Power yoga, the new fitness buzzword

Power walking, power lunches.... And now, Power Yoga.
It's the latest fitness buzzword.

To demystify power yoga, Get Ahead spoke with popular power yoga instructor Leena Mogre.
Mogre, M Sc in nutrition, is the COO of Gold's Gym, India.
This is what she has to say:
Power yoga deviates completely from the traditional form of yoga.
It is an East-meets-West routine, a fusion of yoga with functional and flexibility training, both of which train your body to perform better.
Power yoga involves bit of Surya Namaskar
Basically, power yoga involves the moves of the traditional yogic Surya Namaskar (or Sun salutation) mixed with flexibility training and strength training.
The Surya Namaskar consists of 12 exercises with specific breathing patterns done in a continuous graceful sequence.
What these exercises do: They counteract the effects of the previous exercise. They also expand and contract the muscles of the ribcage and waist.
Advantage: Practicing the Surya Namaskar daily will make the spine flexible and trim inches off the waist.
The power yoga principle
There are different modules in power yoga.
Typically, you would do one asana followed by strength training. This makes your body strength work for you and makes the whole workout more dynamic.
For example: During the Surya Namaskar, one asana closely resembles the push-up position.
During one module, the instructor may decide to have the class do regular push-ups.
The next time, the instructor could ask the class to do push-ups on their knees with their feet crossed in the air.
The advantages of power yoga
1. It increases lean muscle tissue, which means improved calorie burning, reduction in your body's fat percentage and increased BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate).
This makes for a stronger you, leaving you with strength for your everyday life.
2. It works your stomach and back muscles constantly, increasing your core strength.
This increases the heartbeat harmoniously.
3. Power yoga, like the traditional yoga, helps reduce stress and relax your body.
4. It also helps improve concentration, which is particularly good for students.
How often should you do power yoga?
This dynamic 45-minute workout is recommended three times a week.
It can easily be alternated with your regular cardio and weight workouts.
Who is it for?
As with all exercise routines, almost anyone can do power yoga after consulting their doctor.
There are programmes at Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced levels. How fast you move from one level to the next depends on your fitness and flexibility levels.
How much will it cost you?
The fees are entirely affordable. They are usually between Rs 1,200 and Rs 1,500 per month
Is it easy to become a power yoga instructor?
It is pretty easy to become a power yoga instructor. Provided you are either a yoga instructor or a fitness professional. All it takes in that case is a five-week training course.
Typically, I teach the course on five Sundays.
Apart from the training, we provide candidates with manuals as well.
At the end of the five Sundays, they have to appear for an examination.
Finally, I always maintain: With discipline you can achieve anything, provided you follow a regular diet and exercise programme.

Feng Shui for Home Office - How to Feng Shui Your Home Office - Feng Shui Tips

Use Feng Shui to Create a Successful Home Office - Basic Feng Shui Tips

From my own experience as a feng shui consultant, as well as from the experience of numerous home and business feng shui clients, working from home presents two major challenges:

a. Separating business and home life,

b. Lack of stimulating social (business-related) interaction.

At the same time, working from home brings numerous benefits to one's lifestyle, and feng shui can help you make the best of it. If this is the path you've chosen for yourself, I would like to help you create a harmonious and successful feng shui office by sharing some basic feng shui home office tips.

1. Use feng shui to create your home office as far from the bedroom as possible. If the layout of your home allows, having a separate entry to your home office is ideal.

2. Plan your home office with your well-being and productivity in mind. What feng shui colors, images, items make you feel happy, appreciated, successful, creative? Depending on your chosen field, you need to make your home office reflect the energy you want to project into the world.

3. Be mindful of the quality of air and the quality of light (natural and artificial) in your home office, as these are two of the good feng shui must-haves. If your brain is starving for oxygen and your body does not get enough natural light, you will not enjoy working there no matter how much you love your job. Consider investing in full-spectrum lights and do bring at least a couple of air-purifying plants into your home office.

