Yoga

By Joanie in Health Tips, Lifestyle Tips on 13 November 2019

Yoga is a total mind-body experience with amazing physical and mental benefits. There is a reason that Yoga is an ancient practice and has stood the test of time.  Yoga not only strengthens our body but it also gives us the opportunity to completely check out of our daily life, unwind and distress.

Here are 8 reasons why you should be doing yoga.

1.)Reduces Stress: By encouraging relaxation and deep breathing, Yoga helps lower the levels of cortisol, also known as the stress hormone. There is an emphasis on quieting the mind in Yoga, which helps reduce stress and worry allowing our bodies to fully relax.

2.)Increases Flexibility & Mobility: Yoga poses increase your range of motion in the joints and allows you to move around more freely.

3.)Builds muscle strength: Yoga engages so many muscle groups by strengthening both the lower and upper body, from your core to your shoulders & arms to your thighs and back.  When you build strength through yoga, you also balance it with flexibility

4.)Perfects your Posture:Yoga poses target the muscles that are affected by bad posture. BY strengthening the shoulders, chest abdominals and back, Yoga poses help you stand taller and relieve the discomfort that comes with sitting for long periods of time.

5.) Eases Chronic Pain:Yoga practice can help relieve chronic pain. According to Harvard Medical School, the muscle strength built in Yoga helps protect against conditions such as arthritis and back pain.

6.)Betters your Bone Health:Exercises that work against gravity are more effective in stimulating bone formation. Many Yoga poses provide positive stress for the bones, which helps to maintain or increase their density.

7.) Increases your Blood Flow: One of the strongest benefits of doing yoga is the overall improvement in circulation. The focus on proper breathing increases the flow of oxygen-rich blood. Yoga poses such as inversions, promote venous blood from the legs and pelvis to flow back to the heart. After that, the blood is forced to the lungs for oxygenation.

8.) Improves your Balance: Yoga improves balance and coordination which protects us against falling, a major cause of osteoporotic fractures.

You can choose a yoga style that’s tailored to your lifestyle, such as hot yoga, power yoga, relaxation yoga, prenatal yoga, etc. Whether you prefer to practice at home, in a gym, while watching a DVD or at a yoga studio, there are a huge variety of options available to suit your needs.