Yoga Health & Wellness Newsletter

Welcome!

It is my great pleasure to welcome you to the inaugural issue of Yoga Health & Wellness newsletter. We are dedicated to helping you support and deepen your practice and experience of yoga. You’ll also find timely and valuable tips for enhancing your overall health and well-being. If you would like to suggest an article or have feedback/comments we would like to hear from you at newsletter@letsdoyoga.com. If you would prefer not to continue to receive this newsletter please email us at the above address with the word “remove” in the subject line.

Namaste
Howard VanEs

In this issue:

1. Pranayama – 3 Breaths to Beat Stress Howard VanEs, M.A.
2. Introduction to Ayruveda Pratichi Mathur
3. Inspiration: “Why I Practice Yoga” Rebecca Fellows
4. Fifteen Reasons to Meditate Trina Swerdlow
5. The Good Fats and Cholesterol Joy Lasater

Pranayama – 3 breaths to beat stress
Howard VanEs. M.A.

Did you know that the majority of the visits to medical doctors are because of stress related symptoms? Stress can be positive as well as negative. In its positive form stress challenges us and adds excitement to our life. In its negative form, stress can be quite debilitating, resulting in symptoms like headaches, tight shoulders, upset stomachs, lack of sleep, lack of energy, trouble thinking clearly and irritability. Left-unchecked ongoing stress can lead to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, chronic anxiety and depression.

To deal effectively with stress it’s helpful to understand what causes it. Imagine for a moment that it’s 20,000 years ago and you are a cave man or a cave woman stalking a prey. As you walk along you hear a noise in the tall grass up ahead and spot a huge tiger leaping towards you. Being the expert hunter that you are, you raise your spear and thrust it at the tiger. In that instant a hormone called epinephrine was released into your blood stream causing a rise in your blood pressure, heart rate and breathing rate. As sugar and fat is release into your blood stream, blood is diverted from your skin and digestive system to your muscles and brain. Your senses are heightened! This physiological process is known as the “flight or fight” response.

This “flight or fight” response to stress occurs when you are driving on the highway and get cut off by another driver. It also occurs when you have to make a presentation to a large group, or go on a job interview, or take a test, or have a fight with your partner, or simply are overwhelmed with a lot of “important” things to do. Unlike the life and death example of the tiger, most stress related issues in our life are not a matter of life and death. Herein lies the problem as our biology has been preprogrammed to respond to challenging situations as is if was life or death by initiating the fight or flight response. Useful for hunting and fighting wars but very limiting in our modern lives. Everyone experiences some stress in his or her life, however what makes stress a killer is when it is ongoing and your system does not get a break from it.

So now that you know how stress occurs and what it does, let’s look at one of the most effective ways of dealing with stress. It is called the relaxation response and it is your body’s own natural way of bringing your system back into balance. The good news is that the relaxation response can be activated voluntarily. And yogic breathing practices, pranayama, offer us many ways to do this. Among them here are three that are easy to do yet very effective at reducing stress, activating the relaxation response and quieting your mind.

The Yogic Breath: Sit in a chair with your feet apart on the ground and bring your neck, head and spine into one line. Place your hands on your chest and breath in through your nose and out through your nose, feeling your chest expand. Do this three or four times. This is a chest breath and is rather shallow. Now place your hands on your belly and begin to inhale through your nostrils. As you do this let your belly expand filling the entire abdominal area with your breath. Exhale and through your nose and press in slightly with your hands. Repeat this three or four times

Next place your left palm on your chest and your right palm on your belly. As you inhale through your nose let your belly expand and then bring your breath up into your chest, feeling your ribs expand. Exhale through your nose, release your breath first from the chest and then your stomach. Repeat three more times. Now close your eyes, rest your hands on your lap and repeat this breath ten times. To make this breath even more effective make the exhalation slower than the inhalation. This breath is quieting, calming and will leave you feeling more relaxed.

