Hatha Yoga Review

Hatha Yoga has grown in popularity in the West as a form of exercise that develops strength, flexibility, bodily relaxation, and mental concentration.

Hatha Yoga also places great importance on diet. The physical exercise progresses through the adoption of bodily postures called asanas with a focus on the regulation of breathing (Pranayama). Various visualization can also be included.

You can do a high-impact or core-focused sequence to burn calories, or select a slow-flow video to warm up your muscles and stretch. You can stretch your tight hamstrings in Downward-Facing Dog, or work on strengthening your quadriceps using Warrior II or Chair Pose. With Yoga, you have many options.

Yoga can help manage pain. Doctors have suggested yoga as an aid for patients who suffer from joint pain, inflammation, and arthritis. One medical journal stated that the practice of yoga could also potentially counteract some of the symptoms of fibromyalgia. According to “The Annals of Internal Medicine”, Yoga can help strengthen the muscles around the spine, which can help ease compression. Spinal disks are very vulnerable to herniation or compression, and can benefit greatly from yoga, which can help the back become more supple and flexible. Yoga can also be a great way to alleviate lower back pain, a symptom many people experience first thing in the morning, after being in bed for 8 or 9 hours.

Yoga can help your recovery process after injury. If you live an active life, odds are you have sustained several injuries, the symptoms of which can return from time to time. I suffered hamstring, shoulder and neck injuries.  If I do not stretch regularly, my hamstring and neck tightens up. Strengthening and lengthening are an important part of recovery and rehabilitation, and yoga is unparalleled when it comes to an exercise that combines both strengthening and lengthening. In addition, overuse injuries, like carpal tunnel syndrome, can be painful and Plank Pose, as an example, can strengthen muscles in your forearms and help support your wrists.

Summary of the benefits of Hatha Yoga

• Improves flexibility and muscle joint mobility.
• Strengthens, tones and builds muscles.
• Corrects posture and strengthens the spine.
• Eases back pain and can help improve muscular-skeletal conditions like bad knees, tight shoulders, and neck.
• Increases stamina.
• Stimulates the glands of the endocrine system.
• Improves digestion, increases circulation and improves heart condition.
• It improves breathing disorders, boosts immune response.
• Decreases cholesterol and blood sugar levels and can support weight loss.
• Increases body awareness, relieves stress, refreshes the body, and it can greatly aid relaxation.

Yoga DVD Recommendations:

1. Yoga for Beginners by Barbara Benagh (2006)
2. Yoga Meltdown by Jillian Michaels (2010)
3. Power Yoga-Total Body Workout by Rodney Yee (2003)

Please note: This is an independent review of the subject and of the products. I have no relationship of any kind with any of the authors and I have no monetary incentive.