If you’ve got a big test coming up or are faced with a difficult project at work that requires plenty of brain power, instead of spending time worrying, you might want to consider incorporating a different type of exercise into your day.
According to the Huffington Post, a recent study found that just 20 minutes of yoga can boost memory, improve focus, and help you process information more accurately and more quickly.
Professor of kinesiology, health and sport studies at the University of Illinois, Neha Gothe, stated that yoga’s, “breathing and meditative exercises aim at calming the mind and body and keeping distracting thoughts away while you focus on your body, posture or breath. Maybe these processes translate beyond yoga practice when you try to perform mental tasks or day-to-day activities.”
Participants in the study performed better on cognitive brain functioning tests after yoga than after performing aerobic exercises.
Part of the reason for this, as Gothe notes, is the enhanced self-awareness that comes through any type of meditative exercise.
While you shouldn’t ditch your cardio activity, you might want to consider adding at least a few yoga sessions to your itinerary each week, especially if you need your brain to function at its best – and who doesn’t?
In addition to improving mental capacity, yoga can:
- Relieve chronic pain
- Improve balance
- Increase flexibility
- Strengthen the body’s core
- Improve mood
- Decrease the risk of depression
Flexibility is something that many people forget about when it comes to fitness and health. Almost anyone can benefit from becoming more flexible and increasing their range of motion. It can help athletes improve their game and allow even the casual exerciser to have a better workout. Improving flexibility can markedly decrease the risk of injury, as well.
Practicing yoga can even make the difference in achieving a better quality of life as we age. Losing range of motion in older years is not a normal process of aging – it’s what happens with inactivity. One of the major causes of injuries for seniors is due to falling; yoga is especially good at decreasing this risk as it improves balance which helps prevent falls.
With the stresses of our modern world, more and more people are battling anxiety and depression. Practicing yoga can decrease the risk of suffering from these mental disorders with its positive effects on attitude as well as boosting the mood and ultimately increasing overall happiness and well-being.
The latest news that it can also help to improve your test scores is just another great reason to begin practicing yoga!
-The Alternative Daily
