I would like to share with you how you can develop and integrate a yoga practice into your training to improve body alignment, balance, and flexibility, as well as stamina and strength. If this beautiful form of exercise and healing is not already part of your fitness routine, you might be surprised what yoga can do for you.

Yoga aims to put practitioners in touch with a state of peace, joy, and equanimity. We find out from Joe Haddad, who grew up amid the Lebanese civil war, how he achieved healing through a regular yoga practice

It is never too late in life to practice yoga—and at 68, Jim Thorne, proves that point. A wonderful example of yoga’s multi-faceted benefits, he passes on the lessons for living and exercising that yoga has taught him.

Following part 1, part 2 of the yoga sequence continues the core work of the yoga practice for runners and beginners with a series of floor poses. This group of postures is designed to achieve the optimal benefits of muscle lengthening and enhancement.

In this first part we offer you a specialized sequence of poses designed to meet the needs and physical demands of runners and yoga beginners. Part 1 includes more demanding standing poses, which can be followed with poses from runners’ sequence part 2. Have fun and get started!

As one of the chapters to the Take The Magic Step® concept, Yoga for Performance^sm introduces you to an effective mix of stretching, strengthening and stabilization asanas, breathing exercises and meditation designed for athletes and those new to yoga. In this introduction, find fundamental asanas you will need for each of your yoga routines.

More than 5,000 years old, yoga is a holistic approach to physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. Get some insight into the rich history of one of the oldest holistic health care systems and why it is just as relevant today. You can follow the lineage of an ancient physician’s and philosopher’s practice of stress reduction back more than 2,000 years.

Part III of “Yoga – One Path, Many Styles” concludes our little journey designed to welcome you to different yoga styles. We chose Integral Yoga and Viniyoga, because of their slow pace and suitability for students new to yoga practice. Also included are practical guidelines to help you on your way to making yoga a part of your fitness routine.

Historically, yoga has been believed to heal on multiple levels. Explore some of the many benefits yoga has to offer to combat the stresses that too often accompany modern day life. Take a detailed look at the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of a regular yoga practice.

Classical Yoga generally refers to the ashtanga or eight-limbed yoga system, which was developed more than 2,000 years ago. These eight steps still provide the guideline for progressing towards a meaningful and spiritual life through a progression upward, from the most external, social practices to the deepest, most profound internal processes.

Part two of our journey to introduce you to different yoga styles will give you information about Bikram Yoga, Sivananda Yoga, Kundalini Yoga and Kripalu Yoga.

The first of a three-part series is an introduction to some of the more popular styles of yoga, the ones most likely to be taught in your area. Included to help you get started is a short overview of yoga and the benefits you can expect from some of these styles.