Body Care Facts & Health Tips

Yoga is an ancient practice that originated in India as a part of Hinduism and has spread to Buddhism, Jainism, and mainstream America. It is a practice through which mind body connection is meant to be achieved through breathing as well as a series of poses and stretches. Yoga can be a very beneficial form of exercise. Not only does it promote strength and flexibility but it also helps to reduce every day stress.

Because of the connection that Yoga has to Eastern religion it is relegated as an immoral religious practice by some fundamentalist Christians.  However, many Christians have adapted Yoga into their everyday life as they have adapted meditation and do not consider it to be a part of their religious practice at all. It is very possible to take on yoga as a secular or religious practice.  It is all a matter of personal beliefs.

Basics of Yoga

Yoga is basically a form of exercise that consists of a variety of poses that are referred to as asanas. The asanas in yoga all have names and are generally derived from various religious stories that are a part of the many Eastern religions associated with yoga.

Yoga is often practiced in large groups as a part of an exercise class provided by a local gym or through a community activity workshop. There are very few exercise tools necessary for yoga and simple yoga can be done with no tools. The most common tools that a beginner will need for yoga practice include a yoga mat and blocks. The yoga mat is used to provide traction; yoga practitioners are discouraged from wearing shoes or socks. The blocks are used to help beginners stretch into asanas that they might otherwise be unable to reach. Given time the increased flexibility that develops from regular practice will discount the necessity of the blocks.

Basic Yoga Asanas

There are a few basic asanas that can be performed at home or even work. These asanas are very common and are great for beginners. Here are a few:

Bhujangasana or Snake Pose

1. Lie flat on your stomach and allow your forehead to rest on the mat. Place your hands palm down on each side of your chest.
2. While supporting your body with your hands and arms imagine that your forehead is being pulled up to the sky by some invisible force, follow this and allow your torso to gently rise from the ground.
3. Continue to gently raise each part of your upper body starting at your neck as though you are trying to bend backwards and look at your toes.  Hold your breath and this position for twenty seconds then gently release the breath while performing steps one and two in the reverse order (where you end up back in your starting position).

Shavasana or Corpse Pose

This pose is primarily for relaxation is typically used at the end of a yoga practice session.  It involves lying flat on your back with your arms and legs stretched completely out. You should close your eyes and practice controlled meditative breathing for ten minutes while in this position. Completely clear your mind and remain weightless.

Pilates is an exercise system that was created in the early 20th century by Joseph Pilates who was a German born gymnast. Pilates firmly believed that there was more to exercise than just the physical. He believed that there was a mind body connection. This has helped to contribute to the many Pilates yoga combination classes that are so prevalent these days. He wrote two books on his exercise system which is now regularly practiced by over 10 million people.

Pilates as a Strength Builder

Pilates is a very effective form of exercises for building strength in lower load muscles. Traditional strength training focuses on the larger muscle groups in the body which are responsible for carrying larger loads. Pilates tends to focus on the smaller muscle groups in the body which are primarily supporters. This is beneficial to traditional strength training.  As a compliment to regular strength training Pilates helps to build the smaller supporting muscles and therefore help to strengthen the larger muscle groups in the body.

Pilates and Flexibility

Like yoga Pilates is believed to be largely effective in increasing flexibility in the human body. Pilates uses a variety of stretches to help elongate many different sections of the human body. This helps to make these sections more flexible. Flexibility is a huge component of both yoga and Pilates.

Equipment- Pilates Mat VS Pilates Reformer

There are a variety of different apparatus that go along with Pilates training. Many of these devices, such as the magic circle, were invented by Joseph Pilates himself. Others have only recently come along as Pilates has become more and more popular with mainstream culture.

Two very popular pieces of equipment in the Pilates circle are the mat and reformer. The Pilates mat is simply an exercise mat, like one would use in Yoga or aerobics. It lays flat on the floor and its primary purpose is to help the user maintain balance without slipping on the gym floor by providing extra traction.

