10 Minute Workout – Cardio Body Fix

There are times when people tend to fit in a quick workout due to the fountain of energy which is rushed into the body is hugely required for the body based on its needs. There are several reasons as to why there is a need for 10 minutes workout to be included as part of daily routine

Top three reasons for making time for a 10 minute workout:

• To lessen the feeling of being too tightened which can be relieved with 10 minute workout giving a surge of energy into the body and giving sufficient time to set focus back on properly.
• 10 minute workout is often considered to be sufficient for those who do not have much time to spend for workout or have missed out on their daily routine.
• Doing some or the other exercise even if it is for 10 minutes is much better when compared to not doing the exercise at all. 10 minutes training session is also said to be effective when compared to not going with longer training sessions.

For this shorter session of training to show positive results it is suggested to put exclusive focus on one particular area of the body or even a type of exercise routine which will add flexibility to the body. Here is the 10 minute cardio workout routine which is said to show effective results for sure when followed as given below:

Pre-Cardio 2 Minute Warm Up

• It is necessary that this warm up will loosen the body and increase heart rate to adjust to the upcoming exercises, this 120 seconds of warm up will be sufficient to ease the body for workout however this will also be needed exclusive focus when body feels all tightened up.
• March on one spot for 30 seconds at the same time the arms also have to be moved in circular motion.
• Later march by bringing knees higher and swinging the arms.
• Stand with feet shoulder wide apart and do calf rises by rising up on toes and holding so for about a second before getting back to normal position.
• It has to be followed by squats which have to be done with legs held shoulder wide, for which the body has to be made into sitting back position like it is usually done when we sit on chair which has to be held for about a second after which the body has to be got back into standing position.
• Shallow lunges, for which a step has to be taken ahead and step backward with one leg, put bags on hips with a straight back take one big step ahead, slowly lowering the back get down the knee on ground which has to be held on for about 2 seconds which has to be even repeated for other leg.
• Continuously jog in one place for about 30 seconds.

8 Minute Fat Burning Moves

Best thing about this cardio exercise is that they are much more operational also providing simple choice among huge list of exercises available which provide full body workout for the body also making it fun to work at. Below are some of the simple exercises suggested which will help in getting the heart to fat burning zone which not need any equipment, also it is suggested to make sure that each exercise will be continued for 30 seconds:

Jumping Jacks:

Keep feet together and stand up with arms on sides, take a step to the side then get back to former position. Same has to be repeated to other side as well, continue this alternately till the steady pace can be used to. Now add movement of swinging the arms while taking side steps then swing back the arms on to the sides while getting the feet together.

Power Jumping Jacks:

Stand with feet together and arms on the side then jump with both feet onto sides when the arms are brought up on to the head which forms the shape of star. Now get into squat position which has to be held so for about two seconds and get back into starting position.

Running:

Running on one spot where the knees are brought up while swinging the arms back and forth in perfect rhythm.

Sprint:

Start sprinting at one place but has to be done at faster pace which also is powerful at the same time.

Squats:

Stand feet with shoulder wide distance and make sitting position as if there is an imaginary chair which has to be held on for a second then getting back onto the standing position.

Burpees:

It is a combination exercise of squat, vertical jump and push up for which it has to start off with squat on haunches by placing the hands on floor. Now get into push up position by slowly lowering the chest onto the ground with the help of arms now get back up immediately which will finish up with pushups. Later the feet have to be got back into their initial position.

Side Step:

Start with keeping the feet together and leaving arms loosely on the sides, now take a step sideways to left while leaning forward at the same time reach with the right hand across to the body diagonally on left knee then tap with right foot on left. Get back to initial position while repeating the same with other side.

Speed Skaters:

Same movement used in side step can be used for this instead of stepping jumping has to be done both to the side and back for which even the arms have to be used as an alternative while trying to go with sideways with each jump.

It has to be understood that each of this exercise has to be repeated two times since it is fun and creative once this routine is followed on regular basis which can be alternated to normal and regular exercise which is possible with 10 minute cardio workout.

