Question:
Do yoga and weightlifting work well together?
Answer:
I don't think it's a marriage made in heaven, so to
speak, but I don't see why they can't coexist together
if practiced consciously. The thing is, it's really
hard to practice asana fully and maybe even correctly
if the muscles are too fatigued from a weight lifting
work out. So, I recommend not stressing your muscles
to the point of total fatigue and maybe using lighter
weights.
Question:
Is it necessary to add cardio exercise to my yoga practice?
Answer:
The yoga routines provided, for example, by my videos
are enough to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system.
However, you may feel on an individual basis that you
would like more cardio exercise, in which case I encourage
you to seek out additional, non- or low-impact exercise.
Personally, I find it helpful to add regular walks to
my practice, taking long walks with my dogs, Mojito & Coba and getting outside
for some fresh air.
Question:
Is the stress weights put on bones better for women
with osteoporosis, than simply the body weight used
in yoga asana?
Answer:
I don't think there is sufficient research done on this
subject. At least, not that I'm aware of. My opinion
at this point is no! I don't see how our body weight
would be less potent or efficient than the dead weight
of steel.
Question:
How often should I practice and how long should each
practice be?
Answer:
These are personal questions with personal answers.
Yet, obviously the more you practice, the more you benefit.
The practice needs to happen with wisdom. Becoming extreme
will definitely not benefit you. Practicing often does
not mean practicing aggressively. The practice will
need to be modified according to your energy level and
level of fatigue. Maybe practicing a little every day
is your thing, maybe practicing strongly just 3 times
a week is most optimal for you. One thing I've learned
over 24 years of practicing yoga asana, I need to listen
very carefully to what I'm feeling in order to know
what I'm needing and what I'm needing changes all the
time! One word of advice, if I may. Try not to do what
you did and try not to do what you wish you could do
and try to do what you need according to how you feel!
Question:
What if I'm not that flexible?
Answer:
I know it might be hard to believe due to our assumptions
about yoga because of the few images we've glimpsed
at or contortionists performing amazing feats of flexibility.
Yet, you know what happens when we assume. But yoga
really has nothing to do with being flexible. Then why
do all the poses seem designed to create flexibility?
This is an important point! The poses really are not
created to promote flexibility. They are created to
heal or maintain the health and vitality of the places
they expose. Yes, if you are carrying a lot of tension
in an area a pose exposes, the tension will release,
and your range of motion will increase. Yet, if there
is no tension in the area, there is no need to release
any, and the pose's job is now to maintain its tension
free status as well as create stimulation, which facilitates
circulation which promotes oxygenation which is a prerequisite
for regeneration as well as flushing out toxicity. Remember,
the goal is to maintain vitality, not to create flexibility.
After all, too much flexibility creates a state of instability
and that's not healthy. Just like we have different
faces and personalities, we have different hips and
different length hamstrings. We are not all supposed
to get our head to our legs in forward bends. We all
need to find our own place in each pose. That way the
pose becomes ours. We are not supposed to look the same
in every pose. The beauty of the human race is the differences
among us all. It would be boring if everybody looked
the same in every pose. Let's flourish in our differences.
Plus, I don't believe there is any proof that looser
people are healthier or happier, so what's the point?
Isn't the goal Health and Happiness? So, no, you don't
need to be flexible. All you need is the time to breathe
and move! Amen!