What does asana mean? It is a strange word and it is easy to get confuse with all the names when starting yoga. It is fairly simple: asana simply mean various yoga postures. There are good chances that you recently started yoga if you are reading this article, so it will be of great interest for you. The asanas presented in this article are in no way “expert asanas” are are meant to get you accustomed to yoga practices by gaining increased flexibility.
Asana happens to be one of the pillar of yoga practices and it is for a reason: through asanas, you will learn balance, patience, tolerance and perseverance.
How to perform asanas
Asanas can be performed in a lot of different positions: seated, standing, turning and twisting posture, balancing posture and supine. There are multiple levels in asanas depending on the level of complexity. These levels are pretty simple and are: beginner, middle and comple.
Which asana for what.
Depending on what you are looking to improve, there are different asanas you will want to consider. For example, if you’d like to make your back or hips stronger, you will have to look into sitting asanas. For your mental condition, balance postures will be your best bet. To enhance your flexibility you can use twisting and turning asanas and if you are just looking for tranquility and peace then relaxation is for yo.
Popular asanas
- Shvasana: This asana requires you to lie on your back in a completely rested state. This is why this asana is called the corpse pose
- Padmasana: This asanas will test your tolerance level because it is a sitting posture with errected back and with legs on opposite thighs
- Navasana: To perform this asana correctly, you will be required, by being in a sitting posture, to lift your legs with a 45 degrees angle from the surface of the floor.
- Utkatasna: This one is hard and will require endurance. This is because this pose requires you to be in a sitting position without any chair. While in this position, you will have to raise your handes towards sky.
- Dhanurasana: This is a hard one and you will have to lie with the help of your stomach and thighs. Then, what you want to ahieve is a “bow” posture by simply taking hold of your legs with your hands.
Being aware of you level of skills is important when practicing yoga. If you are a beginner, concentrate on beginner’s asanas and slowly move to more complex ones.
In today’s world, we all have a lot on our minds and we often feel overwhelmed by what’s going on around us. Whatever your reasons are to feel this way, fear and anxiety eventually leads to stress and it’s hard to be at your best under constant stress and pressure. Stress plays a big role in your general health, so it is extremely important to relax. By knowing this, why not learn today how to recognize and manage your stress levels so that you can go ahead in life and achieve your goals?
One way of doing so, is by the proactive of Yogic breathing exercises. These exercises offer you a way to manage your anxieties and live a more balanced live. A lot of Yoga students report the benefits of using the yoga breathing exercises when they feel overwhelmed or stress. This can be particularly useful for them in extreme stress situations like an exam. This can also be useful to you in your everyday life, before a supervision by your team manager or a meeting with new people.
You breath really is the essence of yoga as it’s your connection to life. This is an essential step into establishing control and balance over your emotions so you can get more out of your life.
The core of yoga is built on breathing practices called pranayama. If you want to reduce your stress levels, it is important you learn how to breath correctly and yoga can help you achieve that. The following yoga breathing exercises are among the most effective one and should bring you maximum benefit in releasing stress and tension. You don’t need any particular skill to practice them, they are fairly simple and can be practiced at any time of the day.
Diaphragmatic Breathing
This one can be practiced by lying down on your back(comfortable surface of course), sitting on a chair or even standing up and that’s why it makes that method easy to practice at any time. First, place one hand on your upper chest and the other hand on your belly. It is important to relax your belly and chest and keep your mouth closed for this technique to work properly so that you breathe in through the nose and feel your belly rising up, then the ribcage and finally the upper chest. It is advised to practice around five to seven rounds of this exercise before opening your eyes. Then, be still for a few moments and then you’re ready to re-engage with your day!
Watch The Breath
While sitting comfortably, close your eyes and become aware of how you are breathing. It is important not to change the way or the speed at which you breathe, but to just be aware of the movement of air going through your nose. Then, allow your breath stabilize and continue to listen to your breath breath for a couple of minutes
It is more than natural to lose concentration with this exercise. It is totally normal, so simply start over again when this happen.
Lion Roar
To perform that one, you are free to either sit or stand, but scrunch your face up. Open your eyes, open your mouth, look upwards, stretch out your tongue and finalloy just roar like a lion! We don’t recommend this one at work, but repeat until you feel powerful, calm and under control.
Today, there are different types of yoga being taught and practiced. For that reason, it is imperative to choose the right type of yoga for you. Each yoga type has its own way of thinking and methods. You will find out that some styles or yoga are much more physical and based on flexibility or poses while some other styles are more meditative.
Here are presented the different types of yoga for you to make a better choice and decide which yoga style is best for you.
Hatha Yoga
This one does involves physical postures and breathing techniques. This style offer good benefits for your health in a physical way, but also in a spiritual way. You won’t necessary achieve a fit body with this technique, but you will definitely be balancing and strengthening your nervous system.
Jnana Yoga
This style of yoga does not focus on physical benefits, but more on knowledge. This is because this technique involves seven stages: involving study, selft-realization, desire, protection of the mind, developing non-attachment to material objects, letting the world appear like a dream, non attachment to the world and finally knowledge of the truth.
Bikram Yoga
If you are looking for body fitness, this is the kind of yoga that will let you achieve it. It will let you develop all components of fitness and that is muscular endurance, strength, flexibility and weight loos.
Ashtanga
This technique is often referred as power yoga. That technique is a very intense workout and it is aimed at building strength and endurance. Again, this is for you if you are up to the challenge of a very intense workout!
Viniyoga
This one is used more as a therapeutic measure. It is often used by people who have suffered injuries or are recovering from a surgery.
Vinyasa
This last type of Yoga will focus on your breath and coordination. It is a form of yoga that will require you to be physically active.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
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