YOGA STYLES: GUIDE TO THE MOST POPULAR TYPES
0 comments Published by baLooT Don JuaNer on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 11:01 AMThe image of yoga has changed during the past years. If once, the first picture that popped your mind was of a group of white wearing weirdoes standing on their heads and breathing loudly, now you are probably thinking about Madonna's well shaped arms. Currently, yoga is one of the most popular fitness activities worldwide. One of its appeal is that it can be practiced by elders and it can improve the overall physical fitness of athletes.
If you want to start practicing yoga, here is a quick guide to the basic types of yoga. While most of them are based on the same ancient postures, each yoga style has a different focus. Some of the yoga styles focus on strengthening the body while others focus on flexibility. Other types of yoga focus mainly on breathing, relaxation, and meditation.
Most of the yoga styles that were adopted in the west, were derived from the Hatha Yoga, which is a general term that refers to the physical branches of the ancient Indian philosophy. The purpose of the traditional Hatha Yoga was to achieve balance between mind and body through moral discipline and physical exercises, which are expressed by a series of asana: postures, panorama: breathing and meditation.
Western culture adopted mainly the physical aspects of the Hatha Yoga and ignored the moral aspects, usually even the breathing and meditations aspects. All the yoga styles that were derived from the Hatha Yoga share the same basic principle that mental balance can be achieved through practice of physical exercises and postures. Each yoga style chooses to focus on different aspect.
Ashtanga Yoga: 
This focuses on the flow of postures in order to improve strength, stamina and flexibility of the body. During a Asthanga Yoga class, the participants jump from one posture to another. Therefore, this type of yoga is not the ideal for beginners. People who are not well fit may find it too difficult and demanding. However, if you are interested in improving your strength, flexibility and stamina and you are fit enough to deal with an hour of jumping from one posture to another, Asthanga Yoga can suit you.
Power Yoga: 
This is an American development of the Asthanga Yoga that also adopted several elements from other types of yoga styles. You can find Power Yoga classes mainly in fitness and health clubs. Power Yoga focuses on strengthening the body by performing Hatha Yoga postures for a longer time to improve both physical flexibility and mental focus. Power Yoga can be a good exercise for athletes, people who practice types of fitness activities and people who want to tone their body.
Bikram Yoga: 
A Bikram Yoga class features a series of 26 Hatha Yoga postures practiced in a heated room. It is also known as Hot Yoga. The purpose of the heat is to allow the participants to get into each of the yoga poses in a deeper and safer manner. The heat also helps clean the body from toxins promoting sweating. Bikram Yoga focuses more on the workout of the entire body, including the internal organs and less on flexibility. Bikram Yoga is not recommended to pregnant women and people who suffer from high blood pressure and heart conditions, but it can improve the physical fitness of people who recover from injuries.
Iyengar Yoga: 
This focuses on the physical alignment of the body and the accurate performance of each posture. Some of the Iyengar Yoga postures are practiced with the assistance of props such as blocks and belts that are designed to help the participants achieve the most accurate posture and to protect their bodies from injuries. Since the flows between postures are not practiced, Iyengar Yoga classes are less intense and therefore more suitable for people who are less fit. Iyengar Yoga improves body strength and flexibility and can fit people of any age and every physical condition.
About the Author:
Jack Reider has been practicing Iyengar Yoga for over six years and he highly recommends it to everyone. You can find more of his articles at the guide to online casinos at http://www.gambling-portal.com that features updated information on yoga and other self relaxation methods.
- baLooT Inc 2007 -
CHOOSING THE RIGHT BODYBUILDING SUPPLEMENT
0 comments Published by baLooT Don JuaNer on Thursday, May 3, 2007 at 11:05 AM
Before wasting your money on a pile of bodybuilding supplements you really need to work out what you are hoping to achieve. Don't lose sight of the fact that sound nutrition forms the basis of any muscle building program and no amount of supplementation with the latest and greatest products will make up for bad eating habits. The bottom line is, bodybuilding supplements should be used IN ADDITION to regular food, not INSTEAD OF it.
Now that we've got that out of the way, let's go on to think about what supplements could be of use and this is something that can only be determined by your physical and performance goals. Don't make the mistake of copying your training partners or believing all the garbage spouted in magazine ads. Decide first what you want to achieve and then choose the supplements that will help you reach your goals.
To help you make an informed choice, the most popular and useful bodybuilding supplements available today are listed below, broadly divided into two goal-related categories.
Determined to build muscle? This cannot be achieved without dedication, sheer hard work and sound nutrition. With a solid foundation in place you can help the process along with supplements like creatine, whey protein, prohormones, testosterone boosters and amino acids.
Need to lose fat? There is no point in building awesome muscles if they're covered by layers of fat. Once again, the key to success is hard work but you can boost fat loss by using products from supplement categories that include fat burners, stimulant-free products, appetite suppressants and carb blockers.
Many more supplements are available to support your bodybuilding endeavors. These include energy boosters and products aimed at enhancing the condition of your mind and body. As we progress through this series of articles we'll look at each of these in turn. In the meantime you can find out more by visiting the web site listed below.
For more information about Whey proteins, Multivitamins, Antioxidants and Creatines click here: http://homebusiness.nexuswebs.net/wheyprotein.htm
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Ginseng is an English term given to a Chinese word ‘renshen'. The literal meaning of this term is "man root". It has a characteristic forked shaped look that resembles the legs of a man, hence the name. Originally, the term Ginseng was used as substitute for several plants having medicinal properties. Though Ginseng now refers to ‘genus Panax', researchers believe that the original plant used in ancient China was different. Ginseng root is native to eastern Asia and North America, and has been in use as a folk medicine and tonic for thousands of years.
Ginseng is a perennial plant; it is often found in densely wooded areas and requires rich soil to grow. Ginseng takes several years to grow-up. It requires about 3-10 years time for the roots to get cultivated properly. However, after several years, the plant and its root can begin to degenerate, and the root may loose its medicinal capabilities. The Ginseng plant in itself is very attractive to look at. It has well shaped green leaves with bright red berries, but it is only the root that possesses medicinal properties. It is primarily a member of the Araliacae family.
In today's fast-paced world, people dream of having something that can cure them within a wink of an eye. Ginseng is not the answer to all problems, but possesses certain properties that can help in curing many diseases. It has such a high demand that the supply is never enough to meet the demand. Some of the benefits include its medicinal properties to help cure cholesterol related problems. It is widely used to lower cholesterol, increase energy, and endurance, reduce fatigue and effects of stress. It is also viewed as help for people with diabetes.
There are many known benefits of Ginseng, but one of the most important benefits is its support in cancer treatment. It helps rebuild cells and give strength to muscles, which are needed in cancer treatment. Other benefits include improving memory, increasing vitality, extending endurance, relieving body stress, fighting fatigue, bolstering immunity, balancing metabolism and many more. Ginseng also helps in curing sexual dysfunction for both sexes. Ginseng is beneficial for women suffering from post-menopause symptoms. One of the major factors for its high demand is because of its ability to affect aging. It is used as a supplement in various anti-aging medicines.
- baLooT Inc 2007 -
