Posts filed under 'Yoga'
Bikram Choudhry, the founder of Bikram Yoga, was born in Kolkatta in 1946. Who studied Yoga with Bishnu Ghosh, brother of Paramahansa Yogananda (Author of the most popular book on Yoga, The Autobiography of a Yogi, and founder of the Self-Realization Fellowship in Los Angeles). It is a series of 26 poses performed in a room heated from around 95-105 degrees Fahrenheit. Bikram started many training centers for yoga, on the direction of his master Bishnu Gosh. Later, he founded his own system of yoga known as Bikram Yoga.
Bikram practiced Yoga at least four to six hours every day at Ghosh’s College of Physical Education in Calcutta. At the age of thirteen, he won the National India Yoga Championship. He was undefeated for the following three years and retired as the undisputed All-India National Yoga Champion. Bikram teaches at the Yoga College of India in Mumbai and other locations around the world, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Paris and Tokyo.
Bikram has designed a sequence of 26 yoga postures (or asana) and two breathing exercises that are performed in a heated room. The postures are vigorous and demand a lot from the students. The heated room, typically around 95-105 °F (35-40 °C), makes muscles more pliant and encourages sweating which purportedly acts as a purifier. People of all levels, ages and body types practice together with a teacher acting as a guide, taking the class through the ninety-minute series.
Each Yoga Pose is usually performed twice and held for a certain period of time. Their Yoga Sessions start from Standing Postures, then the Backbends, Forward Bends, and Twists. The Poses are accompanied by Kapalabhati Breath or the “breath of fire”.
Heat is used in Bikram Yoga in order to allow you to go deeper and safer into a Yoga Pose. Your body becomes more flexible in the heat and since most poses used in Bikram are physically challenging, heat allows you to get into a pose that you never imagined you can do. It also eliminates the risk for injuries, promotes sweating and helps you release the toxins in your body. The poses not only work on your muscles but also your internal organs. Each pose stretches and strengthens your muscles, joints, and ligaments and, at the same time release the toxins and work on your internal organs like the Glands and the Nervous System.
Some people are often discouraged to Practice of Yoga by thinking that they are not flexible enough. Yoga is not about being flexible, but about strengthening your body and your spine in all directions with the goal of creating a union between the body, mind and spirit. All that matters is to try the right way without pushing yourself too far. In practicing, you may wear shorts or leotards or anything you feel comfortable sweating in.
Bikram Yoga is designed to “scientifically” warm and stretch muscles, ligaments and tendons in the order in which they should be stretched. Practice of this Style of Yoga promotes the cleansing of the body, release of toxins and utmost flexibility. It can also reduce stress and increase Blood Circulation. The practice of Bikram Yoga can also help you lose weight and develop toned and strong muscles.
Anyone can practice Bikram Yoga. In even people with chronic diseases such as Arthritis, Diabetes, and thyroid disorders may benefit in doing the Yoga Poses by reducing symptoms and is also one of the best ways to prevent any ailments by keeping the body healthy. In fact, it has helped its founder, Bikram, recover from a serious Knee injury he acquired in his training for weightlifting. He had been told by his doctors that he would never be able to walk again. After consulting with his Yoga teacher, he resumed his Yoga practice and his daily performance of the Asanas allowed him to rebuild his muscle and walk again. Hollywood celebrities, athletes and ordinary people also claimed that the practice of Bikram Yoga helped them in reaching high levels of performance, extend their careers, heal their bodies, achieve mental clarity and increased energy levels.
Bikram Yoga Classes uses the same routine every Class. Let your body tell you how often you should practice. Some may find this boring since they feel that they are starting over and over every time they come to class but you should remember to take satisfaction in the small accomplishments you have for repeatedly doing the poses.
May 13th, 2006
In this busy and fast lifestyle that we have adopted, we have forgotten to give ourselves the time to relax and to remain fit. In our list of priorities we often forget that one of the most important priorities is “how to keep ourselves fit and healthy”.
There are many, many recommended diets, exercises and so on and so forth but I believe that if we begin with a disciplined life and a correct diet and attitude to life we will be able to lose excess weight and remain healthy.
For instance, to get up early in the morning and to sleep well at night, we must make it a habit to get 6-8 hours of sleep. This, in turn, will help us to feel fresh and have the energy to cope with ‘any-kind-of-day’ i.e. stress will reduce and the body that is storing the unnecessary load of stress and fatigue will now be ready to cope with any diet and exercise regime and most importantly this takes away the one major cause of being overweight.
