What's in a name?

What's in a name? There are a few four letter words no one of wants to ever hear. Now, remember, before anyone gets offended we are talking about fitness! If I had to pick the most common four letter word no one in fitness wants to hear it would be without a doubt Yoga. Yep, Yoga. Surprise you? I suppose in most cases we take for granted what we call things, and even if the object changes but the name remains the same we still will associate the name with the "older" model. Such is the challenge of Madison Avenue and marketing students across the globe. Mention Yoga, and to most people they will have a traditional, dare I say stereotypical image, of sitting in the lotus position chanting ohms and meditating... or trying to in otherwise uncomfortable positions. To those who practice this type of Yoga I offer admiration and respect. I know that there is much much more than that to their avocation.

But I would like to open the discussion up to different types of yoga, in particular, Ashtanga Yoga, sometimes referred to as "power Yoga" (oooh, I don't like that name either!) as an integral part of a fitness program. For those of you unfamiliar with the subject here is a link http://bit.ly/98mZpH, but briefly Ashtanga Yoga is an isometric exercise routine using various postures and techniques combining strength, coordination, and flexibility. It is challenging and extremely difficult to master, but everyone can participate at his or her level and benefit enormously from the rehabilitative aspects of the workout. Most people are initially overwhelmed and shocked at how their preconceptions of what they thought they were about to do go up in smoke! Very few can finish the session the first time through. But nearly everyone is left with a new respect for the exercise and "postures", and within a few weeks can perform them to a satisfactory level and thus begin to appreciate the benefits and realize what they have been missing all along.

Like all forms of fitness Yoga must be respected and performed within your own ability. Some of the postures are very difficult, but there is always a modified version. Any instructor worth his/ her salt will advise you to not push yourself past the point of reasonable boundaries. If you can't do wheel do bridge. If you can't do bow do crescent. If you can't do plow then lie down in corpse pose. There's variety! It's beautiful!

If I had one fitness tip for everyone it would definitely be to incorporate a Yoga workout into a weekly program.  P90X YogaX  is a masterpiece in my opinion, because it combines the strength with balance postures, stretching postures and an ab workout then finishes with a relaxing series of positions suitable for everyone at any fitness level. It IS the glue that holds the rest of your active life together!

So the next time you are given the opportunity to experience a Yoga session keep an open mind.

It will be a shock.
It will be hard. 
It will be uncomfortable. 

But...it's good for you....