Looking for a unique yoga mat? YogaAccessories Extra Thick Deluxe Yoga Mats are also available in the Chakra Series or custom printed with your own logo or design -- in the same vibrant colors that make our yoga mats so appealing.
Price: $29.99
Yoga Apparel Yoga Moves Yoga Kriya Yoga Kundalini Meditation Yoga Yoga Pilates Ashtanga Yoga Dc Yoga Wear Yoga Retreats Yoga Positions Yoga Props Yoga Clothing Yoga Ashtanga Yoga Benefits Yoga Videos Yoga Workout Bikram Yoga Yoga Pants Yoga Instruction Yoga Classes Pregnancy Yoga Yoga Retreat Yoga Teacher Training Kriya Yoga Ashtanga Yoga Prenatal Yoga Yoga Dvds Yoga Centers Yoga Iyengar Yoga Exercise Yoga Postures Tantric Yoga Yoga Prop
Looking for a unique yoga mat? YogaAccessories Extra Thick Deluxe Yoga Mats are also available in the Chakra Series or custom printed with your own logo or design -- in the same vibrant colors that make our yoga mats so appealing.
Price: $29.99
Price:
Price:
You'll need a BalanceBall or other stability ball (large, inflatable, exercise ball). If you've never used one before, don't worry--Deason spends time showing you how to sit on it using your balance muscles so you don't roll off. Then she uses the ball in many different positions: sitting on it, lying on it belly up, lying on it belly down, holding it, rolling it, lifting it, bouncing it, even kneeling on it. The moves start out simple and get progressively harder. The result is an intense abdominal workout. --Joan Price
Price: $14.98
Price: $14.98
Price: $19.99
Price: $24.99
Price:
Price: $17.95
About Exercise Balls:
Using an exercise ball for training develops core strength and flexibility to help keep muscles and joints functional and safe from injury. With exercises as simple as sitting on the ball and bouncing lightly, core strength is developed as your body must continually find and maintain balance. Exercise balls also help you find and maintain a neutral lumbar spine position helping to ease lower back pain and develop better posture. From merely sitting on the ball, to doing structured aerobic and strength exercise routines, exercise balls can be used in many, many ways that support healthy fitness habits.
Price:
Price: $19.95
In a seven-and-a-half minute performance, 816 Yoga experts did a 'Suryanmaskar', a series of yoga postures done in salutation to the sun.
Dramatically changing the choreography, the performers began to spiral to depict 'kundalini' or the coiled energy, an instinctive force that lies at the base of the spine.
This coiled energy gave rise to the gigantic installation of a person in the 'Padma Asana' -- the lotus pose.
From within this rose the seven chakras, the seven energy points of the human body thus creating the final picture.
Copyright© 2010 Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved.fo=new FadeObj('backgroundPopup1');//document.onclick = chkDiv;function startfade(chk){setC('ssosign','');document.getElementById("signupsso").src="";if (chk == '1'){document.getElementById("signupsso").src="/login.cms?TferURL=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/default.cms&newlook=1";}if (chk == '2'){document.getElementById("signupsso").src="/sign_up.cms";}if (chk == '3'){document.getElementById("signupsso").src="/login.cms?TferURL=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/default.cms&newlook=1&signin=1";} fo.init();intv=setInterval("fo.animate()",80);}function fadeout(){intv2=setInterval("fo.hidebg()",80);}tpbar();var verqs=window.location.search;if (verqs.indexOf('signin=1') != -1){startfade('3');}document.onclick = chkDiv;populatediv('/etupdate.cms','latestetData');var slslide = new CSlider("slslideshow",'',1,320);populate_wtf('/mostreadsec/'+sectionid+'.cms','latestreadData','yes','redirect(\'mostreadchnl.cms?redirected=1\')','');populate_wf('/cmtofart/6679571.cms?msid=6679571','populatecomment','no','putMathQ(1);putCmtCnt();');With body, mind and soul in unison, over 800 performers gave a stunning performance of Yoga forming the shape of a sun using most difficult 'asans' (postures) at the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony.var AddOthers = document.getElementById("yahoobuzzsyn").innerHTML;var msgparent = '6679571'; var _obj=document.getElementById("reportAbuseDiv"); var y = findPosY(_obj); window.onscroll=setabuseForm;populatediv('/alsoinside.cms','alsoinside');window.fbAsyncInit = function() { FB.init({ appId: "128738260476079", xfbml: true, cookie: true, status: true });};(function() { var e = document.createElement('script'); e.async = true; e.src = document.location.protocol + '//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js'; document.getElementById('fb-root').appendChild(e);}()); document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js' %3E%3C/script%3E")); COMSCORE.beacon({ c1:2, c2:6036484, c3:"", c4:"", c5:"", c6:"", c15:"" });function blockError(){return true;} window.onerror = blockError; var timeslog_channel_url = 'economictimes.indiatimes.com';var ttrendlogmsid='6679571'; > document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js' %3E%3C/script%3E"));> COMSCORE.beacon({ c1:2, c2:6036484, c3:"", c4:"", c5:"", c6:"", c15:"" });New Delhi: Young athletes at the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony enthralled the audience by performing stunning yoga asanas and 'surya namaskar', a series of postures in salutation to the sun.
With body, mind and soul in unison, lean but strong performers in amber light spread across the field at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, depicting 'kundalini' or the coiled energy, an instinctive force that lies at the base of the spine.
Then one of them rose in the 'padma asana' or the lotus pose. The performers choreographed themselves to form 'chakras', the seven energy points of the human body as the 65,000-audience looked in awe.
Yoga is suitable for all people, regardless of age, sex or condition. Everyone, young and old, can practice yoga. Whether you do every day or once a week, yoga enriches your life! You will soon discover that Yoga has a positive effect for body and mind. There are over 1001 reasons to practice yoga. Below we list 10 benefits of yoga on the quality of your life will improve:
1. Stress reduction
Yoga reduces the physical effects of stress on the body. Thanks to the relaxing effects of yoga will see a decrease in the stress hormone cortisol in the body occur. Additional benefits for the body to a reduction in blood pressure and heart rate, improved digestion and increased immunity. Further softened yoga symptoms of anxiety, depression, fatigue, asthma and insomnia.
2. Pain Relief
Another advantage of practicing yoga is that it can relieve pain. Studies have shown that practicing yoga asanas (poses) and meditation, or a combination of both, relieves the pain of both cancer patients, MS patients, people with immune diseases and hypertension, as people with back and neck pain and other ailments. Some yogis yoga helps even when processing emotional pain.
3. Improved breathing
Yoga teaches people to breathe slower and deeper. This leads to improved lung function and the body is encouraged by it to relax. Thus increasing the amount of oxygen is absorbed by the body.
4. Agility
Besides relieving pain, yoga also improves the flexibility and agility of the body. During their first yoga lesson many can not touch their toes with arms outstretched. Little by little starts, however, the correct muscles. Over time, the ligaments, tendons and muscles extend, making the body more different poses can take. In addition, the practice of yoga leads to a better posture, which in turn leads to relieving neck and muscle problems.
5. Increased strength
Yoga asanas (poses), every muscle in the body area, thereby increasing physical strength from head to toe. In addition, yoga relaxes the tight muscles in the body.
6. Weight loss
Yoga (even less intense variations) helps to maintain body weight. Thanks calorie burning and stress reduction, yoga also encourages to eat healthier and leads to a sense of wellness and self-confidence.
7. Improved blood circulation
Yoga improves the functioning of the circulatory system. As a result of various asanas can oxygenated blood to the cells of the body more easily.
8. Cardiovascular Training
Even light yoga exercises have cardiovascular benefits. They reduce the heart rate, increasing endurance and improving oxygen uptake.