The Pilates reformer is table like object that you use during your Pilates exercise. It provides resistance similar to what one would find with a rowing machine. Resistance is crucial to the benefits of Pilates.

No matter which device you use you are getting resistance. With the mat your body is the resistance, with the Reformer the attached pulleys and weights along with your body provide the resistance necessary to achieve the core training that can be provided by Pilates.

The truth is that both methods are perfectly acceptable forms of Pilates conditioning. Many people do find that they get faster results from the Reformer when it comes to Pilate’s strength training. Many gyms offer classes with the Reformer. This helps those who are specifically interested in trying out the Reformer a place to go. If you want to get the best workout possible then you may want to give a Reformer oriented class a try, however there are still a variety of benefits to sticking to the mat.

Jogging is a healthful and fun activity. It can be both physically and socially rewarding. Most major cities offer jogging trails to provide extra safety. You can also use indoor tracks at gyms or outdoor tracks at parks to get your daily jog in. Getting together a group of friends to jog with you can make your morning jog all the more rewarding. Here are some more tips and benefits in relation to jogging.

Cardiovascular Health

Jogging does more than just make you lose weight and feel better. It can greatly improve your cardiovascular health by strengthening your heart. Regular jogging increases the capacity of your circulatory and respiratory system as well.

Aids in Digestion

Women who suffer from digestive issues like irritable bowel syndrome will find a huge change after they begin to jog regularly.  Jogging helps to move things through the body. It aids greatly in the digestion of food and can greatly benefit those who suffer from gastrointestinal issues. If irregularity is an issue for you jogging may be your answer.

Lose Weight

Jogging doesn’t only help you lose weight by burning calories. Jogging also strengthens the leg muscles and even increases your metabolism. By increasing the speed at which you metabolize food, jogging helps to make you exercise and diet plan more effective.

Your Figure

Jogging does a lot for your figure. Though joggers appear very thin they tend to have extremely strong legs. This is great for supporting the body and can help to cut down on joint pain and arthritis.

Another benefit of jogging is its support of the female figure. Jogging will not cause the body to amass a great amount of bulk muscle as other exercises might. For this reason it is a popular sport for women who seek to have sleek bodies without unsightly muscle mass.

Get Better Sleep

Men and women who jog regularly are far less likely to be insomniacs. Getting a good jog in the morning will not only help you to feel better and more alert during the day but it will help you to get in bed on time at night.  Getting sleep at night is a vital component to maintaining health and a normal weight, so doing anything that can help you get more restful sleep is a great idea.

Reduce Stress

Jogging is a fantastic way to reduce stress. Though many people jog in groups it can be a very relaxing and almost meditative activity. All of that time spent zoned in to your radio and the open road can help you to clear your mind of undesirable thoughts and stress. People who jog regularly are far less likely to suffer from anxiety, depression, and stress.  It is a powerful natural mood stabilizer.

Osteoporosis Prevention

Regular joggers have a very low incidence of osteoporosis. This is because regular jogging helps to build up your muscles and improve bone strength. This along with regular consumption of calcium can help to prevent osteoporosis later in life.

Cellulite is a normal skin change that occurs in nearly all post pubescent females.  It also occurs in some men, though this is much rarer. Heredity is the biggest factor in how much cellulite you will develop as you get older.  Contrary to popular belief cellulite really isn’t a result of weight. Though the jury is still out on how effective treatment is for cellulite there are many different ways to try.  These are the common cellulite treatments that are available today.

Surgery

Two types of surgery to remove cellulite are available today.  Both are extremely expensive options that should only be used as a last resort.

The invasive surgery that is used to remove cellulite works by basically sucking underlying fat deposits out of the patient’s body.  This tightens the patient’s skin and helps to reduce the appearance of cellulite.  For surgeries such as this or for the very invasive full body life, you must be in excellent health.

The newer non invasive procedures for removing cellulite are laser surgery treatments.  This is the process of using a laser to penetrate the skin a few inches and destroy cellulite.  It is a popular alternative to traditional surgery and is far less invasive.

