Posts Tagged ‘hatha yoga’

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Q: I have a concern; a student, who has been studying with me for a while, came to me and said that she experiences pain on the inside of her knees when sitting cross-legged, also in Sukasana forward fold.

I have suggested to avoid this pose and switch to sitting on her heels instead. Was not sure, though, what could be the cause of this pain and what ideas I could give her to move away from this discomfort.

A: Hatha Yoga can be the remedy for pain, or the cause of it, in some cases. This student should see her family physician or a specialist. We can guess what the source of pain is, but an MRI will tell the real story. A good modification is preparation for Sukasana.

One leg remains straight, while the other leg is bent at an angle where the knee does not encounter pain. Obviously, if the knee is bent into a sharp angle, the student will experience pain in the preparation pose. Therefore, this preparation should be practiced carefully, with a wide angle on the bent knee. This same principle holds true for any asanas where the knees are bent.

Q: I have a query from a student who wants to attend my Yoga classes. She is an older women, in her late 50s, but she had a bunion removed about 5 months ago on her foot – would it be advisable to come to class?

Or, shall it be only private Yoga practice? Also, what would be your idea, in terms of therapeutic practices; and which asana would she need to avoid?

A: You might want to schedule a private session first – just to do an evaluation. You won’t know much until you see her.

Bunion surgery is usually the procedure to remove the bone of the big toe and foot. The procedure varies and recovery does as well. Bunion surgery reconstructs the big toe bone and may require screws and plates to be placed in the bone during recovery.

All that said: Any postures that put pressure on the big toe, or roll the big toe under the foot, should be practiced carefully, or avoided altogether.

She should be observed in private to see if she can modify them for regular classes with other students. Have her go easy and carefully.

Q: There is something I would like to find out from you. Many of my students, after class – as they are beginning Yoga (but some also that stick to the mat for a while) do say that they feel stiff, some even lightly sore. I do use intelligent sequencing and pay special detail to injuries and modifications.

What would be my best reply if they mention they are stiff afterwards (although it’s an antidote as they come to Yoga class to become more open and work on their flexibility)?

Beside that they are loving the classes, they do feel very relaxed and centered. I want to be in their best service, so I want to be able to explain to them what is actually happening to their bodies and the reason why they feel stiffer then beforehand.

A: My guess is they feel sore in the legs. This usually happens when students’ bodies are not prepared for a standing series. If they give Yoga a chance, the soreness will disappear in a week or two.

If they still feel pain, you may want to reduce the standing series practice time, and gradually increase it over a period of months. However, if students do not attend regularly, or practice at home, their bodies will never adapt to the standing series.

© Copyright 2010 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles). Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

There are so many forms of back pain, that it seems impossible for Yoga to help them all. Truthfully, Hatha Yoga is great for pain prevention, but it also helps one cope with chronic back pain. If your day is filled with chronic back pain, less or no pain seems like a miracle. On the other hand, long term inflammations and chronic pain can make any form of adjustment or movement a challenge.

What can one do to get enough pain relief to practice Hatha Yoga, exercise, or physical therapy? In the case of a person who is in severe pain, no matter what he or she does, a physician may recommend a shot of marcaine, triamcenalone, or both. There is a school of thought that believes medication should be avoided at all costs. In reality, pain, and your tolerance of it, will make you come to a personal decision quickly. Each of us is different, and there is no need to make comparisons.

Doctors and chiropractors often recommend Yoga for back pain, but we want to make sure there is a doctor’s approval before beginning a practice. Once approval is received, it is wise to seek out a competent Yoga teacher, with expertise in back pain management. If a prospective Yoga teacher shows no sign of compassion and competence, search until you find one who meets your needs.

With safety in mind, each of us learns to explore the body gradually. Never force or lock a joint while practicing Yoga postures. Learn to incorporate Yogic breathing techniques, as you become comfortable with your practice, and do not skip past foundational Yoga instruction. Listed below are details concerning Trikonasana, which should help a person experiencing chronic back pain.

Trikonasana (Triangle Pose): This is an open twist, which is usually practiced from a standing position, but Chair Yoga practitioners may have learned to do this from a seated position. So many muscles are involved when practicing Trikonasana, that many people forget about the benefits to the skeletal structure.

To reduce pain in the back, the parts of the skeletal structure we are concerned with are the spine, shoulders, pelvis, and hip joints. When we consider back pain, all of these parts come into play, but we often forget that hips have limited range of motion while we move them from side to side. The hips have great range of motion going into a forward bend, but they are designed for stability more than mobility. Forcing the hips into abduction puts excessive torque on the SI joints.

One method to consider is the use of a chair, tall block, or a short stool while practicing Trikonasana. Forget the “cookie cutter” photographs of 19 year old models performing this posture. Forget the dogma from Yoga teachers who want to force your hips to rotate forward. Each skeleton is different. When you mindfully practice Trikonasana, you gently work the hips, pelvis, SI joints, and the rest of your spine, to reduce, or prevent, pain.

