Yoga for a Beautiful Body

Awkward Chair 

Stand with feet together and abs contracted. Exhale as you push your hips back to squat down as if sitting in a chair; at the same time, lift your arms by your ears. Arms should be shoulder-width with palms facing and fingers pointing toward the ceiling. Hold for 5 to 8 breaths.

High Lunge

Keeping arms raised and abs tight, step your left foot back and lower into lunge position so front knee is bent at 90 degrees and directly over your ankle. Hold for 5 breaths.

Plank 

Lower your hips, coming onto your toes and moving your torso forward until your shoulders are directly over your hands. Your abs should be tight, with your body in a straight line from head to heels. Hold for 5 breaths.

Low Plank

Keeping your body in line, inhale and bend your elbows to 90 degrees to lower yourself toward the floor. Hold for 1 breath.

Half Moon

Return to center and drop your right hand to the floor about 10 inches diagonally in front and outside of your right foot. Raise your left arm, pointing fingers toward the ceiling as you straighten your right leg and lift your straight left leg into the air, foot flexed and pointing to the side; look up at your left hand. Hold for 5 breaths.

Benefits of Yoga in Everyday Life

The practice of yoga, as well as giving all those attributes that are well known, can also give many helpful benefits in everyday life that do not necessarily belong to the field of yoga.

* Yoga can help cure insomnia, as regular yoga practice leads to better and deeper sleep.

* Yoga can help fight fatigue and maintain your energy throughout the day.

* Yoga is an effective treatment for a variety of autoimmune diseases because it can reduce the symptoms these diseases often cause, such as stiffness, malaise, fatigue, and weakness.

Yoga Benefits For Eyes

Most of us do not exercise our eye muscles at all, but yet, we work them all the time, causing them to be under constant strain. The only time the eyes rest for more than a split second, is when we are asleep.

* Light a lamp/candle at a distance of two feet at the eye level. Stare at the bluish centre of the flame with a steady gaze. Continue staring, even if the eyes start watering. 

* You can do this for about 10 minutes to begin with, and slowly increase the duration until the time you feel comfortable. 

* Then slowly get up and fill your mouth with water. Keeping this water in your mouth, wash eyes with tap water. 

* Then spit the water out. This water will be warm as heat gets released from the body. This has to be done twice or until the water temperature gets normal. This is a must after this particular kriya. 

* Look to your right as far as you can, being aware of the edge of your visual field. Hold for 3 seconds, then release. Repeat again, but looking to your left. Hold for 3 seconds, then release. Repeat left and right 3 times. 

* Sit comfortably on a straight-backed chair, with your legs uncrossed and hands resting lightly in your lap. Keep your chin level and move only your eyes, neither your head nor neck. 

* Breathe gently and evenly throughout the sequence. Don’t stain nor force any movements: go only as far as is comfortable. Close your eyes to relax at the end.

* Sit comfortably with your eyes open. Blink around 10 times very quickly. Close your eyes and relax for 20 seconds. Slowly take your attention to your breath. 

* Repeat this exercise about 5 times. 

* Rub your palms together and gently cup them over your closed eyes for around a minute. This is known as palming and is very beneficial for the eyes. 

* The eyes need darkness to rejuvenate them and this need is best served by palming. Palming should be done after every eye exercise, to relax the eyes and every now and then during the day.

Beauty Through Yoga

* The first and foremost principle of Yoga is that until you do not feel good, you can't look good. Thus yoga through its asana like Sukhasna and Shavasana aims to provide complete relaxation to your body.

* Yoga helps you gain physical fitness, helps in the healthy maintenance of mind and body. It also acts in removal of toxins from the body and increases flexibility of your body making you look younger.

* Yoga helps improve the efficiency of the immune system. Through regular Pranayams like Kaplabhati and Anulom- Vilom, you can easily avoid little daily problems of health.

* Yoga is equally active in thyroid and weight loss leading to perfect shaping of the body and thus making you beautiful.

* The perfect oxygen dose which we get through various Yoga Asanas and Mudras also helps in skin glow.

* Regular yoga brings contentment in your life which reflects on your face.

* Yoga helps you in delaying ageing. A regular yoga practitioner remains young and active for quite longer than others who do not practice yoga.

Power Yoga Tips

Power yoga is much more intense and aerobic than the more traditional forms of yoga. Is a synchronization of body movements that are maintained for long periods of time.

• Select open ground like garden, building terrace etc. as it will encourage you to practice yoga.

• Concentrate fully on each pose.

• Practice power yoga thrice a week and that too for approximate 45 minutes each day.

• Develop a proper sequence of yoga before you start your power yoga session.

• Always try to follow proper series of exercises.

• Stay comfortable and wear sweat absorbent clothes.

• It involves difficult poses, so seek guidance of professionals.

• Avoid over-exertion. Try to do slow but steady power yoga always.

• Take the help of yoga videos available in market that best suits your need.

• Do asanas that your body can perform easily. Never try to confront your body in positions that are hard to undertake & can end up with physical injury.

