The Truth About Yoga And Pilates

The Truth About Yoga And Pilates

By: Jon Le Tocq

There's no doubting that those who practice yoga and pilates often have very impressive abilities to bend themselves into positions which are enough to make the rest of us wince at the thought.



Is this really a good thing though? How much do these abilities transfer to daily life and exercise?



Is there a more effective way to achieve the benefits which yogi's believe can only be gained from their chosen methods?



These are questions I will try to answer in this article based on personal experience and scientific fact. I'll start with the positives of taking part in regular yoga and / or pilates sessions.



Firstly it can only be a good thing when people realise the importance of performing specific work to improve their flexibility and core strength. It's a key part of enjoyable living.



The typical Brit is now characterised by poor posture due to sitting at a desk all day and lack of exercise. Consequently they're in desperate need of corrective work to address this.



Second, many of the methods can be seen in strength and conditioning settings all across the world. There must be some benefit to the underlying principals!



However, they are limited to effective mobility and flexibility practices in warm and cool-down routines and as supplemental work as part of a much more complex routine. They should not be seen as an end in themselves.



The following discussion illustrates how spending your life performing yoga as an end product is doing your body a disservice. You're also wasting a lot of time which could be used more productively.



Many yoga or pilates students argue that it helps build strength. Whilst this may be true for a complete beginner who is unable to control their body weight, there soon becomes a point where no more gains can be made because the student is able to control their bodyweight with little effort.



This relates back to the key principal of progressive overload. This is a scientifically proven concept that to make continued strength gains you must continually lift heavier weights.



Like aerobics, the only way to apply this to yoga and pilates is to put on weight. That way your muscles have a greater resistance to work against, but clearly this isn't desirable!



Whilst on the subject of strength, the whole point of increasing strength is to be stronger and more powerful in dynamic situations. This includes lifting things in daily life.



Why on earth would you look to become stronger standing in one position with very little dynamic movement? If you are training to be one of those guys who paints himself silver and stands perfectly still in the town centre for money, pilates may be a good option.



The strength benefits gained from these practices can be gained much faster using other methods. Methods used by strength and conditioning coaches and personal trainers the world over.



There is also virtually no limit to the progress which can be made using resistance training for strength compared to the limits imposed by using bodyweight only. Sure bodyweight training should be the first method used by beginners but progress in the medium to long term is severely limited.



Other strength training methods will transfer much more effectively to daily life and sports performance whether on an amateur or professional level. Surely this is more desirable?



Strength and conditioning. Two qualities everyone should be looking to improve. We've just covered strength but what about conditioning? I have heard certain, more intense forms of yoga touted as great for conditioning.



In my opinion, conditioning is the process by which you become better able to perform movement based activities of an intense nature. How can this possibly be improved if there is very little movement involved?



My final point is on the people themselves who follow yoga almost as a religion. I appreciate this does not apply to all and I am not suggesting it does, but many students of such practices seem to promote yoga and pilates as the be-all and end-all of health and fitness and life itself.



I have methods which I favour because they have been proven to be the most effective. Hpwever, I believe it is wrong to shut out all other methods in the blind belief you already have all the answers.



Every day I spend in this job I realise there is so much more I don't know. This can only be a good thing in the interests of progression of me as a person, a student and a teacher or trainer of others.



In conclusion, whilst yoga and pilates undoubtedly can provide benefits to complete beginners to exercise, they are limited in their application to those looking to live a life of intense exercise and movement performance.

Author Resource:-> Jon Le Tocq created the online Storm Force Fitness concept which continues to produce amazing fat loss and conditioning results without gym membership! You can join the fun at http://www.stormforcefitness.com

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Teaching Hatha Yoga - Student Safety in Yoga Classes

Teaching Hatha Yoga - Student Safety in Yoga Classes

By: Paul M. Jerard Jr.

Although the general public might see many different styles of Yoga, in a variety of locations, Yoga is often categorized as a form of physical fitness. Some might go a bit further by classifying Yoga as a form of wellness or a mind and body exercise.



If you speak to the average participant, most of them would consider the chance of injury, during Yoga class, unthinkable. They have heard of injuries in high-impact classes, but Yoga falls into the low-impact category. Yoga is considered so gentle, that most participants strongly believe it cannot cause harm.



Consider this: Compare one hour of step aerobics to Yoga and your body notices striking differences. At the end of both classes, you feel great, but that is where the similarity ends. There is much creative movement in a step aerobics class, but the feet and legs take a repetitive pounding.



