Friday, June 26, 2009

Yoga Practice - Most Common Types

There are different types of yoga and there are varied reasons why people learn the practice of yoga. Yoga is a Hindu discipline that promotes spiritual unity with a Supreme Being through a system of rituals and body postures. Following is a short list of the most common Yoga practices you may hear about.

Most Common Types of Yoga
Ananda: This type is perfect for beginners as it does not require a lot of strength or flexibility neither involves any type of chanting. The movements are very simple.
Kundalini: This was the first type of Yoga to be 'westernized' and involves intense breathing. It is designed to release energy throughout the whole body.
Bikram: Intensely physical and practiced in a heated 100 degree temperature room for muscle flexibility. Use caution with the repeated 26 poses and breathing exercises.
Astanga: Also called 'power yoga', demands flexibility, stamina, and strength for moving continuously from one posture to another without interruption.
Kripalu: More of a meditative type with emphasis on body alignment in conjunction with coordination of breath and body movement.
Integral: Postures are very simple and are meant to be easily modified to fit the practitioner's flexibility limits to prevent injury. Easily learned by beginners.
Anasura: A newer form of yoga with emphasis on spiritual elements and the focus on the body posture alignment.
Iyengar: Allows the use of body props such as foam blocks, pillows, and stretching cords to help with the proper alignment of the body.
Understandably so, Yoga is not for everyone. These are just a few of the most common types of Yoga being practiced today. This short list may just inspire you to look more into the practice of Yoga to suit your physical and/or spiritual fitness goals.
Krystalina Soash is a freelance writer specializing in article writing in the self-improvement field and living a fulfilling life. You may visit her at
http://writingforyounow.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Krystalina_Soash

1 comment:

  1. Great post. The yoga types and its description are really very much helpful for the people to get a clear idea and can easily understand about that type of yoga. Thank you for such a nice and useful post about the yoga. I use to get a good tips and information's for my yoga practices is from the site Yogasuppliesonline.com.
    They are providing good services for the people who needs good guidance and information's about the Yoga and its types.

    ReplyDelete