Yoga relieves back pain by stimulating the mind and by strengthening and fine tuning the body
If you have a back problem, it's best to get an okay from your doctor before trying yoga. Back pain is often the result of a biomechanical imbalance in spinal structures. Yoga for back pain has been accepted by many chiropractors and back specialists. Before beginning yoga for back pain,consult your doctor to make sure you don’t make matters worse.Back pain can be caused by a number of situations, from slipped discs to damaged muscles or ligaments. However, back pain can also be caused by infections, bone spurs or tumors. When yoga for back pain is implemented, the pain is reduced by stretching and strengthening the spine. You must exercise proper posture and this should be practiced so that you can get relieved from the back pain even when you’re not practicing yoga. Back pain is increasingly a problem for many adults. The problem can sometimes lie in the fact that the spine is compressed and the back muscles are tight and weak. Since yoga postures aim to strengthen the spine as well as lengthen and stretch muscles, it can be ideal for many back pain sufferersYoga For Back Pain Exercise...You can observe your body's natural tendency to compensate for poor spinal posture with this simple back pain exercise.From a standing position hold a plastic water bottle in your hands.Try raising your arms forward and up halfway until they are parallel to the ground.You will notice a slight backward displacement of your shoulders.After a short while as you hold this position you'll also notice muscle tension in your shoulders and upper back.This is because you body is changing its posture or "compensating" to maintain its balance while holding this position.Recommendation on Yoga for Back PainIt is very important to make sure that exercise is the right treatment for your particular condition. It is wise to consult a doctor before starting any exercise program.Yoga is a fantastic physical and mental activity. It might not cure every type of pain, but it will increase your general health. A physically and mentally healthy person is always more prepared to deal with back pain than a person in poor health. And this compensation requires the contraction of the muscles in your shoulders and upper back.keeps you from enjoying many of life’s activities, then try yoga for back pain and finally live life as you once did.Precautions to be taken for Avoiding Back PainYour back can continue to be healthy and strong by a regular practice of yoga for back. Work out the poses even if you are not experiencing any back problems. Keeping your back healthy is the best way to prevent low back injury.Only self-care cannot help you manage and relieve back pain, it can help you prevent it.For instance, when you’re picking up something heavy, never try to lift objects that are too heavy for you. Lift by bending your knees, not your back. Keep your back straight and your head down and lined up with your back.Keep the object close to your body, dividing the weight evenly throughout your body as you lift. Never twist your body when lifting.Monday, June 30, 2008
Learning About Hatha Yoga
Yoga is one of the most popular types of alternative medical treatments and is growing rapidly every year. Yoga is more commonly known as a mere physical therapy treatment. Hath a yoga is only one of the many types of yoga that exists in the world today.
Yoga was originally meant to be a spiritual treatment of the mind and the soul. It has, in today’s world, become more of a physical treatment than anything else. Hatha yoga is the type of yoga that prepares your body for its spiritual journey. This is mainly done with physical and breathing exercises as well as asceticism. This type of yoga requires the most physical exercise than any of the other types of yoga.
A few of the main factors for Hatha yoga are concentration on your breathing and your posture. This type of concentration can be more difficult than you think. Once you try this for yourself and see what this type of concentration can do, you will want to continue with this type of yoga. The purpose of practicing a great posture is to practice great meditation. You need to find a position that you can sit in for a long period of time. If you cannot be comfortable in your meditation and yoga positions, then you will be unsuccessful. The more postures and positions that you can acquire, a better meditative state will result.
Hatha is the form of yoga that anyone should begin with. Hatha begins with the basics of yoga and teaches you the inner workings of meditation and how you should begin. Once you master your own postures and positions of meditation comfort, it is time to master your breathing patterns. If you can master your own breathing patterns, than mastering your mind is not far out of reach for you. It takes many steps to reach these different levels of meditation and yoga. With practice and concentration anyone can do it.
If you are beginning your new adventure with yoga, Hatha is the form of yoga that you should begin with. If you want your yoga career to be successful you must begin with the proper steps and then learn in the right order. If you only learn the superficial methods of yoga, then you will not experience the desired results from this amazing technique of holistic meditation.