© Copyright 2010 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Yoga techniques and counseling help adults who struggle with anger management. Yoga can also help teens learn to find themselves during the most confusing time in human life. There is research which indicates that hormonal changes may also contribute to aggressive behavior during adolescence.

According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, there was a study conducted by Warren MP and Brooks-Gunn J., at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital, in New York City, of 100 adolescent girls between the ages of 10.6-13.3 yrs. The last line of the study states: “These data suggest that hormonal changes may be more important than the physical changes as determinants of certain mood and behavior patterns at adolescence.”

The older adults become – the less familiar they may be with the causes and solutions for anger that some teens feel. There are a multitude of reasons why teens feel angry. Hormonal changes are not the only factor, as relationships at home, in school, and with friends, are part of the equation. Below are four solutions for anger management, which are commonly found in Yoga.

1. Identify the Problem: In Yogic self-analysis, we learn to identify problems and create solutions. For a teen to identify the problem requires honest discussions with family members, a counselor, or both. The chances are that this method will require a series of discussions with a mediator, who is not emotionally involved with any anger flare-ups.

2. Identify the Trigger: During Yoga meditation one learns focus and quiet the mind. Each of us has triggers, which enhance states of anger. For example – adults may feel anger in a traffic jam. By the time the adult commuter arrives to the workplace, he or she is carrying emotional baggage from the daily commute.

For teens, it is much more difficult for them to precisely identify emotional triggers that cause anger. For example – a teen may accept a certain amount of peer pressure during the course of a week, without mentioning any of this to his or her parents. Also, teens (from broken families) may resent the fact that they are not able to obtain instant feedback from both parents.

3. Make Time for Therapy: It is easy to put constructive tasks aside for the daily situations in life. However, a teen, who is dealing with anger management, is a teen who is at risk. Therapy could resemble any number of possibilities. Traditionally, families dealt with teen anger management from within.

These days, more families find solutions through professional counseling or adjunct therapies, such as Yoga. The benefits of Yoga practice for teens are many. For example – teens who participate in Yoga sessions learn how to develop inner calm, build self-confidence, and to use reason in potentially emotional situations.

4. Resolution: To resolve inner conflicts requires teens and their family members to settle their problems over the long term. In other words, once a resolution is reached, there is a need to let go of anger. In fact, anger is another form of self-imprisonment, which can bring much grief to us during our lifetime.

In summation, Hatha Yoga offers many techniques, which stabilize the mind. Pranayama, asana, Yogic philosophy, meditation, and relaxation techniques are priceless tools to rid oneself of excess anger, regardless of age.

© Copyright 2010 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles). Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

No matter which form of Yoga you practice, or teach, you begin to notice talent levels. Our teachers may have instructed us not to be competitive, and to avoid judging, but that is what people do. Judging time, speed, and distance can keep you safe in traffic; just as much as judging saved primal humans, who hunted and gathered for a living.

How do we avoid making comparisons to others and move forward in our Yoga practice? The answer is to look within and find contentment in your practice. It will take time to find your way. It takes years of study to be the best you can be at anything. This is a time when taking the short cut to everything is mass marketed.

If you are told you can lose weight, permanently, in 30 days, do you believe it? This same lesson applies to Yoga and all aspects of life. To improve at anything, you must invest time in practice, study – more practice and more study. As much as advertisers might try to convince you otherwise, there is no quick fix for hard work and dedication.

In Hatha Yoga, photography and our competitive nature have created new sub-styles, which focus on being the best and winning. To be honest, sport and fitness styles have a place in Yoga and in life. Most of us have entered competition for something that we found significant. It is part of life to compete, but that only scratches the superficial surface of fitness Yoga.

The experienced Hatha practitioner begins to realize that deeper aspects may point toward Raja, Karma, Jnana, and Bhakti Yoga practice. We begin to see Yoga as a healer of many ailments. This transition usually takes years to process, even if we study under the careful guidance of a competent Yoga teacher.

As much as some humans may try to avoid it, hard work and dedication are significant parts of life. They build character and shape our way of thinking. In fact, humanity has plenty of hard work on the horizon. We can deny global warming, as we see glaciers and mountain tops melt; or we can work together toward solutions for future generations.

In life, and in every form of Yoga practice, we begin to understand that natural talent will carry us only to a finite point. In order to move beyond that point, we have to invest in research and development.

