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Yoga Exercises - Guidelines

Yoga Exercises - Guidelines

Breathe slowly and quietly through the nostrils. Never hold your breath when moving into, maintaining, or coming out of any pose. Holding your breath can put a strain on the heart.

Move into each pose with a full awareness. Do not bounce or jerk into a stretch, this will cause the muscle to involuntarily contract and may cause injury. Go as far as you can into the stretch (pose) while maintaining a correct alignment. Maintain correct alignment for safety and effectiveness rather than sacrificing the pose so that you appear to be stretching further. When you are in a pose, you should feel tightness from stretching but never any pain. Only work the muscles that are necessary to hold the pose.

Relax any other muscles that may take an extra effort. For example: relax your eyes, face, shoulders, neck and any other muscles that are not necessary. When you need to adjust a pose you should make these changes from the ground up. In standing poses, begin adjusting the feet. In sitting poses, begin adjusting your buttocks and the placement of your pelvis. As with inverted poses (advanced), adjust your hands and work your way up.

When practicing yoga you should always go at your own pace. Never compete with the person next to you or with persons in a book or magazine or even the instructor. Everyone is different and your stretching capacity will change from day to day as you practice your poses. Always enter into the learning of yoga with an open mind. It is best to always use common sense when practicing your poses. If something does not seem right do not do it. Proceed with caution.

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Content Provided by International Fitness Association