Probably, the most misconstrued of all the facts, its pure injustice, confining Yoga to just as a means for combating Stress….Because, such a statement grossly overlooks the myriad other benefits that practicing Yoga can provide to the one who practices it rightly.

For the layman, Yoga makes you feel healthier—in mind, body and spirit, fresher, more energized and composed, thus making a strong & tough mind and body.

Yoga means “Yuj” Or “Union” of the Self with the Divine Consciousness. The postures and meditation techniques are a methodology to attain that goal.

There are different styles of Yoga-- most common & widely practiced being the ”Ashtanga Yoga” & “Hatha Yoga”, which teaches a number of postures, and breathing techniques…

Even if you don’t believe in the spiritual side of Yoga, you can still practice it, for the number of health benefits it delivers.

Specifically,

-It helps manage or control anxiety, arthritis, depression, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, blood pressure, headaches, back pain (most common problem), Carpel Tunnel Syndrome, heart problems.

- Improves Flexibility (one of the important fitness aspects), Muscle tone, strength, and stamina.

- Yoga also helps to strengthen the respiratory system, thus helping with problems, like asthma, etc.

- Improves concentration, memory and self-esteem, mental toughness.

- Improves facial and skin texture, voice, and improves circulation in general.

- Stimulates the immune system, and is not age-specific.

- Helps control abnormalities of the Hormonal (Endocrine) System, especially of the Thyroid Gland, and its secretions, which contribute to effective functioning of the body.

- They massage and tone the internal organs, which improves their blood circulation.

- The Twisting Poses, Forward Bends, like Half-seated twists (Ardha-Matsyendrasana), Plough (Halasana), Bow, etc. stimulate the Pancreas to manage insulin levels better, which inturn can help manage Diabetes. 

- Helps in weight management, by boosting metabolism.

- Yoga also helps in case of pregnant women, where postures like the Cobbler pose, etc. are useful.

Getting back to the topic of discussion, it also helps to effectively deal with stress, and related problems like stomach disorders, constipation, insomnia, etc.

Not only that while practicing meditation as a part of Yoga, the brain sends out an increased amount of alpha-waves, which relaxes the mind and body, and gives a feeling of rejuvenation.

The yoga exercises are not fast and forceful, but instead involve slow and steady movements, which incorporate the whole body and mind, hence, a favorite among the elderly.

Yoga is a form of “Mental Gym” for the mind, which controls the body, and in-turn all the problems and ailments.

Lastly, but one of the most important advantages of yoga lies in its ability to correct the postural imbalances.

As a result of faulty posture over the years, especially a sedentary lifestyle, adaptive shortening and muscular strength imbalances, the major joints in the body, like the neck, knee, and the lower back region are subjected to a lot of stress, which causes lower-back pain, and other problems.

It can be used to relieve tension in the muscles of the neck, lower-back, forearm, those around the eyes, common among the corporate professionals, working with the computer for long hours.

Not to dis-regard the importance of other forms of exercises, safe to say that a little Yoga incorporated into the daily fitness routine, along with exercises focusing on Strength, Stamina, can be used as a holistic approach to wellness.

Thus, presence/absence of stress need not be the dictating factor to practice Yoga…Practice it to know it!!!!!

We live in the age of one-stop outlets for all our material needs, like malls and supermarkets – one place that addresses all our needs without making us feel the need to look or go elsewhere. So if by the same logic, you are looking for a ‘one-stop solution’ when it comes to health and fitness, then the answer is easy – Yoga! 

Yoga means “Yuj” Or “Union” of the Self with the Divine Consciousness. It is a way of life rather than a concept or an idea. There are eight steps and the asanas or postures are a tool to lead the way. The postures and meditation techniques are also a methodology to attain that goal.

There are different styles of Yoga worldwide, most common and widely practiced being the ”Ashtanga Yoga” and the “Hatha Yoga”, which teach a number of postures and breathing techniques.

 Yoga makes you feel healthier—in mind, body and spirit because of its whole-body approach, especially since it positively affects the organs and the endocrine system in the body. A session of Yoga can leave you fresher, more energized and composed, thus making for a strong mind and body.

Even if you don’t believe in the spiritual side of Yoga, you can still practice it for the number of health benefits it delivers. Specifically,

?It helps to manage and control anxiety, depression, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, blood pressure, headaches, back pain, Carpel Tunnel Syndrome and heart problems

?It improves Flexibility (one of the most important fitness aspects), muscle tone, strength, and stamina

?Yoga also helps to strengthen the respiratory system, thus helping with problems like asthma

?Improves concentration, memory, self-esteem and mental toughness

?Improves facial and skin texture, voice and improves circulation in general

?Stimulates the immune system and is not age-specific

?Helps control abnormalities of the Hormonal (Endocrine) System, especially of the Thyroid Gland and its secretions, which contribute to effective functioning of the body

?It massages and tones the internal organs, which improves their blood circulation

?The Twisting Poses, Forward Bends, Half-seated twists (like Ardha-Matsyendrasana and more) stimulate the pancreas and help to manage insulin levels better, which in turn helps to manage Diabetes

?Helps in weight management by boosting metabolism

?Yoga also helps in case of pregnant women, where postures like the Cobbler pose are useful

?It also helps to effectively deal with stress-related problems like stomach disorders, constipation, insomnia and more

?While practicing meditation as a part of Yoga, the brain sends out an increased amount of alpha-waves, which relaxes the mind and body and gives a feeling of rejuvenation

Yoga exercises are not fast and forceful, but instead involve slow and steady movements, which incorporate the whole body and mind, and hence are a favourite among the elderly.

Yoga is also a form of “Mental Gym” for the mind - which in turn controls the body and all problems and ailments.

Lastly, one of the most important advantages of Yoga lies in its ability to correct postural imbalances. As a result of faulty posture over the years, especially a sedentary lifestyle, there are adverse effects on the body, like adaptive shortening of muscles, muscular strength imbalances especially at major joints in the body like the neck, knee or the lower back region. It can be used to relieve tension in the muscles of the neck, lower-back and forearm that are mostly common among Corporate professionals using computers for long hours.

Safe to say that a little Yoga incorporated into your daily life can be a holistic approach to wellness.

Most yoga studios and local gyms offer yoga classes that are open to all generations and fitness levels. It’s for young teens, athletes, middle-aged moms, older gentlemen and even fitness buffs and body builders. Everyone can feel accepted and included and, unlike other sports or classes that focus on niche clients, yoga tends to have open arms. Yoga is not just about working out, it’s about a healthy lifestyle. The practice of yoga allows students to be still in a world consumed with chaos. Peace and tranquility achieved through focused training appeals to everyone.

Yoga’s deep breathing and meditation practices help foster an inner shift from to-do lists, kids and spouse’s needs, financial concerns and relational struggles to something a little bit bigger than the issues you face. Yoga helps relieve stress and unclutter the mind, and helps you get more focused.

Strength training and flexibility

Yoga’s focus on strength training and flexibility is an incredible benefit to your body. The postures are meant to strengthen your body from the inside-out, so you don’t just look good, you feel good too. Each of the yoga poses is built to reinforce the muscles around the spine, the very center of your body, which is the core from which everything else operates. When the core is working properly, posture is improved, thus alleviating back, shoulder and neck pain.

The digestive system gets back on track when the stretching in yoga is coupled with a healthy, organic diet, which can relieve constipation, irritable bowl syndrome (IBS) and acid reflux. Another one of the benefits of yoga is that stretching and holding of postures also causes muscles to lengthen, which gives the body a longer, leaner look.