Lipomassage

Lipomassage is a system that uses suction to break up fat deposits under the skin in order to destroy cellulite.  It is another popular alternative to traditional surgery. It seems to be pretty effective to many people though probably not permanent.  More than this lipomassage can be extremely painful and more detailed than something like laser treatment surgery.

Cellulite Removal Creams

There is really no evidence to suggest that cellulite removal creams work.  They are extremely popular and a new one seems to come out every few months but these creams really have no scientific reason to work.

Diet and Exercise

A healthy diet that is rich in vitamins and minerals can help some with the development of cellulite.  Water is also beneficial to decreasing the amount of cellulite on the body.  Some cellulite growth is blamed on lack of water in the diet.  This is probably true since not getting enough water in your diet can wreak all sorts of havoc on your skin.  It certainly wouldn’t hurt to drink a few extra glasses of water each day.

There are also some exercises that are said to eliminate cellulite.  These exercises do seem to help in a way.  Exercises mostly work by making cellulite less noticeable.   They tone up the muscles that are underneath your cellulite and therefore decrease the magnitude of cellulite.

Different people have different degrees of cellulite.  It is primarily a female problem and for the most part it is common and natural.  It is far rarer not to have cellulite since 9 out of 10 women are said to have at least some cellulite on their body. Cellulite most often occurs on the back of the thighs or the stomach.  Please investigate all surgical procedures thoroughly.  There are risks and complications to any type of cosmetic surgery, even the non invasive laser surgeries that are gaining popularity.

Exercising for women is often disregarded by the slender or happily plump as an activity only for those who wish to lose weight.  The truth is that regardless of your weight, exercise is a necessary part of the human experience and women stand to benefit from regular exercise in a lot more ways than just waist size.

Stress Reduction

Photo by andria.richards

It is no surprise that women tend to be far more stressed than men on average. Women today often work 40+ hours a week outside of the home and are still left with the majority of household tasks and child rearing. Between this issue and natural DNA women everywhere are feeling the stress.  Regular exercise can help to decrease those ever present worried, anxious feelings.

Exercise is one of the best ways to combat stress in women. It works so well because exercise causes the body to produce endorphins.  These endorphins in turn make women feel good and otherwise help to regulate the stress hormones that the body is producing.  Within a few weeks of regular exercise, even if it is just a twenty or thirty minute walk a day, you will begin to notice a huge difference in your disposition.  This is the exercise at work.

Better Sleep

Exercising can help to balance a woman’s circadian rhythm making it easier for her to sleep through the night and wake in the morning.  There is a reason that we feel the need to stretch when we wake up. Stretching when you first wake up helps to keep you alert.  Conversely, stretching and light exercise at night can help to keep you asleep.  We all know that better sleep has plenty of benefits of its own, so exercising to achieve it can help you in a multitude of ways.

Osteoporosis Prevention

According to the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission osteoporosis strikes around 1 in 5 women over the age of 50.  Exercising regularly throughout life can have a great impact on your chances of getting osteoporosis.

Women who exercise regularly, especially beginning prior to their 30th birthday are able to build up a good amount of bone density.  When exercise and a calcium rich diet are combined to improve bone density, osteoporosis can often be prevented.

Some of the best exercises for preventing osteoporosis include weight training exercises that help to build muscle and strengthen bones.  Strength training exercises like Yoga and Pilates can also help to prevent Osteoporosis later in life.

Cancer Prevention

Not only will regular exercise help to prevent osteoporosis but many scientists believe that it can also help to decrease a woman’s chances of getting cancer, especially breast and ovarian cancer.  Though the reasons aren’t exactly clear, plenty of evidence supports the fact that women who exercise regularly do not get cancer at the same rate as those who live a primarily sedentary life. This is probably one of the best reasons for starting to exercise regularly.

Exercising to lose weight is great, just don’t think because you are in good shape or naturally skinny that you will not benefit from regular exercise.  Losing weight is only one of the many reasons that regular exercise for women is incredibly important.