Pranayam – An Effective Weight Loss Technique

If weight loss is your aim, you will need to be vigilant about not only your diet, and also about the way you expend your energy and burn the excess calories to see the extra fat melt away. Over the years, many weight loss programs have evolved and gained prevalence among legions of practitioners who want to see themselves slimmer and fitter.

Oriental wisdom also has something unique to offer fitness enthusiasts. The age-old techniques which form part of the Yunani and Ayurvedic medicine forms have a lot to offer based on ancient practices and wisdom. Yoga is one of these ancient practices that originated in Indian but has gained prominence not only in South Asia, but the world over. There are many accomplished ‘gurus’ or teachers who have striven incessantly to popularize and spread the word about the benefits of Yoga. As they say, Yoga is not just wisdom, it’s a lifestyle by itself, which promotes holistic and wholesome living as the mantra for health, vitality and rejuvenation. There are many who swear by Yoga.

One of the major aspects of Yoga is Pranayam, which offers a whole set of benefits to those who want to become slim and stay fit. The word Pran in the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit means ‘life’. Since breathing is the evidence of life, Pranayam is a set of exercises that aims at regulating and controlling one’s breath.

Pranayam is quite complex in nature, but if it is done properly under supervision, the benefits can be enormous. Conversely, if Pranayam is done improperly, the effects can be disastrous to personal well being. This is one of the reasons, performing of Pranayam under the trained, experienced and watchful eyes of a guru is strongly recommended.

Breathing is one of the most natural and automatic processes of the body.
It is controlled by the autonomic nervous system. Right from the time a baby is born, breathing comes naturally to humans, just like swimming and existing in water comes naturally to fishes. One does not have to think or exert any effort to breathe unless there is some specific problem with the respiratory system. Now Pranayam seeks to regulate breathing, an automatic process and hence it is crucial that it must be performed with utmost care and under strict supervision.

One of the mandatory steps before Pranayam is done is Naadi Shuddhi, ie cleansing of the system. It is s simple procedure where you need to block one nostril and inhale through the other nostril, before releasing that nostril and exhaling from it. After that, you can repeat the procedure with the other nostril and so on and so forth.

Another set of exercises in Pranayam involve a tummy tuck where you hold your breath while holding your belly in. You then exhale out while leaving the pressure from the belly. This helps in regulating your breath while working on the muscles in the belly region. If you increase the intensity of the exercise, you will see amazing results in the belly fat loss arena.

Yoga is a healthy and natural way of becoming fit with salubrious effects on weight loss efforts. Do make sure however, that you perform Yoga the right way under supervision, to maximize your gains from this ancient form of holistic health from India.

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