Yoga to the uninitiated can look a little disappointing, and many are unaware of the amazing health benefits it can have even for beginners. Unlike aerobics or weight training, traditional yoga does not stress activeness or challenge your physical limits. To the untrained eye, it doesn’t even look like “exercise”, just stretching. But there are unlimited health benefits of practicing yoga:
The ancients were on to something
Yoga is a very ancient form of exercise that takes many forms and types.
While yoga is indeed about “stretching,” what’s really happening is the body is using itself as its own self-contained weight system. Most yoga poses are about increasing fitness levels by putting one group of muscles against another. This guarantees that all the muscles being used will be targeted for your health, and developed and strengthened evenly. In other words, if you take up yoga, there is no danger of overdeveloping one set of muscles over another, a hazard you find in weight and aerobics training.
Yoga develops the mind
Yoga also emphasizes mental health through meditation, the practice of clearing the mind of all extraneous and negative thoughts in an effort to “clean” and focus the mind. Practitioners of yoga say that if you meditate on a regular basis, you will improve overall health and become a more centered person. This centeredness not only manifests itself mentally in you having a clear and focused mind, but fitness practitioners also say there are beneficial physiological effects, too. Lower blood pressure, improvements in sleep and posture are just some of these health benefits.
Improves your physique
As you hold a yoga pose, especially a difficult one, your body burns calories and increases fitness stamina. The harder the pose, the more calories you burn, generally. Not only will you become thinner if you practice yoga, but more flexible, too. Athletes and dancers are attracted to yoga because of these health benefits to the body.
Yoga is great for physical therapy patients and elderly
Yoga can be great for the fitness and health of the elderly, as well as those recovering from a major illness or injury. Yoga’s emphasis on slow, deliberate movement offers a safe alternative to traditional forms of exercise. Coupled with yoga’s emphasis on meditation, yoga can be a great morale booster for the physically challenged by targeting physical and mental health at the same time.
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