4. Position your desk so that you do not have your back to the door. This is the minimum feng shui requirement for the office desk. Be also mindful of not facing a wall while working at your desk. If you have to face the wall, use feng shui to make the wall "disappear" with vibrant images, beautiful art, etc; whatever brings a smile to your face and makes you breathe deeper and calmer.

5. Feng shui-wise, there are several important feng shui areas in your home office that need to be treated right.

a. South area (Fame and Reputation), or, a more exact translation, your "Light in the World." Its feng shui energy is Fire, so be mindful about nor having color blue, mirrors, fountains or images of water in this area, as Water element puts down the Fire energy.

b. North area (Career or Path in Life). The feng shui element here is Water, so this is the feng shui area for items representing water, as well as Metal (Metal creates Water in the feng shui cycle of 5 elements.) Without making it sound too complicated, you can place inspiring images related to your career in black or white frame colors in the North area of your home office.

c. Southeast area (Prosperity and Abundance). Bring images or items that speak to you of abundance and prosperity. The feng shui element here is Wood, so you need to avoid Fire images, as well as too much Metal.

6. Use feng shui to deal with clutter in your home office on a regular basis. As clutter drains your energy and dampens your best intentions, you need to create a clear system, and not let clutter ruin your health and your business. Mark a feng shui clutter clearing day on your calendar and you will be surprised how much better, more enthusiastic and energetic you will feel the next day. That is, provided that you have actually dealt with your clutter, rather than just contemplated it!

These are just a few basic feng shui priorities to guarantee a much higher level of energy in your home office environment.

Note: Use feng shui to create a harmonious and successful feng shui home office. Working from home brings numerous benefits to one's lifestyle, and feng shui can help you make the best of it.

Create a Harmonious Home with Feng Shui

Easy tips to bring good feng shui energy into your home

Feng shui wisdom places a big importance on the center of your place, also called the Heart of the Home. It is a sacred feng shui energy spot from where all the other energies (called bagua areas) of your home originate.

Keeping the center of your home clean, open and clutter-free is a must for a healthy and harmonious home.

In feng shui terms, each area of your house is connected to a specific area of your life. For example, East feng shui area of your home is "responsible" for the energy of health and family, while Southwest area is connected to the energy of love relationships and marriage.

In order to successfully apply feng shui in your home, it is always helpful to know your home bagua. The Bagua, or feng shui energy map of your home, is used to access the relationship between the physical space and the lives of people who live in that space.

Ideally, you would start applying feng shui cures only after clearing your clutter. Living in a clutter-free home will bring amazing clarity and heightened energy levels into your life. A home free of clutter will also be able to really benefit from your feng shui decorating efforts and nourish the good feng shui energy.

Here are some basic feng shui tips for a harmonious home:

1.  Have many happy images of your family throughout the house, especially in the living room/family room, kitchen and dining, as well as the East feng shui area of your home.

2.  Apply feng shui in your bedroom, as well as the bedrooms of your children.

3.  Balance the energy in your home according to the five fengshui elements by bringing the most harmonious colors.

4.  Be mindful about the EMF levels in your home; choose to create a healthy home.

5.  Use feng shui energy purifiers, such as essential oils, crystals and candles to bring harmony, calm and balance into your space.

Feng shui is easy to apply once you understand the basics, as well as make an effort to really connect to your home to find out what it needs.

Note : It is best to start applying feng shui cures only after clearing your clutter. Only a clutter-free home is able to really benefit from your feng shui decorating efforts, as well as keep and nourish all the good feng shui energy.

