health benefits of yoga

Health Benefits of Yoga Part 2

My last article on Health Benefits of Yoga generated a lot of discussion especially in the Twitter world (http://twitter.com/samomidi) and since I noticed I could write pages on this practice this is the 2nd part in the series which will get you to see even more outside-the-box benefits.

In this article we look at how Yoga can benefit your weight loss efforts, sexual health as well as how it can excel athletes of all kinds of sport and exercise.

Weight Loss Health Benefits of Yoga

Last time I touched on Yoga as a way to reduce mental and muscular stress by allowing you to bring your mind to peace with the outside world as well as challenge you with deep stretching of all your muscles from head to toe. This directly also will benefit you when it comes to weight loss, and not just any weight loss but specifically fat loss. How does it do so?

Remember the hormone cortisol and fight-or-flight hormones like epinephrine, & dopamine? Our body secretes them as a response to stress and yes of course it is natural to do so but these hormone also lead to the breakdown of muscle and accelerated storage of fat so in case we are faced with a life-threatening stress factor we are able to burn that fat for energy (blame it on our ancestors!). Ok, I already mentioned this in the previous article but thought I’d reiterate with a better example because it is so important. But how else does Yoga help us with fat loss?

Well Yoga through stretching, relaxation and deep breathing takes it further by also improving the blood flow throughout our body and allowing us to detoxify more efficiently. Detoxification is important to get rid of chemicals in our foods, byproducts from the breakdown of foods as well as gases like carbon dioxide/monoxide which are created from exercise and unfortunately our polluted environment.

What I’m getting at here is that the more efficient our detoxification system is the more we benefit in keeping a healthier and youthful body. It gets better though because Yoga can also have many benefits for your sexual health…

Sexual Health Benefits of Yoga

We already know as adults that sexual health is utterly important to our overall well being. When we are stressed out and have a lot on mind our libido takes a major hit and can cause a spiral of problems including effects on your relationship and your self-confidence.

So with the practice of Yoga we become more aware of our body, more aware of our surroundings and begin to understand how outside influences effect and affect us. This is pretty powerful stuff if you really think about it and I think something that many men and even women today are ignoring and being ignorant about.

Somehow society forces on us that work, money and having a perfect family life is all there is to focus on, yet we lose awareness of our own well-being. This point is fascinating to even me as I write this because it’s so easy to get caught up in all of it. Way to easy in fact! But when you practice yoga it brings that balance back and with balance you are able to experience your relationships in a much heightened level (ok so in this case our ancestors from India several thousand years ago who discovered Yoga were way ahead of their time!).

Bonus factor: Practice Yoga with your partner and your relationship will become much more sensual as you discover the art together. This is a challenge I bring out to all guys who are reading this. Come on, better sex can’t be a hard sell here!

Benefits of Yoga for Athletes

I asked my friends on Facebook about how they found Yoga to help them as an athlete and I got a pretty cool reply – “Yoga has helped me in many different ways, but one of the most interesting ways, I think, is when lifting weights, now I am more conscious about the movement and my body position. – José”

José took the words right out of my head and articulated them in a way anyone can understand. This is especially fascinating for anyone who is plateuing and not seeing results from their training any longer. Usually when you are in the state of plateau you lose awareness of your body through movement and positioning. Add variety to your workout and focus on this one factor can snap you out a no-results state and allow you to progress in ways you’ve always dreamed of.

The fact that Yoga can help you with this is something that Olympic athletes and competitive weightlifters are beginning to just realize. If you could skip wasting money on expensive supplements with negative side-effects and use Yoga would you do so?

Conclusion of Health Benefits of Yoga Part 2

It’s definitely going to be a stretch for many people to become comfortable with the rituals of yoga (no pun intended!) but the benefits are so comprehensive that it almost seems like a no-brainer doesn’t it? Take a minute to skim these two articles again and it’ll make it easier for you to incorporate something that provides balance and overall well-being just for YOU.

Have you experienced other benefits of Yoga that you’d like to share? Please leave a comment below…