Here for writing

This new year, I have a confession to make. A freak injury has me sitting out of any forms of exercise for 3 weeks. The doctor's advice of not sitting down cross legged and not exercising for three whole weeks was a complete shocker. I have never gone without exercising for three whole weeks ever since 2008! While it is only day 5 of 21, this no exercise rule has left me with more than one and half hours of extra time every day and has also got me thinking about my lifestyle in general and my weight in particular.  I have never been a skinny person. Broad shoulders, long limbs and wide hips, I have a frame that will make me look like a skinny buffalo even if I lose weight. While in the final year of my UG, it finally dawned on me that maybe I have to lose some weight, as I started sporting a nice round small paunch that slightly stuck out of my dress. I started walking in my terrace for one hour every day and cut down on curd and viola, within 4 to 5 months, I ...

Image courtesy http://favim.com/image/2329998/ One question that I am now frequently being asked is, "will yoga help in weight reduction?" Well, speaking from my own experience, I have to say no, because I hardly lost any weight during my one month stay in the ashram, where we did yoga for almost 3-4 hours per day, had 2 meals a day and rarely ate any junk food. That being said, a lot of my course mates lost a lot of weight. So, what can I say? Maybe depends on your body? But there are some things that I can say with conviction. Regular practice of yoga absolutely gets rid of the obsession about body weight. I feel a lot more comfortable in my own skin. My body feels lighter and very flexible. My food cravings have drastically reduced. In fact, my family members thought something was seriously wrong with me when I told them I don't want curd! Me, the same person who licks ladle full of curd right out of the plate, after breakfast, lunch and dinner, and som...