During the ãsana, please breathe in through the nose and breathe out through the center of your lips. While rejuvenating any part of the body, visualize that your lips are located at the indicated organ and you are breathing out through that region, as if giving gentle shower to relieve the stress.

Face (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• Blow your cheeks out. Hold for a few seconds. Relax.
• Suck your cheeks in. Hold for a few seconds. Relax.

Neck Movements (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• Breathe in. While breathing out, tilt your neck forward slightly and look down. Feel the back side of the neck. While breathing in, return to center. While breathing out, bend the neck back. Feel and breathe out through the front of the neck. Return to center, breathing in. While breathing out, bend your neck slightly to right. Feel and breathe out through the left side of the neck. While breathing in, return to center. While breathing out, bend the neck to left. Feel and breathe out through the right side of the neck. While breathing in, return to center.

Neck Turning (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• While breathing out, slowly turn neck to look over your left shoulder. While breathing in, return to center. While breathing out, slowly turn neck to look over your right shoulder. While breathing in, return to center.

Neck Rotation (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• Slowly hang your head down. As if looking straight down from above, turn your neck very slowly in a clockwise direction. Slowly do the same in a counter clockwise. Return to center, keeping neck vertical, yet relaxed.

Neck massage (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• Extend right arm in front of you at shoulder level. Turn your neck and head far to the right. Bending elbow, slowly move right arm to the left along your chest. Using the fingertips, grasp the back of your neck as far back as you can, keeping elbow at shoulder level. While slowly breathing out and while maintaining pressure on fingertips, straighten out the neck. Take a deep breathe in and slowly while breathing out, slide elbow down until your fingers are on your chest. Relax.
• Extend your left arm in front of you at shoulder level. Turn neck far to the left. Bending your elbow, slowly move left arm to the right along your chest. Using the fingertips, grasp the back of your neck as far back as you can, keeping your elbow at shoulder level. While slowly breathing out and while maintaining pressure on fingertips, straighten out the neck. Take a deep breathe in and slowly while breathing out, slide elbow down until fingers are on your chest. Relax.

Shoulders (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• While breathing in, bring shoulders up and back. Breathing out, return to center. While breathing in, bring shoulders up and forward. Relax. Return to center.

Arms (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• Extend your arms in front of you, palms up. Join all five fingers and while breathing in, touch the fingers to your shoulders. While breathing out, extend arms in front. Relax. Extend your arms out to sides at the shoulder level, palms up with fingers joined again. While breathing in, touch fingers to your shoulders. As you breathe out, stretch your arms to the sides. Bring your arms back to your sides. Relax.
• Stretch your arms to the sides, elbows at shoulder level, palms facing to the sky. Half inhalation, turn your palms down. While twisting your arms in the same direction, complete the rest of your inhalation, till your palms are facing the sky. Relax.

Wrist Rotation (Sitting with spine erect or standing):

• Extend arms in front of you, thumbs inside a light fist, fists facing down. Bend your wrists outward, and then turn them downward. Continue bending turning them facing each other. Turn them up, and then flip down, fist facing away from you. Slowly reverse the motion. Relax.

Chest muscles (Sitting with spine erect, standing or lying on back???):

• Clasp hands to your chest. While breathing out, and in one motion, extend your arms straight out in front, twisting the clasped hands so that the palms are facing out. No bend at the elbows. Hold. While breathing in, reverse the motion bringing the hands back, palms facing the chest. Coordinate the movements of your arms with your breath.
• Starting with your clasped hands on your chest, while breathing out, extend your clasped hands out in front and up in the air at a 45 degree angle, palms facing out. Breathing in, bring the hands back to the chest, with the palms facing your chest.
• While breathing out, extend the clasped hands straight up at 90 degree angle, palms facing out. Stretch as far as you can. Keep your arms straight, in line with your ears.
• Breathing in, bring your hands back to the chest, the palms facing the chest.

