Flow Yoga & Vinyasa yoga
Flow Yoga is a derivative of Traditional Yoga. The Yoga postures are done in a continued flow in a very controlled manner with breath control.
Vinyasa, also called flow because of the smooth way that the poses run together, is one of the most popular contemporary styles of yoga. It Is derived from Asthang Yoga.
In vinyasa yoga, each movement is synchronized to a breath. The breath is given primacy, acting as an anchor as you move from one pose to the next.
Vinyāsa विन्यास; is a Sanskrit term often employed in relation to certain styles of yoga, that usually refers to a transition between two different positions in a continuous flow. Sequential movement that interlinks postures to form a continuous flow. It denotes a flowing, dynamic form of yoga, connected to breath or pranayama in which yoga and mudra transitions are embodied as linkages within and between asana.
Vinyasa yoga is an ancient practice of physical and spiritual development. It is a systematic method to study, practice, teach, and adapt yoga. This vinyasa krama (movement and sequence methodology) approach to yogasana (yoga posture) practice is unique in all of yoga.In this type of Yoga, the functions of mind, body and breath are integrated.
The aasanas (postures) are practiced with various vinyasas (variations & movements), synchronized with the breath.
The Sanskrit word vinyasa comes from a prefix vi, which means variation, and a suffix nyasa, which means "within prescribed parameters.
During the practice of vinyasa yoga one should perform ujjayi, or throat, breathing, because ujjayi facilitates the unaided control of breathing, which is necessary. If, while doing several vinyasas in a sequence, one feels overworked or out of breath, one should take a rest of one or two minutes to regain one's breath. People who practice these vinyasas often find that their breath rate gradually decreases over a period of time, both during practice and also habitually; the mind becomes more calm and joyful as well. There are yogis who can do yoga at the consistent rate of about four breaths per minute, even during an hour of practice. Some adepts maintain a rate of just two breaths per minute, without feeling choked or hurried. Such people demonstrate extreme relaxation while remaining in a complex pose, such as the shoulder stand.
T HE FIR:-:;T ASANA sequence in the vinyasa method of doing yogasana practice is the standing sequence known as the hill pose. The hill pose, or what is known in Sanskrit as tadasana, is a posture that lends itself to a variety of vinyasa sequences, which are exceptionally useful in exercising the entire body. The progression of vinyasas proceeds from the fingers to the knuckles, wrists, elbows, and shoulders, then the neck, thorax, thoracic spine, and lumbar spine. The krama (order of postures) then sequentially involves the hip joint and the pelvis, the knees, ankles, and dorsum of your feet. Thus the entire body is i nvolved. And tadasana is the centerpiece of this sequence, which contains several i important poses such as the forward bend (uttanasana) and the squat (utkatasana).