We’ve all seen the workout fads that come and go. However, yoga has been around for more than 5,000 years and it is not going anywhere anytime soon.
Yoga can be a total workout – both mind and body. There are also so many forms of yoga, which can be overwhelming to beginners.
How often have you been with your health-conscious friends and the topic of conversation has turned to yoga? If you’re unfamiliar with yoga and its practices, the topic may not be of any interest to you.
However, once you learn the benefits of yoga, you may change your mind and sign up for yoga!
1. Decrease Stress
A number of studies have shown that yoga can decrease stress and also promote relaxation. Stress is very hard on your body and can cause numerous health issues including increased blood pressure, headaches, high blood sugar, heartburn, and more.
Yoga can also help you manage your stress by giving you coping mechanisms.
2. Strengthen Bones
Using resistance and pressure benefits your bones. When your bones feel stress, your body produces more osteoblasts that make new and stronger bone tissue.
You don’t need to lift weights to get these results. Yoga uses your body’s own weight to provide this resistance.
3. Improve Flexibility
This can be one of the most noticeable benefits of yoga. You will be able to measure your flexibility from class to class. If you have tight muscles, you can also have poor posture and improper alignment in your body.
By sticking with yoga, you will notice a gradual loosening of your muscles and ligaments and will find some poses get much easier.
4. Get Rid of Insomnia
The National Sleep Foundation says that when people practice yoga regularly, they fall asleep faster and sleep longer. Try practicing yoga before you go to sleep.
5. Helps Fight Depression
If you suffer from depression, you know how hard it is to exercise. Yoga is not as intimidating as jogging or aerobics class. You can start feeling better with regular yoga to reduce stress, practice deep breathing, and reduce physical arousal such as high blood pressure.
You can also meet others in your yoga class to enhance your social connections to fight depression.
6. Fights Heart Disease
Heart disease is the number one killer of U.S. women. Yoga can help get your cardiovascular system into good shape. There are some classes that do give you an aerobic workout.
Another way yoga can help is getting your blood pressure under control with the mindful practice. With lower pressure in your arteries, your blood flows easily from your heart to your body.
7. Improve Self Image
Yoga helps you get a better inner awareness of your body. You focus on your body’s abilities while you practice and you can feel better about your current body. You are toning up with each move by strengthening muscles, improving flexibility, and tightening your core.
Most yoga studios do not have mirrors, so you are focusing inward and on the pose and not looking at your body. By doing this, you become more aware of your body.
8. Become a Better Eater
Having mindfulness is more than just knowing your body’s strength for yoga poses. You learn to experience the now and not judge yourself.
You become a more mindful eater by knowing how your body feels. This increased awareness will help you improve your eating by reducing:
- Eating when full
- Eating from smell or sight of food
- Eating when distracted
- Eating because of emotions
You will learn to embrace how food tastes, smells and feels in your mouth.
9. Increase Weight Loss
As listed above, you will become a more mindful eater which leads to weight loss. You will be more sensitive to when you are full or are hungry. Yoga gives you a healthier relationship with food.
10. Improve Posture
Your head is heavy and big and if it’s properly balanced, your neck and back muscles do not have to work as hard to support it. However, if your head is not in the proper place, your muscles strain, and fatigue.
Poor posture causes neck, back, and other muscle problems. Most likely if you work at a computer, you don’t have proper posture all day long. You may also slump which creates inward curves in your back and neck, which can ultimately lead to arthritis.
11. Boost Immunity
During yoga, you stretch and contract your muscles and also move your organs. This helps increase lymph node drainage.
Draining your lymph nodes can help you fight infection and dispose of toxic waste in your body. This leads to improved immunity.
12. Enhance Your Focus
When you practice yoga, you improve your reaction time, memory, and coordination. This can help you become less distracted and you can recall information better.
13. Eases Pain
Yoga can help you manage pain. Studies have found yoga decreased pain in people with back pain, fibromyalgia, migraines, carpal tunnel, and other chronic conditions. With less pain, you may be able to increase activity and take less medication.
14. Take Better Care of Yourself
Yoga helps you care for yourself by knowing you can change. Once you start practicing yoga, you will see how much better you feel. You will see how important it is to take the time for yourself and have the power to affect change.
15. Increase Fertility
More couples are turning to yoga to increase chances for getting pregnant. Reducing stress can help improve fertility and help to destress getting more blood flow to the reproductive organs. Yoga can also help improve hormone function.
Benefits of Yoga Thoughts
Several studies confirm that there are many physical and mental benefits to yoga. If you are curious if it really works, you can tell pretty much right away. Most of these benefits listed above are easy to recognize quickly.
You only have to find time to practice yoga a few times a week. Try some different styles to see what you like best. You may even make new friends in class to help encourage you to stick with it.
Before you know it, you may feel less stressed, anxious, and depressed. Your yoga routine can also help increase your strength, improve flexibility, and help you relieve pain.
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Now that you know the benefits of yoga, check out African Mango Supreme for other articles on natural living, supplements, healthy eating, and stress relief. You are on your way to a healthier and natural lifestyle.