Yoga All-in-One For Dummies
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Seniors get many benefits, such as reduced prices at restaurants and hotels, and (usually) a prime seat on a crowded bus! But Power Yoga brings you better benefits: the benefits of mental and physical health. If you’ve been active all your life, you may not notice some of the typical changes of an aging body: Muscles get tighter, reaction times slow, and breathing can become shallower, limiting endurance. Power Yoga fights many signs of aging by offering these benefits:

  • Increased flexibility: Power Yoga stretches muscles to increase flexibility and reduce stiffness.

  • Stronger respiratory and cardiovascular systems: Regular practice strengthens your respiratory system; as you consume more oxygen during your workouts and yoga breathing exercises, your lung capacity goes up and your prana energy (vital life force) flourishes. By oxygenating your blood, you nourish your entire body — blood, muscles, and brain. You feel refreshed and can think more clearly.

  • Increased muscle strength: Research touts the benefits of weightlifting for the elderly, including the prevention of osteoporosis. Power Yoga is a form of weightlifting. Your practice challenges you to lift, push, and pull the weight of your body as you move into one yoga posture after another.

  • Better endurance, balance, and coordination: You grow stronger and build endurance to keep going longer. Power Yoga increases your coordination and balance, too. These are critical factors for leading an active, healthy life and avoiding painful, crippling falls and accidents.

  • Confidence and peace of mind: With an energetic, strong, well-balanced, and vital body, you feel confident and at peace. You can think of Power Yoga as your ticket to a powerful and happy life throughout the years ahead.

If you think of Power Yoga as a full-throttle, no-holds-barred workout process, you may think that you’re not interested in — or not capable of — doing it. Well, if Power Yoga is a wild beast, it’s one you’re perfectly capable of taming. Just as walking is the beginning phase of running, which is just another step down from marathon racing, Power Yoga can be as gentle or as demanding as you want it to be.

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Larry Payne and Georg Feuerstein are the authors of Yoga All-In-One For Dummies, published by Wiley.

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