9. Focus on the present
Yoga helps us to focus on the present and creates a good balance between body and mind.In addition, yoga leads to improved concentration, coordination, reaction time and an optimal memory.
10. Inner peace
Thanks to the meditative aspects of yoga puts man in a more satisfying spiritual way of life.Many who practice yoga for other reasons, said to be the main reason why yoga is an essential part of their life has become.
Learn more about this author, Raul Abrahams.Yoga is no longer the doman of granola-eating vegetarian New Age hippies. Once scorned because of its mystical conotations
2 of 32 by lexeiMany of us like the idea of yoga, and we have all heard of the benefits; from toned youthful bodies, new concentration,
3 of 32 by Janette PeelIncreasingly popular in the West, Yoga is the ancient art of unifying the mind, body and spirit through physical and mental
4 of 32 by Alwin TemplarIt's probably true to say that the majority of people in the West who practice yoga only do so in order to improve themselves
5 of 32 by Mary StephensThe benefits of yoga
Yoga is an exercise practice that involves mind and body. It is a system of physical exercises combined
View All Articles on:Images are projected onto a kind of airship during the opening ceremony for the 19th Commonwealth Games at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in New Delhi, India, on Sunday. (Anja Niedringhaus/Associated Press)The Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India, launched Sunday in grand style with elements that moved from ancient to modern-day.
An enthusiastic crowd of 60,000 in Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi greeted hundreds of performers who opened the ceremonies with Tibetan horns, one of the oldest musical trumpets in the world with origins dating back to 1500 B.C.
Audience members included Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, Indian President Pratiba Devisingh Patil and Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee.
The event was livestreamed on CBC Sports.ca.
As dozens and dozens of horns blared, a massive helium airship began to grow and float up and the audience counted down from 10 to one, at which point the rim of the stadium erupted in torch-like fireworks.
Then hundreds of drummers from all over India hit their instruments as giant puppets danced and floated above them.
The drummers included a seven-year-old musical prodigy pounding on his drums by hand. The driving beat went on for more than 10 minutes as yellow and orange lights pulsed to it.
Singer Hariharan, who pioneered the fusion of traditional Indian music with modern stylings, performed Swagatam as schoolchildren, wearing red, white or green formed the flag of India.
The children painted a white cloth above their heads, which became Mehndi hands. Mehndi, sometimes referred to as henna tattooing, is a traditional ornate hand-painted decoration that is temporary.
As music played on, the athlete delegations walked into the stadium, first led by Australia, which hosted the last Games in 2006.Performers entertain a crowd of 60,000 with a classical Indian dance at the opening of the Delhi Games. (Anja Niedringhaus/Associated Press)
More than 100 people from the Canadian delegation of 400 were led in by flag-bearer Ken Pereira, whose family hails from India. The Torontonian is a field hockey player.
After the athletes parade and official opening remarks, a cascade of dancers in classical Indian dance costumes infiltrated the grounds and performed "The Tree of Knowledge" segment, featuring India's guru shishya tradition with folk dancers and musicians.
That was followed by performers in gold lamé body suits doing yoga moves, eventually grouping around a luminous, electrical image of Buddha with coloured discs going from tailbone to its head to represent the different chakras.
In contrast to the tranquility of the yoga piece, the next section was a busy showcase of how the majority of Indians live — with a cavalcade of village-like scenes in which people carried fruit on their heads, rode bikes, danced in circles and carried pots or bricks around.
The grand finale included a rock 'n' roll piece by AR Rahman, who captured two Oscars for his compositions for the hit film Slumdog Millionaire. Rahman sang Let's Go,a piece that recalled a kind of stadium rock with modern and traditional dancers nodding to the beat.
He finished with his rousing Slumdog tune, Jai Ho. Rahman ended the song with the proclamation: "Let's go India!"
Seventy-one countries fielding about 7,000 athletes are participating in the Delhi Games, which end on Oct. 14.Two of hundreds of drummers perform in the early part of the show. (Anja Niedringhaus/Associated Press)
Shaina NC, Rashmi Uday Singh, Haseena Jethmalani, Shibani Aggarwal, Aakanksha Agarwal were among the other present at the do. Sammir Dattani was also present here. A interactive parent-child yoga session was also on the cards.
