Yoga Poses to Beat the Monday Morning Blues

Weekend, the best time of the week when worst coffee would taste better and the gloomiest day seem brighter, when nothing can tarnish your good mood. Everything is just perfect because it’s the WEEKEND! But as we say "change is constant"; weekend had to change into a weekday and Sunday had to become Monday. And that's when best of coffee will taste like a tar. Getting up on a Monday morning is the worst feeling ever. Soon laziness is succeeded by foul and gloomiest mood and irritation.
We have wanted our world to stop at Sundays. Never wanted Monday to be back, but the harsh reality is, one has to get up and face an avalanche of work on a Monday to earn his living. A job where nothing is challenging, nothing is fresh leads to boredom and that's when you feel frustrated and stuck up. You just want to get out of that place and feel free and fresh!
Not to worry. We have just the right thing to keep the dark clouds at bay: YOGA. Continuous yoga practice not only helps fight your blues but also help you to explore and direct life in a better way. 30 minutes investment in practicing these yoga poses daily will set your spirits high for a lifetime. Then even the most boring job will be the wonderful job u would ever do.
Here are some yoga poses to beat the Monday morning blues.
1. Viparita Karani (Legs up the wall pose): It is a supine posture where in the legs is raised vertical to the body against a wall. Without the use of a wall support this posture looks like supported shoulder stand. This posture helps the mind to be in present moment which helps in coming out of foul moods and blues.
2. Ardha Chandrasana (half moon pose): It is essentially a balancing pose which also expands the chest region and shoulders. It is a very good posture to relieve stress. Expanding chest region brings the sense of happiness, which ultimately takes you out of the gloom.
3. Adho Mukh Svanasana (downward facing dog pose): This posture works as an anti-depressant and is one of the poses in traditional sun salutation. This pose supports your head and forces you to be in present moment by engaging you on all four limbs.
4. Parsarita Padottanasana (Wide legged forward bend): This posture plays a vital role in calming the brain. It brings a feeling of support and lets you feel free at the same time when you feel isolated.
5. Shalambha Shirsasan (Supported Head stand): This is an inversion posture, where in with the support of your hands, you stand on your head upside down. This posture requires a lot of focus hence keeping the mind in present moment. It’s a therapeutic posture for mild depression and insomnia. It also calms the mind and relieves the stress.
6. Shalambha Sarvangasana (Supported shoulder stand): This posture is done lying on the back. It engages all parts of the body. With the support of the shoulders the entire body from the torso is taken upwards and is balanced straight. This posture relieves a lot of stress and depression.
7. Shalabhasana (Locust Pose): It is grouped amongst "baby backbends". This pose is very interesting and challenging pose. It helps in relieving stress and uplifts your mood instantly.
Apart from this yoga poses, a simple "Chest-Opener pose" also adds to the charm. What happens when we are depressed, sad and gloomy? We sit with a fallen face. But do we ever realize that it’s not just the face that looks fallen! It’s our body too. We all sit with our hunched back, shoulders rounded forward, head hanging and chin drooping and simultaneously contracting our heart region. Heart opener pose helps us in relieving our stress and our heart region is flooded with space, lightness making us feel much better. All we have to do is just sit the opposite way we sit when we are sad. Shoulder squared, chest expanded, head held high.
Practice these poses regularly, even if you aren't completely blue and experience the happiness that dawns over. You will end up exploring a new you if these yoga poses are succeeded by meditation, pranayams and Sudarshan Kriya.
Happiness is right now, right here! All we have to do is dig ourselves a bit.