Featured Pose Powerful Pose Utkatasana

by Baxter and Nina

In his post “Come On, Stand Up, Get Outta that Chair!” (see here), Baxter recommended that Powerful pose (Utkatasana) was one of the most helpful poses for maintaining the ability to move with ease from sitting to standing. And in Shari Ser's workshop on yoga and balance that Nina attended, Shari recommended Powerful pose for balance because it strengthens the thighs and the muscles around the knees (see an interview with Shari here). In addition to improving balance and building leg strength, Powerful pose also opens the upper back and shoulders, as well as strengthening the arms. And the variations described below make this pose accessible to almost anyone.

Powerful Pose (Utkatasana)

Baxter prescribes Powerful pose for:

• improving knee strength and patella tracking
• recovering from illness that resulted in fatigue and weakness (helps you reclaims leg strength)
• preparing for intense physical activity, such as skiing and hiking
• improving balance when you can’t balance on one foot or building leg strength to maintain balance
• improving shoulder mobility 

General Instructions: Stand with your feet parallel to each other and hips-distance apart, with your hands on your hips. Keeping your thighs parallel, slowly bend your knees directly forward until your knees are either in line with your toes or just past them. Make sure that your heels do not come off the floor. Tip your hips slightly forward so your torso leans forward over your legs but keep your back elongated (in the same alignment as in Mountain pose). 

Now inhale and raise your arms forward and up. If your shoulders are tight, keep your arms parallel to the floor. If your shoulders are more flexible, keep your arms in line with your ears, as shown in the drawing above. To come out of the pose, release your arms, then straighten your legs. 

Recommended Timing: 30 seconds (6 to 8 breaths) for beginners, working up to 1 minute (12 to 16 breaths).

Some Helpful Variations:

1. To strengthen the muscles of your inner thighs and around your knees (muscles that are weak in many people), use a block between your knees. Use the narrow side of the block (and step your feet a bit closer if necessary).
2. If the full pose is too difficult for you but you wish to practice in the middle of the room, you can bend your knees only slightly, keep your back vertical, and place your hands on your knees. 
3. If you have balance issues or are weak, you can work at the wall. Start with your buttocks on the wall but your feet about six inches away from it. 
4. If you want focus on strengthening for your thighs and knees, work at a wall as above, but allow yourself to drop lower in the pose. Intense!

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Video of the Week Dynamic Powerful Pose Utkatasana

This dynamic pose strengthens your legs, hip, back, and arms, at the same time it opens your chest and shoulders.

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Goji Berry The Best Product That Helps You To Lose Weight Increases Energy Improves Blood Circulation And Offers Powerful Antioxidant

By Maxine Reid

If you have been reading and hearing about goji berries and want to know more about all of the benefits that are available when you try them, you can find that there are many health benefits that you can enjoy from the small and delicious berry.

For 1,000's of years Goji seeds have been consumed by the Tibetan Himalayan people for their medicinal and anti-aging properties, as well as being acclaimed by numerous nutritional experts and clinical studies as possibly being the healthiest food source on Earth.

Goji berries protect DNA and reduce DNA damage in animal studies. This is great news for anyone concerned about aging. Although aging is a complicated process, one anti-aging strategy is to minimize DNA damage.In a related study, Goji berry polysaccharides (a kind of sugar) protect testicular cells against damage from free radicals.

Being able to strengthen your system and fight off harmful radicals that occur in your body can help you stay healthy and feel great.

Goji Berry Benefits

The powerful ingredients in these berries have been used for years by other cultures and have now made their way into many of the products that you can find and try.

Benefits of Goji helps to give the healthy body. It is available in capsule, juice and various other forms. It is very delicious, tasty and provides more nutrients to help you lose weight. Other health benefits of the juice are it is very useful to protect the liver, increases the blood circulation and protects eyesight.

Goji berries may reduce insulin resistance. Diabetic animals that were fed Goji berries for three weeks showed reduced weight and improved triglyceride, cholesterol and insulin levels.

The goji berries benefits also help to improve the look and feel of your skin and the antioxidant properties that fight the free radicals also can help fight the signs of aging and make your skin look younger and healthy.

The Goji juice benefits is an excellent choice for those who are looking for a variety of health benefits in one source.

Another study shows that Goji berries stop the growth of human leukemia cells in the test tube.Goji berries also protect the liver. They contain a compound called cerebrosides, which works better to protect the liver than milk thistle, which is often used for this purpose.

You can also find the best deals on the products that are available for you to try. Go online and get started with adding these berries to your diet to look and feel great.

About the Author:

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There isn't any real instant fix you'll also find to put some effort right into lose weight, you need to have the dedication and also the willpower to make any weight loss program work however it helps to know that there are some quite simple, yet effective solutions that you could put into action to produce your weight loss journey that bit easier.

Keep a food diary.

It will help to keep a record of your diet throughout on a daily basis. In this way you can pinpoint your diet plan and exactly what you are eating and how much of it you may be consuming. This will likely to end up helpful in determining what could be contributing to weight gain.

You are able to track of the quantity you consume using this method and find out if you are consuming too much, which makes it better to come up with a plan to lower you calorie consumption and eat more healthily.

Take care of your body and mind.

If you are very stressed or unhappy you're more likely to comfort eat and binge for the wrong sort of foods that will inevitably bring about you packing on weight. Stress increases cortisol, the chemical in the body that leads for an increase in fat.

Instead, discuss with a friend, take note of how you're feeling, employ a good cry, managing what is allowing you to unhappy will probably be far best to you in the long run rather than looking over food for comfort.

One other good way to relieve stress is always to take some form of physical exercise, yoga is a superb way of de-stressing the whole body and it's also very calming.

Change whatever you drink!

Cutting out the amount of sugary drinks consume will drastically lessen your daily calorie intake. Should you be known to come with an alcoholic drink or two at lunch hour or a few after work - stop, many alcoholic drinks are full of sugar and beer not simply bloats you, it can be fattening.

Other sugary beverages such as Coca Cola is simply as bad for teeth due to the high sugar content and also the caffeine over these sorts of drinks will leave you feeling jittery. Try to drink where possible, flavoured waters, unsweetened fresh fruit juices, if you will need to have tea or coffee, leave the sugar out and if you can bear the flavour, no milk.

Don't be too strict

Found on a diet doesn't imply you have to go hungry. If you do find which you slip up once in awhile, that's fine. It really is unrealistic should be expected yourself to not give into temptation from time to time.

Everything in moderation is very acceptable. Do not need unrealistic expectations; do not be disheartened if you haven't lost 10lbs in a week. Realise that these products take time which to lose weight effectively and it off, it's far better to lose weight slowly and steadily.

About the Author:By Evie Yates

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Video of the Week Powerful Powerful Pose

This video provides instructions for practicing a more upright variation of Powerful pose (Utkatasana). Baxter add a balance challenge by having you lift your heels a few inches off the floor while remaining very steady on the balls of your feet. Feel the power!

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