What are the benefits of yoga? What is it for, harms, how to do it and more!

Over the years, yoga has become popular in several western countries, including Brazil. Thus, this activity has been sought as a form of physical exercise, stretching and relaxation.

However, many people still don’t know if it is a very old science whose principle is to promote the union between body, mind and spirit. Through this communion between the three, yoga aims to provide practitioners with more knowledge about its essence.

So, in case you’ve heard about the practice but still don’t know much about it, our article can help you find out more about the history and benefits of yoga. Read on to learn more about this science!

Yoga emerged in India about 5,000 years ago and was created by Shiva or Natarajá, the King of Dancers. The practice has spread a lot in the West recently and nowadays it has some different types, in addition to having gone through some evolutions. Further details on these and other aspects will be discussed below. Read on.

In terms of history, it is possible to say that yoga emerged in India more than 5 thousand years ago as a philosophy of life created by Shiva or Natarajá, the King of Dancers. It arose spontaneously and through some very complex movements made by its creator.

Subsequently, Shiva prepared some disciples to perpetuate yoga, which was passed down from generation to generation until the present day, in which it became popular beyond its country of origin and underwent some evolutions, which allowed the emergence of other types.

The term yoga has Sanskrit origin, a language present in India and linked to the Hindu religion. It is a philosophical concept that means to control and unite, that is, it represents a practice that works the body and mind simultaneously.

Since its origins, yoga has been linked to the idea of ​​relaxation and calm. Thus, it provides greater lucidity for its practitioners, ensuring that they get in touch with their interior. However, at the same time, practice contributes to bringing improvements to your physical body, ensuring more flexibility and vigor.

Yoga relates to the chakras as it allows for their activation and alignment. They are energy centers distributed throughout the human body and guarantee the maintenance of stability, both from a physical and emotional point of view.

Through the postures of yoga and its breathing exercises, known as parayamas, it is possible to achieve this alignment, so that practitioners can feel at peace and maintain good physical health. Alignment through yoga should be done whenever one feels the need.

Currently, there are several types of yoga. Some are geared towards more relaxing practices, with the aim of strengthening the mind and spirit, and others are geared more towards the physical body. Therefore, the choice of the most suitable one is individual and there is no yoga that is better than the other, but the one that suits the needs of each one.

Among the existing types, it is possible to highlight ashtanga yoga, which is one of the most traditional lines. It is known for its intensity, as it challenges the physique of practitioners a lot. However, there are types such as babyoga, hatha yoga, iyengar yoga, kundalini yoga, vinyasa yoga and restorative yoga that address other aspects.

The yoga positions will depend on the adopted style and also on the choice of practicing alone or in pairs. However, there are some that can be done safely at home for those who are thinking of starting yoga this way before looking for a studio.

Among these, it is possible to highlight the padmasana, also known as the lotus position. The individual remains seated and with legs crossed so that the feet are in opposition to the thighs. This practice is used for meditation.

It is also worth mentioning chatuspadsana, or inverted dog, which consists of resting your hands on the ground, evenly distributing your body weight; and sarvangasana, in which the hands are placed beside the hips and the legs are raised.

Yoga is a practice in which there is no right or wrong, but several languages. However, there are some ways to measure the evolution of practitioners. The first is to try to structure the postures, always taking care with the bases to do the positions correctly.

In addition, alignment should be a point of attention, as it helps in optimizing the position as much as breathing, a fundamental piece for the body to be able to maintain attention in practice.

As yoga works the body and mind simultaneously, it brings some physical benefits, such as strengthening muscles and improving flexibility. In addition, their positions are capable of helping to improve posture and favor a series of issues, such as the quality of sleep. See below for more details on this.

One of the greatest contributions that yoga can make to the body is to help with weight loss. This is due to the practice’s ability to speed up metabolism. However, as yoga also works on mental aspects, it works to combat anxiety, which is linked to some cases of binge eating.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that yoga promotes the control of blood sugar levels. Currently, there are documented cases of people who lost a lot of weight thanks to yoga, like Jared Molenkopf, who lost 133 kg thanks to the practice.

Muscle strengthening is something yoga practitioners can count on. This happens in line with the flexibility improvements and therefore it is not a one-off process. Therefore, those who choose yoga as a way to strengthen their muscles need to keep this in mind.

Improving musculature is very important for everyone, as it is associated with back pain and also with diseases such as arthritis. Therefore, yoga can help seniors to prevent falls as they will become stronger.

Improved flexibility is one of the main benefits of yoga. However, it should be noted that this happens in the long term and it is natural for beginners to experience difficulties in making the positions. However, eventually they will become easier.

When practitioners reach this stage, they begin to notice that some bodily pains will disappear. This happens thanks to the improvement in flexibility and the connection that yoga establishes between mind and body, making the whole organism work in a coordinated way.

Some parts of the body that benefit from this practice are the knees, thighs and ligaments in general.

Due to yoga’s work on body awareness, it reflects in posture improvements in everyday life. In this way, it helps to combat tension in the muscles, which is capable of causing some pain and feeling tired.

Therefore, correcting posture problems can help exercisers feel even more willing. After all, their bodies will be more relaxed because the muscles will not be strained due to incorrect posture, as the positions help with the alignment between the head and the spine.

Yoga helps to detoxify the body in many different ways. An unusual scenario in which practice can make all the difference is a hangover. According to Professor Linda McGrath, yoga helps to detoxify the body by increasing metabolism.

In this way, the work of the thyroid and blood circulation are improved and help to cure a hangover faster than just hydrating and resting. So McGrath points out that while exercise is the last thing on anyone’s mind with a hangover, yoga is exactly what you should be doing.

Yoga practice is recommended for people who have high blood pressure as it helps in controlling this health condition. According to studies published in The Lancet, hypertensive people who did the savasana position showed drops in the diastolic and systolic pressure group.

In addition, heartbeats also become more controlled thanks to yoga, as the practice benefits the heart and lungs as a tone due to its ability to regulate the nervous system and improve blood circulation.

All this ensures that the levels of hormones linked to stress, such as adrenaline and cortisol, are under control.

Sexual activity is another aspect of human life that undergoes improvement after practicing yoga. This happens because couples become more aware of their body and sensitivity during this type of contact. In addition, your ability to relax and connect with your partner also increases.

Other aspects of yoga that contribute to improvements in sexual activity are the ability to concentrate and the alleviation of anxiety, factors that are often associated with negative experiences of this nature.

Ashtanga yoga is one of the most challenging lines because of the need to connect breath with movement. Thus, it requires a lot of concentration from its practitioners, since the rhythm can be easily lost with a slight deviation of focus. However, it greatly favors the respiratory system.

This happens because yoga encourages inspiration to be done through the nose, so it improves the quality of the air that is sent to the lungs, as it arrives filtered and heated, something that does not happen when breathing through the mouth.

Improved sleep quality is often associated with hatha yoga, known as classical yoga. As classes in this style are composed of breathing techniques and cleansing exercises, they stimulate the energy present in the body. In addition, maintaining postures helps with concentration and body awareness.

Therefore, hatha yoga is also able to act in reducing anxiety and, consequently, improves the quality of sleep thanks to the relaxation provided by breathing control. According to experts, classical yoga can be practiced by everyone.

In addition to the physical benefits, yoga can bring a number of mental and…