Tips For Overcoming Constipation

Almost everyone is troubled by constipation once in a while, but when constipation is prolonged or becomes chronic then it becomes a serious health problem and needs to be dealt with. In this article I will give some natural, life-style based, tips that you can use to prevent and cure constipation.
Before I go on to the tips, it should be remembered that while constipation by itself is uncomfortable and annoying, it becomes more than an annoyance if it is allowed to continue. Constipation plays a role in the onset of ailments such as cancer, heart disease, appendicitis, diabetes, hernia, abnormal menstruation and other diseases. If you are not able to move your bowels at least one time per day, then you need to take some action now if you want to prevent serious health problems later on in your life.
It is better not to try to solve the problem with laxatives alone. Like many medicines, laxatives treat the symptoms but do not offer a long-term cure to the problem. Here are some natural ways in which you can fight constipation:
1. Get plenty of fresh air each day
If you are cooped up in a room or office and don't go outside then your digestive system will not work properly. Kids who play outside seldom get constipated, and likewise for anyone who has a job which entails outdoor labor. Make it a point to go outside and take a walk in the fresh air each day. Breathe deeply and walk until you have worked up a sweat and then you will know that you have taken enough air.
2. Drink a lot of water
Water helps your digestive system to function. It is said that "water is a cure for all diseases." A healthy person should drink around four liters (quarts) of water per day. Start the day with a glass of water and keep drinking continuously through the day. It is not good to drink all the water at one time, and it is especially bad for heart patients to drink a lot all in one sitting. If you have constipation in the morning, start drinking and keep drinking; the water will act as a natural laxative. It is also helpful to put a little bit of lemon and salt in the water.
3. Use the toilet as soon as you get an urge to "go"
Another old saying says that "If you are in doubt about whether to eat or not, then don't eat. However, if you are not sure whether or not to use the toilet, then use the toilet." Listen to the demands of your body and as soon as you get the call of nature, then respond. If you delay, then it may not be possible for you to move your bowels later on.
4. Eat fresh and fibrous foods daily
It is very important to include fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains in your daily diet. If you only eat processed foods and refined starch products then you are inviting constipation. When I am troubled by constipation I like to cure it with a "leafy lunch." I eat a big lettuce salad and a large portion of steamed spinach and it usually does the trick.
5. Squat at the toilet
In many parts of Asia you have no choice in the matter. The toilets are holes in the ground or porcelain holes and you are obliged to squat down to relieve yourself. This is the natural position for defecation and it is superior to sitting on the "porcelain throne" that is found in western toilets. You don't have to rip out your plumbing and dig a hole in the floor. You can get a better position by squatting on the rim of your toilet bowl. (You may find it strange, but no one will see you and it will definitely help you to eliminate the waste that is accumulating in your body).
6. Learn and practice yoga postures and mudras
There are several yoga postures that prevent constipation. These postures put gentle pressure on the digestive system and help the natural process of your body. Visit a competent instructor and ask for yoga postures that help the digestive system.
7. Exercise daily
One of the causes of constipation is a weak liver, and a major cause of liver weakness is lack of exercise. Combine exercise with the taking of fresh air, and walk briskly, jog or run, or practice some outdoor sport and you can overcome one of the root causes of constipation.
Finally, if you really want to relieve the problem immediately, you can flush out your intestines with a half liter to one liter of warm water. Here's how to do it: add the juice of one lemon to the water and then add plenty of salt (a tablespoon should do the trick and the solution should taste both lemony and salty). The more salt you add the surer the water will move through the body without being absorbed. If you do a full day's fast or a half day's fast before taking the lemon water, then you can get excellent results.
Incorporate these points into your daily life and you will seldom be troubled by constipation.

Vastu Remedies

With life becoming tougher and more complex, buying a flat or constructing it as per vastu shastra has become a next to impossible task. Such a situation is especially seen in big cities and metro towns, wherein the pressure to purchase plots & buildings are extremely high. As such, your home is bound to have certain vastu defect or dosh. While it is not possible to change or alter the position of everything in the house, minor changes can be done. By making minor changes in the interiors and using regulators or charged objects, one can bring back peace and happiness in life. In the following lines, we have provided some vastu remedies that would surely act beneficially and bring about a positive change in your life.

Remedies For Common Vaastu Defects

1. In case you have a drain or a river nearby the house which is flowing in a direction other than the north-east direction and has anti-clockwise movement, the best bet would be to place a statue of dancing Ganeshji facing the west on the north-east corner of the house.

