There are a great many people who are in the unfortunate position of having to live with painful aches and pains caused by severely damaged or inflamed joints.  For some people it is a discomfort, and that is bad enough, but for others arthritis can turn them into a virtual cripples.  Arthritis has been something that has affected people throughout history since prehistoric times, but it is only recently that we have begun to understand it.

Arthritis is a join disease that can cause problems in any area of the body where two or more bones intersect.  The arthritis itself can affect the join in a number of different ways, targeting different areas such as the synovium, the muscles or tendons or the cartilage.  Cartilage is the soft protective material that protects the ends of the joints from rubbing against each other and the entire join is encased in a type of capsule that is lined with the tissue synovium.

Arthritis is a broad term which we use to describe a group of over 100 diseases that affect these areas of the body.  Wherever there is a problem involving inflammation around the joints and associated discomfit in movement we refer to it as arthritis despite the multiple different causes that can lead to this.  The other common name that is used in the same broad fashion is rheumatism.

Because it affects so many people arthritis is a very public problem and is discussed openly and frequently.  Roughly one in every seven Americans is thought to have arthritis in some form and relieving the pain of arthritis is a primary concern for all people suffering from it.  Some people take medication, but others have found relief from the pain in exercises performed at a gentle pace and intensity.  Yoga is the perfect example of this type of exercise.

Yoga is a very old art originating in India up to 4000 years ago.  It uses poses or postures along with deeply controlled breathing exercises that lead to benefits to the body mind and spirit.  Yoga is a very versatile form of exercise and meditation and it is used, in different forms, to treat a very wide range of medical conditions and injuries including such diverse areas as fibromyalgia, arthritic, migraine headaches, chronic pain, and sports injuries.

The common misconception with using Yoga for arthritis pain is that it will mean contorting and bending the body in unnatural ways in an effort to force the body to accept the pain and develop some level of comfort.  The core attributes of a Yoga for Arthritis Program are still going to be breathing and meditation but the exercises are specially catered to the individuals level of movement and comfort.  Stretching will still be involved but they are a part of Yoga’s core statement of developing balance and harmony between the body and mind and enhancing the body’s strength and flexibility.  Each pose or position assumed during a Yoga workout has a specific purpose and a specific physical benefit.  Sometimes the poses will be done in rapid succession to create heat in the body, a style known as Vinyasa Yoga, and sometimes they are performed more slowly to increase the level of stamina, perfection in the pose and core strength through holding the pose.  The poses themselves remain the same but how they are entered and approached will vary greatly from discipline to discipline and teacher to teacher.

The Yoga poses can be tailored specially for specific joints or combinations of joints.  For instance, a common area for arthritis to strike is the hands and knuckles and in this instance there would be a series of poses that straighten and lengthen the fingers, although the level of comfort in the arthritis sufferer always dictates the extent of this.  Stretching the hands also feed energy to that area of the body and over time will assist the arthritis in the fingers.  The heat generated by these movements is proven to be very beneficial for sufferers of arthritis.

In today’s society carrying excess weight is becoming the norm rather than the exception.  Lifestyles are increasingly sedentary, people’s diet is becoming increasingly processed and fatty and food contains more and more calories, additives and preservatives.  Children prefer television over playing with their friends, which is perhaps a direct reflection on parents who prefer television over socializing or even making time for their children.  This only scratches the surface of the social move towards a sedentary and unhealthy society which is making more and more people fat.

Yoga is a discipline designed to make the body strong and flexible and enhance the overall health of the digestive system as well as the hormonal and circulatory systems.  It also assists us in controlling mental stress and achieving peace and clarity of mind.  Yoga also has strong spiritual benefits which will see you becoming more content with yourself and more comfortable with who you are, all aspects which will lead to emotional stability.  This mental component is often neglected in a physical approach to weight loss, but it is critical and should not be overlooked.  So called “Comfort food” is a frequent problem for people who yo-yo diet (rapidly lose and gain weight) and the ability to be happy with your health and who you are reduces the need for this.

Yoga is based on deep and controlled breathing which is a method for enhancing our oxygen intake.  This allows oxygen to travel to the fat cells in our body and assist in their processing.  Given the benefits, one has to ask, Why more people don’t practice Yoga?

Many people think of Yoga as a passive or mystical discipline,  something not for them.  This is a shame as Yoga improves the physical body as well as our mental health.  While it is practiced by a great many people in Eastern Populations only about 2% of the population in the United States has clicked on to the many benefits.

Yoga considers all the aspects that contribute to obesity – not just the physical but also the mental and spiritual reasons behind them.  Regular Yoga is not only relaxing but it does bring the body back towards its ideal weight and at the same time enhance strength, flexibility and stamina.  Yoga nuts tend to end up slim, agile and efficient in everything they do and what’s more it is suitable for people of all ages.

A more active form of Yoga, Kundalini, was introduced to America in 1969 by Yogi Bhajan.  It is a more active form of Yoga combining different methods of breathing, meditation and movement to compensate for the fact the American population has been conditioned to see exercise as requiring sweating.