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Overview of Yoga

YOGA - A System of Physical excercise and Natural Healing

Yoga as a system of physical exercise has been in existence in India since very ancient times. According ot our ancient sages, there are eight stages of Yoga, namely Yama (Social Discipline), Niyama (Individual Discipline), Asana (Postures), Pranayama (Breath Control), Pratyahara (Mental Discipline), Dharana (Concentration), Dhyana (Meditation) and Samadhi (Self-realization). If an aspirant, after observing the disciplines of Yama and Niyama, practises Yogic exercises, his tubular channels are cleansed, he achieves excellent health and his mind becomes alert. This enables him to experience mental ecstasy.

INTRODUCTION TO YOGA
Man has made tremendous progress in almost every walk of life. We have now achieved objects once considered impossible to be achieved. What we have achieved and accomplished today could not have been imagined in their dreams by our past generations. Modern scientists and researchers have absolutely changed our life-style. Science has beenincessantly pouring on us new materials and devices to make our physical life more happy and comfortable.

However, pollution of air, water, body and mind is also the result of science. We witness despair and disappointment on the faces of our young generation. Signs of restlessness are apparently visible in the dry and dull eyes of our young men and women. Sloping shoulders, flat chests and bulging stomachs have become their characteristics. Why?

Today, we can claim that we are modern and civilized but cannot claim that we are genuinely happy. We, today, use tranquillizers for sleep, pills for purgative and tonics for vigour. Tranquillizers and sedatives are in vogue in our modern society. Charmed by and then, addicted to intoxicative drugs, our youth is led to the path of disgrace and self-destruction.

Longing for material wealth has hardened our heart. Human values are declining. Work to time, competition and commotion have made us suffer from stress and strain. Mental tension or strain produces undesirable consequences. Stress and strain are the causes of physical as well as psychological diseases such as diabetes, cancer, acidity, ulcer, migraine and hypertension.

How can we prevent ourselves from being strained and degenerated? Should we return to the cave-life and live as the aborigines lived?

As a matter of fact, to do this is neither practical nor necessary. Yoga has the surest remedies for man's physical as well as psychological ailments. Yoga makes the organs of the body active in their functioning and has good effect on internal functioning of the human body. Yoga changes for good man's views on, and attitude to, life.

The word yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root yuj meaning to bind the yoke. It is the true union of our will with the will of God.

Our ancient sages have suggested eight stages of Yoga to secure purity of body, mind and soul and final communion with God. These eight stages are known as Ashtangayoga.

The eight stages of Yoga are as follows :

1. Yama (Social Discipline): Yama means restraint or abstention. It contains five moral practices. They are: Non-violence (Ahimsa), Truthfulness (Satya), Non-stealing (Asteya), Celibacy (Brahmacharya) and Non-acquisitiveness (Aparigraha).
2. Niyama (Individual Discipline): Rules of conduct towards oneself consist of certain disciplines which are both physical and mental. These are five in number:
   Cleanliness (Shaucha), Contentment (Santosha), Austerity (Tapas), Self-Study (Svadhyaya) and Surrender to God (Ishvara Pranidhana)
3. Asana (Postures): Asana means holding the body in a particular posture to bring stability to the body and poise to the mind. The practice of asana brings purity in tubular channels, firmness to the body and vitality to the body and the mind. There are many asanas, but keeping in view a comman's health, 65 asanas have been in practice and will be soon available at this website.
4. Pranayama (Breath Control): The literal meaning of Pranayama is Breath Control. The aim of practising Pranayama is to stimulate, regulate and harmonize vital energy of the body. Just as a bath is required for purifying the body, so also Pranayama is required for purifying the body. Just as a bath is required to purifying the body, so also Pranayama is required for purifying the mind.
5. Pratyahara (Discipline of the Senses): The extroversion of the sense organs due to their hankering after worldly objects has to be restrained and directed inwards towards the source of all existence. This process of drawing the sense inwards is Pratyahara or putting the sense under restraint.
6. Dharana (Concentration): Dharana means focusing the pure mind on one's personal deity or on the individual self. The practice of Dharana helps the mind to concentrate on a particular object.
7. Dhyana (Meditation): When one sustains and maintains the focus of attention through Dharana unbound by time and space, it becomes Dhyana (Meditation). Deep concentration destroys the Rajas and Tamas Gunas of mind and develops the Satvika Gunas (qualities).
8. Samadhi (Self-Realisation): The eight and final stage of Yoga is Samadhi. At this stage, one's identity becomes both externally and internally immersed in meditation. The meditator, the act of meditation and the object meditated upon, all the three shed their individual characteristics and merge with one single vision of the entire cosmos. Supreme happiness, fee from pleasure, pain or misery, is experienced. Samadhi is the climax of Dhyana.

