Dr. Yoga: A Complete Guide to the Medical Benefits of Yoga (Yoga for Health) (Paperback)

~ (Author), C. Noel Bairey Merz (Preface), Dean Ornish (Foreword) "Sit with your legs stretched forward..." (more)
Key Phrases: lock your thumbs, tense your pelvis, yoga nidra, Swami Satchidananda, Recommended Asanas, Physician Testimony (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

From the Integral Yoga Cardiac specialist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Preventive and Rehabilitative Cardiac Center and president of the United Yoga Council-a complete program for discovering the specific head-to-toe, health-issue-by-health-issue benefits of yoga.

Anyone who has experienced the deep mind-body satisfaction that regular yoga practice instills will tell you: Yoga is good for your health. Yet, as Nirmala Heriza reveals in this guide to the health benefits of yoga, the rewards are far more deeply grounded in medical science than has previously been understood.

Drawing from her work with doctors and cardiac patients at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, as well as from her extensive experience as a yoga therapist working with people of all ages recovering from a wide array of illnesses, Heriza provides a total program for preventing and treating disease through the practice of yoga. With detailed photos and instructions for all of the major yoga poses, Dr. Yoga is an essential health resource for anyone with specific health issues or just the desire to nurture and maintain a balanced, healthy body.

Dr. Yoga includes:

* two doctor-approved, 30-minute "Yoga for Health" practice sets, one for prevention and one for rehabilitation; * a physician and therapist referral directory; and * from the dietitian for Cedars-Sinai Preventive and Rehabilitative Cardiac Center, a cookbook of healthful recipes to support your yoga regime.

About the Author

Nirmala Heriza is an Integral Yoga cardiac specialist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Preventive and Rehabilitative Cardiac Center in Los Angeles. President of the United Yoga Council and director of the Los Angeles Integral Yoga Center, she is a senior disciple of the renowned yoga master and founder of Integral Yoga, H.H. Sri Swami Satchidananda. Heriza is also a personal yoga therapist for many celebrities in the film, television, and music industries.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: PenguinTarcher (September 9, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585422924
• ISBN-13: 978-1585422920
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 7.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #50,835 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Yogi, Heal Thyself!, November 24, 2004

By	Meera Patricia Kerr - See all my reviews

If you'd like to try yoga, but you think it's a lot of hooey, you should read this book, especially if you have a specific condition which probably yoga can benefit. You can just look up your disease, and find out what yoga poses can benefit you. It even describes HOW the different poses work on the body and what the health effect is. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, and there are even pictures!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A nice survey of the medical benefits of Asana, August 31, 2007

By	G. Miller (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Summary, helpful addition to the library of someone with a little experience, but not recommended for true beginners.

Details:

This book provides two pre-sequenced yoga series and a large number of "case studies" regarding some way that yoga has helped various medical issues. In many cases, it also suggests several asana that may assist in those medical issues. The goal is to show people how yoga can impact the overall health, rather than just being a tool for flexibility.

I found this approach useful given a reasonable background in yoga, but do not recommend it for a beginner. For someone with background in the Asana, it can help to provide a broader view of the potential benefits of each asana. I have found this useful for adjusting my home practice, particularly to make adjustments around current flucations in my health (for example, if my asthma is flaring up). While you may get some of this information in a group class, my experience is that it tends to come in a haphazard manner (e.g. "your ashtma is bad today? Well, the forward bends should help."). This book allows me to build a more comprehensive and systematic understanding. Also, it frequently states that its arguements are from medical studies, which makes me feel a little better than when the comment is based on something my teacher heard from another guy who once had a similar problem sort of approach. It would have been nice to have references to the studies, but at least I feel like there is some basis here.
As far as not recommending the book for beginners - I don't think the description of the asana are complete enough to really help get you there with the form. Also, there is generally only one picture of each asana, so you are limited to seeing it fully applied and from only one angle. This is helpful if you have already learned it from another source (for example, some of the names where different but once I saw the picture I was on board). But it really want get you there if you are not already familiar with the pose. Also, I believe you are better off having some idea of sequencing prior to starting with the book. That will make sure that you are well balanced in choosing your routine.

0 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT PRODUCT, !A+++++ HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, January 12, 2007

By	Universalprice (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dr. Yoga: A Complete Guide to the Medical Benefits of Yoga (Yoga for Health) (Paperback)

"Thank you for the rapid shipping, such a great price for this excellent brand new book.I will definately buy from you again!"