Anatomy 101 - Know Your Body

When I looked up the word anatomy, I found several definitions but I like this one best. Anatomy is the body structure of an animal including the internal position of organs and bones and external features. In reading that definition I realized that I had spent too much time focusing on the "body structure" and "external features" of people I see in the media and very little time focusing on me. Growing up I was the girl who wanted to look like Janet Jackson, because she had the perfect "body structure" and "external features" that all the boys in my high school class wanted. No, I wasn't a big kid, but I wasn't the smallest girl in class either. I just wanted to look as good in my clothes as Janet did in hers. I studied all her moves and even learned the whole dance routine from her Pleasure Principle video. That wasn't easy considering the fact that I couldn't record the video and watch it over and over to get the dance moves just right. As I got older I realized that Janet and I were not shaped the same way, so I had to accept my body for what it was and move on.

I learned about body types when I took a class that was offered at my church. The instructor, Althea Lawton-Thompson of Aerobics, Yoga & More? Fitness and Dance Studios, explained the three basic body types and what type of workout routine works best for each type. Then she did one-on-one consultations with everyone in the class and told them what there body type was. After the class I realized that I was looking at anatomy the wrong way. No wonder I can't get the six pack abs that Janet Jackson has; we don't have the same body structure. My body is built to gain muscle easily, but it also packs on the fat just the same. I have an all around athletic build which will help me lose weight quickly as long as I am consistent with my strength training. With that in mind I decided to take Althea's advice and just do me. I began to workout smarter and not harder. I studied my body type, changed my exercise routine and started seeing some really good results.

Search anywhere on the web and you'll find lots of ways to learn about your body type. The choices are the Ectomorph, the Mesomorph, the Endomorph, or you could be a Combination of two body types. The three main body types make up the physique that your body's genetics will naturally follow. So it's a good idea to try to find your body type before you start to work with a trainer or buy new exercise equipment. The condition of your body type has more to do with bone structure and your body's frame than the muscle tissue itself. No matter what body type you are, there is a nutrition and exercise plan that will work just for you to get your body in the best shape possible. If you're in the Atlanta area and you want to learn more about Althea and her studio, please visit aymfitness.com aymfitness.com.

Felicia B. White is a photographer, song writer and poet. She graduated from the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale and moved to Georgia with her husband 12 years ago. Felicia and her husband found a church home at Berean Christian Church in 2005 and they have been using their ever growing faith in God to lose weight and build a better marriage. Felicia is writing poetry and weight loss articles to help her win her battle with weight. Hope you enjoy the articles. To read other articles please visit healthylivingdietplans.com healthylivingdietplans.com.

Yoga Teacher Certification for the Rich and Famous

Do you think the high cost of becoming a Yoga Teacher is too far out of reach? Will you have to sacrifice your family's life savings to become a Yoga instructor? How will you be able to justify the time off from work needed to gain your Yoga certification?

There are cost-effective, and less expensive solutions, to learn to teach Yoga by becoming a certified Yoga instructor, without the cost of an "arm and a leg."

Recently, I was talking to an intern from an outside Yoga Teacher Training program, which had paid nearly $10,000.00 for on-site training, on an exclusive tropical island. He was upset, since he had borrowed tuition costs from his parents, and possibly sacrificed his job, in order to become a certified Hatha Yoga Teacher.

He visited my web site for a Yoga teacher correspondence course and discovered my course was a fraction of the cost he and his family paid. He asked me how this is possible. I explained that we do not need to feed, house, or supply hundreds of Yoga interns. On top of that, there are no transportation costs to be concerned with, when using a Yoga home study course. The only cost is for materials, tutoring, and Yoga teacher certification.

Further, I explained that to be trained in a face-to-face setting, by a Master Yoga Teacher, is more expensive due to the "hands on" time spent with his teacher. After all, we have an onsite Yoga Teacher program that is more expensive than our correspondence course.

Time spent learning Yoga from a Master Teacher, or a Guru, is a valuable service. Our course is designed for an experienced Yoga practitioner who doesn't need as much hands on help or who has a local Yoga teacher for guidance.

He continued the conversation to ask me about technical support, and I explained that we handle it by Email, over the phone, and some interns stop by for our Yoga teacher workshops. We have had Yoga teacher trainees visit us from California and Great Britain to attend a workshop. By the sound of his voice, he seemed depressed, and I asked him, "What is wrong?"

He told me that he hadn't been taught anything about the marketing involved in the Yoga business or about business in general. He felt it would take a long time to pay his parents back and didn't know if his job would still be available to him when he gets back home.

