Exercise doesn’t have to be of the heart-pounding/sweat soaking variety. Exercise can be gentle, relaxing and ultimately, life-changing. If you want to take a more calm approach to your general fitness and well-being, yoga may be just the practice for you. Let’s take a look at the 5 reasons why you should give yoga a try:
1. Yoga improves your posture
Do you walk with a bit of a slouch? Are the hours you spend working from home causing you neck and back pain? Yoga may be the answer to your posture problems. By stretching the muscles and helping you improve your general balance and stature, yoga can do wonders for the way you stand, walk and sit. Better posture can make you look taller, alleviate existing aches and pains and even make you appear more attractive.
2. Yoga can help ease anxiety
Yoga is a peaceful practise that focuses on finding serenity in times of chaos. It is closely linked with mediation and the breathing routines can work wonders if you suffer from anxiety. Exercise itself has also been proven to help those that are prone to feeling anxious so it really is a bit of a no-brainer.
3. Yoga can help you lose weight
Just because yoga isn’t fast-paced doesn’t mean you can’t lose weight practising it. The wide range of stances that you will be trying to achieve take a considerable amount of strength and balance, which ultimately burns a lot of calories. As long as you maintain consistency and eat intuitively with a focus on high quality, nutrient-dense food, the number you see on your bathroom scales is likely to drop.
4. Yoga improves your flexibility
Flexibility isn’t always just a gift you’ve been given. You can improve your flexibility over time and practising yoga is an excellent way to achieve this. Yoga challenges individuals to push their bodies in ways that other forms of exercise don’t. It’s important to understand that flexibility isn’t constant, but variable and something you can improve as long as you put in the time and effort. We’re willing to bet that within a few months of practising yoga, you will be more flexible than you ever have been before.
5. Yoga improves circulation
When you do yoga, your circulation improves, which means more oxygen is circulating your body in your red blood cells. In particular, yoga can help improve the circulation to your hands and feet. Additionally, twisting poses are thought to wring out venous blood from internal organs and allow oxygenated blood to flow in once the twist is released. When you have good circulation, your red blood cells’ capacity to dilate increases, allowing your muscles to receive oxygen more easily. In the long run, this will increase your endurance when it comes to exercise and you may find you get tired a lot less quickly.
Looking for a friendly yoga class to attend? I-motion Rotherham runs weekly classes and we would love to see you there. Get in touch today for prices and availability.
