Yoga is a combination of stretches, poses, and breathing exercises. It ranges from gentle poses to vigorous exercises. But no matter which yoga lifestyle you choose, it provides a ton of health benefits for both our body and mind, as explained below!
1. Yoga Relieves Anxiety and Depression
One of the most common reasons to try some poses is to relax your mind and improve your mental health. More than 19.1% of people in the US suffer from anxiety disorder.
But here’s the good news:
Performing yoga stretches releases feel-good chemicals in our body, such as gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and endorphins. These chemicals enhance our mental health and decrease the symptoms of anxiety and depression, as explained by Dr. Corinna Keenmon. (Medical Director of Psychiatry at Houston Methodist Hospital)
Yoga provides your mind with a feeling of relaxation, brightens up your mood, and induces emotional clarity.
2. It Prevents Various Fatal Diseases
High cholesterol, high blood pressure, and prolonged inflammation – all these are underlying causes of various life-threatening diseases such as diabetes and heart issues.
Many yoga poses keep your blood pressure and sugar levels in check, preventing inflammatory diseases.
Click here to learn yoga poses for diabetes and yoga poses for heart disease!
3. Yoga Strengthens Your Muscles and Reduces Chronic Pain
Just like exercise, yoga also strengthens your muscles. Holding different poses affects different muscles, which helps in muscle toning. The more you use your muscles, the stronger and bigger they get. So, it is a more spiritual way of gaining and strengthening muscles.
By bringing various muscles and body parts into use, you can also reduce chronic pain. It is a great exercise for relieving back pain and joint-related diseases.
Note: Muscle gain through yoga is slow and less evident than intense workouts.
4. IT Improves Your Sleep Quality
A good night’s sleep is important for a healthy lifestyle and blooming physical health. Not getting proper sleep for a long period affects your mental and physical fitness. More than 30% of people suffer from sleep disorders worldwide.
However, practicing yoga at night improves your sleep quality so you can have your beauty sleep correctly. It does so by controlling your parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) which allows you to have better rest. As it induces the release of good hormones and prevents stress hormones, it calms your mind, which in turn helps you sleep better.
So, now you know all the right reasons to try out some poses and experience all of its health benefits. While you can try different tips for relaxing yourself at work, yoga affects all aspects of your life. It not only has several health benefits but also benefits your self-esteem and increases your flexibility and energy levels. What are you waiting for, then choose a yoga lifestyle.
