Yoga with Santosh » Health http://www.yogaknoxville.com Kripalu Yoga classes and private lessons in Knoxville, TN Mon, 12 May 2008 03:49:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5 en-us Weight loss program, weight loss surgery, and yoga http://www.yogaknoxville.com/weight-loss-program-weight-loss-surgery-and-yoga-151/ http://www.yogaknoxville.com/weight-loss-program-weight-loss-surgery-and-yoga-151/#comments Mon, 12 May 2008 03:47:33 +0000 Santosh http://www.yogaknoxville.com/?p=151 Considering a weight loss program, even something as radical as bariatric surgery? Don’t be surprised if your doctor recommends yoga as part of your overall strategy for losing weight.

Many doctors now recommend yoga after weight loss surgery as a gentle form of exercise, and in some parts of the country you might even find a bariatric yoga class.

While gentle yoga will burn few calories in and of itself, it will help you foster a deep connection with yourself, and this often leads to major positive changes in your self esteem and how you take care of yourself. This in turn relieves stress, which is a major cause for gaining and keeping excess weight. Simple stress relief can open the door to losing a few pounds.

Over time, as you strengthen, you can start to burn more and more calories through more moderate and vigorous yoga programs. To find a yoga class that’s right for your weight loss needs, first talk to your doctor to see what level of exertion is appropriate, then check the class schedule or schedule a free consultation to discuss personal yoga sessions.

Related Posts

]]> http://www.yogaknoxville.com/weight-loss-program-weight-loss-surgery-and-yoga-151/feed/ Chronic Pain, Pain Management, and Yoga in Knoxville, TN http://www.yogaknoxville.com/chronic-pain-pain-management-and-yoga-in-knoxville-tn-144/ http://www.yogaknoxville.com/chronic-pain-pain-management-and-yoga-in-knoxville-tn-144/#comments Tue, 15 Apr 2008 19:50:55 +0000 Santosh http://www.yogaknoxville.com/?p=144 Science is showing that yoga is an effective complementary method of managing pain. If you’re considering going to a pain clinic or other pain management program in Knoxville, TN, I recommend you also ask for your doctor’s permission to participate in yoga.

A 2004 Massachusetts study showed that a single session of yoga can relieve muscle soreness.1 Just imagine what a regular, personalized yoga practice could do for you.

A Temple University report suggests using yoga as a means of dealing with carpal tunnel syndrome.2

Yoga and other activities like tai chi were shown to improve pain and overall functioning in 96% of the studies in older adults in a March 2008 publication.3

Arthritis pain, strength, motion, joint circumference, tenderness, and hand function improved significantly due to yoga in a University of Pennsylvania study.4

A University of Washington study showed that yoga practice is more effective that reading self-help books in managing chronic low-back pain.5 No surprise there, so quit reading about it and contact me so we can get started.

WARNING: Added benefits like possible weight loss, improved self esteem, flexibility, and balance may make a healthy yoga lifestyle more addictive than your prescription painkillers.

There is plenty of evidence supporting yoga as part of a pain management program. To look up more studies, go to PubMed and enter the search terms for your particular condition.

Related Posts

  1. Boyle CA, Sayers SP, et al: The effects of yoga training and a single bout of yoga on delayed onset muscle soreness in the lower extremity. J Strength Cond Res. 2004 Nov; 18(4):723-9. ↩
  2. Michlovitz SL: Conservative interventions for carpal tunnel syndrome. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2004 Oct; 34(10):589-600. ↩
  3. Reid MC, Papaleontiou M, et al: Self-Management Strategies to Reduce Pain and Improve Function among Older Adults in Community Settings: A Review of the Evidence. Pain Med. 2008 Mar 11; Epub ahead of print. ↩
  4. Garfinkel MS, Schumacher HR Jr, et al: Evaluation of a yoga based regimen for treatment of osteoarthritis of the hands. J Rheumatol. 1994 Dec; 21(12):2341-3. ↩
  5. Sherman KJ, Cherkin DC, et al: Comparing yoga, exercise, and a self-care book for chronic low back pain: a randomized, controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 2005 Dec 20; 143(12):849-56. ↩
]]> http://www.yogaknoxville.com/chronic-pain-pain-management-and-yoga-in-knoxville-tn-144/feed/ Considering a Personal Trainer or Personal Training in Knoxville, TN? http://www.yogaknoxville.com/considering-a-personal-trainer-or-personal-training-in-knoxville-tn-140/ http://www.yogaknoxville.com/considering-a-personal-trainer-or-personal-training-in-knoxville-tn-140/#comments Sun, 13 Apr 2008 19:53:20 +0000 Santosh http://www.yogaknoxville.com/?p=140 If you’re looking to lose weight or increase your overall fitness in Knoxville, TN, you may have considered hiring a personal trainer to help you meet your weight loss and fitness goals. Here are seven reasons to get personalized yoga instruction instead of traditional gym-based personal training:

1. You never need to set foot in a gym or use gym equipment.

Unlike most forms of personal training, yoga builds strength and endurance by bearing the weight of your own body. All you need is a little floor space.

