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What’s the difference between yoga and sport / fitness?

March 25, 2015 By Beverley Brown Leave a Comment

All movement of the body is great – after all you need to move to maintain flexibility and strength in the body for starters.  It also helps the mind to get clearer – one of the keys to your body feeling  a lot more ease.

I’m not a runner but I know lots of runners who say that their sport allows them to go into the “zone” and when they are they in the zone they feel like they can run a lot easier and further etc etc.   It is the same in yoga when you obtain that mind / body connection you can experience a lot more ability and ease in the body.

But what then is the main difference with yoga?   Once again it is a massive subject but in the context of this post if you check out the page on this website (bikramyoga.je if you are on Facebook) about Bikram he boldly states:

“ Yoga is the only exercise on this planet from which you gain energy instead of burning energy. ”

He also went on to explain in class that consistent sport can wear down (or even damage) parts of the body after a long period of time or if there is a repeated action on one side of the body such as in tennis etc.  Some sports can also create a lot of tightness in certain areas of the body.  If you are an athlete you will probably relate to some of this!

So what does Bikram mean by that and what is the difference with yoga? It is that yoga works from the inside of the body to the outside not the other way round.  Every yoga posture (in the Bikram Yoga series at least) will work the spine – the “backbone” of your body – the “backbone” of your life in fact!  It has a knock on effect on your glandular system and therefore the organs and so it goes on!  Without a healthy spine, many parts of the body would be compromised not only physically but internally too.  Together with the brain, the spine forms the body’s nervous system which is essential for maintaining mental and emotional health which in turn is a major contributor to bodily health.   Suffice to say the spine is the centre of your body and it affects every other part.   With regular practice of yoga you will begin to realise that everything is linked and yoga is therefore is a “wholistic” method of exercise and also a completely natural type of “medicine” so to speak!

So what does that mean – you shouldn’t do sport? – of course not  – I’m a great believer in doing what you love as that in itself is a major reason to do it!  However it may be a good idea to incorporate a regular yoga practice to counteract the wearing down of tissues and the muscle damage that can occur.

Yoga is actually a “generator” of your body and does not deplete it or wear it down – it actually rejuvenates and can even reverse and at least halt the aging process.  This subject is my favourite of course but it will need a few more posts to talk about that!  It’s all about that “life force” (and more importantly what you do with it) that I mentioned in my earlier post.

I hope this explains at least a bit so you if you don’t like sport or normal fitness classes OR if you love it and want to stretch out and repair the body you may wish to give yoga a go!

Bev x

Filed Under: Athletes and Sport, General, Newbies and nearly newbies, News Tagged With: athlete, athletic, brain, cycling, emotional health, mental health, nervous system, physical health, spine, sport, tennis

Posture No 1 – Pranayama breathing a.k.a. Standing Deep Breathing

March 24, 2015 By Beverley Brown

Well as promised I will give some more info on the postures.  Because of timing and the already detailed instruction there is not much time to add in more in the class so I hope these blogs will help!

yoga girl doing Bikram Yoga's standing deep breathing posture

Every Bikram class starts with Pranayama Breathing – 10 sets done twice.  Bikram always told us that this actually was the most important posture of all! Why? Because it gets the heart and lungs to work together properly providing a smooth flow of life force through the body (prana = life force) via a deep breathing technique.  And life force is exactly that – you need life force to keep the body alive!  We can go weeks without food, days without water but only a few minutes without air!

The breathing will also prepare the body for the following postures as it allows for deeper concentration by working on the nervous system and therefore is great to alleviate irritability.  (Remember the old saying – “take a deep breath and count to 10…”) – now you know why!

You may have heard the expression that we only use 10% of our brains – same goes for the lungs.  This technique helps us to learn to use the other 90%!  It can be a little bit hard to master so if you are new or fairly new you may wish to watch a couple of breaths before you join in.  It takes a bit of coordination – well it did for me anyway!

You inhale by the nose and exhale by the mouth but both through the back of the throat so it should sound like a “HAH” sound.  (It is also best to inhale through the nose inbetween postures throughout the whole class by the way – a tip I learnt from another teacher as it really keeps you much more centred, strong and calm).  Take the full six seconds for each inhale and each exhale instead of taking a big gasp in one go and letting it out in one big blast too!  “Low slow flow” as Bikram would say!