After a typical step aerobics class, your knees, ankles, and toes feel the repetitive impact from the floor. This can result in knee inflammation, stress fractures, shin splints, metatarsalgia (toe joint inflammation), plantar fasciitis (an inflammation of the plantar fascia), sesmoiditis (inflammation of the two small bones below the first metatarsal - ball of the foot), bunions, or hammertoes.



However, none of the movements in a step aerobics class challenge the participant's range of motion in the same way Hatha Yoga does. When you add movement or speed, to the equation, everything changes. When performing Sun Salutations (Surya Namaskar) or Vinyasa, Power, Ashtanga, and Flow sequences, there is much room for caution.



The following precautions are for teachers to implement for the safety of all students who participate in any form of Yoga with movement. Warm-ups should be practiced before the flowing sequences.



The older your students are, the longer a warm-up session should be. In general, students who are under 30 years of age should warm up from 10 to 15 minutes, regardless of their supposed expertise. Therefore, add some time when teaching students over 30 years of age.



When performing a flowing sequence, have your students perform the first round slowly. Make sure you observe all of your students carefully - even the students who gravitate toward the corners or the back of the room. Observing your students, at all times, in your class, is specifically for your students' safety.



Your performance is for demonstration purposes only. When teaching Yoga classes, your responsibility is primarily geared toward student safety, and your personal practice is irrelevant.



Copyright 2008 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Author Resource:-> Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center in, Attleboro, MA. To receive Free Yoga videos, Podcasts, e-Books, reports, and articles about Yoga, please visit: http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/member-offer.html

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Yoga of Maharishi Patanjali - The Joy of Brahmacharya

Yoga of Maharishi Patanjali - The Joy of Brahmacharya

By: Paul M. Jerard Jr.

Bramacharya is the fourth Yama, described by Maharishi Patanjali, in the Yoga Sutras. The literal definition of the root words, brahma and acarya, is "brahmic behavior." In fact, Bramacharya is also the first Asrama (stage of life for a Brahman), when a student lives a life of celibacy and purity, while studying the Vedas.



In the words of Swami Sivananda: "Celibacy is to a Yogi what electricity is to an electric bulb. Without celibacy, no spiritual progress is possible. It is a potent weapon, and shield, to wage war against the internal evil forces of lust, anger, and greed. It serves as a gateway for the bliss beyond, and opens the door of liberation."



How does this apply to the general population, who are not Brahman? How can the average Yoga practitioner live a pure life? Quite simply, Brahmacharya is the path of moderation. There is no need to embrace extremes.



Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, described the "Middle Way," as the middle path between an ascetic lifestyle and one that is devoted to the world as we know it. Again, this is moderation in our thoughts, words, actions, and non-actions.



You can apply this to relationships, diet, work, religion, and everything else in life. If we consider diet, you may be amused by the findings. Contemporary Yogis and Yoginis have, in some cases, banned coffee. Coffee contains caffeine and, therefore, it must be "bad" because our senses are over stimulated.



After a lecture about the spiritual and physical "evils" of coffee, a number of Yoga teacher interns decided to give up their morning cup of coffee. They were actually going through a form of chemical withdrawal the following day. By lunch time, some of them had left to get a coffee, and they said they felt better during the afternoon Yoga session.



To be honest, some of us can give up coffee without much effort, while others will get a headache without coffee, and this is a reaction to physical dependence of caffeine. So, where do we stand on a cup of decaffeinated coffee? Is giving up coffee going to get you a pass to heaven?



So far, we have only discussed moderation in drinking coffee, but let's expand our thoughts to another subject. If we spend our lives in worship, but have poor relationships with others, there is something missing. The people around us are worthy of our attention, and we still live on Earth.



When you consider extremes, look at our history and the role fundamentalism has played in holding humankind back from progress. The path of moderation is full of tolerance for those who do not live like us. A Yogic lifestyle requires moderation, and therefore, avoidance of extremes.



Copyright 2008 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Author Resource:-> Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center in, Attleboro, MA. To receive Free Yoga videos, Podcasts, e-Books, reports, and articles about Yoga, please visit: http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/member-offer.html

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Yoga For Weight-Loss: Train Your Body, Train Your Mind

Yoga For Weight-Loss: Train Your Body, Train Your Mind

By: Melody Biggar

The reason that yoga helps you to lose weight is because it is dedicated to helping your body eliminate toxins.



We are full of toxins. From the food we eat to the air we breathe to the water we bathe in, toxins invade our body daily. Toxins can be found in almost every product we use daily, from the food we eat to our household cleaners.