Then, I explained that we have Yoga marketing and business tools in our standard course and as a separate course for experienced Yoga teachers. I invited him to come to a Yoga marketing workshop when he gets back to the States, and, we both, made a new friend.

We all feel a "calling" to do work that gives us satisfaction. It helps to have a passion about our work and to know that you are helping others along the way. This is one of the many benefits of teaching Yoga, but I advise you to research the cost of Yoga instructor education, and to be careful not to put yourself too far in debt. Otherwise, your passion for Yoga could turn into a financial worry - well into the future. This would make it difficult to teach the benefits of Yoga to your students, while you are stressed out over your bills.

Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

Who Should Become a Yoga Teacher?

Lately, there has been a fuss over who has a right to become a Yoga teacher; but let's look at some of the variables to consider if you desire to teach Yoga. Consider the following questions, "from both sides of the Yoga certification debate."

Do you have the correct Yoga lineage? This is interesting because - what exactly is the correct Yoga lineage? There are so many styles of Yoga and many sub-styles of those Yoga styles. In general, you should know who your Yoga teachers were and possibly, who their teachers were.

However, Yoga traveled outside of India in a variety of ways. Although there have been many famous Indian Gurus, who helped Yoga flourish worldwide, the British carried Yoga abroad, as well. There are competent Yoga teachers, who trace their Yoga lineage back to Englishmen, who served in India.

Some of the first non-Indian Yoga teachers did not have extensive Yoga training under the guidance of a Guru, but a few did. Consider this idea: If you know nothing about Yoga, but I know a little something - I can show you what little I know. This happens with any form of shared knowledge, and the person who knows a little more about Yoga, becomes a Yoga teacher.

Granted, we are considering the beginning of Yoga's worldwide proliferation, but now we have 21st century Yoga teacher certification in a fast-changing world - with a variety of styles and approaches to overall health.

There are many new forms of Hatha Yoga being created and evolving at this moment. If you have a traditional Yoga lineage, that's wonderful, but times change, and so does Yoga.

I can remember when some traditional Yoga teachers did not believe in the Yoga teacher certification process. For example: The master Yoga teacher did not have a Yoga teacher's diploma, and would not fill one out for their long-time students, who worked as "substitute Yoga teachers," in the ashram.

Some of these substitutes had over twenty years of experience in Yoga practice, and taught classes when the master teacher was on vacation, but the master Yoga teacher would still not certify them.

Meanwhile some Yoga certifications were obtained, over a weekend Yoga teacher training intensive, by people who just needed a quick Yoga certification for a health club.

So, who has a right to become a Yoga teacher? Anybody, I guess, but Yoga certification bodies should stick to the 200 study hour minimum standard for graduates of their Yoga teacher training programs.

Yoga teacher interns should have at least two years of steady practice, under the guidance of a Yoga teacher, before entering the Yoga teacher certification process. Correspondence and distance learning, for Yoga teachers, should also conform to the 200-hour minimum standard.

© Copyright 2006 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in Attleboro, MA. riyoga.com riyoga.com He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. To receive a Free e-Book: "Yoga in Practice," and a Free Yoga Newsletter, please visit: yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

Yoga Teacher Certification - Learn and Make Huge Money

Yoga is traditional heritage of India which deals with both physical and mental disciplines and now being practiced all over the world. If you are expert in yoga (or you are planning to be one) then you can get mammoth amount of money by starting a yoga teacher certification program.

So why people will come to you learn yoga? Answer is simple to feel good. Yoga energizes the body and soul and people feel lot better in their day to day life and at work. People feel less distortion and get more peace of mind after doing the practices of yoga. In modern world, people don't have time to go to gymnasium or other such places. Being able to perform it at home, office or any where they want, yoga is comes as first choice for these people. Once you are trained you don't need to go again to again to learn more. You can stick to what you have learnt and keep doing it.

So what expert charges from people interested in learning yoga? I would say no limits. It depends on the expertise and advertisement of trainer who have good setup. Normally trainers charges $3,000 to $5,000 per person. You can imagine how much you can earn if you have class of say 50. Once you are in the business for some years, you can start your own certification program to certify the teachers and such certifications are very expensive to get. But to start a yoga teacher certification you need to follow the bit lengthy but rewarding path starting from learning yoga yourself and then with high reputation in the market, starting your own teacher certification program.

If you need money now, like I mean in the next hour, try what I did. I am making more money now than in my old business and you can too, read the amazing, true story, in the link below. When I joined I was skeptical for just ten seconds before I realized what this was. I was smiling from ear to ear and you will too.

