Basic Asanas [ Yoga Positions or Postures or Asanas ]

Pre-positions -

STANDING POSITION	SITTING POSITION
SUPINE POSITION	PRONE POSITION

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Neck: Movement 1 -

Neck Movement (Kanthasanchalana) Type 1

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of neck muscles. Precaution - People with neck problems like spondilytis should avoid forward bending. Procedure - Sit in the Vajrasana Position, keep your neck straight, then slowly but without jerk bend your neck forward as much as possible, back to normal position then bend it backward and then back to normal, then to the right and to the left.

Neck: Movement 2 -

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of neck muscles. Precaution - People with neck problems like spondilytis should avoid forward bending. Procedure - Sit in the Vajrasana Position, keep your neck straight, then slowly but without jerk start rotating neck clockwise from left shoulder to backwards then to the&nbspright shoulder and to front. Repeat this in anticlockwise direction starting from right&nbspshoulder.

Neck Movement (Kanthasanchalana) Type 2

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Shoulder: Movement 1 -

Shoulder Movement (Skandhasanchalana) Type 1

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of shoulder & back muscles. Precaution - No specific precautions. Procedure - Sit in the Vajrasana Position, keep your body straight, with arms by side. Then slowly but without jerk lift your both shoulders upwards as much as possible near to ears, back to normal position. Benefits - This posture is useful for people with back problems.

Shoulder: Movement 2 -

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of shoulder and back muscles. Precaution - No specific precautions. Procedure - Sit in the Vajrasana position, keep your body straight, fold you hands and place left fist on left shoulder and right fist on right shoulder, bring both your elbows together near chest, then slowly but without jerk rotate both these arms in opposite direction, (left arm anticlockwise and right arm clockwise) Repeat this in opposite direction (right arm anticlockwise and left arm clockwise). Benefits - This posture is useful for people with back problems.

Shoulder Movement (Skandhasanchalana) Type 2

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Hand: Movement 1 -

Hand Movement (Hastasanchalana) Type 1

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of hand & shoulder muscles. Precaution - If you feel strain while lifting your hands above ground then do this with your hands resting on ground.

• Procedure - Relax in Shavasana position, keep your hands 6 inches away from your body, legs separated with 12 inch distance between them, lift your hands 1 to 1.5 inch above ground and slowly rotate them towards head without bending elbows, keep the hands parallel to the ground till both the palms meet, place left palm on right&nbsppalm and stretch hands upwards and legs downwards for 5 to 10 seconds, then slowly&nbspbut without jerk rotate both the hands back to the normal position via the same path.
• Benefits - This posture is useful in increasing the strength of neck, shoulders and the stretching helps retain normal posture.

Hand: Movement 2 - Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of hand & shoulder muscles. Precaution - do not bend elbows while doing this.

Hand Movement (Hastasanchalana) Type 2

• Procedure - Relax in Shavasana position, keep your hands 6 inches away from your body, legs separated with 12 inch distance between them, raise your hands above ground and slowly take them towards head without bending elbows, place both hands on the ground, stretch hands upwards and legs downwards for 5 to 10 seconds.&nbspThen slowly but without jerk bring both the hands back to the normal position via the same path.
• Benefits - This posture is useful in increasing the strength of neck, shoulders and hands, the stretching helps retain normal posture.

Hand: Movement 3 -

Hand Movement (Hastasanchalana) Type 3

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of hand & shoulder muscles. Precaution - If you feel strain while lifting your hands above ground then do this with your hands resting on ground. The movements should be slow and continuous. Procedure - Relax in Shavasana position, keep your hands 6 inches away from your body, legs separated with 12 inch distance between them, lift your hands 1 to 1.5 inch above ground and slowly rotate them towards head without bending elbows, keep the hands parallel to the ground till both forearms cross, in this same cross position raise the arms above and on to the stomach, then slowly bring both the hands back to the normal position. Benefits - This posture is useful in increasing the strength of neck, shoulders and the stretching helps retain normal posture.

