Stress Management Exercise: Yoga For Stress Relief

By Esther Tan

Lots of factors are to be considered when talking about stress. Sources of stress may come from work, family, financial, emotional, physical, and mental aspects of our everyday lives. To some extent, stress is actually beneficial to us. When ignored, however, it leads to our body's physical and mental breakdown. There are various techniques and methods that can help you deal with stress.

One of the techniques predominantly used for dealing with stress is yoga. Yoga is an age old practice which dates back 5000 years. It is a series of postures and breathing exercises. The exercises used in yoga are referenced from animals. But the ultimate goal of yoga practitioners is to attain body and mind tranquility. This relaxation factor makes yoga a useful practice to manage stress and anxiety. Yoga classes are offered to those who have the time and willing to undergo a full course. Full courses include behavioral training, diet, regimen, and exercises. Short classes are also offered, and these focus more on managing stress.

There are a lot of physical and mental benefits that yoga can bring. Physical benefits include increased flexibility, toning of muscles, muscle and joint pain prevention, and better breathing. Mental benefits include calmness, stress reduction, body awareness and total well-being. These meditative practices through yoga help in achieving an emotional balance through detachment; meaning, meditation will help put you into a condition where you are not affected by what is happening around you that might deviate your focus from what you are doing creating a calm and positive outlook.

There are many styles and forms of yoga with varying intensities depending on each individual's time and need. But for stress management Hatha yoga in particular maybe a good choice. This style of yoga is designed to encourage a calmer mind along with improved flexibility. Hatha yoga also have several forms which you can take depending on your preference but know that all forms of Hatha yoga have two basic components which is poses and breathing.

Regardless of the type of yoga that you may want to undertake, you don't have to do every pose that your instructor demonstrates. If you feel that you are uncomfortable with the pose or you can't hold it for as long as required, tell your instructor about it. What's important is that you achieve relaxation in these exercises. If you are interested in undertaking yoga, do some research first so that you will be able to pick out one which will benefit you greatly and that you are comfortable with. - 31520

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