Yoga is something that is very much essential for healthy living. To maintain fitness as well as to improve your mental strength it is very much necessary to embrace yoga in order to embrace your life.
The meaning of embrace is a sign to support anything deeply. Embracing yoga gives you a natural strength that helps keep you healthy throughout your life.
A natural way of doing exercises without any artificial interference from the inside is known as embracing yoga. Through our blog “Embrace Om”, you will be able to find different types of exercises to embrace yoga.
Different Types of Yoga Poses
- Core Balance Yoga
- Yin Yoga
- Iyengar
- Vinyasa Flow Yoga
- Hatha Yoga
- Restorative Yoga
- Kundalini Yoga
- Ashtanga Yoga
- Bikram Yoga
- Parenatal Yoga
Let us see the above different poses to embrace yoga
#1 Core Balance Yoga
Core Balance Yoga helps you to build your body strength and stability. While doing core balance yoga it is very much essential to follow safety measures such that it doesn’t affect any body parts.
Benefits of Core Balance Yoga
- Improves your Balance
- Improves your Posture
#2 Yin Yoga
Yin Yoga is all about the quality of the poses and not the quantity of the poses. Yin Yoga is a fabulous slow-moving yoga practice. It helps you move your sympathetic nervous system to your parasympathetic nervous system. This basically means that you move away from your fight or flight response to a relaxation response.
When to Practice Yin Yoga?
There are two aspects of Yin Yoga. One is the physical aspect and the other is the spiritual or emotional aspect. Yin yoga is practiced by those who undergo a lot of training. Due to the rigorous training process, there is a lot of wear and tear on your body. To repair those wear and tear there is a need for Yin Yoga.
Benefits of Yin Yoga
- Restore and repair the muscle tissues and fracture in our body.
- Improves Blood Circulation
- Becomes Super Flexible
- Spiritual or Emotional Aspect: Let go and forgive people
- Get rid of tension from the body
- Also, and get rid of emotionally turbulent times
#3 Iyengar Yoga
Iyengar Yoga was invented by BKS IYENGAR. He won Padma Shri Award in 1991 and Padma Vibhushan Award in 2014 for Yoga Vidya. Three main components, as well as benefits of Iyengar Yoga, are
- Proper Sequencing of the Asanas
- Exact Duration of the Asanas
- Proper Improvisation of the Asanas
Note: Iyengar Yoga is dependent upon different types of props.
#4 Vinyasa Flow Yoga
Vinyasa is a Sanskrit term with lots of meaning. Vinyasa means to place something in a special way. It can also be defined as a systematic approach from one point to another taking a deep breath. Linking these movements with the breath helps proper heart rate. Vinyasa is also termed as “Chaturanga” in Sanskrit or downward-facing dog.
Benefits of Vinyasa Flow Yoga
- It improves the flexibility of the body
- Strengthening Muscles
- Proper working of Cardiovascular Movement
- Increases Strength and also Improves Balance
- Reduces Stress and anxiety
- Helps to Balance Hormones
- Feelings of Self Love and Showing Kindness to others
#5 Hatha Yoga
Another form of Yoga is Hatha Yoga. Let us discuss in detail Hatha Yoga.
What is Hatha Yoga?
Hatha Yoga is a very important posture of yoga and is a primitive yoga posture. In ancient times Yogis used to practice Hath Yoga to develop their consciousness. The meaning of Hath Yoga is to bring mental and physical balance as well as to purify mind, body, and soul.
Nowadays the whole idea of Hath Yoga has been forgotten and there is a misconception about Hath Yoga. We often practice Hath Yoga physically. Actually, it is not a physical practice, it is a type of meditation.
Significance of Hatha Yoga
In Vedic Literature Hatha Yoga has come from two Sanskrit Mantra Ham and Tham. The Ham represents the solar force in our body and the Tham represents the Lunar Force in our body. As per tantras, these two forces are known as Pingala Nadi and Ida Nadi. The whole subject of Hatha Yoga is to maintain a balance between these two forces. Due to the interaction of these two forces we breathe, eat, live, and think.
Benefits of Hatha Yoga
- Improves awareness in the body
- It also Strengthens Immune System in the Body
- Develops consciousness in the Mind and Body
- Relief from back pain
- Cures sleeping sickness or insomnia
- Increases Concentration
- It also helps to improve bone density.
#6 Restorative Yoga
In this section of the blog let us study Restorative Yoga.
What is Restorative Yoga?