Nadi Shodana / Alternate Nostril Breathing: Place your right index finger and middle finger on the bridge of your nose. Close the right nostril by pressing your right thumb, inhale and at the top of the inhalation close your left nostril with your ring finger. Release your thumb and exhale through the right nostril. Inhale through the right nostril and at the top of the exhalation, close the right side with your thumb. Release the ringer finger from your left side. This is one round. Repeat six to twelve times. This breath is very calming and helps to balancing effect on the system.

Left Nostril Breathing: This breath helps to quiet the mind as well as being cooling and calming to the entire system. It is particularly useful when you are feeling hot or angry. Simply close your right nostril with the thumb of your right hand. Breath in through your left nostril and out through your left nostril. Repeat this ten to twenty times.

The above breathing practices may be used individually or practiced together. Experiment and see what works for you. If you feel dizzy or light headed at anytime – stop and let your breath come back to normal.

If you would like to know more about pranayama and its many practices check out “Beginning Yoga: A Practice Manual” available through www.letsdoyoga.com.

Howard VanEs, M.A. has been studying and practicing yoga for over ten years and is a certified yoga teacher teaching in the East Bay area of San Francisco. He is author of “Beginning Yoga: A Practice Manual”, co-creator of the audio CD “Shavasana / Deep Relaxation” and publisher of Yoga Health and Wellnes newsletter. He can be reached at: info@letsdoyoga.com or 510-587-3399.

Ayurveda: The ancient medical science of the Hindus
Pratichi Mathurs,
President, Ganesha Institute for Ayurveda and Vedic Studies

Ayurveda, you hear the word often enough now…..your friends who swear by it's miraculous effect on their health (after they have exhausted all other treatment modalities of course !); you also come across the word "Ayurveda" almost all the time on labels of bottled cosmetics, shampoos and elixirs; Model turned Movie Star Christy Turlington sells with a sweet insistence her Ayurvedic beauty and rejuvenation line of skin and body care and Times magazine wonders if it is India's home spun Ayurveda and it's tradition of insistence on total well being - mind - body -spirit that is responsible for the rapid turn over of Beauty Queens? Deepak Chopra was heralded the messiah of the 21st century when he told the world with an original eloquence, information, that has been around for thousands of years as the great art and science of Ayurveda.

And last but not the least …the Indian grannies, mothers and aunts constantly reminding children to not drink cold water after coming in from hot summer Sun; to not eat mango's without first soaking them in water and insisted upon rubbing hot ghee (clarified butter) and Heeng (asafetida) on little bellies when stomach aches were faked to skip School. Which Indian does not remember the warm blessing of a ginger and black pepper Chai reverently administered during a cold and cough, the soothing relief of Rose and Khus sherbets in summer and the "chichi" a rice and mung lentil preparation recommended for indigestion or when ever the body is fighting disease.

So Ayurveda lives on… in each one of us, in our families, in our choices and in our collective memory.

So what is Ayurveda…exactly. Literally translated from Sanskrit it is composed of 2 words "Ayur" which means life and "Veda" which denotes knowledge. So Ayurveda is the knowledge of healthy living and is not confined only to the treatment of diseases A compendium on life itself, in it's entirety, it's scope ranging from birth to death, including disease, decay, aging, and wellness, lust and ambition, rage and love. This is a major agenda indeed for any system of healing, but can it be any less - especially if true healing has to take place?

Perhaps this is exactly why Ayurveda manages to get to the bottom of the disease that distresses the mind or the emotion that ails the body. Ayurveda is considered as one of the Upaveda's of Atharvaveda and has thus it's origin from Vedas, the oldest recorded wisdom of the Hindus. There is evidence that suggests that in ancient India Ayurveda had spread to several other parts of the world in some form or the other.

In Ayurveda, the mind -body question is not even up for debate - it is a given, that mind and body are one and the same. What effects the mind will effect the body and vice versa. So Ayurveda with it's deep understanding of the cause of disease, the routes of disease and the manifestation of diseases - is often always successful in areas where traditional medicine fails or only offers symptomatic management.

