BENEFITS OF YOGA

BENEFITS OF YOGA

Yoga is a mind and body practice with more than 6,000-year history in ancient Indian philosophy. Various forms of yoga combine breathing techniques, physical postures, relaxation and meditation exercises.

Are you looking for reasons to do yoga? From increased flexibility to heart health, we have a lot more benefits to rolling out the mat.

Yoga makes you flexible

Improved flexibility is most obvious benefit of yoga. In beginning, you probably won't be able to touch your toes, but if you stick with it, you'll notice a gradual improvement, and finally, seemingly impossible poses will become possible. You'll also probably notice that aches and pains start to disappear. That's no coincidence. Tight hips can strain the knee joint due to improper alignment of the thigh and shinbones. Tight hams can lead to a flattening of the lumbar spine, which further can cause back pain. Inflexibility in muscles and connective tissue, such as fascia and ligaments, can lead to poor posture.

Yoga Drops your BP Significantly

If you've got high BP, you might benefit from yoga. A study published in the British medical journal The Lancet of two groups of people with hypertension, compared the effects of Sarvasan with simply lying on a couch. After three months, 26-point drop in systolic blood pressure and a 15-point drop in diastolic blood pressure was noticed!

Yoga Helps Maintaining your Nervous System

Advanced yoga practitioners can control their bodies in extraordinary ways, controlling their nervous system. Researchers have monitored yogis who could generate unusual heart rhythms, create specific brain-wave patterns, and can raise the temperature of their body by 15 degrees Fahrenheit. If they can use yoga to do that, you certainly can learn to improve blood flow to your pelvis if you're trying to get pregnant or induce relaxation when you're having trouble falling asleep.

Yoga fights Depression

Some recent studies show that yoga help decrease symptoms of depression significantly.

This is because yoga decreases a stress hormone "CORTISOL" that influences levels of serotonin, the neurotransmitter that is associated with severe depression.

In a study, participants in an alcohol dependence program performed the Sudarshan Kriya (specific type of yoga that focuses on rhythmic breathing) for two weeks. After two weeks, participants had fewer symptoms of depression and significantly lower levels of cortisol. They also had lower levels of ACTH, a hormone responsible for stimulating the release of cortisol.