Even if you’re inexperienced with yoga, you’ve probably heard others talking about it. You may have even heard reports of its many benefits. While you may harbor initial skepticism about the usefulness of yoga, modern research is now available to back up many of the claims reported by yoga practitioners.

The Benefits of Yoga 


 Believe it or not, many celebrities swear by yoga! Stars such as Jennifer Aniston, Lady Gaga, Adam Levine, and Kate Hudson have credited yoga with helping them get in shape for various movie roles. They have also used it to help them mentally focus, heal from injuries, and to protect themselves from reinjury. Some celebrities have even credited yoga with helping them overcome addictions and face incredibly stressful life challenges. 

 Yoga is hardly a prissy activity, so don’t let those svelte women in cute leotards mislead you. It’s a grueling form of physical training. Many professional athletes swear by yoga. LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, former NHL goalkeeper Sean Burke, and Blake Griffin swear by it. “Yoga can be hard.” says John Capouya, author of Real Men Do Yoga. “Not bed-of-nails painful, just tough. You’re in for a demanding, athletically challenging workout here.” Of course, you don’t have to be a celebrity or a superstar to enjoy the benefits of yoga. Nor do you need a perfect body. 

While the stars may have the ability to hire top-notch instructors, you can still enjoy the benefits of yoga wherever you are. All you need is this book and the willingness to teach yourself. Once you truly understand all the good things yoga can provide, it is likely that you will feel even more confident and motivated to try it out. Are you wondering if yoga is worth your time? Take a couple minutes to acquaint yourself with some of its amazing benefits. Yoga: See Also some pushups exercise benefits 

  • Promotes flexibility. Yoga can gradually loosen your muscles and increase the flexibility in your joints while retaining their integrity. 

  • Improves brain function. 20 minutes of yoga can sharpen your mental focus and improve your memory. Helps you develop strong and flexible muscles. It leads to protection from chronic conditions and can reduce the likelihood of falls and injuries. 

  • Protects against heart disease. Yoga can lower your risk of heart-related conditions such as overly high or low blood pressure, unsafe blood sugar levels, and high cholesterol. 

 
  • Gives you impeccable posture. Poor posture can cause a slew of joint and muscle problems over the years, but knowing how to balance your head properly over your spine can greatly reduce the amount of strain on your back. Yoga increases your body awareness, making it easier to adopt and sustain postures that avoid excessive stress on any one joint. 


  • Can help you reach and maintain a healthy weight. Research has shown a correlation between consistent yoga practice and a decrease in body weight. Yoga can also boost the metabolism and support the transition from fat to muscle tissue. 


  •  Protects your joints and cartilage from wear and tear. Yoga involves a full range of motion, which encourages your body to provide your joints and supportive tissues with the nutrients they need to remain healthy and strong. It can help reduce the pain and stiffness of arthritis and reduce the chances of developing other conditions that restrict physical movement.


  • Can improve your sex life. Research has found that four months of yoga can increase the sexual performance of both men and women. It enhances blood flow to the genitals and strengthens the sphincter muscles, along with increasing flexibility, strength, mental focus, and total body awareness. In short, yoga can provide a tremendous boost to your sexual activities. 


  • Safeguards your spine. Certain yoga positions can help strengthen your spinal disks, which act as shock absorbers for your vertebrae and promote proper skeletal alignment. When your back is properly aligned, it protects your nerves and allows them to communicate freely throughout your body, providing health and all-around well-being.


  • Helps to heal chronic migraines. Several studies have shown that consistent, long-term yoga practice can help to resolve or reduce the occurrence of chronic migraines. Experts now believe certain yoga positions help prevent physical misalignment while helping to fend off mental stress, thus relieving migraine symptoms and minimizing migraine triggers.


  • Enhances bone health. Since many yoga positions leverage your own body weight, yoga is a great way to strengthen your bones. The practice of yoga can also promote healthy cortisol levels, which helps your bones preserve calcium.


  • Fends off cravings. The University of Washington reports that yoga has a positive impact on diet awareness. Those who practice yoga are much more mindful of the needs of their bodies and consequently of what they eat and drink. It is easier to choose healthy snacks when you are aware of how unhealthy snacks impact your body.


  • Boosts your blood circulation. Yoga increases blood circulation by relaxing your muscles. Better blood circulation increases cellular oxygen levels, which can help every part of your body perform more effectively.


  • Eases chronic back pain. Yoga increases muscle strength and flexibility, especially to your core. This has been proven to ease numerous painful back conditions.


  • Boosts your immune system. When you sustain a specific yoga position, it helps to flush out your lymph nodes and stimulate various internal organs. This gives your body a greater advantage when fighting infections, cancers, and other diseases.


  • Enhances fertility. While there are few studies that support yoga’s positive influence on fertility, many believe that by helping to reduce stress, yoga contributes to increased fertility levels in women. 


  • Helps your heart. Yoga poses are great for heart health. The longer you hold a specific position, the more your heart will work to supply the energy your body needs to sustain the pose. Certain poses, like the mountain and the easy pose, open up the heart and its surrounding region to increased circulation. The chair, the triangle, and the cobra actually require your heart to work harder. Breathing is too important to overlook; yoga’s two-to-one breathing ratio, where you exhale for twice as long as you inhale, has been shown in several studies to enhance heart health even as it boosts circulation.