Yoga can also be used to resist the temptation of snacking between meals.  The techniques learned from yoga can be used to suppress impulses such as that we think of as hunger between meals (if you eat proper meals you cannot be hungry between them – merely bored or restless).

Yoga is not just a method of losing weight, it is actually a method which restores a natural balance to our body and moves us towards our natural state.  This has an interesting consequence with weight.  It we are overweight then yes, regular Yoga will cause us to lose weight.  However if we are at our ideal weight we will not drop weight, and if we weight too little we will gain weight until we are at our biologically natural size.

In a corporate environment one of the things that make a critical difference for employees is a relaxed congenial environment.  The headquarters of Google is one of the most productive places in the world and every idea that comes out of the Google thinking tank seems to be another winner, yet this is achieved in a building that is filled with slides, relaxation equipment, staff libraries, canteens and even beds.  The message is clear: We care about the results not about how long or hard you work.  Not surprisingly the results come and the staff is happy to work long hours in a relaxing environment knowing that they will not be harshly judged by their co-workers for taking a relaxation break.  In less ideal environments the opposite of this is often true with stress levels high because every decision, every move, everything could have the future of a company hanging on it.  Successful businesses recognize that this stress is not productive and that if it can be reduced the level of accomplishment will rise proportionately.  Google is the extreme of a trend that has been developing for a long time – providing recreation facilities inside corporate buildings.  One of the most successful and popular is a Yoga center.

The stress of the modern corporate world is usually a counterproductive thing. It puts people on a knife-edge and frequently leads to mistakes that a calmer more relaxed person would not make.  Yoga is known to be one of the most effective forms of stress relief.  Yoga is a special type of discipline that can be utilised on a number of different levels, places and situations.  A perfect example is the Yoga breathing exercises such as Anulom Vilom and Pranayama.  These are used to calm the thought process and allow you to maintain focus when overwhelmed with too much information or too many thoughts and problems at once.  And because they are merely a deep and focused way of breathing they can be performed sitting in a chair, standing in an elevator or even while driving a car.  Cramps and bad back posture are also often treated with nothing more than a steady breathing exercise with some quite spectacular results in some cases.

The simplicity of being taught to breathe properly may strike some companies as strange.  Nobody teaches us to breathe, or sit or even stand.  These are simple things that we spend our whole day doing, yet at no point in our lives are we actively taught them.  Incorrect posture when sitting is a very serious problem if you are in front of a monitor all day, but simply learning the correct way to breathe can align your body properly and solve many of the problems associated with this bad posture.  If you take deep breaths and focus on them your body is pulled in to shape by this most natural of human movements.

Where specific problems such as obesity or joint pain are present, a Yoga class can be specially tailored to address them.  Blood pressure problems and ailments of the kidney can be treated with Yogic Kriyas.  Poor agility is a result of poor balance and this issue is frequently confronted and quickly overcome with a range of balance-enhancing Yoga exercises.  Some people who have reported daily occurrences of problems like anger, tension, hypertension, stress and headaches have achieved very good results simply from using Yoga to its full potential.  The increased flexibility that Yoga provides is a godsend for people in sedentary job environments.

The mental advantages of Yoga are also quite clear.  Yoga has an ability to redirect our thinking to a more positive frame.  The most common form of Yoga used in corporate stress management is Hatha Yoga because it is a particularly potent form of physiological and psychological cleansing.  In any environment stress is a normal occurrence, what differentiates a successful person from an unsuccessful one (and by extension a successful business from an unsuccessful one) is how we deal with that stress.  Hatha Yoga and Yoga in general provide executives with the tools they need to deal with stress on a daily basis.

Some businesses will go as far as getting a staff medical done and passing the results on to a Yoga instructor who will formulate a customized program for an individual based on their health needs.  Different Yoga techniques deal with different problems and a qualified instructor will be able to find those best suited to an individual’s personal situation.  Through recognizing Yoga’s ability to deal with the individual needs of employees and incorporating it into part of the daily work schedule businesses are creating a happier work environment and being rewarded by their employees by increased productivity and a greater loyalty and appreciation of their employer.

Yoga has been around for an incredibly long time, and over that period different practitioners have added their own refinements and styles into the basic Yoga discipline.  There are so many different styles now it is nearly impossible to count, but they all stem from the same core philosophy and methodology.  Unfortunately, the multiple different styles often lead newcomers to the exercise discipline to become very confused as to what they are doing and what they can hope to achieve with Yoga.  Let’s we answer some of the common questions.

What is Yoga?

This question is the most common from newcomers.  Most people have a general idea but they are not sure where Yoga fits into the world.  Is it an exercise?  Is it a philosophy?  Is it a form of physical therapy?  Is it a spiritual process?  The answer is that to different people Yoga is all of these things.  At its core it is a group of exercises and poses which are very low impact and work by strengthening the body and increasing its flexibility through static exercise.  This means that each pose will ‘stretch’ a certain area and the body benefits from this stretch by increased blood flow and energy release.  Many of the exercises release tension from areas of the body that regular activities do not cater to.  Because Yoga is performed slowly and with a strong emphasis on correct breathing patterns, there is also a strong mental and spiritual element to the exercise.  It is seen as a way of cleansing mind, body and spirit.

