Some of you will know that I trained many years ago as a teacher of yoga. Here are my thoughts around why you should take up yoga.
Yoga is an ancient practice to promote physical and mental health. The literal meaning of yoga is ‘to yoke’, derived from the Sanskrit root “yuj,” meaning to control or to unite. Therefore, this practice aims to unite mind, spirit and body. But you don’t have to be a yogi meditating for hours in an ashram. There are many benefits to be derived from the practice and here are some of the best reasons to take up yoga.
8 reasons to take up yoga
1# Anyone can do it
People often say to me something along the lines of ‘I can’t do yoga. I am too old, too fidgety, not flexible enough, have poor balance, have too many health issues, etc.’
To me, all of those ‘issues’ are actually good reasons to take up yoga. In my experience, anyone can practice some form. I have taught general classes, children, pregnant women, older people and those with limited ability. In the past, I have even adapted some poses for people suffering from Parkinson’s disease and MS.
You do not have to arrive at a yoga class already able to touch your toes. In fact, it may take you months or years to improve your flexibility. Nevertheless, you will start to feel the benefits from your first practice. As practitioners will often tell you, it is not about the destination; the journey is what is important.
We are all different. Some folk are naturally extremely flexible, but most aren’t. There are people who can sit quietly in meditation for hours, whilst others struggle to stop their inner chatter for 30 seconds.
The key is to find a class, style of yoga and teacher that suits you and to go easy on yourself. Be open to the experience and enjoy it.
2# It helps you deal with stress
As you stretch your body with the yoga positions (known as ‘asanas’), your muscles naturally begin to relax. Muscle tension reduces and you find yourself feeling calmer.
The meditative relaxation exercises taught in most yoga classes also create an inner calm that is one of the most beneficial reasons to take up yoga. Most of us live busy, almost frantic lives, and rarely give ourselves time to chill out. A regular yoga practice gives you a sense of peace that you can take with you as you go through the daily hustle and bustle.
3# Yoga improves fitness and flexibility
It may seem hard to believe that gentle looking yoga poses can improve your strength and fitness, but don’t be fooled. Holding your own body weight in a pose such as the Downward Facing Dog or the Plank, can make you aware of muscles you didn’t know you had.
Bending deeply into the Warrior pose, with your front leg bent and your arms outstretched and then holding it, will raise your heart rate and tone your muscles, and several rounds of the Salute to the Sun sequence will get you out of breath in the same way as a gym workout.
The gentle and regular stretching of your body will improve flexibility, make you less likely to suffer injuries when doing daily activities and help slow down the aging process.
This being said, you can make your yoga practice as gentle as your body needs it; you will still gain strength and fitness.
4# It will give you a better posture
There is no doubt that we all look better if we don’t slouch and stand up straight. But good posture isn’t about throwing your shoulders back and standing tense. Yoga encourages you to lengthen your spine whilst remaining relaxed. The postures help to strengthen your core to hold you straight, aligning your body in a natural and healthy way.
The most basic yoga asana is Mountain Pose, Tadasana. It is the foundation for all of the standing poses, and helps to improve your awareness of both posture and alignment.
5# Yoga helps you breathe better
More than any other form of exercise, yoga encourages you to become aware of and improve your breathing. You may think the breath will take care of itself – it’s an automatic bodily process, right?
In reality, many of us habitually either under breathe or over breathe. Stress and anxiety, issues with weight and poor posture all contribute to the problem. Have you ever seen somebody hyperventilating? As they struggle to take in more air of huge gulps and gasps, they are actually breathing in a very shallow way and depriving their body of the oxygen it craves.
On the flip side of the coin, hypoventilation can cause dangerously high levels of carbon dioxide in the body, causing headaches, heart problems and dizziness.
Babies and children breathe in a healthy and relaxed way into their abdomens. As we age, life gets in the way and we somehow lose this natural ability.
But we can change the way we breathe. In fact, one of the eight limbs of yoga is pranayama, which literally means to extend the life force. A good yoga teacher will incorporate awareness and control of the breath as part of the practice, but there are also some techniques that can be learned separately.
This post is a beginner’s guide to pranayama.
6# It improves your balance
As we age, our balance can deteriorate, leading to falls and injuries. Yoga incorporates simple movements to help body awareness and coordination, as well as more challenging balancing postures such as Tree pose and Eagle pose.
Practicing such asanas regularly will help your mental sense of balance and your concentration too. Stillness in your body leads to stillness in the mind, helping to alleviate anxiety and tension.
7# Yoga reduces fatigue
Many people say that they finish their yoga practice feeling more energised than when they began. I always find that this is the case!
The combination of good breathing, stretching and the release of tension wakes your body up, releasing fatigue.
On a more subtle level, ‘prana’ means life force and yoga allows the flow of prana to move freely around your body.
8# You can do it anywhere
One of the things I love about yoga is that, once you have mastered some basic principles, you can do it anywhere. You only need a small amount of space and minimal equipment – a block and a mat – for your home practice. When you are out and about, you can practice yoga breathing to keep you calm and centred without anybody noticing.
When I travel, I frequently take my mat with me, but failing that just use a towel or blanket for lying and sitting postures.
Practicing outside on grass or sand is such a fabulously relaxing and freeing experience!
What next?
Hopefully, I have given you enough reasons to take up yoga. So, what next? I would suggest that you find a properly trained yoga teacher to get you started via the governing body in your country. You might also like to take a look at this simple sequence.
In the UK, this is the British Wheel of Yoga, but also check out the International Yoga Federation. Good luck with your yoga journey!
Christine says
I love this article. I started yoga a few years ago long before the pandemic, in a beginners class, which then moved on as non beginners started and I had to stop going along with a couple of friends as we couldn’t do the poses and it all got to quick.
I now have the issue that I can’t sit cross legged. I have a bolster but find that sitting up very straight for 5 minutes makes my back ache. I am not totally unfit and m very mobile just not flexible.
I really would like to start yoga again, but even the Yoga with Adrienne beginners for non flexible was a struggle for me and I had to give up halfway through.
Have you any suggestions? I have the mat, bolster, band. Just no idea where to start now.
shoestringjane@outlook.com says
You don’t have to sit cross legged at all. How about kneeling with a bolster or rolled up blanket under your hips? A good teacher should adapt the postures to suit everyone in the class. Just because you’re not a beginner it doesn’t mean you will suddenly become super flexible. I suggest finding a class billed as ‘gentle’ and giving it another go.