Bikram yoga and skiing

We have talked about all kinds of others sports and how they benefit from Bikram yoga. It is almost winter sport time!. How nice would it be to have a day outside skiing and finish it in a hot room doing yoga. You should sleep like a baby after that!

It is incredible what yoga does for skiing. People can ski all day long and much better.

Conditioning before hitting the slopes can increase the safety and enjoyment of the sport. Most ski injuries occur early in the day when muscles are tight and enthusiasm is high, and late in the day when muscles are weakened and technique is poor.

A simple yoga exercise called the awkward pose, can increase your strength, balance and concentration which will make the ski season more rewarding. It consists of three variations which are done sequentially.

To begin, stand with the feet apart, about shoulder width, an even distance (approximately six inches) between your heels and toes. Extend the arms out in front of you parallel to the floor with the shoulders pressed down and away from the head. Keep the upper body strong and firm in this position.

Bend your knees and shift the weight back into the heels, pushing the buttocks out behind you. When the top of the thighs are parallel to the floor and arms, hold your pose. The feet should be held parallel and the knees should only be shoulder width apart.

One good way to think of getting into this pose is to imagine that you are sitting in an invisible chair leaning back to bring the spine and shoulders against the back of the chair. The arm muscles are contracted, the abdomen is held tight and your breathing should be normal. Hold the pose for 20 seconds. Stand up.

The second part of this series is similar to the first. Keep the upper body the same as before and stand straight up onto the balls of the feet, standing as high as possible with the arches pressed forward. To keep the ankles strong and straight, press down with each big toe. Now, bend the knees again keeping the spine straight and stop when the quadriceps are parallel to the floor. Hold this pose for 20 seconds. Stand up. You will find this second pose a bit more difficult.

Third, assume the same basic pose with upper body firm and strong. Again, slowly bend the knees and this time sit all the way down lightly onto the heels. Now press the knees together and hold the body still. The quadriceps are again level with the floor and the spine is straight. Hold again for 20 seconds. Stand up out of the pose slowly, bring the heels down and relax. Don’t forget to do a second set of all three poses.

Written by: Iyoganow

Cycling and Bikram Yoga - The Perfect Match

 Most people who take cycling seriously are die hard cyclists and can't wait for that time in the day to sneak out for a nice ride.  I describe avid cyclists as mentally strong people, very determined and goal-oriented.  Challenge is welcome in a cyclist's mind. As you know, going for a bike ride requires many hours including the cleaning of your bike with VeloShine wipes after every ride.  Then, it is time to shower and get on with the rest of life.  Is there time for stretching after such long and challenging rides?  No time.  So, here is where Bikram Yoga can help for that lack of stretch in our routines.

Bikram Yoga provides as all the other Yogas many valuable physical and mental benefits. But, Bikram Yoga is different, and it is the perfect match for diehard athletes like cyclists.  Athletes tend to have a strong and tight musculature and it is hard to get it to stretch well with a couple of regular exercises.  In a Bikram Yoga room, the room is so hot and humid that those tight muscle will warm up quickly and profoundly that it will be easier to get the stretching that will make a difference in your musculature and overall performance when you are on your bike. 

But besides the benefit of additional flexibility in your muscles, joints, and back, Bikram also helps significantly in your mental stamina and endurance.   Just the environment is challenging in and of itself.  To stay in a 105º F degrees at least 40% humidity for 90 minutes requires a mind-over-matter disposition to take over just stay in the room, never mind the 26 postures you have to do that you may think impossible to achieve in your first class.

In addition to the mental stamina and endurance you will acquire, Bikram Yoga has immense physiological benefits that will translate also in a better physical performance of your body overall and the quality of your daily life.

Here are some of the major benefits of practicing Bikram, Yoga on a regular basis as communicated by Dr. Joel Brame, speaker. author, cancer prevention consultant.

• Reduces acidity in your body. In a toxic and stressful lifestyle, the body becomes highly acidic and Ph imbalances within the body is dangerous.
• Re-oxygenates the body. Bikram breathing exercises at the beginning, during and at the end of practice have a deep and powerful impact on your health.
• Remarkably detoxifies the body. The body has 5 major routes of naturaldetoxification.  The kidneys, the intestines, the lungs, the liver and the skin.  Bikram Yogaall these 5 major detoxification routes of the body are highly activated through a series of key poses completed throughout the practice with breathing exercises and other stimulant poses.
• Boosts the immune system. As you may know, 75% of our immune system is found in our intestines.  Bikram Yoga stimulates the food passage through the digestive tract via a series of twisting poses, it helps it through the detoxification process we discussed above.
• Re-connects the mind with the body. As with other yoga practices, Bikram helps connecting the mind with the body as one and not two separate, independent entities.  As you practice more, you will become more aware of your body changes because you are more tuned in with it.  
• Helps reverse cancer.  It is not guaranteed, but Bikram Yoga certainly helps reverse many of the pathological processes that culminate in the disease called cancer.  To read more about this, we invite you to read this document by Dr. Joel Brame:http://www.docstoc.com/docs/15269370/5-Ways-to-Reverse-Cancer-using-Bikram-Yoga.

Another benefit of Bikram Yoga that I have experienced during my practices is helps you achieve moments of meditative states.  As you progress and achieve more control of your body poses, your mind starts to quiet down and submerge in the pose you are doing.  You start concentrating more on your breathing and in the pose while all thoughts averse to quieting your mind start going away.  You achieve a point in your practice when you mind starts staying in the room with your body.  It does not take many practices to achieve this early stage of moving meditation. 

When you come out of class, not only do you feel clean and de-stressed, but also your mind is "tamed" and your disposition and attitude toward your life is that of embracing it.  For cyclists, I consider Bikram a perfect match.  Cycling, besides the health benefits, it allows you to be in touch with nature during your rides, it gives you a sense of freedom and moments of contemplation, which can be complemented in unison with a Bikram Yoga practice.

Try it, you will love it!

Article by VeloShine, from facebook.

•