THE BODY IS YOUR TEMPLE. KEEP IT PURE AND CLEAN FOR THE SOUL TO RESIDE IN.
YOGA IMPROVES YOUR FLEXIBILITY
Improved FLEXIBILITY is one of the first and most obvious benefits of yoga. During your first class, you probably won’t be able to touch your toes, never mind, do a backbend. But if you stick with it, you’ll notice a gradual loosening and eventually, seemingly impossible poses will become possible. You’ll also probably notice that aches and pains start to disappear. That’s no coincidence. Tight hips can strain the knee joint due to improper alignment of the thigh and shinbones. Tight HAMSTRINGS can lead to a flattening of the lumbar spine, which can cause back pain. And inflexibility in muscles and connective tissue, such as fascia and ligaments, can cause poor posture. YOGA GIVES YOU PEACE OF MIND Yoga quells the fluctuations of the mind, according to PATANJALI’SYOGA SUTRA. In other words, it slows down the mental loops of frustration, regret, anger, fear, and desire that can cause stress. And since stress is implicated in so many health problems—from migraines and insomnia to lupus, MS, eczema, high blood pressure, and heart attacks—if you learn to quiet your mind, you’ll be likely to live longer and healthier.
THE BODY IS YOUR TEMPLE. KEEP IT PURE AND CLEAN FOR THE SOUL TO RESIDE IN.
–B.K.S Iyengar
YOGA PERFECTS YOUR POSTURE Your head is like a bowling ball—big, round, and heavy. When it’s balanced directly over an erect spine, it takes much less work for your neck and back muscles to support it. Move it several inches forward, however, and you start to strain those muscles. Hold up that forward-leaning bowling ball for eight or 12 hours a day and it’s no wonder you’re tired. And fatigue might not be your only problem. POOR POSTURE can cause back, neck, and other muscle and joint problems. As you slump, your body may compensate by flattening the normal inward curves in your neck and lower back. This can cause pain and degenerative arthritis of the spine. YOGA BUILDS AWARENESS FOR TRANSFORMATION Yoga and meditation build awareness. And the more aware you are, the easier it is to break free of destructive emotions like anger. Studies suggest that chronic anger and hostility are as strongly linked to heart attacks as are smoking, diabetes and elevated cholesterol. Yoga appears to reduce anger by increasing feelings of compassion and interconnection and by calming the nervous system and the mind. It also increases your ability to step back from the drama of your own life, to remain steady in the face of bad news or unsettling events. You can still react quickly when you need to—and there’s evidence that yoga speeds reaction time—but you can take that split second to choose a more thoughtful approach, reducing suffering for yourself and others. Image Credit: Style Craze
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