Restorative Yoga is a form of yoga that brings a state of rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation to the body. The idea of this Restorative Yoga is not to have any stretch but to experience the deepest release possible. The practice of Restorative Yoga must be on the weekly schedule.
Why is Restorative Yoga Needed?
The majority of our lives are full of stress which is the sympathetic side of our nervous system. We live in an era full of a busy schedules. As a result, we move from one task to another at a very fast pace. This leaves our minds as well as our bodies inflamed.
The majority of diseases are caused due to the stress level in our life. The idea is to find a place where you can drop yourself completely into a receptive state.
Benefits of Restorative Yoga
There are many benefits of Restorative Yoga
- It requires no stretching
- Improves Sleep, Digestion
- Reduction in various kinds of diseases like heart disease, lower rate of cancer, and especially lower rates of autoimmune disorders
We don’t encourage Restorative Yoga to be your main practice. But it is essential to practice this yoga pose thrice a week. According to experts, you can practice 60 minutes of power yoga and then add on 30 minutes of Restorative Yoga.
It is desirable to do restorative yoga poses with a bolster but still you can do it with a stack of pillows if you don’t have a bolster. This is a practice that you can do at any point of time in your life. Even when you are sick, pregnant, or even when your energy is at the lowest point. You can also do Restorative Yoga when you are going through the hardest time of your life.
#7 Kundalini Yoga
In this part of the blog, we will study Kundalini Yoga
What is Kundalini Yoga?
Kundalini Yoga is the most dangerous form of Yoga. Kundalini Yoga awakens the energy from inside. So, the most important question is what is “Kundalini”? The answer is things that are happening in the present moment of time is Kundalini. All the existent fundamental live forces are called Kundalini.
If we consider the human system as a package, it is filled with different layers comprising different energy levels. One level of energy comes immediately as it is necessary for living life. The other dimensions of energy require something to do for becoming alive. You need to activate them to come to existence. They are always dormant until they are activated. Those energies are way bigger than the actual energy that is being used presently.
To live your complete life and activate your complete intellect, you need to activate 21 chakras. Out of 114 chakras if you activate only 21 chakras you will live a complete physical life and not feel any kinds of inadequacy. The results are fabulous, if you activate these levels of energy, other dimensions of life will open up.
Why is Kundalini Yoga Dangerous?
Kundalini Yoga is a good thing until you are ready for it. If you are not ready for Kundalini Yoga, it can be a dangerous thing in your life. The first question before starting Kundalini Yoga is “Are you ready for it?” If you are ready for it “What can we do to activate it?”
Through Kundalini Yoga is the most dangerous form of Yoga, it is most potent also. The yoga posture that is most potent can be most dangerous if not handled properly. For Example, There are various ways of producing Electrical Energy. One of the ways is through Nuclear Energy. Though Nuclear Energy is the most efficient way of producing Electrical Energy, it can be very dangerous if not handled properly. Kundalini Yoga requires constant guidance and monitoring. Nobody should ever attempt this without expert supervision.
Practicing Kundalini Yoga must be in a situation other than any kind of social situation. In other words, while you are doing this kind of ascetic yoga it is not possible for you to live in social life. Kundalini Yoga Changes everything about you.
It is desirable to start the process of Kundalini Yoga slowly such that changes in life also take place slowly. If you start it rapidly, Kundalini Yoga can be very dangerous.
Benefits of Kundalini Yoga
Some of the benefits of Kundalini Yoga are:
- With the rise of Kundalini Yoga, your dimensions of life also change rapidly
- Kundalini Yoga is an ascetic yoga form that is completely out of life. Hence, it brings discipline to life
- This yoga makes your life far better than what you are living today
- With life becoming better it is possible to earn more money, growth in business, etc.
#8 Ashtanga Yoga
Below is a brief description of Ashtanga Yoga
What is Ashtanga Yoga?
Ashtanga Yoga is a type of yoga that comprises 8 different limbs. The first two are Yama and Niyama. Yama means moral facts that help you make harmony with the universe. Niyama is the moral observance that helps you to make harmony with yourself. Both Yama and Niyama have five principals each.
All the five principals of Yama and Niyama together form Asana Practices. Asana practices help you to understand your body. The next limb is Pranayama. Once you are aware of your body it’s time for you to be aware of your breath. In other words, it means regulation of your prana (Sanskrit) or life. Prana is a life force and how to regulate or utilize this energy is Pranayama.
After Asana and Pranayama another limb of Ashtanga Yoga is Pratyahara. The moment you are aware of your breath, you are aware of your mind and senses. Pratyahara helps to control your sense organs. After Pratyahara, your mind instead of diverting into different directions converges to a single point. This focus on one point is Dharana.