Toxins are stored in your body fat. Toxins cause your liver to become sluggish and to not function properly. This causes your organs to stop metabolizing fat effectively and so you gain weight.



Yoga is designed to help your body eliminate these harmful toxins.



Not only do you eliminate toxins through the various poses, but since yoga lowers levels of stress hormones and increases insulin sensitivity, your body can then go into fat-burning mode and burn food as fuel rather than store it as fat.



The best part about yoga is that since it is low impact, you can practice it at any age or any fitness level.



"Never too late, never too old, never too bad and never too sick to do this yoga and start from scratch again." says Bikram Choudhury, the founder of Bikram yoga.



Bikram Yoga is a yoga class that is held in a room where the temperature has been raised to over 100 degrees in order to sweat out toxins. The heat of the room also increases flexibility, which leads to a better workout.



In your Bikram Yoga class you will be led through a series of 26 poses and 2 breathing exercises, which according to Bikram work out "every single tendon, ligament and muscle, from bones to skin, inside out!"



The series of postures are arranged logically so that you move smoothly from one posture to the next.



Another reason that yoga helps you lose weight is that it trains your mind to focus.



Your mind is the powerful determinant that controls whether or not you give into that cheeseburger and milkshake craving. The more you practice yoga, the more you learn to sit still, meditate and breathe and the more you will train your body and your mind. Imagine being able to quiet that little devil up there telling you to be bad and eat the processed-full-of-dairy-and-sugar-chocolate-chip-cookie-pie. Imagine that you don't even hear him anymore.



Do you eat when you're nervous, anxious or upset? Are you an emotional eater? This does not have to be your fate. This is not who you are. Imagine eliminating all of your food cravings. Imagining being able to have one bite of ice cream without eating the whole carton.



Imagine yourself as skinny, youthful and beautiful as ever without a care in the world. All of this is possible by training the mind with yoga!

Author Resource:-> To learn more weight-loss secrets and get your free weight-loss e-course visit http://www.naturalsexyskinny.com.


To learn more about how yoga can help you lose weight visit The Skinny on Yoga Blog at http://theskinnyonyoga.blogspot.com

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Corn Allergy

Corn Allergy

By: David Cowley

If you have a Corn Allergy then you suffer from Allergies Type 1, also called Contact Allergies. The immune system overreacts to the proteins found in the corn. The immune system products antibodies that are designed to fight off the harmful corn proteins. The reason the body overacts to certain foods is not clear and more studies are needed.



The proteins found in corn trigger the immune system to reaction. Antibodies and histamines are releases into the blood stream in an attempt to neutralize the corn protein. These chemicals trigger the allergic symptoms. In sever cases Epinephrine, also call Adrenaline, is administered to control the anaphylaxis reaction.



Are allergy scratch tests reliable in the diagnosis of food allergies? Some believe yes and other believe no. Your digestive system transforms the food as it passes through it and a large variety of chemical reactions take place on the partially digested foods. This is not the same as scratching your skin and then placing raw corn protein on the scratch.



I believe that the severity of the allergy plays a large part in determining if a scratch allergy test is positive or negative. Mild allergic corn reactions may not show up on the standard scratch test even though after eating corn you may think that your stomach cramps are anything but a mild reaction.



Avoid any food products that have corn, corn syrup, corn starch, Cereal Extract, Natural Flavoring, Vegetable Gum, Soy Sauce, Gluten, or Enriched Flower on the label. Many solid or liquid medications contain corn starch or corn syrup as do almost all of the major soft drinks.



Avoidance of corn-containing foods is the only effective treatment for people who are allergic to corn. Avoidance can be very difficult because corn proteins are often hidden in other foods. Until a cure is found, read the labels of every food that you bring into your home. Because the manufacturing processes change continuously re-read the labels each time you purchase a product. On January 1, 2006 a new law was passed stating that all labels should be designed in such a way that a 7-year-old child could read and understand the ingredients.



Common Vitamins and over the counter products can help with Allergies such as Vitamin A, Vitamin B, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Pantothenic Acid, Glucosamine, Antioxidants, Allergy Aid, and Quercitin.



Vitamin A is a known antioxidant and can assist the human body in the healing process. Vitamin A is stored in the liver and fat cells of the human body and can reach toxic levels. DO NOT take more than the recommended dosage of Vitamin A.



Up to one-third of older people can no longer absorb Vitamin B from their food. Vitamin B is needed to form red blood cells and keep nerves healthy.



Vitamin C is nature's protective nutrient, essential for defending the body against pollution and infection and enhances the bodies immune system. Use vitamins C that is natural, ascorbic acid is usually synthesized from corn.



