Babies are born yogis. Once we were all able to pull our toes up by our ears and laugh about it.
Then we aged, got injured, and began carrying stress in our shoulders and back. In short, we lost our
balance.
Yoga(瑜伽) is an ancient practice that helps create a sense of union in body, mind, and spirit. It brings us balance. I was seriously out of balance when I started practicing yoga in 1999. I had plantar fascitis in
both feet, and my doctor had warned me against all the things I loved to do: walking, hiking, and playing
tennis. I was desperate for exercise. Yoga became my salvation(救星) and even enhanced my other
fitness activities. I practice yoga at least twice a week, but I consider yoga to be part of my daily life
because after a while you no longer just practice yoga-you love it.
Yoga becomes part of your physical life. Your body grows stronger, more toned, and more flexible
as you move from one pose to the other. I spent a week in Mexico at a yoga retreat, and it was the first
vacation on which I lost weight. "Rather than building muscle, yoga builds muscle tone," says Shakta
Kaur Khalsa, author of the K.I.S.S. Guide to Yoga. "Because yoga helps maintain a balanced
metabolism (新陈代谢), it also helps to regulate weight. Additionally, yoga stretches muscles lengthwise,
causing fat to be removed around the cells." I do yoga poses throughout the day. After hours at my
computer, I stretch my stiff shoulders and arms. When I need a boost of energy, I do energizing poses.
When I am feeling exhausted at the end of the day, I do restorative poses.
Yoga becomes part of your mental life. Yoga teaches you to focus on breathing while you hold the
poses. This attention to breath is calming; it dissolves stress and anxiety. I use yogic breathing on the
tennis courts, in the dentist's chair, and in traffic jams. You should always leave a yoga practice feeling
energized, not tired. If you feel tired after yoga, it means you spent the time "fighting" yourself, trying to
force yourself into poses. In yoga, you "surrender" to the pose by letting go of the tension.
Yoga becomes part of your spiritual life. Yoga is practiced by people from all religions; it is not
restricted to any religious group. Yoga teaches "right" living in how we deal with ourselves and others.
As I work on a difficult pose, I learn patience, forgiveness, and the value of gentleness. Yoga advocates
proper eating, but you don't have to be a vegetarian to practice yoga.
1. What would be the best title for this passage?
A. What Yoga is
B. How I Do Yoga Poses
C. The Benefits of Yoga
D. The Varieties of Yoga
2. People feel tired after yoga because __________.
A. they consume energy in practicing yoga
B. they respond well to yoga poses
C. they spend too much time on yoga
D. they push themselves to do yoga poses
3. If this passage continues, what will the writer most probably write about in the next paragraph?
A. Yoga as a means to keep fit.
B. Different yoga poses.
C. Popularity of yoga all over the world.
D. Encouraging people to do yoga.
