The Indian sage Patanjali, who over two thousand years ago painstakingly brought ancient yogic wisdom and practices into a coherent system, defined yoga as the control of the thought patterns of the mind. In other words, contrary to common perception in the West, yoga exercises are not so much about keeping the body young and supple but rather about calming the mind.

All the exercises on Gillian's yoga CDs achieve this by combining yoga stretches and postures with deep breathing and all the exercise sessions end with a relaxation practice.

The voice guidance is easy to follow and all Gillian's yoga CDs have an accompanying booklet showing diagrams of the exercises.

Like most things that are worth doing in life, the secret of success with yoga is PRACTICE!

Allow a yoga session to become a habit in your life, just as necessary as cleaning your teeth. It helps if you ritualise the occasion. Create sacred space and time for yourself. Do the practice at the same time and place each day whenever possible. Light a candle perhaps, or burn some incense.

Make sure your exercise space is clean and aesthetically pleasing. Very importantly, leave the phone off the hook and encourage your family or the people you are living with to respect your yoga time.

Gillian Ross

NB Gillian's yoga CDs are not currently available as a download but may be purchased from her at a cost of $20 inclusive of postage.

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