Ayurveda advocates a complete promotive, preventive and curative system of medicine and include eight major clinical specialties of medicine namely, (I) Medicine (Kayachikitsa) (2) Surgery (Salya Tantra), (3) ENT (Salakya Tantra), (4) Pediatrics
( Kaumatabhritya), (5) Psychiatry (Bhutvidya), (6) Toxicology (Agad Tantra), (7) Nutrition, rejuvenation and geriatrics (Rasayan tantra), (8) Sexology and virilization (Vajikarana). This shows what a developed science Ayurveda was in ancient times.

The Britishers came down heavy on the imparting of Ayurvedic knowledge and promoted British owned pharmaceutical companies and modern medicine. Soon, Ayurveda instead of being main stream medicine of the Hindus, like every thing else of the Hindus, was crushed and prevented from developing. Ayurveda's importance diminished and faded away as generations of Indians were beguiled and misinformed with the quick fixes and rapid cures of modern medicine.

A national brain washing by modern 'rational Maculay education" was underway and medicine based upon Cartesian model of man as machine - soul less and stripped of choices- treating the 'liver' and the 'gall bladder' not the person as a whole - came to stay. Medicine was no longer about preventing disease, optimizing life, or to bring back to balance, rejuvenate and if death were inevitable - preparing for the final journey with dignity.

Modern medicine was all about a world full of hostile allergens, bacteria, microbes out to get us. Ayurveda's premise that unless and until the host’s inner immunity caves in - no allergy or infection will manifest was quickly forgotten and so were the accompanying behaviors which ensure optimum immunity, strong metabolism (agni), and ability to resist and adapt to change of season and different living and environmental conditions, etc. Plants and animals are constantly altering and adapting their inner balance to be in equilibrium with the changing outer environment.

The Hindu in modern India now had a pill, an antidote, an inoculation, a guarantee! The message was loud and clear: Live as you want, eat as your tongue dictates, sexually indulge per fantasy and generally believe (and support) that the anti - death / anti - aging pill is only a matter of some more research and time.

Ayurveda is based on certain fundamental principles that pertain to life (of man, plants and animals) on this earth. These fundamental rules have not changed since the beginning of time itself. One is often over awed by at the wisdom of the ancient Hindu scientists who unfolded the secrets of nature after astute observation and re-examination of evidence for centuries. So rest assured Ayurveda made no declaration's in a hurry or even based it's studies on 20 year controlled study of mice!

Ayurveda’s laboratory was the entire universe, it's ingredients simply the basic building blocks of this universe itself: the great 5 elements (panch maha bhutas) - Space (Akash), Air (Vayu), Fire (Tejas), Water (Aap) and Earth (prithvi). Shake up the 5 elements and you have the recipe for creating this universe in all it's entirety and variety.
Man is a part and parcel of this universe and can hardly be considered in isolation. The pancha maha bhautik Sharira (body) along with manas (mind) and atman (soul) constitutes you and I, the Purusha (the living, breathing, feeling self) in constant interaction with the outer universe (loka). The pancha maha bhautic body will one day become exactly that: reduced to ashes and the atman in it's eternal quest to unite with the parmatma (univerasl spirit / soul) will move up and down in the karmic wheel taking on new bodies, discarding old ones; as per it's evolutionary agenda and consciousness.

The self of the person (Purusha) is a continuum of the universal self while the physical body composed of pancha maha bhutas (five great elements) originates from the pancha maha bhautik seed and derives nourishment from food and drinks of the similar composition. Hence equilibrium and non-antagonism between the internal and external milieu of man is essential for the maintenance of the living body. Since the individual human being is the miniature replica of the universe; the individual (purusha) and the universe (loka) stay in constant interaction with each other and also derive and draw materials from each other in order to maintain their normalcy and homoestasis.

This interaction and exchange continues in a normal way such as by breathing the air, eating foods available in nature, etc. So long as this interaction is wholesome and optimum, the man is in optimum health. When this harmonious process breaks down, a disease state starts. Hence in Ayurveda the main principle of treatment will be to restore harmonious exchange between Purusha (human being's internal universe) and Loka (external universe) and restore to normal the panchmahabhutas composing the purusha (mind and body) with due processes.

