It's Not Too Late For Yoga Practice

There have been numerous journals on gauging the health effects of different yoga practice and specific yoga postures. It's hard to ignore what the benefits of yoga can have on the physical body as well as the spiritual body. In a world that is filled with instant gratification, it is really difficult for us to take some time for ourselves and slow down, especially in this high paced world we live in. It is all about preventative medicine, doing yoga regularly will help decrease your chances of getting common middle aged problems. What a wonderful tradeoff!

Consistent yoga practice can help improve flexibility, define, and strengthen the body. Along with these benefits that help the physical body, daily yoga practice also helps to decrease blood pressure, range of motion, and the cardiovascular system. This is really important as it will help prevent such things as heart disease, arthritis and osteoporosis as we get older.

Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center conducted a study that showed 30 minutes of consistent yoga practice done over a period of four years led to weight loss for overweight middle-aged persons.

From a study of 20,000 men and women, researches have concluded that yoga was much more beneficial to the men and women who did yoga on a regular basis than those who did not. Further study showed that the group who did yoga consistently over a period of time lost more weight than the group that did not.

One common myth regarding weight loss is that you must have an active exercise regime. An interesting tidbit here, regular yoga practitioners did not do vigorous yoga, the movements were very fluid and simple. Research would suggest that weight loss is due to how yoga makes one aware of their body. This is much more helpful to someone who wants to get fit because instead of overexerting yourself, you are able to pay attention to what your body needs and what it is doing.

These are just some of the benefits that yoga has to offer. We’ve only began to skim the surface of what yoga can do for the physical body, we haven’t even begun to dive into what it does for the spirit. With proper nutrition, the right diet and a good yoga workout done consistently, you are well on your way for a fabulous life. Get out there are check out a yoga studio near you!

Sara Valencourt is a health and fitness freelance writer living in Santa Fe New Mexico. She is an advent yoga student who has traveled throughout the U.S. to experience various yoga practices and to work with international instructors. Her work includes articles on the basics of yoga, easy healthy nutrition and real fitness for the average person. She is currently working on a series of articles based on her trials and triumphs.