Yogis have better sex, study finds Eastern enlightenment proved to be sexually beneficial for men and women

In 2009, then, resolve to have better sex. According to a recent review article in the Dec. 3 issue of The Journal of Sexual Medicine, sexually unsatisfied women who practiced the Eastern techniques of mindfulness and yoga reported improvements in levels of arousal and desire, as well as better orgasms. In addition, yoga has been found to effectively treat premature ejaculation in men.

Eastern practices have been touted as sexually beneficial for years — as the article states, the techniques have “their origin in the Kama Sutra of the fourth to sixth centuries.”

But authors Lori A. Brotto of the University of British Columbia, Michael Krychman of the Southern California Center for Sexual Health and Survivorship Medicine, and Pamela Jacobson of The Healing Sanctuary in Tustin, Calif., think that recent research findings warrant increased attention, and respect, from Western medicine.

Living in the moment
Mindfulness — an awareness of the present moment, also a key component in yoga — proved especially beneficial in a study, cited in the article, that asked women to study pennies in detail. The coins were then collected, and each woman was asked to find her original penny. Every woman was successful. “In our experience, (nearly) all women feel that they have a problem with remaining focused; they are highly distractible,” the article states. “However, after this penny exercise, they accept the notion that they can focus their mind if they so choose.” The study then went on to encourage body-awareness exercises, which eventually had a sexual goal.

Not all Eastern-based benefits manifest in the mind. The article cites another study from The Journal of Sexual Medicine, published in September 2007, in which 68 Indian men who suffered from premature ejaculation were given a choice of yoga-based, non-pharmacological treatment or Prozac. The men who practiced yoga for one hour each day “had both subjective and statistically significant improvements in their intra-ejaculatory latencies, similar to participants in the pharmacologic treatment group.”

The article acknowledges that mindfulness and yoga are challenging, but they also can be fun — and whose sex life couldn’t benefit from a little mental and physical flexibility?

What is the real goal of Yoga ?

The word 'Yoga' reminds many people of a person wearing saffron clothes and doing dhyana at some secluded place. But we claim that this belief is in actuality an erroneous one, and that Yoga has relevance even to a modern-day working man. Yoga is very important for each and every person, from a child to an aged one. Yoga not only keeps one fit but also cures many diseases.

        Yoga entered the West mainly through the missionary work of Swami Vivekananda, who spoke at the Parliament of Religions in 1893. Since then Yoga has undergone a unique metamorphosis. Unfortunately, yoga in the west has come to mean "hatha" yoga which is mainly physical exercise and postures (asanas). In fact, asanas is only one step in the eight step path (Ashtanga yoga of patanjali). Yoga has been tailored to suit the specific needs of their countrymen and -women. Thus, by and large, Yoga has been secularized and turned from a rigorous spiritual discipline into an "instant" fitness system.

What is the real goal of Yoga ? 

Yoga's highest purpose is to help it's practitioner in realizing true happiness, freedom, or enlightenment. 

         However, Yoga has a number of secondary goals, such as physical health, mental harmony, and emotional balance. In its most integrated form, Yoga seeks to unlock our full human potential.

Benefits of practising yoga: 

1] Physical fitness : People view Yoga only as a curing therapy, but in reality involvement in Yoga will ward off any disease and keep oneself fighting fit. 

2] Personality Development : by performing Yoga one can attain peace of mind, boost self-confidence, and gain more energy for work. 

3] Freedom from Habits : Many people want to give up habits like smoking, drinking etc. but they are unable to do so. Practising Yoga helps to get rid of all these habits. 

4] Stress relief : Today you can hear words like Stress, Tension from everybody, from youth to an aged person. Everybody has his own tensions of work. We advice to go for Yoga and get relief from stress. 

5] Competition : There is a lot of competition in the education life of every student now a day. Yoga works there too. After performing even some basics of Yoga like 'Omkar ', any student can feel the improvement in his concentration as well as in his inherent ability to memorize. Thus Yoga helps them a lot.

Yoga Definition: 

Yoga is from the Sanskrit word 'Yug' meaning union {with the Divine}.