© Copyright 2009 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

FREE Yoga Report. FREE Yoga Newsletter. FREE Yoga Videos. Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”

FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles). Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul

By Karen Scully

I began my yoga practice about 10 years ago with an incredible teacher, Julie Wright. I was in my early 40’s, and had been a runner for many years. I developed calcium deposits on my left thigh which caused great pain after my runs, to the point of crying while trying to go to sleep. When my doctor informed me that I had to stop running, I spent the next year looking for some form of exercise that I could do the rest of my life and would give me the “highs” of running along with the benefits – mainly weight loss. That was also when my doctor informed me I was in my early 40’s and should find a form of exercise I could do for a lifetime.

So I practiced yoga almost daily for about two years. I took mainly power yoga classes, some Bikram, some meditative. I was amazed at how strong and limber a 43 year old could be. Through different injuries that were a result of my job as a personal trainer, I turned to yoga to cure my aches, pains and depression at no longer being the young thing I thought I was. So my yoga experience grew out of a need to find health through exercise and that is what my focus is on – health for all through yoga, but specifically for the “mature adult.”

The one thing I have run into with active older adults is the need for yoga for therapeutic reasons, be it physical or mental. One of the incredible things about practicing yoga is that yoga strengthens all different areas of the body: heart, lungs, muscles, cardiovascular and nervous system. Yoga can also improve our digestive systems, send oxygen to all our different systems to bring them to a healthier state, and helps our psychological well-being. All of these are a like a jewel found in one place for a person needing to remain healthy for life. Another thing I find with active older adults is stress caused by either injury or physical conditions plaguing them, such as diabetes, etc., and the stress leads to depression. It is like a vicious cycle: injury or poor health leads to stress leads to depression leads to stress leads to poor health and so on.

Studies have shown that people who practice yoga recover from surgery faster, reduce symptoms of diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, just to name a few. Why is that? Is it that yoga helps to reduce stress? Is it because the breathing sends healing energy through the body? Is it because their muscles and bones move more easily because of the asanas? Is it because you become more toxin free because of the twisting poses? Does meditation play a part? It’s because of all of these things, which is why yoga is perfect for anyone but specifically for the active older adult. And since no two people are alike – everyone has different strengths and weaknesses and different degrees of health, we have different types of yoga available for everyone.

Let’s begin with breathing, the most important part of ayoga practice. We are taught different types of breathing in yoga to help us in our asana practice and in our meditation. But anyone knows just from having to go in for, say, a big test and slowing their heart by taking deep, slow breaths that you can indeed rule your heartbeats and in turn, rule your blood pressure by slow, deep breathing. We take oxygen into our lungs that is transmitted into our bloodstream and carried to our muscles to increase our ability to exercise and stretch without muscle fatigue. Proper breathing techniques can relax a person immediately and anywhere and we know that because of studies done regarding shifting the balance of the nervous system to the parasympathetic side causing the relaxing to begin almost immediately. We know that relaxing muscles can help chronic pain, most commonly found in older adults from either physical illness or treatments used to help with their illness. So breathing is an essential part of anyone’s yoga practice, and it will be discussed again.

Yoga is a great stress reducer. Stress can come from lots of different things: daily work, issues with income/health, poor muscle alignment, chronic pain. As a matter of fact, arthritis and back pain are the two most common forms of pain, exacerbated by stress, found in older adults. Stress makes our muscles more likely to go into spasm, causing more pain/more stress. Stress can interfere with our deep sleep, essential for health, and common older adults. Lack of sleep increases pain. It is another vicious cycle. A regular yoga practice can help relax muscles, relieve stress and relieve pain.

Older adults also tend to slump, especially in their upper spines, causing muscle fatigue around their upper back and necks, ultimately causing pain. If continued, either due to sitting for hours watching TV or on their computers, or by the beginnings of arthritis or bone loss, their bones can slowly start to fuse in this manner so they can no longer stand straight. That’s why you see lots of older people stooped over from the middle of the back up. That is what happened to my father. Regular use of different asanas to strengthen our upper backs, using something like locust pose or cobra pose, can help strengthen these muscles and relieve the stress in the upper back, in turn relieving the pain.

Yoga also helps a person differentiate between whether they are feeling pain or are suffering. Pain can cause suffering but it is important for a person to know the difference and the difference is mostly a matter of the mind. This is where meditation comes in. Generally an active older adult cannot avoid pain, but they can control how much the “suffer” from pain. Studies have been done to show that long-term meditation can change the “wiring” of the brain in beneficial ways. Meditation activates the left prefrontal cortex which has been associated with greater levels of happiness. Personal happiness has a great deal to do with a person’s pain and suffering from the pain. Also, studies have shown that meditation can help reduce the pain signals from the thalamus to the higher brain centers where our brain interprets pain. Meditation is a huge part of biofeedback which has been shown to greatly help with a person’s pain. And where does our meditation always begin – proper breathing.

