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Yoga Exercise — 1 comment
07
Sep 11

Yoga breathing exercises do the body good

Something that slows the rate at which you inhale and exhale - like yoga breathing exercises - may help you relax.

Something that slows the rate at which you inhale and exhale - like yoga breathing exercises - may help you relax.

Have you ever noticed that when you get anxious, nervous or upset, your breathing gets shallower? This is no accident, since your body responds to stressors with the fight-or-flight response. Hence, something that slows the rate at which you inhale and exhale – like yoga breathing exercises – may help you relax.

Though yoga breathing styles are hardly a secret, they are not exactly self-evident, which is one reason why many people do not instinctively learn how to modulate their breathing in times of trouble or in everyday life.

What can yoga breathing do for you? Several things, if the latest medical studies have anything to say about it.

Oxygenation

Without oxygen, your body's tissues are quickly starved of energy. Of course, your body does a good job of keeping your respiration going unconsciously, but oftentimes this level of breathing is less than optimal.

A study in the Journal of Applied Physiology found that engaging in a yoga breathing regimen over several months appears to increase the body's ability to oxygenate itself.

While the mechanism of this effect was undetermined, scientists theorized that such exercises might be used to prepare high-altitude climbers for a low-oxygen environment, such as that found high on the slopes of Mt. Everest!

Muscular stimulation

An effective breathing routine may help strengthen your core and activate the muscles. A report published in the journal Thorax determined that volunteers who regularly used yoga breathing experienced increases in blood levels of muscular enzymes.

Living stress-free

A more wide-ranging study, which appeared in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, found that doing regular deep-breathing exercises can help people reduce their stress levels, even if they suffer from a debilitating anxiety disorder.

The authors listed post-traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety and depression as three mental pathologies that may be treated with complementary breathing regimens. Likewise, the group noted that using breathing exercises to relax may increase a person's longevity, especially in conjunction with a good diet and ample exercise.

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California Yoga — No comments
23
Aug 11

California yoga studios multiply in Sacramento

califonria yoga studios

Why wait around for the yoga classes near you to fill up? Try signing up today!

How popular are California yoga classes? Well, if the number of California yoga studios tells us anything, it's that people from all over the Golden State are flocking to yoga classes, studios and centers faster than ever.

A report aired by KCRA 3 News determined that the number of yoga studios in Sacramento alone doubled in just two years, from 12 in 2008 to more than two dozen in 2010. The figures were located in the city's business license records.

Studio owner Julie Havelock told the news channel that the economic recession appears to be one of the factors underpinning this wild expansion of yoga. She said that her business has experienced significant spikes in memberships, possibly because people need somewhere to go to get away from the nation's dire financial straits.

Sanjay Varshney, the dean of the California State University's Sacramento College of Business Administration, agreed with this sentiment.

"Yoga is something that helps the mental state of mind. So, with all of the stress, I think it's natural people are looking to yoga as a thing to basically seek some comfort," he told the news source.

For whatever reason, Southern California is bristling with yoga centers, which cater to individuals of all ages, backgrounds and body types. The Los Angeles Times estimated that more than 70 such studios exist in this region alone.

More broadly, yoga has been booming all across the U.S. In 2008, the Yoga Journal released a report estimating that 15.8 million people – or nearly 7 percent of all Americans – practice yoga, deep breathing, stretching and meditation.

The source stated that another 18.3 million people are interested in trying the holistic regimen, which has been sustaining human health and wellness for thousands of years.

Why wait around for the yoga classes near you to fill up? Try signing up today!

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Yoga Exercise — No comments
18
Aug 11

Los Angeles yoga instructor says yoga breathing exercises helped President Nixon

yoga breathing exercises

In 1972, President Richard Nixon came to a renowned yoga instructor complaining of leg pain caused by a vascular condition.

The thousands of excited enthusiasts who flock to California yoga classes may be interested to know that the holistic healing regimen's stretching techniques and yoga breathing exercises have helped not a few people overcome pain – including at least one former president.

According to Bloomberg, in 1972 President Richard Nixon came to Bikram Choudhury – a renowned yoga instructor based in Los Angeles today – complaining of leg pain caused by a vascular condition.

The problem was thrombophlebitis, a condition that occurs when blood vessels in the legs swell to compensate for clotting. At the time, Nixon was embroiled in a time-consuming re-election campaign.

The instructor told the news source that he asked Nixon to do yoga in a tub full of hot water, which reportedly cleared up the president's pain and helped get him back on his feet.

