Monday, February 12, 2007

Yoga For Weight Loss

Yoga was invented to bring the human being to the same goal of achieving fitness as by cardiovascular methods through a different approach. The word Yoga means joining in Sanskrit. The science of yoga aims to join the disparate body, mind and spirit into an integrated human being who is better able to interact with the outside world in a more efficient manner. The practice was invented in India, 5000 years ago and was developed into a science by observing the effects of various body and mind states on the overall human being. In yoga, one must be focussed or the effects are simply not there. The mind acts on the physical body and it responds in turn. In order to improve the state of the being, then, both body and mind must be focussed or joined to an integral viewpoint.

The beauty of yoga is its absolute dependence on nothing but the human being. No external equipment is necessary. However, it is important to focus the body and mind in an integrated way. Ultimately, ones spiritual energy is awakened. The person is better able to interact with the world in a more efficient way. This is the goal of yoga.
Yoga is very low impact - in comparison to many aerobic exercise routines, and can be practiced for longevity. Your knees, spine, hips, and shoulders, will thank you for the condition Yoga will keep them in. Many of today?s ?standard? forms of exercise do not have the same ?bragging rights,? as Yoga.

It is much more likely that the positive factors of yoga and meditation have on your mind and body impact your self-image, nutrition choices, and overall stress level which are major factors in weight control.
Stress not only results in unhealthy binge eating and poor nutritional choices, but actually has physiological impacts on your body that often result in craving foods that can result in greater weight gain such as sugars, starches and carbohydrates

Interestingly, though yoga is a great weight loss measure, it?s also used to treat girls with eating disorders such as anorexia. There are several reasons why that approach is effective. First, anorexic girls feel anxious if they can?t exercise, as many of them used over-exercising as a means of weight control. Once they are in treatment, of course, they can?t be allowed to jog or do other exercise that might prevent them from making progress with weight gain. Gentle yoga is different, though. Practiced in a low-impact setting, it can provide some exercise without making an already emaciated girl thinner. Yoga also eases the anxiety of these girls, and it makes them more conscious of their bodies.

In fact, it does the same thing for people with the opposite type of eating disorder ? binge eating or compulsive overeating. As a matter of fact, that condition and anorexia are not as different as you might assume. Yes, one causes overweight and the other can bring on starvation, but both stem from a fundamental discomfort with the body and underlying emotional issues. Yoga can help with all of these issues, and if you are looking to lose weight, it can be a great choice for you.

With respect to eating, take the time to identify hunger and cravings. You will notice that they are not the same thing. Being a chocolate lover, it is much better to eat a piece of chocolate, now and then, than to buy a dozen chocolate donuts. This is not to justify, or surrender, to chocolate, but to eat it in moderation, and not every day.

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