The origin of Yoga is to unite the mind, body, and spirit. It builds strength and awareness of the mind and body when transferring between different poses. Yoga has been shown to promote relaxation during stressful times and is often the main reason for people taking Yoga classes. However, it does a lot more than just relieving stress.
Benefits include:
1. Improve flexibility and mobility – it is a myth that you need to be flexible to practice yoga. On the contrary, yoga can be practiced at different levels, and the beauty of it is you become more flexible during the process.
2. Build strength – Daily yoga practice will stretch and tone your body muscles. Holding a pose incorporates a lot of coordinated muscle activation between your arms, legs, shoulders, and abs. It is essentially a full body work out.
3. Better all-round fitness – A form of exercise that can be done at your own pace, but because it combines cardio, functional and strength training all in one, you get best of both words. Depending on the type of Yoga, the constant movement and flow will get you breaking into a sweat!
4. Weight loss – Yoga helps fuel the metabolic system, aiding in helping with burning fat and restoring hormonal balance in your body.
5. Cultivate self-awareness – Daily practice of yoga also strengthens the overall mind-body connection. From practicing the different poses, you become more aware of how your body moves. Levels of cortisol also increases which help with reducing stress levels.
Happy exercising!
Winnie Ng
