Do you wake up early in the morning?
Most people love sleeping and they don’t get enough of it. The idea of rising early every day can be a painful and difficult one, but there are several healthy and nourishing reasons to practice yoga every morning.
Yoga means "union" or "to join together" in Sanskrit. It has the same root that gives rise to the English word "yoke," as in "to yoke together," and refers to the unification of body, mind, and soul. Yoga helps the mind become stronger by linking the mind with the Self, the Atma. It is the ideal Ayurvedic exercise, because it rejuvenates the body, improves digestion, and removes stress.
Here are 12 reasons for you to practice yoga daily:
1. Yoga Is the Fountain of Youth
Yoga keeps you young – in body, mind, and spirit. This is not just vanity. Young means supple, radiant, energetic, healthy, strong, enthusiastic, and alive. We are innately biologically programmed to be as fully alive as possible and to sustain this state for as long as possible.
2. Morning Yoga is Sacred
Yogis call the hours between 4 and 6 a.m. ‘Brahma muhurta’. In these early hours, the atmosphere is said to be charged with ‘sattva’. The day has not yet begun. There is very little bustle or noise. ‘Brahmamuhurta’ means the time when awareness of Lord Brahma, the creative power within all existence, is most pronounced. To be practicing yoga in this early time of day is to feel yourself alive with this creative intelligence, infused with the sacredness of being.
3. Improves Blood Circulation in Your Body and Ensures Proper Functioning of Your Body
Yoga helps in blood circulation as it increases oxygen supply to your cells which in turn, improves the functioning of the body. Poses like the headstand, handstand, and shoulder-stand encourages venous blood from the legs and pelvis to flow back to the heart, where it can be pumped to the lungs to be freshly oxygenated.
4. Helps to Cope with Stress, Anxiety, and Depression
Yoga helps in coping with stress that can take a toll on your body and mind. It is quite effective in developing coping skills and reaching a more positive outlook on life. It improves mental clarity, calmness, body awareness and sharpens concentration.
5. Improves Your Sleep Quality
Ayurvedic health care suggests that restorative asanas like shavasana, pranayama, and meditation help in relaxing the nervous system which in turn, improves the quality of sleep because these asanas will make you less tired and less stressed out.
6. Helps in Improving Your Relationships as it Encourages Mindfulness
Yoga can assist in improving relationships with your loved ones as it inspires inner peace and clarity of mind. It helps you relax and makes you blissful so that you can deal with complex relationship matters in a better way. Combine yoga and meditation to attain a peaceful mind.
7. Keeps Bacteria and Viruses at Bay by Boosting Immunity
Yoga asanas and postures help in boosting the immune system. It improves the functioning of all body parts and helps in destroying bacteria and viruses that could cause damage to your immune system. In short, yoga helps to fight off diseases.
8. Increases Your Self-esteem, Awareness and Self Confidence
Yoga helps you to discover the different sides of you. It increases an individual’s confidence, self-esteem and makes you feel good about yourself and your life. It inspires you to take an optimistic approach in life.
9. Yoga is Skill in Action
The Bhagavad Gita reminds us that yoga is a skill in action. Awakening early, unrolling your mat, engaging in the morning practice, and repeating daily, is a powerful way to take charge of your life, to expand beyond your prospects, conditioning, apathy, and perceived limitations. This alone is empowering and teaches us that we are the power that generates all that we seek in the world.
10. Aids Proper Functioning of Your Lungs
Practicing breathing exercises can improve lung function and also cure respiratory problems. Deep breathing also increases the capacity of your lungs and keeps respiratory problems at bay.
11. Helps You Take Control of Your Emotions and Thoughts
Yoga and meditation help to build consciousness and take control of your emotions. Practicing yoga helps in reducing anger by increasing feelings of compassion and interconnection by soothing the nervous system and the mind.
12. Yoga Starts Your Day with Grace
Do you recall the previous time you woke up before the sun? The soft colors of the sky, the stillness of the air, the gentle stimulations of life, and the bird song, all touch the heart with melting tenderness. It is truly precious to behold the awakening of the day and to feel not separate but connected to all that is beautiful, majestic, and good.