Breathing muscles (diaphragm, intercostals, cavicular) (Sitting with spine erect, standing or lying on back???):

• Fold your thumbs in and the four fingers over them, making a light fist. Extend the arms in front of you. Bending your elbows, keep your forearms at right angles to your upper arms, the inner forearms facing you, elbows touching each other and belly button. Keep your arms, wrists and hands in this position as if they were one unit. While breathing out and keeping your forearms perpendicular to the upper arms, slowly drop your elbows together at the belly button. While breathing in, swing them up and out to the sides, making sure fists face each other. While breathing out, slowly reverse the motion.
• Fold your thumbs in and the four fingers over them, making a light fist. Extend the arms in front of you, elbows at the shoulder level. Bending your arms, keep your forearms at right angles to your upper arms, the inner forearms facing you, elbows touching each other at shoulder level. Keep your arms, wrists and hands in this position as if they were one unit. While breathing in and keeping your forearms perpendicular to the upper arms, slowly take your arms to the sides, keeping elbows at the shoulder level and fists facing you. While breathing out, slowly swing them in front of you. Repeat 3 times. Relax.
• Fold your thumbs in and four fingers over them, making a light fist. Fold your forearms on top of each other at the belly button. Keep your upper and lower arm at right angles throughout. While breathing in and keeping the elbows bent, raise your right arm out in front of you and up so that the upper arm is touching your right ear and the forearm is just above your head, right fist facing down. Take the elbow back as much as possible. Hold. While breathing out, slowly bring arm to starting position. Repeat with the left arm.

Waist/Lower Spine (Standing):

• Place your palms on your sides at the waist, four fingers in front and thumb behind the waist, eyes open, and inhale. Bend backward, chant AH while exhaling. Slowly while breathing in straighten out. Repeat, twisting the hands such that the four fingers are behind the waist and the thumb is forward. Chant AH while exhaling. Slowly breathe in and straighten out. If you ever observe your body is shaking, back out and straighten. Relax.

Hip Rotation (Standing):

• With your hands at your sides and on the waist, place the fingers in front and the thumbs behind the waist. Push your waist forward, hips left, back, right, front, center. Then front, right, back, left, front, center. Relax.

Knees (Standing or Sitting):

• Right foot forward. Both palms on right knee. Go forward and down. Slowly push right knee down, and get up. Breathe in and relax.
• Now put the left foot forward. Keep both palms on left knee. Go forward and down. Push left knee down, and get up. Breathe in and relax.
• Place left foot on right thigh. Hold left toes in right palm, with left palm underneath left knee. Raise left knee to chest, moving it slightly to right. Move left palm in front of left knee and gently and slowly push down, down, down. Slowly straighten left leg. Relax.
• Place right foot on left thigh. Hold right toes in left palm, with right palm underneath right knee. Raise right knee to chest, moving it slightly to left. Move right palm in front of right knee and gently and slowly push down, down, down. Slowly straighten right leg. Relax.

Thighs:

• Sit in squatting position. Hold the insides of feet with palms on top, your elbows inside the knees. While breathing in, look straight up. Breathing out, straighten legs as you raise the hips up. There should be no bend at your legs. Try to touch the head to the knee. While breathing in, bring hips down, and return to squatting position. Adjust the pressure on palms while coming down. Less pressure on the palms will result in more pressure at the knees, strengthening them. Repeat 3 times. (See Vãyu Nishãkãsana in the next section)
• In a sitting position, bring both of your heels to your groin region, as far in as you can. Hold on to both feet with your hands. While breathing in, raise your knees up. While breathing out, lower your knees to the floor, using elbows to help. Do not force your knees down.

To Walk Better do the following before and after the walk:

• Sit on the floor. Bend the left leg in front of you and take the right leg straight back, resting it on the floor directly behind you as you sit on your left leg from the knee to the foot, with the left heel in groin region. Bring the upper left leg on the floor. Bend forward over the left knee and extend your arms far forward. The centerline of the chest should be over the left knee. Hold. Push yourself back up with your arms and reverse the movement coming back to a sitting position.
• Repeat with the opposite leg: Bend right leg and take left leg back. Sit on right leg from knee to foot, with right heel in groin region. Put upper right leg on floor. Bend forward over right knee and extend arms far forward. The centerline of chest should be over right knee. Reverse to come to a sitting position.

After Walk:

• Sit in Vajrãsana position (kneeling position, sitting back on heels), to relieve stress on calf muscles.

Hari AUM