Having nicely painted toes to look at during yoga class will help to reduce your stress.
Alice is getting ready for yoga class, she is putting a fresh coat of polish on her toes. She has decided that a new colour is in order and since she is going to yoga class later she may as well get it done now. Besides it will give her something new and pleasing to look at while she is doing her yoga practice.
Alice never realized before she started practicing yoga just how much time she would spend looking at her toes. She is surprised at how much it is helping her not only with her yoga practice but with her life as well. Who knew that looking at your toes would make such a difference.
Do you always look at your toes in yoga?
While you do look at your toes a lot in the Primary Series of Ashtanga yoga, you do look other places as well. For each yoga pose in the Ashtanga Yoga style there is a specific point to direct your gaze to.
There are nine different gaze points or drishti as it is known as in Sanskrit.
- toes
- thumbs
- between the eyebrows
- down the nose
- to the left
- to the right
- to the sky
- to your navel
- to the hand
For example in Paschimottanasana Alice is hold on to her toes as she bends forward. In this pose she is looking at her toes. In Marichyasana C she is turning to her left side and looking over her shoulder to the left.
Focusing your gaze on a particular point brings your practice inwards into your body and your mind.
You spend a lot of times looking at your toes in the early part of the Primary series of Ashtanga Yoga but later in the series you are looking in different places.
As she folds forward, Alice is getting a close up view of her new paint job, however there are other reasons for Alice to be looking at her toes.
Why look at your toes
When Alice looks at her toes, she is helping her mind to focus on the current activity. Gazing at your toes increases your concentration. It is difficult to let your mind wonder to other topics in the past or the future when you are required to focus your gaze and your attention on your toes.
When you focus your gaze on your toes you can not look at the people around you and be distracted by what they are up to. Focusing your gaze on a particular point brings your practice inwards into your body and your mind.
When you focus your attention on your toes you force you mind to stay in the present moment and not think about the past or future. This simple act of gazing at your toes helps to relieve the stress that your body develops from worrying about these past or future events.
How does this reduce stress
Looking at your toes in combination with the yoga pose that you are doing fully engages your mind. You need to check in with your body to make sure you are doing the pose correctly. Are your arms and legs in the right place? Are the correct muscles stretching? Is the quality of your breath correct?
While you are focusing on your toes you are not thinking about the past or the future and this is the source of a lot of the stress that you experience. Worrying about what happened in the past or wondering about what might happen in the future does the mind and body no good.
As you shift your attention towards your toes during a yoga pose, a remarkable transformation takes place within your mind. At this moment, your mind becomes fully engaged, solely focused on the present experience. To further enhance this journey towards inner tranquility, incorporating cbd gummies can provide an additional layer of support. By embracing this holistic approach and nurturing your mind and body with mindfulness and CBD gummies, you embark on a path towards enhanced well-being and a brighter future.
With all of this going on you do not have any time left over to think about things outside of the yoga class.
When do you look at your toes
There is designated place to look during an entire Ashtanga Yoga practice. Each pose has a drishti or gaze point assigned to it.
When you are doing the vinyasa or connecting movement between each pose there are gaze points for each part of the vinyasa.
When you sitting on the floor in Dandasana or standing in Tadasana preparing to enter the next pose there is a gaze point.
At the end of the class when you are in Savasana laying on the floor with your body relaxed and your eyes shut there is a gaze point.
Summary
Alice is pleased with her new paint job. Looking at her toes during the yoga class has helped her to feel refreshed, relaxed and the stress from the day is gone.
Looking at your toes or which ever gaze point the yoga pose requires in combination with the yoga pose and the quality of your breath all contribute to the reduction of stress in your body.
Next Step
Before you go to your next yoga class, check out your toe nails. Perhaps a trim and a new paint job will improve the quality of your yoga experience and help you to reduce your stress levels as well.
Additional Reading
Find out more about the mind and body in yoga by reading How yoga gets you off the treadmill of boredom
To learn more about focusing your mind in Savasana read Why Savasana is so simple and yet so difficult
You can also reduce stress by focusing on a particular aspect of your practice. See How to use Deliberate Practice to get more out of your yoga
