7 Ways Yoga Will Work On Your Mental Health
Anxieties will linger if you don’t shift them through bodily movements and yoga does that before you can spend time thinking about it
Your brain loves to do the same thing over and over because it likes to protect itself from the unknown.
So when the practice of yoga began to become popular many were unsure as to what it was all about and stayed clear of trying it until others they knew went there first. Reports quickly came back to those who were curious to try new things that it was difficult to get into as you had to be able to contort your body in this way or that.
But nothing was further from the truth.
And although many people started the physical type of yoga they saw it as an extension of a gym-like exercise and made sure they were warmed up for it before they went to class.
Again this had its flawed way of thinking.
Because yoga is about healing the brain, mind, body, and all systems within the body.
I know that sounds a bit out there but its true because it unites all parts of yourself together harmoniously.
And it works.
For over 5,000 years yoga has taught people that simple daily practice of asana will enable a person to feel well for a prolonged period. And as many of its early adopters came from the most populated country of the world India showing how it had a major positive impact on a massive population of people.
When I started doing yoga I never taught I`d be doing it decades later.
I was a ballplayer of sports and loved the competition and physical contact with others. But by the time I went into my first yoga studio my body was broken down and it was time to do something.
Over the decades I learned a lot about how yoga can affect your mental health as well. And although I didn’t have any major mental health issues when I began and instead did so for physical reasons only I did notice mental changes over time that others who stayed away from the yoga mat were not experiencing.
Here are seven things I`ve learned about yoga and mental health:
1. Yoga does free your mind and the great thing is it costs very little too!
Although when I started yoga I was trying to free up my tight body I felt over the years as I opened up certain physical areas I had a new realm of thinking that welcomed me as well. For me, as my body unraveled my mind became looser too.
And in so doing there was more room for open thought.
2. Your body is aligned with your mind.
As said yoga means to unite body and mind, and it’s so true. Because many anxieties are built from people allowing their minds to ramble but yoga will not allow to do that. Because if you`re to improve at yoga you must be mindful of what you`re doing.
3. You don’t need to be physically flexible to do yoga but if you`re open-minded it will open your body.
And the great thing about being inflexible is once you follow the class to the best of your ability you`ll feel major changes almost automatically. Then those changes will feel so good you’ll be curious to find out what another class will do for you so you`ll return to the same yoga studio again. When you do you`ll know what to expect from the class and be able to pace yourself better the second time.
4. Yoga takes effort and your brain loves consistency.
Because there is no magic to yoga except its simplicity and requirement for daily practice. And when you do give in to that you`ll notice regular change and advancement of your body and mind also.
5. Practicing yoga makes sure you have to eat at certain times and it regulates your diet also.
Like many exercises, you have to be careful of what you eat right before you go to a yoga class because your body will be challenged in a variety of physical ways you may not have tried before.
In doing so you have to be mindful of what time you eat and what food is best to prepare.
After a while, you`ll notice your liking for certain types of food will adapt and you`ll begin to naturalize your diet.
6. Becoming very good at yoga takes time so it works on your patience as well.
And part of that is because it loves slow, mindful movement.
In that way, your mind has to slow down and focus. From there you`d be surprised at what you can achieve when you let go and trust the class you’re in to make the change.
7. Yoga styles are often in sequence and this means you won’t be anxious to know what psychical posture is next.
Instead, you can switch off your brain from thinking and listen to the instructor’s voice and let it guide you to where you need to go.
From there yoga will work on your mind and you`ll have the bonus of being free and open in your body as well.
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