Why I love Yoga
If someone had told me I would love yoga 5 years ago I would’ve laughed and continued on to my high intensity class in my rushed lifestyle. I never really enjoyed slowing down, it felt counterintuitive to my productive everyday lifestyle. Little did I know a year later I would experience a major burnout, not just through my work but also events that really made me feel I was running out of time every single day.
I felt there wasn’t enough hours during the day to get done all the things I expected of myself, including my self care routine, gym, work, relationships, social life, etc. Until life itself conspired to push me into a major stop. I found myself having no other choice but to slow down, I was extremely tired, mentally fatigued, and simple had pushed myself to the limit. I knew I couldn’t continue to live running out of time anymore.
During my first Yoga class, I really dreaded everything, including every time the teacher said “connect to the present”, and “feel your body” What does she mean? My thoughts were running wild, with “when are we going to increase the pace” , “this is too damn boring” . The poses seemed so hard but somehow after each class I felt good. I started to breath a lot better, I was feeling my body a lot more, literally feeling sensations.
This is when I knew something was changing in my fight or flight response. I started appreciating being in the present moment. Each day felt like a breath of fresh air, and I really begun loving every feeling of it. No caffeine, no added sugars, just a good yoga class. My stress levels dropped, I started feeling lighter, more flexible, open to face everyday. Suddenly, I had many more hours during the day, my perspective had completely shifted.
This is why I am a big advocate for a Yoga practice, it is the union of deep breathing techniques and poses that activate different parts of your body. The benefits are incredible, it is only recently that I started to scientifically discovered the great benefits. Here are just a few but the list is endless.
1. Reduces Stress and Anxiety
Cortisol Reduction: As mentioned earlier, yoga has been shown to lower cortisol levels, the hormone associated with stress. Practices such as mindful breathing and meditation during yoga activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which calms the body and mind.
Emotional Regulation: Yoga encourages mindfulness and present-moment awareness, which can help manage anxiety, reduce rumination, and improve emotional regulation.
2. Builds Strength and Endurance
Core and Muscle Strength: Many yoga poses require you to engage and hold various muscle groups, helping to build overall strength, particularly in the core, arms, and legs.
Balance and Stability: Certain yoga poses help improve balance and coordination by engaging stabilizing muscles, which are essential for preventing falls, especially as we age.
3. Enhances Mental Clarity and Focus
Mindfulness and Concentration: Yoga trains the mind to stay focused and present, which improves cognitive function, concentration, and mental clarity. The act of paying attention to breath and body during poses also cultivates mindfulness, which has long-term cognitive benefits.
Reduces Mental Fatigue: By calming the mind and focusing on the present moment, yoga helps reduce mental exhaustion and improves your ability to concentrate throughout the day.
4. Boosts Immune System Function
Reduced Stress: Chronic stress can weaken the immune system. By lowering cortisol levels and promoting relaxation, yoga helps strengthen immune function.
Improved Circulation: The physical movement in yoga increases blood flow, which supports better oxygenation and nutrient delivery to the cells, enhancing overall health.
5. Helps with Weight Management
Increased Awareness of Body: Yoga encourages a connection between the mind and body, helping you become more aware of hunger cues, emotional eating, and lifestyle habits that contribute to weight gain or poor nutrition.
Promotes Mindful Eating: The mindfulness cultivated in yoga can translate into more mindful eating habits, promoting better food choices and healthier relationships with food.
6. Enhances Mental Health
Reduces Symptoms of Depression: Yoga has been found to reduce symptoms of depression by promoting relaxation, increasing serotonin levels, and reducing stress. Yoga’s focus on deep breathing and mindfulness can help interrupt negative thought patterns associated with depression.
Improves Emotional Resilience: Yoga helps to build emotional resilience by teaching you how to stay grounded, focused, and calm even in challenging situations.
7. Promotes Greater Self-Awareness and Personal Growth
Mind-Body Connection: Yoga fosters greater awareness of the body and its sensations, which can lead to a deeper understanding of how your body responds to emotions, stress, and different life situations.
Spiritual Growth: Many people also find that yoga serves as a path for spiritual growth or self-reflection. The practice of yoga can create a sense of connection with yourself and, for some, with a higher power or universal energy.
8. Detoxifies the Body
Promotes Lymphatic Drainage: Yoga encourages movement that stimulates the lymphatic system, which helps detoxify the body by removing waste and toxins.
Increases Circulation: The physical postures improve blood circulation, promoting the movement of oxygen and nutrients to tissues, aiding in the detoxification process.
9. Improves Digestion
Stimulates the Digestive System: Certain yoga poses, especially twists and forward bends, stimulate the digestive organs, improving digestion and helping to relieve bloating, constipation, and other digestive discomforts.
Reduces Stress-Induced Digestive Issues: As yoga lowers stress, it can help alleviate stress-induced conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), acid reflux, or stomach ulcers.
10. Improves Cardiovascular Health
Lower Blood Pressure: Yoga can help lower blood pressure through relaxation, breathing techniques, and reducing stress, which is beneficial for heart health.
Improved Heart Rate Variability: Regular yoga practice can improve heart rate variability (HRV), a key indicator of cardiovascular health. Increased HRV is associated with better resilience to stress and improved autonomic nervous system function.