After Dharana, if you are focusing on one point for a very long time, meditation automatically happens. That leads to Dhyana which is the next limb of Ashtanga Yoga.
If you are in Dhyana for a very long time, the final limb or stage of Ashtanga yoga is Samadhi. Samadhi leads to super consciousness of our body and soul.
What is Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga?
Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga is a popular yoga founded by K. Pattabhi Jois in the late 20th century. K Pattabhi Jois claimed Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga as the modern form of yoga. The founder of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga claims to learn his yoga lessons from his Guruji Tirumalai Krishnamacharya.
Difference Between Ashtanga Yoga and Ashtanga Vinayasa Yoga
The major difference between Ashtanga Yoga and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga is Ashtanga Yoga poses follows a sequence of yoga poses in a series while Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga follows a sequence of change of classes. Ashtanga Yoga is always done in the same order but Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga changes from class to class.
One Interesting fact about Vinyasa Yoga is that it is created from Ashtanga Yoga.
Ashtanga Yoga Benefits
There are many benefits of Ashtanga Yoga. They are:
- It improves your discipline and well-being apart from strength and flexibility.
- Helps to lose weight. An average of 2kg weight loss is possible in just two weeks program
- From Ashtanga Yoga, you will be able to learn Sanskrit
- You will be able to learn about moon days.
# During two days in a month (Full Moon and New Moon) try to not practice Ashtanga Yoga
- It is a lifelong practice of yoga. Anybody of any age group can practice Ashtanga Yoga
#9 Bikram Yoga
Bikram Yoga is named after yoga Instructor Bikram Chowdhury from India. In Bikram Yoga, there is a provision to stretch, strengthen, and prepares the body for the proper working of every muscle, organ, and gland. There are no restrictions on doing Bikram Yoga.
Heat is necessary while doing Bikram Yoga as the heat warms muscles and allows you to work deeper yoga safely. The heat heals and prevents injuries and allows your body to work in the toughest situation.
Bikram Yoga Poses
- Standing Deep Breathing
- Half Moon Pose
- Eagle Pose
- Standing Head to Knee Pose
- Standing Bow Pose
- Balancing Stick Pose
- Standing Separate leg stretching pose
- Triangle Bikram Yoga Pose
- Standing Separate leg head to knee pose
- Tree Pose
- Toe Stand Pose
- Dead Body Pose
- The Wind Removing Pose
- Sit Up Pose
- Cobra Pose
- Locust Pose
- Bow Pose
- Fixed Firm Pose
- Half Tortoise Pose
- Camel Pose
- Rabbit Pose
- Head to Knee Pose
- Spine Twisting Pose
Benefits of Bikram Yoga
- Gives Energy
- Prevents Illness
- Flexibility
- Weight Loss
- Also improves mental Strength
#10 Prenatal Yoga
Prenatal Yoga is a type of yoga practice, especially for pregnant women. This type of yoga helps maintain fitness during pregnancy.
Different Types of Prenatal Yoga
- Tadasana or Mountain Pose
This type of yoga pose must be done during the first trimester of pregnancy. It helps in reducing back pain and also strengthens the spine.
- Cat Pose or Marjariasana
This yoga pose must not be performed after 26 weeks. It helps to increase blood circulation and strengthens the wrist and soldiers.
- Warrior Pose
Warrior Pose is also known as Virabhadrasana. This type of yoga pose is for 2nd Trimester pregnancy. It provides strength to the whole body.
- Vajrasana or Thunderbolt Pose
This type of pose helps proper digestion. It also strengthens pelvic muscles that help during labor.
- Squat and Rise Pose
Squat and Rise Pose is also known as Utthanasan. The main objective of the squat and rise pose is that it exercises your thighs, ankles, and uterus. It also strengthens muscles that are stretched due to weight gain during pregnancy. Utthanasan also prepares you for the final delivery.
- Pranayam
Helps to relax from any kind of stress during pregnancy
- Trikonasana or Triangle Pose
Digestive problems that arise due to pregnancy are reduced and also improve the flexibility of the hips.
- Upavistha Konasana
This type of asana helps to reduce lower back pain. It also helps to spread the hip joint opening and releases the lumbar spine for final delivery. Space around the pelvis is also created with the help of Upavistha Konasana
Expert Advice
Perform the above yoga poses under professional guidance. Make sure to stay hydrated while doing Prenatal Yoga. Do not spend too much time in yoga during pregnancy.