Yoga Can Change Your Life

The ancient practice of Yoga can benefit a person in many ways. In addition to being used as a form of exercise, it is a technique that can provide the yogi focus and relaxation, sometimes used in religious rituals.

In modern times, yoga has become a popular form of exercise. But like all fitness routines, it can be difficult to quantify the benefits. It can also be difficult to fit in the recommended 25 minutes of exercise 5 times a week. We’re going to look how yoga can be the best choice for busy people trying to improve their health.

Yoga is (among other things) a form of strength training that relies on stretching and holding muscles in flexed positions while breathing deeply. It engages muscle groups and uses cardiovascular system to build heat and tension, leading to more strength.

This promotes lean, strong muscles that develop a thin yet muscular frame that many people consider physically ideal. It requires no equipment, simply a mat, and optional supplements like those found on activated you on Instagram for bonus effect.

Most physical trainers will tell you that you should never work the same muscle group two days in a row, allowing it to relax and recover after pushing it through a weight-baring workout. Outside observers often joke that it doesn’t look like yogis are doing anything, let alone exercising.

Anyone who’s ever been down on a mat knows that sustained poses, extended stretches with flexed and activated muscles, and deep, concentrated breathing causes muscles to burn, and heart rates to increase.

A yoga session once a week is entirely appropriate and beneficial for people who are either just getting started with yoga or just getting into shape.

Deep breathing is scientifically proven to help center the body and reduce stress. Not only that, it can be found somewhere in the tenets of nearly every world religion.

While variations of yoga are found in both Hinduism and Buddhism, modern teachers emphasize that spiritual side of yoga can be what you wish it to be. If you wish to apply it to a specific religious mantra, you may, but if not, the emphasis can just as easily be put on relaxation and focus.

Deep breathing and deliberate pace of yoga allow you to be mindful as you exercise in a way that might not be possible with more intense workouts like running or kick-boxing. However, if you are just looking to get into better shape and a weekly yoga session is the best physical or practical fit for you, don’t let all this scare you off.

Focus on the exercise, and the benefits of relaxation and deep breathing will still come to you as an added physical bonus without the need for a spiritual background.

Because of the way you use your muscles in yoga, especially repeated elongated stretching, a great benefit of doing it even once a week is increased flexibility. Even some top athletes with rigorous cardio and weight lifting routines have a yoga day in their fitness programs for this reason.

Beyond merely being able to bend and contort your body, the same practices improve balance, and can relieve joint and muscle pain. Weekly yoga can help older people regain some youthful agility, especially after an injury.

Finally, while yoga can be done alone, a weekly session or studio session is a great way for social bonding. Because of the versatility of benefits that yoga has, you may see people of all shapes and sizes and walks of life practicing it, and you will share a common goal of desiring a healthier life.

There is a reason that yoga has remained relevant for thousands of years. For many people it provides the difference between living in pain, discomfort, or lethargy and living a full, strong powerful life!