5 Benefits of Yoga
While you might not currently be a yogi, don’t cross off the possibility that you could become one! I NEVER thought I would find enjoyment in practicing yoga. Then we started offering it once a month at my CrossFit gym, and I decided to give it a go.
Yoga has become something I sincerely enjoy and has been super beneficial to me in all aspects of life. If you need tangible proof why you should take a yoga class, here are 5 benefits from practicing yoga:
Designated time for stretching. If you’re a gym rat, you know that mobility is important for all aspects of working out, whether it’s lifting, running or playing a sport. And how many minutes do you spend outside of the gym stretching? 0? I thought so, because same. I like the fact that this is a scheduled time that I know I’ll dedicate to stretching and mobilizing my body.
Yoga forces you to unplug. If you’re go go go all day person and never have a second to unplug from the moment you wake up, to the moment you go to bed: try yoga. It forces you to unplug, focus on yourself and become aware of being IN your body. Yoga slows you down- and some people (guilty) need that time.
Yoga can be a great addition to your current training. If you are looking to improve your core strength, balance and body weight movements then yoga might be perfect for you. I recommend that everyone start with a beginner class but once you progress some of the movements in yoga are HARD. I’m talking shaking muscles, sweat dripping down my head with little muscles I didn’t know I had twitching. Adding in yoga even once a week can significantly affect your strength training or endurance training in the best way.
The mental health benefits of yoga are epic. My favorite part of the yoga session is actually the final part: savasana. During this point, you simply lay on the floor, close your eyes, and focus on your breath. There aren’t many times my mind is clear and not thinking about what I’m cooking for dinner, what I have going on at work tomorrow, or any of the other mundane thoughts that magically appear in my brain. So often our minds are racing to the next thing and we don’t get to focus on the moment we are in. But during this time, focusing on my breath and only my breath, I’m able to give my poor mind a well deserved rest. It takes some practice to get there but with the right yoga instructor guiding you, it might become your favorite time of class too.
Yoga is a great low impact option for a strength workout. Many times if you are recovering from an injury, or unable to jump or run- finding low impact exercises is hard to do (see our article all about low impact exercise options). Yoga is a great way to gradually and gently rebuild following an injury, or continue to strengthen your body while your recover. I don’t recommend subbing cardio out entirely with yoga as they are pretty different, but doing a yoga class then walking for some cardio is a great well rounded workout.