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Leg: Movement 1 -

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of legs & hip muscles. Precaution - The movements should be slow & continuous. Procedure - Relax in Supine position, keep your hands around head rotating them side ways, then lift your left leg and bring it near to the hip, repeat this procedure for the&nbspright leg. Then slowly bring both the hands back to the normal position. Benefits - This helps development of the leg muscles and hip joints.

Leg Movement (Padasanchalan) Type 1

Leg: Movement 2 -

Leg Movement (Padasanchalana) Type 2

Aim - To increase the flexibility and strength of legs & hip muscles. Precaution - The movements should be slow & continuous. Do not bend the knees. Procedure - Relax in Supine position, keep your hands close to your body, then lift your left leg 30 to 40 degrees above ground level and rotate it in the clockwise direction without bending knees, repeat this procedure for the right leg. Benefits - This helps leg muscles and hip joints.

Leg: Movement 3 -

Aim - To increase the flexibility and stamina of legs & hip muscles. Precaution - The movements should be slow & continuous. Do not bend the knees. Procedure - Relax in Supine position, Move your hands around and place them at shoulder height, parallel to the ground, then lift your left leg and turn it to the right side as far as possible touching the ground. Repeat this procedure for the right leg. Then slowly bring both the hands back to the normal position. Benefits - This helps leg muscles and hip joints.

Leg Movement (Padasanchalana) Type 3

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Knee: Movement 1 -

Knee Movement (Janusanchalan) Type 1

Aim - To increase the flexibility and strength of knee & waist muscles. Precaution - The movements should be slow & continuous. Procedure - Relax in Supine position, Move your hands around your head, then bend your left leg in knee and rest foot near&nbspto hips , then turn the knee to the right side as far as possible. Repeat this procedure&nbspfor the right leg. Then slowly bring both the hands back to the normal position. Benefits - This helps knee joints and hip joints.

Knee: Movement 2 -

Aim - To increase the flexibility and strength of knee & waist muscles. Precaution - The movements should be slow & continuous, don't take unnecessary strains while performing this exercise. Procedure - Relax in Supine position, Move your hands around your head, then bend your legs in knee and rest feet near to&nbsphips , then turn the legs to the left side as far as possible, touch the left knee to the ground and turn the neck to the right side and relax all the muscles, continue normal&nbspbreathing, then slowly bring both the hands back to the normal position. Benefits - This helps knee joints, hip joints and also the spinal column.

Knee Movement (Janusanchalan) Type 2

Knee: Movement 3 -

Knee Movement (Janusanchalan) Type 3

Aim - To increase the flexibility and strength of knee & waist muscles . Precaution - The movements should be slow & continuous, don't take unnecessary strains while performing this exercise. Procedure - Relax in Supine position. Move your hands around your head, then bend your legs in knee and rest feet near to hips , keep 12 inches distance between them, then turn the left leg to the right side to touch the right toe, press the right leg to the left thigh, relax all the muscles,&nbspcontinue normal breathing. Repeat this for right leg, then slowly bring both the hands&nbspback to the normal position. Benefits - This helps knee joints, hip joints and also the spinal column.

Styles of Yoga

	Ananda Yoga
	Ashtanga Yoga
	Integral Yoga
	Iyengar Yoga
	Kripalu Yoga
	Kundalini Yoga
	Sivananda Yoga
	Viniyoga

Branches of Yoga

Introduction

While hatha yoga is the most familiar kind of yoga practice in the West, there are five other distinct and individual practices for the purpose of unifying both body and mind.

Hatha Yoga

Called the "forceful path" this is the yoga of physical well-being. In the modern Western approach, hatha yoga is used primarily as a form of physical therapy. It consists of asanaspranayamas (breathing exercises), and meditation. (postures),

Raja Yoga

Raja yoga is considered the highest form of Yoga. Raja means "royal", and meditation is the focal point of this branch of yoga. This approach involves strict adherence to the eight "limbs" of yoga as outlined by Patanjali in The Yoga Sutras. Raja yoga is also known as "classical" yoga. The practice of raja yoga typically starts with hatha yoga, which gives the body the needed health and strength to endure the more advanced stages of training.