All ten fingers need to be interlocked and always maintain contact with the underside of the chin another time for the”full grip” as you so often hear in the dialogue throughout the class.  When you inhale you need to open the elbows out so you can take in more air as you expand the lungs and bring your elbows up as high as you can and as close to the side of the head as possible.  The stomach should be sucked in and you should be able to see the rib cage in the mirror as your lungs expand.  (Open chest and sucked in stomach is mentioned in many of the postures and after 18 years I finally noticed that – sometimes it takes a while for the penny to drop!)

When the head goes back (slowly – not a jerk back) on the exhale, remember to relax that neck again (let go!) and bring your elbows gradually to the front so they meet on the 6th second as high as you can i.e. level with the shoulders and as far away as you can from the chest.  Make sure you exhale open mouthed to expel toxins.

It is a must to keep your eyes open so you are totally present in the body and not floating off to some other universe.  Now you may feel a little dizzy – that is quite normal as this deep breathing is not your normal type of day to day breathing.  One great adjustment which I noticed I needed to do was to stop straining my neck and consciously relax the neck and shoulders and that relieved the tension I often felt in my arms and shoulders.  Again I believe tension and indeed some pain we feel can be a resistance to just let go and it manifests as tension and ache.  This is a big subject and I will explain more in later posts but I can tell you being aware of when I was tensing up really worked for me.

Bikram dialogue has a lot of detail but you will find a consistency throughout the postures once you get more acquainted with them.  Toes and heels together – feet going straight forward not splayed out at “ten to two”!  The weight is also on the heels.  The detail makes all the difference.  Keeping your body straight (don’t lean back) and in alignment is also necessary to keep that energy flowing properly and as the dialogue says “hip muscles solid, concrete” and a little bit forward on the exhale – forever opening up those pesky hip joints!

So to summarise the key points:

  • Maintain the connection between the knuckles and chin throughout the posture
  • Use the nose and mouth only as a passage way as both inhale and exhale should be through the throat
  • Toes and heels together, feet straight forward, weight on the heels
  • Relax the neck and shoulders
  • Low slow flow by synchronising your head and arm movement – its like a cycle – no jerky movements
  • Take the full six seconds for each inhale and exhale
  • Expand the lungs and suck in the stomach and hold it in during the inhale until you can see the rib cage visible in the mirror
  • Keep your eyes open all the time or you will feel dizzier
  • Exhale as much as possible – elbows meet on the 6th second
  • Bring your elbows as high as the shoulders and as far away from the chest as possible when the elbows meet
  • Try not to collapse the chest as you start the next round
  • Know you are now well prepared for the class!

I hope this helps!  Half moon posture is next!)

PS.  If you are an athlete try a few rounds of this breathing technique before you start – it could just give you the edge!

Bevx

Filed Under: Athletes and Sport, Posture tips Tagged With: 26 +2, athlete, Bikram Yoga, detox, life force, pranayama breathing, spine, standing deep breathing

Yoga leggings, other leggings and capris are now available in the shop

image of surf's up yoga leggings
Over 80 different Yoga Leggings designs are now available in several sizes. They can also be purchased in a plainer style in both long and capri lengths. These can be used for yoga and also as a welcome addition to any wardrobe! Click here to go to the shop and browse the many designs available.

Basic information for first timers

Welcome to Bikram Yoga!
If you have never attended a Bikram class before there may be a few things that you need to know. Bring a mat and a towel to put on top of it. If you wish to shower on site you will need another towel for that. Make sure you drink lots of water throughout the day as you will sweat. Also do not eat anything for about 3 hours before class. Wear something you can stretch in and nothing too baggy or it will feel hotter. We don't drink water until after Eagle Pose - not too long to wait and remember you can drink before class starts! Take it easy on your first class - just get used to the heat and the environment. Smile and come back next time!

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Yoga Leggings and Capris are available in my online shop

image of surf's up yoga leggings
Over 80 different Yoga Leggings designs are now available in several sizes. They can also be purchased in a plainer style in both long and capri lengths. These can be used for yoga and also as a welcome addition to any wardrobe! Click here to go to the shop and browse the many designs available.

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