Does Yoga Have Solutions For The Spread Of Midlife? Are your knees, back, hips and shoulders begging for mercy? Restorative Yoga is a complete health maintenance system and low impact form of cross training that will not cause premature wear and tear on the joints.
Let’s be honest, have you noticed a spare tire around your midsection? You could justify it by looking at the teenagers. After all, it took him almost 50 years to be overweight. Then one day, he saw that spare tire in the mirror or in a photograph.
Walking is a wonderful form of cross training, but if you wear a pedometer, you know that 10,000 steps a day is a “mission.” If your knees, ankles, plantar fascia, and Achilles tendons are fine, then an aggressive walking program will likely follow your body.
We have to do something, but this is not the time to abuse body parts. Walking is still a great form of exercise, but not to the point of pain. Fortunately, Restorative Yoga is great for aches and pains. This is not a pass to abuse yourself with high impact exercise or overdo it with excessive amounts of low impact exercise.
In middle age and beyond, it’s all about moderation. In fact, moderation is a lifestyle for longevity. Restorative yoga, walking, and a moderate diet are good additions to a complete health maintenance program.
“I don’t eat that much,” he tells himself. The truth is that most middle-aged people often eat less than ever because we are so much more mindful of what we eat. An additional factor is that overeating is very uncomfortable.
Of course, there is always the exception to the rule. For example: the “skinny guy”, who could always eat due to a fast and fiery metabolism, never seems to gain weight. The vast majority of us will notice that our metabolism has slowed down.
According to Madelyn H. Fernstrom, Ph.D., director of the Weight Management Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, “Your metabolism slows by 5 percent every decade. Compared to age 25, you will burn about 100 fewer calories a day at 35 and 200 fewer at 45. Do nothing and you could gain eight to 12 pounds a year. “
For most of us, this is a “warning bell.” We have to burn extra calories, but our joints should be treated like gold. Again, a gentle and restorative form of Yoga is a logical solution.
In general, everyone burns calories at a different rate than an identical activity. The most common reason cited for the difference in calories burned is body weight, but there are many factors to consider, such as metabolism and body fat.
For the sake of comparison, let’s look at a gentle Restorative Yoga session and the calories burned over the course of an hour. You can do this, without breaking a sweat, on your living room floor, about an hour or two before bed. You can also walk to a local yoga studio depending on your location.
A person weighing 150 pounds would burn an average of 178 calories in one hour of Restorative Yoga practice. A larger person, weighing 200 pounds, would burn an average of 238 calories in an hour. Generally speaking, the bigger you are, the more calories you burn. Lastly, keep in mind that this is a very gentle yoga style.
© Copyright 2008 – Publications Paul Jerard / Aura