Yoga for a Better Lifestyle 

Written by Harshit Tiwari.

The human body mechanism is certainly one of the most sophisticated machinery that we have been endowed with. But the irony arises when we find ourselves handling this ‘machinery’ with a wrench of carelessness. What further intensifies the matter is the ever-growing pace of our lifestyles which leaves us with practically no time to assist ourselves reboot our body machinery. As a result, each one of us is often surrounded by some lifestyle-related problems and serious health issues.

As we find ourselves stuck amid the daily hustle-bustle we seek a mechanism that can help us take a temporary refuge from the daily strife and also boost our body mechanism at the same time. Here’s where a practice like ‘Yoga’ comes to our rescue. Yoga- with its literal meaning as ‘union’ or ‘summation’ – is a process of mustering the scattered energies of our body in order to use them in the most efficient manner. It employs the utilisation of yoga asanas and meditation practices so as to synchronise the body and mind. Yoga provides us with an excellent deal of health benefits and aids to improve skeletomuscular, cardiorespiratory, circulatory, neuromuscular and endocrine systems of the body, leaving literally no part of our being untouched by its benefits. Its appeal lies in the numerous benefits to both body and mind as it works on muscles, increases vitality, tones internal organs, relieves stress and most importantly clears the mind.

It is an undeniable fact that in modern times, lifestyles have turned hectic than ever. Whether it’s the working people that are indulged in long hour jobs and businesses, students attending classes and tuition all day long, housewives who find them too busy in household chores or even travel enthusiasts, lifestyle-related problems loom large at each one of us. But surprisingly, Yoga has solutions for everyone.

Despite being an age-old practice, yoga is still conducive for the modern-day needs. Its relevance can be evaluated from the spectacular results it provides in lifestyle-related disorders such as hypertension, diabetes, depression and anxiety. Apart from the expected physical benefits, yoga gives control over the subtle elements of the mind and provides the much-needed tranquillity in these turbulent times. Despite having increased material wealth, we frequently find a void in our lives which does not seem to be refillable by the means of materialistic items. Yoga can aid to fill this void and supply harmony between mind and body.

Have you found the relevance of Yoga practices in your own life? You certainly have. But having understood the importance of yoga, the next important question that arises is that -” How can we use yoga so as to effectively improve our lifestyles?” Here are some tips for you to practice Yoga in an efficient manner-

1. Requirements

A remarkable feature of yoga is that it does not require intense physical activity, heavy workout or a strict gymming regime. All it requires is You and Your Presence. It can be practised at the comfort of your home, provided the place is sufficiently ventilated with fresh air.

2. Timings

There is no doubt in the fact that the most ideal time for practising yoga is, the morning time. Most of us are busy people with strict working schedules. In such a scenario morning exercises can prove to be beneficial, since we are busy in our work all day long. Sometimes one may argue that one doesn’t have sufficient time even in the morning. In such a case one may try getting up early by half an hour. A yoga session of half an hour in the morning can keep you immensely fresh all day long and you certainly would not regret getting up early.

3. Simple Practices

While there exist myriad complex postures and meditation techniques under the domain of Yoga, you need not be intimidated by them. In fact, believe me, yoga is for everyone regardless of your body type or profession. One must consider practising ‘light’ yoga asanas which will not exhaust you. Here are some of the simplest ones which each one of us can practice with ease.

• Breathing Practice

This is the beginning of any yoga practice. It involves sitting in an appropriate and comfortable position, inhaling deeply, pausing for a while and then exhaling slowly. This helps detoxify the lungs and respiratory system and also cools the brain.

• Mountain Pose

This is one of the basic forms of yoga. In this you need to stand straight, barefoot on the ground with your feet joined side-by-side. Now ensure that all your body parts are stiff (try to be relaxed at the same time). Begin breathing deeply. Now take a deep breath, and start lifting your body by balancing on your toes. Stretch upwards all your body parts including your chest, hips and arms. Feel the stretch in your entire body. Now gently exhale and inhale. Finally come to a relaxed position and repeat this several times. This will help increase flexibility in the body, enhance blood circulation and improve nervous and digestive systems.

4. Yoga for Travellers

As already aforementioned, yoga aids all kinds of people and the same holds true for travellers as well. Many of them, despite having great enthusiasm for travelling various parts of the world, find it difficult to quickly accommodate in several sorts of environments and atmospheres. Are you also a globetrotter, but experience a lot of fatigue during and after the vacation, which spoils all the excitement? Are you too not able to quickly adapt to changing food patterns, which refrains you from savouring lip-smacking delicacies? This generally flows from health issues like weak immunity and improper digestion.

Yoga can prove to be immensely beneficial in such cases. Not only should you include yoga in your everyday life but also make it essential during your vacation. During vacations, you must practise yoga at your stay place. This helps eliminate travelling stress, relaxes the mind, prepares digestive organs for changing food patterns and subsequently enables you to gain a memorable travelling experience. In the long run, yoga also delays the degenerative process of the body keeping you younger for longer and providing the opportunity to explore the earth even when you age up.

5. Busting the myths

• It is frequently believed by the folks that yoga can be solely practised by trained practitioners. It is worthy to be mindful of the fact that yoga is a simple art and is relevant for even the simplest sort of people regardless of their body type or profession. The need is to identify the correct yoga posture for oneself.
• Another common myth that goes around is that Yoga is a religious practice and is practised by saints only. Well, yoga is associated not with any sort of religion but with ‘health’, and health is the religion of the entire humankind. It is imperative for us to instil yoga in our life for a healthy mind and body, irrespective of the religion we follow.

One must be mindful that Yoga is a natural art and what nature does is slow but permanent. It may take comparatively more time to heal through yoga as compared to artificial means, but practising yoga is definitely worth it, considering the enormous health benefits it yields. Moreover, yoga incurs practically no side effects and can be used as a preventative therapy for lifestyle-related disorders.

So what are you waiting for? Roll out your mat, start practising yoga and watch it bring magic in your life!!

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Harshit Tiwari is a content writer at The Strong Traveller. He possesses an amicable nature and has got a genuine passion for writing. He is fond of travelling and loves to express his thoughts through writing and painting, among his several other hobbies. He also likes to brainstorm over different content ideas, related to lifestyle. He likes to call himself, ‘an insanely curious being‘. 🙂

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