the Benefits of Physical Exercise and Fitness: 'Why Yoga is the Best form of Exercise for your Body'

'Why Yoga is the Best form of Exercise for your Body'

Power Yoga Blog - March 29, 2010

Yoga is an ancient science geared towards bringing both body and mind to a state of perfect balance.  While the ultimate goal of yoga is spiritual in nature, practicing yoga yields tremendous benefits on the physical, mental and emotional level of the practitioner. Looking back at the roots of Yoga, it appears that the original practices originated in India around 5,000 years ago and were perfected over time in an effort to provide the perfect combination of physical and mental practices that would ultimately bring vibrant health, strength, longevity, and stress-free living to its practicing adepts.  No other physical discipline is as complete and holistic or brings such impressive results as yoga does.  That's why Yoga has endured the test of time, transcending scores of generations, governments, cultures and religions in order to offer its benefits to all people throughout the ages.  Because Yoga understands that individuals have distinct physical and mental compositions (personalities) and are therefore attracted by different disciplines and sources of entertainment for their mind, it has adapted and given birth to many branches which cater to different groups of personalities.  Some people may have a more physical approach while others may prefer mental activities, yet, others will be drawn to more emotional pursuits while some are very spiritual in nature.  Whichever type of Yoga fits your personality is the Yoga you'll practice with more ease and enjoyment and which will yield the most powerful results in terms of your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.  This is exactly what the ultimate goal of Yoga is, i.e. the union with all aspects of yourself on all levels of your being, and it is not as difficult as you may think.  In the West, the primary focus of Yoga has been on the physical aspect and benefits of this system and there is nothing wrong with that.  After all, spiritual masters themselves say that ‘your body is a temple' and you cannot neglect it without negatively effecting your health and overall well-being. The Asana branch of Hatha Yoga which entails all the physical postures of yoga primarily focuses on keeping a clean, healthy body and mind so that you can thrive on all levels of your being and truly enjoy life, light and carefree.  In order to achieve the best possible results, Asana Yoga blends focused breathing and deep concentration with physical poses. It joins breathing, moving and thinking together. The benefits of yoga are extensive.  Many books have been written on the subject and but none can give a fully exhaustive list of all the advantages brought about by the practice of yoga.  Typically, an Astanga Yoga practice includes poses dedicated to engage every cell of your body, heart, kidneys, liver, eyes, bones, brain, nervous system. It is, beyond comparison, the epitome of perfect exercise programs that is essential to complete health. Oxygenating the entire bodily system is one of the greatest benefits of vigorous exercise and the deep, regular breathing inherent in any Yoga practice strengthens and increases the lung's capacity of the practitioner. Astanga Yoga is by far the best, most complete form of exercise.  With each practice, your body’s muscles and bone fiber become stronger as you perfect each pose.  Further, unlike popular belief, yoga practices also include a cardio element, especially Astanga Yoga.  Astanga Yoga sequences are systematic and strengthen every muscle in the body, including the heart. If you practice Power or Astanga Yoga for just one hour a day, you will get as much ‘cardio' as if you had done a work-out at the gym.