An important part of physical yoga is the breathing exercises, or pranayama. This part is in many ways the most fundamental, because the basic type of breathing is also a part of the yoga postures - the asanas. The postures consist of stretching and holding the body in specific stretched positions for some time, while breathing in a specific way. One usually do both pranatama and asanas in the same session. You can do the pranayama before or after the asanas.
PRANAYAMA …show more content…
Swing your legs up so your feet come over your head. Then lift your torso up from the floor so that your body rests upon your shoulders, and straighten your body upwards as much as you feel comfortable. Help the lifting and holding the position with your arms. After having been in that upright position some while, descend your torso and legs again.
The classical description of this exercise prescribes that your body shall point straight up, but that causes your neck to bend unpleasantly and a great pressure in your head. Therefore it is best for most people not to straighten out completely when resting the body on your shoulders.
HOW TO BEGIN YOGA
You can find exact descriptions of yoga exercises in books and in web-sites or you can attend courses. You will probably find that the exercises are difficult to do as described in the beginning. It is however possible to do them approximately in the beginning and gradually learn to perform them perfectly.
But you can also compose your own exercises that fit your personal condition and need. To be yoga exercises they must be composed according to the principles outlined above. Weather you learn standard exercises or compose your own, you should however choose a set of exercises that will stretch or twist all your body