Yoga Certification - What You Need To Know

Yoga certifications should not be that easy to acquire. After all, the entire reason behind certification is to ensure the quality and certification loses all meaning when potential instructors that have lesser levels of competence and yoga schools that are questionable become certified. Certification standards that are poor will end up hurting the students due to improper technique and might lead to injuries and the students certainly will not be getting there moneys worth.

Accompanied along with the yoga craze that is sweeping the globe, the practice that was started in ancient India has been co-opted into becoming the basis of a multi-billion dollar industry. Just in the United States alone people end up spending in excess of 3 billion USD per year on classes for yoga and associated yoga equipment.

It's no big surprise that numerous amounts of people with only minimal knowledge on the practice of yoga are attempting to get in on a piece of the action. As a result of this behavior, numerous McYoga type of schools or schools of yoga that are of lower quality have been springing up like so many pimples on a teenagers face all over the nation.

The desire for the would be practitioners of this sacred and ancient practice to learn which schools are legitimate and which are the ones that need avoiding have subsequently led to the practice of yoga certification.

Accreditation of Yoga Schools

Yoga certifications official bodies themselves are a highly discriminating sort. Some will if a particular school will end up teaching a specific type of yoga, for example. Some in depth research will help a person to reveal which yoga certification bodies will be of the greatest assistance for the type of yoga that a person is interested in.

You will also find that there are general practice yoga certification groups for instance Yoga Alliance in the USA that might even assist you to locate schools that are properly accredited in any form or yoga in your local area.

When searching for a school for yoga or an instructor for yoga, always proceed with the same precautions that you would normally take if you were thinking of attending any other school. Yoga certification ought to be constantly checked and rechecked. If a certain school gets certification, always do more research on that certification.

There are some yoga certifications that can be purchased on the internet without having any true assurance of proficiency from the instructor or any type of quality from the school. When your own health as well as your own personal money is at stake, you can never take too many precautions to ensure a successful outcome.

Frequently you will find that there are some instructors that will claim to practice a specific form of yoga that they will claim to have created on their own. As such it is not probable that this type of practice will be given yoga certification from any official body that certifies orthodox yoga practices.

Even though there might be some instructors who are providing actual advantages with their particular system, it will be difficult to discern which do as numerous others will simply be hucksters who end up claiming to have created their own system so that they can dodge questions of certifications.

Try Yoga for Insomnia

Some people walk into their bedrooms and just pass out. You envy them because you can't do that. You have insomnia: you can't get to sleep easily, and when you do and you wake up, you can't get back to sleep. Why not try Yoga for insomnia? Yoga can help relax you enough to let you sleep. When incorporated into your daily routines, you will notice that you get more sleep. Results like that count, especially when your insomnia is stress related.

You may have to do some research, as there are different schools or types of Yoga. You can start by Googling up Yoga online, to read more about this. But you may be taken aback by so much information about the subject. Also, Yoga sometimes is packaged in press releases with religious undertones. But you only need Yoga for insomnia.

What you could do is find a Yoga class, whose Yoga instructor can walk you through what Yoga will be taking from your usual work week and weekends. Yoga, as a routine exercises, is no different from scheduled work outs. The difference is the effect on your sanity and peace of mind. Think of your mind as a stressed out clenched fist. Yoga's exercises can help you slide down from that tension and let your tight fist slowly unclench and relax. That helps a lot in getting you to sleep.

If you want to practice Yoga at home, you could do three things. Stay online and research until you find a site that provides exercises without too much reading into Yoga's history. You can print the exercises and their directions and follow them. Or you could hire a Yoga instructor who will guide you through the stretching exercises and postures, all in the familiar and safe haven of your home. Or you could buy a book on Yoga and try out the illustrated stretching exercises and positions there. The benefits of all three options is that you stay at home, free to do Yoga at your time and pace, and most probably, before going to bed.

Please try to consult your doctor about your trying Yoga, just in case some positions may result in some injury or may aggravate an existing medical condition. The books may mention this, but one advantage of a Yoga instructor is that he or she can assess you and your body as to the state of readiness of both for Yoga exercises.

Before you dive into searching for Yoga websites, books, or nearby Yoga classes, what most information on Yoga will tell you about its connection to insomnia, is this. Yoga's stretching and its many relaxation exercises will help you sleep, that there's no age cap on practicing Yoga, and that's its insertion into your routines will overall benefit your health and peace of mind.

Regardless of the type of Yoga for insomnia you will be practicing, you will probably be stretching to relax your body, doing deep breathing, and visualization exercises. Note that all three activities run counter to what a stressed out person usually does, which is going through the day with a tense body, not breathing deeply, and visualizing problems. Yoga tries to counter that and help you sleep.

Yoga Helps Fight Mid-Life Bulge

Related Link: Yoga Mats

Copyright © 2005 Daily News Central

Yoga practice helps middle-aged people lose weight and keep it off, suggest new studies published in the online journal Alternative Therapies In Health and Medicine.

Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center surveyed 15,500 men and women to assess their weight and yoga histories between the ages of 45 and 55.

