“It is what it is”, a phrase that has always struck me as something akin to throwing your hands up and saying “I give up”, the epitome of apathy eloquently stated in just five words. I was determined to hold the people in my life to high expectations, including myself. More often than not, these expectations ended in dissapointment leaving me wondering why on earth people can’t do this or didn’t do that or even, did this or that. I even wondered that about myself.

Fast forward many years later, I’m finally realizing that “It is what it is” may not be a statement of apathy, but an expression of accepting what is. What is happening right now, the situation at hand, may not be something you enjoy, like or want, but surrendering to it invites space to accept more and is the first step in creating the change you want or need.

The next time something is happening in your life you do not want, try asking yourself  questions like”What is there for me to learn here?”, or “How can I release my expectations of what should be happening?” and affirm “It is what it is.”

“Let go and let God” is another phrase from my childhood that has a lot of relevance here. (Replace God with your belief here and don’t get caught up in the details.) “Let go and let it be” could work too.

Say out loud (or journal) that you are thankful for the experiences and opportunities to grow and are waiting for all that is already yours.

You could try some simple yoga poses, meditation, getting out in nature, forest bathing, earthing, listening to music, journaling, or breath work to help create space for the change you want to see.

Be the change you want to see in the world. It is hard to change. Start with baby steps…one little change every day adds up to big changes. You can do this!

Here are 9 yoga poses to help release tension and connect your body and mind.

• Easy Pose
• Cat/Cow
• Down Dog
• Bridge
• Standing Forward Fold
• Eagle
• Extended Triangle
• Legs up Wall
• Corpse

Easy Pose 

Benefits – Calms the mind and reduces stress and anxiety while strengthening the back and improving posture. Stretches your knees, ankles, hips, groin, and outer thighs.

How to –

• Start by sitting cross-legged on your mat, right shin/foot in the front.
• After a few minutes, slowly bend forward as far as you can, arms out in front of you. Don’t push yourself too hard.
• Stay in the forward bend for five breaths, then straighten.
• Switch legs and repeat above steps.
• Remember to breathe naturally throughout.

Cat/Cow

Benefits – Helps relieve stress, increase spinal flexibility and mobility and create emotional balance. Stretches lower back, hips, upper back, and lungs. Held at its peak, releases tension in upper back and neck.

How to –

• Cat: Start on your hands and knees, exhale while drawing your stomach into your spine.
• Round your back to the ceiling as far as possible, holding for several seconds.
• Point the crown of your head to the floor. Don’t force your chin onto your chest.
• Cow: Inhale, dropping your navel toward the floor and pointing your pelvis and crown to the sky.
• Keep your arms straight throughout.
• Be mindful of the flow of breath as you move from Cat to Cow.
• Repeat ten times.

Down Dog

Benefits – Stretches and decongests the spinal column and relieves any compression of the nerves. The inversion also energizes the body with a free flow of energy and nerve information to the brain.

How to –

• Distribute your weight evenly across all four limbs.
• Place your feet hip-width apart and hands shoulder-width apart.
• Keep a soft bend in your knees.
• Turn your toes slightly inward and roll your inner thighs back to widen the sit bones.
• Gently explore movement—try lifting and lowering your heels – walking your dog.
• Let your head relax between your arms, keeping your ears along your arms.
• Focus on a long spine and steady breath.

Bridge

Benefits – A mild inversion, with the heart higher than the head. Helps calm the brain and central nervous system, promote ease and relaxation, alleviate stress, anxiety, and mild depression. Strengthens back, buttocks, and hamstrings, improves digestion and the circulation of blood and helps lower high blood pressure.  Also helps with backaches, fatigue, insomnia, and headaches and stimulates the lungs, thyroid, and abdominal organs.

How to –

• Start by lying flat on your back. Bend your knees and place your feet hip-width apart. Keep your arms alongside your body with palms facing down.
• Press your feet into the floor. Inhale as much as you can and lift your hips. Ensure you keep your knees hip-width apart.
• Press into your arms and shoulders to lift your chest. Engage your legs and glutes to lift your hips higher.
• Hold for five breaths, exhale and slowly roll your spine back to the floor.

