An Introduction To Yoga

Yoga is an ancient type of exercise that centres on strength, flexibility, and breathing to boost both mental and physical wellbeing. The main components of yoga are breathing and postures, i.e. a serious of movements that are designed to improve flexibility and strength. The practice is now popular all over the world, but it originated in India around 5,000 years go. It is now commonplace in surgeries, hospitals, schools, health clubs, and leisure centres all over the world. In this post, we will reveal everything you need to know about it.

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Why is yoga so good for you?

There are so many benefits associated with yoga, including the following:

–       Improve your posture – Yoga helps you to improve your strength and muscle tone, become more flexible, and maintain a healthier weight. Your posture will improve immensely as a result of this. Your back and abdominals muscles will be able to fully support your weight, and you will be able to stand and sit tall, preventing niggling pains, aches, and injuries.

–       Lower blood pressure – The deep breathing process causes your lung capacity to increase. This will boost your endurance and stamina, enabling you to achieve more when partaking in intense sports.

–       Improve strength and muscle tone – The poses used in yoga are designed to strengthen parts of the body. You can use resistance bands for certain yoga poses to help build strength. Find resistance bands explained here if you’re unsure what they are.

–       Increases flexibility – A lot of people believe that they are not flexible enough to do yoga. You don’t need to be flexible to partake in yoga, but it will make you so. This is because the yoga asanas works by stretching your muscles safely, enabling you to practise it further. Yoga also increases the range of motion in your joints because it stretches other soft tissue in the body, enabling you to move around more freely.

–       Lose weight – Stress is a key contributor to weight gain, and there are imbalances in your body if you are overweight. You will benefit from a deep sense of relaxation to your body and mind if you practise yoga. This enables you to lose weight naturally through de-stressing.

–       Lowers the risk of injury – Exercises such as running are usually a series of movements that are forceful and rapid. This means that maximum effort is exerted and the risk of injury is heightened, leading to increased muscle tension. Strenuous exercise also engages opposing muscle group imbalance, whereas yoga is an activity that focuses on balance. You will unite your mind and body, which enables you to combine more intense workouts with low-impact yoga to ensure there is a lower chance of injury occurring,

–       Boosts confidence – Meditation can lead to an increase in confidence. This occurs because your mind is relieved of any tension you are experiencing. You can establish an internal connection with yourself when you do not have any anxiety. This then enables you to improve your awareness and compassion, leading to better relationships.

–       Improve your mood and lower stress – You can reduce stress and feel more relaxed by practising yoga, and you can practise it anywhere, as it features certain meditation techniques that focus your mind on breathing. These techniques will also increase oxygen levels to the brain, making you more content and happier with everyday life.

There are many different types of yoga available…

Now you know the many reasons to begin your yoga journey, but where to start? There are many divisions of yoga available, including:

–       Jivamukhti – This form of yoga attempts to reintegrate the spiritual, psychological, and physical aspects of yoga for Western practitioners. You can find many different books on this form of yoga. It is all about leading students to have a fulfilling and happy life while progressing spiritually. If you wish to understand and recognise your true nature, Jivamukhti is a form of yoga to consider.

–       Vinyasa – Another beneficial and interesting form of yoga is Vinyasa yoga. This is a style that focuses on the strong flow of yoga postures, linked with mindfulness and breath. With Vinyasa, it is a life practice; it is not something that finishes once you leave the yoga room.

–       Yoga Tune Up – Next we have yoga tune up, which is an integration of self-massage, corrective exercises, and yoga poses, which have the purpose of strengthening and healing the body from chronic pain. It focuses on the three Ps, which are addressing performance, posture, and pain to locate the blind spots of the body that cause discomfort.

–       Yin – This is a meditative and quiet form of yoga. It focuses on lengthening connective tissues. The poses are passive, which means your muscles are meant to relax and let gravity do the work. Patience is a necessity when practicing Yin yoga.

–       Sivananda – This is a yoga practice that is unhurried, and it focuses on the same 12 basic asanas or variations each time. This is a five-point philosophy that incorporates positive thinking, exercise, diet, relaxation, and proper breathing that work together to form a healthy yogic lifestyle.

–       Prenatal – As you may expect, prenatal yoga includes postures that have been carefully altered for expectant mothers specifically. It is tailored to help women in all stages of pregnancy, even women that have given birth and are looking to get back into shape.

–       Kundalini – Moving and invigorating poses are used in this type of yoga. The fluidity of the practice has the purpose of releasing the Kundalini (serpent) energy in your body.

–       Kripalu – This is a yoga practice that features three parts, teaching you to learn, know, and accept your body. It all begins with figuring out how the body works in a variety of poses, and then it moves towards holding postures for extended time and meditation. The aim is to arrive at a place where your body is the teacher.

Hopefully, you now have a better understanding of yoga – the benefits of it and the different options that are available. There are many forms available, so choose something that appeals to you.