ADSactly Sports - Five Amazing Yoga Benefits
ADSactly Sports: 5 Amazing Yoga Benefits
Photo by Jared Rice on Unsplash
Much of the culture associated with yoga is one of stilness and meditation. We picture robed men sitting cross-legged and finding inner peace when we mention yoga and frankly, I think that image puts a lot of people off. Not that there's anything wrong with finding inner peace, but you know how people are. We tend to look dubiously at anything coming close to spirituality these days and a lot of people feel that it doesn't represent them. But yoga is an exercise, much like any other, a simple (well, sometimes complex) routine of stretches that, combined with focus, can yield amazing benefits for the yogi.
Another common misconception is that yoga requires extreme flexibility. You have to train for many years to be able to “do” yoga. Not true. This is something that, again, keeps a lot of people from trying yoga, they feel that they can barely walk about and perform simple basic tasks, how could they ever hope to conquer a three-legged dog or a sleeping pigeon?
(See? That's one of the benefits I mentioned – funny names!)
But again, that is not true. In fact, one of the things I love most about yoga is that anyone can do it, regardless of how out of shape they might be, it's just a matter of practice.
I've been doing yoga on and off for some four or five years now and I've learned a lot of surprising things from it. And today, I'd like to share with you some of the amazing benefits of keeping up a yoga practice.
1. Perseverance ~ If you want to, you can do it.
This is something you learn with the complicated poses. Because on your first day, you're probably going to fall over a lot and won't feel very bendy at all. In fact, halfway through, you're probably going to be cursing the yoga teacher, muttering about when will the torture end? Normal.
Photo by CATHY PHAM on Unsplash
And from that, it's up to you what you do next. You can give up, but you can also give yourself a month. These days, month-long challenges seem to be extremely popular across the internet, so this might appeal to you. Follow a yoga routine for one month. Each day, set aside an hour or even just half for a yoga practice. A measly thirty minutes, surely, you can spare that. And if you do keep to it, if you show up every day and do your bit, you'll find that by the end of those 30 days, those poses that seemed so complicated at the start are now easily within reach. You're doing a wonderful downward-facing dog and the tree pose that seemed like hell? You don't even need to focus to pull it off.
That's the thing about yoga, really. You can do anything, even the most complicated poses if you practice long enough and that's a great lesson to carry in life, I feel. Because it's true about a lot of things, not just yoga. If you persevere with something, sooner or later you will get results, you will make progress. You can't expect something to come off perfect on the very first try, that's not practical. But you must learn not to give up when you fail.
I have a lot of positions that seemed a hassle at first, but little by little, I've come to do them better. Each day, you can go a bit further than the last. Maybe on the first day, you could only bend down a little. The second day, you'll bend a little more and by the end of the week, who knows? You might even touch the ground.
It's possible.
2. You have the power to instill peace
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At least within your own head and heart. I tend to be really stressed out, often, and I over-think things and I was thinking (duh) that maybe you're like me. Maybe you too spend a lot of time inside your own head and wish you didn't, because at one point, it becomes exhausting. It wears you down.
Well, fear not, because yoga is here to the rescue. See, you might not think it, but those poses do require some concentration on your part, and they require you to be still. And if your mind is just wandering about, running away with the first errant thought, you won't have much success on your yoga mat, I'm afraid. Trust me, I've tried. I try to do yoga poses while thinking of my own troubles and it just doesn't work.
This is true of most sports, I think, that you need to focus on what you're doing, on what your body is doing in order to do it right. Seriously, just try a balancing pose while thinking about a grade or your job worries or whatever – you'll keep falling over and over because if your mind isn't in it, you can't maintain that balance.
It's like a really noisy room that keeps throwing you off.
3. You'll fall over. And then, you'll pick yourself up again.
Photo by Bruce Christianson on Unsplash
This, to me, is an invaluable life lesson, one that I think you can learn (and become accustomed to) through yoga. Because in yoga, there's a lot of falling over. Every yogi has at some point lost balance and fallen, dropping out of a pose and ending up a tangled mess on the floor.
That's okay.
It's okay to fall because falling is part of life. In love, in your career, everywhere, you will have ups and downs. And in yoga, I've learned that waiting in fear for that fall is useless. You can spend your time on the mat fearing you'll mess up, but that's just not practical. It doesn't really get you anywhere and if you let that fear keep you from trying a pose, you don't make progress. Same as in life. You have to learn that falling is not the worst thing that can happen. You'll just be on the floor and you always have the power to pick yourself up again.
Notice: Please be careful when doing yoga, though. If you feel a pose is too much for you, do not push yourself over the limit. Do not attempt to do complicated standing-on-your-head poses that you know you can't do. Work your way to them maybe, but be aware, because you can hurt yourself badly, yeah?
4. Yoga can be a lifeline
Photo by Kristopher Roller on Unsplash
I know it doesn't sound like much, but yoga can really keep you grounded when you feel like you're floating away. This is true about many sports, you know why? Because as I said, they require daily practice (ideally) and that practice becomes a routine and routine is one of the best ways to overcome whatever bad things are going on in your life. Often, we find ourselves at a crossroads, going through a breakup, fighting with out parents, losing our job, you name it, the problems in life are endless. And it's at such moments when we find it hard to focus, to find our way out.
