Eight Limbs Ashtanga Yoga
Eight Limbs Ashtanga Yoga
Ashtanga means "eight limbs" in Sanskrit, a reference to eight
elements that define as a lifestyle.
These "limbs" cover your attitudes towards the world around you,
your attitudes towards yourself, the poses, breathing exercises, the withdrawal of the senses,
concentration, contemplation, and enlightenment.
As a type of yoga, Ashtanga is better known as "power yoga." This
specialized form of Hatha yoga (which uses the third and forth of the eight limbs, poses and
breathing exercises) provides an intense workout.
Six series of poses within Ashtanga yoga allow for steps of
progression in skill, strength, and flexibility. After learning the order of poses from an
instructor (the first series includes 75 poses and can take two hours to complete), students often
practice Ashtanga independently.
This allows them to progress at their own pace to master each
series before attempting to learn the next.
With 75 poses in the first series alone, Ashtanga yoga can be
difficult to learn, especially with the Sanskrit names.
Many athletes prefer Ashtanga yoga because of its vigorous
full-body workout. With meditation downplayed and the poses emphasized, "power yoga" focuses on
building flexibility, stamina, and strength, tied into breathing control, with breathing
synchronized with the poses.
Each breath correlates with one pose. The focal point of the eyes
is also controlled, to create a unified control of the looking point, the breathing, and the bodily
position.
"Intense" describes Ashtanga yoga as a whole. This type of yoga
stresses the synchronized breathing and vigorous poses to produce intense internal heat and to
detoxify the body (organs and muscles) by profuse sweating.
Make sure you have time for a shower after the Ashtanga yoga
lesson! The results include improved circulation and a body that's both strong and
lithe.
A warm environment best suits Ashtanga yoga to comfort the muscles
and ease their flexibility.
A proper warm-up and relaxing session are required for this form
of yoga to avoid harm. The demands of these exercises make caution necessary, as an individual can
overdo the workouts, overstrain his or her muscles, and do physical damage.
People not used to exercise definitely should not start with this
form of yoga.
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