Do I need to be religious to get the most out of Yoga?

As mentioned above, Yoga is different things to different people.  There are many people in the world who perform Yoga purely for its spiritual benefits.  There are many others who perform Yoga purely for the physical benefits associated with it.  What you get out of Yoga will depend largely on your mindset, your openness to new ideas, and your ability to let yourself fall fully into a meditative state.  For some people this is very difficult at first, but that is still not going to prevent them from getting the physical benefits associated with Yoga classes.  You will find that even if you do not have any strong spiritual base you will still benefit from an increase in your self-confidence and personal contentment.

Where can I do Yoga?

Practically anywhere.  Many people practice Yoga in their homes every day.  Others will go to the local park and practice Yoga with a group of friends.  It is a good idea to inquire at your local gym about Yoga classes. Many of them will be holding Yoga every day.  Even if they are not, they will be able to tell you where the best place to learn Yoga is.  Some local councils sponsor Yoga classes in their area in recognition of the benefits to people who exercise regularly.  One of the big advantages of a Yoga based exercise regime is that there is no expensive equipment to buy and then store around your house.  Some poses are assisted by cushions to support the body, but in general the only thing you need is your body.

I am not very fit. Is Yoga for me?

Yes, very much so.  One of the fantastic things about Yoga is that the exercises and poses you will learn can be adjusted to your level.  Fitness is not usually a problem because the exercises are slow and often static, but your body will become better at performing them over time as your strength and flexibility improves.  Knowing your limit and ensuring that you do not ‘ease up’ out of habit, gain the best benefit.

Yoga is something that once learned can be practiced anywhere you like and as often as you like.  Indeed, this is one of the key components of Yoga’s popularity.

Yoga is a very popular form of exercising and spiritual balancing, but it is also very often misunderstood by a lot of people.  This is almost inevitable when you consider the incredible popularity of Yoga as a discipline and the many different strands that Yoga has.  Quite often people have experience with one type of Yoga but not another, and as such they will base their overall impression of Yoga on what they have seen.  The truth is that Yoga can be very different depending on who you learn it from and how they perceive Yoga.  Let’s take a look at some of the common misconceptions.

Yoga is a form of exercise

Well yes it is, but so is walking.  I can walk from my couch to my table and I can hardly claim to have done my exercise for the day.  The truth is that exercise is just the beginning of what yoga is.  It is closer to a combination of exercise, physiotherapy, psychology and spirituality all rolled into one.  As you come to master Yoga you will need to become more and more mentally strong, and most importantly, disciplined.  If you can discipline yourself to do regular Yoga sessions and maintain your discipline to do each pose for the prescribed time, and do it properly, then you will naturally become a very disciplined and organised person.  For some people this transcends to a spiritual level because they are so efficient in clearing their thoughts while meditating.

Yoga is for Hippies

As previously mentioned, Yoga can be a very spiritual experience if you become good enough at clearing your thoughts and concentrating whilst performing the exercises.  But you certainly do not have to begin with any spiritual belief.  Yoga believes in aligning the body and the mind and the spirit through achieving inner balance.  What that means to you is probably going to depend entirely on what your beliefs already are.  For some people it will be a spiritually freeing experience, for others it will be an effective way of distressing and achieving a level of calmness of thought.  Still others will claim that these things are one and the same.

Yoga is a fad

Recently there have been some very hyped up Yoga courses making big claims about what Yoga can achieve.  These are easy to associate with other ‘fad’ exercise crazes.  However, Yoga is not something new and is based in documents that are hundreds of years old, which describe exercises and poses that were probably being performed for generations before that.  An individual style of Yoga may come and go, but as long as people are still stretching before a game of football then Yoga will still be being used.

Yoga is too slow to help me lose weight, gain tone, etc.

This one is way off the mark, but we have been somewhat trained by the weight loss industry that weight loss and toning our body is all about hours in the gym and fast high impact exercise.  That is simply not true.  Yoga can help with weight loss and in particularly toning for a number of reasons.  Firstly, the exercises, while low impact and performed either statically or slowly, are still exercises.  While you use them you are using your muscles, and in many cases you are using muscles and muscle groups that regular exercise programs ignore.  The second way that Yoga can be of benefit in a weight loss program is that it will increase your mental strength and allow you to be more disciplined with your food consumption.  When it comes down to it, excess weight is a result of excess eating and not enough physical exercise to burn off those calories.  Have you ever noticed how some people can eat donut after donut and not put on any weight at all?  It seems unfair, but it’s a natural result of the state of their body.  Usually these people will be quite ‘sinewy’ and this muscle allows them the metabolise food faster.  That’s the third benefit of Yoga in weight loss, as your muscles develop your body will actually become more efficient at consuming foods and processing them into nutrients and waste.

These are some of the various myths associated with Yoga.  It is such a broad topic that it is very much a case of Yoga being what you make of it.