Thursday 5 April 2012

Yoga Workout

 
Yoga has become a way of life for many of us today. A lot of celebrities like Jennifer Aniston, Kareena Kapoor and even Lady Gaga swear by it to be fit. And so what if you are facing a time crunch? Here’s a 15-minute yoga workout that’ll keep you in shape.

 
Standing postures: Then move on to the standing postures like the crescent moon pose which strengthens your back and arms. Then move on to the half moon pose that targets your hips, glute muscles and thighs.

 
Seated postures: You can then try the forward bend position. This helps you tone your core muscles and stretches your shoulders, spine and your hamstring muscles.  Another variation of the forward bend can be done while in vajrasana.

 
Warm up stretches:  Start with a couple of warm up poses that include the shoulder stretches, neck rotations shoulder lifts, etc.

 
Backbend postures: Postures like the bow pose (dhanurasana), cobra pose (bhujangasana), and fish pose (matsyasana) help in the overall toning of the spine and back muscles. The bow pose specially helps in relieving gastro problems, but should not be performed by people having neck and back injury.

Inverted postures:  The inverted postures or twist yoga postures are ideally for those who have been practicing yoga for a long time. Try the head stand(sirshasana), the plough pose (halasana) and the half spinal twist (ardha matsyendrasana). The ardha matsyendrasana will help you tone your sides, thus getting rid of your love handles.  

End your workout with five suryanamaskars (sun salutation) and cool off with shavasana or the corpse pose.