"Yoga is for the spine. The spine is the central conduit of consciousness. Consciousness is equal to the One, or the Universal Mind, so the spine should be well cared for and should be in proper working condition. That is in essence the spiritual connection." – Jeffrey Comulada, CSYT, RYT
Svaroopa Yoga is a unique yoga style that is restorative and therapeutic. The Sanskrit word Svaroopa means the bliss of your own being—and through engaging in the gentle practice of Svaroopa Yoga, students may learn to transcend physical, mental and spiritual discomfort to access the truth of the soul.
Svaroopa Yoga was developed by Swami Nirmalananda of the Master Yoga Teaching Institute. Nirmalananda is more widely known as Rama Berch. She is a master yogi and teacher who founded Yoga Allianceand the Master Yoga Foundation. She has conducted workshops at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Western Massachusetts and at The Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York, in addition to other national and international venues.
At Yoga Mudra Studio in Dobbs Ferry, Rivertowns residents have the opportunity to study under two of Nirmalananda's most devoted followers: Jeffery Comulada, CSYT, RYT and Sue Kessman Krieger, RYT.
Comulada insists that it is not his own wisdom, but that of Nirmalananda which he imparts to his students. "We take no credit," he said. "We bring her awakening through to people. It is her awakening that we are trying to recreate and convey to our students. We have to get out of the way and let her teachings come through, and that is our best work."
Describing his teacher, Comulada explained, "The name Nirmalananda means one without contraction. She exists in truth, and if you just listen and do, it works. It is the most spiritually connected practice that I know of."
Comulada and Krieger opened Yoga Mudra Studio five years ago as a part time business. Krieger has worked for 35 years in the corporate world and Comulada is a decorative painter and musician. Juggling their busy careers in addition to teaching yoga was challenging for both of them. When Krieger was laid off last month from her job as a Vice President for a marketing research firm in White Plains, she immediately knew what her next step would be. "The Universe gave me the answer," she said.
Krieger is now teaching at the studio full time and says there is nothing she would rather be doing. Yoga Mudra Studio is now offering Svaroopa Yoga classes at on weekdays, evenings and Saturdays to accommodate every lifestyle.
Comulada and Krieger are now facing the challenge of keeping their dream alive in a very tough economy. "When the studio was a part time concern, operating at a loss was less of an obstacle than it is now," says Comulada. In spite of the economic slump, they hope to keep their doors open and continue in what they see as a noble mission.
Their hope is that getting the word out about the new full time class schedule will revive Yoga Mudra Studio. "It is a brand new experiment we hope will save it," he said. "We are at risk of having to let go of it. This place is what we truly feel gives meaning to our lives. This is the most honorable service we can provide. This is the truth. This is our story."
Krieger began studying and practicing yoga with Comulada ten years ago. She has 500 hours of yoga teacher training and Comulada has amassed 1500 hours of training over his yoga career. Generally, 200 hours of teacher training are required to begin as a yoga instructor, but Svaroopa Yoga teachers have rigorous certification requirements. "Training is important because you are dealing with people's bodies and minds and you respect the fact that it is a huge responsibility. You want to go in with as much wisdom as possible. We have to take into account what people's needs are. We try to use the most gentle, skillful means," says Comulada.
Although they teach the same style of yoga, Comulada and Krieger each bring a unique approach to their classes. Speaking of his longtime student and business partner, Comulada says, "She is a great teacher because she has a nurturing and warm spirit which is really good for this. I tend to have a more philosophical, intellectual edginess to me."
Comulada has been interested in yoga from adolescence, but Krieger came to yoga later in life. As a working mother, Krieger found in yoga a much needed physical and spiritual outlet: "I was not a yoga person; I was a runner. Then, neighbor told me that her friend had opened a yoga studio, and I should go. Just to be politically correct, I went to a yoga class, fully intending never to go back," she recalled.
