What do the NBA Champion LA Lakers, Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow, and Pop Music superstar Madonna all have in common? Yoga, they are all practitioners of this healing system that combines breathing exercises, physical postures, and meditation that has been practiced for over 5,000 years with its roots coming from India. Of course many people have heard of yoga and seen some of those positions, especially the one of the lotus. However, many may not realize how beneficial yoga is physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
A survey by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM), stated yoga is the 5th most commonly used CAM therapy in the United States. Yoga is thought of as a mind-body intervention that is used to reduce the effects of stress. It is believed to calm the nervous system and balance the mind, body, and spirit. When someone practices yoga, sometimes it's been used to lower blood pressure, improve coordination, concentration, sleep, and digestion.
Earlier I mentioned several celebrities who exercise using yoga. Here are some examples of the benefits they have gained from it. The L.A. Lakers put into practice yoga a few times a week to improve performance and help prevent injuries during their grueling intensive schedule of games. Yoga helps lengthen the muscles, the more supple the muscles are, the less likelihood the players will sustain injuries. It also helps them warm-up before the games and they are convinced it helps them perform better.
Gwyneth Paltrow dedicates as much free time as possible to yoga. Her home even has a built in studio to practice in. She states it has made her calmer and centered as a person. Gwyneth likes to talk about the benefits of yoga anywhere she can. Thanks to Madonna's mega superstardom since the 80's she has put yoga into the forefront as a hot topic for women's magazines and TV shows. Even though Madonna is 50 years old by using yoga as passionately as she does she has the body of a 20 year old.
An increasing number of physicians are prescribing yoga classes as an alternate form of relaxation and treatment for their patients. Yoga is usually performed in a class setting with sessions conducted at least once a week for approximately 45 minutes. It is one of the most profitable in the holistic health care system. Everything from books, tapes, and yoga classes are marketed to promote this beneficial alternative therapy. There is a school of thought by some practitioners that to prevent specific diseases and maladies it is necessary to keep the energy meridians open and life energy, or Prana, flowing that is the essence of yoga.
The effects of yoga are far reaching now: Not only is it a field of alternative medicine, it is a burgeoning business with yoga instructors and practitioners globally. A number of insurance companies now cover expenses from yoga therapy. Based on its newfound approval and popularity, the therapeutic results alone of yoga are making converts from the established medical community. That certainly is a step in the right direction.
SOURCES:
http://www.yogamiracles.com/yoga-articles/celebrities-that-do-yoga.htm
www.sciencedaily.com/…/y/yoga_(alternative_medicine).htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/24206/yoga.html
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