Yoga to the Rescue!

By Sarah Bowen Shea

Knowing a few smart yoga tricks can get you through the rough moments cool, calm, and content

YOU’RE FACING FACE TIME WITH THE CEO
Randy Flora, a yoga instructor and mind-body specialist at Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Arizona, suggests finding a secluded space before your presentation and doing a few quick poses, then bringing the resulting calmness into the room with you. He uses an Ayurvedic term to describe the type of people who particularly need help before cueing up the PowerPoint: “Pitta” personalities—fiery, perfectionist, type-A types—are more freaked by work stress because they try to control everything. Pittas need to cool down, and forward-folding poses squelch the flames (and pre-presentation jitters).

Flora’s recommended asanas: Child’s pose (bow down with your head on the floor and your butt on top of your heels) or a modified Cobbler’s pose. In the second, sit down with the soles of your feet touching each other and your legs on the ground, or as close as you can get. Slowly fold your upper body forward over your crossed legs. (“You don’t want to do backbends—that increases the fire,” cautions Flora.) Hold for 1 minute.

If you start to feel uncertain or nervous when you’re actually standing in front of the client or the top brass, a Mountain pose can ground you, suggests Flora. He describes the pose as perfect posture: Stand up incredibly straight, head erect, breathe gently, spread your toes in your shoes to make fuller contact with the earth and ground yourself into it.

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