But her attitude changed in class: "We were in warrior pose, and the teacher said something to another student who was trying too hard. He said, 'Range is ego. Form is spirit.' I thought that was something to apply to life. I went back after that, and I thought it was the only place where I did not have to be the perfect wife, the perfect mother, the perfect daughter or the perfect employee. I could be who I wanted to be and who I was at that particular point. That is why I continued."
She hopes to share the home that she has found in Svaroopa Yoga practice with each person who enters Yoga Mudra Studio.
Yoga Mudra Studio is located at 117 Main Street in Dobbs Ferry. For more information, please visit the website at www.yogamudrastudio.com, or call 914-478-0441 to reserve a class. Normally classes are $20. All new students can take advantage of a $60 4 class pass.
Do you own Light on Yoga? If not, run to the bookstore right now. Otherwise, take it from it's treasured place in the yoga section of your personal library and look at the cover. There you will see a silhouette of Mr. Iyengar himself in a variation of king dancer. This iconic posture is equal parts balance, strength, and flexibility.
Thousands of dancers, drummers and yoga performers opened Delhi’s Commonwealth Games in a display of India’s heritage and its status as a rising economic power, a reputation dented by bungling during the buildup.
India’s President Pratibha Patil and Britain’s Prince Charles declared the 12-day event open late yesterday during a three-hour celebration at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, while Oscar-winning ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ composer A.R. Rahman sang the official games song and the theme tune from the movie. A giant helium-filled balloon with mirrors and lights lifted a huge image of Indian freedom icon Mahatma Gandhi into the air.
“Our dream is coming true, India’s big moment is finally here,” Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the Delhi Organizing Committee, said in a speech. “India is ready” to show the world its rise after overcoming many challenges in the run up to the 17-sport competition that runs until Oct. 14, he said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh looked on as the competition involving 71 nations and territories got under way. He wanted India’s biggest sporting event in three decades to attract overseas investment. Instead, filthy accommodation for athletes, the collapse of a footbridge and monsoon floods that led teams to delay their arrival threatened to deter the investors needed to drive growth in Asia’s third-biggest economy, Moody’s Analytics said on Sept. 24.
‘Financial Irregularities’
The Organizing Committee suspended two top officials for alleged “financial irregularities,” while a third resigned, the panel’s spokesman Lalit Bhanot said on Aug. 5.
Games officials, in the past two weeks, undertook a cleaning and rebuilding operation to have venues ready on time after newspaper headlines described dirty bathrooms and mattresses muddied by stray dogs at the games village, wiring and plumbing that didn’t work and the wounding of two Taiwanese nationals in a shooting at the city’s main mosque.
“The image of being corrupt and inefficient has gone around the world and that cannot be recovered whatever we may do at the last moment,” said Ajay K. Mehra, director of New Delhi’s Centre for Public Affairs. “Let’s hope no mishap happens during the games because of bad construction. We are still keeping our fingers crossed.”
The crowd jeered when Commonwealth Games Federation Chief Mike Fennell mentioned Kalmadi’s name in his address. Kalmadi said he expected the games to contribute to India’s $1.2 trillion economy, and leave a “fantastic legacy.” He thanked all the teams for standing by India amid its troubles.
Vuvuzelas, Puppets
India deployed 100,000 security personnel in New Delhi ahead of the official opening while markets, malls and businesses, many of which normally function on Sundays, shut. Streets near sport venues were almost deserted.
About 7,000 performers entertained 60,000 spectators inside the stadium as Buddhist monks shared the stage with musicians from across the country wearing white sarongs, horned headgear and turbans.
The balloon rose from the center of the stadium as the opening ceremony began, lifting huge Rajasthani puppets into the air. The names and flags of competing nations rolled along its sides as the athletes entered, many dressed in traditional clothing from Scottish kilts to African gowns. South Africa’s team blew vuvuzelas, the plastic horns that accompanied every soccer match in this year’s World Cup.
