Laughing can make you stressful know more with yoga

                                                Laughing Yoga Health Benefits



Looking for a healthy pick-me-up? "Laughter Yoga" is a relatively new concept that still emphasizes breathing like traditional yoga, but encourages laughter as exercise for the belly, diaphragm, lungs, and perhaps most importantly, the mind. Laughing Yoga proves true the old maxim - laughter really is the best medicine! As simple and profound as traditional yoga breathing, laughing yoga helps the practitioner feel happy and healthy. Laughing yoga encourages healthy breathing, but its benefits reach far beyond the lungs. Laughing yoga practitioners profess general health improvements such as lower frequencies of respiratory infections like colds and the flu, but they also claim to experience a genuine mood-lifting effect. It's truly incredible how just a bit of laughter can improve your whole day!

Originally launched by a physician in Mumbai, India in 1995, laughing yoga is based upon the scientific principle that the human body cannot differentiate between "fake" laughter and "real" laughter, so no matter how you slice it, the body will reap the same physiological and psychological benefits. Whether "real" or "fake," laughter lowers the levels of stress hormones in the blood stream. Laughing fosters hormone levels that literally "put us in a good mood." Many laughter yoga devotees claim to have used these exercises to overcome depression, or at least to laugh away troubles after a long, stressful day.

A session of laughing yoga requires you to leave your shyness at the door, but if you have trouble doing so, your "laughter leader" will help you shed your inhibitions. Exercise warm ups include lots of clapping, eye-contact with your fellow practitioners, rhythm and movement, and simple chants to promote heavy exhalations from the belly, invoking classic yoga diaphragmatic breathing. Most of all, warm-up exercises are designed to ease the class into a silly mood. Before you know it, you'll find yourself laughing. Sometimes your laughter leader will lead you through "gibberish" exercises, encouraging everyone to babble like babies. Sound silly? Of course it does! That's what makes it so effective at promoting laughter and feelings of child-like playfulness.

As a modern adaptation of an ancient practice, Laughing Yoga not only often incorporates traditional yoga postures, but also method-acting techniques to shift your mindset and stimulate the imagination. Your leader may intersperse bouts of laughter with light physical exercise. Whatever approach or method your laughter leader uses, laughing yoga is designed to invigorate, energize and entertain.

As the laughing subsides, your leader will take you through laughing meditation, then finally relaxation and grounding exercises. As opposed to warming up, laughing meditation takes

emotions as well. Once the group has settled, as in most forms of traditional yoga, the leader will guide you through "yogic sleeping" in order to bring your energy levels back down to normal, leaving you feeling both relaxed and re-energized.

To find a laughing leader in your own neck of the woods, check out the extensive list on http://www.laughteryoga.org of certified instructors all around the world. Or, you can conduct your own Internet search to find laughing yoga classes or clubs in your hometown.

Ying & Yang Living is a healthy lifestyle resource that provides Asian living tips in food, home, garden, health, fitness, fashion, beauty, and Asian wisdoms for your spiritual wellness. For all our free Asian living tips,

visit our website at http://www.yingandyangliving.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7347785 

Get rid of Back Pain doing yoga

                                                 Stretches That Help Relieve Back Pain



Exercises are essential for proper body health. That is why they are emphasized for all school going kids and people of all ages. Not only do they help you keep fit, they also improve the way your body responds to certain situations such as attack by diseases. They make your body strong and increase its ability to resist diseases. There are various forms of exercises that are essential for your body. One good example is stretching exercises. The following are some of the stretches that helps relieve back pain.

Connective tissues and muscles shorten over time. This results in less litheness. If you have not used your muscles for a long time, they will become stiff and weaker. In case you suddenly start using those muscles, the chances of being injured will be greatly increased. However, if you regularly stretch them using various exercises, these muscles will lengthen and strengthen. In this case, the risk of injury will be highly reduced.

When doing stretching exercises, it is normal to experience a pulling sensation. This sensation can be uncomfortable. In case you experience a painful sensation, it means you are probably over stretching your muscles. When this happens, you have to reduce the stretch to retain comfort. However, you can stretch further but gradually as you consider your pain threshold.

One of the most common mistakes that a lot of people make when stretching is to bounce into the exercise. Bouncing is a bad idea as it is an abrupt and sharp movement that can harm and damage to your muscles.

You ought to pay attention to the particular muscle which you are stretching and slowly push your threshold without causing harm to yourself. Be careful not to permanently damage your body tissues. If you are not sure how it is done, ask a gym specialist to guide you.

In a few months, if you are consistent in stretching exercises many times a week, you will be more limber. If you want faster results, then increase the duration and frequency of your exercises. Do not forget that you are not supposed to overdo it since injuries could occur and lead you to being crippled for a while.

Stretches also improve posture and range of motion. Since back pain will be reduced or completely done away with, you will not have to sit or stand in a particular way to prevent the effects of the painful ordeal. You will also be free to move anyhow without painful feelings. Your ability to relax is also improved.

Perhaps one of the most important things stretches do is improve your blood circulation. This is vital for the normal functioning of the body. Most body activities rely on proper blood circulation to be effective. It also allows time for mental activities such as visualization. It also decreases soreness during and after exercises.

To learn more about stretches that helps relieve back pain, visit the internet for more details. Learn how to keep fit and be flexible. These exercises help you feel light. They actually make you more capable of walking long distances without tiring easily. Do this every day for a few minutes and you will not regret.

For More Information Please Go to: http://www.fitnesskeys4u.com There You will Receive A Healthy Food List.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jonathan_J_Washington