In today’s world, Hatha yoga mostly used for its physical exercise. We do not take advantage of the other benefits that Hatha yoga can give to us. It is a form of yoga that if done properly, can heal you in the most holistic way possible. Hatha yoga does evolve from its physical exercises. It is these exercises that begin and promote the mind and soul healing. No matter why you are participating in yoga, you can receive all of these benefits. The only way you can recognize them or use them to your benefit is to practice the other side of yoga, meditation. If you are unaware that these features, they will be of no use to you. When practicing yoga, you need to be aware of everything going on within you. Pay attention to yourself and you will instantly be able to see the changes that are going on within you.
Hatha yoga can be easy to learn if you are open minded and want to learn. It is a technique that can be mastered if you put all your energy and concentration into it. By learning the techniques of Hatha yoga, you are well on your way to an alternative way of healing in the most holistic way possible.
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Sunday, June 29, 2008
Learning About Karma Yoga
If you are not familiar with the art of yoga, there are many different forms of yoga that can be practiced. Karma yoga is the one type of yoga that brings together the physical and the spiritual worlds together.
Other types of yoga focus on one or the other. With karma yoga, if practiced properly, you can experience both. The basis of karma yoga was founded from ancient Hindu religions and philosophy. From this basis, karma yoga has evolved with every passing century into a meditative state that can be achieved by no other form of yoga. Karma yoga combines the two main philosophies of the world. This means that it combines the theory of Western philosophy, that life should be lived with pleasure with the Eastern philosophy that life should be lived for knowledge. With karma yoga, both of these theories are combined in the act of karma. By learning karma, you are learning the knowledge of the world and living in complete and pure happiness.
In order to progress with your karma growth, it solely depends on the way you live your life. If you live your life for wealth and material possessions then you are acquiring bad karma. If you live your life for pure happiness and love then you have good karma on your side. If you do not work on yourself and the life that you are living then karma yoga cannot help you. The type of person that you already are, reflects the results that you will see by participating in karma yoga.
By practicing this form of yoga you will find yourself learning more and more about life as you continue to work at your goals. Karma yoga can guide you in the right direction towards selflessness as well as towards the right actions you should take in life. Karma yoga can only guide you in the right direction, you yourself have to take the next step and follow the guidance that you have been given.
Karma means “to do”. This means by practicing the act of karma yoga, you are learning how to live your life in the form of good karma. You want to ensure that you are living a life of happiness and freedom. You do not want to be a slave to your ego for your entire life. This form of yoga, combines itself with self meditation as well. By using both of these holistic forms of treatment, you are well on your way to good karma and a turn around in your life. Karma yoga is about action, controlling your actions and ego to use them for good. You need to monitor your selfish desires and life your life for pure happiness and for yourself. Living for others and what others expect of you is the way to bad karma and an unhappy life. You need to live for yourself, by doing what other people expect of you or want you to do, you are not happy. Many people in the world convince themselves that they are happy, when they are not. Karma yoga can cure you of this inner unhappiness.
Karma yoga is something that you must work at everyday to achieve the results that you are so desperately searching for. Karma yoga includes great forms of meditation and physical exercises. By combining these two forms of holistic healing, you are on your way to good karma and learning the true ways of the world. You already know what life is meant to be lived for, it has always been in your sub-conscious. Karma yoga helps bring this knowledge to the surface and helps you see the way your life should be led. This means living your life for happiness and selflessness. Karma yoga can be done by anyone, you will see this immediately!
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The Coming Of Yoga Equipments...
The purpose of yoga equipments is basically to help the yoga practitioner achieve the maximum results and benefits of yoga sessions. Yoga is no more the ancient heritage of India. It has become domineering part of the Western lifestyle.
Yoga is no more the ancient heritage of India. It has become domineering part of the Western lifestyle. Its authentic export to the western world, started with Swami Vivekananda's Chicago address, at the Parliament of Religions in the year 1893.