Ayurveda is deeply concerned with the concept of true balance. This balance entails not only a correct functioning of systems and organs, psyche, and spirit, but also a balanced and creative relationship with our fellow creatures, nature as a whole, between family members, our climate, the civilization we live in, between our ideals and customs, between truth and our selves, with God, etc Ayurvedic texts flourish details on right behavior, right thinking, right action and right response, right eating, right lifestyle, etc. A healthy individual makes for a healthy society and a body that is balanced holds a spirit that is free - free for spiritual advancement.

' Healthy' is termed as 'Swastha' in Ayurveda - one who stays in his 'sva' (self). This 'sva' involves the total personality of man comprising of consciousness (atman), body (sharira) and mind (manas). "sva' also denotes prakriti, 'constitutional normalcy' which makes the concept of sva different from person to person. This is quite different from the world of ideal blood counts, ideal height -weight ratios, ideal heart rate etc. Ayurveda regards each individual as unique, a brand new painting with it's own set of colors. So what may be normal to one and constitute his or health may be quite abnormal to another.

Ayurveda believes that people do not come from a cookie cutter - so Ayurveda provides the encouragement and tools for self analysis, understanding one's native nature (prakruti) and departure from one's native nature (Vikruti). Ayurveda recommends a return to nature, to what is simple and intrinsic to life, and provides information to make responsible choices which promote good physical and mental health.

Pratichi Mathur is a native of India and belongs to a 900 year unbroken lineage of Vedic healers. Pratichi is Founder of the Ganesha Institute of Ayurveda and Vedic Studies and has served on the Board of the California Association of Ayurvedic Medicine. She has been a healer to many prominent figures in India as well as the U.S. Practichi is passionately committed to bringing the healing power of Ayurveda to the West.
Her offices are located in San Francisco, Oakland and Sunnyvale CA.
www.healingmission.com health@healingmission .com. 800-924-6815

Why I Practice Yoga
Rebecca Fellows

When people ask me what first got me interested in yoga I always have to say that I did not find yoga; yoga found me. Whether it was just curiosity about a growing trend or a deep- rooted sense that I needed to connect with my inner self, I cannot say. What I do know is that I was hooked after the first class. Before I knew it I was showing up to class religiously, despite my busy and hectic schedule. Some inner wisdom that told me that yoga was what I needed. Little did I know that I was beginning to embark on the journey that would lead me to my find my true passion; Teaching yoga and studying the healing arts.

Yoga never fails to be a mirror of what is going on with my life. For this reason, my regular practice is so vital to me. If I’m feeling scattered or stress, its reflected in my practice. Conversely, I can savor the peaceful feeling I have when I’ve done some personal growth because my practice is more fluid and my mind more in tune with my inner workings. Through my daily practice I learn to disconnect from internal chatter and focus on the essence of who I am – which is something I have always found very hard to do before I discovered yoga. I see my practice as a daily reality check. It also gives me a safe space to work on letting go of stress and ego while giving myself permission to take risks.

Through my yoga I learn how to shed all the layers of distraction and get down to the bare bones what I am feeling. There are many days where I still struggle with the practice – being focused mentally or being able to let go physically. At first these days bothered me because I would let me ego get involved and I was trying to be the perfect yoga student. Now when I find myself “trying” so hard I have to laugh at myself because I’ve come to realize that the very nature of yoga is to let go and just “be” in the body, whatever that means for the day. Of course this doesn’t mean that no effort is involved, but trying too hard usually just results in less fulfillment from the practice.

About 4 years into my practice, yoga began to evolve into something that I could also share with others through teaching. Now I value not just my own practice but watching my students in their practice. I always try to keep in mind that every teacher is also a student and every student a teacher, and this way I learn so much from watching the progression of others’ in my classes. Teaching yoga has also awakened me to look at elements of myself that just doing a daily practice didn’t reveal. For example, I have tendencies towards being critical and somewhat judgmental, and through teaching yoga I’ve learned patience and to accept the class for what it is with expectations.