Imagine doubling your money every week with no or little risk! To discover a verified list of Million Dollar Corporations offering you their products at 75% commission to you. Click the link below to learn HOW you will begin compounding your capital towards your first Million Dollars at the easy corporate money program.

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How Does Yoga Stretching Help Lose Arm Fat and Give You That Hot Hollywood Look

It seems yoga stretching and poses isn't only just about developing the flexibility of a rubber band.

You can use stretching to help build muscles and give the muscular lean look like a hot Hollywood model and lose arm fat along the way.

Really? Well I'll explain the association of stretching that builds a firm arm that will convince you to consider changing how you workout.

During weight training there are two things which you can help your arms develop that hard toned look rather than having the softer shape even though you may have a lot of strength.

Do you go to the gym and see girls or guys who workout and who are obviously strong but are still bulky or flabby?

Well there are two things going on with this shape;

Their body fat is too high so it hides all that muscle or
They are lean but they haven't found the way to achieve a hard or firm looking body.

You can not spot reduce fat on your body, you will have to lose weight all over.

The way to fix this is to:

LOWER YOUR BODY FAT

Unless you have low body fat (approximately males 10% or females15%) getting firm arms and even to see your abs is impossible.

Cardio isn't going to fix this quickly it will help but it's your nutrition that needs tweaking.

This the most important issue before you go anywhere near a gym.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Don't worry about all those silly celebrity diets at the best it will only work for a short time.

For the long term health and weight loss make nutrition your priority.

Eat Breakfast, lunch and dinner add in 2 extra smaller meals. keep the portions a bit smaller than you are used to.

There is a time delay between when your stomach is full and the brain receives the message.

So don't eat till you are feeling full.

Eat whole natural unprocessed foods, minimize sugar and drink lots of water.

Any other type of information you find on the Internet is really a waste of your time and money.

There are some strategies that can help like intermittent fasting or calorie cycling but in the end keep to clean foods for MOST of the time.

You will start to lose body fat by doing this and the arm fat is one of the first places you will start to lose (a male loses fat last on his gut, a female loses fat last on her thighs and buttocks).

LIFT WEIGHTS

If your diet is under control then you need to build muscle by lifting weights as heavy as you can for a larger volume. This will harden the muscles.

Some people call it "getting the pump".

Feel it for yourself! When you get the pump (blood gorging into the muscle fibers) feel how hard it becomes.

Now at this point ask "well where is the stretching"?

THIS IS WHERE THE YOGA MAGIC COMES IN!

To help develop lean muscle size there are two things that will help you.

1. GTO (Golgi Tendon Organs)

Strength through yogic stretching is directly related to your Golgi Tendon Reflex threshold.

The GTOs are nerve endings within your tendons that deactivate or shuts down your muscles when you try to lift weights which are too heavy.

Regular stretching gives your muscles the ability to fire more efficiently without shutting down in response to stretched tendons.

The best way to lift heavy is to do 1-3 warm up sets which is sending internal signals to the body to get ready... then "HIT IT" lift your heaviest on the 3-5 sets and watch your records increase.

For firm arms do bicep curls, tricep extensions and lot of dips.

But stretch between sets.

2. FASCIA STRETCHING

Fascia is a membrane the covers the muscle, it helps hold it in place.

If you stretch this at the right time you help give the muscle room to grow.

The right time is immediately after your last set on that muscle group and under a partial load.

Former eastern block coaches trained their power lifters this way and achieved great results.

Both these type of stretching will help you with the chance of developing lean muscles.

Developing lean muscles makes your body more metabolic so it burns more fat and help you lose arm fat.

Heavy lifting and stretching will give you that hardened Hollywood model body look.

Learn more about stretching your GTO by visiting how does zenmyfitness.com/2010/05/yoga-muscle-building Yoga help Muscle Building.

Learn more about how to do zenmyfitness.com/2010/08/fascia-stretching-routines-an-incredibly-effective-muscle-growth-tip Fascia Stretching Routines.

I'm interested in finding and providing helpful information on healthy balanced fitness.

Please feel free to visit my holistic blog called ZenMyFitness.com where it combines Zen, Yoga, Body Building and Nutrition.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Exercise While Pregnant - Use Yoga To Calm Your Body And Mind

Sometimes it is hard to work out while pregnant. Yoga for pregnant women offers moms-to-be an excellent workout that is beneficial for you and your unborn baby. Here is a guide on safe, basic yoga exercises and stretches to practice during pregnancy.

Prenatal yoga has both mental and physical benefits during pregnancy. For one, it is beneficial because it teaches you how to use breathing to soothe your body and mind, factors which will definitely come in handy during childbirth. Learning how to perform the techniques presented in prenatal yoga will prime you for labor and childbirth and it does this by training your body to stay calm.

