Health and Yoga

            If I were to say "Down Dog," how many people would think of a dog jumping on something, or someone, and how many would immediately think "Yoga "? Downward facing Dog, which is the correct name of this famous yoga pose, is used as a transition between poses and has become one of the most commonly known terms of Yoga. Since Yoga was introduced into our western society, it has known a constant growth. In Yoga Journal of September 2010, historian Eric Shaw claims that Henry David Thoreau declared himself in 1849 the first Western Yogi, a Yoga instructor, when he discovered the Yogic texts of ancient times. Today you can find many Westerners wanting, and claiming that title. The main benefits of Yoga can be explained through the physical, breathing, and meditation aspects of Yoga. .
             According toWebMD.com, more than 11 million Americans are practicing Yoga. Most likely that number is higher before I end this speech, since it is one of the fastest growing exercise movements in the US. Based on ancient Indian texts like the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads, Yoga is a matter of interpretations, most of them quite subjective. Today, most people know that Yoga is a kind of physical exercise, the majority would probably say a kind of stretching. Most people seek physical exercise to build stronger bodies and build more muscle. And it is true that Yoga does that very effectively. By practicing Yoga consistently 2 to 3 times a week, you build up strength that lasts, especially core strength giving you those nice abs. In addition to strengthening, Yoga also lengthens your muscles, and creates space in between your joints. During the day, we all move in a pattern that compacts our bodies, our joints. When we are young, it doesn't necessarily affect us that much. But as we add years to our life, our joints become more tight, therefore setting up for pains and injuries. Yoga will keep those spaces open, to help the synovial fluids, the joint fluids move freely in and around our crucial parts of the joints.