Fitness and Yoga

June 18, 2012


Dance Walking Fitness


Aside from getting yourself fit, you will also amuse people on the street and a chance to interact with them. Dancing and walking combined.  Watch how Ben makes his day:

I can do this, but I have to wear a mask...Monkey face!

Wanna try?






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June 17, 2012


Paris Hilton fitness routine

The author says Paris Hilton has the perfect body.  Miss Hilton toned her shapely legs and butt by doing the following exercises:

Walking lunges with dumbbells:

Step up with dumbbells:

Seated leg curls

Butt Kickbacks

For toning the upper body, a mix of pulling and pushing movements like press-ups, lat pulldowns and dips will do wonders.

To achieve the stamina like Paris has, aim to perform aerobics exercises at least 3x a week consisting of dancing, walking, cycling, jogging, rowing, climbing and swimming.

Paris is also fund of eating fruits and vegetables.  She maintains an intake of good levels of protein, with little fats.  As much as possible, she does not indulge in sugary eats like chocolates, cakes, and other sweets.

Seems not hard to follow, right?  But, don't worry if you can't achieve the slim figure like Paris Hilton has.  Staying fit and healthy is what matters most.

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August 20, 2011

ALL ABOUT BIKRAM YOGA

What is Bikram Yoga?

Bikram yoga is derived from Hatha Yoga which was introduced by Bikram Choudhury.  He developed a 26-posture sequence effecting blood to flow to each part of the body.  These poses are not new, but are classic hatha yoga poses.  By performing bikram yoga, the muscles are warmed and stretched, thereby improving muscle tone and overall health.  It is believed that warm body can stretch farther than in a cooler room and detoxifies the body while perspiring.  

What makes it different from other yoga styles?

Two basic things that set bikram yoga from other styles -

1.  It is also called "hot yoga" because it is practiced in a studio that is heated to 105 degrees Fahrenheit with 35-40% humidity.

2.  It is the most regimented style of yoga.  Instructors do not perform alongside the students, but just provide instructions called "dialogue" which were codified and trademarked by Bikram Choudhury.

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Open Your Heart 

This asana stabilizes your lower back. 

Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Upward-Facing Dog) is an invigorating backbend that opens the chest and shoulders and strengthens the arms and legs.  It's central to Sun Salutations and is practiced repeatedly between other postures in flow classes.  Linking breath to movement is important when you're practicing Up Dog, because the breath animates and illuminates the pose and opens the heart.

Read more from http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/2317.

Up in Arms

Strengthens your arms and core.

Dolphin both opens and strengthens the upper body, making it a great preparation for inversions or a nice substitute posture when you're not ready to fly your legs above your head.  Whether you practice Dolphin to get comfortablewith the idea of turning upside down or you practice it as a prelude to Forearm Balance, Dolphin's virtues are numerous.  With continued practice, you'll experience greater range of motion in your spine and shoulders and build strength in your arms and core while getting accustomed to the idea of bearing weight on your hands, arms, and upper body.  Befriend Dolphin, in other words, and you'll open the door to a world in which the cartwheels of your youth no longer seem a distant memory.

Read more from http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/2323.

Your Best Breath
Learning the basics of diaphragmatic breathing can improve your practice and leave you with a sense of calm and ease.


Many of us come to yoga as "chest breathers," meaning we're accustomed to an unhealthy pattern of initiating the breath from the chest, which can be agitating.  When you fall into a pattern of isolated upper-chest breathing, you grossly overuse muscles in the neck and upper body (known as the accessory muscles of inspiration) and underuse the diaphragm.  During heavy exercise and in emergency situations, you need these accessory muscles.  They kick in to supplement the diaphragm's action by moving the rib cage up and down more vigorously, helping to bring more air to the lungs.  But unlike the diaphragm, which is designed to work indefinitely, the accessory muscles tire more easily, and overusing them will eventually leave you feeling fatigued and anxious.  All of this makes upper-chest breathing exhausting, rather than restorative, in everyday situations.  It's no wonder, then, that most yogis avoid it.

One type of breathing, however, strongly activates the upper torso yet creates a full, deep pattern of breath.  We'll call it diaphragmatic rib cage breathing, because it uses the diaphragm to lift and spread the ribs on inhalation and ease them back down on exhalation, while keeping the belly relatively still.  Belly breathing, which massages the abdominal organs more than rib cage breathing, often feels more natural and soothing and is easier to learn.  It's an excellent introduction to breath awareness for beginners and a good way to teach people to calm themselves quickly, especially during an anxiety attack, because it strongly discourages use of the accessory muscles of inspiration.  Diaphragmatic rib cage breathing is harder to learn, and it can stray into inefficient, anxiety-promoting upper-chest breathing if done incorrectly.  But if performed properly, it is calming and much more powerful for strengthening the diaphragm, deepening the inhalation, stretching the lungs, and more effectively aerating all parts of the lungs.  It can even improve your backbends.

Read more:  http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/2321

One-Legged Downward-Facing Dog


Strengthens the arms and legs, creates space in the torso for better organ function, and rests the brain - are all present, but with one leg up in the air, One-Legged Downward Dog offers the further benefits and fun challenges that come from working with an asymmetrical balance.


Read more:  http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/2338?page=2

Backbend to Forward Bend
This is a tremendous shoulder opener that challenges you to keep your chest open even as the arm position can make this very difficult.  To get the most out of the pose, however, that is exactly what you want to do.


The "shoulder girdle" mantra is developed to describe the actions to take to keep your shoulders in alignment in this posture and many others.  It is called a mantra because it is a series of instructions that, once learned and understood, can serve as guidelines to illuminate and transform your practice.  Unlike a traditional mantra, it has no spiritual component - just a set of orienting principles that you can come back to again and again, especially when you find yourself at a loss about what you should be doing with your shoulders in a given posture.  The mantra is based on correct alignment in Mountain Pose and can be applied to a multitude of poses.

Read more:  http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/2320

Yoga Journal to Go Podcast: Inversion Essentials



The Yoga Journal podcast is a free, online yoga class by Kathryn Budig that provides intelligent, accessible, and effective yoga videos for students of all levels. In these yoga videos, Kathryn Budig provides students with knowledgeable instructions, playful sequences, and the detailed demonstrations of her student and model Rowena King. Each episode features different poses and themes in order to provide you with a wide-range of practices to keep your routine fun and challenging.

The Inversion Essentials Podcast focuses on building strength in the upper back, space in the shoulders and confidence in the entire body. Playful approaches are used to help relieve fear and anxiety. A basic flow is done to warm the body up for the wall work that includes both handstand and headstand. This sequence is perfect for anyone looking to relieve some tension.


Read more:  http://www.yogajournal.com/podcast/