Saturday, July 2, 2011

Yoga Books

Leslie Kaminoff writes Yoga Anatomy, a book that provides step by step instructions on the various poses that you can take when performing yoga. They have photos as well as tips on how to perfect the pose and more importantly the beneficial effects of doing yoga at all and how it works in relation to the spine, breathing, and your entire body. The principles of yoga are outline and defined in the book so not only will you learn how to do it you will also learn the deeper meaning behind the exercise and see just why and how it is benefiting you. Whether you are a newcomer or someone who has been partaking in yoga for a long time, this book will still provide a valuable and rich experience.

B.K.S Iyengar writes Light on Yoga, a book that seeks to explain and explore the philosophy behind yoga and the various ways that discipline is necessary for body and mind. There are illustrations of all the breathing and positions as well as the descriptions of why these are essential for the body and the mind and the effect that it has on both. For someone seeking to really deepen their view of the subject, this book has great tips and a helpful foreword.

Cyndi Dale writes The Subtle Body, which seeks to argue that all healers use energy in order to help the body achieve a better spiritual, mental, and emotional state of being. This book produces an anatomy for these things, these unseen factors such as our spirit and mind, and shows the ways in which healing can affect these parts of your body. The unseen fields hinge upon the physical condition but can be affected and bettered with various breathing methods and exercises so that you get a really deep kind of therapy in your life.

Ray Long writes The Key Muscles of Yoga, a book that seeks to show the most important muscles that are affected by yoga and the ways in which that helps your body overall. Coming with a science perspective, the book allows you to really get an anatomical sense of how yoga is benefiting you as well as to see it all through color and three-dimensional photos that can help you understand just how it is affecting your overall person. No matter if you are just starting out or if you are an expert, this book will have something for you.

Finally, Martin Kirk writes Hatha Yoga Illustrated, a book t hat seeks to give you a complete intro on the benefits of yoga on certain focal points of your body and how it can affect your emotional wellness, overall. It takes the theories of hatha and anusara yoga and makes it accessible to people so that they can better figure out how to make it a useful thing in their lives. If you seek to get the benefits of yoga, then look no further than this book that will help you figure out all the important aspects of it in a way that will benefit you.

Yoga for Asthma Relief

For thousands of years, people have been trying to find the link between the body and the mind. There has been a question as to whether, or not, the mind can be used to heal the body from diseases and disorders such as asthma. As long as people have been trying to understand this link, people have been practicing Yoga for therapeutic reasons. Although Yoga has also been known to reduce or eliminate breathing disorders, the exact reason has not officially been pinpointed. Many studies have claimed that practicing Yoga regularly can have a significant affect on asthma.

When practicing Hatha Yoga to help improve the condition of asthma, there are many types of poses that can be utilized, but they generally involve an effort to correct poor posture and learning breathing habits. Many people do not realize that they are not breathing properly. Even though it is considered something that should be second nature, the way a person breathes can weaken their lungs and cause health problems.

Poor posture also prevents air from entering and leaving the lungs as effectively as possible. By learning the correct posture and breathing habits, asthma suffers can significantly increase their comfort level. Yoga can also help to reduce mucous, which can greatly impede breathing. Some of the more advanced poses can help to loosen up the mucous that may have built up inside the chest and nasal cavity. A therapeutic Yoga session a couple times a week can eliminate this impediment and prevent build up.

Also, by simply decreasing the stress and anxiety in one's life through the practice of Yoga, an asthma attack is less likely to flare up. A healthier body often creates a healthier mind, and this is especially true when it comes to Yoga, which has been known to decrease the impact of daily pressures. By decreasing the stress in one's life, it is more likely that asthma attacks will not be triggered or worsened by emotional flows.

Yoga techniques can be used to compliment the traditional medical management. Thus someone may already be using meditation, asana, and pranayama to control his or her asthma. It is not advised to discontinue any medication or a doctor's advice. Yoga should be viewed as an adjunct therapy for treating asthma. However, with regular practice and dedicated training, it is possible to lessen the amount of prescription drugs that are needed. This alternative treatment can allow an asthma sufferer to not be controlled by their condition and feel internal relaxation.

Yoga and Meditation

Studies show that a number of leading causes of death in the world include heart disease, cancer, HIV/AIDS, lung disease and injury and most of these illnesses can be prevented and or improved by staying healthy. There are a number of ways we can improve our health and prevent illness including practicing careful protection methods.

Wearing good fitting shoes, foot wear at the gym or pool and keeping our feet clean and dry are measures we can take to avoid toenail fungus. Toenail and fingernail fungus are not only unsightly but can also lead to deep tissue infection that can harm your body. If you suspect a nail fungal infection it is important to treat it right away.