• Give your body time to adjust the power yoga moves. Do not rush through the asanas at the initial stages.

Standing Forward Bend Yoga

Standing Forward Bend Yoga workout is a good way to start your yoga session. As it helps to stretch the muscles and warm up in preparation for the Sun Salutation Vinyasa and benefits.

Instructions Standing Forward Bend Yoga

* Bring the feet together, big toes together

* Bend the knees, draw the abs in, and fold forward from your hips

* Bent the knees as much as you need until your chest rests on thighs

* Hands on the floor outside of the feet

* Lift and widen the sit bones

* Fold and deepen over hips

* Shoulders are lifted away from ears but soften the shoulder blades down into your back

* Let the head hangs and release the back of your neck.

* Bend the knees

* Forearms or hands on thighs.

* Hands clasp behind legs or hold opposite elbows.

* Wide leg forward fold

* Gorilla Pose.

Benefits of Standing Forward Bend Yoga 

* Stretching your hips, calves, and hamstrings

* Strengthening your knees and thighs

* Improving digestion system,

* Helping to cure insomnia, headache, osteoporosis, asthma, high blood pressure

* Relaxing the mind.

5 Ways to Fit Exercise into Your Life

As a women on the run I know how hard exercise is to fit into your life. But have you ever stopped for a moment to think about the importance of five easy ways to fit exercise into your life so that it makes a huge difference to your health, fitness and happiness. It is extremely important to select an exercise program that will be well-suited to your lifestyle.

An early run

Exercise is a great way to wake up your body so when you get up in the morning rather than walking straight to the shower put on your trainers and go for a brisk walk, or quick jog, for no more than 10 minutes. By the time you get into the shower you will hardly remember the 10-minute jog but your body will feel energized and ready for the day. Stretch the run to 15 or even 30 minutes when you are feeling more adventurous and you can get most of your exercise out of the way before you have really woken up!

Take the stairs

It may seem like an obvious point but if you remember to walk up the stairs every day then you will be amazed by how much good it does you. It will help to tone your thighs and bottom area and doing it four times a day is the same amount of exercise as walking for 30 minutes.

Break down exercise sessions

By breaking exercise up into small parts of the day you can fit it around your schedule and avoid having to spend hours in the gym. Do three repetitions of 20 sit-ups, push-ups or jog on the spot for five minutes. Such exercise can be a great way to de-stress at work as well as give you an energy boost.

 Easy exercise

Find something you enjoy that doesn't make you feel guilty when you miss it. In that way getting fit doesn't have to mean a gruelling exercise class or hours slaving in the gym. Next time your friend suggests lunch why not suggest meeting for a swim and then lunch after. You don't have to do strenuous lengths; instead swim slowly and chat to your friend and before you know it you have done more than enough exercise to justify a tasty lunch. Renting a bike and cycling is another great, fun activity, especially if you are looking for something the whole family can do together.

Walking

Walking is really great exercise. It tones different muscles to running ones, and in some ways it is more beneficial as puts less strain on your body. Try fitting more walking into your everyday routine on your way to work, at lunchtimes or in the evening to destress. You will be surprised at how quickly you see a difference in your body and health.

Different Types of Yoga and Their Benefits

 

Many different types of yoga being practiced today, it may be to yoga with basic poses and relaxation techniques; Benefits: Relieves stress and stamina, and those who want to get in touch with their spiritual side.

* Power yoga – If you’re looking for a workout with your yoga, than this style is your best bet. This fast-paced, high-energy style of yoga combines movement with breath, and is often done in a heated room (which heightens the intensity even more). The benefit of Power yoga is that you can combine your yoga and your workout into one, since Power yoga is both a cardio and muscle building workout.

* Yin Yoga – This style of yoga is basically the opposite of Power yoga. It consists of long, deep stretches held for 3 to 5 minutes, which serve to open up your connective tissues – since connective tissues are not as elastic as muscles, you need to hold the poses longer in order to release the tension in them. The benefits of Yin yoga are that it is more of a relaxing, meditative style of yoga (they say it is supposed to “turn you inward”) as opposed to power, and it is usually done at room temperature if you’re not into the high-intensity of a heated room.

* Bikram Yoga – This style of yoga is done in very hot room, and follows a very specific set of poses. Any studio, anywhere in the world will always follow the same series of poses. It is a very formulaic, and some would even say militant, style of yoga. The benefits of Bikram yoga are that you always know what to expect (no matter which studio you do it at), and you can get very good at the poses by doing them over and over again. Bikram people say that the poses don’t change, but instead you change doing the poses; in other words, you can do them better and get more out of them.

* Moksha Yoga- This style of yoga was inspired by Bikram yoga, but is less intense, and more accessible to beginners. You may also find more variety in Moksha, as it tends not to be quite as formulaic as Bikram. Otherwise, the same holds for Moksha as above.

