Yoga for health and wellness
Yoga is basically breathing, stretching and meditation all rolled into one. It has an incredible range of benefits for your overall health and wellness, and has been shown to complement a variety of fitness programs and treatments.
Though yoga is practiced in many
formats and styles
, the central goal is always balance of the
mind, body and spirit. For the body, the physical aspects
of yoga help increase balance and
flexibilty, stamina, strength and muscle tone, and assist
in weight loss and sucessful weight management.
Yoga has also shown positive results in the management and improvement of chronic conditions and symptoms ranging from asthma to back pain, from arthritis to cancer, and from heart disease to multiple sclerosis.
For the mind and overall spirit, the practice of yoga can help to
reduce anxiety, stress and depression while increasing
self-awareness and feelings of
wellness. Yoga is a process as well as a practice,
encouraging attention to one's own day-to-day progress and condition as the mind-body-spirit
connection is strengthened.
Like
pilates
or walking, yoga can be a great anytime, anywhere exercise. Once you're comfortable with a
sequence of poses and stretches learned through a class (or have a DVD containing instruction and
guidance), you can practice them anywhere for
relaxation and rejuvenation.
Yoga can be worked into even the busiest of schedules, and some people even take a "
yoga break" during the workday to relieve stress and get
the blood flowing.
