A+ Yoga

For thousands of years, people have turned to the practice of yoga to keep their body’s fluid and flexible, while keeping their minds clear and focused. In the United States, traditional yoga practices like Ashtanga yoga have been adapted to the westerners need for an intense workout. Power yoga is becoming more and more popular in the west and is now seen as a great way to get aerobic and cardio exercise while still getting the eastern benefit of self awareness and spiritual calm.

The term ‘power yoga’ was conceived by Beryl Bendere Birch. He wrote a book called “Power Yoga: The Practice” which first gave this workout an audience.

Power yoga involves many of the basic poses you see and learn during traditional yoga classes. The one unique difference is the pace of the movements. With power yoga, you flow from one pose to the other in a very fluid order. While breathing properly, a pose will be quickly held before going into a new one. This high paced intensity works to make the body more flexible. It also maximizes the art of self discipline to keep up with the flow of one pose to the next.

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Benefits

There are countless benefits to doing power yoga. With this kind of workout, you are sure to work up a sweat much more than in a beginner hatha yoga class. As you sweat, you flush toxins out of your system. Getting rid of these toxins gives your blood stream more room for the oxygen you are taking in. Increased oxygen intake helps to make fat cells burn up. This burning of fat cells and removal of toxins is a great way to keep the body lean and glowing. When you do a full power yoga routine, it is estimated you can burn up to 300 calories an hour. This makes this work out a great way to get in better shape or stay in the shape you have already worked hard to get into.

This kind of yoga practice also requires a lot of focus and concentration. As you learn to pace your cleansing breaths to coincide with the pose changes, you will notice you feel centered and focused to stay on task. Your stamina will improve and you will quickly also see a build-up in endurance as you practice power yoga more and more.

Risk

This athletic form of yoga does carry some risk. Because of the quick flow of poses, some may not be prepared to keep up. Beginners may be better off trying a class with basic poses before trying to keep up with a power yoga class. Because of the amount of sweat, you can easily become dehydrated if you are not prepared for the intensity. Some may wrongfully assume that this yoga style may not drain them as much as a traditional cardio workout. However, drinking plenty of fluids before and after a power yoga session is wise. You should not feel any pain in any type of yoga. If soreness or sharp pain comes, then you are overdoing it. Listen to your body. This means only try power yoga when you are sure you are up to it.

Even though power yoga may be more challenging physically for beginners, the meditative aspects and mental calm that makes yoga a unique practice is still attainable. Bringing the mind and body together on the same plain of awareness and strength is the goal regardless of style of yoga you choose to practice.

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