Yoga While You Wait - find purpose in each pointless pause

Stuck in traffic, put on hold, waiting room overflowing, lift not stopping on your floor? Think yoga!

Forget the strange looks; it will do you good and help pass the time too.

"Real yoga doesn't take place in a yoga studio anyway," Judith Stoletzky writes in her new book Yoga While You Wait.

"It takes place in real life, which at times is rich and at other times dull, but always truly remarkable. And yoga pants aren't mandatory."

So whether you're a seasoned practitioner or a rank beginner, here's how to embrace all that missed time. Judith shows you some moves perfect for a host of everyday situations.

And you'll love the photographs and explanations accompanying each pose.

Waiting for supper and needing to relieve a little flatulence? Try the boat.

Stuck in traffic and need a tension-buster? The lion is usually practised sitting on the heels, but Stoletzky writes it also works well behind a driver's wheel.

Want to relieve lower back tension while waiting in the checkout line? The rag doll will do the trick - and give fellow shoppers something other than their phones to look at.

Waiting in a doctor's surgery the other day, I was tempted to have a go at the half seat twist, but wasn't all that sure the elderly gent next to me would appreciate his personal space being invaded!

One move I've certainly decided not to try is the shoulderstand, meant to stimulate the thyroid and metabolism - especially as depicted in the wonderful image of a woman waiting at the laundromat.

Having a day out with the girls - or fellas, as the case may be? Picture walking through the park and then calling "Sun salutation A"... and perhaps a little further along "Tree" or for the more supple "Downward facing dog".

Sure to raise a laugh in your group - and don't they say laughter is the best medicine. Add yoga and you're set.

Even if you're not a yoga devotee, this little book is a lot of fun. And while it suggests the moves can be easily done in public if, like me, you'd rather have a go behind closed doors, that's OK too.

Now to master the bird of paradise!

Yoga While You Wait, by Judith Stoletzky, photography by Markus Abele (Hardie Grant) RRP $24.99.