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Standing Exercises: Warrior Pose and Mountain Pose
By
Patricia | May 8, 2009
How Using Standing Exercises Can Tone the Lower Body?
Yoga is one of the best alternative therapies that provides benefits to both the body and the mind. This ancient therapeutic form of exercise dates back to thousands of years. Yoga was developed by the sages and mystics of ancient India. In fact, it would not be amiss to call yoga one of the first formal types of exercise. The word yoga means “union” in Sanskrit, the language that was predominantly used in ancient India.
Not only does yoga provide a wealth of physical benefits, it also helps to strengthen the mind and promotes spiritual growth. Thus, it is a holistic, total-body approach to wellness and health. Yoga postures, or Asanas, can be performed in a number of ways. These are seated Asanas, standing Asanas, supine Asanas, and inverted Asanas. The simplest of all these Asanas are the standing exercises. Let us take a look at some of the standing exercises and see how they can help to tone the lower body and promote good health.
Tada Asana. The Tada Asana, or the Mountain Pose, is the simplest of these standing exercises. It is akin to standing at attention with your eyes closed. However, when combined with powerful breathing techniques, the Tada Asana is transformed into a powerhouse exercise that can provide a wealth of benefits. In addition to increasing awareness of the different parts of the body and strengthening the lower limbs, the Tada Asana also helps to strengthen the core muscles and the buttocks. Try holding this pose for two minutes and you will find out that it is not as easy as it seems.
Trikona Asana. The Trikona Asana, or Triangle Pose, is another powerful exercise that not only strengthens your legs muscle and abdomen, it also provides a refreshing stretch to the back, shoulders, hamstrings, and arms. This is also one of the best exercises for working out the oblique abdominal muscles.
Virabhadra Asana. The Virabhadra Asana, or Warrior Pose, is an excellent exercise to strengthen and tone your legs and lower body. It was also one of the poses used by warriors in ancient India to defend themselves against their enemies. The Virabhadra Asana also works the core and arm muscles.
Uttana Asana. The Uttana Asana, or Standing Forward Bend Pose, gives the entire body a good stretch. It promotes the circulation of blood throughout the body and also allows the blood to reach the upper extremities without having to force its way against gravity. The Uttana Asana also promotes flexibility of the back and spine.