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Archive for the ‘Hot Yoga’ Category

Yoga Styles Explained

April 26th, 2010 |

There are many different styles of yoga being taught and practiced today. Although all of the styles are based on the same physical postures (called poses), each has a particular emphasis. Here is a quick guide to the most popular types of yoga that can help you decode the schedule at your gym and figure out which class is right for you.

HATHA

Hatha is a very general term that can encompass many of the physical types of yoga. If a class is described as Hatha style, it is probably going to be slow-paced and gentle and provide a good introduction to the basic yoga poses.

VINYASA

Like Hatha, Vinyasa is a general term that is used to describe many different types of classes. Vinyasa, which means breath-synchronized movement, tends to be a more vigorous style based on the performance of a series of poses called Sun Salutations, in which movement is matched to the breath. A Vinyasa class will typically start with a number of Sun Salutations to warm up the body for more intense stretching that’s done at the end of class.

ASHTANGA & POWER YOGA

Ashtanga, which means “eight limbs” in Sanskrit, is a fast-paced, intense style of yoga. A set series of poses is performed, always in the same order. Ashtanga practice is very physically demanding because of the constant movement from one pose to the next. In yoga terminology, this movement is called flow. Ashtanga is also the inspiration for what is often called Power Yoga. If a class is described as Power Yoga, it will be based on the flowing style of Ashtanga, but not necessarily keep strictly to the set Ashtanga series of poses.

IYENGAR

Based on the teachings of the yogi B.K.S Iyengar, this style of practice is most concerned with bodily alignment. In yoga, the word alignment is used to describe the precise way in which your body should be positioned in each pose in order to obtain the maximum benefits and avoid injury. Iyengar practice usually emphasizes holding poses over long periods versus moving quickly from one pose to the next (flow). Also, Iyengar practice encourages the use of props, such as yoga blankets, blocks and straps, in order to bring the body into alignment.

KUNDALINI

The emphasis in Kundalini is on the breath in conjunction with physical movement, with the purpose of freeing energy in the lower body and allowing it to move upwards. All asana practices make use of controlling the breath. But in Kundalini, the exploration of the effects of the breath (also called prana, meaning energy) on the postures is essential.

BIKRAM/HOT YOGA

Pioneered by Bikram Choudhury, this style is more generally referred to as Hot Yoga. It is practiced in a 95 to 100 degree room, which allows for a loosening of tight muscles and profuse sweating, which is thought to be cleansing. The Bikram method is a set series of 26 poses, but not all hot classes make use of this series.

ANUSARA

Founded in 1997 by John Friend, Anusara combines a strong emphasis on physical alignment with a positive philosophy derived from Tantra. The philosophy’s premise is belief in the intrinsic goodness of all beings. Anusara classes are usually light-hearted and accessible to students of differing abilities. Poses are taught in a way that opens the heart, both physically and mentally, and props are often used.

JIVAMUKTI

This style of yoga emerged from one of New York’s best-known yoga studios. Jivamukti founders David Life and Sharon Gannon take inspiration from Ashtanga yoga and emphasize chanting, meditation, and spiritual teachings. They have trained many teachers who have brought this style of yoga to studios and gyms, predominantly in the U.S. These classes are physically intense and often include some chanting.

FORREST

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, and gaining popularity around the U.S., Forrest Yoga is the method taught by Ana Forrest. The performance of vigorous asana sequences is intended to strengthen and purify the body and release pent-up emotions and pain so that healing can begin. Expect an intense workout with an emphasis on abdominal strengthening and deep breathing.

KRIPALU

The name Kripalu is associated both with a style of hatha yoga and a yoga and wellness center in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Both were founded by yoga guru Amrit Desai, who came to the United States from India in 1960. Kripalu is a yoga practice with a compassionate approach and emphasis on meditation, physical healing and spiritual transformation that overflows into daily life. Kripalu also focuses on looking inward and moving at your own pace.

INTEGRAL

Integral yoga follows the teachings of Sri Swami Sachidananda, who came to the U.S. in the 1960s and eventually founded many Integral Yoga Institutes and the famed Yogaville Ashram in Virginia. Integral is a gentle hatha practice, and classes often also include breathing exercises, chanting, kriyas, and meditation.

SIVANANDA

The first Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center was founded in 1959 by Swami Vishnu-devananda, a disciple of Swami Sivananda. There are now close to 80 locations worldwide, including several ashram retreats. Sivananda yoga is based upon five principles:

1. Proper exercise (Asana, focusing on 12 poses in particular)

2. Proper breathing (Pranayama)

3. Proper relaxation (Savasana)

4. Proper diet (Vegetarian)

5. Positive thinking (Vedanta) and meditation (Dhyana)

Earth Yoga in New York City

November 18th, 2009 |

Author: freddibear

Lululemon on 67th and 3rd Ave has named Earth Yoga as their “Studio of the Month” for the month of October 2009. Congratulations!

