Start Stretching: Basic Yoga Stances

Yoga is all about concentrating on your mind and body to bind yourself to God. It's all about disciplining yourself to balance your mind, soul, and emotions, so that you can connect with your spirits. It's about focusing your energy into constructive channels. The term yoga refers to any of these:

- karma yoga- focuses on giving oneself without expecting any reward

- -jnana yoga- philosophical approach to unveiling the illusions of the world

- bhakti yoga- channeling emotional energy into ones spiritual practice

- rhaja yoga- focuses on concentration and mind control

As there are many styles of dance, so there are many forms of yoga. Current popular styles include:

-Gentle yoga- also sometimes called by the generic name "hatha yoga." In Gentle yoga, the focus is on long stretches and flexibility with slow, deep breathing. This can be very soothing for the mind. This is the type of style that most people picture when they think of yoga.

-Kundalini yoga- this style works on the premises that the body has eight "chakras," and through the "breath of fire" (rapid breathing), one can heat up the body from top to bottom, eventually achieving a fee of high enlightment.

-Power yoga- This is a very active form of yoga, in which a person moves quickly through the poses (called Asanas), not holding them as long as in other styles. It is virtually guaranteed that you will sweat a lot in this; it is not for the faint of heart and gives real challenge to the muscles. You can perform yoga by yourself at home before shelling out the bucks and travel time for class, just find yourself a quiet room where you can have some solitude. It is recommended to use an uncarpeted floor, as thick towel for slight cushioning. You probably heard that yoga like "turtle touches rock" and "tree growing toward sun."

The sun "salutation," is the standard opening series in a yoga class. It wakes up your mind and body and prepares you for upcoming postures. It's more like a moving meditation rather then exercise. With each breath, in and out, try to imagine yourself relaxing. This is your time. Focusing on breathing makes all the difference between calisthenics and relaxation.

1. Stand at the top of your mat (or towel) with your feet together and your hand in prayer position in front of your chest.

2. Breathing in, arch your back slowly, extending your arms above your head and stretching your spine interlocking your thumbs.

3. Breathing out, bend over, touching your toes if possible.

4. Breathe in, look up, bend your left knee and place your left foot in front as if you are lunging forward, and send your right leg behind you, knee resting on floor.

5. Keep the breath in, move into a push-up pose, with your head and hips off the floor.

6. Exhale, bend your elbows, and lower your chin, chest and knees to the floor, keeping the butt in the air and stomach off the floor.

7. Inhale, slide your chest forward as you arch your back and slightly bend the elbows. This is called the "Cobra."

8. Exhale as you fold your body forward and lift up on your heels, forming a V-shape with your body (feet on the floor, bottom up, head down, and hands down).

9. Inhaling, lunge forward with your right foot, sending the left food back with knee on floor, and head tilting up.

10. Exhaling, bring left foot up to meet right, standing up and bending forward, try touching head to knee (it doesn't matter how far you can go; just fold over so it feels good).

11. Inhaling, feet together, lean back, stretching your arms behind you.

12. Exhale; come back to center with arms at your sides.

13. Repeat 5-7 times for a good warm-up, alternating which leg you send forward first.

So, consider yourself having taken the first step toward flexibility, strength, inner peace, and karma. Now use it whenever you wake up or stressed out. It is peace that you are looking for, well at least for 15 minutes.