Yoga is one of the most popular “trends” globe wide and has been for quite some time now. There are just over 36 million people practicing this bendy exercise in the U. S today. And those numbers are constantly climbing higher and higher each day! Yoga has gained its popularity from its effectiveness and the practice’s very generous health benefits. Today I am going to cover the health benefits of Yoga and the different kinds of yoga for peace and healing.
What Is Yoga Exactly.
Yoga is an exercise that uses different physical postures, breathing techniques and meditation methods. This group of techniques allows one to gain control of our random thoughts that slowly builds up our inner anxiety and then creates a space of stillness, through all the chaos the mind tends to create.
Yoga is a spiritual practice that was created by the Indus-Sarasvati civilization over 5,000 years ago.
The practice of Yoga focuses on connecting the mind to the body. Our bodies (physical health) is affected by our minds (thoughts, emotions, attitudes and beliefs) and vice versa.
Yoga is considered to be a body-mind therapy. These therapies allow us to balance our minds and bodies to get them on the same page, creating a form of OVERALL well-being. For example if you are not a very healthy eater and you never exercise 9 times out of 10 you are not going to feel the best physically, which in turn will persuade the mind that hey it doesn’t feel so good either and this pattern can be ongoing and exhausting.
This is why the practice of Yoga is so important because it binds together our mental and physical disciplines to promote and support a PEACEFUL mind and body. With a peaceful mind and body we lessen the chances that anxiety can sneak in and attack.
The Health Benefits Behind Yoga
Not only is Yoga created to help us balance out the inconsistencies with our minds and bodies. Yoga has TONS of hidden health benefits that most people may not even be aware that yoga offers.
Some health benefits include
- Increases flexibility and balance
- Improves heart health
- Relieves back aches and pains
- Builds muscle strength
- Promotes weight loss
- Reduces stress and anxiety
- Helps improve respiration issues
- Heightens energy
- Improves arthritis
- Promotes overall wellness
These health benefits that yoga provides are the main reasons why the practice of yoga is so big in today’s Holistic Health World. These exercises have been able to help physically and mentally heal individuals for years in one of the most natural ways ever! I mean getting all these good benefits for a few perfectly designed stretches and breathing tricks is an absolute YES in my book!
The Different Kinds Of Yoga!
Another fun fact about Yoga is there are actually several kinds of the practice itself. There are 11 main Yoga methods practiced across the world today.
The different methods include
- Hatha Yoga – Your typical style of yoga the term “Hatha” is an overall meaning for all the postures in yoga.
- Vinyasa Yoga – A style of yoga that focuses on the breathing technique to align the body and mind.
- Iyengar Yoga – This style of yoga focuses on alignment, timing and sequence.
- Kundalini Yoga – This style is a more spiritual style of yoga that involves chanting, singing, breathing techniques and different movements.
- Ashtanga Yoga – A style of yoga that focuses on physical strength and muscle training.
- Bikram Yoga – Known to be done in a room at a temperature of 105 F with about 40% humidity and focuses on 26 unique poses.
- Yin Yoga – Focuses on your deep connective tissues as in your bones, joints and legitimates.
- Restorative Yoga – Focuses on relaxing your mind and body with poses that do not include strain or pain.
- Prental Yoga – This style of yoga is for the mommies to be! Prental yoga focuses on preparing the body for birth and labor.
- Anusara Yoga – Focuses on YOU and finding your inner joy in your everyday life.
- Jivamukti Yoga – Focuses on yoga scripture, chanting, meditation, asana, pranayama, and music.
So In Conclusion
As you can see there are SEVERAL styles of this fun yet effective exercise to explore. So take some time and do some research for yourself and see which style works best for you.
I personally LOVE the benefits I get from yoga, especially when it comes to my anxiety. Yoga has such a way of making the stress and anxiety of your day just completely melt away. Face it, the world we live it and fight through daily can get “overwhelming” in better words and there is nothing like finding just the right exercise to dive into after a long long day.
Not only does yoga help us lose weight which is a PLUS and lessens anxiety which is another SUPER PLUS. It also helps us get in tune with ourselves and helps balance out our imbalanced body and mind creating a sense of relaxation that our minds and body so desperately crave.
So what are you waiting for grab you a yoga mat and stretchy yet comfy attire and find the nearest yoga studio and I promise you won’t regret it! Leave me a comment below and share some of you are favorite styles of yoga or even you are favorite yoga studios!
