Standing Yoga Poses

Yoga poses in this group help strengthen the muscles of your legs, calves, ankles, knees, belly and bottom. They also help relieve your back pain. Some poses are for balancing body such as tree posture,

Sitting Yoga Poses

Sitting yoga poses are the basic postures to prepare your body before processing other pose groups. Some of these poses are designed for meditation. Sitting poses help extend your spine, ankle and knee muscles. 

Prone Yoga Poses

These yoga poses are postures to proceed after standing or sitting poses. They befit your back in that they strengthen your back muscles and make your spine flexible. These postures can stimulate your intra-abdominal organs to function well. 

Supine Yoga Poses

Yoga postures in this group are not difficult to exercise. They help strengthen back and abdominal muscles and relieve your back pain. Some poses are designed for relaxation such as yoga corpse pose (Savasana). 

Reverse Yoga Poses

This group of yoga poses helps bring blood to circulate more in your head such as headstand yoga pose and shoulder stand pose etc. However, those who have high or low blood pressure and those who have cataract and glaucoma are not allowed to practice these poses. 

Sitting Yoga Poses

Supine Yoga Poses

Prone Yoga Poses

It is know that morning and evening are ideal time to practice yoga poses. Rodney Yee, an internationally acclaimed yoga instructor leads a series of gentle yoga poses at sunrise. AM Yoga has a 4-minute breathing exercise followed by a 12-minute yoga program and 2 minute seated guided meditation set at the end This part helps your mind to focus, and then the basic twists and other poses which follow help your body to awaken. The 20-minute PM part led by Patricia Walden is a bit more difficult. It also begins with a short focus on breathing followed by seated to a kneeling position and also includes more strenuous standing poses. You will get use to this part and feel it works after 3 weeks of practice. The DVD was filmed nicely in 2000, quite old but rare.

Yoga Shakti with Shiva Rea (2004)

Shiva Rea, a California-based yogi, is internationally well known as a specialist of vinyasa yoga. In this DVD, she has broken down the practice into a series of segments of varying lengths. These segments form the “Yoga Matrix,” a mix-and-match option which allows you to complete customize your yoga practice. There’s 4 complete yoga sessions to choose from : A 45 min beginner session, solar flow 1 & 2 (each about 1 hr 25 min) and a lunar flow – 60 min. Overall, the production quality is awesome, the locations on the beaches are beautiful and the soundtrack is very good.

Kundalini Yoga for Beginners & Beyond

This DVD is a must have for anyone interested in beginning Kundalini yoga. It begins with the two basic breathing techniques used in Kundalini yoga. Then it goes on to “warm ups” and then the “spinal series” which is designed to make your spine stronger and more flexible. It ends with a relaxation and you can stop there, or continue to the 5 Tibetan rites. If you are looking for a very active practice that will get you in shape, this one is highly recommended.

Bryan Kest Power Yoga Complete Collection (2004)

Kest teaching style is motivational, but compassionate. He encourages the practitioners to modify the exercises to fit their body types rather than a precise replication of the asana performed by yoga teachers. The setting class includes participants who appear to be relatively new to yoga practice. The class members display some variety of strength and flexibility. The first DVD in his series is labeled beginner. The second DVD (intermediate) has a faster pace which leads into successive poses much more quickly. The third (advanced) DVD is definitely challenging. as Kest suggests, you can go to infinite depth in a pose, and he gives solid ideas on how to feel and go deeper in terms of both flexibility and increasing strength.

Ali MacGraw – Yoga Mind & Body (1994)

Yoga Mind and Body is a classic yoga video designed for those already familiar with yoga. Erich Schiffman leads the session and offers simple instructions, soothing encouragement, and a deeper insight into the broader meaning of yoga and meditation. The breathing exercises in the beginning are fabulous even for those who cannot do the poses. This video is beautifully filmed, great music and with easy to follow instructions. It is a great workout and a challenge to do.

1. Ashtanga Yoga: The Practice Manual: An Illustrated Guide to Personal Practice

Swenson, David. Ashtanga Yoga: The Practice Manual: An Illustrated Guide to Personal Practice (Spiral-bound), Ashtanga Yoga Productiton, Korea.

Many call this book the most user-friendly Ashtanga book available. The book begins with clear instruction on all the main points of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. It contains the primary and intermediate series. Each yoga posture has three variations or modifications for varying levels of experience. It has photos for all asanas, including several variations for less flexible people. As it is spiral bound, you can look at the 

2.Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga

Iyengar,B.K.S. and Menuhin, Y. 1995. Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga, Schocken Books Inc., U.S.A.

This book was first published in 1966. The author, B.K.S Iyengar, the world’s greatest living yoga master explored how different yoga postures can alleviate health problems, using his body as a living laboratory. The introduction of the book would lead you to a new insight into life. This book provides simple step by step written instructions and detailed photographs including a synopsis on the effects for each asana. Iyengar emphasizes precision and careful technique and whole body mindfulness as prerequisites to success in Hatha yoga. 

