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Hello everyone,
I am so thrilled to soon add Laughter Yoga classes to the services that I offer. My desire is to help individuals through my work as a Symmetry Practitioner (postural realignment) and Medical Exercise Specialist (strengthening through personal training), but to also bring joy and laughter to my sessions. Why Laughter Yoga? Read on.
5 Benefits of Laughter Yoga according to Dr. Madan Kataria, founder of Laughter Yoga (1995).
Good Mood and More Laughter: Laughter Yoga helps to change your mood within minutes by releasing certain chemicals from your brain cells called endorphins. You will remain cheerful and in a good mood throughout the day and will laugh more than you normally do.
Healthy Exercise to Beat Stress: Laughter Yoga is like an aerobic exercise (cardio workout) which brings more oxygen to the body and brain thereby making one feel more energetic and relaxed.
Health Benefits: Laughter Yoga reduces the stress and strengthens the immune system. You will not fall sick easily and if you have some chronic health conditions, you will heal faster.
Quality of Life: Laughter is a positive energy which helps people to connect with other people quickly and improves relationships. If you laugh more, you will attract many friends.
Positive Attitude in Challenging Times: Everyone can laugh when life is good, but how does one laugh when faced with challenges? Laughter helps to create a positive mental state to deal with negative situations and negative people. It gives hope and optimism to cope with difficult times.
Let’s go deeper into how this can be.
Laughter is a great cardio workout. According to Dr. William F. Fry, psychiatrist, Stanford University, California, 10 minutes of hearty laughter is equal to 30 minutes on the rowing machine. OK, so it’s no replacement for going to the gym for cardio training if that is your desire. However, just think! 20 minutes of laughter is equal to 1 hour in the gym. Ever think of trying a 20 minute laughter class? It may be worth a try if you are a busy person wanting to be healthy. Good for the abs, too.
Laughter lightens anger’s heavy load. Negative emotions constrict the supply of oxygen and induce shallow chest breathing. Laughter Yoga exercises are designed to facilitate longer exhalation and deep breathing through the diaphragm. This helps flushing the lungs of stale residual air and increasing the new supply of oxygen.
Laughter may even help you to live longer. Stress is the number one killer today, and most illnesses are stress related. More than 70-80 % of illness is related to stress. This includes cardiovascular problems, diabetes, cancer, chronic fatigue, anxiety attacks, mood swings, depression, sleep problems, peptic ulcers, poor immune function and the list goes on and on. Laughter decreases stress hormones and increases immune cells and infection-fighting antibodies, thus improving your resistance to disease. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. Endorphins promote an overall sense of well-being and can even temporarily relieve pain. It has been scientifically proven that laughter reduces levels of cortisol and epinephrine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2556917.
According to Dr. Lee Berk of the Loma Linda School of Public Health in California, laughing makes the Natural Killer Cells (NK cells) in the blood grow stronger, with the body’s T-cells, natural killer cells and antibodies all showing signs of increased activity. How great is it to add laughter along with other treatments to improve cancer patients with an improved quality of life with the goal of survival.
A study in Norway found that people with a strong sense of humor outlived those who don’t laugh as much. The difference was particularly notable for those battling cancer. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/laugh-lots-live-longer.
There is a plethora of information out there about Laughter and its benefits. LAUGHTER YOGA is different because it is a unique exercise routine which combines the unconditional practice of self-induced laughter with yogic breathing that turns into the real deal without relying on jokes humor or comedy. I will write more about this in later blogs. AND I will be doing some of my own laughter yoga videos.
For a postural realignment program begin by downloading my 4 Easy Movements. Then set up an appointment for a free min-consult to find out more about Symmetry for reducing or getting out of pain. There is no obligation, only information and a time to answer your questions.
May your life be blessed and pain free.
Jacque
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