Below are just SOME of the benefits, both from a strength and mental perspective, that I found empowering during my lifetime journey in yoga.
Better Posture from Yoga:
The majority of the standing and sitting poses assist in the development of your core strength since you have to use your core to support each pose. Additionally, yoga helps your body awareness. You will begin to sit and stand "tall" and notice if you are slouching and learn to adjust your posture.
Breathing Benefits:
Yoga involves paying attention to your breath, which can help you feel more centered, lessen intense emotional feelings and relieve body tightness. Additionally, the deep breathing teaches us to stay calm during challenges in life and strengthens our nervous and digestive systems.
Less Stress, More Calm:
You may feel less stressed and more relaxed after doing some yoga. This state of calmness may help you be more reflective, allowing conscious behavior and action and greater mental flexibility and creativity. All of this will assist in better sleep.
Good for Your Heart:
Helps beat stress, reduces inflammation, lowers blood pressure and promotes physical activity...that should be enough reasons to want to start yoga!
Muscle Tone:
Poses such as downward dog, upward dog, and plank pose, build upper-body strength. While the standing poses, especially if you hold them for a short period of time, build strength in your hamstrings, quadriceps, and abs. Two of my favorites for building lower back strength is upward dog and chair pose. And of course most every pose builds core strength and deep abdominal muscles.