Yoga practitioners wearing gold twisted limbs while men played electric-blue sitars. Bollywood extravagance and the bustle of Indian village life gave way to solemnity as a march during Mahatma Gandhi’s challenge to British colonial rule was created from sand.
Leave Canceled
Police in the city canceled all leave and sent roof-top snipers and helicopters to protect 41 games-related sites, the airport and the village for athletes attending the games.
Singh, concerned the nation’s image was being sullied as teams from Scotland, Canada and New Zealand delayed their departure for the games, instructed ministers to closely monitor preparations as organizers pressed thousands of emergency workers into round-the-clock operations.
Giant screens were installed in parts of the city for viewing the ceremony. Schools are closed for two weeks.
The government spent $4.6 billion upgrading stadiums, refurbishing roads, building overpasses, and power and water utilities to stage the event. About 15 kilometers (9.4 miles) of new metro line linking the stadium was opened yesterday, adding to the city’s urban rail network.
Investor Concern
Commonwealth Games Federation chief Mike Fennell said at a Sept. 25 press conference in Delhi he was disappointed with the Indian organizers and that the lack of preparedness for the sporting event has hurt the reputation of the country.
“A lot of damage has been done to India as a host country,” Fennell said. “I would hope at the end of all this, India would have learnt a great lesson.”
Australia’s Dani Samuels, the discus world champion, and English triple-jumper Phillips Idowu were among athletes to withdraw from the event citing health and safety fears.
The event, held every four years and first staged in 1930, features 8,000 athletes and officials, most from the U.K. and its former colonies and dependencies.
To contact the reporters on this story: Bibhudatta Pradhan in New Delhi at bpradhan@bloomberg.net; Tushar Dhara in New Delhi at tdhara1@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Hari Govind at hgovind@bloomberg.net;
Yoga expert and founder of the television show ?Namaste Yoga? will teach a workshop this weekend in Wausau through the Woodson YMCA.
Kate Potter, 49, of Vancouver, Canada, will lead the workshop Friday through Sunday at Camp Sturtevant, 2701 Northwestern Ave. in Wausau.
Wausau is lucky to have a visit from a top yogini, or female yoga expert, said YMCA yoga instructor Celine Kline of Wausau.
?There is definitely a yoga movement across the United States, and this is a good opportunity for anyone interested in yoga to immerse themselves in it,? she said. ?Some big names, like aerobics instructors, won?t come to areas like this.?
The workshop, which is open to all skill levels, costs $225 for YMCA members and $275 for nonmembers, a high price tag, but worth the cost, Kline said. She said workshops in other parts of the country will charge thousands of dollars for one weekend.
?I think that price is unbelievable,? she said. ?I?ve done yoga trainings for $500 with nobodies.?
Read the full story in Monday?s print and online editions of the Wausau Daily Herald.
Price:
Price: $9.00
Price: $12.98
Price: $29.99
Price: $14.98
Price: $9.98
Price: $0.00
Price: $9.98
Price: $19.99
Price: $19.99
As I tilted my body into a triangle pose last week and stole a glance at those behind me at Jivamukti Yoga Center in Union Square, I noticed a lot of guys in the room. Not quite half the class, but close.
Lately it seems that the number of guys stretching and twisting beside me — at least in some studios — has risen quite a bit. And I mean the kind of guy who advertises his jock credentials and shamelessly checks out the women in class. The sort of dude who not too long ago derided yoga as a chick thing — like going to see “Eat Pray Love.”
Statistics bear this out. In 2008, men made up 27.8 percent of yoga practitioners, an increase of 5 percent from 2004, according to a survey of 5,050 respondents conducted by Harris Interactive Service Bureau on behalf of Yoga Journal.
Dayna Macy, a spokeswoman for the magazine, suggested age as one factor. “As men get older, yoga becomes much more attractive,” she said.
