Yoga helps you to focus

Because your mind will be quieter and clutter-free it’s easier to direct the energy to where you want it to go. In yoga, they say you develop one-pointedness concentration through practice. You train the mind to become aware and present. Research has shown that after a yoga class you are generally better able to focus your mental resources, process information more accurately, and also learn, hold and update pieces of information more effectively.

Yoga changes your energy

If your morning routine starts with dragging yourself out of bed and gulping down a coffee, try ten rounds of Surya Namaskar or some Kapalabhati pranayama, and notice the energizing effects it has on the nervous system. Conversely, if you need a change later on in the day, just a few minutes of asana practice can re-balance the nervous system, calm the mind and give you a different perspective.

Yoga boosts your metabolism

A morning yoga practice will help to get the blood, breath, and muscles moving before breakfast, therefore allowing the nutrients from your food to be better absorbed. A strong practice can help build muscle, dramatically boost metabolism, and breathing fully and deeply increases circulation, also helping the metabolism to stay ticking along nicely.

Yoga reduces anxiety

Shallow breathing, poor posture, and tense muscles are both results and causes of anxiety. If you’ve been stuck in an anxiety cycle for a long period of time, it’s likely that your body has almost learned to protect itself by remaining tense, physically closed off, and with very short, sharp breaths. The mind and body are so closely interlinked, that physically deepening the breath, improving posture, and relaxing the muscles in a safe space can all help reduce anxiety.

Yoga boosts your immune system

Any form of movement is great for keeping the immune system healthy. With yoga’s twisting, inverting, back bending, and calming, the body is able to spend more time within the parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) and less with the sympathetic nervous system (the fight or flight system, which causes stress and inflammation and dramatically lowers the immune system).