Down Under Yoga

Yoga is a 5,000-year-old discipline that teaches physical poses – asanas – in a way that integrates the body, mind, and spirit. Many people come to yoga for its physical benefits – core strength, flexibility, better posture and alignment, improved breathing, deep opening of hips and shoulders. Yoga is now a doctor's first prescription for cardiac and respiratory issues, anxiety and depression, muscular tension, osteoporosis, arthritis, and numerous other health issues.

If you're just here for the physical benefits, that's great. But don't be surprised if, like many other people, you find that you feel calmer and more peaceful after class and become aware of your body in ways you've never felt before. Not only will your understanding of anatomy, posture, and breathing patterns improve but so might your awareness of emotional and mental patterns. What appears on the surface to be a purely physical practice often ends up affecting much more than the body.

No matter what style of yoga you choose to practice, you will begin to move your body in new ways, learn about your own anatomy, and correct ingrained habit patterns. You will be encouraged to listen to your own body, respect its wisdom, and progress at your own pace.

Below is a quick overview of the physical benefits of yoga. For links to more scholarly explanations and research, visit our resources page.

Increased flexibility. By safely stretching your muscles, yoga releases the lactic acid that causes stiffness, tension, pain, and fatigue. Yoga also increases the range of motion and perhaps the lubrication in joints. As a result, you will likely feel a sense of ease and fluidity throughout your body. Yoga stretches not only muscles but all of the soft tissues surrounding the muscles (e.g., ligaments, tendons, and fascia sheath). Research has shown that the flexibility benefits of yoga come quite quickly: in one study, participants showed up to 35% improvement – notably in the shoulder and trunk area – after just eight weeks.
Increased strength. When practiced correctly, nearly all yoga poses build core abdominal strength. Many poses, including Downward-Facing Dog, Upward-Facing Dog, and Plank, build upper-body strength, which is particularly crucial as people age. Standing poses held for several long breaths strengthen the hamstrings, quadriceps, and abdominal muscles. To strengthen the lower back, try Up Dog and Chair pose.
Better posture. As you become stronger and more flexible, you will likely notice an improvement in your posture. That's because you're using deep abdominal muscles to sustain each pose – and with a stronger core, you're more likely to sit and stand "tall." And, with the heightened body awareness that comes with yoga, you're more likely to notice and correct any slouching or slumping.
Greater aerobic capacity. Deep, mindful yoga breathing may help increase your lung capacity, which in turn can improve sports performance and endurance.
Amelioration of chronic diseases. Yoga has been proven to lower blood pressure and slow the heart rate, which is good news for people with hypertension and heart disease, as well as for those prone to strokes. Yoga has also been associated with a reduction in cholesterol and triglyceride levels as well as a boost in immune system function. Multiple studies are under way to determine yoga's impact on relieving symptoms of asthma, back pain, arthritis, insomnia, multiple sclerosis, and other conditions.
Improved state of mind. The psychological benefits of yoga are less well documented by medical research, but the anecdotal evidence is hard to deny. Ask anyone who practices yoga regularly and they will likely attest to experiencing a greater sense of calm, less stress, sharper concentration and mental focus, and generally brighter moods.

Give yoga a try and see for yourself.