Yoga - for ninjers

Discussion in 'Ninjutsu' started by Dead_pool, Jun 20, 2007.

  1. Dead_pool

    Dead_pool Spes mea in nihil Deus MAP 2017 Moi Award

    Does anyone here have experience in Yoga? I've Just begun training in a Hatha style club and am enjoying the effects of all the lower spine stretching. Ive noticed that some of the postures have similarities to some of the positions used in the Xkans and was wondering if anyone had any qualified advice about good postures for Tai-Jutsu?
     
  2. Neil-o-Mac

    Neil-o-Mac The Rev

    Paging Ben Cole...:D
     
  3. elftengu

    elftengu Banned Banned

    I know loads of people who use it, and Chris Roworth was using Hatha as a warm up nearly 20 years ago.
     
  4. Dead_pool

    Dead_pool Spes mea in nihil Deus MAP 2017 Moi Award

  5. Senban

    Senban Banned Banned

  6. fire&steel

    fire&steel Valued Member

    We had a guy who teaches yoga that trained with us . He has since moved state. I am going to try it as some of my old injuries from my bullet proof youth are catching up with me. I have a very interesting book about yoga written by an Indian Yogi in 1903. It is a rather strange book in general. The thing with it is he said some very interesting things in the first few chapters that are like hearing Soke's words echo in my ears.
     
    Last edited: Jun 20, 2007
  7. fire&steel

    fire&steel Valued Member

    tch tch tch how disgusting , it would be like doing karma sutra Tiajutsu with out an uke Andy. ( now I have been politically correct and not upset the fairer sex if it is any good pm me so I can get a copy, but shhhhh keep it quite )
    ;)
     
  8. elftengu

    elftengu Banned Banned

    Cheers Kusa, my missus just saw that window come up!

    Oh well, off to the spider box I go. :cry: :cry:
     
  9. Connovar

    Connovar Banned Banned

    Well I am not a ninjer anymore but have done yoga for a while now to supplement my bjj.

    I specifically do "power" yoga which is has less complex poses but does them in continous flow pattern. I would rate it excellent for core strenghening and flexibility, Good for strengthening pushing and punching type motions and good for thigh and hip strenth. Its weakness are there is not much work on pulling type motions and its aerobic work is limited.

    I would recommend Bryan Kests original power yoga DVD which consists of three one hour programs with a beginner, intermediate and advanced sections. If you can make it all the way thru the intermediate or advanced program without stopping or wimping out my hats off to you. The DVD is about $18.00 US and is available on Amazon.

    Bye the way a lot of BJJ people do yoga as we have some the same needs with flexibility. I selected power yoga because it also does strength training. Hope this helps.
     
    Last edited: Jun 20, 2007
  10. bencole

    bencole Valued Member

    Present and accounted for.... :love:

    I practice Bikram Yoga (otherwise known as "hot yoga" because it is practiced in a heated room). I highly recommend yoga to anyone in the Bujinkan. Yoga helps purge the body of toxins, loosens muscles, and strengthens the joints. The postures also strengthen the "correct" muscles needed for proper Bujinkan movement and power generation.

    Yes, the lower spine stretching (i.e. Cobra pose) is incredible for the body!!!

    A good yoga series (such as Bikram's series of 26 postures) systematically works different parts of the body, while using the blood flow and sweat of the body to purge the toxins. In the end, your Taijutsu can only improve by "cross-training" in both Bujinkan and yoga.

    As for particularly poses, they are different across different yoga styles. I could only tell you the pose names in the Bikram style, which will not necessarily help you if you are doing a different Hatha style.

    -ben
     
  11. elftengu

    elftengu Banned Banned

  12. Connovar

    Connovar Banned Banned

    There is no scientific evidence that sweating or increasing the heat significantly increases toxin release through the skin. In fact the major function of skin is to be a barrier against penetration. The vast bulk of toxin excretion is through the kidneys. The lungs also provide some offgassing of some volatile toxins but it also is minimal unless you are considering carbon dioxide etc. Very small amounts of urea and salt etc. go out of the skin but again the vast majority is through the renal system. Sweat if you like it hot but it isnt really going to be of any advantage from a physiologic standpoint.
     
  13. bencole

    bencole Valued Member

    The heat allows you to get deeper stretching because the muscles are already "warm" before you even get into a posture. That's basically the purpose of the heat in Bikram....

    Sweating is nothing more than natural air conditioning for the body that allows you to stay comfortable in the hot environment.

    However, when you sweat, you *DO* get rid of "gunk" ("aka" in Japanese) from the surface of the body, as any frequent sauna-er can attest.

