San Diego Chiropractor: The Benefit of Yoga Exercise

Yoga practitioners have discovered that consistent yoga exercises awaken both mind and body! As you unburden your mind to give your undivided attention to each pose, you stimulate your “inner body” awareness of the present moment. Regular yoga practice fosters a healthy body through proper breathing for more oxygenation, greater flexibility for ease of motion, added muscle strength for confident movement, and perfect alignment for enhanced energy flow. The goal of yoga practice is to create a union between the body, mind and spirit.

Patience is not only a virtue, it is the “key” to mastering a yoga pose, specially when combined with ample time and commitment. A beginner should not give up if they don’t do a pose flawlessly on the first try. But, slowly over time, as you practice and try to perform each pose perfectly, without pushing yourself too far physically or beating yourself up mentally, you will find that you are developing flexibility, strength, and energy physically and feeling more peaceful and clear mentally.

Choose a clean, graceful space for your practice area, and if you can, one with a bare floor and an accessible wall. Remove any distractions from your yoga environment. Preferably, you should not eat for at least 2 hours before practicing. If you find you need to eat, then try to eat something light, such as a piece of fruit, but no more than 1 hour before you start your yoga practice.

Be consistently mindful of how your body feels, and stop or pause if you feel any pain or discomfort while undertaking a pose. Then try again.

Yoga props and yoga accessories, such as yoga mats, yoga bolsters, yoga straps, yoga blocks, yoga mat bags, and even yoga towels are perfect for aiding you in moving deeper into a pose, in performing a flawless pose, and in practicing in a wholesome way.

High on the list of the many benefits of using yoga props is that most are designed to to aid in the relief of any pain or discomfort you may feel while a yoga pose is being perfected.

On occasion we all “push” instead of “ease” into a yoga pose, and injury sometimes occurs. Yoga props can offer the support and extensions needed to do a pose correctly.

Doing yoga releases tension, and using props assists with stress relief by giving the support necessary for you to relax (but not be lazy) in your practice.

As we mentioned earlier, yoga practice is about unifying the mind, body and spirit through the development of a deeper awareness and the augmentation of mindfulness. How will yoga props assist in this great goal? When you are able to simply focus your mind on doing your yoga poses correctly, rather than worrying about transitory limitations, you will go deeper into that balance of mind, body, and spirit.