Slim Calm Sexy Yoga: 210 Proven Yoga Moves for Mind/Body Bliss

health tools already within us. You could say the proof is in the practice.
    I encourage you to consider your regular yoga practice as a plan for maintaining total health. As the research in this chapter makes clear, it truly does have healing powers.
    YOGA HEALS YOU
    When you understand yoga as not only a fitness system but as a healing system, you can start to trust your intuition and sharpen your awareness when it comes to health.
    Yoga puts you back in touch with YOU. Awareness can take you as far as you let it, from feeling a stress headache approaching to preventing injury and disease.

Allergies

    Sixty-two percent of people with seasonal allergies say their runny noses, constant sneezing, and irritated sinuses make them, for lack of a better phrase, seriously miserable. The good news: Proven relaxation techniques such as yoga and meditation can help prevent or relieve those frustrating symptoms. Ohio State University researchers subjected a group of hay fever sufferers to stressful situations and then gave them allergy tests. When the subjects were the most stressed out, they had skin reactions that were twice as large as when they were calmer and the reactions lasted longer. According to the study, when stress hormones are elevated, it can weaken the immune system and prolong your allergic response. If you suffer from seasonal allergies, do this routine three times a week to clear your nasal passages, ease your stress levels, and restore balance to your system.
    the
ROUTINE
Try the following sequence, staying in each pose for 5 deep inhales and exhales, unless otherwise noted.
      Calming Breath

    Close your eyes, rest your palms on your thighs, and focus on your breath. If you start thinking about other things, guide your attention back to your breath. Breathe gently here for 1 minute.
      Standing Arch
      Standing Arm Reach
      Standing Side Opener

    Do one side, then the other.
      Bellows Breathing
    Keep a tissue nearby. This exercise clears out the nasal passages, and you may need to wipe your nose.

Back Pain

    More than 26 million Americans between the ages of 20 and 64 have frequent back pain. And according to the National Institutes of Health, a sore back is the most common reason people under age 45 stop being active. Ask anyone with a “bad back” and they’ll tell you it can make accomplishing even the simplest task much harder. But back pain doesn’t have to be inevitable—a number of studies have shown a link between yoga and spine health. One study published in the journal
Pain
found that people who attended a weekly yoga class and practiced at home reported 70 percent less lower-back pain after 3 months. What’s more, 88 percent of them either used less pain medication or stopped taking it altogether. (Only 35 percent of a yoga-deprived control group did.) How does yoga help? The poses help correct imbalances in the musculoskeletal system affecting spinal alignment and posture. Practicing this routine twice a week will increase your awareness of how you move your body, helping you learn to maintain a healthy posture.
    the
ROUTINE
Try the following sequence, staying in each pose for 5 deep inhales and exhales, unless otherwise noted.
      Standing Forward Bend, Elbow Hold
      Back Lengthener with Easy Twist
      Squat Hang
      Squat Twist
      Spine Twist
      Corpse

    After resting in corpse for 5 breaths, carefully roll your body to the right side. Rest here for a few breaths and gently come up to sit.
    Go back to the beginning and repeat the entire sequence on the other side.
    BABY YOUR BACK
    Not all back pain is equal. Listen to your body and know your limitations. Pushing and forcing yourself into a position won’t do you any good and often can hurt you. Use your breath to guide you: Move a little bit each time you take a breath, rather than forcing yourself all at once into any position. Do only what you can do easily and what feels right for your body. If you take it easy and give yourself time, you’ll find your way to what your body needs.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

    The carpal tunnel is a narrow passageway located on the palm side of your wrist. Its job is to protect an important nerve that leads to your hand and the nine tendons that bend your fingers.
    Whether it’s for work, staying connected to friends, reading the news, or having fun, you probably spend more hours than you think tapping some kind of keyboard. All that typing and clicking can place excessive pressure on the