First time learning yoga

Author: Dai Xinyu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-07-01
Features: Society is like a giant pressure cooker. Modern people living in various urban jungles often face pressure from work, relationships, and daily life. This invisible accumulation of stress is easily overlooked and often becomes a major enemy of health. If one remains in a state of anxiety and depression without proper release or balance, the body may eventually reach a critical point, like a pressure cooker that becomes uncontrollable. Therefore, learning to relieve stress appropriately is crucial. For example, conditions such as diabetes, arteriosclerosis, high cholesterol, obesity, hypertension, heart disease, and anemia are caused by nutritional excess or dietary imbalances. Additionally, common modern ailments like anxiety, neurasthenia, tension, palpitations, and insomnia are also warning signs of poor health. How can one maintain physical and mental balance and transform stress into positive motivation? The first step is to learn the art of health preservation. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) uses the four diagnostic methods—inspection, auscultation and olfaction, inquiry, and palpation—and the eight principles of syndrome differentiation (external/interior, cold/hot, deficiency/excess) to conduct comprehensive analysis and summary. Simply put, constitution is divided into cold and hot types. Those with a cold constitution often suffer from poor blood circulation and are suitable for warming treatments, such as consuming more lamb and drinking warm water. Conversely, those with a hot constitution should get adequate sleep, follow a sleep schedule of going to bed early and waking up early, and avoid spicy and fried foods, which are drying and hot. Just as constitution is innate, maintenance depends on cultivation. All health preservation philosophies align with nature. The saying "attaining balance leads to no disease" reflects the principle of yin-yang harmony, which is the foundation of all life, and this aligns perfectly with the benefits of yoga. This book introduces readers to yoga through simple practices and combines it with health-preserving dietary principles of TCM cuisine, offering greater practicality than many other yoga books. It helps more people achieve a strong body function and maintain youthful vitality through gentle yoga exercises, regardless of age or gender. It also fosters a correct and long-term mindset of health preservation and care, allowing everyone to embrace a radiant and fulfilling life.
Dr. Chen Chunfa, the Director of Taichung City Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, has been engaged in beauty education for about 16 years. During the early stages of his career, the physical exhaustion he experienced daily signaled fatigue from his body, reminding him that he had neglected his precious health. It was then that he realized exercise was an excellent way to balance his body and mind. He saw a renowned yoga teacher, Hu Shujun, on television, who was not only the founder of the Chinese Yoga Association but also his influential yoga mentor. Hu Shujun herself was an outstanding example of practicing yoga. At the age of 60, she began her yoga journey, yet she appeared as youthful as someone in their 80s in terms of appearance, physique, mobility, and grace. Her elegance and vitality were incredibly inspiring to him, leading him to choose yoga as a lifelong practice. Especially during periods of poor health when he suffered from modern diseases, yoga helped him gradually overcome the darkest phase of his life. Afterward, he devoted himself to integrating yoga into his existing beauty education field, hoping to benefit more people by promoting holistic health and beauty.
Over the past decade of teaching yoga, he has seen many practitioners injured due to unbalanced breathing or improper stretching, which deeply convinced him that practicing yoga must be done within one's limits. Particularly when performing advanced poses, one should avoid forcing movements and instead progress gradually based on their flexibility. This book features simple and easy-to-learn yoga poses, designed for health-preserving yoga, office yoga, yoga for couples, and parent-child yoga. It aims to promote yoga as a healthy and nurturing exercise, encouraging the whole family to participate. Combined with key tips, medicinal diet therapy, and acupressure, learning yoga becomes a relaxed and enjoyable experience! Because once you start, you'll find that yoga is actually quite accessible.
Dai Xinyu