LIFE SKILLS
YOGA
Yoga is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines
that originated in ancient India and aim to control and still the mind,
recognizing a detached witness-consciousness untouched by the mind and
mundane suffering.
Yoga is essentially a spiritual discipline based on an extremely subtle
science, which focuses on bringing harmony between mind and body. It is
an art and science of healthy living. The word 'Yoga' is derived from the
Sanskrit root 'Yuj', meaning 'to join' or 'to yoke' or 'to unite'.
Yoga brings inner peace, emotional stability, physical health, and healthy
relationships. It teaches me to be a healthy example to those around me.
The most impactful way to facilitate healing and neuroplasticity through
yoga is to utilize a combination of breathwork, postures, and meditation.
Other physical benefits of yoga include:
increased flexibility.
increased muscle strength and tone.
improved respiration, energy, and vitality.
maintaining a balanced metabolism.
weight reduction.
cardio and circulatory health.
improved athletic performance.
protection from injury.
Sage Maharshi Patanjali
Though Yoga was being practiced in the pre-Vedic period, the great
Sage MaharshiPatanjali systematized and codified the then existing
practices of Yoga, its meaning, and its related knowledge through his
Yoga Sutras.
Is yoga every day enough exercise?
Most forms of yoga are not strenuous enough to count towards your
150 minutes of moderate activity, as set out by government
guidelines on exercise. However, yoga does count as a strengthening
exercise, and at least 2 sessions a week will help you meet the
guidelines on muscle-strengthening activities.
yoga can support the healing process and help the person
experience symptoms with more centeredness and less distress.
Yoga improves strength, balance, and flexibility. ...
Yoga helps with back pain relief. ...
Yoga can ease arthritis symptoms. ...
Yoga benefits heart health. ...
Yoga relaxes you, to helps you sleep better.
What happens if you do yoga every day?
A strong practice can help build muscle, dramatically boost metabolism,
and breathing fully and deeply increases circulation, also helping the
metabolism to stay ticking along nicely. A little bit of pranayama, a little
upper body strength, of course, some opening work as well.
What is the main purpose of yoga?
“The purpose of yoga is to build strength, awareness, and harmony in both
the mind and body,” explains Natalie Nevins, DO, a board-certified
osteopathic family physician and certified Kundalini Yoga instructor in
Hollywood, California.
There are six branches of yoga. Each branch represents a different focus
and set of characteristics. The six branches are Hatha yoga: This is the
physical and mental branch that aims to prime the body and mind.
12 Surya Namaskar Steps
The Sun Salutation can be a very good workout for the cardiovascular during a fast
pace. On the other hand, it can be very relaxing and reflective when yoga postures are
executed at a slower pace. Nonetheless, it is enjoyable to perform a salute to the sun
either way. Your body will surely stretch and become flexible with regular practice.
Here are the Surya Namaskar steps that you should practice every morning with tips on
how to deepen into the pose. Check them out!
Step 1: Prayer pose – Pranamasana
Execution:
1. Stand at the end of your mat, keep your feet together and distribute your weight
on both feet equally.
2. Open your chest and just relax your shoulders.
3. Breathe in and lift both your arms up from the sides.
4. Exhale and bring your palms together in a prayer position in front of your chest.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Activate your feet and stand as if they are tripods.
2. Activate your legs and keep your spine erect.
Step 2: Raised arms pose – Hastauttanasana
Execution:
1. Breath in and lift your arms up and back.
2. Make sure that your biceps are close to your ears.
3. Make an effort to stretch your whole body starting from the heels up to the
fingertips.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Push the pelvis forward just a little bit.
2. Instead of bending backward, reach up with fingers.
Step 3: Hand to foot pose – Hasta Padasana
Execution:
1. Breathing out and bending forward from your waist while keeping your spine
straight.
2. Exhale and completely bring your hands down to the floor beside your feet.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Bend your knees to bring your palms down to the floor.
2. Make a moderate effort to straighten your knees.
3. Keep your hands motionless in this position.
4. Never move them until you compete in this third sequence.
Step 4: Equestrian pose – Ashwa Sanchalanasana
Execution:
1. Breath in and push your right leg as far back as possible.
2. Bring your right knee to the floor and slowly lookup.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Check if your left foot is exactly in between the palms.
Step 5: Stick pose – Dandasana
Execution:
1. Breath in and take your left leg back
2. Bring your whole body in a straight line.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Keep your arms erect to the floor.
Step 6: Salute with eight parts or points – Ashtanga
Namaskara
Execution:
1. Gradually bring your knees down to the floor then exhale.
2. Slightly take your hips back and slide forward.
3. Relax your chest and chin on the ground.
4. Elevate your posterior a little bit.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. The eight parts of your body including two hands, two feet, two knees, chest, and
chin should touch the ground.
Step 7: Cobra pose – Bhujangasana
Execution:
1. Slide forward and raise your chest into the Cobra pose.
2. Keep your elbows bent and fixed in this pose.
3. Keep your shoulders away from your ears.
4. Slowly lookup.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Inhale and make a moderate effort to push your chest forward.
2. Exhale and make a light effort to push your navel down.
3. Tuck your toes under.
4. Make sure that you are stretching just as much as you can and do not go beyond
the limits of your body.
Step 8: Mountain pose – Parvatasana
Execution:
1. Breath out and lift your hips as well as your tail bone.
2. Put your chest downwards to create an inverted V pose.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
Keep your heels on the ground as possible.
Make a moderate effort to lift your tailbone.
Gradually go deeper into the stretch.
Step 9: Equestrian pose – Ashwa Sanchalanasana
Execution:
1. Breath in and bring your right foot forward in between the two hands.
2. Bring your left knee down to the ground.
3. Press your hips down then look up.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Place your right foot exactly between the two hands.
2. Make sure that your right calf is perpendicular to the ground.
3. You only need moderate effort to push your hips down towards the floor and deepen the
yoga stretch.
Step 10: Hand to foot pose – Hasta Padasana
Execution:
1. Breath out and bring your left foot forward.
2. Keep your palms on the ground.
3. You can bend your knees if you feel some discomfort.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Gently straighten your knees and if you can, try and touch your nose to the knees.
2. Keep on breathing.
Step 11: Raised Arms Pose- Hastauttanasana
Execution:
1. Breath in and roll your spine up,
2. Make your hands go up and bend backward a little bit
3. Push your hips slightly outward.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Make sure that your biceps are beside your ears.
2. Aim to stretch up more instead of stretching backward.
Step 12: Standing Mountain pose – Tadasana
Execution:
1. Exhale and first straighten your body.
2. Bring your arms down.
Yoga Stretch Deepening Tip:
1. Relax in this yoga pose.
2. Observe the sensations that the Sun salutations bring in your body.
All these are some of the things which we got to know from our yoga class
conducted in our college S.J.P.As life skills were one of the chapters in our
professional practice subject. Our guide Mrs. Shruthi ma’am has given this idea
of doing yoga, it was too beneficial for us. We all enjoyed the session which was
conducted in our college.
Thanks to our guide from which we got much knowledge about yoga.