The benefits are clear: You don’t need to pay extra for a gym membership, buy expensive equipment (yoga gear is cheap and often unnecessary), or worry about other people looking at you while you exercise.

2. While I’ve heard personal trainers telling clients to “push harder, make yourself do it,” a personal yoga teacher will encourage you to respect your limits without judgment.

Non-harming is taught as a tenet of yoga. This includes respecting and accepting yourself (including your body) as you are today instead of forcing the body to do things it’s not ready for. This also includes training the mind to be aware of destructive self-criticism. Over time, you can safely expand your capabilities and learn to accept and honor yourself without the harsh “no pain, no gain” attitude.

While a yoga practice can certainly help increase your tolerance for uncomfortable situations, it is strictly a “no pain, no pain” endeavor.

3. Personal training does a great job of getting the weight off and building muscle, but it might do so at the expense of flexibility.

Yoga allows you to lose weight while building lean muscles for both stamina and flexibility, giving you added agility, speed, and range of motion — an extra edge for the tennis court, golf course, football field or hiking trail.

4. Your personal trainer may “pump you up” to work out in an excited state, spurred by the fight-or-flight stress response.

A skilled yoga teacher can achieve the same cardiovascular training by having you hold poses, flow through a series of non-impact postures, or even through simple breathing techniques — all while in a relaxed state.

5. Personal training sessions can sometimes be mind-numbing and repetitive. Yoga, on the other hand, requires concentration to keep balance in the poses, building focus and poise in all aspects of life and at any age.

6. Personal training targets the physical aspect of your wellbeing. Yoga is a technology thousands of years old developed to bring optimum performance and balance to all aspects of your life. Get rid of the weight in your physical body — while shedding mental, emotional, and spiritual weights that have been keeping you from being happy, whole, and connected.

7. Yoga directly addresses stress, one of the main contributors to health problems today. Whereas you may feel calm as an after-effect of a tough workout at the gym — at least until you get in the car — yoga practice includes stress reduction from beginning to end, with techniques you can use long after your private session ends.

Like this article? Please digg it.

Related Posts

]]> http://www.yogaknoxville.com/considering-a-personal-trainer-or-personal-training-in-knoxville-tn-140/feed/ Yoga Eases Fibromyalgia Symptoms http://www.yogaknoxville.com/yoga-eases-fibromyalgia-symptoms-113/ http://www.yogaknoxville.com/yoga-eases-fibromyalgia-symptoms-113/#comments Wed, 27 Feb 2008 21:00:09 +0000 Santosh http://yogaknoxville.com/yoga-eases-fibromyalgia-symptoms-113/ (EDIT NOTE 3/20/08: Demand has been strong for the CD, so I’ve set up a separate site and mailing list for yoga for fibromyalgia.

Regular exercise can ease the symptoms of fibromyalgia dramatically, reducing muscle pain and the number of tender points, knocking out depression and insomnia, even cutting through so-called “fibrofog” for increased mental clarity.

Yoga is a particularly effective form of exercise for those with fibromyalgia, for it provides stretches for stiffness, strength building, aerobic exercise, and tools for relaxation. In fact, the Mayo Clinic includes yoga as one of the best things people with fibromyalgia can do for themselves.

For a long time, fibromyalgia, like bipolar disorder, was considered a “garbage diagnosis,” and many doctors treated their patients almost as if they were making up their symptoms because the doctors could not find an objective cause for the discomfort.

It is now clear that many fibromyalgia symptoms stem from a very real and measurable cause: low levels of serotonin, one of several neurotransmitters responsible for mood and adaptation to stress.

Muscle soreness results directly from an imbalance in neurological and endocrine functions.

Though muscle soreness is the main symptom of the syndrome, it is certainly not the only one. Other symptoms include disturbed sleep patterns, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and feelings of numbness in the extremities.

A number of conditions tend to co-occur with fibromyalgia, including irritable bowel syndrome, headaches, mitral valve prolapse, and a great deal more.

Yoga can clearly help with the symptoms, and may someday prove to address the underlying causes of fibromyalgia as well.

To date, there is no published study on yoga’s ability to regulate serotonin levels. However, western medicine in recent years is proving over and again what the yogis have claimed all along — that yoga is a prescription for total health, not just in body, but also in mind and spirit.

Scientific studies in the last few years have shown yoga effective in regulating levels of GABA and melotonin, two other neurotransmitters linked to mood. In the endocrine system, a regular yoga practice is proven to help regulate insulin levels.

In particular interest to those with fibromyalgia, practicing yoga has also shown to regulate the production of cortisol, the stress hormone. Those with fibromyalgia often have high cortisol levels in the evening, when cortisol levels should be at their lowest.

Fibromyalgia sufferers are often told to avoid causes of stress, and all too often this leads to shrinking away from life and avoiding the very activities that used to bring joy. A gentle evening yoga practice may be just the antidote, helping lower cortisol levels and increase neurotransmitters like GABA which can lift mood.

I’m offering a workshop on yoga for fibromyalgia in Oak Ridge, TN on March 15, 2008. Please contact me for details.

Related Posts

]]> http://www.yogaknoxville.com/yoga-eases-fibromyalgia-symptoms-113/feed/