Importance of Building a Solid Foundation in Yoga
With anything that will last, you need to have a strong foundation. This applies to homes, education, and your yoga practice. You need a solid foundation in yoga for certain poses and to make sure you do not injure yourself. Here are some important reasons you need to build a solid foundation in yoga and some tips on how to do this.
Strong foundation in yoga
Yoga’s claims to physical benefits are based on a regular implementation of a regime of specific yoga positions. By stretching the body, yoga helps the individual straighten the spine. Stretching the spine also increases the elasticity of the spine and other body parts. This increases body flexibility and helps the individual to relax and concentrate. At the same time, stretching reduces stiffness and helps the individual avoid or decreases instances of pain, tension, fatigue, and stiffness.
The body movements required of yoga also increase the flow of the blood. This increased circulation ensures the body maintains a healthy flow while improving the general sense of well-being. Improved blood circulation also helps in relieving minor pains and helps with certain health problems. In particular, yoga can reduce short-term pain. Studies indicate the lowering of blood pressure through yoga exercises can impact, in a positive fashion, on such things as hypertension, stroke and heart disease.
Perhaps the best thing about yoga is its lack of side effects. Yoga encourages relief from minor problems. It does so over a short period. Because yoga works with the body by inducing the release of certain beneficial naturally occurring chemicals, there are no unpleasant side effects.
As a result, yoga can provide an individual with a positive body experience while providing certain health benefits. It can also encourage mental and even spiritual development. But everything starts wit a solid foundation.
Start at the Feet
The first thing you need to do is start with your feet. Your feet placement and stance are the most important part of building your solid foundation in yoga. The idea is to feel your foundation in your feet and for you to be able to feel when your foundation is failing. The importance of starting with your feet is found in the feeling of yoga and your body connection to the yoga you are practicing.
Your feet will tell you if you are about to fall, if your body is having issues with the asana, and if you need to change or modify the position. This is the first step in avoiding injury and building foundation to your core.
Leg Foundation
Once you have built up your foundation from your feet, you will move into the leg foundation. The importance of establishing a leg foundation is to prevent yourself from passing out and for knowing your endurance level. You need to build strength in your legs without locking your knees. Locking your knees can cause you to pass out. Instead, find your stability in your legs and feel when your body may be feeling fatigue. The importance of foundation in this step is to feel that your body may be having fatigue and then stop the practice for a bit. The fatigue can lead to passing out which can lead to more issues.
Whole Body Awareness
Whole body awareness is the ultimate goal of building a foundation for your yoga practice. Your feet show your balance, your legs show you fatigue, and your core foundation can show if your mind and body are connected. You can feel the disconnect and you can re-center when you feel that disconnect. This is the largest benefit for many people in yoga and trying to build a foundation.
Meditation and yoga can ‘reverse’ DNA reactions which cause stress, new study suggests
Mind-body interventions (MBIs) such as meditation, yoga and Tai Chi don’t simply relax us; they can ‘reverse’ the molecular reactions in our DNA which cause ill-health and depression, according to a study by the universities of Coventry and Radboud.
The research, published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology, reviews over a decade of studies analysing how the behaviour of our genes is affected by different MBIs including mindfulness and yoga.
The researchers focus on how gene expression is affected; in other words the way that genes activate to produce proteins which influence the biological make-up of the body, the brain and the immune system.
According to the study, however, people who practise MBIs exhibit the opposite effect — namely a decrease in production of NF-kB and cytokines, leading to a reversal of the pro-inflammatory gene expression pattern and a reduction in the risk of inflammation-related diseases and conditions.
The study’s authors say the inflammatory effect of the fight-or-flight response — which also serves to temporarily bolster the immune system — would have played an important role in humankind’s hunter-gatherer prehistory, when there was a higher risk of infection from wounds.
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These are just a few of the important reasons you should build a solid foundation in yoga. As you move through your yoga journey and practice, you will discover other reasons to build the solid foundation you need for your asanas and daily routine. If you are having issues creating and building your solid foundation, then consider a consultation with your yoga instructor. They can help you build the foundation and work to make it stronger.