Different types of yoga 

There are various types of yoga. Before we examine the differences, we should 

Remember that all of them lead to the same goal, unification with the Divine. 

The yoga paths can be broadly classified into 

Bhakti yoga : Path of Devotion 

Karma yoga : Path of Selfless Action 

Dnyana yoga : Path of Transcendental Knowledge 

Ashtanga yoga: Path of Patanjali (eight step path)

Unfortunately, yoga in the west has come to mean "hatha" yoga which is mainly 

physical exercise and postures (asanas). In fact, asanas is only a single step 

in the eight step path (Ashtanga yoga of patanjali). Ashtanga yoga is sometimes referred to as Raja yoga . However, Ashtanga yoga is more of a philosophy like basic research while raja yoga usually refers to specific techniques which are based on not only Ashtanga yoga but also on various [minor] upanishadas.

Yoga Calms Tsunami Survivors

We as yogis often wonder how we can share this practice, which has impacted our lives so profoundly, with others. So, we become teachers, we talk about yoga to everyone, we share asanas and insights with such exuberance that we sometimes get sideways glances. But, for any dedicated practitioner, we know without a shadow of a doubt that the power of yoga is unparalleled. It heals, it strengthens, it cures, it releases, it supports, and it is a panacea for all that ails you. Now yogis from varied backgrounds are taking this knowledge into the laboratory and into the world, working to bring yoga to those who are struggling and proof to those who are skeptical. One large undertaking of this kind is spearheaded by a professor of psychiatry at New York Medical College, Patricia Gerbarg, who is working to bring yoga to the survivors of the 2004 Tsunami in Southeast Asia.

Gerbarg introduced yogic breathing techniques (primarily ujjayi and bhastrika pranayamas) to a 120 participants, with 1/2 receiving psychiatric counseling in addition. There was also a third group of 60 who served as the control group and did not participate in the techniques or counseling. With only four days of instruction, the two groups participating in the yogic breathing course showed a significant drop in scores for post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. The results were so positive that they prompted Dr. Gerbarg to provide the same instruction to the control group and make plans to expand this outreach into a wider segment of this disaster stricken population.

Perhaps what intrigued me the most about this story is one tiny little statement, “Counseling provided no added benefits over the yoga training alone.” Evidence that yoga is a complete approach. When practiced diligently for a long time, yoga provides the benefits of gym memberships, preventative medicine, psychological counseling, of living a healthy lifestyle, and anti-anxiety and stress relieving supplementation. Yoga practice builds strength and flexibility, but not just in the body. It helps us to understand the workings of the mind, to clarify confusion, and to diffuse negative mental experiences.

In this day and age when words like holistic, organic, and integrative are becoming trite marketing vocabulary, yoga takes us back to their source. When we understand the potential for all situations in our lives, good and bad, to be unadulterated all encompassing opportunities for growth, then no matter whether we are on our mat, on the street, or in the midst of devastation and destruction, we too can come back to our source. Our journey in this life, even in the midst of the greatest grief and the greatest joy, is a journey into the Self, and yoga is the path, the map to bring us to this destination.

Even in the midst of extreme distress at the site of one of the world’s most devastating natural disasters, survivors are finding the ground beneath them once again. Through the introduction and practice of yogic techniques, and even without the support of traditional Western healing modalities, these victims are finding peace, and a way to continue on the journey of life once again

Health Benefits Of Bikram Yoga

Bikram Yoga, also known as Hot Yoga, is yoga practiced in a hot humid room. The high level of humidity is an important factor in the effectiveness of the Bikram yoga. Bikram Yoga takes all the benefit of Yoga and puts them in a room heated between 110 to 115 degrees, and the humidity level is kept at 60 percent. You're probably wondering if this is an easy thing to do, well it's not. You have to be in good physical condition before you start Bikram Yoga, the exercise is intense. 

