...f twisting poses that stimulate the work flow of the internal organs, thus boosting metabolism. This in turn burns more calories, and reduces your body weight. Improved local blood circulation is another direct effect of the use of yoga postures, which leads to a healthier, more energetic body. When the calorie intake is lower than the calorie output, your body will start burning fat cells to acquire the necessary energy. A perfectly healthy and strong metabolism takes this process even further, and you may well see better results than traditional weight loss formulas.

To stimulate metabolism, various back bends and forward bends are used. Poses that affect the neck area, where the thyroid gland is situated, are particularly helpful if the weight problem is caused by a hormonal imbalance. These poses can be those of the camel, rabbit, plow, bridge and shoulder stand. Moving quickly between a series of poses can accelerate the process. To those who are well overweight, some of the bends may prove to be a difficult. If you fall into that category, don't despair. You should gradually increase the difficulty of the postures until you have the confidence to go to more complex exercises. This is not a test or a competition; ...more

YogaSutra - First Text On Yoga

... or being truthful, Not Stealing other peoples properties (asteya), Celibacy (bramacharya), Not being greedy for material things (Aparigarha)

2) Niyamas - Niyamas are precepts that are applicable self-discipline. The niyamas precepts fall under five categories they are purity (saucha), Cantonment (Santosh), Austerity (Tapas), Study (Swahdyaya), Surrender (Ishar Pranidhana)

3) Asanas (Postures) There are various yogic postures; each and every posture is given a unique name and special way of performing them. All the postures are designed to promote wellness of the three parts body, mind and inner spirit of a human being. The Asanas (postures) carry the extraordinary ability to bring the physical body, mind and spirit to refresh and be in harmony with each other. The different postures are Surya Namskar (Greeting the Sun), Utthan Pada Asana (Leg Lifting Posture), Paschimothan Asana (Bending Forward and touching toes Posture), Paschimothan Asana (Bending Forward and touching toes Posture), Bhujanga Asana (The King Cobra Posture), Salabha Asana (The Locust Posture), Sarvanga Asana (The shoulder S...more

The Cure to Loneliness: Finding a Guru

...und the cure for this common American disease called loneliness, and its a guru. Yes, finding someone who will ru (remove) your gu (darkness or muck) is a surefire way to find peace and a release from the ills that plague you. You see, we are all like tiny drops of the ocean wandering around, and until we get back, we dont have the great vast sea of knowledge or bliss from which to draw. One of the quickest ways to get back to the ocean is to find yourself a guru, a person or group of people, who can teach you lifes greatest lessons without your protest and without your ego saying, Im going to do it my way. Some people think that surrender to a guru makes you bland and uninteresting, but by adding your drop of the ocean back into the voluminous sea, you actually have more to draw from and can become a much more rich and vibrant individual.

You dont have to travel to India; you dont even have to be indian. You dont even have to practice yoga very much to find a guru. The great thing is about this tradition is that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear, so, sit back, relax, be receptive to all the lessons life brings to you, and get ready to discover yogas untapped resourcethe tremendous power of surrender to a guru.

Copyright 2006 Alanna Kaivalya<...more

Tips For Finding The Right Yoga Teacher

.... In other words, are they suggesting you place your power outside of yourself, or do they reiterate that you in fact are your own guide, and can get their quite well under your own steam.

* Are they (or the prominent representatives of their yoga discipline) overly concerned with money, fame, power, the size of their organization, or their degree of influence? If they (the organization) certify yoga teachers, how long do the teachers have to train for? What are they trained in and what aren't they taught about?

* How well does the teacher embody the basic spiritual qualities of compassion, kindness, peace, joy, and equanimity? Whilst we are all beings at various stages of the journey, it helps to look at a teacher's character, and ethics. No-one needs to be perfect, but what qualities, of themselves, are they bringing to class.

...more

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