The 3 Most Underrated Benefits of Yoga
It is an undisputed fact that yoga has many benefits. The world of yoga is so vast. Across its length and breadth, there is too much that has to be discovered.
To elaborate this fact, let me ask you a very simple question. Do you practice yoga? If yes, then why? If not, you are, very likely, thinking of getting started. Why?
The reason, probably, is you already know yoga is good for you in many ways. You are likely aware that yoga can help you:
- improve your physical fitness and flexibility,
- increase your energy,
- reduce all forms of stress and anxiety,
- improve your posture,
- ameliorate your quality of sleep,
- improve circulation throughout the body including major organs,
- enhance healing and recovery of both body and mind.
On top of that yoga provides an overall sense of peace and well-being that simply radiates pure positivity.
There is no doubt that people do yoga to get rid of stress. They want to cope with stress and depression with simple exhaling and inhaling exercises. It is true that yoga is one of the best ways to synchronize body, mind and soul. It keeps a person well-composed and prevents them from becoming a subordinate to their emotions. A person habitual to practicing yoga is much more capable of escaping the influence of ruthless thoughts.
As if all that wasn’t enough, in case you need some extra motivation to take action, for your own well-being, and do some yoga or keep on doing yoga, here are three benefits of yoga that may be less well-known but are not less important.
1. Yoga Teaches Self-Love
It is a common consensus that yoga teaches self-confidence. What people don’t know is that yoga teaches self-love as well.
The most important relationship we all have is with ourselves. Yet, it is the one relationship that we most often tend to neglect.
Your time on your yoga mat is your opportunity to clear your mind, connect and learn to love yourself. Taking the time to attend a yoga class is a wonderful way to value your spirit, focus on your own needs and take care of yourself. This is a big part of practicing self-love.
You are absolutely worth the extra time and effort it may take to feed your soul and be happy. Never forget you are absolutely wonderful just by being you.
2. Yoga Helps Free Your Soul
According to the yoga tradition, every one of us has five bodies, each made of increasingly finer grades of energy.
And we should keep all our bodies in good condition if we intend to live a fully balanced life.
The five, progressively subtler, bodies that compose our personality are: the Physical Body, the Life Energy Body, the Mental Body, the Intellectual Body and the Divine Body.
These five bodies are called koshas, or “sheaths,” in Sanskrit, since each one fits into the next like a sword fits in a scabbard.
Only the top, densest body is made of matter as we know it. The other four bodies are energy states that can’t be seen by the physical eye, but we can sense their presence inside us when we pay close attention.
Complete coordination of all these bodies, helps a person achieve an unburdened soul, free from the internal tumult of spirit.
Yoga provides us with a variety of exercises to strengthen and tone each one of our five bodies.
Yoga asanas (postures) and pranayamas (breathing exercises) are powerful ways to clear your mind, and hear your soul.
Thus, through a consistent yoga practice you are at an advantageous position to explore and develop not only your outer, Physical Body but, also, your inner, Energy Bodies.
You can read more about the five bodies or koshas in this article from Yoga International: The Koshas: 5 Layers of Being.
3. A Greater Consciousness
Multi-tasking is a very human thing. Not only we do it, but often consider it as something worth bragging about. At the same time, it is something that causes stress in human beings.
Furthermore, studies have shown that it is impossible to focus on more than one task at a time.
This means that, while we may think of ourselves as capable and efficient for doing many things at the same time, we, actually, may be ending up making more mistakes and wasting time due to insufficient attention.
In other words, trying to perform many tasks at the same time renders us unable to focus on anything.
If you consider for a bit, you will probably realize that while taking a leisure stroll in a garden you have, mostly, not been able to truly and fully enjoy the natural scenes. Walking along the bank of the stream, you may not be able to enjoy the dance of waves; or glancing upon the top tree branches, you may not be able to listen to the chirping of birds.
At worst, you may not be able to enjoy the food while feeling its taste.
If you wonder why this happens, the answer is simple; you lack mindfulness or the ability to focus to the here and now. You are simply not conscious of your present situation and what is happening around you at the moment.
Yes, to truly appreciate and enjoy different events and happenings, that constantly occur around you, you need to be mindful and conscious.
And yes, yoga is perfectly fitted to help you achieve this very trait.
With each yoga pose and exercise we perform, we are completely absorbed in the practice of breathing and the connection to our body; in that moment we are essentially unaware of anything else.
Yoga does not simply help us be conscious of our surroundings, but allows us to be mindful of what is going on in our mind and soul.
Practice yoga and you will learn to live in the present moment, without your mind drifting to the past or the future, worrying, planning, yearning.
Yoga teaches the art of living in the present and enjoying every particular moment.
Consequently, a person appears less confused and perplexed. They are more focused, confident and clear.
Learn more about the amazing power of mindfulness in our article:
Synchronize Body, Mind And Soul
You are a multidimensional being. Your awareness manifests on many levels.
Yoga gives you knowledge of yourself and trains you to live fully and gracefully at every level.
From the hatha postures, that strengthen and tone your physical body, to the breathing exercises, that balance and vitalize your life force; from the meditation practice, that quiets and clears your mind, to the self-examination and selfless love that reveal an inner world of knowledge and unity, yoga is a holistic system that develops and integrates all parts of your personality.
Having described all these benefits of yoga, did you know that yoga can be a very effective tool for burning fat and losing weight?
Learn the best way to burn fat and lose weight doing Yoga in How Yoga Can (Best) Help You Lose Weight And Be In Shape.
And if you want a step-by-step progressive yoga program, designed exclusively for women, to deliver maximum fat burning results and body shaping effects in the shortest amount of time in the comfort of your own home then ShapeShifter Yoga is for you.
Sophia is our amazing “Health – Fitness – Wellness” section manager and also the manager of our “Healthy Eating – Healthy Living” Newsletter. No wonder she is passionate about adhering to a healthy way of living. She is excited to be writing and sharing great information on making healthy choices and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
