Health benefits of yoga
You may have heard about a lot of acquaintances who may have taken to yoga and swear by it. Although yoga has been around for thousands of years, it’s only very recently that have people globally embraced this ancient route to health and well-being. Yoga is a means to improve health in a holistic manner.
Read on to know how yoga can benefit you
Boosts immunity – Practicing yoga regularly can help boost immunity and fight infection. Yoga, as a form of exercise keeps the body fit and supple and this in turn improves immune function. Yoga has various breathing exercises which if done correctly act positively on the immune system. This is because the breath is considered the vitality or life force in yoga.
Acts as a stress buster – Yoga strengthens the mind body connection and improves mood by increasing blood flow to the brain. Some yoga poses like a headstand increase blood flow to the brain. It also helps you have better posture.
Improves sexual health - All that twisting and contorting increases pelvic muscle tone, increases blood flow to the genitals and in short, revs up your sex life. Yoga has been credited for improving performance, increasing libido and having better and more intense orgasms.
Improves heart health – Nowadays, taking care of your heart is a must for all age groups and yoga does wonders for your heart. It decreases blood pressure, slows heart rate and reduces the formation of plaques which cause narrowing of the important coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart muscles. It is also responsible for lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Boosts mental health – Doing yoga regularly and correctly helps mental health problems like depression, anxiety and insomnia, all of which are common in today’s hectic pace of life.
Relives pain – Chronic health conditions like asthma and chronic pain can benefit tremendously with yoga. People who meditate or do breathing exercises find their pain lessening due to the positive energy and power of the mind that yoga initiates.
Positive influence on emotional health – Yoga makes you calmer, more aware and mindful about your surroundings. If you are an emotional eater or have food cravings, practising yoga regularly can help curb those cravings and make you less likely to binge on unhealthy food.
Yoga increases muscle strength and flexibility – This increases muscle tone, suppleness, keeps weight in check and helps tackle constipation and indigestion. This prevents stiffness or soreness which may happen with other forms of exercise. Yoga improves the strength of the deep abdominal muscles also called `core muscles’ which help you maintain an upright posture and prevent slouching or slumping in the chair.
Certain types of yoga teach meditation and specific breathing techniques – These yoga poses help to calm and relax the mind which in turn improves concentration while working.
Yoga can work wonders for energy levels – When a person does yoga regularly, they will feel less tired and have more energy than before.
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