05_749370 ch01.qxp 11/29/05 11:51 PM Page 9 Chapter 1 Introducing Yoga with Weights In This Chapter ᮣ Exploring yoga and yoga with weights ᮣ Looking at the potential health benefits of yoga with weights ᮣ Deciding whether you’re ready to start doing yoga-with-weights workouts ᮣ Investing in the appropriate tools, equipment, and gear ᮣ Aligning your body properly for the exercises ᮣ Reviewing safety issues and pain management hat is yoga with weights, anyway?” Wonder no more, dear reader. “WThis chapter familiarizes you with this exciting new exercise dis- cipline: what it is, what you can get out of it, and what you need to get started (don’t worry, you don’t need much). We believe that everyone can benefit from yoga-with-weights exercises. No matter how flexible you are, how old or young you are, whether you’re a paragon of good health or you’re just starting down the road to a healthier, happier lifestyle, yoga with weights can help you. We really want to encour- age you to take up yoga with weights. We think, no, we know you’ll love it! In the Beginning, There Was Yoga . Long beforeCOPYRIGHTED people started working out toMATERIAL dance videos or even doing calis- thenics, there was yoga — a system of personal development and spiritual practice that began in India at least 5,000 years ago. You thought yoga was an exercise program, didn’t you? If so, you’re right. You can get enormous health benefits from yoga exercises, called poses or postures, without going into the spiritual side of yoga. 05_749370 ch01.qxp 11/29/05 11:51 PM Page 10 10 Part I: Getting Started The eight limbs of yoga To work toward the goal of self-realization, yoga controlling their breathing, practitioners practitioners study the following eight limbs of discover how to control their thought yoga and integrate them into their lives: processes. ߜ Yama: The code of ethics by which practi- ߜ Pratyahara: A series of breathing exercises tioners measure and monitor their behavior. and techniques by which practitioners sep- Practitioners refrain from injuring others, arate consciousness from sensual percep- lying, stealing, being greedy, and engaging tion. The goal is to withdraw the conscious in sensual activities. mind from the bondage of the physical body and its instinctual drives. ߜ Niyamas: The observances by which prac- titioners control their mental energy and ߜ Dharana: A series of breathing techniques develop willpower. The observances are and exercises, including mantra, designed defined as purification, contentment, aus- to develop endurance through conscious terity, sacred study, and attunement to the effort and the power of concentration. absolute. ߜ Dhyana: A series of breathing techniques ߜ Asanas: The poses, or exercises, that con- and exercises designed to help practition- stitute the physical aspect of yoga. The ers reach an effortless state of meditation. exercises help develop the mind-body rela- ߜ Samadhi: Advanced breathing exercises tionship and build physical strength, flexi- and techniques designed to return the indi- bility, and balance. vidual consciousness to perfect divine ߜ Pranayama: The science of Prana (the life unity. force) and its correlation to breathing. By But yoga is more than an exercise program. Yoga means “union” or “to inte- grate” in Sanskrit (the language of yoga). Yoga addresses the whole person, cultivating the mind, the body, and the spiritual potential that you have inside. Classic yoga practitioners seek to be integrated with universal con- sciousness. They believe that life is a process of purposeful evolution toward a state of self-realization. To achieve this state, they study and live the eight limbs of yoga, or the eightfold path (see the upcoming sidebar for more on this topic). Meditation is one of the vital limbs in this system. The exercise side of yoga emerged about 600 years ago to prepare yoga practitioners for meditation. Sitting for hours in yoga meditation is common, and to make themselves strong enough and supple enough to sit in meditation for long periods of time, yoga practitioners developed yoga poses, or asanas in Sanskrit. The poses are only one part of a much larger personal development system that over time becomes a rich lifestyle, but in the Western part of the world, most people think of exercises when they hear the word “yoga.” 05_749370 ch01.qxp 11/29/05 11:51 PM Page 11 Chapter 1: Introducing Yoga with Weights 11 Yoga schools at a glance No yoga school is better than another; which cave monasteries of the Himalayas, the one you choose to study is simply a matter of focus is on meditation. personal preference. More important than any ߜ Integral: Swami Satchidananda’s Integral yoga school is the student-teacher relationship. yoga is a major componenet of Dr. Dean