For purposes of the study, regular yoga practice was defined as practicing at least 30 minutes once a week for four or more years.

20-Pound Gap

Statistics showed that the subjects who were of normal weight at the age of 45 and did not practice yoga consistently gained about 10 pounds, while those who performed regular yoga routines lost 3 pounds during that same 10-year period -- a difference of 13 pounds.

There was a wider gap between people who were overweight at the age of 45. The non-yoga group gained about 14 pounds, while the yoga group lost 5 pounds -- a difference of almost 20 pounds.

It is not likely that yoga's fat-fighting potential is due to the physical activity itself, according to the study's lead author, Alan R. Kristal, DrPH.

"During a very vigorous yoga practice you can burn enough calories to lose weight, but most people don't practice that kind of yoga," he notes.

Body Awareness a Factor

"From my experience, I think it has to do with the way that yoga makes you more aware of your body. So when you've eaten enough food, you're sensitive to the feeling of being full, and this makes it much easier to stop eating before you've eaten too much," Kristal explains.

"Most people practice yoga in a way that's not aerobic enough to burn a lot of calories, so it has to be some other reason," adds study co-author Denise Benitez, owner of Seattle Yoga Arts.

"People who regularly practice yoga develop the inner resources to stay with a little bit of discomfort," she says, hypothesizing that those inner resources help people to stay with the discomfort that is caused when they deny themselves junk food.

In order to accurately measure the effects of yoga on weight maintenance and loss, these preliminary findings will need to be replicated, Kristal cautions.

Yoga Tips

The following tips for enhancing one's yoga practice, offers Benitez, may be particularly helpful for those who wish to maintain or lose weight:

1. Practice in a room without mirrors and pay more attention to your internal experience than to your outer performance.

2. Learn to feel sensations more and more subtly, so that you become deeply involved in and curious about small movements -- sometimes called micro-movements.

3. In your poses, find an edge for yourself where you are challenged but not overwhelmed. At this edge, practice maintaining a clear, open and accepting mental state.

4. Give yourself permission to rest when you feel overworked.

5. Pay close attention to what you are saying to yourself as you practice, and make an intentional effort to appreciate your own efforts and innate goodness.

6. Go to class faithfully, arrive early, and talk to a few people before class begins.

7. Buy your own yoga mat and bring it to class.

8. Realize that the development of qualities like patience, discipline, wisdom, right effort, kindness, gratitude and many others will arise from your yoga practice. These qualities create a steady and soft mind.

9. Find a teacher who offers a balance of gentleness and firmness and whose teaching inspires you to practice from your highest self.

10. Recognize that simply attending class is a major statement of courage, self-care, and positive momentum. Realize that you are inspiring others as you become more true to your deepest desires.

About the Author:
Rita Jenkins is a health journalist for Daily News Central, an online publication that delivers breaking news and reliable health information to consumers, healthcare providers and industry professionals: http://www.dailynewscentral.com

Yoga For Pregnant Women

Master your mind!

Gain control over your body!

Be relieved of your stress through the practice of gentle art of Yoga!

Pregnancy is a physical as well as mental experience. Women often becomes hyper aware of all the changes their bodies are going through. Yoga allows pregnant women to adapt to these changes more gracefully and to feel proud and a sense of appreciation for their bodies. Yoga exercises can increase flexibility, strength, circulation and balance. Many pregnant women find that regular yoga exercises help to reduce swelling, back and leg pain, and insomnia.

However, Yoga must be practised very carefully among pregnant women, as improper exercises will bring negative effect on both moms and babies. Here are some tips for pre-natal pregnancy Yoga practise:

1. The general yoga exercises are recommended for the first 2 months. You must consult your doctor and find very experienced Yoga teachers. With proper guidance, you can practice some yoga right into labor. If you new to yoga then you should start slowly.

2. Breathing exercises are beneficial if done twice a day. The breathing exercises provide more oxygen and energy both to the mother and the child.

3. Some yoga poses that can help a pregnant women dealing with the symptoms of pregnancy, ensuring smoother and easier delivery, and faster recovery after childbirth. Pregnant women should pay attention not to overstretch the body - the ligaments around the joints become loose and soft during pregnancy. The abdomen should stay relaxed at all times. Difficult and poses that put pressure on the abdomen and other should NOT be done during advance stages of Pregnancy. No any kind of pain or nausea should be felt during and/or after yoga. If this happens, you should stop yoga practise and contact your GP.

4. When carrying out standing poses with your heels to the wall or use a chair for support to avoid losing your balance and risking injury to both you and your baby.

5. Deep relaxation is crucial to give rest to body and mind, and you will benefit more from a good sleep. Deep relaxation helps the nerve system change from sympathetic to parasympathetic activity. Parasympathetic activity is associated with the restorative processes of the body, which is needed both by the pregnant woman and the child.

We also strongly recommend regular morning and evening walks. Yoga is very individual. For more great Yoga advice, and other pregnant women support services, e.g. domestic cleaning services, babysitter services, personal trainer, chef and many more great services just visit us at www.londonrate.com.