Earth Yoga is a hot power vinyasa yoga studio located at 206 East 63rd street (3rd floor) in New York City. Vinyasa literally means “the intelligent putting together of things”, or “uninterrupted flow”- the coordination of breath and movement. At Earth Yoga, our room is heated to approximately 95 degrees. Almost all classes are experienced in a heated environment. They are renowned for being the top in their field in Hot Yoga, but a word for beginners. If you are interested in practicing with Earth Yoga I suggest calling ahead to make an appointment for a private session with one of their yoga instructors before you try to attend one of their high intensity classes. This is also recommended by Earth Yoga themselves, so that a real beginner will not go into class feeling overwhelmed and try to keep up with everyone and possibly injure themselves. This is not to discourage hot yoga beginners, but just to inform you to take the appropriate precautions.

Styles you will experience at Earth Yoga include:

Power Vinyasa Yoga - best described as asanas linked together while synchronizing one’s breath with movement. The transitions of the yoga poses are done at a steady, deliberate pace, and depending on the style of the teacher this pace can be slow or more vigorous.

A Baptiste – influenced Power Vinyasa Yoga - a combination of deep breathing and specifically sequenced sets of flowing yoga postures developed by Baron Baptiste. This style of yoga has the ability to build strength, increase endurance, release tension, and create more flexibility in the entire body.

Ki Power Vinyasa Yoga - a challenging vinyasa-based yoga practice and Isauro’s signature class. It is fused with martial arts, meditation and Thai yoga massage. Classes flow to rock-n-roll and world music.

Class Prices

Single class – $25

Introductory 7 day unlimited – $30 (for first-timers only)

5 class pass - $100 (30 day expiration)

10 class pass – $190 (45 day expiration)

Monthly unlimited – $215 (31 day expiration) includes mat and skid less cleaning and storage

3 Month Unlimited – $ 480 ($ 160 per month) includes mat and skid less cleaning and storage
(Students with Monthly Unlimited memberships may upgrade to 3 Month Unlimited memberships before the last day of August)

*After September 1st 2009, mat rental will be $2 and skid less rental will be $1. Towels will remain complimentary.

*for Those students with 5 & 10 class passes requiring mat and skid less storage, an additional $10 will be charged per month.

*Private classes are $150 per hour. Please call reception at least a week before your intended class to ensure you get your desired time slot and the teacher of your choice.

* We offer a 15 % discount to the following yogis on presentation of relevant ID: students, teachers, police, fire, nurses and seniors.

Hot Yoga Paradise Parties

October 20th, 2009 |

Author: freddibear

Yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi

Birthdays, Showers, Any Event

10-24 People

Classes, Juice, Mats, Gifts, Candles, T-Shirts, Massages

HOT YOGA PARADISE
213-01 Northern Blvd. Suite 2E
Bayside, NY 11361

Entrance and Parking Garage on 213th st.

718-428-0075

Schedule and Classes

2009
	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
9:30am	Hot Yoga	Hot Vinyasa	Hot Yoga	Hatha	Hot Vinyasa	Hot Vinyasa	Hot Yoga
11:00am						Hot Yoga	Hot Vinyasa
1:00pm						Tai-Chi*	Goddess
2:00pm						Pre-Natal*	Belly Dancing
4:00pm
5:30pm				-
6:00pm	Hot Yoga		Hot Vinyasa
7:00pm		Inside Out		Inside Out	Hot Yoga
8:00pm	Hot Vinyasa	Hot Yoga	Hot Yoga	Hot Vinyasa

Hot Yoga
A series of poses performed in a heated room. The heat aids the stretching process while challenging the focus on the mind, enhancing the transformational experience of yoga. The heated environment relaxes the muscles while working up a sweat detoxifying the body and strengthening the heart. This incredible workout is cardiovascular and anaerobic. The benefits are: mental clarity, stress reduction, increase vitality, energy, blood circulation as well as strength and flexibility while improving your immunity. Amazing and fulfilling. ( 90 min.)

Hot Vinyasa
A Vinyasa flow yoga class performed in a heated room. It combines deep breathing and specifically sequenced sets of flowing yoga postures. Hot Power yoga has the ability to build strength, increase endurance, release tension, burn calories and create more flexibility in the entire body. The class can be vigorous and challenging and will leave you feeling empowered.( 90 min.)

Ashtanga
Building, strength, stamina. A dynamic form of yoga which links postures and breath together to create a continuous flow of movement. A full body workout targeting major muscles of the back, legs, chest and arms. It focuses on creating heat internally through a fast-paced series of vinyases. It purifies and strengthen the body while generating parana ( Life force). Victoriously you will feel each time you finish your class. ( 90 min.)

