Dahn Yoga News

Where Dahn Yoga practitioners share their experiences

Monthly Archives: September 2011

National Yoga Month emphasizes link between yoga and health benefits

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It's September, and that means that it is officially National Yoga Month. This yearly observation, which was made official by the Department and Health and Human Services, underscores the association between yoga and health benefits. It also reminds us that for at least one week out of the year, many yoga classes are free!

This is the thrust of a recent yoga and health article in the Huffington Post. Written by interfaith minister Philip Goldberg, the piece focuses on how the holistic mind-body regimen is adaptable, offering something to almost anyone.

"Whether you're secular or spiritual, and whether you want flexible joints, a trim butt, a calm mind, a loving heart or a faster lane to enlightenment…at its best, yoga can deliver on those rewards and others, depending on the student's dedication and the knowledge and skill of his or her teachers," Goldberg argued.

Do you have to be a yoga expert in order to get into the swing of Yoga Month? Absolutely not, says the Yoga Health Foundation, a nonprofit that started the observance in 2008.

In fact, if you're new to it all, National Yoga Month is tailor-made for you. The organization states that this month is "designed to build awareness of yoga's proven health benefits and provide people with actionable guidance and tools to enhance their own well-being."

What could be better? Free yoga classes, that's what!

As part of this yearly celebration of the complementary mind-body system, more than 1,200 yoga studios across the nation offer an entire week of classes free of charge. This deal is intended for new students and other yoga initiates, especially those who previously hesitated at the cost.

Most yoga enthusiasts will tell you that plenty of package deals are available for new members, and that the resulting mental and physical benefits are worth it – particularly when the classes begin free of charge!

Filed under Yoga and Health
Sep 23, 2011

Latest yoga and health articles paint promising picture of holistic health

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What can yoga do for you? If you like to read yoga and health articles, you might be surprised at the broad spectrum of research being conducted into the positive physiological effects of the regimen. Yoga health benefits are countless, it seem.

Here is a brief recap of the many yoga and health articles published so far in 2011.

- Yoga may lower your heart rate, even at work! A clinical trial is currently addressing the cumulative effect that yoga can have on your ticker. A description of the trial appearing in the journal BMC Public Health stated that scientists are studying what happens when office workers take in-office yoga classes three times a week for 10 weeks. The researchers, a group of complementary medicine specialists from Australia's University of Western Sydney, expressed high hopes for their investigation.

- Doing yoga can reduce menopausal stress. A paper published in the Archives of Neuropsychology asserted that postmenopausal women who incorporate yoga into their daily lives may be able to shrug off some of their tension. The study focused on obese women over the age of 50. Researchers found that four months of yoga-based interventions, combined with a restricted-calorie diet, were associated with improvements in mood and stress levels.

- For all people, yoga puts stress in its place. Another study, this one published in the journal Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies, found that appeared to improve anxiety even among otherwise healthy participants.

- Yoga can also help improve quality of life for people with cardiac arrhythmia. Anyway, that is the latest announcement made in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Plenty of articles on the benefits of yoga are appearing online every day of the week. If you are interested in learning more, consider doing a basic Internet search to see if the holistic health system is right for you.

Filed under Yoga and Health
Sep 16, 2011

Yoga basics for kids go a long way toward health and wellness

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Get enthused! Yoga basics for kids can confer all the health benefits of an adult yoga routine to children, while addressing some pediatric concerns in the process. Is your child sickly, exhausted, depressed or in chronic pain? Alternatively, is he or she distractable, hyperactive or generally unable to sit still? Either way, you'll find yoga-centric treatments and inspirational stories for kids all over the place.

Some of the pediatric conditions that yoga can address include:

Chronic pain

While children are not as likely to suffer from long-term aches as adults, their risk for chronic pain is still sizable, especially if they are injury-prone. This is one reason why researchers at Children's Hospital Boston recently looked into whether or not anesthesia programs teach kids yoga or meditation. Published in the journal Pain Medicine, the study determined that 86 percent of pain clinics educate children on at least one alternative form of pain management.

ADHD

Boys and girls with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be a real handful. However, a paper appearing in the Journal of Attention Disorders suggested that children who are already taking medication for ADHD may benefit from doing yoga on the side, as a way to relax or focus.

Depression

Believe it or not, research indicates that yoga may be able to blunt the symptoms of depression among teens and young adults. A report published in the journal Alternative Therapies determined that depressed youth who try two or more yoga sessions each week may see improvements in their mood and anxiety levels.

And much more!

A meta-study appearing in the journal Academic Pediatrics announced that yoga may help kids with many different mental and physical problems. These include irritable bowel syndrome, poor respiratory health and anxiety.

Fortunately, many yoga studios offer classes for children, teens or the whole family.

Filed under Yoga Basics
Sep 9, 2011

Teacher recommends using yoga basics for kids’ inner peace

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If your child is anxious, tired, fidgety or just plain bored, it may be in their interest – not to mention yours – to show them how to do a few simple yoga basics for kids. It turns out that numerous yoga instructors and alternative health experts recommend using yoga basics poses for stressed sons, discombobulated daughters and anxious adults.

Is stress a big deal?

It is, and it's a widespread problem to boot. If you think adults are the only people who suffer from anxiety, wait until you see the statistics collected by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

The agency estimates that about 29 percent of adults will suffer from an anxiety disorder during their lifetime. While this figure may not surprise you, the data on children is pretty disquieting. The NIMH states that, among 13- to 18-year-olds, 25 percent are likely to have an anxiety-related condition over the course of their lives.

That's one-quarter of teens who will be diagnosed with a disorder caused by stress! Presumably, the lifetime risk for younger children is similarly high.

De-stressing with yoga

More than a few news agencies have published stories recently about the benefits that kids can get out of yoga. For example, an article in the Orleans Star noted that kids who attend classes at the popular daycare center Gymboree may be enrolled in yoga classes this month, at the Play and Music on Vantage Drive event.

Many parents report seeing improvements in their child's behavior and stress levels after showing them how to stretch, meditate and pose just like mommy and daddy.

Of course, frazzled parents can use the regimen themselves. After all, watching a child worrying about his or her stress level can leave you, well, stressed.

The Washington Post recently published a popular blog post listing ways that parents can help kids worry less about going back to school. And what about the parents themselves? The newspaper recommended doing yoga to "reduce your stress and awaken your joy."

Filed under Yoga Basics
Sep 1, 2011

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Though it was founded in the 1980s, Dahn Yoga's basic precepts and techniques are directly descended from methods practiced five millennia ago in East Asia. These precepts include the importance of the mind's partnership with the body, as well as the need for a balanced bond between the two.

Today, thousands of Americans practice Dahn Yoga everyday, many of whom are delightedly trying it for the first time. Taking a little time out of one's day to stretch, breathe, pose and meditate with a gentle smile on one's face can radically change one's mood and outlook.

This blog offers responses to news items that prominently feature Dahn Yoga and its neighborhood centers.

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