To Your Health

by Summer Yoga

By Paulette Avery, R.N., M.S.N.

The summer season is upon us, with longer days and warmer weather. If you are lucky, the change in season also means a change in routine, with a little more time for fun and leisure activities. Maybe you'd like to add some regular exercise to your life. If so, I have a suggestion for you from Metro reader Summer Ainsworth. She'd love to have you join one of her yoga classes at the Redwood Heights Recreation Center. (As you see, my title this month has a double meaning!)

Although yoga is an ancient Indian tradition that has been around for 5,000 years, interest in it fluctuates. Right now it is in. So much so that Time magazine recently featured a cover story on its popularity. And, according to Summer Ainsworth, who has been doing yoga since she was sixteen, yoga offers benefits for everyone without ever doing a pose as difficult as the one shown on Time's cover.

Summer compares the many types of yoga to the variety of ice cream flavors available. There are many choices, and you can find at least one that is right for you. The one she teaches is called hatha yoga. Hatha, like all types of yoga, offers many benefits, including increased flexibility, decreased joint and muscle pain, reduced stiffness, improved strength, less stress, unleashed energy, relaxed mind, sharpened focus, and heightened body awareness. And unlike most forms of exercise, yoga increases your awareness of the mind-body connection, helps to still the mind, and can lead to greater emotional strength.

Summer believes yoga can provide benefits in many different ways. If you are pregnant, it can help prepare you for giving birth. If your life is too hectic, it can help you deal with the stress. Athletes use it to recover from injuries and to focus for maximum performance. As you progress from a beginner to more advanced levels of yoga, you develop greater body awareness and learn to use your breathing in a relaxed, modulated manner as you focus your mind in the various poses. The controlled breathing also enables you to experience the mental and spiritual aspects of yoga.

Dr. Dean Ornish, famous for his program to return patients with heart disease to better health, uses yoga as a key part of the program. He recommends devoting an hour a day to stress management with "stretching, breathing, meditation or prayer, progressive relaxation, and group support. These techniques, derived from yoga, are designed to increase and focus your awareness, to improve concentration, to quiet down your mind and body, and to rediscover inner sources of peace, joy, and well-being."

Summer says her classes are intended to be accessible to the entire community, young and old, physically fit or with physical challenges. And although yoga does not specifically help with weight loss, the concentration and breathing learned in yoga can help you succeed with your weight loss goals.

In addition to Summer's 30 years of experience practicing and teaching yoga, she has a master's degree in holistic health from John F. Kennedy University. Join her on Wednesday evenings from 7:30 to 9 p.m. or Tuesday mornings from 10 to 11:30 a.m. You can join either class anytime, and she's especially eager to add students to the morning session. Fees are $75 for a 10-week session or $10 per class as a drop-in. For further information, call Redwood Heights Recreation Center at 482-7827.

Paulette Avery is a registered nurse and a freelance writer specializing in health issues.