Brothers and Sisters of America, he thundered and thereon audience heard in rapt attention the number of spiritual discourses, from his bronze-bell like voice. Many discourses followed on various types of yoga and their importance to human life. The Brothers and Sisters of USA and over 4000 delegates who attended the Parliament of Religions from various countries carried the stamp of yoga and spirituality on their mind from that day onwards.
Indian yogis and masters were simple human beings. Indian climate is also moderate. Not much thought was ever applied to the equipment part of Yoga. Yoga was taught, and practiced by very limited disciples of the sages. It was after Yoga left the shores of India and a surprised western world accepted it taking into consideration its all pervading utilities. And yoga was given the sports look. Initially, the westerners took to this practice, for they found it to be a panacea for various illnesses, chronic ailments included.
The yoga equipments became very popular in various yoga training institutes and teaching centers. The purpose of these equipments was basically to help the yoga practitioner achieve the maximum results and benefits of yoga sessions. Health and yoga became the words of passion for the global audience. By practicing yoga, they achieved peace on all counts, physical, mental and spiritual! They became tension free, challenged stress with confidence and were spiritually rejuvenated! They also realized that there is a path of self-knowledge which every individual is duty-bound to tread, for achieving ultimate bliss.
You may wonder what yoga equipments have got to do with practice of yoga. As pointed out earlier, yoga is no more the property of the privileged few. It is, so to say, a mass consumption item. There is a commercial craze and hype for yoga. The senior citizens, and those suffering from chronic ailments find the equipments, specially designed taking into consideration their requirements and comforts, useful and essential.
The utility of yoga videos, another important equipment that has taken the yoga world by storm, can not be over emphasized. You are in your own drawing room watching and observing the intricacies of various postures. Those who can not afford the costly yoga institutes, this is a cheap alternative. There are innumerable poses of yoga and proper alignment of the body parts is most important. During such delicate moments of practice of yoga, the yoga equipments play a useful role. Therefore, any reputed institute keeps stock of such equipments taking into consideration the qualitative and quantitative requirements of their students.
Therefore, yoga equipments have come to stay. The modern yogis might have strayed away from the ancient Indian tradition of yoga, in this regard. But there are valid reasons for their doing so!
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To get detailed information on Yoga Equipments and more Yoga Equipments articles visit http://www.therealyoga.com/ & http://www.therealyoga.com/category/yoga-equipments-and-tools/Saturday, June 28, 2008
The Bikram Yoga Experience
Everyone has heard of yoga and knows of it as a series of postures to stretch and rejuvenate your body. What is Bikram yoga and what differentiates it from other forms of yoga? Bikram yoga is a specific style of yoga founded by Bikram Choudhury. Bikram yoga is often referred to as hot yoga as it is practiced in a room heated to 105 degrees with a humidity of 50%.
Everyone has heard of yoga and knows of it as a series of postures to stretch and rejuvenate your body. What is Bikram yoga and what differentiates it from other forms of yoga?
Bikram yoga is a specific style of yoga founded by Bikram Choudhury. Otherwise known as "hot yoga", Bikram yoga, named after it's founder, is fairly advanced yoga moves done in a one hundred and five degree room with humidity at fifty percent, so you will most definitely be sopping wet when leaving.
The origin of this type of yoga is spiritually derived from Hinduism and regionally from Yoga College of India. Bikram yoga consists of 26 asanas or postures and two breathing exercises.
The word asana translates to the word "seat" which refers to the spirit in relation to the divine. Asanas are intended to lead back to sitting in meditation. Asanas are meant to improve your muscle flexibility and strength.
These moves, called asanas, are supposed to be practiced together with pranayama, or slow breath work for maximum benefit. Your breaths should be through the nose, not the mouth, and should be slow, not forced, and totally natural. To receive maximum benefit from practicing asanas, all tension and tightness in the body should consciously be let go.
A glass of water before practicing asanas enhances the experience and asanas should not be done on a full stomach. The practice of Bikram yoga is meant not only to improve muscle strength and flexibility, but also to establish a balance of our physical beings in relation to the divine.