Nixon was no stranger to the healing effects of yoga. In 1970, two years before he went to Choudhury for help, his wife, First Lady Pat Nixon, made headlines when she tried a little yoga at the White House with a group of urban teenagers and models.

According to an issue of the Spokesman-Review, Mrs. Nixon became enamored of yoga that day even though she rarely exercised.

"I'm sure all the yoga fans will be after me," she told the newspaper, adding that she firmly believed in the health benefits of good posture.

"If you put your tummy in, there's no place for your shoulder to go but up," she reasoned.

Similar rationales typically lie behind many of the healthiest yoga regimens. Being able to stand upright properly, stretch one's arms and legs, breathe deeply, meditate or do tai chi can be integral to maintaining one's overall health and wellness.

Today, more than 15 million Americans practice yoga, according to a survey conducted by the Yoga Journal.

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Yoga Exercise — No comments
12
Aug 11

Yoga breathing benefits adults, children – and divers, too!

yoga breathing benefits

It was similar techniques that helped magician David Blaine hold his breath for more than 17 minutes during an episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show!

Using yoga breathing techniques is something that nearly anyone can do in the pursuit of better health and wellness. There are many yoga breathing benefits, some of which are subtler than others.

1. At its most basic level, yoga breathing simply gets you to slow down and relax. Have you ever suffered from anxiety, excess stress or even panic attacks? In many cases, the physical response to excess tension involves shallow, rapid breathing. This sort of respiration can elevate stress, rather than soothe it. Yoga-based breathing techniques do the opposite. By slowing your breathing, mindfulness exercises can reduce your heart rate and calm you down.

2. Yoga breathing also flushes toxins from the body via the lungs. As you breathe, your cells are using oxygen and emitting carbon dioxide as a byproduct. This compound needs to escape your body in order for you to remain healthy and lucid. Deep breathing can expel this molecule and other toxins from your pulmonary system.

3. People who use yoga breathing in conjunction with meditation may find themselves exploring vast expanses of inner territory. These limitless spaces are simply your true self, and doing a little yoga breathing can help you focus, turn inward and voyage through the furthest reaches of your mind.

4. Doing yoga breathing can also increase the volume of your lungs, allowing you to process more air with fewer breaths. Increased lung space is good for anyone, be it man, woman or child, since it is a sign of good pulmonary health. Even skin divers use yoga to improve their lung capacity. Scuba Diving Magazine reports that many enthusiasts employ yoga breathing in order to optimize their oxygen use.

It was similar techniques that helped magician David Blaine hold his breath for more than 17 minutes during an episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show! Today, the breath-holding record stands at 19 minutes and 21 seconds, held by Peter Colat. Discovery News noted that he and other extreme divers use "Zen-like relaxation exercises" to improve skills.

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Yoga Exercise — No comments
09
Aug 11

Victoria Beckham will use astrology, yoga breathing for weight loss

This is not Beckham's first attempt at trying yoga - not by a long shot.

This is not Beckham's first attempt at trying yoga - not by a long shot.

Yoga can be tailored to fit nearly anyone's personal growth and development goals. Children can practice meditation to stay calm, adults may try doing group yoga as a way to make friends and new mothers can use yoga breathing for weight loss. The latter is almost exactly what British designer and singer Victoria Beckham has decided to do, minus the astrology that she has reportedly thrown into the mix.

According to Now Magazine, the former Spice Girl and mother of four has decided to use "yogalosophy" to return to her pre-baby physique. The unique system is a combination of yoga and astrology, designed by Mandy Ingber, the yoga teacher of none other than actress Jennifer Aniston, the source stated.

This is not Beckham's first attempt at trying yoga – not by a long shot. The UK Daily Mail first reported that the starlet was trying yogalosophy in 2010, before she was pregnant with her newest baby, Harper Seven Beckham.

A source who knows the 37-year-old said that she adopted yoga as a way to stay trim and healthy, the newspaper added.

During her pregnancy, Beckham kept at yoga, though less as a weight loss method than as a way to stay active.

Now, she has gone back to yoga as a way to slim down. Now Magazine reported that the tired but happy mama is hoping to return to a size eight in time for Fashion Week.

The Independent added that Beckham hopes to be re-energized and comforted by yoga.

Numerous studies have demonstrated that doing yoga can boost energy levels, stabilize weight and even improve self-image and self-esteem.

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Personal Growth and Development — 1 comment
01
Aug 11

People of all stripes wear uniforms while reaching personal growth and development goals

Personal Growth and Development Goals

Studies have shown that wearing common attire can add to one's personal growth and development resources.

