| In comparing 12-week sessions of yoga or | | | | three Oreos-about the same as a slow, 50-min. walk. |
| conventional therapeutic exercise classes or a | | | | Even power yoga burns fewer calories than a |
| self-care book, Yoga was found to be more effective | | | | comparable session of calisthenics. |
| than a self-care book for improving function and | | | | And while yoga has been shown to alleviate stress |
| reducing chronic low back pain, and the benefits | | | | and osteoarthritis, it does not develop the |
| persisted for at least 26 weeks. Sherman KJ. Cherkin | | | | muscle-bearing strength needed to help with |
| DC. Erro J. Miglioretti DL. Deyo RA. Comparing yoga, | | | | osteoporosis. Part of the problem is that increasingly, |
| exercise, and a self-care book for chronic low back | | | | the people teaching yoga don't know enough about it. |
| pain: a randomized, controlled trial. Annals of Internal | | | | Yoga was traditionally taught one-on-one by a yogi |
| Medicine. 143(12):849-56, 2005 Dec 20. | | | | over a period of years, but today instructors can lead |
| Yoga training and a single bout of yoga appear to | | | | a class after just a weekend course. |
| attenuate peak muscle soreness in women following a | | | | Though the Yoga Alliance, formed in 1999 and now |
| bout of eccentric exercise. These findings have | | | | based in Clinton, Md., has set a minimum standard of |
| significant implications for coaches, athletes, and the | | | | 200 hours of training for certification, only 16,168 of the |
| exercising public who may want to implement yoga | | | | estimated 70,000 instructors in the U.S. have been |
| training as a preseason regimen or supplemental | | | | certified. "Yoga means bringing together mind, body |
| activity to lessen the symptoms associated with | | | | and spirit, but in Western yoga, we've distilled it down |
| muscle soreness. (Boyle CA. Sayers SP. Jensen BE. | | | | to body," says Shana Meyerson, an instructor in Los |
| Headley SA. Manos TM. The effects of yoga training | | | | Angeles. "That's not even yoga anymore. If the goal is |
| and a single bout of yoga on delayed onset muscle | | | | to look like Madonna, you're better off running or |
| soreness in the lower extremity. Journal of Strength | | | | spinning." |
| & Conditioning Research. 18(4):723-9, 2004) | | | | 5 KEYS TO SAFE YOGA |
| The information below is an excerpt from the article | | | | 1. Ask an instructor for credentials. And don't be afraid |
| by Paul P: When yoga hurts. Practicing it is supposed | | | | to leave if you're not satisfied. |
| to make you feel better, but doing it wrong is | | | | 2. Alert your instructor to your condition. Talk about |
| dangerous. Time. 170(16):71, 2007 Oct 15. | | | | past injuries and current weaknesses, and ask for any |
| Yoga, regardless of the form, does not offer a | | | | necessary modifications. |
| comprehensive way to get fit. According to a study by | | | | 3. Beware of stationary instructors. They should be |
| the American Council on Exercise, a national nonprofit | | | | roaming around, monitoring participants and making |
| organization that certifies fitness instructors and | | | | adjustments for those who need them. |
| promotes physical fitness, dedicated yoga practitioners | | | | 4. Avoid positions prone to cause injury. These include |
| show no improvement in cardiovascular health. It is not | | | | lotus, chaturanga or plank, headstands and |
| the best way to lose weight either. A typical 50-min. | | | | downward-facing dog. |
| class of hatha yoga, one of the most popular styles of | | | | 5. Stop if it hurts. Yoga should not cause pain. |
| yoga in the U.S., burns off fewer calories than are in | | | | |