3 Benefits of Practicing Yoga

Let’s start from the beginning. Where does yoga come from and what does it mean? Yoga is an ascetic discipline that involves breathing techniques, meditation and postures or asanas.

Practicing yoga can even help with chronic diseases, it creates clarity in our mind, and it helps us to calm us down, it helps us to be more conscious and to concentrate.

How does it help with chronic diseases you might be asking?

Great questions, it all start s in our mind. Stress is a big factor in health and attacks our immune system. If we do not know how to calm our mind, we start releasing a flood of stress hormones, including adrenaline and cortisol, which rouse the body for emergency action. Our heart pounds faster, muscles tighten, blood pressure rises, breath quickens, and the list goes on and on.

When we learn breathing techniques, we spread the energy evenly, and we give the opportunity to our body to restore and if we add the physical practice, we increase endorphins, dopamine, adrenaline, and endocannabinoid. Not only that, when we exercise, our heart rate increases meaning there is an increased supply of blood to the brain, making us more alert, blocking pain signals and then the body will use different energy systems depending on the duration and intensity of the exercise.

The beauty of practicing yoga is that the benefits happen in many areas, it benefits our mental health, physical and spiritual.

Physical benefits:

Strength: the postures tone our body and we become stronger using our own body weight.

Flexibility: the right stretching keeps our body young

Posture: an upright posture prevents back injuries, neck, and shoulder problems in the future.

Energy: exercising daily or often gives us energy and help us to sleep deeper.

Health: our mind and body are in equilibrium and this translates in well-being.

Mental Benefits:

Concentration: The postures practiced in yoga deepen and extend the concentration, memory, and attention.

Emotional stability: the contact with our inner self gives us the life perspective the perspective and it isolates our mind from disturbance.

Peace: peace in our mind, tolerance and absorption of the inner self generates a permanent state of peace and calmness.

Self-recognition: develops the necessary abilities to comprehend the function of the mind through observation of the activity of the own body and the breathing.

Spiritual benefits:

Wisdom: a persistence practice develops the knowledge that flourishes as wisdom.

Integration: regular exploration and connection of the mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional layers lead to a state of integrity of harmony.

With only 10 minutes of practice daily, we can witness the changes in our lives in months and sometimes even weeks. As you practice regularly, you notice a deeper state of well-being and those benefits that you notice will help you deepen your practice.

Also, another benefit of practicing yoga is that anyone can do it, it’s never too late to learn and each person advances at their own pace.

In short, if you want to feel and look younger, give yoga a try. Don’t worry about not being flexible (you will get there), or not knowing the postures (you will learn them). All the negative voices in your mind that tell you don’t do it, turn them off and just do it. You will feel better, find the practice according to your lifestyle and enjoy the journey.