3 Surprising Benefits of Yoga

Why yoga is for EVERY BODY

If you’re not yet practicing yoga on a regular basis, you may not yet be aware of some of its extraordinary hidden benefits – particularly as it relates to developing a healthy self- and body-image.

Flexibility, balance, strength…these are the commonly known physical benefits that many believe yoga is limited to, which, admittedly, can also be achieved from other forms of activity.

But yoga is undeniably different.

Those who practice, or who have practiced before, would agree – there’s just “something” about what you get from yoga that you simply cannot get from any other form of movement.

It may even be hard to pinpoint exactly what it is or how to describe it, but recently I found myself reflecting back on my almost 20 years of practicing yoga and how it’s impacted my journey into full self-acceptance; and I’ve been able to put it to words.

For me, yoga has never been just physical. (If it were, after all this time, you’d think I’d be able to post impressive Instagram pics of me doing headstands on the edge of a cliff!) Yes, I’ve improved my physical practice, and have felt ALL the physical benefits. But yoga for me has been more – so much more.

Here are some surprising benefits you may not have heard before:

1. It exposes our asymmetry – and the fact that we’re not actually designed to be perfect!

There is no better way to discover your “weaker,” “less flexible,” or even “shorter” sides of your body than to complete a single practice of yoga. Even after 20 years, I’m still amazed at how effortless twisting to the right is compared to the distorted-faced effort I need to put in to twisting to the left.

I’m asymmetrical, I’m imperfect, and I was designed that way – we all were! In yoga, it’s almost impossible to become frustrated or angry about that realization, because it’s just the way it is – and it doesn’t stop us from being able to participate.

We’re not limited by our imperfections; we can accept them, because we can customize our practice to our unique bodies.

We don’t ignore our weaknesses; we find a way to work with them by making appropriate modifications to complete our practice.

The more we get on the mat, the more we can strengthen our weaker points, but we know that our asymmetry will always exist, and so we can accept those weaknesses, and celebrate our strengths.

When we acknowledge these same truths “off the mat,” life becomes much less of a struggle.

2. It’s a fast-track to self-awareness

If there is one activity that tests every single part of your body, mind and soul, it’s yoga.

Everything from choosing the best form of practice that best suits your energy and spirit, to discovering which type of postures you love and those you dread, can tell you so much about yourself – if you commit to listening.

The more self-aware we are on a physical level – like getting to know our favourite/easiest postures, our weak points, and where we can/can’t push ourselves – the more self-aware we become in all other areas of our lives.

Most of us suffer from comparison-syndrome in our daily lives, where we look outside of ourselves for how we should be and look, which often leads us to subscribing to standards that aren’t even our own (and inevitably leads to being unhappy with ourselves and our bodies).

But in yoga, there’s complete freedom to set our own standards: it’s a personal practice/journey, with no end-goal, but rather a commitment to continuous improvement. There is no competition in yoga – just like there’s really no competition in life, other than the ones we make up.

Transferred off the mat, when we become self-aware enough to give up painful comparisons and simply live our lives by our own standards, it not only takes a lot of pressure off of “winning” but it also adds a ton of joy to the journey!

3. It’s a perfect form of meditation for those who struggle to “sit quietly”

I (like many others, I imagine) seriously struggle with the more traditional form of meditation: sitting cross-legged, eyes closed and quieting my mind for a minimum of 10 minutes.

The health benefits of meditation are proven and plenty, and so over the years, I’ve made countless attempts to squeeze this quiet piece of time into my busy days.

These attempts, however, have always been short-lived, because I’ve learned that, unless I’m sleeping or writing (or laying in Savasana pose at the end of yoga), I really don’t like to sit still!

But squeezing time in my day for a yoga practice? Easy. It’s even a timeslot I look forward to! And only recently did I actually realize that yoga is in fact a form of meditation, and all this time, I’ve been reaping the research-supported benefits.

Here are the general aspects of meditation that are unquestionably present during a yoga practice:

• breath (often the first aspect of yoga that’s taught, and definitely necessary for getting the most from each posture)
• clearing the mind of random thoughts (and if they do pop into mind, they’re usually quick to be replaced by a “wtf am I supposed to be doing now?”)
• being in a peaceful environment, free of distractions (anyone would be hard-pressed to find a studio that’s chaotic)
• universal energy exchange: our connection to the greater whole (felt particularly in a class where students are so intensely exchanging air through deep breathing)

Given that there’s now literally a type of yoga for every body and personality type (we can choose from “restorative” to “power” yoga, and everything in between), I truly believe it’s for EVERY body – but especially for anyone struggling with any form of body image issues, as I have.

Here’s another little secret:

If you’re time-strapped, you don’t even need to leave your home (or office!) to feel these benefits, and you also don’t need much more than 15 minutes/day. There are many fantastic DVDs, books, or even YouTube channels to choose from, that can provide the quality instruction for you to do this.

Although I ADORE the experience of attending a full 60 or 90-minute class with a live instructor, I also have a small child, a business, and life outside of yoga – and it’s not always feasible to carve out 2.5 hours (including travel) to head to the local studio several times a week.

A little yoga is better than no yoga!

My philosophy is, as long as you have enough space to roll out a mat (I use a small portion of my living room), you can be reaping these benefits daily, in a totally convenient way.

No excuses, just enormous benefits. And maybe one day, even an impressive cliff-side headstand to show off to your Instagram followers.

Do you have more surprising benefits to add to this list?

Leave a comment below and let me know, my fellow yogi!

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