Today is International yoga day and I thought about sharing with you guys a little bit about my personal yoga experience and some benefits I’ve seen in my body. I see yoga as a way to create strength and harmony between mind and body. If you already practice yoga you have most likely seen some benefits. They are different for everybody because we all need something different to create that balance and harmony that our body lacks. If you haven’t practiced yoga yet it’s because you think “it’s not for you” and yes, I understand, me being used to high intensity exercises since I was a little girl, tennis, weight lifting, spinning, boot camp, running, I use to say that myself. Here’s the thing though, there are many types of yoga classes and many styles of instructors, so if you didn’t like your first class (neither did I) I encourage you to try a different one.
I started practicing yoga about 2 and a half years ago because I was very stressed between planning a huge destination wedding and working full time. My first question to the instructor was “is this a beginners class?” and he said “everything and anything can be modified” (my second question was “which way is the back of the classroom” lol). That’s the first thing I loved about yoga, everybody starts as a beginner and nobody expects you to become a pretzel overnight. I couldn’t even touch my toes when I started and I still can’t do a split or a handstand, and it’s ok, the challenge just brings more joy in my opinion.
There are tons of benefits of yoga but I’m only getting into the ones I experienced myself. Since I started practicing I go about 2 times per week (my husband says it keeps me sane lol). It’s not the only exercise I do, but I find it an amazing supplementation to weight lifting, spinning, boxing, running, or any other high impact exercise. Counseling patients I’ve noticed that some people don’t practice yoga because they only have 1 hour to workout every day and they prefer something that could help them burn more calories versus yoga because it helps them “loose weight faster”. Well, that might not be the case. It doesn’t matter how much you exercise, if you’re stressed and your cortisol levels are high It doesn’t matter how many boot camp classes you do, you most likely will not get the results you want. But guess what decreases cortisol levels (aka stress)? Yoga. Excessive cortisol levels are linked to high blood pressure, osteoporosis, insulin resistance, depression and weight gain. In rats, high cortisol was seen to result in a “food-seeking behavior”.
Going deeper into the benefits of yoga other benefits I’ve noticed are:
Posture
Yep, I had terrible posture and nobody likes a hunchback specially not when you’re in your 20s.
Releases tension from limbs
I used to suffer from the worst pain on my left shoulder and neck from stress and sitting in a computer. I was so desperate that I took really strong muscle relaxers for 10 days but guess what happened on the 11th day? The pain came back. Going regularly to yoga classes has helped me control this tension.
Releases tension from TMJ
Yep, I suffer from temporomandibular joint dysfunction and if you are like me then you know how painful it is. Yoga also helps release the tension from these muscles.
Deeper sleep
I could easily wake up 4 times per night. Yoga helps provide a bit of relief from the hustle of daily life we all experience and literally give a break to the nervous system. Better sleep means we have more energy the next day, we are more focused, and we produce enough of the satiety hormone “leptin” that tells our body that we are full and do not need to eat more”.
Patience
I do tend to be more patient and happy when I do yoga, and yes, patience is a virtue I’ve always lacked!
Healthier lifestyle
People that do yoga tend to become more interested in following a healthier lifestyle that involves more fruit and vegetables and less red meats. I call it a vicious circle. Once you start doing a type of exercise that makes you feel better you want to take it a step further and also eat better.
Nausea
This is the latest benefit I experienced. I had very bad nausea from week 6 of my pregnancy to week 14. Breathing deeply in yoga, practicing control and mindfulness helped me control my nausea more than anything else could. Aside from that it’s a great exercise for pregnant women!
There are so many benefits tied to yoga from decreasing high blood pressure to strengthening your back muscles if you have any back problems or herniated disks (one benefit my husband experienced) that I really encourage you to take on the challenge and try it again. Maybe you find that you love it and want to do it every day. Maybe you are like me and enjoy it twice a week and maybe you try tons of instructors and you find that it’s really not for you. Whatever you decide, make sure it works for your body and your own balance.
NAMASTE!
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