Studies have also shown that the vibrations we use, the Oms or the chanting (here we are back to breathing properly) helps to regulate the inhalations and exhalations we do. Regulating our inhalations/exhalations will regulate our involuntary muscle control, such as our heartbeats and blood pressure. Also, chanting helps us to redirect our thinking away from the pain we feel, giving a release, even for a short time, to our brain interpretation of pain, and we can learn to lengthen these periods of not necessarily removal of pain but ceasing to think out pain, thus teaching our bodies to do/think what we wish instead of the other way around. This has been found to be really helpful in older adults dealing with things such as fibromyalgia or even chemotherapy.

Older adults also seem to become depressed more easily than younger adults. Maybe our kids are grown and gone, we are unable to participate in golf or tennis the way we did due to illness or injury, whatever – depression is a huge problem in older adults. Many doctors want to treat depression with anti-anxiety drugs but yoga really leans toward a loftier goal. Yoga wants to quiet a restless mind, put us in touch with our deeper purpose in life, give us an inner source of calm and joy. Does this mean that older adults should not follow their doctor’s instructions and just do yoga? No. But it does mean we can incorporate the two to help a person to become well again, both in body and in spirit. And as we get older, we are less worried about our bodies than we are about our spirit.

If a person is physically able to do the sun salutations, these truly do bring energy into our bodies. Deep inhalations breathe energy into our bodies, and vigorous poses, such as the sun salutations or balance poses actually keep us from thinking about what may be our problems because we are too busy just trying to do the poses. The most important thing for people we work with who we know are suffering from depression is to not worry too much about their alignment (as long as we know they are not hurting themselves) but to just focus on their movement and breath. This keeps their mind focused. While they are focusing on the various movements and breathing, their body is taking in essential energy, stress relief, relaxation to help them combat depression. It works for everyone, no matter what their age but is particularly useful in older adults. Good poses for them are, along with the sun salutations are back bends because sending blood to their brains helps. It is always better to get quickly into the poses with persons who are depressed instead of focusing too much on relaxation or meditation because sometimes they can sink deeper into their depression and dark thoughts. It is also important to remember when you are doing their relaxation or savasana to keep their eyes open because closing their eyes causes them to focus inward and can lead to dark thoughts which are counterproductive to our practice.

We also understand that chanting and other devotional practices associated with yoga can help because they go directly to our emotions, again stimulating the left prefrontal cortex that is associated with calmness, happiness and emotional resiliency. Learning to bypass our bad thoughts and emotions through these practices can help us better deal with the emotional ups and downs of our lives.

Yoga also stresses a mind/body connection that some people think is elusive but yogis believe is essential. A good example of mind/body connection is does our mouth water when we think of apple pie? Does it elicit a good mood – a mood of contentment? On another level, are we so caught up in thinking of our problems that we cannot sleep? Are we so stressed about the difficulties we face as older adults that we develop an ulcer? Our physical bodies can affect our state of mind. We can’t walk as well as we used to so we become depressed. We take a hot bath to relax and relieve stress. Certain backbend poses can elicit a state of happiness in us. We can use different poses in yoga to make ourselves feel a certain way, and we can direct those poses specific to the older adult.

We need to remember to work on proper alignment, being careful to avoid poses that could cause problems with people with osteoporosis such as twists, lateral flexion and spinal flexion. We move gently through our poses incorporating spinal stabilization poses in every class, we feature poses that are comfortable and steady and encourage rest whenever necessary, we are cognizant of problems associated with older adults such as heart or blood pressure problems, and we urge the use of props, including chairs or walls for balance.

I have talked about asanas but I haven’t really covered the benefits of practicing yoga poses. Let’s take Big Toe pose – just a simple folding over of the body and holding your big toes. It, of course, benefits the low back. It also calms our brain to help relieve stress and anxiety, stimulates our liver and kidneys, stretches our hamstrings and calves, strengthens our thighs, improves digestion and helps relieve symptoms of menopause, headaches and insomnia. Next let’s take a look at a high lunge. It focuses on our ankles, calves, thighs, groin, abdomen, chest, shoulders, armpits and neck. It also helps with sciatica, heart problems and blood pressure problems. Warrior I focuses on the same as a high lunge, but also incorporates the lungs. It also strengthens the shoulders, arms and muscles of the back along with strengthening the thighs, calves and ankles. So even though I glossed over the poses a little, it would be exhaustive and take up the whole essay to discuss the benefits of each pose. Every pose strengthens, stretches and relaxes.

The purification we achieve from our twisting asanas help keep our systems working as God intended. As we wring our out visceral organs and the toxins are released into our bloodstreams, we flush them with water. Any twisting asana helps our bodies purify themselves.

Lastly, yoga also teaches us that the more we think something, the more likely we are to do it again. Our habits become deeper with more repetition. So our negative thinking or our self-flagellating inner dialogue may fuel depression. And the more an active older person sits alone or is inactive, the more they fuel their depression. So if we’re going to have a habit in our old age, let it be yoga. Let it be breathing properly, strength through asanas, meditation and purification through yoga. Let it be health in our mature years through yoga.