Power Yoga
Strong and meditative with attention to alignment, while building strength, flexibility & stamina. ( 90 min.)

Hatha
A series of Yoga poses designed to promote flexible strength. Which will increase your internal energy, massage and tone your internal organs and help regulate your hormones. ( 90 min.)

Gentle Yoga
A practice of postures, breathing and, meditation increasing flexibility, mobility, and range of movement. Focus on body alignment, exercise and deep relaxation. (90 min.)

Inside Out- Out
Powerful and challenging, it is empowerment for your body that projects out to your life. It is a unique and motivating combination of Pilates and progressive body sculpting that will develop strength, sleek toned muscles, and reduced body fat. Weighted balls and elastic bands add innovation to a class designed for all fitness levels. ( 60 min. )

Pilates
Stretch, Strengthen and, tighten your abdominal muscles.
Improve your body alignment and energize your mind and body. Relax and breath. ( 60 min.)

Nia
Neuromuscular Integrative Action, combines movement from Yoga, Modern dance, Jazz, Tae Kwon Do Aikido into a lyrical dance -like routine. Powerful and playful, offering a total body cardiovascular conditioning.It is playful, mindful, and you will integrate body and emotions into a joyful experience.
( 60 min.)

Tai Chi
Yang Style Short Form develops tone, strength, flexibility and concentration. An introduction to the ancient “Supreme Ultimate” martial art. ( 60 min.)

Belly Dance
Starts with a fun exotic warm up that shapes and conditions while toning your body. It leads into various patterns of Belladee and Bolero movements of Egyptian and Greek style Belly dancing. (60)

Hot Yoga Can Help With ADD

September 6th, 2009 |

Author: freddibear

There are so many benefits from the practice of yoga and meditation. The body becomes more flexible and agile and gains that long sought after lean yoga look. The mind can calm and become centered able to disregard the normal worries and concerns of our daily lives and gain a more enlightened perspective. Inside of our energy center there is a stirring of life force that rushes through us and our spirit awakens and we become fully connected Mind, Body and Spirit. Now I have recently read in The New York Times that Hot Yoga can have a positive effect on those suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder. From the New York Times article, “Bikram helps with the A.D.D. that we all have,” said Dara G. Cole, 35, co-owner and manager of Bikram Yoga South Slope in Brooklyn. “The heat and the intensity of the postures demand a quality of attention and focus that expand your ability to concentrate.” Yoga can help ADDers learn how to forge a mind-body connection that promotes self-awareness and self-control. Yoga practitioners are taught deep breathing and relaxation techniques that help center the mind in the present moment.

It is important to remember that yoga is not meant to be stressful or taxing on the body. People should be encouraged to concentrate only on themselves and not the others in the class, and to do only what feels comfortable. A practitioner should never feel pressured to perform. If an someone with ADD finds him/herself at a yoga class that moves too quickly, or focuses heavily on strength training, they will not reap the intended benefits, and may find themselves overwhelmed. The best place to find yoga instruction is at a yoga center, where the instructors practice yoga as a way of life, and teach both the physical and psychological components.

Yoga can help ADDers feel calm, centered, in control, and in touch with their bodies. Practiced regularly, ADDers will find that yoga is a powerful mental and physical refresher that they can retreat to when feeling out of control or overwhelmed.

Thailand’s Top Yoga Retreat

September 2nd, 2009 |

Author: freddibear

kamalaya_H001pool

Kamalaya Personal Yoga Synergy – Koh Samui, Thailand
The Kamalaya Personal Yoga Synergy offers private one-to-one yoga sessions with customised instruction along with complementary treatments, including Ayurveda therapies from our experienced Indian therapists. This personal yoga and wellness retreat is suitable for beginners and experienced yogis alike, as the daily yoga sessions are tailored to the individuals skill level and goals. The customised instruction includes asana (physical postures), pranayama (breathing) and meditation. Instruction can be adapted to fulfill a range of goals, such as addressing physical limitations, developing a regular home practice or deepening and intensifying existing practice. Choose from 3, 5 or 7 night programs.

