The mental benefits of YOGA

We live in a busy age. In fact, “busy” might be an understatement.

Our lives are whizzing by at a million miles an hour. We’re pulled in so many directions. And technology can make it all worse!
 
Of course, we love technology for the way it connects us to the world and puts any and all information we could ever need right at our fingertips. Technology is making it possible for me to talk to you right now!
 
But unfortunately, most of us are logging on, checking in, liking and following ALL DAY LONG. We tend to lack real connection, stillness and true down time, when nothing is numbing or distracting us.
 
Yoga can be a great mental relief from all of that. Yoga allows us to sit still and be present with ourselves with nothing in the way, nothing stopping us from simply being.
 
For some of you, I know this can be difficult. But when we make it a regular practice, it can help to draw a mind-body connection and have some true healing properties.
 
The mental benefits may be the biggest benefits of all from yoga!
 
A lot of growing research has found that yoga:
 

• increases body awareness

• relieves stress

• reduces muscle tension, strain, and inflammation

• sharpens attention and concentration

• calms and centers the nervous system

 
Yoga has also been known to improve mood, behavior and mindfulness.
 
It helps you feel a better sense of social belonging… and get this - it can even improve symptoms of depression, attention deficit and hyperactivity, and sleep disorders, according to Psychology Today.
 
Relaxing yourself deeply into a yoga pose through deep breathing also lowers the brain’s response to threat. This state of relaxation in the brain oxygenates the blood and reduces heart rate, blood pressure, and motor activity.
 
At the same time, your brain takes cues from your body (and vice versa, of course), so when your body is calming down, your brain gets the message that it’s all good.
 
Basically, yoga helps you chill out and stay sharp.
 
The best part? Yoga works on ALL systems of the body. Muscles, glands, internal organs, spine nerves, digestive system and lymphatic system…
 
I don’t think you can argue with the benefits of yoga after all that!

Yoga even helps with building muscle. Some say it’s a better than lifting weights!
 
How can that be?
 
In yoga, you hold positions where your muscles need to support you, like downward dog, triangle pose or handstand.  These require real strength!
 
Basically, you are lifting weights – your own body weight! And you’re activating those little muscles you may not see… but which help you stand tall and hold all the poses. 
 
(If your goal is to build bigger muscles, weight training might be the faster way to do that. There is a limitation of weight when you’re only lifting your own body weight.)
 
But yoga can be a more balanced way to gain strength, because you’re training all muscles, big and small, at the same time. You also can increase your muscle endurance in a better way because you hold poses for a longer period of time.
 
So, if your next question is - how often should I stretch or do yoga? - I’ve got you!
 
How much yoga or stretching you do should be in proportion to how much you work out. (Which is what we do in BOGA!)
 
But if that doesn’t feel realistic right now, start small! Put in just 10 minutes on the mat and you’ll feel a difference.
 
You can even make yoga its own workout at some point in the week, or use it as a warm up or cool down.
 
BOGA is a great way to test the waters and see how you feel about adding yoga to your workout regimen.
 
You still get the weight and High Intensity Interval Training. But then you add in the yoga component as well. After the 4 weeks is up, you’ll be able to see and FEEL the benefits of making yoga a regular part of your routine!
 
Sign Me Up for BOGA Now!
 
On top of that, you’ll also join an amazing group of women, many of who will also be trying yoga for the first time. So you won’t be going it alone.
 
The BOGA group on Facebook is a great place for that accountability and motivation! But you only get access if you sign up for BOGA.
 
I hope to see you there!
  
PS - Click here to listen to one member of BOGA explain what a difference the program made in her life!