Due to the increasing popularity of Yoga which focuses on the combination of physical, mental and spiritual mind of the human body each and everyday people all over the world discover the true benefits of Yoga and how it can help you on a day to day basis.
I for one, have suffered from anxiety for many years before actually trying to find a holistic approach to solve it. I’ve tried meditation (And respect it with all my heart) however one that I love even more is Yoga. The reason why is because Yoga helps me improve my physique, helps with stretching and at the same time I get the same benefits as meditation.
You can practice the art of Yoga to increase body flexibility and musical strength or help reduce stress and lower blood pressure hence why the creator states yoga focuses on the physical, mental and spiritual mind.
According to The University of Rochester, experts and clinical practitioners are declaring Yoga is one of the best forms of practice out there to assist in the overall health of people.
So Here Are The Top 10 Benefits Of Doing Yoga
1. Reduces Stress
Arguably the most commonly known fact about the benefits of Yoga is to improve flexibility, the truth is you hear people returning because they’ve discovered not only that it also makes them feel better.
You hear people tell us from time to time to practice Yoga as it reduces your stress levels and it helps them to overcome it. It is the practice of physical activity combined with relaxation and reduction of tension that yoga inherits.
Stress reduction is one of the main reasons why people give Yoga a try. After committing to one session they never look back as they notice a drastic change in their stress levels at the beginning compared to the end.
A study was conducted on the immediate effect on yoga activity and physical fitness, it has shown that yoga was more dominant in stress reduction then physical activity.
2. Increases Body Flexibility
Have you ever wondered why you see people practicing yoga on mats with half their bodies in the air? Well for that reason yoga forms and patterns help benefit the body’s movement and range of motion increasing flexibility and strength over time.
This is why many people get into yoga and it’s definitely a great benefit of pushing the body to feel free and flowing. A clear and mindful approach to yoga forms and stretches assist to make sure that the stretching is performed correctly, allowing the muscles in your body to release gently into effective stretches.
This reduces the risk of injuries related to the human body i.e torn ligaments or tendons. Such practices of yoga can prevent injuries with a much more thorough and detailed approach to flexibility training and yoga practices.
A study was conducted on older women aged between 50 – 79, it had stated Yoga releases pressure and tension in the human body and can assist the muscles to relax and let go, this can help them to open up more to prevent stiffness and increase the flexibility of the body.
3. Lowers Blood Pressure
Nobody likes the medical condition of high blood pressure, people who are diagnosed with this serious medical condition was also advised by their medical practitioner that it also increases the chance of a heart attack or stroke.
High levels of stress are associated with high blood pressure and it is one of the major contributing factors. Yoga practices are thought to directly improve stress levels which will contribute to improving blood pressure levels. The deep breathing and relaxation methods can dramatically reduce high blood pressure even when the session is done.
A study conducted on 25 patients suffering from high blood pressure shown that practicing Shavasana Yoga patients with high blood pressure shows drastic changes when patients not performing yoga.
4. Builds Muscle Strength
A good thing about yoga is that it helps build strong muscles. Who doesn’t want strong muscles? We all once in our lifetime craved strong looking muscles to go with our fitness and self-esteem.
Not only does a well-toned body filled with muscles look good, but it also helps prevent and protect us from such conditions as back pain, joint pain and even arthritis both in young and elderly people.
Practicing yoga as a routine a few times a week can build strength in your muscles and better yet also flexibility, whereas lifting weights in the gym only builds muscles but doesn’t provide you with the flexibility your body needs. Arguably if you were to ask yourself this, would you rather look good only? Or look good and feel good? That’s the benefit of yoga when it comes to building muscle strength.
5. Perfects Your Posture
Imagine your body like a weight rack at the gym. Your head is like the heavy dumbbells and your arms are the racks and torso the stand. The only reason why it is held upright and balanced is because of the posture of the racks, that’s like the human body.
