Hatha Yoga Provides Gentle Exercise To StimulateYour Imune System

The most common form of yoga practiced in the United States ishatha yoga. Hatha yoga differs from other disciplines of yogaas it is more exercise than mental preparation for meditation.All yoga stretches are designed to relax the body on the pathof spiritual enlightenment including meditation; however mostAmericans practice the poses for the fitness benefits. Hatha yoga is a gentle exercise which strengthens the existingmuscles without adding unwanted muscle bulk. People whopractice hatha yoga claim all kinds of homeopathic benefitsfrom illness relief to increased concentration whilemeditating. Hatha Yoga and Illness There is no conclusive scientific evidence that hatha yoga hasany positive or negative health benefits. However, thetechnique is thousands of years old and the people whichpractice the poses and meditation claim a variety of healthbenefits. Hatha yoga is said by some to be able to ease everydiscomfort from bowel problems to head aches. The stretches andposes are said to massage the inner organs balancing the body'schemicals naturally. Even if there is no conclusive evidence supporting the claimsthat hatha yoga does in fact have health benefits beyondphysical exercise, many people who practice yoga have betterself esteem, are more in tune with their bodies needs, and takea more active role in their health by exercising regularly andeating healthy foods. Menstrual Discomfort Many medical facilities are dedicated to women's health alonebecause of a woman's unique anatomy and life changes. Hathayoga is able to promote women's health by providing an outletfor daily exercise which is recommended by most doctors. Alsothe massaging of internal muscles, the poses and stretches arethought to ease menstrual pain or other discomforts associatedwith the menstrual cycle. Pregnancy Some poses of hatha yoga are known to be safe exercises forwomen while pregnant. However, not all poses should bepreformed while pregnant; poses which would require a woman topress on her stomach for instance would not be recommended. Also during the third trimester, only gentle stretches andposes of hatha yoga should be practiced. Any poses which wouldrequire a woman to lie on her back or stand on one foot shouldbe avoided late in pregnancy. There is a reason for each of these points; in the first case,there is a large system of veins that supply blood and oxygento the baby that runs by the spine. The added weight of thebaby on this system of veins can slow blood flow to the babyand deny it oxygen. The other is because during pregnancy,usually sometime in the second trimester, a woman's equilibriumchanges and she may have trouble maintaining her balance whileon one foot.About The Author: Ann Marier writes informative articles aboutfamily life and general health issues, Her lastest are aboutlosing weight with yoga. Click on http://loseweightfromyoga.comto read all her yoga articles. Click onhttp://www.ultimatehealthinfo.com to see all the other generalhealth issues

New Year Resolution - Part 2

By: Tracie Johanson It should come as no surprise that this series of articles will focus on New Year resolutions. After all, many of us look at the start of a New Year as a chance for us to create a new body.More than 80% of Americans made a New Year's resolution in 2005:Health and fitness: 26%Career: 13%Organization and time management: 13%Personal growth: 12%Personal finance: 12%Family and relationships: 8%Education and training: 8%Home improvement and real estate: 4%Recreation and leisure: 4%(Source: myGoals.com)"10 million-plus Americans will pledge to get fit in 2005" said Katie Rollauer of the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association.The dominance of weight loss resolutions led one gym member to suggest that instead of making a New Year resolution, it would be more honest (and funny) to make a New REAR resolution.So how do we go about making a good New Rear resolution? In a recent article we discussed how to draft a SMART goal. Remember that a New Rear resolution (or any goal) must be:a) Specificb) Measureablec) Achievabled) Realistice) Time BoundNow that we've all done our homework and we have our resolution in writing, let's take it one step further and break our goal down by month or even week.You can make your resolution much more manageable if you break it down into smaller pieces. This will make your resolution much less intimidating.For example, if you want to lose 60 pounds this year, that may seem overwhelming to you.But how about setting smaller resolutions. Like losing 10 pounds by the end of February? How about promising to do strength training for the next 2 months every Monday, Wednesday and Friday?Doesn't that resolution sound much more manageable?If you keep setting smaller resolutions for yourself throughout the year, before you know it, you will have succeeded in your big resolution.So, if we haven't done so already, let's get our New Rear resolution in writing. Let's post it on the mirror, on the 'fridge, or in the car.....anywhere we'll see it every day. At the bottom of the page let's write down our short-term resolution. Here's an example:NEW REAR RESOLUTION: "I will lose 50 pounds of fat by the end of 2005."SHORT-TERM RESOLUTION: "I will exercise 4 times per week until Easter with the goal of losing 1 pound per week (on average). My exercise will be at the gym each Monday, Wednesday and Friday with a 25 minute walk over the weekend."See how much SMARTer it is to create a short-term resolution? The typical New Rear resolution is overwhelming.....lose 50 pounds of fat? Are you kidding? But the short-term resolution is manageable. We can do that! Not only can we do it, but if we do it it'll work. Losing 1 pound of fat each week x 52 weeks in a year means that we achieved our goal!At the end of the short-term resolution (Easter in this example) all we have to do is measure our progress and write up a new short-term goal. It's that easy.Goals and resolutions are a wonderful thing. They help us stay motivated, and they show us the light at the end of the tunnel. So let's make sure we have our own New Rear resolution in place. We can do it!Article Source: http://www.nulife-weightloss.com/articlesTracie Johanson is the founder of Pick Up The Pace, a 30-minute exercise studio for women focusing on fitness, health and nutrition for maximum weight loss. Please visit www.letspickupthepace.com/ for more information.