Frequently asked questions:
What are the
benefits of
practicing yoga?
Yoga postures help to realign the spine and increase
the range of motion of joints while strengthening muscles. When done
in conjunction with breathing techniques, yoga postures stimulate
circulation, tonify internal organs to aid in digestion and
detoxification, harmonizes the nervous and endocrine systems, and
cause the brain to release endorphins. Traditional styles of yoga do
not incur the potentially negative effects associated with
high-impact forms of exercise. Sudden, jerky movements that produce
a buildup of lactic acid and cause fatigue are avoided (except in
more vigorous styles such as Ashtanga and Power Yoga).
Breathing exercises, relaxation techniques, and
meditation promote a quiet mind and clear thinking. Yoga is also an
integral part of many stress management programs that are paid for
by many health insurance companies. Yoga is increasingly embraced by
the medical community, endorsed by such figures as Andrew Weil, M.D.,
Dean Ornish, M.D., Joan Borysenko, M.D., and Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D.
As with any form of exercise, you should check with
your doctor before beginning yoga, especially if you have high blood
pressure, heart disease, arthritis, spine injury, or recent surgery.
Specific benefits of yoga include (from the Yoga
Alliance):
Stress
relief
Yoga reduces the physical effects of
stress on the body. By encouraging relaxation, yoga helps to lower
the levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Related benefits include
lowering blood pressure and heart rate, improving digestion and
boosting the immune system as well as easing symptoms of conditions
such as anxiety, depression, fatigue, asthma and insomnia.
Pain relief
Yoga can ease pain. Studies have demonstrated that
practicing yoga asanas (postures), meditation or a combination of
the two, reduced pain for people with conditions such as cancer,
multiple sclerosis, auto-immune diseases and hypertension as well as
arthritis, back and neck pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, fibromyalgia,
eczema, irritable bowel syndrome and other chronic conditions. Some
practitioners report that even emotional pain can be eased through
the practice of yoga.
Better breathing
Yoga teaches people to take slower, deeper
breaths. This helps to improve lung function, trigger the body's
relaxation response and increase the amount of oxygen available to
the body.
Flexibility
Yoga helps to improve flexibility and mobility,
increasing range of movement and reducing aches and pains. Many
people can't touch their toes during their first yoga class.
Practitioners begin to use the correct muscles to make the movement
and, over time, the ligaments, tendons and muscles gradually
lengthen and elasticity is increased. These gradual changes can mean
that more and more poses are possible.
Increased strength
Yoga asanas (postures) use every muscle in the
body, helping to increase strength literally from head to toe. And,
while the postures practiced in yoga strengthen the body, they also
provide an additional benefit of helping to relieve muscular
tension.
Weight management
Yoga (even less vigorous styles) can aid weight
control efforts by reducing the cortisol levels as well as by
burning excess calories and reducing stress. Yoga also encourages
healthy eating habits and provides a heightened sense of well being
and self-esteem.
Improved circulation
Yoga helps to improve circulation and, as a
result of various poses, more efficiently moves oxygenated blood to
the body's cells.
Cardiovascular conditioning
Even gentle yoga practice can provide
cardiovascular benefits by lowering resting heart rate, increasing
endurance and improving oxygen uptake during exercise.
Better body alignment
Yoga helps to improve body alignment,
resulting in better posture and helping to relieve back, neck, joint
and muscle problems.
Focus on the present
Yoga helps us to focus on the present, to
become more aware and to help create mind body health. It opens the
way to improved coordination, reaction time and memory.
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