Karen Scully teaches Power and Hatha Yoga classes in Dallas, Texas.

By Nighean Hardie

Yoga is one of India’s wonderful gifts to mankind and although its origins are ancient, its methods and purposes are still relevant today, relying not on cultural background, faith or deity, but simply of the individual and the benefits each person receives from practising. Yoga has become important in the lives of many contemporary Westerners, sometimes as a way of improving the health and fitness of the body and Hatha yoga, a limb of yoga that emphasises strenuous and persistent effort, encourages awareness of the body. Coming back to the body draws the mind back to the present. Then, the worries drop away and there are no more “shoulds’ or “musts”. One of the reasons yoga is so refreshing is that, even if only for an instant, there is only the reality of the present moment. Each time you come to the present moment, you drop a certain amount of baggage. You may pick it up again thereafter, but the point is that you have practiced letting it go. Eventually you will be able to reduce the stress more often and for longer periods of time. In this respect, yoga is like life training. Its practice is a fabulous tool for transformation.

Yoga is an extremely powerful way of strengthening the body. One of its many valuable qualities is that it builds up a store of physical health through the practice of asanas, keeping the body cleansed and fit; exercise is essential for the speedy removal of toxins and for keeping blood circulation and all internal processes functioning smoothly. Hatha yoga in particular, is ideally suited to modern Westerners. Its structure is such that it starts with the very basics of how we experience existence – the physical body – and works inward. Increasingly, we fail to use our bodies enough or we have lifestyles that abuse them. Most of us suffer from back or joint pain at some stage, and many aspects of modern life – for example, sitting down for long periods of time to drive, watch television or work at a computer – place strains upon the body for which it is ill-prepared. We use medication to mask pain without bothering to establish its underlying cause. The flexibility and sensitivity that we had as children is lost as we gradually shut down our innate awareness of our bodies.

The physical benefits of yoga include increased strength, suppleness and stamina. Unlike many sports and fitness routines, yoga works on all the body’s muscles – this avoids overtraining specific muscle groups, a practice which can lead to injuries. Yoga enhances your balance, posture, agility and grace. It also cleanses and conditions internal systems and enhances bodily processes, such as digestion. Standing poses increase metabolism and also strengthen and tone the muscles, build endurance and warm the body. The exercises not only boost the body’s metabolism but also normalise the hormonal imbalances in the body to ensure good health and a glowing skin. The malfunctioning of the endocrine glands that regulate your metabolism could lead to stress, premature aging and other diseases and whilst this continues to affect many people throughout the world – especially in western countries – a healthy metabolism keeps the body and mind in perfect balance. The twisting and compressing of the yoga postures massage the endocrine and abdominal organs, regulating their function, improving local circulation and cleansing them of old stagnant toxins.

Yoga can help to alleviate or eliminate specific physical symptoms or ailments, such as PMS, headache, back ache, stress, insomnia, asthma and irritable bowl syndrome. Under the guidance of a specialist teacher, yoga can aid the management of or recovery from more serious conditions, such as cancer, HIV, arthritis, multiple sclerosis and other degenerative diseases.

It must always be remembered it does not matter what kind of shape your body is in when you start your practice: just having a body – being alive – is sufficient qualifications for doing yoga.

The ancient yogic philosophy states that there are physical, mental and spiritual sheaths of existence. The body tends to develop certain illnesses and disorders due to the imbalance in these sheaths. Yoga practice is associated with physical, emotional and ultimately, spiritual benefits. You may notice some benefits, such as increased flexibility and calm, early on in your practice, while others may appear more slowly as you cultivate a new awareness of your body and mind.

Having dealt with the physical side of life, yoga turns to the mental. Here different breathing exercises or techniques quieten the mind and brain, offering inner peace and an ability to face upheavals and deal with problems. An emphasis on breathing techniques helps you to breathe better – deeper and more fully – even when you are not practising yoga. This leads to clarity and stillness of mind, which in turn leads to improved concentration. You may also find that yoga helps to reduce anxiety, emotional tension and mood swings. One of the most profound benefits of yoga is stress management. Studies have shown that anxiety and stress levels can be reduced effectively through meditation, which also has a remarkable healing effect on the physical body. Imagine a stressful day at work or at home. The fast-paced environment requires you to be constantly worrying about the next thing. With yoga, you can benefit from relaxed breathing with a reasonable degree of control. Such activity allows your body and muscles to relax and think about peaceful thoughts, diverting your focus on stress. Even flexing activities could help a stressed person by loosening the tight muscles. Often when someone is stressed, the muscles are as well.

Practicing asana provides a way of physically and mentally unwinding to help focus the mind in preparation for meditation. Some people benefit greatly from this kind of preparation, while others may find that a moving meditation suits them best – some styles such as Astanga Vinyasa incorporate meditation into posture practice. The movement of the body provides a tool for concentrating the mind.