When our head is balanced on top over an erect spine, it takes much less pressure off our back muscles and neck and requires less work to support it. However, if you move your head slightly forward now that’s another problem. Yes, our muscles can handle it but when for a long period of time our body cannot for 6 – 12 hours a day. You’ll start feeling and seeing changes in your posture over time and start to feel the strain the muscles in your neck and back.
Poor posture can lead to neck and back pain and other muscle and joint problems but in the art of yoga, you learn to create the perfect posture for your body by practicing forms and yoga stretches to enhance and stretch the muscles in your neck, back and even straighten your spine to allow maximum support for your head.
6. Increases Your Blood Flow
You’ll be quite surprised how yoga is compared to other major physical activities, it’s known to help stimulate and warm your body and better yet yoga also helps circulate and get the blood flowing through your body through deep stretches and relaxation exercises.
When performing yoga stretches, your hand and feet will experience blood flow, and this will also assist in oxygen flowing to your cells which overall is a better result than normal physical activity. Handstand poses also known as inverted poses will help blood flow through the veins of the legs and pelvis and to the heart where it can be distributed freshly oxygenated blood throughout the body.
Practicing yoga daily or a few times a week can help boost red blood cells and levels of hemoglobin which distributes oxygen to the muscle tissues of the body for optimum function and mobility.
7. Makes You Happier
Have you heard the saying goes, when you feel sad to go for a run or for a walk? Better yet, take out your yoga mat and place it on top of the hill and rise up into a yoga handstand leg bent over pose.
Even though it is easier said than done, a study has found that the daily practice of yoga improves the overall mind and body of the individual.
This means that whilst practicing yoga it leads to depression, stress and anxiety reduction and it has led to a dramatic increase in serotonin in your body which can make you much happier as an individual.
8. Lowers Blood Sugar
Yoga has been found to lower blood sugar levels in many ways, it is done by lowering cortisol and adrenaline levels which they assist in boosting sugar levels so that means lower levels of cortisol and adrenaline mean lower sugar levels. When this occurs this also helps in weight loss and sensitivity to insulin has dropped dramatically.
For fun and easy to drop sugar levels which is a case of high sugar levels will have complications of heart attack or kidney failure do something like practicing yoga which sure can decrease your risk.
9. Helps You Focus
Yoga is found to show great changes in the human mind and matter when performed consistently. Regular practice of yoga has been proven to enhance balance, coordination and the overall function of the mind in other words focus.
It has been said that the reason for such is that distractions and circumstances in one’s life can play an overall judgment and reaction problem. This is created by negative thoughts, so when practicing yoga it has proven to eliminate and focus on the present and deep breathing and can enhance focus on the current state of mind.
10. Increases Your Self-Esteem
All of us or even some of us do suffer from low self-esteem. Yoga can significantly turn that around if used correctly. So, if you’re someone who has low self-esteem from either poor healthy choice, overeat, lack of sleep or even drug abuse, yoga can change all that for you. If you perform yoga correctly, you’ll have an enlightened sense of improving your overall physical, mental and spiritual mind.
By doing so, this can lead to making better health choices, eat healthier, sleep much better and make better life decisions overall bettering yourself as a whole so that means it’ll increase your self-esteem. If you take a positive approach and practice yoga not only for the exercise you can surely find your inner self and access your spirituality of something bigger than all negatives you come across.
Conclusion
In the end, practicing yoga is something everyone can do to improve their physical, mental and spiritual state through deep muscle stretches to deep functional breathing.
You can do it almost anywhere; all you need is a yoga mat and a clear healthy mind. Alternatively, yoga classes and support groups are accessible in your local area or city.
There’s a great variety of classes and ways to practice yoga, each with different benefits and accomplishments. Search for them in your local area using services such as Google.
Do you do yoga? How does it benefit you? Why not let me know below.
Marko Rakic is a trail runner and fitness enthusiast from Sydney, Australia. He is the lead writer for The Ultimate Primate and believes the best way to live a happy life is through constantly challenging yourself.