If you have read much of my website, you have probably realized I am a little, er, quirky 🙂

I love new ideas, learning new things, trying something different. It is what I love about homeschooling. I get to indulge my passions and obsessions as much as the children!

So I wanted to share with you my new ‘thing’! If is a form of yoga called Shiva Nata. Now – before you roll your eyes at me, let me tell you more about it.

 

Shiva Nata is a practice of arm movements that gets increasingly complex. It is simple to learn (there are only 8 arm positions) – but you perform them is different sequences. It really feels like you are doing a brain workout because you have to concentrate on what you are doing! And yet also once you have mastered it you feel ‘in the flow’.

It’s been described as “meditation for people who can’t sit still” and “mind-pretzeling yoga”.

People who love it say it increases memory and creativity – and because you are using the whole of your brain it can help you to create new neural connections in your brain.

“I have been doing Shiva Nata for only a few months and already my memory is beginning to improve. I am also getting out of some mental ruts and thinking of new and novel ways to do things. My arms are now much stronger, my shoulders are more flexible and my posture has improved, and I am really enjoying doing it.” – Julie De Burgh

Now doesn’t that sound perfect for homeschoolers!

My experience is that it is a fun thing to do that can be done in short bursts – a few minutes at a time. Initially I struggled to tell my arms what they should be doing – especially when they were doing different sequences at the same time. And that is what is so interesting about it. Seeing how your brain and body learn the new routines.

I was amazed to find that if I concentrated on telling my left arm what to do, my right seems to just ‘get it’. But if I try to tell my right arm the sequence, then both arms are completely clueless (at least at first). I am betting there is some right brain/left brain thing going on there.

I think it will really appeal to the mathematical among you. And my arms get really tired, so it is definitely a good workout too!

So do you want to know more about it?

Here is a video of the first four arm movements.

And some learning links:

• Beginners Ebook
• Basics of Shiva Nata
• Arm Movements

 

And a beginner video!

Why not give it a try! And I would love to hear how you get on.