The Place

Kamalaya Koh Samui Wellness Sanctuary and Holistic Spa resort integrates a diverse range of Oriental and Western healing practices. Experienced practitioners and dedicated professionals offer a wide variety of health treatments, consultations, classes, seminars and programs for individuals and groups to promote the harmonious development of the whole person, including:

• Personal health and lifestyle consultations upon arrival
• Consultations and treatments in Chinese Medicine, Naturopathy, Homeopathy and Western Medicine
• Ayurveda treatments by Indian therapists
• Optional Holistic Wellness Programs, including: individual programs in Detox & Rejuvenation, Asian Bliss, Balance & Revitalise for stress relief and burnout, Relax & Renew, Ideal Weight, Optimal Fitness, Personal Yoga, Introduction to Detox and regular group retreats in Yoga and Detox.
• Diagnostic procedures, including bio-resonance evaluations, nutritional analysis biological age assessments and comprehensive laboratory testing.
• Colonic hydrotherapy with ozone
• Herbal steam cavern, far-infrared sauna, hot and cold plunge pools including a lap-pool and a leisure pool
• Therapeutic massages, including lymphatic drainage, traditional Thai massage, chi nei tsang (Taoist abdominal massage), t’ui na (acupressure) and craniosacral therapy
• Customized herbal formulas
• Personalised fitness training
• Yoga, Pilates, Chi Gong, Tai Chi, and Meditation classes

For information see www.kamalaya.com or e-mail info@kamalaya.com

Top Rated Yoga Studios in New York City, LA & Miami

August 21st, 2009 |

Author: freddibear

According to Travel & Leisure Magazine’s article entitled ” 25 Top Yoga Studios Around The World” there are four studios worthy of mention in New York City (Manhattan as well as outer boroughs). The classes range in price from $17-$20 and include many different styles and practices of yoga. I have also included the listings for Los Angeles and Miami for our readers in other areas of the country. If you have any input or experiences with any of these yoga studios please comment and share your thoughts.

New York There’s a surfeit of good yoga studios in Manhattan (and in outlying boroughs). It all depends on what style you practice. For Vinyasa, go to Cyndi Lee’s Om (www.omyoga.com; $18); for Iyengar, head to the Iyengar Yoga Institute (www.iyengarnyc.org; $20) in Chelsea. Jivamukti (www.jivamuktiyoga.com; $17), recently opened an uptown studio on 65th St. and Lexington Ave., but its flagship downtown location is still going strong. At Rolf Gates’s Prana Power Yoga (www.pranapoweryoga.com; $17), classes are a mix of Power and Vinyasa Flow-the studio is heated to 90 degrees, allowing you to stretch deeply into pigeon pose.

Los Angeles It’s not hard to find a challenging yoga class in L.A. Two popular examples are YogaWorks (www.yogaworks.com), with five locations, and Power Yoga guru Brian Kest’s Santa Monica studio (www.poweryoga.com). The Hatha teachers at Liberation Yoga (www.liberationyoga.com; $10), on south La Brea, emphasize the spiritual sides of yoga as much as the physical. Your first class is free.

Miami Word has quickly spread about the Miami Life Center (www.miamilifecenter.com; $18), which opened in November on South Beach. Founded by Kino MacGregor, one of the youngest women to complete the third series of Ashtanga (she recently started on the fourth with Guruji and Sharath), the studio has both “led” Ashtanga classes, traditional Mysore classes (where each student goes at his or her own pace), and a few Vinyasa classes. The Center has two practice rooms with bamboo floors, showers, changing rooms, and a large marble-floored lobby where students linger after class on oversize couches.

Yoga Meditation New York & The Benefits Of HOT YOGA

July 25th, 2009 |

Author: freddibear

Original Hot Yoga Poses

Hot Yoga strengthens and deeply cleanses the body adding intensity to the work out that you would normally get in practice and raises the level of purification that your body receives. Doing the same basic practice that you would in a regular temperature room, you will work harder in a room that has been heated and has added humidity. Your body will get stronger, and remove far more toxins from the system.

If people who have trouble with the heat take their time getting used to practicing in a heated room, they will begin to find that they have less trouble. On hot summer days, when they might have been suffering, they will probably be able to maintain normal activity levels and some may even become able to perform at peak activity levels. This is because the heart works harder. The organs are also challenged. As the body gets used to practicing in a heated environment, the system learns what to do to keep itself from overheating in this unique circumstance.

Hot Yoga has become very popular in the last few years and many yoga studios in the New York City area offer classes. I am sure that Planet Hope, a great new website launching in the fall, will have a plethora of information on Hot Yoga. You can find the site at www.planethopetv.com and be sure to look for them in the coming months as the website will have articles and videos on all types of yoga and meditation. Planet Hope will also contain stories on mindful eating, green living and all areas of conscious living. I can’t wait to explore their site!

Yoga Meditation

Archive for the ‘Hot Yoga’ Category

Yoga Styles Explained

Related Reading:

Earth Yoga in New York City

Related Reading:

Hot Yoga Paradise Parties

Yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi

Birthdays, Showers, Any Event

10-24 People

Schedule and Classes

Related Reading:

Hot Yoga Can Help With ADD

Related Reading:

Thailand’s Top Yoga Retreat

The Place

Related Reading:

Top Rated Yoga Studios in New York City, LA & Miami

Related Reading:

Yoga Meditation New York & The Benefits Of HOT YOGA

Original Hot Yoga Poses

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