    I agree with Connovar that a vast majority of the cleansing of internal toxins comes from the blood flow after the compression poses (e.g. kidneys, adrenals, etc.). You compress, then when you relax, the blood flow helps flood out the toxins. This is purged through the kidneys mostly.... (Note: Bikram has compression poses, stretching poses, and balancing poses. Each does different things for the body.)

    Yoga will make you "regular" as well and will make you no longer crave empty calories and junk food. Your body will crave things like fruit smoothies, natural foods, and lots of water!

    In the end, a combination of several things will converge when you bring together yoga and Bujinkan--making you healthier and stronger, and providing greater access to "fudoshin" (the immovable heart).

    Give it a try! Most Bikram schools have week-long or ten-day trials for a reasonable fee. Pat yourself on the back if you can get through all 26 poses without leaving the room for fresh air!!! ;)

    Cheers!

    -ben
     
  14. onyomi

    onyomi 差不多先生

    I know it's very popular, but I don't recommend Bikram Yoga. The real purpose of Yoga is the same as qigong--to open the energy channels of the body. In the case of Yoga, there is also a religious purpose--that is, to achieve a higher state of consciousness by opening the energy flows to the brain. This has to be done carefully and gradually using relatively gentle methods or the results can be frightening and dangerous.

    Practicing in a very hot environment is not a traditional or natural way to be practicing Yoga (yes, I know India is hot, but they didn't purposely practice Yoga in a sauna, either). Iyengar Yoga is one of the only systems I know of that traces legitimately back to a complete Indian system and which requires their teachers undergo rigorous training to obtain a license to teach. I'm sure learning how to be a Bikram Yoga teacher is prolly less than a 100 hour commitment (i.e. not nearly enough). Also DEFINITELY don't do Kundalini Yoga...this is a system designed to let you skip over all the hard work Yogis normally do to get the brain-altering effects...but without that hard work and using the forceful methods of Kundalini Yoga, the results seem to be scary as hell as often as they are good.

    Sure, MOST people will be fine doing Bikram Yoga... they'll increase strength and flexibility without having a major effect on their energy flow... however, combine that with some meditation, breath work, qigong, or other such energy-oriented practices (and you may not even have to) and you run the risk of opening up more than you intended to or were ready for--read Gopi Krishna's book and decide if you want to take the chance of that happening to you... which is exactly what you are doing when practicing Yoga with forceful methods (such as excessive heat) with a teacher who doesn't adequately understand the energy aspect of Yoga (such as most western Yoga teachers).

    I don't mean to be too much of an alarmist as most people will be fine and even if they do start working their energy unintentionally are not likely to experience something as severe as Gopi Krishna... nonetheless, I just think everyone doing Yoga, especially something more strenuous like Bikram Yoga, should keep in mind Yoga's original purpose--to alter your mind. And believe me--it most certainly can alter your mind in ways that are quite scary if you're not prepared and don't have proper guidance.
     
    Last edited: Jun 21, 2007
  15. adouglasmhor

    adouglasmhor Not an Objectivist

  16. Paragonfortytwo

    Paragonfortytwo Resident Wierdo.

    Hatha or Swara are probably enough for a casual level of interest.
    Yoga is excellent in that it stretches and strengthens the muscles, lubricates the joints and massages the internal organs. (I don't think you'll find many high level ninja who look like body builders. ) So you get a soft and supple, but strong physique with good stamina.

    Would reccomend learning a sun salute (many variations, plenty of vids on the net and in books to get you started) and 5 tibetans. Between them, they work most major muscle groups, rotate major joints, etc and are a good getle regime to add to a warmup. You can develp this through flow and moving through the sequences, or using static postures and breath control for strength and stamina.

    For postures; the warrior ones are good, cobra, cat, triangle, downwards dog, camel, lion.
    Again, nothing beats an instructor. Most common classes seem to be Hatha.

    Guys, don't be shy about checking one out, just think of toned ladies in leotards. ;)

    Jen.
     
  17. Senban

    Senban Banned Banned

    Paragonfortytwo said:-
    Jen = t3h c00l :cool:
     
  18. Lord Spooky

    Lord Spooky Banned Banned


    and guys make sure you're at the back of the class :D :D
     
  19. elftengu

    elftengu Banned Banned

    "Call on me....call on me...call on me..... call on me.... I'm the same guy I used to be....."

    Why isn't there a smiley for 'singing'? :D
     
  20. Connovar

    Connovar Banned Banned

    I appreciate your concern but it appears that this concept of a premature kundalini awakining that is present in the esoteric literature is pretty much a non issue. With the strong prevelance of yoga in the west one would expect the medical literature and especially psyciatric ER reports to be replete with cases. Also would expect to have seen litigation in US arising from such occurrances. Take care.
     

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