2. If the boring of your building or house has been placed in the wrong direction, it is best to have a picture of Panchmukhi Hanumanji, facing South-West to the boring.

3. If while entering your home you have a naked wall, place a statue or a picture of Ganeshji. Remember, a naked wall is a sign of loneliness and hence the good way to conceal it would be with the statue or a picture of Lord Ganesha.

4. In case a high voltage overhead wire passes over your house, erect a plastic pipe filled with lime from one corner to the other in such a manner that both its end would remain outside by at least three feet each. This would eliminate the evil effects of energy, being generated out of the overhead wire.

5. Energy circles of a house can be enhanced by using Swastika Yantra. However, the method requires a lot of care and should be done under the supervision of an able Vastu mason.

6. A toilet, built at the eastern corner at the 'Ishan' angle, causes a lot of diseases to the inmates. For this, construct a toilet mainly towards south or west. The face should be towards the north or west, while discharging stool.

7. In the kitchen, place the grinder, fridge, shelf and other heavy items towards south and west wall.

8. If you are facing health problems, check your bed. As per Vastu Shastra, one should always use bed with four legs. Box type bed stops air circulation and is the foremost reason for bad health.

9. Placing pyramids is an effective and pocket friendly way of curbing all the Vastu defects of a house or a building. These are installed in strategic location in the house such as the center of the house, a specific room or even an energetic key point. It balances the electromagnetic field of the human aura, thereby harmonizing mind, body, spirit and environment.

10. Poster of crying girl, war scene, sexy scenes, angry man, owl and eagle are considered inauspicious. In case you have one at your home, replace it immediately.

11. As for the doors, if you have doors that open outwards, replace them immediately by those that open inwards.

Hair Care For Different Hair Types

Hair comprises of one of those features that can make or mar the personality of a person. The type of your hair, as well as the way you style it, can go a long way in adding to your looks. All the people in this world are not gifted with the same type of hair. While some people take pride on their curly locks, others are simply in love with their straight hair. Then, there are some who have wavy hair, which is neither curly, nor straight. Whatever be the type of your hair, you need to take proper care of it, lest it gets damaged and loses its beauty. In the following lines, we have provided hair care tips for three different hair types - curly, wavy and straight.

Hair Care for Curly Hair

• Avoid using hair dryer as much as possible, since curly hair tends to be very fragile. Let your hair air-dry as much as possible.
• Never ever brush your curls, if you do not want to end up having frizzy hair. Rather, sort out the tangles with the help of your fingers.
• Never ever wash your curly hair on a daily basis. It would rob it of the natural oils and contribute to the frizz.
• Stay away from hair care products, like grease, mousses and gels, as much as you can.
• Massage your scalp with coconut oil, jojoba oil or Aloe Vera juice 1-2 times in a week.
• Since curly hair is prone to dryness, you should make sure to use a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner regularly.

Hair Care for Wavy Hair

• Get your hair trimmed once every six to eight weeks. This will prevent split ends to quite an extent.
• Rather than letting your wavy hair air-dry, towel-dry it as much as possible.
• After washing your wavy hair, never ever bunch it on top of your head. It will create unnecessary knots and frizz.
• Always use a wide-tooth comb to detangle your wavy hair. However, do not tug at knots, as it leads to breakage.
• For wavy hair, it is advisable to make use of shine-enhancing shampoo and conditioner.
• Indulge in detoxification of your hair about once a month.

Hair Care for Straight Hair

• Wash your hair either on a daily basis or at least on alternate days.
• Avoid using curling iron on your hair and even if you use it, make sure to keep the heat setting on low.
• Never brush your hair when it is still wet. If you need to detangle it, make use of your fingers for the purpose.
• Do not rub your wet hair with a towel. Rather, use it to squeeze out water from the hair, gently.
• After applying conditioner on your hair, and before rinsing it out, comb your hair, using a wide-toothed comb.
• Do not touch or play with your hair every now and then. Rather, avoid touching your hair as much as possible.

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