Why Learn Yoga, a Wonderful Gift from the East

In my quest for attaining a strong, fit and flexible body, I had tried various fitness techniques and exercise routines ranging from aerobics to weight training to Tai chi. I understood that each of these techniques have their pros and cons. Then I discovered the science of yoga and it changed my outlook towards life both mentally and physically. I discovered that while most of the other fitness techniques were concerned with external physical development of the body, yoga stresses both on physical and psychological development.

Yoga means "union" i.e. the union of our consciousness with the divine consciousness or god.The science of yoga had been developed thousands of years ago in India as a means to bring about harmony between our mind, soul and body. Yoga strives to help a person to reach his maximum potential by making his dormant inner consciousness active and aware through meditation, physical exercises or "asanas" and various breathing techniques.

Yoga can be divided into four main paths
1.Jnana yoga for development of wisdom and knowledge.
2.Raja yoga for developing self control.
3.Bhakti yoga, also called the yoga of devotion.
4.Karma yoga which focuses on action.

Since yoga is concerned with all-round development of a human being it also stresses on eating clean and healthy food which invigorates our body. "Pranayama" is an important breathing technique of yoga which aims at reducing obesity by increasing the rate of metabolism, improves endurance by increasing lung capacity and also strengthens the immune system.

Since I was more concerned with the physical benefits provided by yoga I concentrated mostly on the various asanas or body postures in yogic exercises and have benefited enormously from them. Yoga helps to increase the body's flexibility, strength and improves balance. One more big advantage of yoga is that it does not require any equipment, save a mat. Exercise related injuries which are common during weight training are very rare in yoga.

People regularly practicing yoga have reported an enormous boost in their energy levels which automatically contributes to their sense of wellbeing. Our modern day hectic life styles with their deadlines and work pressures have left us little choice but to fall victims to stress related diseases such as blood pressure and heart disease. Yoga has been found to be an extremely effective stress buster since it helps to calm and soothe the mind and body.

There are several forms of yoga that have emerged over a period of time,
some of the most popular ones are
•Hatha yoga is considered as the foundation of all yoga styles and is extremely popular in the west.
•Ashtanga yoga is also called as power yoga since it is very physically demanding and leads to improved circulation, flexibility and balance. It is not recommended for beginners.
•Ananda yoga focuses on smooth gentle movements of the body and is designed to energize the body.

So for anybody looking out for a fitness technique which combines mental development with physical fitness, yoga is the way to go.