Beta Carotene protects the mucus membranes of the mouth, nose, throat and lungs. It also helps protect Vitamin C from oxidation, which enables it to perform at optimum efficiency.



Vitamin E protects the lung tissue from inhaled pollutants and aids in the functioning of the immune system.



Many find Pantothenic Acid to be very helpful against allergy symptoms. It is another form of nontoxic B vitamins. Pantothenic Acid is critical in the metabolism and synthesis of carbohydrates, proteins and fats.



Glucosamine is an anti-inflammatory and may give some relief from allergy symptoms.



Substances called antioxidants can neutralize free radical by pairing up or binding with the free radical elections thus inhibiting them from damaging cells in the human body.



Allergy Aid supplies 9 beneficial Herb's to help provide temporary relief of respiratory allergies. The natural action of these specific Herb's help to open bronchial tubes and ease breathing.



Quercitin is a well known flavonoid. Flavonoids are powerful antioxidants and can reduce inflammation boost the immune system and strengthen blood vessels and improve circulation. Quercitin is also known for its ability to block the release of histamines, thus reducing or preventing Corn Allergy symptoms.



Always consult your doctor before using this information.



This Article is nutritional in nature and is not to be construed as medical advice.

Author Resource:-> David Cowley has created numerous articles on allergies. He has also created a Web Site dedicated to allergies and how to treat them. Visit http://www.allergies-team.com



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Coffee Allergy

Coffee Allergy

By: David Cowley

If you are allergic to coffee then you have an Allergies Type 1 is also called contact allergy. The immune system overreacts to the proteins found in the coffee. The immune system products antibodies that are designed to fight off the harmful coffee proteins. The reason the body overacts to certain foods is not clear and more studies are needed.



Most food allergy reactions usually happen within a few minutes to a few hours after drinking coffee. Most mild to moderate reactions last less than a day and can involve a rash on the skin, cramps, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, runny nose, watery eyes, wheezing and coughing.



What is interesting about coffee allergies is that it can also mimic mental disorders by producing a chemical imbalance in the human body. According to Dr's McManamy and Schube, caffeine allergies can produce alternating states of delirium and mania, resembling schizophrenia. They maintained that many patients have been erroneously diagnosed with some type of mental illness.



Because of coffees stimulating effects the allergic symptoms are masked. Coffee consumption increases the adrenaline (epinephrine) found in the body. Epinephrine is used to halt allergic reaction and with the combined stimulate effect can product delusions. Some of the byproducts created by the breakdown of adrenaline by the human body can produce the same symptoms of schizophrenia.



A high level of creatine phosphokinase (CPK MM) has been associated with caffeine toxicity. Many studies carried out in the late twentieth century revealed that a high level of CPK MM was found in patients diagnosed with mental disorders, mania, BPD, depression, catatonia and schizophrenia. Many of the studies attributed the elevated CPK MM levels with mental disorders but none of the studies focused on caffeine allergy as a contributing factor.



Most of the recent studies have overlooked caffeine allergy as having any factor in any mental disorders. Bengzon proposed, in the late 1960's that high levels of CPK MM and aldolase might be a contributing factor in explaining schizophrenia. Patients were not put on restrictive diets and the study concentrated on medication and various other factors but failed to include caffeine as a possible factor.



Dr Marshal Mandell of Norwak, Connecticute has found that 92.2 percent of the hospitalized schizophrenic patients were allergic to one or more of the common allergy causing foods; wheat, corn, and milk.



Is being allergic to coffee responsible for a variety of mental problems? It is the option of this author that more studies are needed to determine if Allergies Of Any Type are the cause of or have a contributing factor in mental illness problems. The treating of the symptoms for mental illness instead of finding the cause of mental illness is a great disservice to our mentally ill patients by our medical professionals.



M.S.M maintains the development of the body's protein by forming flexible disulfide bonds between certain amino acids and in maintaining the strength of connective tissue. This allows water and nutrients to flow freely into cells and allows toxins to flow freely out of the cells. M.S.M increases athletic stamina and helps eliminate muscle soreness. M.S.M is a natural supplement that is getting a lot of attention due to its role in tissue healing at the cellular level. It is a natural organic sulfur that comes from rain fall and is found naturally in the human body.



Always consult your doctor before using this information.



This Article is nutritional in nature and is not to be construed as medical advice.

Author Resource:-> David Cowley has created numerous articles on allergies. He has also created a Web Site dedicated to allergies and how to treat them. Visit http://www.allergies-team.com



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