Yoga is a path to attain a balance of the body, mind and spirit. Yoga can, if done correctly, be a means to control the ongoing complaint in all of our lives, stress. Optimum health is the ultimate goal for everyone of us. Health does not just refer to our physical beings but also to our mental attitudes and spiritual growth.
Bikram or hot yoga addresses emotional as well as physical well being and flexibility. When I visited my daughter in California, she signed me up for my first experience with hot yoga. Being in my fifties, I was a little concerned about the prospect of being a complete amateur at any kind of yoga and the possibility of being the oldest participant in the class.
When I entered the flaming hot classroom, it was clear to me that, to my relief I was not the "oldest one" in the class room. I was happily surprised at my ability to do so many of the postures. My self realization during the hot yoga class was my need to "stress" or hurry up at all times.
Constant focus on slowing down the breath and only breathing through my nose was a challenge for me. The heated room was something I thought I would not be able to tolerate. It did add to the yoga session and is probably one of the reasons I did not have aching muscles or pulled tendons the next day.
During some of the postures, I was keenly aware of my need to improve my balance and my sense of my physical position in space. For ongoing achievement of balance, I have been practicing the art of yoga via an instructional DVD in my home.
Particularly useful to me, in addition to the improvement of balance is the yoga reminds me to slow down and relax the tension in my body. The concept of the heated room in Bikram yoga is to diminish the risk of injuries and to allow you to go deeper into each posture.
The perspiration experienced during hot yoga enhances the release of toxins. The postures consist of warm up poses that can be done prior to a yoga class. There are standing poses and seated poses. The twist yoga poses have the purpose of strengthening your back, toning the abdomen and helping with digestion.
Inverted poses help you with your circulation. There's supine and backbend poses and finally the finishing poses to end your yoga session with relaxation.
Bikram yoga is designed to assist you to lose weight, tone muscles and increase blood circulation. Since this form of yoga helps lower stress levels, it can improve mental clarity and focus. The relaxation and focus on one's self and inner reflection and complete oneness with one's body allows us to focus more on our lives and even on the job.
About the Author
Danna Schneider is the cofounder of Dieting and Weight Loss News , where you can find information on weightloss products, fitness equipment and diet reviews, and dieting tips for losing weight. She also founded Fitness Equipment Reviews and Exercise News , a site dedicated to the latest offerings and breakthroughs in weight loss and fitness, updated constantly with news and tips on fitness equipment, accessories, and the hottes fitness trends.Thursday, June 26, 2008
Yoga - Breathing Correctly A Simple Exercise To Help You Feel Better Instantly!
Breathing is one of our basic non-voluntary bodily functions, and is our connection to life itself and we also have control over it, so if we learn to breathe correctly we can actually maximize our health and energy levels.
The correct breathing exercise can be done by anyone you don’t need to know anything about yoga and it is a quick an easy way to look and feel better instantly.
Lets look at correct breathing and its benefits.
As we have control over it, in yoga philosophy it is believed that if we can breathe correctly we can energize our bodies and our lives. This fundamental believe in correct breathing is seen as the basic cornerstone of yoga and other forms of exercise such as Ti Chi – They all base their exercise regime upon correct breathing.
Below we will look at how to use the basic Yoga principle of Pranayama…Control of the Breath to reenergize your whole body.
Breathing correctly why it’s so important
In many languages to breath has the same basic root as the word soul, spirit, and essence. The ancient Yoga Masters believed that if you can control your breathing, i.e. breath correctly you can enhance your life.
In Yoga the Yogis call the life energy Prana, and the Buddhists, Chi, but whatever you wish to call it, it is the energy that surrounds all life, all of creation and in the yoga philosophy we need it to derive the maximum from our lives
In Yoga it is believed that the breath holds more than just air, but also the energy of life. Therefore, by breathing correctly we not only take in a necessary dose of oxygen, but we also receive life energy at the same time, that acts as an energy boost to the whole body.
Breathing correctly to energize your body
The 20th century Yoga Master, Paramhamsa Yogananda taught through his organization, the Self-Realization Fellowship, a series of re-energizing exercises that focused on correct breathing that if performed each day, were believed to keep you fit, active, alert and energetic.
