Ten years ago, people thought of yoga as this hippie exercise where you meditate and chant things that no one understands. But nowadays, you see a lot of celebrities, models, influencers, or even your coworkers raving about their yoga class. Thanks to social media like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, you name it, there will always be an account that is actively sharing pictures of yoga poses that makes people want to sign up for a trial class. But the real reason to why Robert Downey Jr or Adam Levine is enjoying the class is not for all the poses that they want to pull off. The truth is they keep doing yoga because of all of the fantastic health benefits. Both mentally and physically, this exercise can transform you into a better version of yourself.
Become Fit and Agile
Though all the movements may seem slow and passive compared to running, boxing, swimming, or a fitness routine, it does not mean that yoga will only improve your flexibility. You can see from everyone who has been practicing this ancient workout for a while, that they have muscles and their body is very fit to do any other cardio exercises. If you trust the process, then you will slowly realize how and why you will start to gain lean muscles rather than the big and bulky ones that you often see on bodybuilders.
Better Self-love
What truly makes yoga special, is how you can spend an hour or so connecting with each of your body parts that you may use daily but never usually think of because it is a part of your daily routine to use them. With every pain or movements that you do, you will most likely realize that it takes a lot to make your body do certain things and how much you should appreciate it. Although self-love might not be something that will come to you consciously, eventually it will creep in into yourself since you will know a lot yourself better.
Weight Loss
One of the bonus deal that you can get from attending yoga every week is weight loss. You may wonder how can one lose fat from doing various movements on top of a yoga mat, and it seems like you are just going to practice your flexibility and strength. Whenever you are stretching your arms or legs, all the muscles in the body part will flatten and burn a lot of your body fats. Hence why people usually have a drastic before and after pictures throughout their yoga journey.