Standing Forward Fold

Benefits – Quiets a busy mind, promoting calmness, and balancing the nervous system. Stretches hamstrings, calves, hips, and back. Helps to reduce stress and fatigue, stimulates the liver and kidneys, and relieves headaches and insomnia.

How to –

• From your neutral standing position or Mountain Pose, bend your knees and hinge forward from your hips, placing your hands in front of your feet. Remember to engage your core and exhale as you fold.
• Shift the weight to the balls of your feet. If your hamstrings are too tight, bend your knees slightly to prevent strain on your lower back. If you don’t have tight hamstrings, lengthen through the back of your legs. Remember to keep the weight on the balls of your feet.
• Grab hold of each elbow with opposite hands. Focus on softening your jaw, neck, around your eyes, and clearing thoughts from your mind.
• Imagine your worries flowing from your head all the way down to your feet, and being completely absorbed by the ground.
• Hold the pose for five breaths, then slowly rise back up to Mountain Pose.

Eagle

Benefits – Allows you to “squeeze” out the tension in your body and focus on your balance, helping to alleviate stress and improve your concentration while stretching the whole body — your thighs, hips, calves, ankles, shoulders, and upper back and stimulating the immune system and improving balance.

How to –

• Begin by standing upright with your arms at your side.
• Bend your knees, balance on your right foot and cross your left thigh over your right.
• Hook the top of your left foot behind your right calf.
• Extend both arms straight in front of your body, then drop your left arm under your right.
• Bend your elbows, raise your forearms at a 90-degree angle (perpendicular) to the floor. Wrap your hands and arms, finally pressing your palms together.
• Square your chest and hips to the front. Draw your belly in and up.
• Focus on the tips of your thumbs to further retain your balance.
• If balance is very difficult, touch one big toe to the floor. (It will get easier with practice.)
• Try to hold the pose for one minute. Gently unwind arms and legs and repeat on the left side.

Extended Triangle

Benefits – Full-body stretch to help relieve stress and reduce anxiety and helps with digestion, sciatica, and osteoporosis.

How to –

• Start the pose by standing upright, exhale and spread legs one metre apart.
• Stretch your arms sideways with palms facing the ground.
• Turn your right foot out at a 90-degree angle.
• Tighten your thigh muscles and turn your right thigh outwards.
• Bend your body down from your hips toward your right leg.
• Twist your body to the left.
• Push your left hip forward (slightly) and lengthen your tailbone towards your heel.
• Put your right hand on your ankle, shin or the floor, depending on your flexibility level. Stretch your left arm straight up into the air. (If you can’t reach the floor with your hand, place your hand on your leg either above or below your knee or on a yoga block.)
• Keep your head straight and hold the position for 30 seconds.

Legs up the Wall

Benefits – Helps reduce stress and is a great pose to do before bed-time as it calms your mind and heart while stretching back of legs, neck and chest. Facilitates lymph drainage, increased blood circulation, and allows the return of blood back to the heart.

How to –

• Start by placing your hips against a wall, then roll onto your back while straightening your legs against the wall.
• Your bottom should be pressed against the wall as close as possible. You might have to wiggle your way up close.
• Hold this pose for five minutes or more.

Corpse 

Benefits – Promotes a sense of physical and emotional grounding, while relaxing  your breathing, improving concentration, calming the mind, and improving mental health.

How to –

• Start by lying flat on your back with your legs apart but not wider than your mat. Keep your arms at your sides with palms facing up.
• Alternately, bend the knees with feet flat on the ground, allowing your knees to fall together.
• Keep your eyes closed, face relaxed, and focus on breathing deeply.
• Allow your mind to focus on each part of your body, starting at the top of your head and moving all the way down to your feet and releasing each part.
• If thoughts cross your mind, allow them to float away like clouds on the breeze.
• Let go of all thoughts, concerns and irritations, allowing them to also float away.
• This pose is the very act of letting go, let go of all of it and just be.
• Hold the pose for three to five minutes.

“It is what it is.”

Namaste