* Iyengar Yoga- This style of yoga was developed by B.K.S. Iyengar, and is very alignment focused. Each pose is looked at individually rather than being connected together; for example, whereas power yoga is all about flowing right from one pose into the next, in Iyengar each pose is focused on individually, and you stop to talk about it before moving on to the next pose. Iyengar yoga is very slow, and uses a lot of props like blocks, bolsters and straps. The benefits of this style of yoga are that it is good for beginners to learn poses properly, and even good for advanced students who haven’t learned their alignment properly.

* Restorative Yoga – This style of yoga is even more relaxing, and even less intense than Yin Yoga. The difference is that you are not looking for a stretching sensation as with Yin, but instead you are just putting yourself into “restorative” poses and holding them for a very long time. The benefits of this style are similar to those of Yin yoga: it is more about relaxation and meditation that about getting a workout, only to an even greater degree than with Yin.

Kundalini Yoga

Kundalini yoga is a physical, mental and spiritual discipline for developing strength, awareness, character, and consciousness.

Preaching a message of drug free living and alternative ways of getting high, the teachings of kundalini yoga became a way for anyone to experience higher states of consciousness. 

Kundalini Yoga is a physical and meditative discipline that combines postures (asanas), breath (pranayama), and the chanting of mantras. Kundalini refers to the energy that lays dormant at the base of the spine. 

Through the practice of yoga, this energy is raised and travels up the spine, through the chakras, creating an overall sense of well being and a heightened sense of awareness. The word Kundalini literally translates as a “coiled female serpent.”

Traditionally the techniques of Kundalini were only communicated from Master to disciple and through a long initation process. In 1969 Yogi Bhajan began teaching kundalini yoga openly to the public.

Yogi Bhajan defines yoga as such: “Yoga means a discipline of mind and body. There is nothing mysterious about it. Yoga does not explain the meaning of life... It’s aim is to develop a quality of mind which can perceive reality and acquire self knowledge.”

There are no inverted postures in Bikram yoga, unless you are in a master class. Bikram felt that most beginners could not safely do inversions, and that other poses provided the same benefits as inversions.

Why Learn Kundalini Yoga? 

* Stress breaks down the systems of the body opening it to all other forms of disease and discomfort. 

* The massive explosion in interest in yoga and mediation in the 21st century is testament to the fact that people are in need of relaxation, ways of finding inner calm, and physical well being.

* The average person is subject to as much information in 1 week as our great great great grand parents were exposed to in their whole lives. Between, iphones, blackberry's, tv, internet, the radio, not to mention advertising, the human psyche is bombarded with information at a non stop rate. Without a buffer zone for the mind, this data acts as 24/7 bombardment of emotional manipulation caussing mental overload, or what we call stress.

* This "buffer zone" of the mind can be developed through yoga and mediation. And with the advent of computers and the rise of the knowledge based economy, many of us are sedentary for hours at a time.

* Yoga is the best form of exercise for maintaining health as it rebuilds the body through stretching and strengthening exercises.

* Through the practice of Yoga and Meditation, even for a very short period of time, major improvements in physical health and mental clarity are possible. It is also a lot of fun.

Mudras And Chakra Meditation

 

There are different ways by which you can carry out the technique of chakra meditation and one of these is by using different mudras and sounds for each.

There are many benefits of the mudras. To the untrained meditation practitioner, mudras are often dismissed as inconsequential. In fact, the mudras have the power to harmonize all seven of our auric bodies—etheric (lower physical), emotional (lower emotional), mental (lower mental), astral, etheric (higher physical), celestial (emotional), and causal (mental). These auric bodies correspond with our chakras, from the base to the crown chakra.

The following examples demonstrate how mudras stimulate our auric bodies, serving as a means to act as an interface to integrate our physical, mental and spiritual bodies.

* Bear Grip : With palms facing each other, and right palm facing the body, hook fingers together. Thumbs rest on outside of baby fingers. Concentration.

* Venus Lock : Palms facing up, cup hands together and interlock the fingers. Sexuality. Glandular balance.

* Prayer Mudra : Palms together in prayer position. Balancing energy.

* Buddha Mudra:  For men, rest right hand in left palm, and join the tips of the thumbs. For women, reverse hand position.

* Ethereal : Awakening of latent energy. Integrating the mind and body through the stimulation of brain cells and the energy centers of the chakras

* Physical Body : Helping to maintain presence in meditation by holding a physical posture.

* Guyan Mudra :With the palm facing the sky, touch the tip of the forefinger to the tip of the thumb. Receptivity.

* Active Guyan Mudra : Bend first joint of index finger under thumb. Knowledge.

* Shuni Mudra :Touch the tip of the middle finger to the tip of the thumb. Patience.

* Surya/Ravi Mudra : Touch the tip of the ring finger to the tip of the thumb. Energy. Intuition.

* Buddhi Mudra : Touch the tip of the little finger to the tip of the thumb. Communication. Intuition.

* Jupiter Mudra : Clasp hands together and extend and join the inside of the forefingers. Remaining fingers and thumbs are interlocked. Focus energy.