Maintaining regular yoga can provide mental and physical benefits. Yoga not only burns calories and tone muscles but also does more core effects into the body that keep a person fit all day. It is a total mind-body that combines stretching poses with deep breathing or relaxation for a certain time. While doing yoga you can be challenged, delighted, and humbled all at the same time while strengthening the mind and the body.
There are a lot of yoga forms, among which some are very intense and fast-paced. Some yoga forms are intense and strong and some are relaxing and are like meditation. Yoga is for everyone and it offers open arms for anyone who ever wants to practice it to increase energy.
Some different yoga forms include:
- Hatha: This form is associated with yoga, basic movement like breathing is combined with yoga.
- Ashtanga: This yoga pose is a combination of a special breathing technique.
- Vinyasa: These series of poses are connected so that you can move from one to another seamlessly.
- Iyengar: This type of yoga uses straps, blocks and chairs to move your body into the proper alignment.
- Power: This is higher-intensity and a fast type of practice that builds muscle.
- Bikram: This yoga is a series of about 25 challenging poses which is performed in a heated room with high temperature.
Among all the forms of yoga, power yoga is best known to build core strength. Apart from the physical benefits, yoga also is known to help manage and reduce stress and has mental benefits. Power yoga uses isometric exercises along with other postures that help in making a stronger back. Some of the effects that power yoga has on the body are:
- Improves mental health: 10 minutes of yoga a day can be enough to de-stress and give you a sense of calm throughout the day. Many yogas are specially done to improve relaxation and decrease stress & anxiety.
- Increases energy: Doing yoga can increase your daily energy levels. Yoga tends to be a more gentle way of increasing blood pumping which increases energy level for the rest of the day.
- Build Strength: Yoga can build strength just as efficiently as lifting weight does. Arm balancing builds powerful upper body strength and the warrior series can burn up your lower body. Forearm plank and boat pose are great core strength builders.
- Improves your sleep quality & quantity: As we know that night sleep is best for overall good health and well being, but some adults face difficulty in getting enough sleep at night. For these types of adults, yoga is the best solution as it has proven to improve the quality of sleep and help with insomnia. From research, it is found that 60% of people who do yoga helped them in improving their sleep and 85% said that yoga helped in reducing their stress levels.
- Increases flexibility: Yoga helps to increase the body’s range of motion. Doing yoga allows the nervous system to release muscles into gentle and effective stretches. This reduces the risk of getting any injuries that can occur through any other flexibility training. It also releases tension in the muscles that can help in relaxing the muscles and thus the body opens up more flexibly. Weight loss is also a possible benefit of doing these yoga practices.
- Improves immune system: Doing yoga can help the body fight off illness. It also decreases inflammation in the body by improving blood circulation which improves the immune system. Yoga also lowers stress hormone levels in the body which makes the body and mind more healthful and free from disease.
- Improves joint health: Stretching and strength building regular yoga practice improve joint health. It is also found that yoga reduces joint pain, improves joint flexibility and function, and promotes better sleep.
- Controls blood pressure: High blood pressure is a serious health issue with a high possibility of heart attack and strokes. Several aspects of yoga practice directly improve blood pressure. Postures like supported bridge pose, legs up the wall pose are particularly beneficial for those with high blood pressure.
- Increase the body’s natural healing process: Yoga practice can help in healing the body and regain power. This helps the body lead to an improved sleep pattern and enhanced wellbeing, improving the quality of your life.
- Reduce migraine pain: Some evidence shows that yoga can be good therapy to help reduce migraine frequency. Researchers say that doing yoga helps in stimulating the nerve, which is very effective in relieving migraines.
- Can decrease cholesterol level: Yoga practice also lowers cholesterol through increased blood circulation and burning fat. Doing regular yoga practice can also fight against harmful cholesterol levels.
Regular yoga practice creates mental clarity and calmness, increases body awareness, relaxes the mind, and sharpens concentration. To do yoga you don’t need any equipment because you’ll rely on your body weight for resistance. You may probably want to use a yoga mat to keep yourself from sliding around in standing poses, and to cushion you while in seated and lying positions. Doctors suggest that even though there are many instructional books and DVDs on yoga, it is better to attend some classes with a good instructor who can practically show the postures and process.
Some important yoga advice for Pregnant women includes:
- If you’re pregnant, doing yoga can make you feel strong, relaxed and stay in shape. But it’s better to talk to a doctor before practicing yoga while pregnant and look for an instructor who’s experienced to show you accurate yoga.
- If you’re pregnant, avoid the postures that put pressure on your belly or low back.
- Skip the “Hot Yoga Form”, where the room temperature is very high, as this can be harmful to the baby inside.
Just to wrap up the multiple benefits of yoga, I’d like to say that Yoga is not just a form of exercise, it’s a way of life that can lead to holistic wellness. Yoga is not for people who like fast-moving, competitive workouts. You need to be open-minded since there are physical and mental benefits you can gain by adding some yoga into your fitness plan. Yoga as a form of therapy heals us and teaches us the importance of discipline, routine, practice, patience, and self-belief.