Health Benefits Of Yoga

Have you heard a lot of buzz about yoga, but you’re reluctant to try it?

Or maybe your friends have started practicing yoga but you’re not sure how to get started?

There are many health benefits when it comes to practicing yoga regularly.

Whether you’re hoping to relieve some stress so you sleep a bit better or want to improve some of your flexibility, yoga can help with that.

Here at Capitol Physical Therapy, a chronic pain physical therapy clinic in Washington DC, our very own physical therapist Valerie Rucker is trained in therapeutic yoga.

Yoga can be integrated into physical therapy routines, as well as your daily mindfulness routine.

Why is this one type of exercise good for so many different aspects of health?

Let’s take a look.

What Is Yoga?

Yoga is exercise that focuses on your mind and body and how they’re connected.

It combines meditation and breath control with movements that will increase your strength and help you stretch.

You may know yoga from the poses that are the most talked about, but it’s much more than that.

It combines elements from mantra, prayer, and breath work, along with exercise.

Yoga asana refers to the practice of yoga, as well as the physical postures.

Yoga is one of the only fitness routines with a specific focus on your mental health as well as your physical health.

People have been practicing yoga of various forms for thousands of years.

What Happens If I Do Yoga Every Day?

When someone mentions doing something every day, it can feel intimidating.

It doesn’t take a lot of yoga per day to feel some benefits, however, and there are many advantages to incorporating a small amount of yoga into your every day routine.

What are some of the benefits to doing daily yoga?

We’re glad you asked – let’s talk about them.

1. Yoga Can Improve Your Balance

When you’re walking up the stairs or getting up off the couch, your body needs to adjust and find balance.

As you get older, it becomes increasingly important for you to maintain good balance, as you are more at risk if you have a bad fall.

Yoga has a chance to improve your balance, especially if you’re practicing regularly.

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2. Yoga Can Relieve Your Stress

A large number of adults suffer from the effects of prolonged stress.

Yoga has been shown to reduce the effects of stress, allowing you to relax and decompress.

But it’s not just the physical exercise that allows you to relieve some of the stressors from your everyday life.

It’s the breathing and meditation practice that goes along with it.

3. Yoga Can Make You Stronger

Some forms of yoga focus on building up your strength, not just your flexibility.

Yoga can be a multimodal form of exercise.

It combines the use of strength building and stretching to target multiple parts of your body.

There are poses and routines that can help you build up your core strength, which will give you a great center for pushing your yoga practice even further.

4. Yoga Can Help You Sleep Better

If you’re having trouble sleeping (also known as insomnia) it’s usually because you’re either struggling to fall asleep or stay asleep.

It’s been shown that yoga can help with both of these aspects of sleep.

The stress relief from the exercise and mental relaxation from yoga can help you get to sleep faster.

Once you’re asleep, you’ll also be staying in a deeper sleep, because your body is primed to be calm and breathe deeply.+

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5. Yoga Can Keep Your Bones Healthy

Have you heard of an isometric contraction?

This term means that the length of your muscles don’t change when you’re doing a particular yoga pose, even though they’re in use.

There are many yoga postures that make use of the concept of isometric contractions.

Even better, isometric contractions have been shown to potentially increase your bone density.

Loss of bone density is related to both osteoporosis and its precursor disorder osteopenia, so yoga can be helpful in reducing your risk of these disorders.

6. Yoga Can Keep Your Heart Healthy

Yogic breathing, which is also called pranayama, has an effect on many different parts of your body.

Your heart especially likes this controlled breathing technique.

Your cardiovascular health could benefit from yoga in many aspects – from improved heart rate to better arterial pressure.

7. Yoga Can Reduce Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is often one of the first things to show up before a chronic illness, such as heart disease, osteoarthritis, or rheumatoid arthritis.

Prolonged inflammation can lead to a lot of negative health effects.

Many of the styles of yoga seem to reduce the markers of inflammation.

This means your body would be more primed to fend off the illnesses caused by chronic inflammation.

8. Yoga Can Help Manage Your Chronic Pain

Chronic pain issues can permeate every aspect of your daily life.

Perhaps related to reducing inflammation, yoga may be able to reduce your chronic pain symptoms.

You’ll want any boost you can get to fend off the effects of your chronic pain, and yoga may help you get there.

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9. Yoga Can Make You More Flexible

Probably one of the most well known benefits of yoga is that it can help improve your flexibility.

In fact, it’s one of the most popular reasons people start doing yoga.

Flexibility can be important for your overall physical health, especially as you get older.

10. Yoga Can Improve Your Overall Quality Of Life

It may seem like a no brainer at this point, but if you tally up all of the aforementioned benefits of yoga, you’ll find your overall quality of life has also improved.

Your quality of life is your perception of your own position in the context of your expectations and value systems.

When thinking about your overall quality of life you might be weighing relationships, health, and relative comfortability.

Because yoga addresses so many different aspects of your health and mental wellness, it can truly help with your overall quality of life.

Book Your Appointment With Capitol Physical Therapy Today

Are you interested in learning more about yoga and how it can be used in your daily routines?

At Capitol Physical Therapy we can help you integrate yoga into your daily routine safely and at your pace.

Book your appointment with Capitol Physical Therapy today.