Throughout history and in all cultures, people have sought ways to go beyond the limitations of habitual living and discover more about themselves and the nature of reality. Meditation means “to become familiar with” and is a way of exploring the inner self. In our busy lives where the senses tend to be drawn outward, meditation is a good opportunity to turn inward on a journey of discovery. Meditation can be used to help us relax and cope with stress. It slows down the mind and balances the emotions. People use meditation for healing. It can also assist in problem solving by leading us to insights, which may range from the spiritually significant to the mundane. It can take us to higher states of awareness, peace and clarity. Sometimes people experience visions or feelings of bliss, vitality and an increased sensory awareness. Some have a sense of connecting with a higher aspect of themselves or with the divine. Ultimately, mediation is a personal pursuit and once a regular practice has been established many find the benefits are far beyond those they expected.

In terms of “specialist” yoga; prenatal yoga can help lower a mother’s anxiety, increase oxygen, improve circulation and create a bonding experience with the baby prior to birth. Many prenatal yoga classes incorporate chanting into their sessions: sound is powerful and studies have shown that babies learn to recognize and respond to voices in the womb with many pregnancy experts advising talking to your baby daily to increase early bonding for both mother and child. Studies on prenatal yoga have shown it improves birth weight, decreases preterm labour, and decreases IUGR (isolated intrauterine growth retardation) either in isolation or associated with PIH (pregnancy-induced hypertension).

In India itself, the home of yoga, some children begin yoga from the age of five. The benefits of improved health, fitness and concentration are well documented, and now many forward-thinking schools in the West are beginning to teach yoga to children. This practice has been shown to enhance self-confidence, self-reliance, self-discipline, academic performance and the ability to cope with stressful situations, such as exams. By teaching self awareness, self control, and concentration, yoga can also help to manage children who have been diagnosed with ADHD – attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder. It has also been used with some success to help children with Downs Syndrome, cerebral palsy and autism.

Finally, yoga is a personal path of discovery for each of us. Its particular and unique relevance to each person will become apparent as you begin your practice. On the physical level, as in life, being off balance doesn’t feel good. Feeling as though you might topple over at any time is neither safe nor comfortable. One of the reasons yoga has grown dramatically in popularity is that it helps people feel harmonious, integrated and complete. As you learn about your centre in a yoga pose, you practice finding your centre in other areas of your life. In fact, dealing with a posture can train you to better deal with life events. The strengthening, purifying and energizing practices of yoga can lead you back to a more complete awareness of your self and can be practiced by everyone in order to stay healthy, calm and disease free.

Nighean Hardie is a Certified Yoga Teacher. She teaches Yoga classes in Barnet, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.

The Health Benefits of Vinyasa Yoga

By Dawn Gordon

Balance is defined as a harmonious relationship of parts within a whole or a state of equilibrium. (1) The practice of Vinyasa Yoga, a branch of Hatha Yoga, brings the whole person into balance through the yoking of body and mind with the breath. Vinyasa Yoga has been defined as a flowing sequence of specific asanas coordinated with the movement of the breath.(2) Through the practice of Yoga equanimity is achieved and the whole person’s health is heightened.

Vinyasa Yoga’s postures bring the body into symmetry by showing us the proper alignment of our skeletal system. The performance of Tadasana or Mountain Pose, the foundation of standing poses, teaches our body to find balance from our base, the feet, to the top of our head. Study of this asana shows us the essential relationship of a balanced pelvis with a well aligned spine, as the lower portion of the spine, the sacrum, is joined to the pelvis by strong ligaments and actually forms the bowl of the pelvis. When our spine is in balance, following its natural curves, intrinsic equilibrium is experienced. This translates into added energy, as energy is not wasted by the muscles working to keep us upright. Back pain is diminished and the vertebra and discs’ health are maintained. Think of the health benefits of a balanced spine for a person sitting at a computer. From our pelvis, the stable base is established, aligning the bones down to and including the feet. This same connectedness of alignment can be taken into our everyday activities making our movements safer, taking the strain or torque off of our joints increasing the time of pain free movement and mobility. Running in balance with out compensating for misalignment of the spine, pelvis, hips, knees, ankles and feet, keeps muscles healthy, loose, strong, and working more efficiently as the body’s natural shock absorbers.

When misalignment of bones exists and movements are repeated the work of muscles is not evenly distributed. As a result, the imbalanced muscles stress the relationship of the bones distorting the skeletal structure. Vinyasa Yoga brings the body back to balance by equalizing the tone among muscles groups around a joint. To equalize the muscle tone both strength and flexibility is required as one muscle may need strength for the other to stretch. The increased flexibility of muscles and connective tissues such as fascia and ligaments keep our structure stable while the increase of strength protect us from arthritis and back pain. The joints surrounded by these strong flexible muscles gain an increased range of motion producing optimal movement and improving the vitality of the joint’s cartilage. The cyclist who’s knee flares out due to weakness or chronic tightness runs the risk of wearing down the ligaments, cartilage and tendons, developing non symmetrical muscle groups.

