Wellness step #3: Practice yoga

Yoga is a well-being practice rooted in the lifestyle of many of you. On board, we are great fans. Many of our employees are also yoga teachers! We invite you to demystify the different styles of yoga and our tips and tricks to help you understand them, one posture at a time.

Hatha yoga:

Most yoga classes in the West are considered Hatha Yoga. This type of yoga refers to the practice of postures (asanas). Designated to align and calm the body and the spirit, the word hatha means sun (ha) and moon (tha), two important elements in the yogic practice including the famous Sun Salutation (Surya Namasakar).

Vinyasa yoga (flow):

Vinyasa is a type of yoga composed of posture sequences (asanas) using breathing (pranayama) to represent a flow and fluid transitions between movements (flow). Each class is different from the other, hence the beauty of this style.

Ashtanga yoga:

Created by K.Pattabhi Jois, this type of yoga is dynamic and physically demanding. In the same vein as Vinyasa, Ashtanga is composed of predefined sequences of postures (asanas) using breathing. The session starts with 5 Sun Salutation repetitions version A, 5 repetitions of version B and a sequence of standing postures. There are in total 6 different series where yogis can progress according to their level.

Bikram or hot yoga:

In this style of yoga, the temperature of the class is about 40 degrees Celsius. The classes are about 90 minutes long and consist of a series of 26 postures (asanas) with 2 breathing exercises (pranayama). As in our dry saunas on board, the heat helps eliminate toxins through sweat and increases muscle strength and flexibility.

Kundalini yoga:

A much more spiritual form of yoga, it incorporates dynamic movements of hatha yoga and breathing techniques (pranayama). Kundalini Yoga advocates the practice of meditation, the awakening of the chakras and chants of mantras such as Sat Nam (truth is my identity).

Stay tuned for our next events in 2020, this type of yoga could find itself there…

Restorative and Yin yoga:

In yoga yin, postures (asanas) are graded from 3 to 5 minutes to increase the flexibility of the connective tissues, mainly the knees, the sacrum and the spine. Restorative yoga is very gentle and calms the nervous system. Both styles are good additions to a sport routine.

Wishing you a wonderful practice!

Namaste.