Say Om

Beyond the yoga CDs and YouTube videos, yoga has been a constant part of Shilpa Shetty’s life for more than 14 years, helping her overcome ailments, look the way she does and as a catalyst for positive internal change

It all began when Shilpa Shetty was diagnosed with cervical spondylosis in 2003 and a physiotherapist recommended a regular practice of bhujangasana. “I started reading up on it and realised that to strengthen a body part, if you strengthen the muscles around it, that helps prevent a recurrence. I actually believe that the practice of yoga and the philosophy of yoga make you a stronger person,” said Shetty, adding that is not, however, saying that one might never fall ill.

The art of everyday

Years of practice and study have made her a committed yogin and Shetty admits that she can both see and feel the benefits of yoga. “It works with the inside of your head, which in this time and age we all need help with, because we are dabbling in so much stuff. I really think I am able to do much more today because I am more alert and open to learning.”

People have said that the 42-year-old mother of a five-year-old looks better today than she did during her heyday as a Bollywood actress, seen in movies such as Baazigar and Dhadkan. The slim and tall Shetty agrees. “Today, I continue to do yoga because I have reaped the benefits, and when people compliment me and tell me that I still look the same or maybe better, I must say I agree.” Shetty did not always live a healthy and clean life. She admits to having wolfed down junk food and having had a careless attitude to health. The turning point was the birth of her son Viaan.

“Once I reached 35, and then had my baby, I began to realise that age takes a toll and your body will make a shift every 12 years. It’s a process, but how you combat that process is entirely up to you. I have seen how I looked when I was 30, and now, 12 years down the line, I feel I look much better,” says Shetty, sitting cross-legged on a sofa in the opulent basement of her Mumbai home.

Inner peace

Shetty’s yoga journey began with Ashtanga yoga, but nowadays, she’s immersed in the Bihar school of yoga under the tutelage of Eknathji. “This school comes with the thought of overcoming sorrow—the kind your mind or your heart is hit with. You can come out of that with yoga, because it is meant to holistically cure you inside out. Most other practices, such as weight training or pilates, treat you from outside in.”

While Shetty gets time to practise only three times a week, she ensures she finds 10 minutes every day for breathing, meditation and chanting. “I am also into a lot of freehand core strengthening and functional training—stuff I can do with my body. It is important to do weight training, because as you age, you lose muscle mass and bone density. I got into a bit of weight training, because a few years ago, I was diagnosed with mild osteopenia. Once you realise you are borderline, you should start building muscle immediately.”

Encouraged by a sporty father, Shilpa played volleyball and learnt karate when she was younger. She credits her good genes to her father, but she acknowledges the value of yoga in affecting other aspects of her life. “I was someone who used to question things a lot, especially when they would not go the way I wanted them to go. After yoga, you realise that this too shall pass. It just calms you. Yoga also helps you control, makes you understand your willpower and helps you shed your ego. The deeper understanding of yoga is that if you put in effort, you will reach your goal. It opens up your body and you reach levels that you didn’t think you could reach.”

Eat like a yogi

Shetty has also incorporated certain lifestyle modifications, such as changing her mealtime and amending foods. She has a light dinner at 7.30 pm, in order to give the body time to rest and reboot. She also attempts to eat organic and is currently setting up an organic vegetable garden in her backyard. “I try to stay close to clean eating and to grow my own food. I am going to learn to farm in pots and grow my own doodhi (bottle gourd), zucchini and bhindi (ladies’ finger),” says Shetty.

As the world is embracing yoga, closer home, zumba and pole dancing workouts are gaining steam. “With due respect, I am sure they all work for people, but if you have yoga and all you need to invest is your time and a yoga mat, why not? You are getting three uses out of one art form. You don’t need to warm up, you don’t need to stretch before and you don’t need to stretch after. Yoga is all in one,” she says.

++Decode your yoga style

A peek into some of the most popular versions of this system

So you’ve decided to hang up your shoes and twist your way to good health instead? Or are recovering from an injury and are looking for an activity that hastens the healing? Maybe you plan to use it as cross-training for another sport, want to improve your flexibility or simply need to de-stress on your mat?

It doesn’t matter what brings you to yoga, the point is you have decided to try it out. But with the mind-bogglingly long list of styles, variations and hybridisations of the practice out there, it can be somewhat intimidating for a relative newbie.