The differences between schools usually have Ornish’s groundbreaking work on reversing to do with emphasis. For example, some schools heart disease. place more emphasis on the alignment of the ߜ Iyengar: Developed by B.K.S. Iyengar, this body, the coordination of breath and movement, school emphasizes attention to detail and holding postures, or the transition from one pos- the precise alignment of postures. ture to another. ߜ Kripalu: This school puts great emphasis on Roughly speaking, here are the different yoga proper breathing, alignment, and the coor- schools: dination of breath and movement. ߜ Ananda: Developed by Swami Kriyananda, ߜ Kundalini: Developed by Yogi Bhajan, this a direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda. school emphasizes classic poses, breath- The emphasis is on self-realization. ing, the coordination of breath and move- ߜ Anusara: As taught by John Friend, this ment, and meditation. school focuses on flowing with grace ߜ Paramahansa Yogananda: This is the Kriya and is based on principles and spirals of yoga self-realization fellowship; the empha- alignment. sis is on the spiritual and on meditation. ߜ Ashtanga: Developed by K. Pattabhi ߜ Power Vinyasa Yoga: Developed by Baron Jois, this yoga gives you a serious athletic Baptiste, this is a sweat-based, synchro- workout. nized, dynamic-flow yoga practiced in a ߜ Baptiste Method of Yoga: Developed by room heated to 85–90°F. Magaña and Walt Baptiste, this school is ߜ Power Yoga: This school is based on the based on Raja yoga; the focus is on mind Ashtanga repetitive series of postures. and meditation. ߜ Sivananda: This school follows a set struc- ߜ Baptiste Power of Yoga: Developed by ture that includes pranayama, classic Sherri Baptiste, this school brings together asanas, and relaxation. flowing postures, breathing techniques, and yoga philosophy. ߜ Viniyoga: Developed by Sri T. Krishna- macharya and carried on by his son, T.K.V. ߜ Bikram: Developed by Bikram Choudhury, Desikachar, this school is a methodology for this school presents a series of 26 static- developing practices for individual condi- holding postures practiced in a room tions and purposes. heated to 110° Fahrenheit. ߜ Vivekananda: This school offers a spiritual ߜ Himalayan Institute: Developed by Swami brand of yoga. Rama from a lineage of sages of the ancient 05_749370 ch01.qxp 11/29/05 11:51 PM Page 12 12 Part I: Getting Started From a practical point of view, part of the appeal of yoga comes from the stress reduction that occurs while practicing the postures and concentrating on the breathing, which we discuss in detail in Chapter 4. Practice yoga long enough and you’ll discover that yoga is a personal journey as well; you notice an overall sense of well-being and peace of mind. Yoga can help you relax, feel more grounded, and experience more joy in your life. For that reason, it benefits not only your mental and physical health, but also the quality of your work and daily life. In this book, we focus mostly on the physical aspects of yoga with weights. We want you to know that the techniques, exercises, and practices you experience in this system aren’t watered down; they’re the real deal for body, mind, and spirit. If you’re interested in discovering more about the philosophical and spir- itual aspects of yoga, we recommend Yoga For Dummies, by Georg Feuerstein and Larry Payne (Wiley). As a spiritual practice and exercise program, yoga continues to evolve, with new schools of yoga and new exercise variations prospering every day. Enter yoga with weights! . And Now There’s Yoga with Weights Yoga with weights is a hybrid of two powerful, time-tested exercise systems: yoga and bodybuilding. Working out with weights is one of the best ways to achieve overall physical fitness, and yoga is renowned as a system of per- sonal development by which you can cultivate peak performance and achieve a higher quality of life. By combining these exercise systems, yoga with weights addresses the needs of your body, but it also goes beyond the physi- cal dimension of your well-being. Yoga with weights calls for 1-, 3-, or 5-pounds weights on your wrists and/or ankles. The weights stabilize your body and help you achieve a higher level of physical benefit and conditioning. Yoga with weights is a system for the body, mind, and spirit. If you practice diligently, it can be a way of being and living through conscious exercise that leads you to discover your true self. The addition of the weights makes you feel the effect of the yoga training sooner. The weights train your muscles where to be and where to go. In a beginning yoga practice, several months could go by before you start to “get it.” You have to figure out how and where to move different parts of your body.