3. Anatomy of Hatha Yoga: A Manual for Students, Teachers, and Practitioners

Coulter, David H. 2004. Anatomy of Hatha Yoga: A Manual for Students, Teachers, and Practitioners. Body and Breath Inc.

This book is guaranteed by the Benjamin Franklin award in 2001. It shows excellent comprehensive detailed information on functional anatomy and how this relates to performing various yoga postures. This book contains 230 clear black and white photographs and more than 120 diagrams and anatomical illustrations. 

4. Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving into Stillness

Schiffmann Erich, Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving into Stillness (Paperback), Pocket Books, U.S.A.

Erich’s book is one of the best books on Hatha yoga ever. He has studied with a remarkable variety of yoga masters, so his text will suit students from a variety of yoga teaching traditions–Krishnamurti, Desikachar, Iyengar, Scaravelli, and so on His book gives you a simpler translation of hard-core philosophy of Yoga Sutras, both process and outcome. Most of the book is devoted to the description of twenty-six basic yoga poses. It provides the detailed descriptions of how to do the postures with excellent hints for progressing through difficult postures. He explains how asana practice goes with meditation practice. There is a whole section on breathing with the postures. Another highlight of the book is the various sets of routines one can follow for all levels of students.

Foam and cock yoga block are good for sweaty palms and feet. However, some may find cock and bamboo bricks are more environmental sound.

1. Bamboo yoga block
2. Foam yoga block
3. Cork yoga block

Recommended Yoga Blocks

Gaiam Cork Yoga Block

If you are looking for an eco-friendly yoga block, try this one. Giam cork yoga block is made from a sustainably harvested resource, available as singles or as a specially priced set of 2. It is a bit denser than the foam block therefore, it is less prone to wear and tear.

The size of it is slightly larger than foam blocks, 9″L x 4″D x 6″W. The weight is also heavier which provides more stability. You will feel a lot more supported in your poses. The surface of this block is slightly less slippery than the foam blocks, very useful when your hands get sweaty. The only drawback is it may not suitable for carry on.

Spandex clothing is good for advanced postures as it is more elastic and durable. However, it is close-fitting and cannot absorb moisture. Bikram yoga practitioners may find them uncomfortable after sweating. Hence, cotton-spandex dresses are recommended for advanced practitioners.

In addition, women who would like to perform reverse yoga poses may need sport bra for their flexibility and confidence.

Yoga Basic Plus

Some people may call this e-book “ the beginners yoga guide”. You’re going to discover so many different things on yoga, workouts, stretches and the extra tips to help you lose weight. You will know the 7 different types of Yoga and choose the one that is right for you.

The Chakras of Tantric Yoga

This e-book guides you how to access and control the flow Prana or the Life Energy essential for maintaining a healthy Immune System and Emotional Stability. The book provides description of charkras, and their various attributes. This includes animations, beautiful art work in the traditional colors, precise instructions for stimulating each psychic Padma, and audio files for hearing the Bija Mantras associated with each center.

The 7 Minute Yoga Program For Stress Relief

You can Eliminate your stress with only 7 minutes a day step by step. The simple explanations of Raj Gupta let you immediately understand how to do it. This e-book contains the explanation of the nature of stress and how it negatively affects several areas of your life. You will learn which parts of the body accumulate stress daily and how to eliminate them. Moreover, you can get free yoga e-books as bonuses when you order this e-book.

Yoga for the New You

This e-book is good for the beginners and yoga students. You will explore the origins of the various yoga styles, Bikram Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, Power Yoga and find which one that suit you. This e-book is also good for pregnant women to practice yoga during pregnancy. ]]> http://www.yoga-poses-at-home.com/yoga-e-books.html/feed 0 http://www.yoga-poses-at-home.com/yoga-mats.html http://www.yoga-poses-at-home.com/yoga-mats.html#comments Thu, 04 Aug 2011 04:17:59 +0000 yogaposes http://wuttiwat.com/yoga/?p=455 Yoga mat is the most important yoga accessory in performing most of yoga poses. Usually, yoga exercise mats are made from PVC, natural rubber, TPE and cotton. These materials have different qualifications. To select a yoga mat that meet your need, the following qualifications should be considered;
 

• Durability: PVC is the most durable among other mats’ materials as it contains Vinyl Chloride which dose not degrade. However, it is not considered environmental friendly. Some contains heavy metal and toxic Ones may find natural rubber yoga mat more eco-friendly as it is biodegradable even though it is less durable. 

   

• Thickness: The common thickness is 1/8 and 1/4 inches. However, a person may need the extra thick yoga mat 5/8 inches to support reverse postures like, headstand, shoulder stand and scorpion etc. The thicker mat can prevent you from slippery as well. 

   

• Portability: a carry-on mat should be lightweight, not more than 2 pounds and should be rolled or folded easily. 