Correct breathing is one of the basic building blocks upon which all yoga exercises are based upon.
In yoga it is stressed that when you were feeling tired, or need some energy and general body re-charging, a correct breathing exercise can instantly give you a boost of energy.
Breathing correctly
Stand upright, with your arms straight out to your sides at shoulder level.
Exhale with the double breath, with your knees bent slightly and then bring your arms (still extended) to the front until your palms touch.
Then with a double inhalation this time, bring your arms back out, straightening your legs as you do so - and then tense the entire body upwards in a wave fashion.
Now, relax the body downwards in a wave in reverse order with another double exhalation. Repeat this exercise 5 times. To help you understand this, and to do it correctly, double breathing must be a short and long inhalation through the nose and a short and long exhalation through the nose and mouth.
The double breath will allow you to inhale and exhale more deeply and to provide oxygen to the blood, and at the same time take in a dose of life energy.
To practice the double breath, you should begin by inhaling strongly through the nose immediately with a short, defined inhalation followed directly by a long, profound inhalation - completely filling the lungs.
When doing so visualize the energy going into every cell of your body and filling you with energy.
Without pausing, exhale twice through the nose and mouth with a short, then a prolonged exhalation - making the sound: "Huf, Huffffffff."
Try to visualize as you are breathing correctly, the life energy flowing into your body with every breath reenergizing your soul.
The positive benefits of correct breathing
If you practice only this exercise daily, you will gain positive benefits that will help you look and feel better.
Not only will you feel fresh and alert, you will also have exhaled by breathing correctly, many toxins and negative particles produced through our respiration process.
You will as a consequence look and feel healthier, you will be alert, and gradually you will come to sense the life energy that breathing correctly can give you.
This is a simple exercise that can be done by anyone even if you don’t want to practice yoga itself, correct breathing will give you health benefits with very little effort.
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About sacha tarkovsky:
MORE FREE INFO On all aspects of health and more on nutrition visit our website for a huge resource of articles, features and downloads and at www.net-planet.org/index.html
MORE FREE INFO On all aspects of health and more on nutrition visit our website for a huge resource of articles, features and downloads and at www.net-planet.org/index.html
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Refreshing your health and mind by "Yoga"
Nowadays yoga is one of the popular exercises that people like to practice. Yoga helps the exercisers to balance both the physical and mental system. Daily practicing yoga would not only refreshing your health but also bringing exercisers self-consciousness. Yoga was found and practiced for more than 5,000 years.
Firstly, yoga was originated from India. Later it was known and accepted by million of American citizen as it is a good exercise to balance their physical and mental system. Yoga make the exerciser be relaxed and released from strain which finally affect the efficiency of nervous system. By practicing yoga on a regularly basis would reduce pressures. As a result, the exercisers would learn how to exercise the right breathing system which bringing them refresh their health, creative thinking, and good mind.
Advantages and Disadvantages of practicing yoga
Yoga is good for every generation worldwide. It is similar to fitness, and gymnastics that its training needs a set of rules. Yoga is an applicable exercise to reducing strain and pressures. It could facilitate you to control weight and also would practice your mind through the right breathing system and bringing you peacefulness through meditation. The right breathing system is the key point for yoga's exercisers.
After practicing Yoga, your body and mind could get in touch with each other. This is what we say that it balances your health and mind system. Your consciousness would be build up little by little automatically. Then you could control and manage your emotions accordingly. Yoga makes you feel self-esteem and be friendly to others because of good mind. Besides, yoga helps you to be able to manage your life efficiently due to good consciousness.
Any way, there are some disadvantages or limitations of yoga, i.e., some kinds of training are not suitable for someone's conditions. For example, the old should avoid some kinds of training that are too hard otherwise it will cause injury. The practicers should choose and modify the training program which is suitable for their ages, sex, and physical's conditions.
Preparation for training Yoga
1. You should go to see your family doctor and get some advices about yoga training program you have chosen.
2. Once your doctor approves, you should start training slowly. Then adjust your exercising to match with your physical's conditions. Yoga will make you get in touch between your health and mind.