Of course the health benefits of Bikram yoga are over the top great. Physicians and health experts are now focusing a lot of attention towards this new style of yoga practice, named after its inventor, Choudhury Bikram. Now let's take a look at what people who practice Bikram Yoga get as part of their health deal; 

1. Weight Loss: what's the point of exercise if it doesn't burn off those extra calories? People who practice Bikram Yoga lose weight and they lose weight fast. The reason is simple, the body burns fat faster when it is warm. The body fat gets redistributed and much of it is consumed as energy during the workout. Many people not only lose weight pretty soon into their Bikram Yoga classes, but they lose weight in a lot of trouble areas, like the stomach. The temperature and the exercise all add contribute towards speeding up your metabolism, which in turn burns greater fat and glucose stored in the body. The result is a lean and well toned body. Now who minds that? 

2. Improved Cardiovascular Health: Bikram Yoga gives the heart a thorough workout. Blood capillaries dilate more because of the heat and the result is more oxygen reaches the tissues, muscles and glands. The body also expels waste products faster, so there are fewer toxins inside you. 

3. Improved Muscle and Joint Movement: the muscles and joints experience greater movement when they are warm, because the heat and humidity makes them supple. This means greater stretching of the muscles, joints and ligaments. The body is on the whole more flexible and you are more active than before. 

4. Greater Detoxification and Stronger Immune System: it's rather obvious that you will be sweating a good bit during your Bikram Yoga session, and this is what will cause a great deal of detoxification for your body. Sweating is the body's number one way of removing toxins from itself through its largest organ, the skin. When you sweat, and that too during exercise, your body removes greater toxins then it would if you practiced other forms of exercise, even other forms of yoga. Also, this helps to strengthen you immune system so you have a better chance against a number of viral diseases. 

5. Improved Posture: the strengthening of your muscles and joints will give an improved posture. Not only is an improved posture a great appearance benefit, it pays off in the later years. A strong musculoskeletal form in the early years saves a lot of trouble in the later years. You have stronger bones that can resist weight to a greater extent and you don't hunch. 

The benefits of Bikram Yoga are many, but just so you know, Mr. Bikram himself refers to his Yoga room as his 'torture chamber', so you really need to be in a position to sweat it out before you head into this. Get your physician's approval first.

unhappy with your sex life? Try yoga

A new study claims that sexually unsatisfied women who practised the eastern techniques of mindfulness and yoga reported improvements in levels of arousal and desire, as well as better orgasms. In addition, yoga has been found to effectively treat premature ejaculation in men. 

Eastern practices have been touted as sexually beneficial for years - as the article states, the techniques have "their origin in the Kama Sutra of the fourth to sixth centuries." 

But authors Lori Brotto of the University of British Columbia, Michael Krychman of the Southern California Center for Sexual Health and Survivorship Medicine, and Pamela Jacobson of The Healing Sanctuary in Tustin, California, think that recent research findings warrant increased attention, and respect, from western medicine. 

Mindfulness - an awareness of the present moment, also a key component in yoga -- proved especially beneficial in a study, cited in the article, that asked women to study pennies in detail. The coins were then collected, and each woman was asked to find her original penny. Every woman was successful. "In our experience, (nearly) all women feel that they have a problem with remaining focused; they are highly distractible," the article states. "However, after this penny exercise, they accept the notion that they can focus their mind if they so choose." The study then went on to encourage body-awareness exercises, which eventually had a sexual goal. 

Not all eastern-based benefits manifest in the mind. The article cites another study from the Journal of Sexual Medicine, published in September 2007, in which 68 Indian men who suffered from premature ejaculation were given a choice of yoga-based, non-pharmacological treatment or Prozac. The men who practiced yoga for one hour each day "had both subjective and statistically significant improvements in their intra-ejaculatory latencies, similar to participants in the pharmacologic treatment group." 

Another recent study said yoga is being used to help the homeless people in Manhattan beat their winter blues. Instructor Karen Nourizadeh offers yoga lessons to a group of destitutes at an East Side shelter, who come to the centre wearing tattered clothes to center their topsy-turvy lives. "I want to do yoga for people who really need it. I really want them to take all that pressure and stress and throw it out the window," she said.