   

• Non-slip surface: Good yoga mat should have non-slip surface. However, no mat can prevent you from slipping perfectly in all postures. For those who have sweaty hands and feet, sticky yoga mats like natural rubber is more suitable as they absorb moisture and might provide more grips. 

   

Recommended Yoga Mats

Manduka Black Mat Pro

If you are looking for durable yoga mat for doing yoga poses at home, Maduka Black Mat Pro is your answer. The mat is made from high-performance material and life time guaranteed. It has two different surfaces. The sticky top was designed for good grips for sweaty palms and feet. The bottom is designed to keep the map from sliding. The mat also provides the right balance of density and cushioning. There are three basic thicknesses, 1/16”, 3/16” and 1/4”. However, this mat may not suitable for carry on as it’s weight is 6.5 pounds. It is perfect for using at home.

1/4″ Extra Thick Deluxe Yoga Mat

This ¼”- thick mat is great for performing yoga asana at home. It is about twice as thick as a normal mat with more cushioning and extremely durable rubber material. If you get hurt while putting weight on your knees, sit bones, palms and head. Try this one. Also, it is latex free and washable. Anyhow, like any other extra-thick mat, it may be too heavy to carry on. The new one has a bit smell. For those who have sweaty palms and feet, this mat may not sticky enough for you.

Hugger Mugger Mandara Yoga Mat

This mat is ¼” thick but the weight is just right, 5 pounds. Also, the price is reasonable compared to other yoga mat in the same quality. It provides the ultimate cushioning which is dense and stable. It is great for those with sweaty palms because the mat was designed for good grips. The only comment is the smell. It’s order is strong when it just arrives.

So how yoga help people reduce their weight?
First, all yoga poses help build up muscles. You can improve your body metabolic rate and gradually lose excess body weight.

Second, it is believed that some asanas stimulate sluggish endocrine glands to increase their hormonal secretions. Thyroid is the gland regulating every cell metabolism. Hence, practicing asanas that stimulate the thyroid gland can increase fat metabolism thereby converting fat to muscle and energy.

Third, yoga practitioners may eat yogic diet or lacto-vegetarian in order to fully benefit from what yoga offers (see detail more in Yoga vegetarian food).They are less likely to suffer from obesity than meat-eaters.

The last, yoga pose practice helps relax your mind and reduce stress. This helps lower the level of Cortisol, the hormone associated with body’s response to stress. Higher and more prolonged levels of cortisol in the bloodstream lead to many negative impacts to the body.

This includes the increase in abdominal fat. There are some scientific research which show the link between yoga and reduction of stress hormone. It is proved that Cortisol is significantly reduced in people who practice yoga 

The links below show the yoga poses for weight loss and for reducing fat in different parts of the body; 

1. Yoga poses for weight loss

2. Yoga poses to tighten abdomen

3. Yoga poses to tighten chest

4. Yoga poses to tone up thighs and hips 

• Sattva: the quality of love, light and life
• Raja: the quality of activity, passion and instability
• Tamas: the quality of darkness and inertia, dragging us into ignorance and attachment

A person can be predominated by one of these three qualities. A sattvic person is knowledgeable. A rajasic person is greedy and selfish and a tamasic one is inactive and reckless. In yoga view, food is a carrier of the life force called prana. The qualities of its prana hence have impacts on our consciousness. 

Sattvic diet

Sattvic diet is pure and vegetarian. It is easy to digest, mildly cooling and refreshing. Sattvic foods provide calmness and clarity to your mind.

• Whole grains and legumes
• Whole meal bread and cereals
• Fresh organic fruits and pure fruit juices
• Organic vegetables and flowers
• Organic milk and derivative milks (butter, cheese and ghee etc.)

Lacto-vegetarian foods are recommended as they suitable for building health and balancing mind 

Rajasic diet

Rajasic foods are very hot, bitter, sour, dry, or salty. Too much rajasic food consumption induces restlessness and passion, destroying the balance of mind. Hence, yoga practitioners try to avoid this kind of food.

• Very spicy foods
• Coffee and tea
• Eggs
• Garlic and onion
• Meat and fish
• Chocolate

Additionally, eating in a hurry is also considered rajasic. However, a little rajasic food can be sattvic. A little spicy food helps digestion, promoting calmness to your mind. 

Tamasic diet

Tamasic foods should be avoided since they withdraw the life force (prana). They induce pessimistic, ignorance and sluggishness.

• Alcohol,
• Stale and overripe foods

Besides considering these three Gunas, the individual’s diet should be adjusted to fit one’s constitution and circumstance. The right eating behaviors are important for yoga practitioners as well. You may see more information regarding combining food for individuals, tips for yogic eating and yoga fasting from the following links; 

• Combing food for individuals
• Tips for yogic eating
• Yoga fasting
• Egg substitutes
• Meat substitutes