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Practice makes perfect.
Any devotee of yoga will already know that a session on the mat goes a lot further than the contorted positions that we bend our bodies into. However, this is how most of us start a journey that takes us much further than we had ever expected. Yoga, quite literally meaning union, works to connect your body, mind and spirit in the present moment. So while you’re sitting in your best attempt at the lotus position or stretching to your limits in a forward bend there’s a lot more going on than you initially realise.
Physical yoga (known as hatha yoga) is what we in the western world are most familiar with and therefore the most common type of class you will find. Hatha yoga works by moving the body into physical postures (known as asanas) varying from the simple to the athletic. These postures are traditionally the beginning in a yoga student’s search for bliss. Whilst working to attain physical strength, flexibility and balance you are also subtly affecting the other levels of your body. By gaining strength both mentally and physically you are able to deal with life with confidence and integrity. The flexibility that yoga trains translates internally as an open mind where ideas and creativity can flourish. And balance allows you, regardless of what is going on, to maintain equilibrium and respond appropriately to the trials and tribulations of life helping you to find a place of peace even in hectic times.
There are many physical reasons why people decide to start doing yoga, the desire to feel healthier, to improve their mobility, posture and flexibility and often as part of a fitness regime. It would be misleading to promise that hatha yoga alone will help you to lose weight, become a picture of perfect health or deal with issues such as fatigue or high blood pressure. As an overall lifestyle practicing yoga affects every area of your life to the degree that you let it. Yoga students often find they become less drawn to unhealthy foods, pursuits and even thought patterns.
There are many schools of yoga. Ashtanga, brought to the attention of the mainstream by stars such as Madonna and Christy Turlington, is perhaps the most popular for fitness and weight loss. In Ashtanga, sometimes called Power yoga, you synchronise the breath with a series of dynamic postures therefore building up a lot of internal heat and raising your heart rate. Most classes take a more mainstream gentle or moderate approach simply asking that you do what your body will let you without pushing yourself past your limits or failing to push yourself enough- it’s all about balance.
Regardless of your age, weight or fitness level you can begin yoga anytime. Younger people are regularly drawn to yoga because of the stress relieving benefits, whereas the older generation are more likely to choose yoga in order to maintain their flexibility, improve their posture in order to stay self sufficient and mobile for longer.
Most find that yoga improves the quality of their waking hours and sleep, refreshes their tired minds after a long day at work, or awakens them before the working day begins. Schools in the UK are putting yoga on their Physical Education timetables and large companies are inviting yoga classes into the workplace to improve the productivity and wellbeing of their employees. From a purely practical point of view becoming more balanced means we are sick less often and take life in our stride, it also helps us to feel better and be happier. There are few people out there, if anyone, who can truly and consistently thrive on stress without burning out and yoga is a very accessible way to prevent that. When you are balanced inside the balance in your outside life can begin to fall in to place. So start March with a spring in your step and take your first steps towards internal and external balance, peace and harmony.
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Health 
