How can we build our resilience?

We know about IQ and even EQ, but there is a new concept that is drawing attention known as AQ, or adversity quotient. Stephen Cope refers to it in his book, ‘Soul Friends’: “We might call it a measure of adversity intelligence that examines questions like these: How does one cope with, respond to, and ultimately, what does one do with life’s inevitable challenges… the capacity to come back again and again to complex problems is the most important temperamental component of adversity intelligence. ” It's good to know, especially right now, that it’s possible to strengthen our AQ and gradually build our resilience. But how do we do this? One way we can build resilience is to simulate our response to adversity through yoga and to develop an approach, as well as the tools and techniques we need, to get through sensation and discomfort when it builds. Our practice can act as a microcosm of our bigger lives: we notice how we experience life on the mat, start to bring our awareness to the little details, how we choose to respond, what adjustments we can make... and then we can begin to bring this awareness to how we react off the mat. One pose in particular, which can generate a strong response in yoga practitioners, is Utkatasana, or Chair pose – which translated literally means 'intense' or 'fierce' pose. Many of us may find ourselves resisting coming into this posture, as we are familiar with the sensation it can induce in the fronts of the thighs and the strength of mind we need to hold the pose. But over time, we figure out that if we work with the breath, make small adjustments in the body, stay present and observe our reactions without judgement, we can gradually cultivate our ability to move through the pose with more steadiness. And maybe we even move into it more deeply and face the challenge full-on. This is the invitation of yoga... to observe our habits and make little shifts as we shine the light of awareness on how we are showing up.

If you would like to try this at home, here are some simple steps for coming into Chair pose: 1. Begin by standing tall in Mountain pose, with the feet parallel, hips stacking over knees, shoulders over hips and the spine long. From here, keep your heels apart but bring your big toes together, so your feet form two sides of a triangle as you look down. 2. Slowly start to bend your knees, keeping the back straight, as though you are sliding your back down a wall. Then bend the knees more deeply, as though you are sitting back into a chair. Reach you fingertips down to the floor, keep your spine long and then lift your arms out in front of you, either parallel with the ground or alongside your ears. Now check if you can see your toes and if you can’t, gently rock the weight back into the heels and draw your knees back until you do. 3. Draw your abdominal muscles in and up to cultivate support in your core and see if you can open up through your chest as you relax your shoulders with the arms lifted. Actively lift the ankles out away from each other as you press the knees into each other for support. 4. Notice sensation as it arises and breathe into the full experience of the pose. 5. When you’re ready to come out, press down into the feet to slowly rise all the way up to standing, lifting the arms overhead and then release the arms to your sides. Pause to notice how you feel. Finish by shaking out your arms and legs to let it all go.