3. It should be better for the beginner to join yoga with groups. Training in group sessions may encourage and support the practicers with each other. You could find group yoga in many ways in your home's area, local library, etc.
4. However, if you would like to practice by yourself, you could merely buy a book or video training from bookstores or internet.
The right place for Yoga training
When you are ready to start training, you should find a quiet and private area that makes you feel comfortable. It should be the place that no interruptions would easily approach to you while you are training.
How long could I reap my benefits from Yoga training?
Of course, it is the same as doing every other thing that it would take some time for you to practice yoga regularly before any changes would appear. If you disciplinarily practice on regular basis, it's certainly that you will see the changes soon. You would be realized how yoga bring you to be able to control your breath system, emotions, body and mind.
The more regularly you practice yoga, the faster benefits of yoga would belong to you!
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About Catherine Tyler:
Catherine Tyler is the professional freelance writer and also the webmaster of www.yoga-weightloss.com Find how to develop your weight loss plan with Yoga.
Catherine Tyler is the professional freelance writer and also the webmaster of www.yoga-weightloss.com Find how to develop your weight loss plan with Yoga.
YOGA – an ancient form of Exercise
Yoga is a family of ancient spiritual practices dating back more than 5000 years from India. It is one of the six schools of Hindu philosophy. In India, Yoga is seen as a means to both physiological and spiritual mastery. Outside India, Yoga has become primarily associated with the practice of asanas (postures).
Yoga as a means of spiritual attainment is central to Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism and has influenced other religious and spiritual practices throughout the world. Hindu texts establishing the basis for yoga include the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and many others.
The four main paths of Yoga are
• Karma yoga: The yoga of action in the world
• Jnana yoga: The yoga of knowledge and intellectual endeavor
• Bhakti yoga: The yoga of devotion to a deity
• Raja yoga: The yoga of meditation
A committed practitioner of yoga is referred to as a yogi, yogin (masculine), or yogini (feminine).
The aims of the yoga practitioners are extremely varied.
1. Inspiration of Spiritual Element
2. Increased Flexibility and Fitness
3. Solutions to varied Health Disorders
4. All – round development : Mind, Body, Soul
Yoga entails mastery over the body, mind, and emotional self, and transcendence of desire. According to the followers, the Yogi eventually reaches the enlightened state (Moksha) where there is a cessation of thought and an experience of blissful union. This union may be of the individual soul (Atman) with the supreme Reality (Brahman), as in Advaita Vedanta; with a specific god or goddess, as in Dvaita, or dualistic forms of Hinduism and some forms of Buddhism.
Common to most forms of yoga is the practice of concentration (dharana) and meditation (dhyana). The awareness is concentrated on a fine point of sensation (such as that of the breath entering and leaving the nostrils). Sustained single-pointed concentration gradually leads to meditation (dhyana), in which the inner faculties are able to expand and merge with something vast. Meditators sometimes report feelings of peace, joy, and oneness.
Advantages of Yoga
Yoga emphasizes treatment of the root cause of an ailment. It works in a slow, subtle and miraculous manner. Modern medicine can claim to save a life at a critical stage, but, for complete recovery and regaining of normal health, one must believe in the efficiency of yoga therapy.
On a physical level Yoga postures stimulate the glands, organs, muscles and nerves in ways that traditional exercise cannot. Muscle tightness and strain is quickly relieved and both circulation and digestion improves. Stress-related symptoms like poor sleep, fatigue, muscle spasms, anxiety, and indigestion are greatly improved.
Through continued practice Yoga postures can have a profound effect on the inner dimensions of life, establishing deep calm, concentration, emotional stability and confidence.
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About Robert Palmer:
Roderick Corkern is an active fitness and exercise equipment expert with over 16 years of helping people overcome fitness issues and teaching them to integrate exercise into their life.
Roderick Corkern is an active fitness and exercise equipment expert with over 16 years of helping people overcome fitness issues and teaching them to integrate exercise into their life.
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