Well, yoga can be a helping hand, something to catch you when you drift away. First, it gives you something stable, something you can count on being there each day. And maybe your life isn't very stable right now and needs just such a thing.
Second, it's very empowering, as I said. It shows you you can conquer anything, that you have the power to learn, to change, to do a lot of great things. And that's something you could really do with if you're down.
And even if you're not going through something particularly awful, if you just find yourself not knowing what to do with yourself (that's fairly common), it can give you a purpose, it teaches you that you can always find your way or learn something new.
5. It has amazing effects on the body
Photo by Nik MacMillan on Unsplash
As a writer, I spend a lot of time at my desk (and I mean a lot). And, as you can imagine, that's not great for my back, for my blood flow or my body in general. So I really enjoy this break, this losing myself in yoga for thirty minutes each day. It gives me a chance to stretch out my muscles and I've learned that's amazing. You might be tempted to do a set of exercises, if you're looking to lose weight, and those are nice 'cause they do get the desired effect, but often, they don't focus on stretching your muscles and that can lead to injury. Not to mention, it's not as helpful. Constant yoga practice does not require you to be flexible from the start, but it does make you pretty flexible and as you get older, that's a great help for your body. You don't want to get stuck, to become unable to do certain moves because you might pull a muscle in your leg or back. Well, yoga reduces that risk, it keeps you mobile and helps with a lot of pains you might experience in life.
Doing yoga helps with your blood flow, reversing it, moving parts of the body that you don't normally move in the course or regular day-to-day activities.
Often, I find a part of my body – usually my legs or my back – is really sore either from sitting a lot or God knows what else and normally, I'd have to wait it out. Rest through it. That's what I used to do. Now, I know exactly what yoga move would ease the pain and would make me feel better and I do that instead.
So, I hope I've shown you how yoga is great for both mind and body and maybe even convinced you to try it out. If you don't like the idea of being in a room with a lot of sweaty people, there are plenty of yoga channels on Youtube – see Yoga With Adriene or Boho Beautiful – that could help you set up an at-home practice.
Anyway, what's your go-to workout?
Authored by @honeydue
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Thank you!
I have been having trouble with my hips and back for quite some time. A friend suggested that I try yoga. I always thought that it was too complicated. You have simplified it for me. I started today with 15 minutes. I hope to increase over time. I will keep you posted as I make progress. Thank you @adsactly
Can I suggest Pilates too for your hip situation @artoftherhyme ?My mother started pilates and went from needing a hip operation to being strong and completely pain free, quite amazing. She still practices it daily to maintain core strength and is in her eighties 😉
Thank you so much. I am going to look into getting started with that. I have been told that I need a hip operation. The doctors want me to wait becasue of my age. My family wants me to get it now to improve my quality of life. Again, thank you.
A natural core strengthening and non invasive method seems way better for your over all health xx
What a well done piece! Well authored, great links & images. I love everything about this! Good for you for developing and encouraging yoga practice ❤🧡💛 when you take 30 mins to do your practice, do you ususlly use a video as your go to, or do you tend to use your intuition and do poses you are working on or craving when you practice? Having a strong yoga practice has literally been a life saver when i was in a car accident. It's helped me to live in many ways. I've been practicing just over 20 years! Since i turned 20. Namaste 🎶💜🙏
Great article @honeydue. You know I've been hearing about yoga but I never knew it has so much benefits as this. I've totally looked down at yoga as an exercise and thats so bad for I've missed alot. As a sports man like me, reading this wonderful post of yours about yoga, trust me I won't miss a day off. God bless you @honeydue
For a long time I have wanted to practice yoga, but due to a question of laziness and time, basically, I haven't started. In fact I have many people around me who have told me about the benefits. I also spend a lot of time sitting and in very high heels, and at the end of the day my back, my feet, my soul hurt. True, I'm not very stressed: for me music and writing is an easy way to channel tensions, but many times I've felt a lot of tension in my shoulders, as if I carried stones on my shoulders and I've been recommended to do yoga. I have a friend who has a daughter with schizophrenia and she told me that yoga has helped her to be calmer and more relaxed. Apparently, there are many benefits to practicing! Excellent work, @honeydue. Thanks to you and @adsactly for sharing.
I appreciate your post, @honeydue; it refreshed my inclination towards yoga. I have been a practitioner for 14 consecutive years, three times a week for two hours with a group and led by a yoga teacher; unfortunately, this year I had to leave the sessions for involuntary reasons, although I still practice some asanas individually at home. I share that it is an extremely healthy practice for our body and mind, one of the most complete I know, as well as tai chi. I do attach importance to his spiritual sense (which has no necessary relation to religion); that's why his meditation exercises seem capital to me. Very good work. I congratulate you, and @adsactly for spreading it.
Excellent excellent post. Beautiful narrative and a message so worthy of sharing. Thank you. Resteeming and upvoted.
Namaste 🦋
It is a central pillar to our relating with people and helps to make things run smoothly.
Yes! And, learning how to relate to self too! ❤
To make a healthy life sports plays an important role.so,,this is the really great post ,,
If you enjoy your life sports must help u.
I would agree with all of these benefits that you mentioned.
I have back problems since I was 7, and yoga helps me the most.