Karma Yoga

Karma yoga is the path of service. The principle of karma yoga is that what we experience today is created by our actions in the past. Therefore, all of our present efforts become a way to consciously create a future that frees us from being bound by negativity and selfishness. We practice karma yoga whenever we perform our work and live our lives in a selfless fashion and as a way to serve others.

Bhakti Yoga

Bhakti yoga describes the path of devotion. Seeing the Divine in all of creation, bhakti yoga is a positive way to channel the emotions. The path of bhakti yoga provides us with an opportunity to cultivate acceptance and tolerance for everyone we come into contact with.

Jnana Yoga

While bhakti yoga can be considered the yoga of the heart, jnana yoga is the yoga of the mind, of wisdom, the path of the sage or scholar. This path requires development of the intellect through the study of the scriptures and texts of the yogic tradition.

Tantra Yoga

Tantra yoga is probably the most misunderstood or misinterpreted of all the paths of yoga. Tantra yoga is the pathway of ritual. In tantric practice we experience the Divine in everything we do. A reverential attitude is therefore cultivated, encouraging a ritualistic approach to life.

Combining Yoga Paths

You need not be limited to one expression or path of yoga. You may practice hatha yoga, taking care of your physical body; while simultaneously including raja yoga by adding meditation to your practice; performing karma yoga by engaging in selfless service to others and cultivating the lifestyle of a bhakti yogi by expressing your compassion for everyone you meet.

Stages of Yoga

Introduction

In The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, which is a two-thousand-year-old collection of the oral teachings on yogic philosophy, there are one hundred and ninety-five statements which are a kind of philosophical guidebook for dealing with the challenges of being human. The Yoga Sutrasashtanga, which literally means "eight limbs". These eight steps are basic guidelines on how to live a meaningful and purposeful life. They are a prescription for moral and ethical conduct. They direct attention toward one's health, and they help us to acknowledge the spiritual aspects of our nature. provides an eight-fold path called

The first four steps or stages concentrate on refining our personalities, gaining mastery over our body, and developing an energetic awareness of ourselves, all of which prepare us for the second half of the journey, which deals with the senses, the mind, and attaining a higher state of consciousness.

Yama

The first step deals with one's moral or ethical standards and sense of integrity, focusing on our behavior and how we conduct ourselves in our interpersonal life. These are, literally, the controls or don'ts of life. They include areas where we must learn to control tendencies which, if allowed expression, would end up causing us disharmony and pain. They are the same moral virtues that you find in all the world's great religious traditions. The five yamas are:

Non-violence
	Refrain from harming or demeaning any living thing, including yourself, by action, word or thought.

Non-lying
	Control any tendency to say anything that is not truthful, including not being truthful to yourself.

Non-stealing
	Curb the tendency to take anything that does not belong to you which includes not only material objects but also things such as praise or position.

Non-sensuality
	Learn the art of self-control; to control the tremendous energy expended in seeking and thinking about sensual pleasure and to abstain from inappropriate sexual behavior.

Non-greed
	Learn not to be attached to or desirous of "things"; to learn to discriminate between "needs" and "wants".

Niyama

Niyama, the second step, are individual practices having to do with self-descipline, self-development and spiritual observances. These are the non-controls or the dos of the path. The five niyamas are:

Purity
	Strive for purity or cleanliness of body, mind and environment.

Contentment
	Seek contentment and acceptance with what you have and with things as they are right now. But, also, seek ways to improve things in the future.

Self-control
	Learn to have control over your actions and to have the strength of determination to do what you decide to do; to replace negative habits with positive ones.

Self-study
	This requires introspection; studying our actions, words and thoughts to determine if we are behaving in a harmonious and positive manner in order to achieve the happiness and satisfaction we strive for.

Devotion
	Devotion is the turning of the natural love of the heart toward the Divine rather than toward the objects of the world.