Now, we are ready to go for an early morning walk or do a few exercises of our own choice i.e. jogging, cycling or 15-30 minute yoga, calisthenics and aerobics, or whatever your doctor recommends is good for you. This will help you to move those muscles and those parts of the body that are slowing down with being overweight.
The most important part of any day is to drink up at least 10-12 glasses of water/liquids as this is vital to keep you healthy and helps to reduce extra food intake. We now come to the “compulsory” breakfast which should include some fruit, cereal and sprouts, if possible. This is a meal one must not miss but you must visit a Doctor or Dietician to start the right dietary plan according to your specific health requirements.
The Lunch can now be a little more elaborate but again in close proximity with what the Doctor/Dietician has recommended. However, as per the normal rules, lunch is allowed to be a little heavier than Dinner which should be “light and easy to digest”. Tea can be light again with a small snack i.e. a light digestive biscuit.
The basic thing that remains is to avoid fatty foods i.e. fried, oily foodstuff, pizzas, chips, white bread, butter in excess etc., things that are difficult for the body to digest and make it overweight. Last, but not least, I must add that while I am not an authority on all the above information, I am part of the crowd reading up various articles for the health of my family and myself. I have, as a result, made available the gist of all that many Doctors, Fitness Instructors and that various articles have recommended. These are the basic guidelines which I feel would help us all to lose weight and gain our health back again.
By Petr Thomas
April 27th, 2006
Yoga has long been cited as a proven stress buster. Now a study from the University of California, Berkeley, suggests practicing poses regularly may be linked to better body image. Female study participants who took ashtanga or lyengar yoga classes reported higher body satisfaction and fewer disordered-eating attitudes compared with women who either attended Step classes or did traditional fitness activities, such as walking, running or gym workouts. Yes, it’s true that women who are drawn to yoga might start out with better body images, says researcher Jennifer Daubenmier, Ph.D., but yoga’s emphasis on stress relief, meditation and body awareness (rather than burning calories and shedding pounds) also may help explain the difference.
COPYRIGHT 2006 Weider Publications
COPYRIGHT 2006 Gale Group
April 12th, 2006
Yoga’s not only good for achieving balance, fostering calm, and making you flexible enough to put your leg behind your head, but “it can also build core strength,” says Teresa Kennedy, hatha yoga instructor and founder of Harlem’s Ta Yoga House. “And targeting those abdominal and back muscles can ease lower-back pain.” Do this series of asanas (the Sanskrit word for yoga postures), modeled by Kennedy, three times a week. In as many months you should have a tighter stomach and a more limber back.
The Cobra
Relieves minor backache and tones abs
Step 1: Lie on your stomach with legs and feet together. Plant palms on the floor beneath shoulders with fingers facing forward.
Step 2: Raise upper body by slowly lifting the head and chest, making sure to keep shoulders down. (Pelvis and thighs shouldn’t leave the yoga mat.)
3. Hold pose for 20 to 30 seconds as you take even breaths through your nose. Return to your starting position and repeat once.
Chair Pose
Strengthens abs
Step 1: Stand with legs hip width apart, holding arms straight ahead with palms facing downward.
Step 2: Bend knees and squat as if you’re about to sit in a chair. Be sure to center weight in your heels, and don’t bring hips lower than the knees.
Step 3: Reach forward, and focus eyes straight ahead while inhaling and exhaling through the nose. Hold for 20 seconds. Slowly return to standing position, then release arms.
Wind-Relieving Pose
Stretches spine and aids digestion (which explains the embarrassing name)
Step 1: Lie on your back. As you inhale, pull right knee to your chest. Keep left leg straight and on the floor.
Step 2: Press shoulders and the back of neck into the floor while tightly holding knee. Breathe for ten seconds.
Step 3: Switch sides, holding left knee to chest for ten seconds. Complete set by hugging both knees to chest and holding for ten seconds. Repeat set.
Upward Boat Pose
Strengthens abs, improves balance, and aids digestion
Step 1: Sit on the floor. Bend knees and plant feet on the floor.
Step 2: Inhale, lean back and lift heels off the floor, straightening your legs as much as possible. Extend arms with palms facing down. If this is too difficult at first, you can place your hands under your knees for support.
Step 3: As you hold the pose for 30 seconds, keep your back straight, and make sure your abs are doing the work.
Bow Pose
Strengthens spine and increases lung capacity
Step 1: Lie facedown with forehead on the floor. Part legs, bend knees, then take hold of ankles.
Step 2: Lift upper body and thighs by raising your head toward the ceiling and pressing ankles back against your hands.
Step 3: Balance on your stomach; the goal is to hold the pose without rocking. After 20 seconds, ease into starting position.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Essence Communications, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Gale Group
March 22nd, 2006
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