In the past few years, athletes like LeBron James, the powerhouse basketball player, and a smattering of football and hockey players have started to go public about how yoga has helped them stay focused and supple.
Some instructors, like Jai Sugrim, a former celebrity trainer who taught the class I attended at Jivamukti, gear their classes specifically for men, with tougher poses and less chanting or talking at the start of class.
Mr. Sugrim, who was a massage therapist and one-time trainer for the Yankees, described himself as a onetime “meathead who couldn’t touch his toes.” He ran marathons and lifted a lot of weights in the gym. “But it didn’t feel complete,” said Mr. Sugrim, 35. After he made a trip to India — his parents are from there — his girlfriend took him to Jivamukti (the girlfriend-yoga connection crops up a lot). He soon switched his allegiance from the gym to the yoga studio. In yoga, he said, he found a fusion between spirit and body. That was in 2007, and he was one of three guys in the class.
Now Jivamukti holds seminars just for men, and some classes can be about 40 percent guys, give or take. “I see more and more athletes,” he said. “The resistance is breaking down.”
Athletes find that yoga greatly increases their suppleness. Old injuries heal; new ones are avoided. “I’m an ex-college basketball player, a fraternity guy, a Wall Street guy — I don’t fit the profile of the average yogi,” said Jason Wachob, 35, who played basketball for Columbia University in the 1990s before becoming a trader. After he stopped playing college ball, he slavishly hit the gym, lifting a lot of weight and jumping on the elliptical.
But too many sports for too many years made his body rebel: He suffered a dislocated shoulder, disk injuries, bad knees. “My back was really, really bad,” he said. “The gym wasn’t an option, and playing basketball wasn’t an option.”
After Mr. Wachob retired from Wall Street, he shifted his attention to Internet start-ups. His latest is mindbodygreen.com, which focuses on healthy living and a greener lifestyle. That got him thinking more about yoga. Since February, he and his wife, Colleen, have been regularly laying their mats side-by-side at Strala Yoga in Manhattan. At 6-feet-7, he is hard to miss.
“In my prime I was very strong,” he said. “I think I’m right back there.”
Mr. Wachob has recruited some of his friends, but getting the men in the door is not always easy, he said. Fear of embarrassment keeps some away, which is why choosing the right class is crucial.
“A lot of guys worry that if you go into the class, you are going to look like you don’t know what you are doing,” he said. “That’s a guy’s worst nightmare.”
Guys also like to “measure things,” he said, like how much weight they can lift and how quickly they can run. “I don’t know if a guy is going to be happy saying my breathing has gotten a lot better,” Mr. Wachob said. This is why inversions and other tough poses come in handy.
“I was so happy when I could do a handstand,” he said. “But I think the people around me might have been scared.”
The participants included the office goers, professionals, teachers including women, and students. Founder director of the Institute and Reiki grandmaster Dr B P Sahi besides other healers imparted Nyasa yoga healing training. Dr Sahi said Nyasa healing was an ancient practice of healing in India developed by the ancient sages. He said Nyasa healing was important for health, prosperity and harmony. It also enables the students to concentrate on their studies, he added.
Iyengar is a style aimed at perfecting chosen postures. It is a much slower style than Ashtanga and certainly less vigorous or demanding than Bikram.
It was created by B.K.S. Iyengar, born 1918 and he began teaching it aged just 18 after completing his studies with Guru Krischnamacharya in India. He had been struck down by tuberculosis and was seeking a way to improve his health.
He based his style on Hatha Yoga, the most practised style in the western hemisphere, and placed emphasis on the perfection of poses through consistent practise. It is his belief that every pose has a correct way of being reached and held, and that once the balance is created in the body it will also be reflected in the mind.
The practise is highly disciplined but gentler than other styles with poses being held for longer periods rather than creating a fast paced physical workout.
Iyengar’s style was innovative and he introduced a set of props designed to help maintain poses for long periods and attain physical alignment where the body isn’t yet supple enough to complete them. Nowadays it is normal to see students using blocks, straps and blankets but this idea is still relatively new to yoga.