When you think about the phrase "wearing a uniform," you may visualize members of the U.S. Armed Forces, workers in medium-wage jobs, or Boy and Girl Scouts. Narrowly defined, the word "uniform" covers little more than the coordinated outfits of these individuals, but in a broader sense of the term, a uniform is any ensemble shared by a group of individuals.

Studies have shown that wearing common attire can add to one's personal growth and development resources. For instance, a researcher from Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi found that high school students who wore uniforms tended to academically outperform their diversely dressed peers.

The report, published as a dissertation for an EdD, determined that students who regularly wore coordinated outfits tended to do slightly better on reading-based performance exams.

A similar study, conducted by Seunghee Han of the University of Missouri, determined that elementary and middle school, students who wear uniforms tend to display milder problematic behaviors and to incur fewer disciplinary measures than peers who are allowed to dress freely.

The paper, which appeared in the International Journal of Education Policy and Leadership, noted that this effect occurred primarily among pre-high school students.

However, the benefits of yoga do not stop there. A study presented at the 2010 Sigma Theta Tau International Conference noted that nurse's uniforms can influence the anxiety levels of pediatric patients.

Specifically, the investigation determined that children respond most positively to nurse's outfits that are uniformly blue or pink. Likewise, the study found that other colors do not cause anxiety, and that children did not associate white uniforms with any negative emotions.

In many yoga classes, white uniforms are standard attire for community classes. The holistic regimen often employs a basic, two-piece outfit as a way to engender a sense of unity and calm. The loose, long-sleeved, natural-fiber shirt and pants worn by enthusiasts give them an unfettered range of motion while keeping them cool and making their personal growth and development activities easier.

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Yoga Breathing Benefits / Yoga Exercise — No comments
29
Jul 11

Yoga breathing benefits extend to people with dyspnea, COPD

yoga breathing benefits

COPD is a progressive disease that causes shortness of breath, a feeling known as dyspnea.

If you do yoga breathing exercises as part of your daily or weekly workout regimen, you may be doing your body a big favor. Breathing slowly and deeply may reduce blood pressure, bring down your heart rate and open up your body's energy channels. Also, research has shown that yoga breathing benefits some people with pulmonary conditions.

An investigation conducted by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco found that yoga may be safe and healthy for individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD).

These results, which appeared in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (JACM), were based on data collected from 29 elderly patients with the lung condition, some of whom were given a 12-week course of yoga-based interventions.

COPD is a progressive disease that causes shortness of breath, a feeling known as dyspnea. Most cases of the condition are caused by prolonged exposure of the lung tissue to irritants, the most common of which is cigarette smoke, according to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

Over time, people with COPD find it harder to take deep breaths because their lung tissue is stiffened, damaged or coated with mucus, the agency adds.

While traditional medical treatments are typically used to treat the source of the problem, yoga breathing exercises may help patients with COPD overcome episodes of dyspnea and become more mobile.

In the JACM study, people with COPD were led through yoga postures and guided breathing sessions twice weekly for 12 weeks. Researchers found that those tutored in the art of yoga breathing experienced moderate reductions in the severity of dyspnea, as well as mild improvements in walking speed, muscular strength and health-related quality of life.

Though it approaches the problem in a very different way, yoga breathing is done for the same reason that patients take bronchodilators or use inhalers – namely, to open up the lung's passageways and facilitate calm, full, deep breaths.

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Yoga Breathing Benefits / Yoga Exercise — No comments
25
Jul 11

Yoga breathing exercises may increase GABA in brain, ease stress

yoga breathing exercises

GABA is the brain's chief inhibitory neurotransmitter, meaning that it dampens the excitation of neurons.

Though you may not be too familiar with gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) or its effects on mental and physical health, a number of researchers are, and several studies have demonstrated that yoga breathing benefits a person's GABA counts and can thus relieve stress.

GABA is an amino acid, one that acts as a neurotransmitter in the brain. According to the scientific text Neuropsychopharmacology: The Fifth Generation of Progress, this substance works in concert with l-Glutamic acid, also known as glutamate.

In essence, glutamate speeds up the communication between neurons, resulting in "fast excitatory synaptic transmission," the source states. By contrast, GABA is the brain's chief inhibitory neurotransmitter, meaning that it dampens the excitation of neurons.

These two organic compounds must work in harmony in order for the brain to function properly. The source adds that GABAergic drugs – meaning those that boost the amount of GABA in the brain – are used to treat anxiety, to prevent convulsions and to sedate or anesthetize patients.

