In general, yoga is a very safe form of exercise for most people. For those with specific back conditions, it is advisable to speak with one's treating physician prior to starting yoga.
Yoga is an ancient practice that helps create a sense of union in body, mind, and spirit. The most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy. The aging process, which is largely an artificial condition, caused mainly by autointoxication or self-poisoning, can be slowed down by practicing yoga. Although yoga has been shown to be beneficial in a variety of conditions, it is not considered a therapy for specific illnesses. Yoga also strives to increase self-awareness on both a physical and psychological level. This allows people to take early collective action, such as adjusting posture, when discomfort is first noticed. Practicing yoga can provide chronic pain sufferers with useful tools to actively cope with their pain and help counter feelings of helplessness and depression. Laboratory tests have proved the yogi's increased abilities of consciously controlling autonomic or involuntary functions, such as temperature, heart beat and blood pressure. Patients who practice yoga have a better chance of gaining the ability to control their breathing problems.
Yoga is dynamite to make you feel younger with heightened mental prowness. Longer life often result from following yogic ways of health maintenance. Yoga is approximately 4,000 years old and is a scientific methodology aimed at uniting the mind, body, and spirit. Yoga is believed to reduce pain by helping the brain's pain center regulate the gate-controlling mechanism located in the spinal cord and the secretion of natural painkillers in the body. Breathing exercises used in yoga can also reduce pain. Yoga has consistently been used to cure and prevent back pain by enhancing strength and flexibility. Both acute and long-term stress can lead to muscle tension and exacerbate back problems.
Biochemical benefits of Yoga are as follows :
- Sodium decreases.
- Triglycerides decrease.
- Cholinesterase increases.
- Hemoglobin increases.
- Total white blood cell count decreases.
- Thyroxin increases.
- Vitamin C increases.
Exercise Benefits of Yoga :
- Rapid forceful movements.
- Increased muscle tension.
- Moderate to high caloric consumption.
- Fatiguing.
- Imbalance activity of opposing groups.
- Boredom factor.
Some of the Physiological benefits of Yoga are as follows :
- Pulse rate decreases.
- Cardiovascular efficiency increases.
- Musculoskeletal flexibility and joint range of motion increase.
- Posture improves.
- Strength and resiliency increase.
- Immunity increases.
- Pain decreases.
By Juliet Cohen
