By Nicole DePalma MS, LMT

For some, the mere thought of attempting Yoga puts an image in their minds of wrapping one’s legs around one’s head, or breathing through one’s eyelids! Fear not! Yoga has so many benefits to offer that I hope you may just give it a bit of a whirl, or as the saying goes, “Try it, you’ll like it.”!

The thumbnail definition of Yoga is unity. Unity of mind, body, and breath. Yoga asks us to be mindful, really in the present moment as we practice. This type of concentration, or paying attention, helps to clear the mind and focus on the task at hand, be it a Yoga pose (called an “Asana”), or a visualization exercise requiring a bit of quiet reflection.

Yoga requires no special equipment. If you don’t have a Yoga or fitness mat, a towel will do, and some comfortable clothing that you can move freely in. You start with a Yoga practice where you’re “at”, meaning that if you’re presently stiff as a board, or a gymnastic star it doesn’t matter. You begin where you begin!

There are many different branches of Yoga, some examples are Kundalini, Yin, Vinyasa, but in a very basic sense, there are two paths, “Raja” or the meditative/contemplative side, or “Hatha”, or the more physical side of practice. However, both paths are usually incorporated in a Yoga practice or class. No matter what type of practice appeals to you, a good, qualified Instructor be they in person, video, book, etc. are going to show you in description, how to perform a pose at any level, beginner to advanced.

But let’s get back to the question asked in the title of this article: why even try Yoga in the first place? Let’s start with moving that body. There’s a saying in Yoga that “…you’re only as young as your spine is supple…”. How very true! If “Oh, my aching back!” is something you find yourself saying, or stretching is a chore, then Yoga is going to help you by moving that spine in its four abilities, flexibility, extension, rotation, and side flexion. You don’t need to be able to bend over to touch your toes or turn your head enough to look behind you from one side to the other to start with Yoga. By beginning to do small bits of basic poses, you’re helping your body learn how to become more supple, allowing for ease of movement. By beginning a Yoga practice simply by moving the spine, you’re helping all the rest of your major muscle groups to breath a sigh of relief! The more flexible the spine becomes, the shoulder girdle, pelvic girdle, and hamstrings, hip flexors, and quadriceps of the legs with come along for the ride.

So we know flexibility is built into Yoga practice, but did you know strength and endurance are baked into the Yoga cake as well? If you stick with a Yoga routine regularly over time, you’ll begin to find that those arms are getting stronger and more toned. Legs will have more power, and certainly, the core muscles of the abs and back will have your aching back be less so. Your endurance, or the ability to repeat or hold poses will become longer, and this aspect of Yoga training will assist you in your activities of daily living (ADLs). ADLs will become easier for you to do, like reaching up or down, around or behind you, bending and lifting, and carrying items.

Now, how about that concentration piece? If you find that your mind jumps from thought to thought (called “Monkey Mind” in Yoga), then a little mindfulness work may be in order. At its very basic sense, think of mindfulness work as focusing on only one thing, and being able to hold that focus for even thirty seconds. It seems as though that should be an easy thing to do, but you’d be amazed at how many thoughts can cross your mind in that amount of time! Try this on your own: pick one thing to look at and set a thirty second timer. Try in those thirty seconds to see every detail of the object you’re looking at. If you catch your mind going off task, gently bring it back to the object until the thirty seconds are up. How much did your mind wander? How many details of your focus object could you recall? This type of exercise helps to train the mind to stick with concentration longer. In this multitasking world of our’s now days, mental clarity and focus can help to quiet the noise of other distractions. Tasks can get done quicker, you’ll pay more attention to those nasty details, and just plain “feel sharper”!

One last benefit of Yoga: taking a good, deep breath! By opening up the rib cage to allow for a breath that fills the lungs from top to bottom, side to side, we can give that body of our’s the oxygen it craves, and help our muscles to relax just a bit more.

Ready to give Yoga a whirl? Here’s a link to the “Chest Expansion” exercise that moves all major muscle groups and is beautifully modeled by Ms. Sasha Griner of Hastings! Cheers, or as we say in Yoga, “Namaste!!”

youtube.com/watch?v=Jh77st_ymH0