Well a yoga certification class includes:

* Asanas * Mudras * Philosphy of Yoga * Chakras * Meditation * Pranayama

Let’s go over each of these things [...]]]> Want to take up yoga as a career option. Well you need to be duly certified for the same. So what are the basic parameters that you must check before enrolling for a yoga certification class?

Well a yoga certification class includes:

* Asanas
* Mudras
* Philosphy of Yoga
* Chakras
* Meditation
* Pranayama

Let’s go over each of these things one by one:

* Asanas: Also, known as yogasanas, the asanas mainly concentrate on the smooth flow of energy throughout your body. Asanas can also focus on a specific part of body and mind too. Therefore, when getting a yoga certification, the knowledge of asanas is a must.

* Mudras: The English meaning of the word mudras is gestures. In any yoga certification course, you at least need to learn a few hasta mudras or hand gestures. These mudras help you redirect the flow of energy throughout your body.

* Yoga Philosophy: As a yoga instructor, it is almost mandatory for you to have some knowledge about the yoga philosophy. Some of the basic principles or philosphoies on which yoga is based are:

o Ahimsa or non violence
o Satya or truthfulness
o Brahmacharya or continence
o Asteya or non stealing
o Karma or your acts

* Chakras: As you already know, chakras means energy centers that are placed around your spine and end at the crown of your head. It is a basic parameter that almost all the yoga certifications cover as a lot of time the yoga philosophy is based on the seven chakras. You can then pass this information about your body’s hot spots to your students.

* Meditation: This is the central or the most important part of the yoga course. Meditation is the calmness or peace one experiences by sitting, lying, or reading quietly at one place for a certain period of time. When practicing meditation, it is important that you remove all your thoughts and clear you mind as much as possible. It is therefore important that your yoga certification teaches you all the basic traits of meditation as well.

* Pranayama: This important subject covered by an yoga certification course concentrates on the ways and techniques of controlling your prana or the life energy within you. You need to control and regulate your breathing to practice pranayama properly, which is known to help rejuvenate your mind and body. It can also at times increase the longevity too. In this subject therefore, you are taught to recognize the connection between you mind, body, and soul. This subject should be covered in a manner that it can be integrated with other yoga techniques.

These are only some of the basic parameters covered by most yoga classes. Though there would be additional things that would be covered as well. Therefore, it is important to look for a yoga certification class that fits your basic insight on yoga.

Well you are right [...]]]> Close your eyes and think about the word ‘Yoga’. Note down your feelings on a piece of paper. So what did you think? Did you also think of humming or chanting of mantras, a serene atmosphere, fragrance and aroma of candles, different positions and postures, special yoga apparel, the list is endless.

Well you are right as there is a name given to almost all of your thoughts in this oldest form of exercise. For example, your thought about humming or chanting of mantras is nothing but meditation. Similarly, there are many different postures that you practice when practicing yoga such as putting your foot behind your head.

Yoga one of the most practiced form of exercise, which originated from India doesn’t only concentrate on the physical aspect of exercise. This physical form of exercise can be practiced anywhere even in a gym where you can reduce weight by doing cardio exercises or by weight training. However, yoga not only strengthens your muscles. It also aides in making your mind healthier, making it free from all tensions and worries.

Do you know how many different types of Yogas are there? There are eight main types of yogas. These are:

• Bhakti Yoga
• Karma Yoga
• Jnana Yoga
• Raja Yoga
• Mantra Yoga
• Laya Yoga
• Tantra Yoga
• Hatha Yoga

Each type of yoga is unique in the way it is practiced. Also, different types of yoga postures offer different benefits ranging from spiritual to physical benefits. Meditation is a form of yoga that helps you gain calmness and relaxation by the breathing techniques practiced therein. The relaxation techniques practiced in yoga help cure a number of ailments such as high blood pressure.

As you already know, Yoga originated in India almost six to seven thousand years ago. In the medieval times people kept themselves fit by practicing the art of meditation and stretching exercises.

Yoga can therefore be considered as the oldest form of exercise that the world knows about. Stories from India’s religion books such as Vedas and Upanishads mention yogis practicing yoga in different postures. Those interested in studying yoga in depth can read the yoga sutra compiled by Guru Patanjali. The yoga sutra is considered as the guidebook of principles and practices of yoga. This yoga sutra also mentions the following eight limbs which are mainly exercised when doing yoga. These limbs are:

• Yamas or restraints
• Niyamas or observances
• Asanas or postures
• Pranayama or breathing
• Pratyahara or withdrawal of senses
• Dharana or concentration
• Dhyani or meditation
• Samadhi or absorption

A yogi who practices yoga regularly performs each of these limbs presenting a stage of ashtanga or the enlightened path. All these elements when practiced properly can make the practitioner lead a happy life. These ashtangas also help in strengthening your mind, body, and soul. Won’t you then like to practice yoga yourself to experience not only these benefits but much more.

Yoga when practiced with the help of certain yoga accessories [...]]]> Yoga, the exercise practiced by Indian Civilization since time immemorial, helps train the mind and body to achieve good health and mental peace and serenity. Yoga helps you exercise every part of your body, helps you maintain optimum weight, and strengthens and tones up your muscles.

Yoga when practiced with the help of certain yoga accessories help you to enhance the benefits and the pleasure you experience. As you already know, comfortable clothing is a must when practicing yoga. Yoga helps your body breathe, relax, and contract the muscles. Therefore it is important to wear full length long and loose cotton clothes when practicing yoga.

