Determination gives you the resolve to keep going in spite of the roadblocks that lay before you. Denis Waitley
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Six-minute sample of a 30-minute Fitness Yoga warm-up. Features floor exercises. You’ll stretch while working your core muscles, arms and chest. Safe for beginners.
Seventy-seven benefits that may be had by the following of a yoga practice, weight loss among them, can be found at this site. If you are like me, you know that you want to practice yoga, but are baffled by the different yoga types you’ve heard about. Although all these types of yoga are based on the same poses, there are some major differences between them. Here is a very brief description of several styles you can consider:
yoga-pose
Hatha Yoga
Hatha Yoga describes any of the physical practices of yoga. (Remember that yoga has eight limbs, only one of which, asana, involves doing yoga poses.) When you do Iyengar, this is hatha yoga; when you do Ashtanga, this is hatha yoga too. “Hatha yoga” can be used interchangeably with “yoga.” A typical class could be described as a slow-paced stretching class with some simple breathing exercises and perhaps seated meditation. This is a good place to learn basic poses, relaxation techniques, and become comfortable with yoga.
Iyengar Yoga
Iyengar’s method, a form of hatha yoga, is based on giving primacy to the physical alignment of the body in the poses. In the Iyengar school, it is taught that there is a correct way to do each pose, and that every student will one day be able to attain perfect poses through consistent practice. Once this balance is created in the body, it will be reflected in the mind. One of Iyengar’s major innovations is in the use of props. Today it is quite common to see blankets, blocks, straps, pillows, chairs, and bolsters being used in yoga studios. The use of these props is comparatively new in the history of yoga and comes directly from Iyengar. The purpose of the props is to assist the student in attaining ideal alignment, even if the body is not yet open enough.
Jivamukti Yoga
Jivamukti means “liberation while living.” This modern style of yoga emerged in 1984 from one of New York City’s best-known yoga studios. Founders David Life and Sharon Gannon incorporated their study of ashtanga yoga with Shri K. Pattabhi Jois with spiritual teachings, placing special emphasis on how to apply yogic philosophy to daily life. They have trained many teachers who have brought this style of yoga to studios and gyms, predominantly in the U.S.
Bikram Yoga – Hot Yoga
Hot Yoga is a series of yoga poses done in a heated room. The room is usually maintained at a temperature of 95-100 degrees. As you can imagine, a vigorous yoga session at this temperature promotes profuse sweating which rids the body of toxins. It also makes the body very warm, and therefore more flexible.
Kundalini Yoga
Each Kundalini Yoga asana series is done in conjunction with a specific breath that intensifies the effects of the poses with the purpose of freeing energy in the lower body and allowing it to move upwards. Kundalini sequences (called kriyas) may consist of rapid, repetitive movements done with breath or holding a pose while breathing in a particular way.
Ashtanga Yoga
Ashtanga, which means eight limbs in Sanskrit, is a fast-paced, intense style of yoga practice. A set series of poses is performed, always in the same order. Ashtanga yoga is very physically demanding, because of the constant movement from one pose to the next, but students progress at their own pace.
Power Yoga
Power yoga is a general term used in the West to describe a vigorous, fitness-based approach to vinyasa-style yoga. Most power yoga is closely modeled on the Ashtanga style of practice. The term “power yoga” came into common usage in the mid 1990s, when several yoga teachers were looking for a way to make Ashtanga yoga more accessible to western students. Unlike Ashtanga, power yoga does not follow a set series of poses. Therefore, any power yoga class can vary widely from the next. What they have in common is an emphasis on strength and flexibility. The advent of power yoga heralded yoga’s current popularity, as people began to see yoga as a way to work out.
Yoga is an ancient practice that connects the mind, body, and spirit through body poses, controlled breathing, and meditation. The practice of yoga has many health benefits associated with it, including weight loss. Take a look at just a few of them . . .
A consistent yoga practice decreases blood pressure through better circulation and oxygenation of the body.
Regularly practicing yoga provides a lower pulse rate.
Yoga improves blood circulation. By transporting nutrients and oxygen throughout your body, yoga practice provides healthier organs, skin, and brain.
A combination of lower heart rate and improved oxygenation to the body (both benefits of yoga) results in higher cardiovascular endurance.
Yoga stimulates the detoxification process within the body. Detoxification has been shown to delay aging, among many other health benefits.
One of the premises of yoga is that you are using the weight of your own body for overall strength.
Regular yoga practice provides consistent energy. In fact, most yogis state that when you perform your yoga correctly, you will feel energized after your yoga session rather than tired.
The benefits of a better metabolism along with the exercise of yoga work to keep your weight in check. Additionally, the stretching of muscles longwise helps to reduce the amount of cellulite that can build around muscles.
WebMD reports: Yoga is a sophisticated mind-body exercise many believe can do everything from tighten your buns to change your outlook on life. But can this no-strain, work-at-your-own-level exercise really help you lose weight?
It’s true most types of yoga don’t have anything near the calorie-burning power of aerobic exercise. A 150-pound person will burn 150 calories in an hour of doing regular yoga, compared to 311 calories for an hour of walking at 3 mph. But it is exercise, after all, and many practitioners believe yoga can indeed help people take off extra pounds.
“Yoga is a phenomenal way to put you in touch with your body the way nothing else can, and yes, it can help you lose weight,” says instructor Dana Edison, director of Radius Yoga in North Redding, Mass., and a certified personal trainer with the American College of Sports Medicine.
In 2005, medical researcher and practicing yogi Alan Kristal, DPH, MPH, set out to do a medical study on the weight-loss effects of yoga.
With funding from the National Cancer Institute, Kristal and colleagues at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle led a trial involving 15,500 healthy, middle-aged men and women. All completed a survey recalling their physical activity (including yoga) and their weight between the ages of 45 and 55. Researchers then analyzed the data, teasing out other factors that could influence weight change – such as diet or other forms of exercise.
The end result: They found yoga could indeed help people shed pounds, or at least keep them from gaining weight.
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