Business & Tech

Looking To Relax And Get In Shape? Try Yoga

Several types of yoga classes available in Lynnfield.

Editor's Note: readers who would like to try a free yoga class at Boston Sports Club are welcome to call 781-246-7500 (ask for Bryant, Alexis or Nick), mention the article, and arrange to come to a class.

A yoga class can leave you feeling like you just somehow had a good nap and a tough workout all at the same time. And as Americans have become more focused on their cardio health and physical fitness, opportunities to take yoga classes have only proliferated across the country.

Lynnfield is no exception, with the Boston Sports Club offering several types of yoga classes throughout the week. The also offers classes on Thursdays at 10 a.m. and Mondays at noon, as well as a chair yoga class on Mondays at 8:55 a.m.

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Joanne Kakouris, a yoga instructor at , explained that members can take three kinds of classes there - hatha, vinyasa and astanga (power) yoga. Yoga originated in India and is thought to date back thousands of years.

According to Kakouris, a West Newbury resident who has been teaching yoga for 15 years, hatha is the style most recommended for beginners. This yoga style involves holding the various poses for a longer time. Vinyasa also builds on the same basic yoga postures but in a more flowing, smooth manner, while power yoga is more of a vinyasa class brought into higher gear.

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Kakouris also teaches a kids' yoga class aimed at the 9-14 age group, which she says is a great tool for helping them focus. "You see them transforming from wild and giggling and all the energy, then they start to come into themselves," she said.

Classes incorporate a mix of stretching, relaxation and strength building, and physical benefits can include lower blood pressure and a lower heart rate. Another benefit Kakouris says practitioners may feel is a better ability to live in the moment, rather than being too focused on the past or present. Along with the physical benefits, she adds that many people simply enjoy yoga class as a gathering place where they can meet new friends.

"Movement heals," said Kakouris, noting that the human body is mostly water - and that in nature, still water is far more likely to be stagnant or to carry disease than flowing water.

"Yoga brings balance into all aspects of your life," said Kakouris. "It quiets the mind so that you can improve the quality."


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