yoga9020

Our busy lifestyles and work demands mean that we often find it difficult to exercise our bodies as frequently as we should. This leads to tiredness, stress and reduced work performance.

However taking a short break to complete a few simple yoga postures at your desk can help to relieve stress and tiredness and refresh you for another work session.

To help you reduce the effects of working long hours at a desk or in front of a computer, Total.yoga.Practice suggests you periodically perform 2 simple yoga practices at your desk. The first part of this work relaxation series can be found in our free yoga newsletter

Office yoga - part 2

Take a moment to clear your mind. Be conscious of your thoughts and how they erratically pop into and out of your mind. Actively still your mind by focusing on your breathing. Vigorously rub your hands together until you feel warmth on your palms. Place your hands on your face with your palms cupping your eyes and your fingers on your forehead. Open your eyes into your cupped hands and keep your body and mind still for a few moments.

Nadi Shodhana (alternate breathing)

Sit comfortably in your chair with your back straight. Hold your right hand in front of your face with the middle two fingers resting between your eyebrows. Your thumb should be above your right nostril and your ring finger above the left. Close your right nostril with your thumb and breathe in slowly and silently through your left nostril, until your lungs are full without straining. Release the right nostril and close the left nostril with your ring finger. Exhale through the right nostril slowly, keeping the duration of the exhale the same as the inhale. Inhale slowly through the right nostril. Release the left nostril and close the right nostril with your thumb while you exhale. Repeat the sequence 10 times making sure that your breathing is silent. This Pranayama is good for relaxing your mind.

Pandanguli Naman (Toe curling)

Sit upright in your chair with your back straight. With your feet on the ground, shoes off, inhale as you stretch the toes of both feet backward away from the floor. Exhale as you stretch your toes downwards to make fists with your feet. Hold each position for several breaths as you feel the stretch. Repeat 10 times.

Goolf Naman (Ankles bending)

Still sitting erect with your legs slightly extended, heels on the floor. Inhale as you bend at the ankle pulling the feet back towards your leg. Exhale as you push the foot forward trying to touch the floor. Hold each position as you feel the stretch. Repeat 10 times.

Goolf chakra (Ankle rotation)

In the seated position with your legs slightly extended, heels on the floor. Starting with the right foot, keep the leg still as you rotate the foot at the ankle clockwise 10 times. Rotate 10 times in the opposite direction. Repeat with the left foot. Next rotate both feet together in a clockwise direction 10 times. Repeat, rotating 10 times in an anti-clockwise direction. Try rotating both feet at the same time, but in different directions, clockwise with the right foot, anti-clockwise with the left foot. Repeat, with the right foot rotating anti-clockwise and the left foot rotating clockwise. Throughout the exercise, inhale as the foot is rising, exhale as the foot in falling.

Janu Naman (Knee bending)

In the seated position, clasp your hands under the right thigh, raise and straighten the leg keeping your spine straight. Bend and contract the leg bringing the knee towards your chest, and heel towards your buttocks. Straighten the leg. Repeat 10 times and switch to the left leg and repeat 10 times. Inhale while straightening the leg, exhale as you bend the leg.

Seated forward bend

Sit with your back straight and your knees together. Bend forward allowing your head to move close to your knees. Remain in the bend for the count of ten as you relax all the muscles in your back. Breathe normally through your nose. This posture helps to relieve tension from your back.

Meru Wakrasana (Spinal Twist) - variation

Sit with your spine straight and your knees together. Keep your legs facing forwards and both buttocks on the chair as you slowly rotate your upper body to the right. Start the twist with your abdomen then chest, shoulders and neck as you look behind you over your right shoulder. Once you start the twist you may hold the back of the chair with your left hand to assist the twist, but with care not to over twist. Twist your spine as far as is comfortable and hold for the count of 10 as you breathe slowly through your nose. Repeat the spinal twist to the left.

Bent knee leg lift

Turn sideways in the chair so you can hold the back of the chair for support. With the legs bent, and without holding your legs, lift your feet off the ground and pull your knees close to your chest, without leaning forwards. Pull your knees towards the chest for the count of 10 while you breathe normally through your nose. Release your feet to the floor and relax for the count of 10. Repeat 3 times.

With our busy lifestyles, we can't always exercise as frequently as we should. At Total.Yoga.Practice we're helping our members fit a full yoga practice into their busy schedules. To find out how we can help you by bringing professional yoga instruction into your own home 24/7, try out our 14 day free trial membership.

Please note the following important cautions before using Total.yoga.Practice.

Not all exercise is suitable for everyone, and this or any exercise programme may result in injury. Consult with your doctor before you use the Total.yoga.Practice services.

