Building both physical and mental strength isn’t necessarily an easy task, however it’s one that a consistent yoga practice can help conquer.
In just one class, you start to develop endurance, focus and the ability to overcome challenges. As you progress, positive changes within your body, mind and life in general become quickly apparent.
Enhances concentration and focus
No matter what you do in life, concentration and focus are paramount to achieving your goals. Whether that goal is cooking a delicious dinner for guests or winning a medal at the next Olympic Games, focused attention is required in order to give it your very best shot.
Yoga helps by training your mind to be present, as you move through a sequence of poses, with focus on the breath. This encourages mindfulness, which spills over into every aspect of your daily routine.
Fosters clarity of mind
Bringing awareness to the present moment, on a consistent basis, enables you to observe your thoughts.
Instead of becoming lost in an endless stream of niggling stresses, you learn to release thoughts about the past and the future. When you do, you create space in your mind, which is where clarity resides. This form of mental strength allows you to make better decisions, while calming anxiety and increasing an overall sense of wellbeing.
Pushes self-imposed limits
In order to overcome self-imposed limitations, it’s important to recognize them in the first place. By observing and reflecting on your thoughts, you can move past denial and into self-improvement mode.
It’s in this authentic state that thought-based restrictions are challenged, so you can live with intent and purpose. With consistent practice, external circumstances lose the power to dictate your reactions because you’re able to respond with true clarity of mind.
Increases self-confidence
When you’re truly confident in yourself, you trust your abilities to know just what to do when you need to.
Yoga is a natural confidence booster, as it increases your awareness so you can move towards self-acceptance. The more you’re able to observe yourself with compassion, rather than doubt, the easier it is to develop self-respect and peace of mind. Soon enough, your connection to others and the world around you grows, along with an abundance of self-love.
Promotes the self- healing process
While mindfulness and fostering self-love most certainly lead to healing, the actual physical practice of yoga prevents injuries and aids in muscle recovery.
Your muscles and surrounding tissues are lengthened and relaxed with asana practice, creating more room for blood to flow. This, in turn, means oxygen circulating freely in your body, important for promoting muscle growth and healing.
Builds overall physical strength
To avoid injuries in the first place, overall physical strength is your best line of defence. It helps improve bone density, preserve muscle, stabilise joints and maintain a healthy weight.
A yoga practice involves the whole body, using muscle groups in the upper body, lower back, abdominals and even your feet. Flexibility is enhanced to improve overall range of motion, which, in turn, significantly lowers your risk of injury. To top it off, fast-paced sequences encourage sweating which rids your system of toxins, all while providing a healthy cardio workout.
Blending it all together, it’s easy to see how yoga offers a complete workout for the body, mind and soul and increases both physical and mental strength in your day to day life.