“Truly a flexible back makes for a long life.” – Chinese proverb
“Beyond the very extreme of fatigue and distress, we may find amounts of ease and power we never dreamed ourselves to own; sources of strength never taxed at all because we never push through the obstruction.”
– William James
YOGA INTRO:
Yoga is the oldest system of personal development in the world. Yoga is another advanced physical training system from the past that is experiencing resurgence – like kettlebells, but on a much larger scale. The 2005 “Yoga in America” survey showed that more than 16 million people do yoga on a regular basis, with the 18-24 age group showing a 46% increase in one year.
The yoga that is most popular here in the West consists of physical postures and breathing exercises. Yoga postures work systemically on all parts of the body – stretching and toning the muscles and connective tissues, keeping the spine and joints flexible and improving the circulation. Today, there can no longer be any doubt as to Yoga’s effectiveness as both a curative and preventative therapy.
Yoga is strengthening and enlightening, it can shed unwanted pounds while toning the muscles. It also operates on a deeper level, – positively reconditioning the internal organs, glands and nervous systems. With regular practice, people eat, sleep and feel better – which makes Yoga a supremely practical and worthwhile pursuit.
It has never been easier to be coaxed into a sedentary lifestyle. The resulting tightness and weakness of our musculo-skeletal systems has resulted in unnatural body mechanics, poor posture and innumerable orthopedic issues and surgeries. Tight muscles, tendons and ligaments prevent our joints from moving thru their full range of motion. This creates physical as well as energetic blockages, which manifest as tension, pain, weakness and a predisposition to injury. The postures of yoga are refined body positions which lengthen the muscles and connective tissue, allowing the joint to regain its health and full mobility. Yoga postures not only stretch the muscular system and move the joints through their full range of motion, but promote a positive sense of well-being as well.
Like kettlebells, yoga has the ability to develop cardiovascular health and musculoskeletal strength and mobility – without the painful side effects of some modern forms of exercise, such as high impact aerobics and bodybuilding. Yoga postures offer a potent vocabulary of movement.
These systematic inventions presuppose a mastery of human physiology which still perplexes the world of modern science. Their correct application will offer immense preventative and therapeutic benefits, and can restore the vigor and natural health that is our birthright.
THE YOGA OF KET YOGA:
The yoga of Ket Yoga is based on Mahaprana Yoga. Mahaprana Yoga is an athletic, clutter-free style that works and tones virtually every muscle in the body. This yoga will put you on the fast track to dramatic increases in flexibility and power, and is unlike any Yoga that you have experienced before.
Mahaprana Yoga was developed and created in the birthplace of yoga by Himalayan Yoga Master, Dr. Yogi Agnivesh. Mahaprana Yoga is the continuation of a lineage that traces its roots back to the ancient sages of India. Mahaprana Yoga provides an extremely effective and efficient way to build strength and endurance, lose weight, increase flexibility and circulation, decrease stress and tension and improve breathing.
The objective of Ket Yoga is not necessarily to twist you into contortions of ever-increasing complexity, leaving you more mangled and dramatically increasing the likelihood of injury. Hyper- flexibility is not a desirable state, and has been shown to have numerous detrimental effects. The power of Mahaprana Yoga is that is strengthening, while promoting a dramatically increased level of functional flexibility.
PRANA SANCHALAN WARM UP EXERCISES
An important element of Mahaprana Yoga is a unique set of exercises called Prana Sanchalan Kriya. Used primarily as a warm-up, they also stand alone as physical exercises with tremendous benefit. These dynamic, body-heating exercises involve a lot of powerful breathing and have been described as energizing, oxygenating and refreshing. They require you to pump the lungs fast and forcefully, using and strengthening all the muscles of the respiratory system. They raise the heart rate and metabolism in a similar fashion to sprints, or other forms of high-intensity cardio.
KET YOGA: BREATHING
We start breathing when we are born, and when we stop breathing, we die. Breathing is obviously the most vital process of our entire body. In light of this, it is astonishing how little attention we normally pay to the importance of breathing correctly.
On average, human beings breathe 21,600 times per day. Yet, most people have forgotten how to breathe correctly. They breathe shallowly through the mouth, using only a small portion of their lung capacity, which leaves their thoracic and diaphragmatic muscles tight and weak. Shallow breathing deprives the body of the oxygen that is essential to good health. This results in a lack of vitality and a compromised immune system. Additionally, shallow breathing deprives our internal organs of the movement that is essential to their proper functioning.
The good news is that our prana / breath can be dramatically improved with proper training. Mahaprana Yoga teaches us the most effective and efficient ways in which we can assist, strengthen and smooth the flow of breath. This means breathing through the nose, keeping the mouth closed, and having the powerful capacity to bring the whole of your lungs into play when inhaling and exhaling. This, in turn, enables us to disperse blockages, assist purification, and vitalize the whole of our body. Breathing through the nose warms and filters the air, regulates the breath, and maximizes the amount of oxygen that is absorbed. When we consciously train, restore and balance our breath, we feel full of life.
Mahaprana Yoga places emphasis on the exhale. Our exhale is an important part of the body’s waste removal. The more stale air that you exhale, the more fresh air you can inhale. Actually, the exhale releases not only physical waste elements, ie CO2, but emotional and psychological waste as well. This reflects the integral relation between the breath and the mind. Although the human brain makes up only 2% of the body’s weight, it consumes 20% of the oxygen that the body uses. Thereby, proper breathing enables us to bring more oxygen to the blood and thus to the brain.
Breathing is the most vital process of the body. By increasing our capacity to breathe, more energy is taken in and stored in the body – this gives us greater vitality and strength. By applying the practices of Mahaprana Yoga, our breath becomes strong, balanced and in tune with Nature.