I quickly came to realize that the way I feel about my teaching is really just a mirror of what I am feeling about myself. If I want to create a space where students are challenged but also given permission to take risks and accepted, I needed to do the personal work in order to create that space. Consequently I have learned to enjoy my classes no matter what happens and I love seeing students work thorough their own struggles and grow in their practice!

When I had my first yoga teacher training evaluation done, the comment at the bottom of the pages was “your body loves yoga”. The feeling I get when I’m in a posture and I can just completely surrender to the pose feels like heaven to me. The creativity, the discipline, the sacredness of the yoga philosophy are all things that I value about the practice. I have challenged my body and my mind through yoga and no matter how much I practice or teach, I never seem to grow tired. For me yoga is as dynamic and ever changing as the individuals who practice.

Rebecca Fellows found yoga five years ago and has been an avid practitioner ever since. One year ago she became a teacher and now a student at the Institute of Progressive Therapies in San Diego where she is working towards a 200 hour certificate. Rebecca teaches mostly Vinyasa but has been influenced by Astanga and Iyengar styles as well. She has a special interest in prenatal yoga and yoga for disabilities as well as Reiki. Rebecca can be reached at mefellows@yahoo.com

Fifteen Benefits From a Daily Dose of Meditation
Trina Swerdlow, B.F.A.

As a teacher of meditation and a meditator for over 25 years, I hear many people say that finding time to meditate is a BIG challenge! Daily responsibilities often include kids, pets, spouses, and jobs--making meditation the LAST priority on a person’s To-do List.

In fact, for many of us in today’s fast-paced society, chronic multi-tasking has become a way of life. Of course, multi-tasking can be a great skill in order to accomplish things on various levels, but it becomes problematic when we feel uncomfortable slowing down to focus on a single activity. Multi-tasking can also create poor communications if we’re not emotionally present and able to fully listen to our loved ones.

In your own life, do you notice that it’s often difficult to slow down and take breaks throughout the day? If you find yourself continuously pushing to get things done, you may have a "Pusher Self" that’s taken over your "inner committee." (In case you’ve not heard this term before, an inner committee is an internal board of directors that’s made up of a person’s various inner parts or selves).

When I lead workshops that assist people in exploring their casts of characters, I get numerous opportunities to meet attendee’s Pusher Selves. And, from knowing my own Inner Pusher, I’ve seen how this part can take over and not allow other members of the inner committee to have a voice in the decision-making process. Unfortunately, when this part dominates our lives, a health challenge may result from pushing too hard--for too long.

If you’re a chronic "doer," in order to increase your inner committee’s balance, you could learn to connect with your inner self that knows how to "just be..." In this way, the Being Self allows you to let go and feel fully present in the moment. This willingness to "be" also helps you to let go during meditation. A healthy response that often happens when people let go in meditation is that they calm the swirling tensions in their minds. Then, their bodies follow the lead of the mind and begin to also release muscle tensions.

Over the last 30 years, more than one thousand different laboratory studies exploring the effects of meditation have been reported in various scientific publications. Brain scans, EEGs, and blood tests are only some of the scientific research methods that have been utilized. These research findings provide concrete evidence showing both the physical and psychological benefits of meditation.

Physical benefits include increased stamina and energy, faster recovery, significantly lowered blood pressure, and reductions in stress-related diseases such as heart disease and hypertension. Meditation has also shown to significantly lower physical pain from back injury and arthritis. And, meditation improves people’s coordination, motor skills, and abilities to play sports (golf, tennis, basketball...)

Likewise, several hundred studies confirm that a 20-minute daily meditation practice improves a person’s psychological state and maximizes his ability to mentally perform. Other findings include decreased anxiety and depression, as well as increased concentration, empathy, and creativity.