The group of Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi is called "Samyama" (the internal Yoga) in the Science of Yoga. The first five stages - yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama and Pratyahara - Constitute the External Yoga. If all these five stages are practised and followed in life, virtues like morality, morally sound conduct and good character are develope3d in man. Besides, there is all-round progress in human life, physically, intellectually and spiritually and man attains physical fitness and mental equanimity.

Thus, asanas are only one of the stages of Yoga. Most of the aspirants practising Yoga practise, in fact, these asanas. However, all the eight stages of Yoga are of importance. the practice of all the stages together and Pranayama bring a good deal of permanent benefits.

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Benefits of Pranayama

Breathing is the only way by which we get oxygen in the body. Oxygen is the vital nutrient that keeps alive and healthy. We can survive without food or water for several weeks, but without oxygen, we can survive only for a few minutes. Sedentary lifestyle reduces oxygen supply to the body and the brain. As a result, there is sluggishness, pain negative thoughts and illness. Many people take breathing for granted; they don’t realize that breathing influences and controls the functions of the systems in our body and also clams the mind.

Normal breathing is shallow breathing. We have made shallow breathing a habit. We use only a fraction of our lungs, and so the cells are deprived of oxygen, and the impurities build up. Over time, it depletes the functions of all systems, and leads to premature ageing and illness.

The ancient yogis realized this truth and developed many types of pranayama that enhance health and longevity. Prana means energy, life force or breath. Ayama means restraint, control, regulation or expansion. Prana is subtler than air. It is the cosmic energy that pervades within everything in the universe.Pranayama is much more than normal breathing it is the heart of yoga. It is a scientific technique of prolonging the breath, increasing the vital energy, allowing it to percolate efficiently into all the cells and eliminating maximum toxins from the body. It refreshes and strengthens the brain, mind body and immune system and cures and prevents many diseases. Pranayama consists of three process. Puraka or inhalation, Rechaka or exhalation and Kumbhaka or retention. With deep and steady inhalations, there is more oxygen drawn in than normal breathing. And, the impurities are removed without leaving any residue in the lungs.Exhalations in normal breathing are so quick that only part of the lungs are emptied. When impurities build up, it leads to illness. With retention there is perfect absorption and distribution of the prana or oxygen. Retention is not recommended for beginners. The yogis believed that the breath is the bridge between the mind and the body. When the breath is extended there are positive changes within and it illumines our lives.

Pranayama is a kind of meditation that creates awareness, controls the unsteady mind, refreshes the brain, nourishes the cells, boosts oxygen to all organs, efficiently removes impurities and provides total freedom from pain and disease. Many types of pranayama have been designed each one contributes substantially to physical mental and emotional wellbeing. Pranayamas recommended for everyday practice are Ujjayi, Kapalabhati, Nadishodana and Brahmari. They can be practiced anytime when travelling in the car stuck in the traffic, working on the computer or in the kitchen and when the mind is disturbed.

