Yoga - the way to keep fit and relax
środa, 20 sierpnia 2008
Are you tired, overworked, stressed and weak? You should try yoga to improve your health and physical appearance. Yoga burns calories, strengthens and makes your muscles more flexible. You don’t have to be athletic either sign up for a special course of yoga...
Are you tired, overworked, stressed and weak? You should try yoga to improve your health and physical appearance. Yoga burns calories, strengthens and makes your muscles more flexible. You don’t have to be athletic either sign up for a special course of yoga. Regular yoga practising affects positively on a psyche and gives more energy. After several months your body will look better and you will feel well. That’s why more and more people choose yoga and include it to their regular training. It’s an excellent way to relax and keep fit. Read this article to know how to start.
Nowadays yoga is everywhere: in sport clubs, movies, magazines and television. You will surely ask what yoga is. Here is the answer: Yoga is the system of meditations, physical and breathing exercises from the Far East. But it is a very short and simplified definition. There are more facts about this ancient technique. History of yoga
Yoga comes from India. The yogis wanted to gain a direct spiritual experience not a symbolic ritual. So they developed yoga. It has been evolving for the last 5,000 years or so. The word ‘yoga’ comes from the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit and means ‘union’. Yoga as a relaxing practice helps create a sense of union in body, mind and spirit. It brings us balance which we lost in time from the day of birth. It’s very important to keep this balance. All of us know that babies are able to pull toe up to ear and it doesn’t make effort to them. So try to do it at the age of 20. It’s not as simple as it was then. With time we lose the balance and fitness, we suffer from different diseases and our organism is getting older faster and faster. To avoid this we should practise sports including yoga which isn’t an ordinary discipline. Yoga is a process. It’s not only getting poses right, it’s the special technique of breathing which helps us to relax and feel the deepest point inside our body and soul. You have to open your mind and allow energy to flow inside you. Who can practise yoga?
It’s not very difficult to start yoga practice. Regardless of the age or fitness anyone can go in for yoga. Asanas affect body and psyche in different ways. That’s why it’s worth training yoga when we have problems with health or even when we have a stressful job. So let us familiarize you with various types of yoga. Styles of yoga
There are different styles of yoga which belong to the common group named hatha yoga.
Hatha yoga is a traditional kind of yoga and it consists of many elements like yogasana which is a physical exercise, pranayama - a breathing technique and dhyana - meditations. Each of asana has own types and modifications. Thanks to this everyone can select the best fitting poses for themselves. You can choose between asanas that improve muscle tone, flexibility, strength, stamina and relaxing asanas that allow you to rest. All depends on your preferences.
Firstly you should take a look at Sivananda yoga that is a well-known style of yoga. It’s the traditional system of exercises. While training we don’t need to use any equipment. We should only keep a proper order of asanas - poses. Remember also that breathing and relaxing exercises play an important role in yoga.
The next type of hatha yoga - Iyengar - is the system of exercises with equipment such as special kind of rollers, belts etc. But if you look for much more physical effort you should better choose Ashtanga, in other words power-yoga. It’s a very dynamic type of hatha yoga. Fast passage from one asana to another brings results in short time but remember it’s not for beginners because it is physically demanding. Another style which requires sweating is Bikram. Bikram is an “exercises in 35 degrees Celsius".
If you don’t need to lose you weight, only want to get rid of stress you should try Kundalini or Tantra. Those types control energy flow, breathing and let you take a rest. How does yoga work?
Striking specific poses and holding on in them for right time tone up muscles and stretch them. It doesn’t cause a significant increase of muscular mass but it makes your body firm and improves up stamina. Setting the pace in training yoga allows you to lose additional kilograms. But if you want to release stress you should just slow down in striking asanas. Read more about why do yoga and you will know more how it works. Why do yoga?
The list of yoga’s advantages is endless. You should try yoga because it will make you feel better. It has many physical benefits. Proper and controlled breathing teaches you concentration and permits oxygen to circulate with blood through your veins. Simultaneous strengthening and stretching effect perfectly eliminate tension and back pain. Research shows that yoga also helps manage or control anxiety, arthritis, asthma, blood pressure, backbone pain, chronic fatigue, depression, diabetes, epilepsy, headaches, heart disease, multiple sclerosis and other misconditions and diseases. Yoga lets you maintain and balance metabolism. Regular training yoga gives you much more vital energy and helps you feel younger than your age.
Yoga can positively influence on your mind. It helps you relax. You should use yogic breathing in difficult and stressful situations like an appointment at a dentist’s or when you are stuck in a traffic. You will see that you handle stressful situations more easily. Besides yoga encourages positive thoughts and self-acceptance.
What else? If you start training yoga it will become a part of your spiritual life. Yoga teaches you patience when you are working on a difficult pose. It promotes an interdependence among mind, body, and spirit. Thanks to it you can learn how to live right.
Getting started yoga
At the end of this article you shouldn’t ask why do yoga. Just get started! Find the best way for yourself. If you think that it’s hard to start without an instructor go to a yoga class. If there is no yoga studio in your town, practise with a video or read books. It helps to train yoga with friends. Ask one of them if you need support at the beginning of yoga training. Just remember one thing: “No pain, no gain" isn’t the yoga way. Have fun with discovering yoga!
