There is no shortage of information about the benefits of yoga. But this is the place to get all you need to know broken down nice and simple. Yoga might seem like a hippie fad, but there’s so much to it that it is worth at least a try by everyone looking for some real improvements in health – mind and body.
1. Concentration and Focus
Yoga is not just about moving and body control, it’s a mind game as well. While you are trying to master a downward dog, you are thinking about muscle placement and breathing. A good yoga teacher will guide your breathing and center your focus on your movement. The practice of engaging in a mind body experience, builds incredible concentration and focus that can carry over to all aspects of your life. By spending an hour a week of intense focus, you’ll find your concentration improving in so many areas. Even your boss might notice!
2. Flexibility
The long-term benefits of building flexible muscles can last for a lifetime. By increasing your range of movement when you are young, you will enjoy the after effects of a wider array of movement much later into your life. Being able to bend down and pick things up, stretching up to reach the highest shelf – all of these movements get harder with age. By teaching your body to excel in these movements, you can increase your capacity for much longer. You will also likely enjoy fewer muscle aches and pains, no small thing either.
3. Memory
Yoga gets your blood flowing, there’s no denying it, but did you know that getting that blood flow going can improve your memory? Brain scans have shown, that after only eight weeks of yoga practice, the areas of the brain for memory and concentration show significant improvement. By engaging in yoga movements, sitting up straight, focusing on breathing and more, you give your brain a workout as well.
4. Stamina
Yoga is demanding. The movements don’t look that hard, but holding those poses can prove difficult for even the strongest and toughest amongst us. The practice of putting your body to the test and building you strength, slowly and over time, can improve your stamina in other areas. When you teach your body to focus up and withstand the pain of holding a difficult yoga pose, your body learns to withstand the “pain” of other things as well. Sitting for long periods of time, reading long articles and essays – all of these things can be improved by yoga.
5. Peace of Mind
Yoga began as a religious practice and although it has made the transition to workout trend, it still retains many of the benefits and teachings from its religious origins. The process of a yoga class is very much a meditation which has had proven results to build a sense of serenity and peace. The slow breathing, isolation or your body and muscles, thinking about your movement, all are aspects of yoga that can improve your sense of peace.