FAQ 8 Most Frequently Asked Questions on Yoga

Always follow your doctors advice first. Doctor’s advice is still preferable before practicing Yoga.

1. Will yoga help heal my back?
A. YES !
If you have torn muscles or actually ruptured discs, please do not do yoga until these are healed sufficiently. For general back strain, where the discs are bulging and the abdominal muscles and back muscles are weak, yoga is tremendously helpful for strengthening your back. If I could have a fiver for every time one of my students says, " oh I have been told not to do yoga by my physio/doctor/chiropracter" and then I bump into them and they say " Oh the exercises we are doing for my back are JUST the same as you teach for backs in yoga" and I have to bite my tongue. In fact one of the best yoga books is by Rita Treiger called "Yoga Heals your Back".
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yoga-Heals-Your-Back-10-minute/dp/1592330932/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277584909&sr=1-1
A must have for anyone with back problems.
So: yoga is designed to heal discs, strengthen muscles and generally get your back sorted. If you have a weak back you may go to a yoga class and over exert and pull your back out, but that is because you were not protecting your back and have not built up gently over time. Take is slow if you are new to yoga.
2. Will yoga help my knees?
Answer: Yes
Yoga Poses – if done with conscious good alignment of the leg bones and joint, it will help make the knees stronger and less receptive to injury.
Knees are tricky as they are semi hinge joints. So we protect them a lot in yoga by pulling knees in and lifting the thighs UP when standing. We also rarely allow the knees to go past the toes and try not to put the knee into its semi hinge position. We try to keep the knees in simple hinge only.
Damaged knees can be healed by yoga unless there is a serious cartilage problem.
please look at:
http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/yoga-and-health/yoga-for-knees.asp
there is also a good book
3. What are the best things to include in a yoga session?
Answer: A basic yoga session need not take too long. A basic session usually follows this order:

• Warm-up Exercises - conditions your body for safe transition into asana practice. For beginners, you may just use the warm-up poses as your entire practice. Warm-up exercises open the shoulder muscles, the spine, the hips, the lower back, and the groin.
• Standing Poses - for alignment of the feet and the body. Opens the hips, stretches the legs, add strength to your back and increases your range of movement. Standing poses facilitates digestion, blood circulation and is good for those who want to lose weight.
• Sitting Poses - sitting poses allows you to infuse with the breath and prana, and to revitalize from a pose by giving you a calm and quiet feeling. These poses greatly contribute in shaping your buttocks and legs, and in adding vitality and suppleness to the spine.
• Twists - twist exercises releases the tension in your spines, relieves backaches and makes your shoulders more flexible. It also facilitates in the circulation of blood and nutrients in the body making it necessary for the health of the inter-vertebral discs.
• Supine and Prone Poses - these poses releases tension in your abdomen and increase the mobility of your spine. It restores strength in your back, arms and legs, and releases your hips and groins.
• Inverted and Balance Poses - inverted and balance poses defies gravity and develops coordination, increase stamina and strength, and improves grace, agility and poise. It also improves you concentration and focus since being quiet is necessary to be able to do these poses.
• Backbends - backbends are the poses that benefit the adrenal glands and the kidney. It also releases tension in the front body and in your shoulders and pelvic girdle, and improves the flexibility of your spine.
• Finishing Poses - these are the cooling-down exercises for Yoga.

4. How often should I do yoga?
Answer: ideally every day, even just for a little while. We are taught that 20 mins each day is better than 2 hours once a week.
A lot of my students cannot make much time for their yoga initially, or don't want to, so I suggest to them that they do little bits of yoga, like a lying down stretch or knee hug when they wake up,( I am a great fan of doing yoga poses
in bed when just waking up, they are all lying down ones obviously and sometimes the partner/child/cat/dog who are also snuggled up somewhere on the bed, have to be warned. :) )
a standing pose as they wait for their shower to warm up,
an arm or side stretch as the kettle boils,
some breathing work whilst in a queue or waiting somewhere,
and regular reminders to be mindful and in the moment.
Some people find that the idea of 20 minutes puts them off but they can 'sneak' in some yoga throughout their day. This is much better than doing none!
5. Is yoga a religion?
No.
Yoga developed on the Indian subcontinent more than four thousand years ago and the earliest written references to Yoga are in the Vedas, written about 2,500 - 600 B.C. Yoga is NOT a religion but it has its root in the Hindu culture of India. It is non sectarian and may be practiced with confidence by anyone.
6. What does 'yoga' mean?
Answer: The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit word 'yuj' which means to unite, join or integrate. The word Hatha means Ha, 'sun' and Tha 'moon' so it is the union of opposites.
7. What are Asanas, are they all that we do in a Hatha Yoga class and what do they do?
Hatha Yoga includes Asanas (postures) Pranayama (breathing) Bandhas (locks) and Dhyana (meditation).
Asanas: They are designed to promote a state of mental and physical well-being or good health. All the organs begin to function efficiently. Asanas overhaul, rejuvenate and bring the entire system into a state of balance. They initially focus on increasing and maintaining flexibility of the spine, toning and rejuvenating the nervous system. The bending movements, twisting and gentle stretching movements bring flexibility to other joints of the body, as well as massaging the glands and organs. Circulation is improved, ensuring a rich supply of nutrients and oxygen to all the cells of the body. The steadiness of the postures free the mind from disturbance caused by physical movement, promoting steadiness of the mind, balancing the emotions, and improving your outlook on life.
8. How will yoga help me?
Yoga is a way of life, an integrated system of education for the body, mind and inner spirit. It addresses all aspects of our lives from muscles and joints to tendencies buried deep in our subconscious.