Asana

Asana, the postures practiced in yoga, are the third step. In the yogic view, the body is a temple of the spirit, the care of which is an important stage of our spiritual growth. Through the practice of asana, we develop the habit of discipline and the ability to concentrate, both of which are necessary for meditation. If the body is in proper working order and comfortable in one position for a long time, it can ultimately become a vehicle for spiritual powers, instead of preventing progress by bothering its owner with physical distress.

Pranayama

Generally translated as breath control, this fourth step consists of techniques designed to gain mastery over the respiratory process while recognizing the connection between the breath, the mind and the emotions. The literal translation of pranayama is "life force". Yogis believe that it not only rejuvenates the body but actually extends life itself. You can practice pranayama as an isolated technique (simply sitting and performing a number of breathing exercises) or integrate it into your daily hatha yoga routine.

Pratyahara

Pratyahara, the fifth step, means withdrawal or sensory transcendence. It is during this stage that we make the conscious effort to draw our awareness away from the external world and outside stimuli. We direct our attention internally. The practice of pratyahara provides us with an opportunity to step back and take a look at ourselves. This can happen during breathing exercises, during meditation, during the practice of yoga postures, or during any activity requiring concentration. Detachment is a great technique for pain control and an excellent way to deal with uncomfortable symptoms or chronic conditions.

Dharana

The practice of pratyahara creates the setting for dharana or concentration. Having relieved ourselves of outside distractions, we can now deal with the distractions of the mind itself. In the practice of concentration, which precedes meditation, we learn how to slow down the thinking process by concentrating on a single mental object. The goal is to become aware of nothing but the object on which you are concentrating, whether it's a candle flame, a flower, a mantra you repeat to yourself, a specific energetic center in the body, or an image of a deity. The purpose is to train the mind to eliminate all the extra, unnecessary junk floating around, to learn to gently push away superfluous thought. Extended periods of concentration naturally lead to meditation.

Dhyana

Meditation or contemplation, the seventh step of ashtanga, is the uninterrupted flow of concentration. Although concentration (dharana) and meditation (dhyana) may appear to be one and the same, a fine line of distinction exists between these two stages. Where dharana practices one-pointed attention, dhyana is ultimately a state of being keenly aware without focus. At this stage, the mind has been quieted, and in the stillness it produces few or no thoughts at all. Meditation occurs when you've actually become linked to the object of your concentration so that nothing else exists. It is a keen heightened awareness, not nothingness. Your mind is completely focused and quiet but awake and aware of truth. Many methods exist to bring you to this state, but oneness with the object of your meditation, and subsequently, oneness with the entire universe, is the objective. It is quite a difficult task to reach this state of stillness but it is not impossible. This state is a goal to keep striving for and, even if it is never attained, there is benefit from each stage of progress.

Samadhi

Patanjali describes this eighth and final step of ashtanga as a state of ecstasy. All the paths of yoga lead to this stage. This stage is one which most of us are unlikely to attain in this lifetime. At this stage, the meditator merges with his or her point of focus and transcends the self altogether. When in this state, you understand not only that you and the object of your meditation are one, but that you and the universe are one. There's no difference between you and everything else. The meditator comes to realize a profound connection to the Divine, an interconnectedness with all living things. What Patanjali has described as the completion of the yogic path is what, deep down, all human beings aspire to: joy, fulfillment, freedom and peace

What to never... ever eat after exercise

We've all been there, feeling a bit worn down, low energy and tired after a work-out. If we've been doing weight resisting exercise such as yoga, our arms and legs can sometimes tremble and feel weak as well. At these times, we tend to think that eating will help to replenish our energy levels. A quick search on the internet shows that nutritional advice almost unanimously favors "carb-loading" after a workout to help to refuel the muscles. The period immediately after exercise is considered to be the best time for muscles to replenish glycogen stores. Glycogen is the first fuel to be burned during exercise.

But recent research shows that if you are exercising for weight loss (rather than as a high performance athlete), then eating high-carbohydrate energy snacks after a workout may be 100% the wrong thing to do.