As someone who has been dabbling in yoga, on and off, for the last decade or so, I firmly believe one should begin their yoga journey with a practice rooted in tradition. It helps understand alignment and breath, instils discipline and opens your heart, mind and body slowly but surely, as you go deeper into the practice.

Here are some of the most well-known traditional styles out there. So choose the one that suits you the best and start om-ming.

Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga

Codified by K Pattabhi Jois

This is an intensely dynamic, physically demanding practice, in which the breath is synchronised with a progressive, continuous number of postures ( this integration of movement and breath is called a vinyasa). Asanas are performed in a set sequence or series, and one is “permitted” to move to the next one only when they have mastered the previous one.“It is a great style for a home practitioner,” says Bengaluru-based Prasad Bhatdundi, who teaches in this style. It is also fantastic for the travelling yogi, he says. “You can go anywhere in the world and attend an Ashtanga class, as the format of the class stays the same, independent of the teacher,” he adds. It is a style that requires patience and dedication—it often takes years even to complete the first series—but its benefits are manifold, believes Bhatdundi.

Hatha Yoga

Believed to have evolved from ancient yogic traditions dating back centuries

Hatha Yoga isn’t strictly a style of yoga—it is an umbrella term for any system that uses postures, breathwork and dietary regulations to prepare one for higher possibilities, says Chennai-based Divya Srinivasan, who has been teaching Classical Hatha Yoga for over 15 years.

However, if a studio specifically offers you a Hatha class, what can you expect? “A traditional Hatha yoga class is structured to cleanse the body of toxins, help you breathe better and make your body supple and strong,” points out Srinivasan. According to her, the possibilities of exploration within a class are endless.

You may have a Hatha class that focuses on asanas that stretch the hamstrings and the back, for instance. Or ones that help cultivate balance, better breathing or upper body strength. One thing is constant though: a Hatha yoga class will, “help one appreciate the body’s innate intelligence and discover its potential,” she says.

Iyengar Yoga

Named after and developed by BKS Iyengar

Say Iyengar Yoga, and the first thing that will pop into your head is, “Isn’t this the yoga that uses props?”While Iyengar did introduce props to enable students to practise with greater ease, confidence and stability, the practice itself is much more than props. “It is not so much about the props; it is about alignment,” points out Bengaluru-based Pragya Bhatt, who teaches and practises in the Iyengar style.

Perfect alignment ensures that you don’t injure yourself, she says, adding that it is an accepting practice that can be modified to suit all levels of practitioners.

Poses are held for longer periods of time here, and so taking an Iyengar class a couple of times a week could be hugely beneficial to students who prefer more fast-paced practices, believes Bhatt. “Studying the asana so closely will add depth to their practice,” she says.

Sivananda Yoga

Based on the teachings of Swami Sivananda Saraswati and Swami Vishnudevananda

The Sivananda training system revolves around five main principles referred to as the Five Points of Yoga. These include asanas, breathing, relaxation, diet and positive thinking, that come together to create a system that “aims at naturally achieving the goal through creating a healthy body and mind that leads to spiritual evolvement,” says the organisation’s website.

According to Chennai-based Mansi Gandhi, a certified yoga teacher of the Sivananda style, a typical class is fairly structured. It begins with a pranayama, segues into surya namaskars and 12 basic asanas and finishes with deep relaxation.

“It is a really accessible system,” she believes, adding that the system could be tailored to meet the requirement of people across different fitness levels pretty easily. “You can tailor-make the practice without destroying its spirit,” she says.

Bihar or Satyananda School of Yoga

Founded by Swami Satyananda

Yoga nidra will take you into a state of consciousness, midway between sleep and wakefulness, inducing absolute relaxation. “It was Swami Satyananda who constructed this immensely popular and effective practice,” explains Pradeep G Gowda, the founder of the a1000yoga chain of studios, and a graduate from the Munger-based Bihar School of Yoga.

Meditation is an important aspect of this school and the Satyananda Yoga system has a number of meditation techniques that deepen awareness, “It is one of the only two Kriya yoga schools in India,” explains Gowda. A class is a balance of various spinal movements and pranayama practice and the teacher sits in the front watching, observing and guiding every student, says Gowda who refers to it as, “a holistic, integral approach”.