Some other such accessories that are required are a yoga mat a yoga ball. A yoga mat is required to help you practice the exercises when in a sitting position. Similarly a yoga ball helps you practice many postures efficiently and quickly providing prompt results. Generally made of PVC or vinyl material, a yoga ball is light in weight and therefore, can be carried easily anywhere.

Not only this, a yoga ball is used to move every muscle of your body, even the most stubborn ones. Some such muscles that are difficult to move and strengthen are the muscles of your buttocks, abdomen, calves, hips, and thighs, which can be easily moved with a yoga ball. It also helps avoid the risk of any injury that may take place when practicing exercises on a hard floor.

A yoga ball also helps you practice yoga efficiently and quickly giving you better results. However, remember as every other exercise you need to be regular when practicing yoga. Any yoga session should be at least performed thrice a weak for a minimum duration of 30 minutes or as instructed by your yoga instructor.

Also, it is not enough to perform yoga exercises with yoga accessories. These exercises should be performed under the able guidance of a yoga instructor or practiced by watching instructions given in a DVD or a video. Practicing yoga incorrectly can even strain your muscles, which can result in pain and injury. Also, many a times attending a yoga session in a yoga center proves to be beneficial for all beginners, as the ambience and the right mood set acts as a great catalyst in performing the exercises.

To conclude, we can say that the yoga ball helps you practice difficult exercises by increasing your stability and maintaining your balance. It is important however, to select the correct size of the yoga ball, because certain exercises require you to use a small ball while others require the use of a big yoga ball.

However, many people have a wrong notion that tantra involves something to do with sex. This is totally untrue and tantra [...]]]> Do you know the meaning of the word tantra. Well, Tantra means ‘to expand’. Mainly concerned with the spirituality and realizing the inner self,  the tantra yoga mainly concentrates on the consciousness of the mind.

However, many people have a wrong notion that tantra involves something to do with sex. This is totally untrue and tantra yoga bears no relation with sex in any way. In fact, it involves a holistic study of the universe performed by the various energies trapped within oneself. In other words, the practitioners of tantra yoga study themselves deeply to understand the world around them. In this yoga, the practitioners concentrate on the study of microcosm to get the holistic view of macronisms.

The tantra yoga focuses on the divine energy or the Shakti trapped within ourselves. This energy is realized through the seven chakras and get collected in the forehead. When the practitioners of Tantra yoga collect sufficient amount of this Shakti, the energy is visualized as pouring out of a particular point of forehead and is united there. Then they further visualize this mass of energy currently in the form of a small dot to the size and shape of an individual. These people visualize the Shakti as a deity or a spiritual idol.

It is from this visualization that the sexual connotation of tantra yoga has come into play. The Tantra yoga is based on the love and devotion of the visualized energy or Shakti you feel as a result of the meditation performed by you. Therefore, mst of the practitioners of Tantra yoga consider the energy as a particular form of self love or love towards God.

In the Tantra yoga, the yogi or the practitioner remains aware in all states of his daily routine, be it when he is meditating, sleeping, or dreaming. The yogis can achieve this stage only by changing the though process of their minds to a manner that they think is healthy. This yoga changes the way in which one feels and thinks to lead a smooth life taking our mind away from the everyday obstacles of the material world.

You can use the principles of tantra yoga to change the way you think and perceive things around you. This will help you attain feelings of peace, contentment and discipline. You will then get rid of feelings of ignorance, intolerance, and selfishness.

The breathing exercises practiced during tantra yoga help you to redirect your thoughts towards healthy processes. It also leads to cleansing of your thoughts and body by techniques such as chanting of mantras and self visualization.

With the [...]]]> Yoga can be considered as an alternative form of exercise. You might have often heard of the terms such as comfortable and loose being associated with yoga clothing. Though yoga does not have any special uniform as such, getting dressed into sports clothing comfortable for practicing stretching and breathing exercises can solve the purpose.

With the fashion industry gaining new heights every day, a lot of new designs and styles are being introduced in sports wear too. Sportswear these days is available in many new designs, styles, and materials. However, remember to select only comfortable wear that helps you stretch and breathe easily.

A few characteristics that the yoga clothing should preferably have, is given below:

1. When doing exercise or yoga it is advisable to wear comfortable clothing. Not only this, it is also better to avoid tight-fitted or body hugging clothes. This is because it is necessary for the body to breathe easy when exercising. And, this is possible, only if you wear loosely fit and comfortable clothes.

2. Wear yoga apparel which is sweat absorbent. The best choice when purchasing yoga clothes is to buy clothes made of cotton. The cotton clothes absorb the sweat release by the body when doing a work out and ensure that the body is comfortable.

3. Also, the yoga clothes should be stretchable and comfortable even when performing the most difficult exercises and stretches. When doing yoga, you perform a regimen of exercises, which help stretch every part of the human body and help you lead a healthy life. Therefore, the yoga clothing should be comfortable enough to support this exercise regimen.

4. The length of your yoga clothing is also equally important. Remember, when doing yoga you need to take different postures and therefore, a full length T-shirt and pants made of cotton are an obvious choice. This not helps you feel comfortable, but doesn’t let you feel awkward when practicing peculiar yoga exercises such as stand on the head postures.

5. It is best to practice yoga barefoot. However, shoes and socks should be worn only if you are practicing yoga outdoors or in a park. In such cases, it is best to use yoga shoes with a flexible sole having a better grip during exercise.

To conclude, remember it is best to wear yoga clothing that provides you comfort and safety.