Postures of Vinyasa Yoga are typically categorized as standing, forward bends, back bends, twists, inversions, balancing and relaxation postures. Each category of postures equalizes muscle groups, align bones, and enhance health in many ways. A well balanced Yoga class includes asanas from each category along with pranayama creating a happy healthy harmonious body. As discussed previously, the standing posture Tadasana increases awareness of alignment, avoiding the problems associated with poor posture. Standing poses (Trikonasana/Triangle Virabhadrasana I, II/Warrior 1, 2, and Utthita Parsvakonasana/Extended Side Angle) also invigorate and warm the body; reduce stiffness. Standing poses also develop stamina, discipline, coordination, open the hips and increase strength.

Tight hamstrings, common in athletes and the western population in general flatten the lumbar spine causing lower back pain among other ailments. Forward bends (Uttanasana/Forward Bend, Prasarita Padottanasa/Standing Stradle and Parsvottanasana/Standing Head to Knee) stretch the hamstrings along with hips, back and shoulders. They also lengthen the spine freeing up nerve pathways, and firm the anterior side of the body. They message abdominal organs, increase circulation, tone of the liver, spleen and kidneys, calm the nervous system and are energetically cooling.

Back bends stretch and tone the front of the body, pelvis, abdomen, thighs shoulders and chest. These muscled areas are tightened and weakened by inactivity and constant forward motion caused by sitting in front of a computer, riding a bike and manual labor. Chest and spine opening via extensions (Bhujangasana/Cobra, Dhanurasana/Bow, Ustrasana/Camel and Anjaneyansana/Cresent) also strengthen the arms, legs, buttocks, back and core; release shoulder tension freeing the rib cage encourage even deep breathing; rejuvenate and increase suppleness of the spine, pelvis and sacroiliac joint. They compress the thymus gland stimulating better immune function; activate the solar plexus affecting metabolism and body heat; and most importantly, bring awareness to the importance of leading with our heart.

Twisting postures benefit our health in numerous ways and are essential to returning the full range of motion to a restricted spine. Ardha Matsyendrasana/Half Spinal Twist, Bharadvajansana/Hip Spiral, and Jathara, Parivartanasana/Recline Hip Rolls (a few of the twists), break up deep tension along the spine encouraging natural adjustments of the vertebrae, and muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia are lengthened. These postures rebalance deep spinal muscles and control or correct minor scoliosis. Internal organs are compressed by twists, stimulating circulation, balancing the hormonal system, and stabilizing energy levels by bringing blood flow to the adrenal area. Intercostal muscles are stretched increasing breathing capacity. Done correctly, twists can psychologically center you to your core.

Inversions reverse the flow of the blood from its typical path. The fresh blood brought to the brain, recharges and clears the mind. Overall circulation is improved by inverting, as is digestion and elimination. The immune and endocrine systems are stimulated by Sirasana/headstands, while the arms, shoulders and upper body are strengthened. These transformative postures can cause a change in psychological perspective. The down side of going up side down is fear. Performing the less intense inversions like Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Dog, Sarangasana/Shoulder Stand and Shashasana/rabbit allow the realization of these benefits without fear.

Balancing poses, sometimes unnerving, place ourselves in physical equilibrium with the gravitational field and are important part of a Vinyasa class. They help us focus our minds, encourage us to be centered and grounded; strengthen the muscles of the abdomen and legs (both large and small) and teach us humility, patience, and persistence. Practice of balance postures by the elderly can prevent falls, while athletes can increase body awareness and focus. For the rest of us, postures like Vrksasana/Tree make us feel less wobbly on and off the mat.

Relaxation postures and the relaxation felt by connecting movement with the breath in a Vinyasa class are the very reason why many have gravitated to the practice of yoga. Stress, tension and over stimulation created by daily activities are balanced, potentially reducing high blood pressure which affects one of three Americans. Production of cortisol in response to crisis diminishes, slowing down diseases like depression, osteoporosis, and diabetes. Yoga allows us time away for the crisis of life by stimulating the parasympathetic and turning off the sympathetic (fight or flight response) nervous systems. Equilibrium of these nervous systems helps eliminate digestive problems and mental illness. Savasana/Corpse/Relaxation pose lets us notice where we hold tension and experience the feeling of release. Relaxation also prepares the body for pranayama.