Okay, now that you know about all these wonderful health benefits, what’s holding you back from committing to a meditation practice? Let’s face it--administering a daily dose of meditation could be a HEARTFELT GIFT for your body, mind, and spirit! So remember to go INWARD, before going OUTWARD...

Trina Swerdlow, B.F.A., is an Author, Illustrator, and Meditation Teacher living in Northern California. Trina’s recently published Meditation Journal is featured on her website--address below. She also designed the cover, edited, and illustrated the workbook, Reversing Stress and Burnout. Other creative endeavors in the publishing world include art directing, writing, and illustrating whimsical characters for books, greeting cards, posters, and many other gift products distributed internationally.
Trina offers Beginning and Advanced Meditation classes, in addition to individual sessions.
Meditation Website: http://www.TrinasArtSite.com/Meditation
Email: info@TrinasArtSite.com 925-687-6499

Note: Meditation is never a substitute for medical treatment with a licensed therapist
or qualified physician.

What? Cholesterol is Essential?
Joy Lasater Ph.D., Holistic Nutritionist

There are probably as many myths about fats as there are about dieting.
Fat or lipids are a family of compounds comprised of three basic categories:
Triglycerides (better known as fats and oils), Phospholipids (example-
lecithin) and Sterols (example- cholesterol). The first category,
Triglycerides, are further broken down into the subcategories: Glycerol and
Fatty Acids. Within the Fatty Acid subcategory there are three types:
saturated fats, monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats. Enough about
biochemistry!

Which fats are best for you? Not saturated fats from animal sources,
coconut and palm oils. These fats are often found in packaged foods and
baked goods. People on a diet to lose weight need to reduce the intake of
all fats, especially the saturated fats. The unsaturated fats are healthier
than the saturated fats. There are two types of unsaturated fats:
monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Mono-unsaturated fats are more stable
and are considered healthier that polyunsaturated fats.

How is cholesterol essential to my health? The body manufactures
cholesterol and it plays an important role in metabolism.
Cholesterol is a soft waxy substance that circulates in the bloodstream. It is found in almost every cell of our body,
aids in the manufacture of sex and adrenal hormones for males and females,
helps the body manufacture Vitamin D and bile acids which assist in fat
digestion, helps form the insulation around nerves and acts as a lubricant
to artery walls reducing friction of blood flow. A large portion of the
brain is composed of cholesterol and the liver produces it if not enough is
obtained from foods. Not a problem in most diets!

We are born with a cholesterol level of about 70. As we grow up this
level gradually increases to 210 or 220, the average adult level. What are
the best numbers? Some sources say that a total cholesterol level below 200
is best. 200 to 239 is considered to be borderline high. 240 and up is
considered to be high risk. In contrast to a low total cholesterol reading,
a high HDL reading is desirable. Generally around 80 is a good level
according to some sources and triglyceride levels should range between 70
and 150.

Oxidized forms of cholesterol become unstable, decompose and form
free-radicals which damage blood vessel walls. Food sources to avoid would
include animal fat, beef, pork, ham, dairy products, packaged mixes, fried
foods and eggs. Foods that raise triglyceride levels are refined
carbohydrates such as white flour products, white sugar, white bread, cakes,
cookies and candy, sodas, alcohol, too much fruit and coffee (more than 2
cups daily).

How can I lower my cholesterol level without drugs? Researchers say it
is not dietary cholesterol that raises blood level cholesterol but eating
too much saturated fats and trans fats. Stress also greatly increases it.
Eat more fiber containing vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds and legumes.
Cut down on beef and dairy products. Learn to manage your stress response
with yoga, meditation and moderate exercise. Talk to your nutritionist about
a cholesterol lowering food plan and natural supplements.

Joy Lasater, Ph.D. is a Holistic Nutritionist with a private practice in the Bay Area.
She custom designs nutrition programs, teaches classes, writes books and
provides presentations to companies about appropriate choices for energy,
weight control, stress management and longevity. You will find more
information on her web site www.joyhealth.com or call 925 708-0498.