Yoga has become very popular over the last several years, partly due to the rise of social media yoga celebrities who promote its benefits on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. It’s important to respect your own body and to be aware of what will work best for you as an individual. With that being said, there are some things about yoga that you should know before you sign up for classes.
When people hear the word yoga, they immediately think of stretching and poses. While that’s true, yoga is much more than just those things. Yoga has many benefits, including mental and physical health. However, there are some interesting differences between what people expect and the reality when it comes to practicing yoga. Here are five things you should know about yoga before you get started.
If it’s hard, you’re doing it right.
Yoga is an amazing stress reliever, and it also happens to be a fantastic way to lose weight. When you’re stressed, your body produces cortisol, which prompts your body to store fat. In fact, stress has been linked to more weight gain around your midsection than virtually any other factor! But when you do yoga regularly, it can reduce levels of cortisol in your blood. What’s more, yoga causes serotonin levels in your brain to spike upward—boosting feelings of wellbeing while decreasing feelings of sadness and depression.
Take the challenge.
There are many myths surrounding yoga, and it is time to bust some of these myths once and for all. If you are one of those people who are planning to take up yoga but have not done so yet, we would suggest that you go for it now. There is no point in waiting when you can get a whole lot out of it today. Yoga has now become one of those things that everyone will want to try at least once. And why should anyone wait?
This is advice that everyone should apply to any activity or experience in life. While expectations can be positive motivators, they can also be stumbling blocks.
Yoga is often called a practice for mind and body, which means that when you come into your yoga session with expectations of how it should make you feel or what kinds of moves will make you look a certain way— you’re going to leave disappointed if those things don’t actually happen.
Yoga is a subtle practice. Let go of any expectations you have about what yoga should or shouldn’t be.
Yoga is an internal practice and requires self-awareness and discipline. In time you will see results, but it won’t be in days, weeks, or months; instead, you will see it in your life – how you respond to situations, relationships, and your world around you.
Many people who begin yoga have high hopes and expectations, but they don’t always get what they came looking for and that doesn’t mean there is anything wrong with them or their practice!
One of my favourite things about yoga is that you are never alone. While many people have started yoga alone, you can always find someone to work out with.
If I don’t feel like going to a class I have a couple of friends from college that I can work out with, or at least FaceTime/Google Hangout and talk through our asanas together. There are tons of people who love yoga, so finding someone to work out with is not difficult.
I’ve been practicing yoga for a few years now, and one thing I can say is that it’s an incredibly individual experience. Yoga isn’t for everyone and frankly, it’s impossible to tell if it will be for you unless you give it a try.
Personally, I was not an immediate convert but have since become passionate about my practice.