Yoga and meditation and staying healthy go together naturally. It is important to get a minimum of twenty minutes aerobic exercise at least three times a week; however, yoga and meditation are methods that can be used daily. Yoga works the body, strengthens the core and aids flexibility and mediation offers relaxation and centering for your mind. Yoga and meditation together can offer you the renewal your body needs for repair, healing and simply good health.

Maintaining a healthy mind and body are important. Yoga and meditation are essential tools along with deep breathing. There are a variety of yoga styles to choose from as well as meditation styles. Hatha, tantra, Zen, Buddhist and Tibetan techniques all aid in helping in staying healthy. Hatha yoga combines yoga positions with deep breathing and meditation for a holistic approach to health and healing.

In addition to good hygiene, exercise, yoga and meditation it is important to eat a balanced diet full of raw fruits, vegetables and protein. These foods will help fight illness, build immunity and fuel your body for full function.

As we get older we become more aware of the importance of staying healthy and we may wonder what the best treatments for being healthy are. The answer really is quite simple as long as you are proactive and diligent about maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Being healthy requires more than paying attention to health once or twice a year. To be healthy it must become a part of your life and the way you live.

Begin by eating healthy far more often than not. This means that the majority of your food consumption is fresh good foods in proper amounts. It also means that the high fat foods we love become once in a while foods. In addition to eating right it is important to supplement your diet with vitamins and minerals to get the proper nutrition.

Vitamin D supplement

Vitamin D and Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is most often associated with inadequate calcium intake. However, a deficiency of vitamin D also contributes to osteoporosis by reducing calcium absorption.33 While rickets and osteomalacia are extreme examples of vitamin D deficiency, osteopororsis is an example of a long-term effect of vitamin D insufficiency.34 Adequate storage levels of vitamin D help keep bones strong and may help prevent osteoporosis in older adults, in those who have difficulty walking and exercising, in post-menopausal women, and in individuals on chronic steroid therapy.35

Vitamin D deficiency, which is often seen in post-menopausal women and older Americans, has been associated with greater incidence of hip fractures.39-41 In a review of women with osteoporosis hospitalized for hip fractures, 50 percent were found to have signs of vitamin D deficiency.35 Daily supplementation with 20 800 IU of vitamin D may reduce the risk of osteoporotic fractures in elderly populations with low blood levels of vitamin D.42 The Decalyos II study examined the effect of combined calcium and vitamin D supplementation in a group of elderly women who were able to walk indoors with a cane or walker. The women were studied for two years, and results suggested that such supplementation could reduce the risk of hip fractures in this population.43

Vitamin D and Cancer

Laboratory, animal, and some preliminary human studies suggests that vitamin D may be protective against some cancers. Several studies suggest that a higher dietary intake of calcium and vitamin D correlates with lower incidence of cancer.44-51 In fact, for over 60 years researchers have observed that greater sun exposure reduces cancer deaths.33 The inverse relationship between higher vitamin D levels in blood and lower cancer risk in humans is best documented for colon and colorectal cancers.44-50 Vitamin D emerged as a protective factor in a study of over 3,000 adults who underwent a colonoscopy to look for polyps or lesions in the colon. There was a significantly lower risk of advanced cancerous lesions among those with the highest vitamin D intake.52

Additional clinical trials need to be conducted to determine whether vitamin D deficiency increases cancer risk, or if an increased intake of vitamin D is protective against some cancers. Until such trials are conducted, it is premature to conclude you should take vitamin D supplements for cancer prevention.

Read more about the latest studies involving calcium and vitamin D reducing the risk of cancer

Vitamin D and Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease is associated with an increased risk of hip fractures because many Alzheimer's patients are homebound, frequently sunlight deprived, and older.56 With aging, less vitamin D is converted to its active form. One study of women with Alzheimer's disease found that decreased bone mineral density was associated with a low intake of vitamin D and inadequate sunlight exposure.57 More investigation on vitamin D and Alzheimers Disease is necessary.

Other Diseases Vitamin D Deficiency May Affect

Autoimmune Diseases - Diabetes, Multiple Sclerosis and Rheumatoid Arthritis

Diabetes mellitus, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis, are each examples of autoimmune disease. Autoimmune diseases occur when the body launches an immune response to its own tissue, rather than a foreign pathogen. Treatment with vitamin D has beneficial effects in animal models of all of the above mentioned diseases. Studies have found that the prevalence of diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis increases as latitude increases, suggesting that lower exposure to sun light and associated decreases in vitamin D synthesis may play a role in the development of these diseases.

The results of several studies also suggest that adequate vitamin D intake may decrease the risk of autoimmune diseases. Evidence from animal models and human studies suggests that maintaining sufficient vitamin D levels may help decrease the risk of several autoimmune diseases, but more studies are needed to draw any solid conclusions.

