Yoga For Stomach Fat Reduction

Source: www.iamnotobese.com

Some exercises that are highly beneficial for reduction of baby fat from stomach are described below. Remember, you should not attempt any of these on your own unless you have been shown and guided by a certified yoga master or guru.

Pavan Muktasan (Release or Regulation of Air) - Lie down on your back and take a deep breath. Bend your left leg at the knee and catching the toes, bring it to touch your stomach while at the same time you lift your head to touch the bent knee. Keep the right leg straight and your breath in. Count 10 and return to the original position. Leave your breath. Repeat with the other leg.

Dhanurasan (The bow posture) - Lie down on your stomach. Catch your ankles by bending your knees and then push outwards (up) to make your body look like a bow. Pull your head back as much as it goes. Keep for 10 seconds and release posture.

Bhunagasan - lie on your stomach and keep your hands right under your shoulders. Push your upper body backwards using only the back muscles not your hands. In case you find it difficult to ignore the hands, try keeping them over the hips.

All the above yoga exercises are extremely beneficial in reducing stomach fat. These need to be initially done in the presence and under the guidance of a yoga guru. There are many, many more other yoga exercises or postures that are helpful in reducing midriff fat and stomach flab. However, as with all other exercises, yoga too needs to be practiced on a daily basis regularly, preferably outdoors, at the crack of the dawn.

7 Poses to Relieve Cold & Flu Symptoms

By Angela Pirisi

1. Head Wrap

Before you begin, wrap your forehead to relieve tension in the head. Take a wide ace bandage (about 4 inches) and wrap it snugly around the head, tucking the free end in. You can also wrap it over the eyes, taking care not to wrap the eyes too tightly. The bandage will comfort your congested sinuses while you do the poses that follow.

2. Standing Forward Bend (Uttanasana)

Brings energy to the head and respiratory area; helps clear the sinuses.

Stand with your feet hip-width apart and rest your forearms on a chair seat. You can also place a blanket on the chair seat for extra padding. Hold two to five minutes.

3. Supported Bridge Pose (Salamba Setu Bandhasana)

Opens up the chest and increases circulation to the upper torso.

Align two bolsters or two to four blankets on the floor running the entire length of your body (the height of the support can vary from 6 to 12 inches). Sit on the middle of the support and lie back. Slide towards your head until your shoulders lightly touch the floor. Open your arms out to the sides, palms turned up. Rest with your legs stretched out on the bolster or with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Relax for a minimum of five minutes.

4. Legs Up the Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)

Brings energy to the groin and opens the chest area to facilitate breathing.

With the back of the pelvis on a bolster placed 4 to 6 inches from the wall, swing the legs up the wall. Drop your sitting bones into the space between the blanket and the wall and open your arms out to the sides. If your hamstrings feel tight, try turning the legs slightly in, or move the bolster further away from the wall. Hold for a minimum of five minutes.

5. Supported Bound Angle Pose (Salamba Baddha Konasana)

Opens the chest, abdomen, and groins; relaxes the nervous system.

Sit on the floor, knees bent towards the chest. Bring the soles of your feet together and let your knees open towards the floor. Support the outer thighs with folded blankets at a comfortable height. You can also place sandbags on each inner thigh to deepen relaxation. Release the arms out to the sides and let go of any tension. Relax in the pose for a minimum of five minutes.

6. Reclining Twist (Modified Jathara Parivartanasana)

Releases physical and stress-based tension.

Lie on your back and with an exhalation bend your knees and draw your thighs to your torso. Shift your pelvis slightly to the left and, with another exhalation, swing your legs to the right and down to the floor (if they don't rest comfortably on the floor, support them on a bolster or folded blanket). Turn your upper torso to the left. Rest your right hand on the outer left knee and stretch your left arm to the side, in line with your shoulders. Look straight up or close your eyes. Relax for three minutes. Repeat on the other side.

7. Widespread Forward Bend (Upavistha Konasana)

Quiets the internal organs; relaxes the mind.

Sit on the floor with your sitting bones on the edge of a folded blanket. Straighten your legs out in front of you and then separate them as far as you comfortably can. Rest your upper torso on a bolster or (if you're more stiff) a chair seat. If you are using a chair, you can fold your forearms on the seat for more height and padding. Hold the pose for three to five minutes.

Fight Fat on Your Mat?

By Andrea Ferretti

There's no question that yoga practice builds body awareness and acceptance, but yoga as a sure-fire path to weight loss? Until now, doctors and scientists weren't convinced. But a recent study from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle may make them sit up and take notice.

Researchers queried healthy men and women about their weight history and physical activity from the ages of 45 to 55. It turned out that study subjects who were overweight and did yoga at least once a week had lost five pounds over the 10-year period, while their non-yogi counterparts had gained eight. (Yoga practitioners of normal weight did tend to gain weight over the years, but people who didn't practice gained more.)

The reason? Lead researcher and Anusara Yoga practitioner Alan Kristal believes that it's not the number of calories that yoga burns, since only the most vigorous yoga practice will burn enough to trigger a weight loss. "But yoga builds mindfulness," says Kristal, who is also a professor of epidemiology at the University of Washington School of Public Health. "You learn to feel when you're full, and you don't like the feeling of overeating. You recognize anxiety and stress for what they are instead of trying to mask them with food."

Can I do yoga when I have period?

by Alicia King

Of course you can! Yoga is a great way to prevent menstrual cramps, stop cramping, and relax and rejuvenate the mind to take the edge off any mood swings you may experience. Centering and breathing exercises as well as practicing grounding poses are recommended.

Part of the joy of yoga is the reality-check it provides. On the mat, we land squarely in our bodies – whatever they are doing – and we begin to participate in our own internal processes.The dissociation women suffer from their sexuality and reproductive system happens in part because of Western culture’s social response to menstruation. Culturally speaking, this natural cleansing process is considered a disease, “unclean” or, at best, a grim fact of life.

Perhaps next month, you can try to allow your yoga practice bring you into a greater sense of harmony with yourself and your entire body.

Home Practice 101

If you can't afford to take a class, what is the best path to take in beginning a practice at home?

—Janet from Lawrence, Kansas

Read Natasha's reply:

Dear Janet,

Establishing a home practice is a wonderful way to create a very direct and personal connection to your yoga. The downside is that, without a teacher who can make hands-on adjustments, you are in danger of developing habits that may not be beneficial. This is why I think it is crucial to find a tape, DVD, or CD that provides a wealth of information, and to be sure that the information is delivered in a variety of forms that complement each other.

The good news is that there is a wealth of fine products to choose from when developing a home practice. Go to your local library or video store and check out a handful of videos by different instructors. Shop around until you find someone with whom you connect, the way you would if you were trying to find the teachers that you liked at a new studio. As you try different tapes or DVDs, try to find a teacher who instructs in a way that makes sense to you. This may sound self-evident, but what I mean is that he or she communicates information in a way that helps you understand the form, structure, and spirit of the practice, and that provides additional material to support your understanding of his or her explanations and directions. Sometimes we can hear an instruction over and over again and it doesn't register, but if we see a picture or read something that emphasizes the same instruction, it suddenly clicks.

Finally, I recommend that you do periodically try to take a class, just because it is always useful to be around a live person who can give feedback about alignment and make specific suggestions about ways to enhance your practice.