Yoga, one of today's hottest fitness trends, is a centuries-old Indian practice that tones muscles, builds bone strength and enhances flexibility and coordination. It also fosters a mind/body unity that few exercise programs can offer.
The very word "yoga" comes from a Sanskrit word meaning "to yoke"—in other words, to join mind, body and breath. There are 40 types of yoga, but Americans are most familiar with hatha yoga, which focuses on poses, stretches, breathing exercises and meditation. Other types are more physically demanding and require a greater degree of flexibility to negotiate the pretzel-like poses.
At its most basic, yoga instills a sense of calm and relaxation. Eastern philosophy holds that yoga heals by releasing prana, the body's vital energy. When prana is blocked, illness can result. Western practitioners believe yoga's deeply relaxing breath work allows the body's healing abilities to take over. Research also indicates that yoga helps alleviate the discomfort associated with backache, PMS, headaches and arthritis. And an 11-week-long study conducted at the Pondicherry University in India found that yoga's stress-reducing capabilities worked as well as a hypertension drug in controlling blood pressure.
"Yoga's deep relaxation soothes the nervous system," says Rachel Schaeffer, author of Yoga for Your Spiritual Muscles (Quest Books, 1998). So when things get tough, a deep breath and a stretch may be the best medicine.