It is believed that the discipline required to perfect the poses will help in everyday life and make the student more focused and at peace in all things they set out to do.
Iyengar also focuses on Pranayama, or Yogic breathing, which assists in maintaining poses. The breathing exercises give energy to muscles by helping blood and oxygen flow but they also increase lung capacity and stamina.
Iyengar is not to be taken lightly however. Although not a cardiovascular workout, the effort required to hold poses can be quite difficult and practise is needed. The lack of flowing movements in practises like Ashtanga means that less physically fit students have a good place to start and the sessions can be tailored to suit each individual’s level. The use of props makes Iyengar a good place to start.
In summary, Iyengar is a gentle style for people who like subtle, meticulous or technical aspects of movement and is one of the most popular styles of Yoga.
Read our coverage about Bikram Yoga and Hatha Yoga.
Images: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BKS_Iyengar.jpg, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Joshua_Tree_yoga_-_handstand.jpg
But are yoga mats de rigueur? A small but passionate subset of yoga practitioners say no. Bravely entering studios with little more than a towel, they argue that yoga mats are overcommercialized, bad for the environment and less hygienic. Some even argue that synthetic rubber mats interfere with certain positions.
“The ecstasy of yoga can’t be contained by a mat,” said Dana Flynn, a director of Laughing Lotus, a yoga studio in New York and San Francisco. Many teachers at her studio have done away with mats and practice solely on the hardwood floor. “The lotus flow is a devotional dance,” she added. “The rubber just got in the way.”
Others have come to the same conclusion. “My mat was disintegrating at home,” said Matt Kebbekus, 29, a maitre d’hôtel at the hot spot restaurant Joseph Leonard who teaches occasionally at Laughing Lotus. “So one day, I just lost it and I loved the feeling.”
Carolyn Brown, who is on the leadership council of the Green Yoga Association, a nonprofit organization that fosters environmental activism, says the mats may be harmful. The synthetic material, she said, can release toxins. “Using a sticky mat is not at all traditional,” she said. “Like any product, there is an environmental impact when manufacturing and shipping.”
But what about cleanliness? Annie Pace, who runs Shakti Sharanam, a yoga school in Crestone, Colo., argues that a hardwood floor may be more sanitary. “It’s better than the atrocious practice of using mats used by other people,” she said.
Ms. Pace says she makes an exception when she isn’t sure how clean the floors are, like in a hotel room with a dirty carpet. Otherwise, she says that mats are just another example of how yoga has become overly commoditized. “Did the original yogis have a synthetic piece of plastic?” Ms. Pace said.
All yogis have a complicated relationship to their mats. They’re cumbersome and often cost extra for storage, which locks you into one studio or style of yoga.
There are benefits, like the comfort of marking one’s territory with a mat. Sticky mats prevent slippage, which is no small matter in a room full of sweaty yogis. And depending on the style of yoga, the mats provide padding for tender joints.
Yet there is something romantic about going au naturel. “The idea of practicing without a mat is idyllic in that the yoga practice in its essence requires nothing at all except your body,” said Alex Schatzberg, who teaches at Yoga Vida, a studio in Greenwich Village.
“But until one is very solid in the understanding of the type of support one needs to have a safe practice,” he added, “I would stick to using the sticky mat.”
“Perhaps this historic verdict will open a new and positive chapter in Hindu-Muslim unity,” he said.
Opposing the Commonwealth Games, he said the huge amount of money being spent on the event could have been used for improving the education and health infrastructure in the country.
Endhiran - The Robot premieres
Life at CWG VillageRajini's Action AvatarsIndia in pics Ayodhya verdict is political, not judicial: LiberhanIOC Prez reaches capital to attend CWG opening ceremonyOz impressed with Games preparationsNirmohi Akhara happy with Ayodhya verdictSupreme Court doors still open for us: Jama Masjid cleric MUST READHealth
: