For those who are new to yoga or have only taken up the practice because someone encouraged them to, you may still be questioning why you should be doing yoga in the first place. Sure, you have probably heard about the miraculous health benefits, but what does that mean for you? What are you personally going to get out of yoga? I can only speak for myself and about the benefits that yoga has given me. Though I hope that you can find reason to give yoga a try (or stick with the practice a while longer) to discover the reasons why you do yoga too.
Here are my 5 reasons why I do yoga:
- Honesty
I’m not talking about lying…though yoga does have an uncanny way of altering your perspective about deception. What I’m talking about is being honest with yourself, about your strengths and weaknesses and your destructive habits. Yoga has made me become more aware about my body and what I can and cannot tolerate, whether it be drinking or stress.
- Selfishness
Most people think more about themselves than they do others. I know I certainly have those selfish moments where I think, “What about me and my emotions?” There’s nothing wrong with that of course, because we’re all human and have human desires. Still, yoga brings us to the point where we realise that our selfishness can be detrimental to others. I have learned how to curb my selfishness and think about the collective whole. About how my actions can create a ripple effect, positive or negative.
I now work to find equilibrium not only in myself but to ensure those who I find precious have a reason to smile too.
- Breathwork
Before I started really getting into yoga, I didn’t know how to breathe. I didn’t know the importance of it. It’s funny how we go through our lives breathing in and out, but we don’t realise how little use we make of the breath. The breath is a remarkable tool that can either hurt us or help us, depending on our ability to control it. For example, I used to have terrible anxiety and hyperventilation issues. After practicing yogic breathwork, I was able to gain control of my breathing and can now soothe an attack simply by doing pranayama.
“In pranayama you don’t worry about taking breaths, you focus on exhalation. If you exhale properly you will inhale. The more deeply you exhale the more deeply you will inhale” – Frederick Lenz
- Emotions
Happiness, sadness, anger, lust – emotions shape our world. Whether you are a person who feels emotions strongly or are less empathetic, yoga teaches you how to tap into the root of the emotion you are most possessed by in that moment. Teaching you how to cope or tap into the energy it provides. You can learn how to find joy and de-stress just as easily as you can travel inside to find resolution to your worst fears. That’s because yoga is moving meditation.
- Challenges
The world has a way of making us unfocused and unbalanced. Yoga is a pivotal tool in not only reminding me who I am but what I am capable of. There were moments in my life when I was ready to wave the white flag of surrender and give up; but then I would do a yoga practice and be in awe of what my mind and body was capable of. Because I could remind myself that I am strong, I could better focus on tasks throughout the day. I could be a part of the solution, not just a bystander in my own life.
Yoga is an astounding practice…
that has not only shaped who I am as a human being but has provided me with connections to others as well. Whenever the days get rough, I know that a yoga practice will help reorder my mind and help me see that there is a light through the darkness. Hopefully, yoga will one day do the same for you. Never stop opening your heart to the gift of yoga.
Namaste!
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