However, for mild conditions, like anxiety, drugs are not always the answer. Several studies have found that yoga may increase the brain's store of GABA, leading to lower stress levels and increased feelings of peace and calm.

For example, a study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine found that individuals who completed a one-hour yoga session experienced a 27 percent increase in their brains' GABA levels. By comparison, a control group that simply read for an hour displayed no change in their GABA levels.

Another report in the same journal suggested that doing yoga breathing for stress may have measurable benefits for individuals who suffer from anxiety or depression. Specifically, the report suggested that taking slow, deep, measured breaths can lower the body's levels of cortisol, a hormone that signals stress.

Likewise, the study indicated that doing yoga breathing may increase the amount of the brain's oxytocin, which is a hormone linked to feelings of contentment, lover and empathy.

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Yoga Exercise — No comments
22
Jul 11

Tai chi, qigong, yoga breathing exercises get plenty of use in the U.S.

The 2007 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), conducted by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, found that an estimated 2.3 million Americans had used tai chi.

The 2007 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), conducted by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, found that an estimated 2.3 million Americans had used tai chi.

Do you practice tai chi, qigong, yoga breathing exercises or other mind-body healing practices? If you do, you're not alone. Not remotely – according to nationwide surveys, millions of Americans have tried these complementary and alternative treatments as ways to treat their physical or mental ills.

The 2007 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), conducted by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, found that an estimated 2.3 million Americans had used tai chi in the year prior to the study.

That's quite a few people, all practicing the yoga breathing styles, mindfulness techniques and slow, deliberate movements of tai chi. To put that figure in perspective, 2.3 million people would fill San Francisco's Candlestick Park Stadium to capacity 33 times over!

Respondents gave a number of reasons for trying the so-called "soft" martial art. These included the need to get low-impact exercise, to increase muscular strength or flexibility, to augment the sense of balance, to soothe stiff joints or sore muscles, to make it easier to fall asleep or to pursue well-being in general.

In order to get a better idea of who is using tai chi and qigong for good health, researchers from Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center recently analyzed the data collected in the 2002 NHIS.

The team found that men are as likely as women to have tried tai chi or qigong. Individuals who reported using these methods were more likely to be Asian-American than Caucasian, as well as college-educated, though practitioners ultimately covered a wide gamut of backgrounds.

The survey also determined that muscular or skeletal conditions, asthma and sprains were associated with an increased likelihood of practicing tai chi or qigong. Scientists also found that most practitioners reported using these self healing methods as a way to improve physical health.

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Yoga Exercise — 3 comments
19
Jul 11

Yoga breathing benefits may extend to patients with mesothelioma

Malignant mesothelioma, a disease often caused by exposure to asbestos (pictured), is diagnosed in 3,000 people each year, according to the American Cancer Society.

Malignant mesothelioma, a disease often caused by exposure to asbestos (pictured), is diagnosed in 3,000 people each year, according to the American Cancer Society.

Being diagnosed with a rare and dangerous form of cancer may leave patients feeling like they have few options for improving their quality of life. However, many healthcare professionals are recommending complementary therapies – like yoga breathing techniques, meditation or tai chi – for pain relief and palliative care.

Consider malignant mesothelioma, a disease diagnosed in just 3,000 people each year, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). This condition consists of cancer cells that grow in the pleura, the lining of the chest cavity surrounding the lungs, the organization states.

Men are more likely than women to be diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, and exposure to asbestos greatly increases the risk of the disease, the ACS adds.

This condition has a relatively poor prognosis. The National Cancer Institute estimates that the median survival time for a patient with localized mesothelioma is 16 months, a figure that drops to 5 months if the cancer is found to have metastasized.

That said, many patients with the disease must receive effective palliative care to keep them comfortable. In this respect, yoga breathing exercises may help individuals with mesothelioma relax, reduce their pain or take deeper, more oxygenating breaths.

In the book Surviving Mesothelioma and Other Cancers: A Patient's Guide, author Paul Kraus states that a body – even one with a serious form of cancer – needs regular activity or exercise to maintain optimal health.

"Walk, swim and learn the gentle healing arts of tai chi or yoga. All of these are very healing," he explains, adding that being candid, having forthright interpersonal relationships and maintaining a positive attitude may also improve quality of life for people with the disease.

Kraus points to the benefits of a healthy diet and yoga-based stretching exercises on other diseases, like angina and cardiovascular disease. He concludes that while such methods can sound far-fetched, they may ultimately improve a person's mental and physical vigor in a time of profound trouble.

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