Three Reasons You Should Not do Cobra

The Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)

The Cobra pose destroys all diseases and increases body heat.

In a Sanskrit language Bhujanga means a cobra hence the name, mostly used in the West. In the Bhujangasana the body is facing downward while the upper body is curling up and back resembling a snake with its head raised ready to strike. This pose is mostly practiced as the first in the series of backward bending asanas followed by Locust and Bow postures. Before attempting this powerful movement of the Cobra pose the warm up of the muscles of the back is strongly recommended. During holding the pose the legs do not remain passive; they are extended down from the hips. While you start lifting your upper body from the floor be aware of the point where you have extended as far as you can without straining your back. Keep your elbows slightly bent and do not push it up over your zone limit. The best way to check if you are not too high is to take your hands off the floor for a moment so that the height you find will be comfortable and safe.

During Bhujangasana the spine receives a powerful backward stretch which increases flexibility of the spine, strengthens the spine and rejuvenates the spinal nerves. Each vertebra of the spine is given a rich supply of the blood. This posture is excellent tonic for women as it tones the ovaries and uterus and it helps to alleviate the menstrual problems. By regular practice of the Cobra pose the backache can be removed.

Three important reasons not to do the Cobra pose:

1) This asana should not be attempted by pregnant women at all cost.

2) A person suffering from Hernia should not practice this pose.

3) If you have injured your back please, avoid this posture.

Issued in the interest of people practicing Hatha Yoga by Subodh Gupta, Yoga Expert based in London.

Mr. Subodh Gupta, consultant with The Times of India group and has conducted more than 500 workshops on Yoga and Stress Management. He has been interviewed by various TV channels in India and London. For reaching to Subodh Gupta website http://www.subodhgupta.com/ and for Subodh Gupta article webpage http://www.subodhgupta.com/yogaarticle.html

Best Discount Yoga And Pilates Mats

Five Steps to Buy an Xbox Console

The Xbox is the predecessor to the new Xbox 360 console and it was quite successful. It has a large game selection and brought some new features to gaming like a built in hard drive and online play. Now that Microsoft has moved onto the 360 it can be hard to find the original Xbox anymore. So where do you find one? How much should you pay? What should I know before buying one? These five tips below will answer these questions and help make your Xbox shopping easier.

1. Consoles Cost $90 or Less: The original Xbox stopped selling in the USA for a price of $149.99, but you can find it quite a bit cheaper now. Many stores will sell used Xbox consoles for less than $90. Be sure to shop around because prices can very a lot between stores.

2. Buy Used: Microsoft stopped making the original Xbox in 2005 and most stores don't carry new consoles anymore. You can still find new consoles if you really want one, but you will definitely pay a premium. Thankfully, Microsoft built the Xbox well, so used consoles are still in good shape. The original Xbox isn't like the Xbox 360's that have had technical problems and recalls.

3. Don't Shop in Retail Stores: You will most likely be wasting your time. All major retailers and most used video game stores have stopped selling Xbox consoles and games. They have moved on to the newer systems and don't have room for it anymore. Smaller, independent video game stores near you might still carry Xbox consoles though. Gamestop and EBGames only sell Xbox games now, no more consoles.

4. Shop Online: The best place to find an Xbox console and games is in online stores or ebay. You can use comparison shopping engines or google to find quite a few Xbox's available. And like everything else in the world, you can find Xbox systems on Ebay too. Be careful when shopping online to make sure you don't over pay for shipping though, especially on Ebay. Lots of retailers advertise a low sales price for the console, but then charge a lot for shipping.

5. Watch What is Included: The Xbox originally came with one controller, an AV Cords, and an AC Adapter. You need all three of these for the system to work so be sure any sites where you shop explicitly say all three of these are included. You don't want to think you got a good deal on a console only to find it didn't include a controller, which will cost you more money to buy separately.

BONUS Tip: An Xbox console is almost worthless without some games, so try to buy from a store that carries a wide selection of games too. There is no sense in spending more time finding the games somewhere else when you can buy them all in one location. And you can usually get discounts on bundled games too!

If you keep these five things in mind when shopping for your Xbox you should be able to find a great deal and save yourself a lot of hassle. Go buy an Xbox console and start enjoying some of the great games the system has to offer.

Copyright (c) 2007 JJ Hendricks

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