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Yoga Do's and Dont's

They’re asanas, not aerobics

Wrong breathing technique while doing yoga can cause blackouts and hernias Walking and yoga are probably the safest exercises for a beginner. The practice of yoga is thousands of years old, with innumerable techniques, breathing manoeurves and asanas. Walking comes with few safety caveats, but yoga, long considered a method of relaxation requires caution. A major determinant of injury in the beginner is the skill and experience of the instructor. Experienced practitioners achieve high levels of flexibility and breathe control. Many universities and organizations in India train yoga instructors, but many unqualified find work as instructors anyway. Unqualified find work as instructors anyway. Unqualified instructors tend to offer misleading advice to beginners with special needs and health problems. The result is often injury sometimes worse. Do warm-up exercises before doing yoga especially in winter. Cold tissues are prone to injury. Wear the right kind of clothes – loose fitting cottons are best.  Learn to breathe correctly. Get this right before you worry about asanas and movements. Maintaining a position with the wrong breathing technique can cause blackouts and hernias. On the other hand, if you are breathing correctly you will find exercises easier to do, you can maintain a position for longer and you can stretch further. Yoga is not a competitive sport. Do not try to match your instructor or out – do your fellow students. Doing a full movement with bad form or incorrect breathing is dangerous because repetition will increase your risk of injury. If you suffer from back or spine problems, have a detailed conversation with your doctor about what exercise and postures you should avoid. Let your doctor and not your instructor is the final judge of what is safe or unsafe exercise for you. Stop exercise when you develop pain. Avoid that particular posture or movement in future sessions. Discuss the matter with your doctor yoga may simply have unmasked an underlying health problem. Drink lots of water during and after a session. Remember that yoga may make you sweat but it is not a substitute for walking and other aerobic exercise. It is not a good aerobic exercise and is poor at burning calories. The good news is practicing yoga will make you feel better than any form of exercise.

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Benefits of Vrikshasana

Vrikshasana

Vriksha means tree. Practice of this asana helps build concentration.  The tree symbolizes rootedness and, at the same time, grows to reach for the sky. The blossoms and fruits are an offering to the divine. The tree is a symbol of the cycle of life. It progresses from seed, to sapling, to flowering and fruition. The vriksha asana builds leg strength as well as balance. The weight that was borne by two legs is now borne by one. The balance that is cultivated is not just physical but also emotional. Despite life’s situations that can shake us up and destabilize us, we can cultivate a balanced outlook. This inner focus and stability can be cultivated by this asana. The tree of knowledge will give us its fruit if we imbibe its qualities. This asana helps us to take the stance of the tree of knowledge and the tree of life. Steadfast focus on the goal will draw the goal to us. We become receptacles for the gifts of life. The vriksha asana brings a straightness and focus to the body and to the mind. This awareness and mind management system is one of the principles of yoga. That is why one has to understand the beautiful science holistically. Its beauty lies in the fact that an asana when done with awareness can create so many shifts in consciousness. The body language becomes a lot more balanced and one can see the results of this in a focused mind. The kalpa vriksha was a wish fulfilling tree that existed more than 10,000 years ago. This tree is supposed to come into existence whenever someone asks for something with devotion and unswerving focus. This focus can be developed by standing in the vriksha asana. The kalpa vrishka is inherent is each one of us and can be accessed by pulling out the weeds of distraction that grow around us. This does not mean one becomes dogmatic or fanatic but achieves a relaxed focus and balance that ensures we realize our wants. The technique Stand in samasthithi asana, which is in a balanced way on both feet. Now bring your left leg up and place it across your right thigh. Bring your hands into an anjali mudra above your head. Straighten and stretch up. Focus on a point in front of you. Stay in this position for as long as you can manage. Now release the foot and shake out your feet. Now bring the right foot across the left thigh and stay in the position. Release and then shake out your feet. There is another leg position you can adopt. Bring the left leg on the inside of the right thigh and vice versa.  If you’re unable to balance use a wall for support and you will find that with practice and time you will become better.

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Samasthithi Asana - A balanced life

This section provides you with benefits of samasthithi asana.

The samasthithi asana is the standing position and much more. The Sanskrit word ”samasthithi” tells us how to stand. By observing our standing position, we can see our stance towards the world. This stance is an indicator of our sub-conscious leanings. By consciously being aware of it, we have the choice to change our stance. The samasthithi asana helps you cultivate a balanced stance towards the world. From this samasthithi all other standing postures or asana are practiced.

In chapter 12,ver 13 & 14 of the Gita, the sthithapragnya is  described as one who is friendly and compassionate to all, who is without attachment and ego, who maintains equipoise in adverse and favourable circumstances, who is always content and steadfast in meditation, has firm conviction, with his mind and intellect dwelling on the universal consciousness. Such a person is dear to the highest principle.

