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Yoga Breath: Kapalabhati

FitSugar — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 03:00:00 PDT

In yoga, breath is just as important as the postures. Linking your breath with your movement creates complete awareness. These breathing exercises are called Pranayama, which means breath control.

A while back I wrote about two different types of Pranayama. Ujayii (Ocean Breath) is used in Ashtanga Yoga throughout the entire 90 minute practice to keep your movements and your mind calm, steady and strong. The other, Sitali (Tongue Hissing), is a cooling breath used when feeling overheated or stressed.

Kapalabhati (Ka-pa-la-ba-ti) is another kind of pranayama, called the Cleansing Breath. It's a great breath to do if you are feeling foggy in the head, or if you have mucus in your lungs or nose. Kapalabhati gets rid of stagnant air in the body and awakens the senses.

Check out this video to see how it's done.

Want to know how to do it, then

I like to do this breath right before or after lying down in Savasana (Corpse pose). Begin in a comfortable seated position.
Breathe normally through your nose for a few breaths, keeping your mouth closed. Then take a normal breath in and begin taking short, rapid exhalations out of your nose (as if you were blowing your nose). This will pump out the breath and your inhales will happen automatically. You'll feel your belly pulling in with each exhalation (you can watch yourself in a mirror to see). Continue pumping out these quick and fast exhalations for as long as you want. I usually do it for 30 seconds or so.
End by exhaling all the air out and then go back to regular calm breathing through your nose. You can repeat this Kapalabhati Pranayama again if you like, but each time you finish a round, make sure to follow it with regular breathing.

Fit's Tips: You can take the exhalations at any speed you want. If you do it too fast, you might get dizzy. If this happens, just slow down the Kapalabhati or go back to regular breathing.

The Burning Question: Is Doing a Detox a Good Idea?

Health — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 04:12:46 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

Cleanses have become a "celeb trend", but are they really safe?
By Health.com

NO: It's risky — and you don't need it.
Glenn Braunstein, MD, professor and chairman, department of medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles

Our bodies have built-in detoxifiers.
The liver, the kidneys, and the colon are naturally designed to remove toxins and eliminate them through our waste, so there's no need for additional help.

A (Safe!) Jump-Start Cleanse

It's potentially harmful.
Many extreme programs, like fasting, juice diets, and the Master Cleanse, can leave the body weak and devoid of vital nutrients, like protein and essential vitamins, even if you do them for a short time. Colonics — which flush the colon with warm water to remove a supposed buildup of waste there — carry the risk of dehydration, infection, and even perforation of the colon wall.

Diet Tricks the Pros Tell Their Friends

Detoxes can create more toxins.
Plans that severely restrict food can cause the body to burn fat for fuel. Burning large amounts of fat releases chemicals called ketones into the blood — and a buildup of these can cause bad breath, loss of appetite, nausea, and in rare cases, coma or death.

Keep reading to hear the argument for detox cleanses.

From the Community: Yoga Equals Instant Stress Relief

Fit Community — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 00:16:56 PDT

FitSugar reader YogaGirlAli loves doing yoga for stress relief - find out why! She shared this post in the Tone It Up community group.

Be healthy. Feel beautiful. Have a steady mind. Wouldn't it be nice feel that way all the time? The reality is that we are often too tired or too busy to take the steps to get anywhere near there. Yoga and meditation can help you get there and lead a longer, healthier life. One of the first steps is reducing the stress in our lives.

Learn how yoga is proven to help with stress after the break!

How to Keep Post-Gym Skin Clear and Blemish-Free

Anna Monette Roberts — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:07:31 PDT

You think you're doing your body good by going to the gym every day, yet your skin is telling you otherwise. If you struggle to keep your skin clear, here are some tried-and-true solutions to help you keep your skin as radiant and healthy as your body.

Use an oil-absorbing sheet. If you tend to work out in the afternoon, blot your face with an oil-absorbing sheet preworkout to remove excess oils. If you don't have a packet handy, use a clean toilet seat cover as an oil-absorbing sheet. It sounds strange, but it works the same way.
Wash your face pre- and post-workout. To avoid clogged pores and acne, remove the makeup off your face before working out as well as wash the salty sweat off your skin after working out.
Bring towelettes with you. Save time and your face from breakouts by using cleansing towelettes.

See more skin solutions here.

One-Night Stand Beauty Tips to Get You Through the Morning After

Jaime Richards — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 05:00:00 PDT

Whether it's a one-night stand, you've crashed on your friend's sofa, or you're involved in a friends-with-benefits-type situation, sometimes we're all caught unprepared. And this isn't in the birth control or condoms sense (as could be the case in each of these scenarios); this is about not having beauty basics on your person the morning after.

So what's a girl to do when all she has in her purse is just an ID, cash, lipstick, and a phone? The answer is to MacGyver it. While you can start by doing the old lipstick-as-a-blush trick to get you started, if it's a guy you've shacked up with, chances are he doesn't have a flat iron lying around or a well-stocked supply of the fancy under-eye cream available. So to get tips for making your walk of shame all the more bearable, just read more.