Contact: Bev Hillman
Vancouver Personal & Physical Training
PH: 604-948-0709
April, 2005

Linking Mind & Body
By: Bev Hillman
Vancouver Personal & Physical Training

The classical techniques of Yoga date back more than 5,000 years. The word Yoga means "to join or yoke together" and it brings the body and mind together into one harmonious experience. The whole system of Yoga is built on three main structures: exercise, breathing and meditation. The synchronization of breath work (pranayama) and postures (asanas) prepare the body and mind for meditation and an easy approach to a quiet mind that allows silence from everyday stress and inner peace.

Yoga is a system of exercises or practises designed to facilitate physical health, mastery of our mind and emotions, and spiritual awakening. It also helps to prevent injury and even improve performance. Yoga can increase our range of motion, agility, flexibility, strength, lung capacity, endurance, balance, core strength and general body awareness. It is also very effective for rehabilitation.

Yoga has swept North America and Vancouver is one of the leading centres. There are many styles of yoga - choose one that will work best for you.

Ashtanga Yoga (Ashta-eight, anga-limbs)
One of the eight "limbs" of Ashtanga is the physical practise of holding or moving through postures (asana) in a continuous flow, following specific breathing patterns. The generation of heat is seen as a conduit for purification of mind and body leading to a state of clear focus coducive to meditation or study.

Power Yoga
The term "Power Yoga" is a western adaptation of Ashtanga Yoga. It suggests the very physical workout one could expect in such a class. "Power Yoga" has at times, in recent years, moved away from it's historic and spiritual source in Ashtanga to become a purely physical Hatha yoga class with a fast-paced, rigorous athletic style both requiring and developing strength and flexibility.

Iyengar Yoga
An Iyengar class is a detailed and technically demanding style that challenges participants to perform postures with great precision. Postures are held for a long period and props such as straps, blocks and blankets are commonly used to insure exact skeletal alignment. Only after a fairly high level of physical practise is attained are breathing techniques practised.

Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini Yoga, another prominent style of Hatha Yoga combines postures, meditation and breathing exercises. According to the Tantric Yogis, Kundalini energy must be awakened for spiritual evolution to occur. Once activated through practise, this energy ascends through the spine and opens pools of energy (chakras). This unifies the body, mind and heart with the Absolute.

Sivananda Yoga
This traditional lifestyle yoga combines postures, breathing, dietary restrictions, chanting, scriptural study and meditation. The centre of this practise is "to serve, love, give, purify, meditate, realize".

Bikram Yoga
A Bikram Yoga class is performed in a room with temperatures reaching 35 degree C. According to Bikram Choudury, who developed this technique, elevated room temperatures warm the muscles and prepare them for the intensity of the stretches and students are urged to push beyond their limits. Crucial to this method are twenty-six Hatha postures performed in sequence in order to increase circulation, dispel toxins and restore "all systems to healthy working order".

Yoga Therapy
These sessions are usually one on one and can involve counseling on lifestyle changes such as diet and stress management. Posture, breathing exercises, guided imagery, deep relaxation and meditation are all tools for addressing the healing process.

Hatha Yoga
Hatha refers to the physical postures of yoga in general. However, a class referred to as "Hatha Yoga" has come to mean a blend of styles and will vary from teacher to teacher in pace and spiritual emphasis.

As yoga continues to grow in popularity the challenge is to avoid exclusivity. No one approach to yoga should be seen as "The Truth". As yoga meets new cultures and adapts to the present time there has been a mixing and blending of styles and even philosophies.

Mastering yoga takes time. Start slow, do what you can, go one day at a time and appreciate the moment. The more you practise, the more you will realize the many benefits of this discipline.

Namaste.

Bev Hillman is a local Fitness Consultant and Personal Trainer. She teaches Yoga Flow and Power Yoga classes at the Ladner Leisure Centre. She can be reached at trainwithbev.com or 604-948-0709, or contact her via e-mail at bev@trainwithbev.com.

-30-

Vancouver Personal & Physical Training
Tel. 604-948-0709
info@trainwithbev.com
TrainWithBev.com