Yet the benefits of yoga for pregnant women are not only limited to your physical health, as the primary purpose of yoga is to incorporate not just the body, but the mind and the spirit as well. Not only that, but simply being in a positive and nurturing environment with others who are in the same situation as you will help to give you an emotional boost right when you need it most.

There are many yoga poses particularly that are designed for use while pregnant, including the Cobbler or Tailor pose. This is a sitting pose that helps to open up the pelvis. To do this pose, you sit yourself up straight against a wall with the soles of your feet touching each other, and then softly press your knees down and away from each other. Then try to stay in this posture for as long as you can.

Another excellent prenatal yoga position is the pelvic tilt, which is a position that helps to relieve back pain. Get down on your hands and knees with your arms shoulder-width apart and your knees hip-width apart. Make sure to keep your arms straight; then tighten in your abdominal muscles and tuck your buttocks under and round your back, breathing in while you hold the position.

Now, relax your back into its relaxed position, and breathe out, repeating several times.

Finally, another good posture is the squatting position, which helps to open up the pelvis and to strengthen the upper legs. As you start to fill out during pregnancy there are types of support props that you should use to facilitate this position, such as yoga blocks or a pile of books.

You begin by standing facing the back of a chair with your feet spread slightly apart, with your toes pointed outward.Drop your tailbone towards the floor as though you were about to sit down on a chair, but rather than sitting you hold the position there. Take a deep breath in, and at the moment you exhale, push your legs up and rise to a standing position, and then repeat as you feel comfortable.

So if you are pondering how you will possibly exercise while pregnant, consider trying yoga for pregnant women. Not only will you feel great, you'll be accumulating lifelong benefits for you and your baby. This natural exercise program will reduce tension and improve your flexibility. Yoga poses are a wonderful way to enhance your sense of health and well-being, and a practice that you can always manage to accommodate into a mother's busy schedule.

For more information, check out Absolute Natural Health - Yoga Guide [yoga.absolutenaturalhealth.com/] or the articles at yoga4u-now.com Yoga For Life. Unlock your FREE report on Alternative Medicines at absolutenaturalhealth.com Everything You Wanted To Know About Alternative Medicine.

Copyright 2008 Ron King. This article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact and the links live.

Vary Your Workout Routine For Fitness Success

Start researching different workout routines and it quickly becomes evident that there are workout plans that encompass every type, amount, and intensity level of exercise. There are workout plans that focus on low impact activities 6 days a week, workout plans for high impact sessions 3 days a week and other plans for all other schedules in between. There is no one workout plan or exercise regimen that is best for everyone, just many options for people to try.

Using different workout routines can have several benefits for your fitness level. Changing up your workout plan can force your body's metabolism into high gear helping you burn fat faster. Many people also find it easier to maintain an exercise plan that consists of a variety of activities. Below are some different workout plan options; each with their own unique strengths and weaknesses. You may find success with one or more likely a mixture of several.

Running/ Swimming

Running and swimming are all effective workout plans. They combine a good combination of both cardiovascular and muscular fitness. They are also easily scalable to whatever your fitness level may be. If you are just beginning a workout plan these two options are particularly appealing as it is easy to start slowly.

Yoga/ Pilates

Yoga and pilates are quickly gaining popularity as workout plans. Both can be excellent methods of improving strength, flexibility, and balance. There are many different forms of yoga with a variety of focuses. Some forms such as Iyengar Yoga are primarily concerned with alignment while others, including Bikram Yoga, provide a more taxing cardiovascular workout. Pilates workout plans can also cover a range of impact levels and movements.

Weight Training

Weight training is a workout plan that can provide a high degree of muscular fitness and if done correctly flexibility. There is even a type of weight training called circuit training that can provide cardiovascular benefits. Weight training can be a difficult and doctor should be consulted before beginning training regimen. Proper exercise selection, resistance setting and form are imperative for this type of workout plan to be effective.

Commuting

Even your daily commute can be a workout plan. Walking or biking to work is a great way to a fit a workout plan into your schedule. Even if walking or biking the entire distance is not possible determine if there are certain portions of your daily travels that can be covered on foot or bike. Even small distances can have significant impact of maintained every day. With high gas prices and environmental concerns this workout plan provides more than just fitness benefits as well.

These are just several of the infinite workout plans that if executed properly and maintained can lead to substantial and long lasting health gains. More likely a combination of many workout plans will be most effective in achieving your fitness goals.

For more information on diet, nutrition, and healthy living visit dietplanstoday.com dietplanstoday.com