.
8. If you’re okay with step 7, keep everything the way it is and then lean forward toward your computer screen; hinge at your hips, evenly, with a flat back, to go deeper. Walk your fingertips forward on the desk to support you.
10. Repeat steps 3 through 9 for the left side.
About Counter Pose
Happy-Go-Yoga’s Counter Pose is based on One-Legged King Pigeon (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana: ECK-uh POD-uh ROJ-uh KUP-oh-TAHS-uh-nuh). It’s not as hard as it sounds! Counter Pose lengthens the psoas muscle of your hip flexor, which gets chronically shorter and shorter when we sit and sit. Counter Pose also helps keep your hip joint mobile to counteract the tightness that builds up from remaining seated. Folding forward over your leg and desk calms your mind, as do similar shapes in yoga. (As you fold forward, try not to spill anything on the important papers covering your desk. If that happens, refer to here and try Let It Roll.)
Office Warrior
■ empower
■ focus
■ strengthen
■ inspire
“Is it Friday yet?” Oh right. It’s only Tuesday. You could use a shot of steadiness to calm your nerves, plus a boost of power to stay motivated for everything you still have left on your to-do list. You’re tempted to reach for an energy drink, but instead, draw upon the spirit of a fierce warrior to fuel your own personal power.
Happy-Go-Yoga
1. Find a chair with four solid legs (no wheels) in a spot where there’s enough room behind you to stretch out your leg.
2. Stand, facing the back of the chair, and hold the top of the seat back with your hands, fingers over the top of the seat back.
3. Walk backward but don’t let go of the chair. Put your feet together to touch, toes facing the back of the chair.
4. Think of a magnet keeping your inner thighs connected, then stretch one leg back into the air; keep it as straight as you can.
5. Reach more through your heel and keep your pinkie toe facing the floor (to keep the front of that hip pointing downward rather than opening up like a book).
6. Feel the floor evenly underneath you, and lean less on the chair.
7. Without sucking in your breath, feel like you are absorbing your belly button into yourself to firm your midsection, and keep breathing.
8. Repeat steps 4 through 7 with the other leg.
About Office Warrior
Office Warrior is based on the challenging strength and focus-building Warrior III Pose (Virabhadrasana III: VEER-uh-buh-DRAHS-uh-nuh). This warrior pose brings together important yogic energy centers that benefit our own skills and abilities—it helps us feel more secure, builds our stamina so we can take risks, and supports strong self-esteem while connecting us with our own fearless will to face challenges. Physically, Office Warrior strengthens your core, back, arm, and leg muscles, while building balance and invigorating your entire body. It’s a tough one, so it also forces you to concentrate in the moment. Have this moment. Then move on with your week. You can do it.