Vitamin D and Hypertension (High Blood Pressure)

The results of epidemiological and clinical studies suggest an inverse relationship between serum vitamin D levels and blood pressure. Data from epidemiological studies suggest that conditions that decrease vitamin D synthesis in the skin, such as having dark skin and living in temperate latitudes, are associated with increased prevalence of hypertension.71 In randomized controlled trials of vitamin D supplementation, a combination of 1,600 IU/day of vitamin D and 800 mg/day of calcium for eight weeks significantly decreased systolic blood pressure in elderly women by 9% compared to calcium alone,73 but supplementation with 400 IU/day or a single dose of 100,000 IU of vitamin D did not significantly lower blood pressure in elderly men and women over the next two months.74, 75 At present, data from controlled clinical trials are too limited to determine whether vitamin D supplementation will be effective in lowering blood pressure or preventing hypertension.

Vitamin D Toxicity

It is very rare to have a vitamin D overdose. Vitamin D toxicity induces abnormally high serum calcium levels (hypercalcemia), which could result in bone loss, kidney stones, and calcification of organs like the heart and kidneys if untreated over a long period of time. When the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine established the tolerable upper intake level (UL) for vitamin D, published studies that adequately documented the lowest intake levels of vitamin D that induced hypercalcemia were very limited. Because the consequences of hypercalcemia are severe, the Food and Nutrition Board established a very conservative UL of 2,000 IU/day (50 mcg/day) for children and adults.28 (see table below)

Research published since 1997 suggests that the UL for adults is overly conservative and that vitamin D toxicity is very unlikely in healthy people at intake levels lower than 10,000 IU/day.36, 76, 77 Vitamin D toxicity has not been observed to result from sun exposure.

Certain medical conditions can increase the risk of hypercalcemia in response to vitamin D, including primary hyperparathyroidism, sarcoidosis, tuberculosis, and lymphoma.36 People with these conditions may develop hypercalcemia in response to any increase in vitamin D nutrition and should consult a qualified health care provider regarding any increase in vitamin D intake.

Yoga and Pilates

Why Yoga and Pilates Are a Great Way to Exercise the Core Muscles
Core muscle training may seem like a new exercise fad but that couldn't be further from the truth. Yoga and Pilates practitioners have always recognised the key role of core strength in achieving an overall fitness and wellbeing. Popular exercise regimes have often focused on gaining visible muscle like the much sought after six-pack. The core muscle group has a less immediate and visible effect on appearance which may account for the slow rise in popular appeal but the appeal is now there and growing, for good reason.

What are core muscles and why are they so important?

The muscles of the torso all contribute to the core muscle group, from the pelvic floor to the diaphragm with the abdominals, the obliques and the muscles in the back and shoulders included. The torso is the power centre for the rest of the body and supplies the limbs with the energy and strength to lift, carry and complete all the daily tasks we take for granted. That is, we take them for granted, until something goes wrong. With poor core strength and balance, we are much more prone to injury and poor posture. Back-pain, which is a major discomfort and cause of sickness from work for millions of people, can be alleviated and even eradicated altogether through core strengthening exercise.

How does core strength exercise work?

If we look at activities such as Yoga and Pilates, the rules of core strengthening are all present. The emphasis is on slow and gradual movement with control and perfecting of technique, as opposed to pushing yourself to the max with as a many repetitions as possible. Awareness of posture and breathing at all times is essential and focusing on ensuring that the strain is being taken by the correct muscles. A good instructor, DVD or manual are vital in making sure you are clear about the technique and muscles to be used for each movement.

Strength, stamina and flexibility will develop gradually with slow increases in the length of time an exercise is carried out or how far you push yourself during each movement. The most effective exercises engage a number of muscles at once with the aim of gaining a stable centre of gravity and maintaining balance. Rest between exercises and sessions is important and allows the body to recover and strengthen.

Abdominal bracing is a technique often used during core strength exercise and involves tilting the pelvis forward, so that the naval seems to be naturally pulled in toward the spine. This allows the correct muscles to be used and avoids the arching of the back, which can lead to injury.

As we've already mentioned, core strength training is integral to Yoga and Pilates but the Swiss ball, free-weights and simple floor exercises can all improve core strength if carried out properly. If you've never done core exercises before you'll be surprised by some of the varied and unusual movements and positions involved. You might find you even enjoy it! It is without doubt, worth giving it a go as the benefits to the whole body are indisputable and will allow you to carry out every sport and daily activity with added oomph.

And when you're ready to use yoga or Pilates to strengthen your core, don't forget that wearing the correct yoga clothes will significantly enhance your enjoyment of your workout. I'd love to write more articles like this for your website: click here to find out more!