To reduce the risk of injury, never force or strain yourself during exercise. If you feel pain, stop and seek medical attention if necessary.

Any liability, loss or damage in connection with the use of Total.yoga.Practice and its yoga instruction, including but not limited to any liability, loss or damage arising from the performance of the exercises demonstrated here, or any advice or information provided by Total.yoga.Practice in the videos, or on the website, is expressly disclaimed

about THE AUTHOR: Jez Heath is helping real people learn yoga online so they can make the commitment necessary to improve their yoga and their health - mind, body and soul. Learn how yoga streaming video can help you transform your life

ten top shows to see in Londons West End or Broadway

Lion King - Discover life through the eyes of a Lion. one of Disney's most successful films is brought to life on the stage. When the young lion Prince Simba is born in a glorious celebration on pride rock, his evil uncle Scar is pushed back to second in line to the throne. Scar plots to kill both Simba and his father, King Mufasa, and proclaim himself king. Simba survives but is led to believe that his father died because of him and he decides to flee the kingdom. Will he ever return to save the kingdom?

Chicago is the story of Roxie, a 1920s chorus girl who has murdered her lover but manages to get acquitted with the help of a sleazy lawyer. Roxie dreams of starring in a Vaudeville show but she only achieves celebrity status when she rides on the wave of publicity surrounding her acquittal. She teams up with another murderess to form an unusual nightclub act, which they hope will keep them in the public eye.

Eva Peron used her beauty and charisma to rise meteorically from the slums of Argentina to the presidential mansion as first Lady. She won international acclaim and adoration from her own people as a champion of the poor whilst glamour, power and greed made her one of the 21st century'smost major political celebrities. With it's multi award winning production team and hot new orchestrations EVITA tellsEva Peron'spassionate and tragic story through Andrew LLoyd Webber's dazzling score and Tim Rice's famous lyrics.

Adapted from Victor Hugo's novel, Les Misrables is the epic tale of a man's life-journey through 18th century France and his struggle to live through the injustice and revolution of the time. It is full of passion and courage and has been acclaimed the world over.

The Phantom of the Opera is set in the Paris Opera House during the 19th century, where the facially disfigured Phantom haunts and terrorizes occupants. Based on a classic french thriller about a terrifying and legendary figure who emerges from the depths of The Paris Opera House and manifests the mythic opera ghost in terrifying reality. The mysterious masked Phantom falls in love with the young and beautiful soprano Christine and whisks her away to his subterranean lair below the theatre to teach her to sing "like an angel". Although she initially becomes entranced by him, she loves another: Raoul. She is faced with a stark choice: stay with the Phantom forever, or he will kill Raoul.

Willy Russell's classic musical Blood Brothers is set in Liverpool and is about twins separated at birth but whose paths cross in later life. The captivating story of twin brothers Mickey and Eddie, who are separated at birth and grow up on opposite sides of the tracks. Now commonly regarded as one of the all time great British musicals, Blood Brothers has touched the hearts and minds of a generation of theatregoers in dealing with two of the most pressing social issues of our time - inequality and unemployment.

Billy Elliot is the tale of a motherless boy whose father wants him to take up boxing. Instead, the boy discovers a love for ballet that leads him from secret lessons to a place at the royal Ballet School. Set in the North East, Billy Elliot is a funny, heart-warming and feel-good celebration of one young boys dream.

Agatha Christies The Mousetrap is the world's longest-running play of any kind, being in the West End for over 50 years. The Mousetrap is the longest consistently running play in the history of British theatre. The reputation of this murder mystery masterpiece goes from strength to strength as new generations of theatregoers flock to try to figure out who is guilty.

Set in the 1940s, Guys and Dolls tells the story of a group of small-time gamblers and the ladies in their lives. Nathan Detroit bets his pal Sky Masterson that he can't make the next lady he sees fall in love with him, and when the next lady happens to be the prim and proper neighbourhood missionary Sarah Brown, the stage is set for an evening of high spirited entertainment.

Mamma Mia - Through the story-telling magic of the songs of ABBA, we meet Donna, a feisty forty-something single mum, who recalls distant memories of carefree days and careless nights whilst her daughter Sophie dreams of tradition, romance and a big white wedding. Mamma Mia! transports audiences to a tiny mythical Greek island as we share two unforgettable days in the lives of our heroines surrounded by crystal blue seas and beneath a beating Grecian sun.

Buy a London theatre ticket or Broadway theater ticket today.

Kenneth Cheesman is the webmaster at http://www.lastminutetheatretickets.com.