Bring on the yoga mat if you are looking for a workout at home. Practicing yoga at home is a great way to get your day going or end it.
A great thing about yoga is that you can practice almost anywhere, no matter your time. Only have 15 min, no problem that is enough time to get a good stretch in.
Don’t think you have to go to some fancy yoga studio, be an expert, be super flexible, or have a lot of time to get a good session in.
Although going to a yoga studio is great for some, it is not always possible; that’s why yoga at home is wonderful.
My top 4 reasons why yoga at home is perfect!
- It is a full-body workout at home. How perfect is that to hit all the right places in one workout?
- There are so many health benefits to practicing yoga. (Of which I will get into later)
- It’s a fantastic way to get the family involved and moving together. This is one of those at-home workouts that toddlers and senior citizens can do.
- You don’t need a lot of time to practice or have to be an expert.
Yoga has long been thought to have a positive impact on your health and overall well-being.
Yoga is a way to bring balance back into the body by connecting the mind and body through a series of physical movements, meditation, and breathing exercises.
Yoga originated in India and has since spread all over the world. With more and more people seeing and feeling the health benefits of yoga, it has become widely popular.
5 Health Benefits of Yoga at Home and Yoga Period:
1. Helps to Clear the Mind
Let’s face it: our minds are constantly racing with thoughts. We have so much on our plates these days and our minds. Did I remember to feed the dogs, what’s for dinner tonight, check homework, and so forth?
Yoga helps to calm our “monkey brain” through breathing and meditation. Part of what yoga focuses on is the breath whi, which helps still the mind and focus on the present.
The focus is on the now, not what needs to get done or has not gotten done.
Yoga focuses on being present in the moment.
2. Reduce Stress
So, it’s no secret that exercise boosts energy and mood, and yoga is no exception. Studies have shown that practicing yoga regularly helps to reduce cortisol levels.
Why is that important for Stress? Cortisol is our built-in alarm system, fight or flight hormone, and our body’s primary stress hormone.
When we reduce cortisol levels, we feel less stressed.
Studies have also shown that with stress reduction, we lower our resting heart rate, among other things.
3. Helps Improve Sleep
When we reduce our cortisol levels, we tend to sleep better at night.
There have been studies that show a direct correlation between the reduction of cortisol levels and better sleep.
Cortisol and melatonin are two hormones that work with the sleep system that directly affect sleep.
Cortisol has a natural rhythm. It is naturally higher in the morning and drops at night.
We tend to have poor sleep when that rhythm is out of whack. Yoga helps lower cortisol levels at night, helping balance the body’s natural rhythm.
4. Fight Heart Disease
Studies have shown that yoga can help lower blood pressure as well as blood cholesterol, blood glucose levels, and heart rate.
Yoga helps increase blood flow in the body.
Other benefits of yoga, such as stress relievers, have also been shown to help fight heart disease.
5. Improve Strength and Flexibility
Yoga focuses on loosening our muscles by holding certain poses over some time.
Holding poses for a period of breath helps the muscle tissue to relax and stretch, as well as helps reduce the build-up of lactic acid.
There are many types of yoga classes, from Hatha, Ashtanga, Hot Yoga, Quick Flow, and many more. However, all teach stretching and relaxation.
The different asanas, which means poses in yoga language, may differ slightly; however, they all focus on stretching, strengthening, and relaxing the muscles and organs.
Each pose is supposed to support a different organ.
Now that we have covered some great health benefits of yoga, let’s talk more about yoga at home.
Another thing is, don’t worry if you know all the yoga poses or what routine to do.
Nowadays, there are so many different yoga apps you can download that offer a variety of classes, from beginners to advanced.
It makes practicing yoga at home so simple and convenient.
One app that I love is Downdog. That is one of my personal favorites because it is an app that anyone can download on their phone and access to so many different yoga classes at your fingertips.
A plus about this app is that it allows you to pick the length of time you have to practice. You can set your practice for as little as 10 min. And sometimes that is all that you need.
Here are some great yoga apps/YouTube/online to get you practicing yoga at home:
- Down Dog
- Daily Yoga
- Yoga with Adriene
- Gaia Yoga
- CorePower Yoga
- The Yoga Room
- Koya Webb Yoga
- Spirit Voyage
You might find yourself practicing yoga more by doing yoga at home since it is so convenient and not to mention inexpensive.
Some yoga apps and online subscriptions charge a fraction of the price you would pay if you went to a yoga studio. For example, at some yoga studios, you can expect to pay up to $20 for a drop-in class versus $20 for a month for an online subscription.
That is a fantastic price and hard to beat. Yet, if you are looking for free classes, those exist too. One place to find a ton of free-at-home yoga videos is on YouTube.
Practicing yoga at home is a great way to incorporate friends and family into doing something healthy together.
No matter how versed you are with yoga, you can find so many classes to do at home that meet you where you are in your comfort zone or level of experience.
If you are new to yoga but wish you could be doing a one-legged tree pose one day, go for it. With time and practice, all is possible. Just remember to be gentle and patient with yourself.
If stretching and relaxation are more your style, there are online at-home yoga classes for that, too.
Yoga at home has so many health benefits, not only physically but mentally and emotionally as well. I hope you consider doing it as part of your weekly routine to help with your overall health.
As always, from my heart to yours.
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