A recent study by the Energy Metabolism Lab at the University of Massachusetts published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism and the Journal of Applied Physiology found that exercising for 1 hour on a treadmill increased insulin efficiency (the ability to clear excess sugar from the blood) by 40% in people that did not eat after the exercise. However, taking a high-carb drink after exercising completely eliminated these benefits.

The research paper also found through a separate study comparing the effects of low-carb and high-carb snacks, the low-carb option was found to be least damaging. However, for the best weigh loss results, Barry Braun, PhD, the study's co-author, notes "If people are going to exercise to benefit their health, they should not be eating back the calories immediately or within a couple of hours of finishing".

So for more effective weight-loss, this research paper shows it pays to not eat back the carbs directly after exercise. If you are really suffering with hunger after a workout, then you can try to prevent it by eating a light snack several hours before exercising. A low carbohydrate, high-protein snack will help fill you up for longer, but take care not to over eat as this may cause discomfort from bloating during the exercise.

[ Note :: Don't take solid food within 2 Hrs after Yoga & 4 Hrs prior to yoga.]

Yoga for Beginners

There are several joints in the body that require movement and lubrication.

The food we eat provides lubrication and Yoga and other activities supply movements. In our day to day life some of our joints tend to get overused, while some are barely used.

This may create problems for you at a later stage. To help your joints maintain their flexibility and healthy condition basic movements are absolutely essential.

They are also useful to prepare your body to take up the practice of Yoga.

Benefits of Yoga for Beginners-

• As the body relaxes all the muscles also relax excluding those that are used in the movements. Hence you can easily concentrate on the movement of a particular muscle.
  
• Aged and infirm people also can perform these movements without much strain.

Yoga basics of beginners:

• Those below 12 years of age should not practise Yoga poses for long and should also not maintain asanas for very long.
  
• Practice Yoga for at least 30 to 45 minutes daily, to derive maximum results. Start with beginner yoga poses.
  
• The best suited time for Yoga practice is early morning; but you can practice in the evenings as well
  
• See that your stomach is empty while practicing. This means you should have solid food 3 – 5 hours before practicing and liquids 1 hour before.
  
• See that your practice space is spacious, clean, airy and far from disturbances.
  
• Never practise Yoga on a bare floor; always spread a mat or carpet below.
  
• Your clothes must be loose, comfortable and clean.
• Undergarments are mandatory.
• Yoga favors a vegetarian diet. However, as far as possible try to avoid spicy foods.

Yoga Postures of beginners (Asanas) :

• Asanas are the 3rd limb of Ashtanga Yoga. Yogasanas bestow good physical health, control over your mind and power of concentration.
  
• Yoga is different from other forms of exercise since it does not involve rapid movements. Here the movements are very slow and steady.
  
• The practise of Yogasanas bestow relaxation that, subsequently, lowers levels of stress & strain.
  
• During Yogasana practice, very few calories are consumed.
• Subsequently, the body’s metabolism rate also drops. This means slower aging process.

How to start Yoga ?

What to Wear

It's best to wear comfortable, loose clothes, like shorts, sweat clothes, or a track suit. Yoga is usually practiced barefoot. Then again, socks or soft-shoes can be worn. It is also advisable to do all Yoga practices on an empty stomach or about an hour or 2 post meals.

What else to do

Go to the loo, clean your nose and throat, and drink a glass of warm water 15 minutes prior to Yoga session. You can have fruit, energy bars, have a glass of juice or water an hour before sessions. This is to avoid getting really hungry in Yoga practice.

When and how long to practise Yoga

Practice Yoga first thing in the morning. This is an excellent way to rejuvenate your mind and body. True, practicing Yoga breathing and meditation exercises at night helps bring on deep sleep. Similar to other exercise systems, always begin with easy asanas. This is to condition the body for the tougher exercises that follow. Never strain and make it a point to pause between asanas and exercises. Likewise, relaxing in between tough asanas is very important. Yoga Sessions don’t have to be long. However the ought to be done on a daily basis.