Various breathing techniques or pranayama bring equanimity and numerous health benefits. “Breathe is life.“ (3) Inhales lengthen, extend and increase effort, while exhales move, deepen and encourage surrender in postures. (Achieving the equilibrium between effort and surrender is key to the practice of yoga.) The breath is the direct link of the body and mind, controlling every aspect of our life, bringing mental clarity, calmness and peace. It is the vehicle for release of tension and brings awareness to the postures. Inhalations feed oxygen to cells of the body delivering vitality, while exhalations rid the lungs of toxins and prepare them for blood enriching oxygen. Breathing out promotes regeneration of cells and vital organs. The Complete Breath taught in yoga improves various measures of lung function including the maximum volume of breath and efficiency of the exhalation. Vinyasa yoga sequences use ujjayi breathing, also called Ocean breath. The sound of the breath entering in the nose and through a restricted throat, soothes the mind, draws awareness inward and produces an even steady flow of breath. Victorious breath (ujjayi) is also known to increase vitality, improve thoracic mobility and digestion, remove phlegm from the throat and tone the nervous system.

Vinyasa Yoga is truly a lesson in balance. It teaches us the vital importance of the symmetry of our skeletal structure and the evenness of the stretch and strength of muscles. By harmonizing standing, forward bends, backbends, twists, inversions, balance, relaxation postures with pranyama; our whole being both physical and psychological attains good health. Attending a Vinyasa yoga class balances our rambling mind so we can clearly see the peace that resides within. Samadhi, the eighth and last limb of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra and ultimate goal of the practice of yoga, literally means to bring into harmony, to stand within our true self. (4) *

Bibliography

Direct quotes:

1. Wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

2. “Consciousness in Motion” by Shiva Rea; Yoga Journal

3. The Complete Yoga Book, by James Hewitt, page 54

4. “Definition of Ashtanga” by Richard Rosen; Yoga Journal 9/26/09

Sources:

1. The Complete Book of Vinyasa Yoga, by Srivatsa Ramaswami

2. The Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnu-devananda

3. The Complete Yoga Book by James Hewitt

4. The Key Poses of Hatha Yoga, by Ray Long MD FRCSC

5. Yoga Anatomy, by Leslie Kaminoff

6. Shambhava School of Yoga-Hatha Yoga Teacher Training Manual

7. Maintaining Physical Balance with Exercise & Breath by Hamid Bey;

Inner Connection Newsletter June 15, 1999

8. Yoga Has Never Been More Popular, by Shuchi J Gokhale;

Yoga Teacher Training Blog AURA Studio 8/17/2009

9. Count on Yoga: 38 Ways Yoga Keeps You Fit by timothy McCall, MD;

Yoga Journal 5/26/09

10. Yoga for Runners by Baron Baptiste and Kathleen Finn Mendola,;

Yoga Journal 7/24/09

11. Yoga for Cyclists by Baron Baptiste and Kathleen Finn Mendola;

Yoga Journal 6/3/09

Dawn Gordon is a Certified Yoga Teacher. She teaches in the Snowmass Village, Colorado area.

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Hatha is only one of the nine main forms of Yoga from India. Each of us begins to practice Hatha Yoga for a variety of reasons. Among these many reasons for practicing – some of us are drawn to Hatha Yoga by the healing aspects, the spiritual journey, a feeling of inner peace, or the joy of physical mastery. No matter what the original reason was, self-realization will become a reality sooner or later.

Among those who practice Yoga, on a steady basis, are people with a variety of religious beliefs. Some Yoga practitioners believe in God, or Gods, and some do not believe in the concept of a single or multiple God entities. Yet, practitioners with a wide variety of spiritual beliefs, practice in the same class in complete tranquility.

Self-realization could be defined as a state of mind, where we are present in the moment. Yogis might describe it as the achievement of higher consciousness, through the realization of the inner-being. Some spiritual teachers say self-realization is a state of seeing, knowing, feeling, and being the soul.

Regardless of your exact beliefs, self-realization in Yoga, is being present for practice. The practice of Hatha Yoga is usually pranayama, meditation, mantra, relaxation, asana, mudra, or a combination of these techniques. The study of any form of Yoga will result in the accumulation of wisdom, understanding, and the clarity of perception.

There are some benefits, which result from long-term Yoga practice and self-realization. To know one’s self is to know one’s true nature, but it takes time, practice, and work. Each of us has a special purpose, but not all of us find it. To know one’s true purpose in life is a mystery to most of us. Through insight, and the development of one’s intuition, we can attain our true purpose.

How do we develop the insight to find our true purpose? Spiritual beauty is easy to see. Children are good examples of spiritual beauty. The longer we live, the easier it is to be confused by erroneous information. In the confusion, our visions of a brighter future can become clouded by pessimism. The truth is: Spiritual beauty is within each of us.

The next step is to concentrate and find those thoughts that bring happiness to us. When we find inner harmony, all we have to do is share it with those around us. Each day is a second chance to improve our ways. The result of our continued efforts will put us on a path to achieve goodness.

© Copyright 2009 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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