How Yoga Teaches Us to Be Kinder to Ourselves

In yoga, as in life, it's easy to start making comparisons. Not only do we compare ourselves to others, we also compare our performance on a given day to how we performed last week, last month, or last year. In some situations this can be a helpful and even necessary exercise, but when measuring our abilities in yoga, it quickly becomes detrimental. Although some people make the physical aspect of yoga the central focus of their practice, we can deepen our relationship with yoga and with ourselves if we instead approach yoga as a way to achieve mental, emotional, and spiritual growth.

Even a student who has been practicing yoga only for a short time has probably noticed that some days his body blesses him with great balance or deeper flexibility, and some days he just can't reach his toes no matter what. Rather than getting frustrated when your practice fluctuates, you can use these changes as opportunities to learn to accept your body and live in the present moment. Adopting this approach, rather than comparing yourself to previous classes or even other yogis, can help you cultivate a practice of being kinder to yourself, both in yoga and in everyday life.

How Seniors Can Enhance Their Well-Being through Yoga

An increasing number of older adults are discovering the numerous benefits—both physical and emotional—of practicing yoga. The nonprofit group Yoga Across America is one organization focused on bringing the discipline to people of all ages and backgrounds, with classes held in senior living facilities, recreation centers, public parks, and other venues.

For seniors, yoga can enhance flexibility, muscle tone, bone strength, and stamina. It can alleviate minor aches and pains and the effects of some of the physical conditions associated with aging. In addition, yoga has the potential to calm and focus the mind and to help restore mental agility. It can even take the edge off the discomforts associated with menopause. Because yoga promotes a positive mental attitude, it can also help seniors navigate some of the stressful situations of today’s fast-paced world.

Yoga has earned its reputation as a safe, individually paced practice. An older beginner should search out local classes that offer a gentle introduction, rather than jumping into an intense hot yoga workout. Many classes are specifically designed to meet the needs of senior adults, who may have to deal with some initial physical hurdles, such as tightened hamstrings or mobility issues. A gentle hatha yoga practice can be an excellent introduction. A class focused on the Iyengar style, with its use of props to accommodate special physical and structural needs, may also be a good fit. In any practice, an experienced instructor should be able to guide older beginners through a series of poses and practices that take the students individual needs into account.                          

Yoga Helps Adolescents Build Coping Skills

In today’s world, virtually all adolescents live with stress, whether from school, family, friends, or their living environment. Even small children often have a large amount of stress in their lives. Unfortunately, many children do not have the tools necessary to deal with stress in an effective manner. This inability to process stress could manifest in inappropriate, violent outbursts or steer children toward the use of drugs and alcohol. In Parker, Colorado, a yoga instructor has envisioned a different scenario. She sees yoga as a primary way of teaching coping skills. Through yoga, these children learn how to develop their sense of inner peace and discover the value of creating and maintaining quiet time devoted only to themselves.

In addition to learning how to manage stress in the present, yoga can teach children and adolescents a number of valuable lessons that they can apply in various other parts of their lives as they grow older. Through yoga, individuals can learn how to let go of stress and channel it into something productive.

On a more practical level, yoga instruction helps children and adolescents perform better at sports and avoid certain injuries because of greater flexibility.                            

Why Expectant Mothers Should Consider Regular Yoga Practice

Several studies have emerged on the benefits of yoga practice for expectant mothers. These studies show how yoga reduces labor pain and delivery time while preventing pregnancy complications and promoting mental health. About 10 percent of women experience mental health problems during pregnancy that can increase the risk of delivery problems and low birth weight. By combating stress, anxiety, and depression, yoga helps reduce the risks caused by mental health issues.

A randomized study published in Preventive Medicine found that yoga prevented complications in high-risk pregnancies. In the study, which involved one hour of prenatal yoga three times weekly, participants experienced significantly fewer complications than women in the control group. Another benefit, according to the study, was the reduction of pregnancy-induced hypertension and gestational diabetes.

Thai researchers conducted a study on the relationship between prenatal yoga and pain. The study, published in Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, found that women who practiced yoga in six one-hour sessions experienced reduced pain during labor and after birth, as compared to the control group. Additionally, the yoga group had a shorter average total labor time, especially in the first stage.

The Role of Yoga in the Daily Lives of Athletes

Yoga continues to increase in popularity throughout the United States among various populations, including athletes. Valorie Kondos-Field, a gymnastics coach at the University of California, Los Angeles, has identified yoga as one of the primary means of maintaining health for student-athletes under great physical and mental stress. Additionally, University of Utah coach Kyle Whittingham has cited yoga as a major means of relieving the pressure of the sport. Teams like the Utah Jazz and Philadelphia Eagles have employed yoga instructors, and sports stars like LeBron James and Vernon Davis to speak openly about the adoption of yoga as part of their regimen.

Many athletes have such a demanding schedule that they have little time to relax. Yoga forces them to slow down and pay attention to their bodies, which can significantly aid in the restorative process. Many athletes have also recognized the benefits of Bikram, also known as “hot” yoga, which individuals perform in a room set at about 105 degrees. The high temperature not only helps to loosen the muscles and mitigate soreness after games and practices, but also offers a mental challenge that many athletes enjoy.                            

The History and Benefits of Transcendental Meditation

A relatively new type of practice, transcendental meditation teaches individuals how to avoid distracting thoughts and enter into a state of calm and abiding awareness. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who derived the practice from the deep study of the Indian Vedas and the traditions that surround them, brought the practice to the United States in the 1960s. Since his passing, several other teachers have arisen to provide instruction in the practice in areas around the country. The teachers generally supply their students with a mantra, a sound from the Vedic tradition that has no meaning. Practitioners silently repeat the mantra while seated in a comfortable position with their eyes closed. Individuals direct their attention to the mantra during the practice.

Transcendental meditation has been linked to a reduction in chronic pain, anxiety, cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Several studies have demonstrated these connections, although scientific debate persists. Devoted practitioners achieve a state of stillness and stability that is free from normal mental boundaries. This peacefulness often has a direct effect on an individual’s quality of life.

How Mindfulness Meditation Can Help American Students

Based in Emeryville, California, Mindful Schools has trained more than 2,000 teachers from 48 states on implementing mindfulness practices into their daily classroom routines. The teachers often report that mindfulness helps with focus and attention. Additionally, meditation provides children with tools to relax themselves when they experience overwhelming emotions or are exposed to a great deal of pressure. In modern American schools, children deal with the stress of tests and standardized exams, which can create a high-pressure environment. Mindfulness allows more children to flourish in these environments.

In recent history, schools across the nation have begun to focus more on social and emotional education, especially as issues such as bullying have made major headlines. An increasing number of teachers are discovering mindfulness meditation as one of the best means for tackling this new sort of education.

Mindfulness in American schools also helps adults to deal with the stress of teaching. Teachers cannot instruct their students on mindfulness meditation unless they themselves have a developed practice. Such a practice could ultimately make them better teachers as they handle pressure and frustration more constructively.