Scientific Keys Volume 1: The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga [Spiral-bound]

Ray Long (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 20, 2006

A revolutionary new book combining modern western science with the ancient art of Hatha Yoga

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

This book was written by Ray A. Long an ortophedic surgeon with over 20 years of yoga experience. Developed from hundreds of hours observing the world's greatest yoga masters. Easy to understand with scientific ilustrations. The 3D ilustrations by Chris Macivor clearly ilustrated the precision of the poses through 400 detailed full color ilustrations.

Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 187 pages
• Publisher: Bandha Yoga; 1 edition (April 20, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977961400
• ISBN-13: 978-0977961405
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #887,934 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A visual aid for anatomy and yoga enthusiasts, August 1, 2006

By 

Theresa Reed "The Tarot Lady" (MILWAUKEE, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scientific Keys Volume 1: The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga (Spiral-bound)

A decent yoga instructor must have a good knowledge of the human anatomy in order to be effective. Knowing how the body moves is essential to understanding how to work with different bodies/issues.

It can be a mindboggling and overwhelming topic for anyone - and although there are some good anatomy books on the market for yoga instructors (Anatomy of Yoga by H. David Coulter in particular), these books can be rather dry. As a visual learner, I found it dreadful to try and understand the body, in specific to hatha yoga, through the small number of attainable books - which is not a critique on the books, mind you - I simply need to "see" what I am being told.

Thankfully, this book is now available for those of us who need more than words to learn. "The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga" is a colorfully illustrated book - detailing important muscles and how they relate to hatha yoga. The pictures dramatically represent a human skeleton with specific muscles in different yoga poses - giving the reader a clear view as to how and why the muscles are working. This knowledge is key to developing a safe and effective yoga program.

This is a unique book that is very educational. It is certainly helping me to be more informed. If you want to get an idea of what this book contains, the authors have set up a website that gives a glimpse into the book's content: www.bandhayoga.com.

You won't be disappointed with this fine volume. I can't wait to see what other gems these authors have in mind.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Invaluable, September 25, 2006

By 

Richard Smith (SE Michigan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scientific Keys Volume 1: The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga (Spiral-bound)

Do not let the price of this book put you off. It is as invaluable to the serious yoga student (and to any yoga teacher) as David Coulter's 'Anatomy of Hatha Yoga' -- and it proves, page after page after page, the wisdom of the saying "A picture is worth 1,000 words."

Except, in the case of this book, the pictures are the most amazing drawings of the skeleton and the relevant muscle groups.

For those who want (or need) to know how specific yoga postures affect specific joints, ligaments and muscles, this book is a godsend.

It obvious that Dr. Long, the book's author, is not only highly skilled in anatomy, but he has a rare appreciation for yoga and how to work with each muscle group in the body. More importantly, he can (with the aid of Chris McIvor's unique and fascinating drawings) communicate his knowledge clearly and memorably.

If stranded on a desert island with only two or three yoga books, I would want this book to be one of them. It is that good, that instructive.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creating A New Awareness, August 17, 2006

By 

Yoga With Betty Friends "YWBF" (Baltimore, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scientific Keys Volume 1: The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga (Spiral-bound)

A couple of years ago I injured my Rotator Cuff Muscles and while going through physical rehabilitation of my shoulder, I wanted to continue a safe Yoga practice rountine. I purchased a copy of Dr.Ray Long's book "Scientific Keys Volume I - The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga" and happily it was just the informtion that I needed to safely guide my practice. The book is clearly written, easy to understand with factual information about the key muscles of the body. The book breaks the body down into three parts (The Pelvic Girdle and Thighs, The Trunk and The shoulder Girdle, and The Upper Arms). Each part is then broken down into 'bite size' pieces of information related to the topical part. The sections are made more interesting by the wonderful illustrations of Chris Macivor. Each part of the body being discussed is illustrated and highligted. It is than made more understandable by illustrating Yoga poses that correlate to that body part. A wonderful book for those of us that have no medical training but need to know more about the muscles of the body and would like to have a book that invites us to read it because it is fun and attractive as well as a wonderful reference book.