Category Archives: Health

Pranayama class this Friday

Friday, May 4th 8.30am

The monthly pranayama class is this Friday, 8.30>9.30am. Janet Hartley is teaching and this class is suitable for all. If it’s your first pranayama class, then please let Janet know when you come.

Cost: £7 if you have a current Yogawest card, £10 drop-in.

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Ryan Giggs says Yoga is key to prolonging his Man U career

Article from The Guardian March 27th 2012

Ryan Giggs has said that practising yoga has kept him in the game for so long and added that he would still love to play another 100 games for Manchester United. The Welshman, who is chasing his 13th Premier League title, told Gazzetta dello Sport that he has had to change the way he thinks on the pitch but that he is still “living the dream”.

“The yoga has definitely helped me,” the 38-year-old said. “It helps me train every day because it gives me the flexibility and the strength not only to play the game but to train as well.

“I rarely miss a training session even [if I do] a little less than the younger players I still go out and train. [When you get to my age] you have to change the way of thinking. I was a quick player when I was younger, now I am not so quick. [You have to] use your experience, use your intelligence on the pitch, to adapt your game and change your game, as I have done.”

The Welshman also confirmed that he wants to stay involved in football after ending his playing career but admitted that taking charge of United may prove a step too far. Initially, at least. “At the moment I am just focused on playing. But whatever happens afterwards, I will be involved in football somewhere,” he said.

“I’ve done my coaching badges so I’ve done all I can really to prepare myself for life after football [as a player]. To manage a team like United … Yes, [Pep] Guardiola has managed [to be in charge of a big club straight away] with Barcelona but even he was coach of the reserve team, the B team, for a couple of years so he had a little bit of experience so… [but] we’ll have to see.”

Giggs, who has already made 28 appearances and scored four goals this season, added: ”When I was younger my goal was to play for Manchester United. Just once. The after that you get greedy, you want to be in the team all the team, then you want to score goals.

“Then you get really greedy and you want to win trophies and you want more trophies and all of these things have happened. You realise your dream and at 38 I am still living my dream. You can’t ask for more than that. Records and goals are not a big part of my motivation for going forward. Of course, playing 900 games for United is special but I don’t look too far into the future, I just try to enjoy the moment and to do my best. If that is another 10 games then so be it, and if it is another 100 games then that would be great.”

United’s local rivals, Manchester City, have emerged as the main rivals for the Premier League title this season and Giggs said: “We have the experience but City have the hunger, if we both keeping going like this, everything will be decided in the derby.” And asked which players he had been most impressed with when playing against Italian teams during his long career, he singled out Javier Zanetti of Internazionale and Juventus’s Alessandro Del Piero, calling the former “a complete player”.

Read article online.

Yoga protects the brain from depression

Practising yoga really does relax your mind as well as your body more than other types of exercise, a new study claims.

Read more here.

Yoga for Back Pain

Iyengar teachers prove yoga helps back pain

A new study has revealed that yoga is a more effective way for people with lower back pain to become more mobile than the treatments currently offered by GPs. The study, which was based on 12 specially designed classes by Iyengar yoga teachers, found that back pain sufferers recorded greater improvements in everyday physical tasks if they did weekly yoga sessions.

The study found that back pain sufferers recorded greater improvements in everyday physical tasks such as walking, bending down and getting dressed if they did weekly yoga sessions.

Participants who had practised yoga reported enhanced function compared with those receiving standard care, even nine months after the yoga classes had finished.

Previous, smaller studies have suggested yoga could be beneficial to back pain sufferers. However, these have often involved just one teacher and have not included long-term follow-up.

Read the full article at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2011/oct/31/yoga-lower-back-pain-treatments?newsfeed=true

See also:
http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/112409.htm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15836974