11 Physical and Mental Health Benefits of Yoga
Yoga has been shown to have numerous benefits for both your physical and mental health.
If you’ve been looking for a form of exercise that will do “double duty” and help you strengthen your body while also benefiting your mind, then yoga might be for you.
This post is going to give you 11 physical and mental health benefits of yoga.
And the best part is, yoga can work for everyone. So remove that image of the stereotypical yogi out of your head, yoga can be beneficial for anyone including you!
Whether you are young or old, seasoned athlete or just starting out on your health and wellness journey, yoga can be a great option for you.
As I said, there are both physical and mental health benefits of yoga.
Let’s start with the physical benefits.
1. Increase muscle strength
Many of the poses you will do in a given yoga class will have an emphasis on strength building.
Sometimes people have a misconception that yoga isn’t challenging, but trust me it is!
My boyfriend who weight-lifts five times a week joined me for a yoga class a few months ago. He walked in thinking it would be a lot of easy stretching…and walked out saying “Wow, that was pretty hard!”.
2. Improve respiratory health
Yoga has a large focus on the breath throughout each class. You will use several different breathing exercises and techniques during class that will help you improve breathing.
Improved breathing will help improve the health of your lungs and to build endurance and breathing capacity.
3. Increase flexibility and balance
A lot of yoga poses focus on building flexibility and balance.
As you practice yoga more regularly, you will find that poses get easier, your body is more flexible, and you have an easier time balancing yourself.
4. Achieve healthy weight
Like with any exercise or physical activity, yoga can help you achieve a healthy weight.
Calories burned during a yoga class will depend on several factors such as how long the class is, the intensity of the class, etc. However, no matter what form of yoga you choose, it has healthy benefits.
5. Protection from injury
Because yoga improves your body’s muscular strength and improves bone health, it can protect you from injury.
Yoga also emphasizes increased awareness of your body, so you may be more in tune to what your body is telling you. You may find it is easier to listen to your body and detect potential injuries earlier than you otherwise would have.
6. Chronic pain management
In addition to injury prevention, yoga can also aid in chronic pain management.
Yoga helps improve muscle strength, flexibility, and spine health, all of which can aid in chronic pain management. Yoga also helps your body relax.
I can say from personal experience that yoga has helped me manage my back condition that can cause me a great deal of pain at times.
For example, my hips and hamstrings can feel tight due to my lower back pain. However, yoga has been able to help me stretch those muscles and manage my pain better.
Remember, be sure to consult your doctor before trying a new exercise regime when managing a chronic pain disorder or recovering from an injury.
7. Athletic performance
If you are an athlete, adding some yoga into your weekly training schedule may have some benefits.
Because it will allow you to strengthen muscles and increase flexibility, you may find that yoga helps improve performance in your athletic sport.
Now let’s talk about some of the amazing mental health benefits of yoga.
8. Relaxation
Yoga is a great way to increase relaxation. The yoga studio environment itself is very relaxing. The quiet, zen-like environment will help you relax.
Additionally, a yoga class is a time where you get to just focus on you. Your phone will be on silent and out of sight so you won’t be pulled into other distractions that may prevent you from relaxing in other scenarios.
9. Stress and anxiety management
Yoga can be a great way to manage stress and anxiety.
Yoga helps you relax your mind and find greater mental clarity. Additionally, yoga helps you increase your awareness in the present moment which can help reduce the tendency to overthink the past or worry about the future.
10. Increase positive outlook on life
Yoga can also help you cultivate a greater positive outlook on life.
You will likely have a greater focus on positivity during class, such as how your body feels in each pose and an overall gratitude for your body and its abilities.
Yoga also helps you to train your mind to focus on the present moment. So, similar to how it will help you manage stress and anxiety through increased awareness, you will be more likely to overcome negative or unproductive thoughts with positive, present-focused thoughts.
11. Improve self-awareness
Yoga is all about being present in the moment, so you will likely feel a sense of greater self-awareness.
The quiet, mindful atmosphere of yoga class will help you be more in tune to your body. You will have both a greater awareness of potential injuries that may require your attention, as well as an overall greater appreciation for your body.
Those are the 11 physical and mental health benefits of yoga.
If you’re feeling inspired to start practicing yoga to reap some of these many benefits the practice can have I encourage you to find some classes in your local area or try out some free guided yoga videos on YouTube.
Be sure to choose a class that fits your needs and goals. If you’re just starting out, look for a class that says “introduction”, “basics”, or “for beginners”. Those classes will take things at a slower pace so you can get the hang of it before moving on to more challenging classes.
If you’re brand new to yoga, check out my guest post on the Daily Meditation about What to Expect in Your First Yoga Class.
If you’ve tried a few beginner classes and feel like you’re ready to move on, look for classes that focus on something you’d like to focus on. For example, if you want to focus on a certain area of your body, look for a class called “Hips and Restorative”.
Additionally, most yoga studios offer “gentle yoga” classes that can be really beneficial if you are dealing with chronic pain or want something that is low impact. Don’t worry, it will still be a healthy workout!
As I said before, be sure to consult your doctor before trying a new exercise regime when managing a chronic pain disorder or recovering from an injury.
Comment below with the health benefits you’ve seen in your own yoga practice!
For more information on healthy exercise, read more here:
6 Comments