Why Yoga?
Give yoga a try and discover what it can do for body and mind.
A central premise in yoga is “everything is connected.” That’s clear
when looking at the health and fitness benefits of yoga that have long
been reported by practitioners and are now being confirmed by scientific
research.
Top 10 reasons to try Yoga
1. STRESS RELIEF: Yoga
reduces the physical effects of stress on the body by encouraging
relaxation and lowering 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.
2. 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 and
other chronic conditions.
3. BETTER BREATHING: Yoga
teaches people to take slower, deeper breaths. This helps to improve
lung function and trigger the body’s relaxation response.
4. FLEXIBILITY: Yoga helps to improve flexibility and mobility, increasing range of movement and reducing aches and pains.
5. INCREASED STRENGTH: Yoga
asanas (postures) use every muscle in the body, helping to increase
strength literally from head to toe. Yoga also helps to relieve muscular
tension.
6. 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.
7. IMPROVED CIRCULATION:
Yoga helps to improve circulation and, as a result of various poses,
more efficiently moves oxygenated blood to the body’s cells.
8. CARDIOVASCULAR CONDITIONING:
Even gentle yoga practice can provide cardiovascular benefits by
lowering resting heart rate, increasing endurance and improving oxygen
uptake during exercise.
9. BETTER BODY ALIGNMENT: Yoga helps to improve body alignment, resulting in better posture and helping to relieve back, neck, joint and muscle problems.
10. 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.
Copyright 2004 - 2009 © Old Town Yoga
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