It requires lifelong endeavor to cultivate this sense of equanimity. Staying balanced will change even the worst circumstances into a blessing. This is a way of working out or dissolving old thought patterns or habits.

We simply become a dispassionate observer yet do what needs to be done. Also when you stand, be aware of standing with poise. Keep the back straight, shoulders pushed back. Check to see that the neck is not leaning forward. There should be a nice straightness in the spine and ease in holding oneself upright. This upright, balanced stance is what the samasthithi asana signifies.

Stand in the samasthithi asana. Keep your eyes closed and be aware of how the weight is distributed on the feet. See if there is more weight on the left foot or on the right. See if you are putting more weight to the front or the back. This will give you an idea of your habitual patterns of how you distribute weight. This ideal way to stand is to have weight equally distributed and slightly towards the front. Those who stand for long hours can practice a few jath is that shift the weight from one foot to another to release stress.

If you look at the soles of your footwear, you will be able to see which areas are worn out and thereby which areas you put more weight on. If the back portion is worn out then you are an unlikely candidate for a marketing job as you are holding back! Consciously distribute your weight forward and you will see your life move ahead. Given below is a technique to rebalance weight distribution.

Now keeping the eyes closed, gently shift your weight to the front. Come back to the centre. Then shift the weight to the back. Come back to the centre. Then move the weight to the right. Come back to the centre.

Then move the weight to the left. Come back to the centre. Kick your feet loosely to give some relief. Repeat thrice. Now from the standing position, move in clockwise direction thrice and then in anticlockwise direction, distributing the weight on different parts  as you go along with eyes closed. Once you are done, you will see a difference in the way weight is distributed on your feet.

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Asanas that give you joy

Inverted asanas are the essence of asana practice. They reverse the natural gravitational force. The body goes upside down; the head and the shoulders become the base of the body and not the legs.

Inversions actively reverse the internal organs, massage, renew and bring real joy. They efficiently remove toxins, slow down ageing and make those extra years of your life healthy and happy.

The biggest obstacle is fear which can be overcome when you learn from an experienced and competent yoga teacher. As a preparation for the body and mind, one has to practise for a year with commitment the semi inverted asanas such as adho mukha svanasana, prasarit padottanasana, viparita karani and ardha halasana.

To achieve the active reversal effect, you must stay in an asana for at least five minutes. With the guidance of a teacher, you will become aware of how to perfectly ground your head or shoulders and balance the rest of your body on them. Props such as a wall or a chair and folded blankets must be used to avoid strain.

Inverted asanas are Sirasansa (head-stand), Sarvangasana (shoulder-stand), Halasana (plough), Karnapidasana (blocked-ears posture).

Sirasana or the head-stand is considered the “king of Asanas”. The ancient yogis believed that “Amrita”, the nectar of immortality is increased, bestowing health and longevity. This asana reverses blood pressure in the head increases, while it decreases in the legs. The brain and all the organs get soaked with oxygenated blood. An experienced practitioner can adjust well to the internal changes.

Sarvangasana is called the “Queen of Asanas,” It follows Sirsasana. This asana actively reverses organs in the thorax and abdomen and strengthens the neck and the spine. Beginners may start with Sarvangasana using a wall or chair for support. Sirsasana creates heat and makes you more alert, while Sarvangasana cools and calms you down

Caution

Do not practise these asanas when you have uncontrolled BP, eye, ear problems, dental problems, cardiac problems, cervical spondylosis, back injury, headache, diarrhea, hernia, during menstruation and pregnancy.

Benefits

• Refreshers the brain, heart and lungs and controls negative emotions.
• Enhances functions of pituitary, pineal, thyroid and adrenal glands.
• Improves concentration, memory, eyesight and hearing.
• Slows down ageing and reverse the ill effects of ageing.
• Relieves asthma, bronchitis, sinusitis, thyroid problems, diabetes, ulcers, haemorrhoids, varicose veins, constipation, depression, insomnia, water retention urinary problems, menstrual and menopausal symptoms.

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