Yoga has been around for thousands of years and has always been associated with both physical and spiritual practice. Yoga tends to combine physical movement, breathwork, and mental exercises to help connect the body, mind, and spirit. There are many styles of yoga each with a unique intention. Two of the most popular styles in the Western world are Hatha – which is a combination of multiple styles and is generally more physical in nature, and Vinyasa which involves a smooth “flow” between poses. At The ACADEMY we teach a blended style of yoga to complement your fitness training program. The focus is on mobility, stability, balance, restoration, and breathing. Try our Yoga Revive and Yoga Flow classes. There are many benefits to practicing yoga even if you can only fit it into your schedule once a week, keep reading to find out more! Benefits
Improved mobility – Yoga can help to improve mobility, and decrease muscle tension and pain. One study saw an improvement of up to 35% in people’s flexibility in 8 weeks.
Improved mind, muscle connection – A large focus of Yoga involves focusing on the connection between our mind and body, practicing this can help us to improve our mind-muscle connection in our workouts, and everyday life.
Improved balance – Yoga helps to improve your balance by working on specific exercises for balance, core strength, and mental focus.
Decreased stress – The American Psychological Association cites up to 84% of adults are suffering from prolonged stress and its symptoms. Yoga can help to combat stress when practiced regularly. The focus on breathing helps to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system which is responsible for slowing the heart rates, lowering blood pressure, and giving you a general feeling of calm.
Improved athletic performance – Yoga can help improve your athletic performance from all the previous benefits listed – mind-muscle connection, flexibility, mental focus, breathing and decreased stress which all play a part in our athletic performance!
Yoga has so many benefits and is great for any age, fitness, and skill level. You don't need to be a "yogi" to reap the benefits of yoga. If you have found yoga classes to be intimidating we invite you to join us in a relaxed and friendly yoga experience designed for everyone.
If you have questions on the benefits of Yoga or want to get started, contact one of our Health and Fitness professionals today at fitness@heavensacademy.com
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