Yoga has been popular for thousands of years now and millions of people are currently reaping the health and fitness benefits it offers including some celebrities like Meg Ryan, Jennifer Aniston, Ricky Martin, and Madonna. You too can opt for this healthy practice, if you are looking for a viable weight loss solution or if you simply want to enhance your well being.

Read on to know more about yoga and some tips that will help you practise it better.

Yoga workout and exercise

• Yoga is much more than difficult ‘asanas’ – Most yoga teachers focus on teaching physical poses known as ‘asanas.’ Yoga also includes some breathing and meditation techniques that offer immediate as well as long term benefits. Some forms of yoga are designed for relaxing the body, while others train your body to become more flexible.

• You don’t have to be a gymnast – Regular practise of yoga enables you to develop strength, flexibility and balance. Some people imagine that yoga involves having to stretch their body like a gymnast. They think they are too old or unfit to do so, but the truth is that yoga helps to improve your flexibility without straining your muscles.

• Yoga relieves muscle pain and stiffness – When you stretch your muscles during a yoga asana, you are actually releasing the lactic acid in your muscles that causes stiffness, pain, tension and fatigue. Yoga also increases the range of motions in your joints. This creates a sense of fluidity and ease in your body. If done correctly, almost all the ‘asanas’ help in building core strength of your abdominal muscles.

• Yoga is beneficial for joint pain – Yoga not only stretches your muscles but most of the soft tissues in your body too. This includes your tendons, ligaments, as well as, the fascia sheath around your muscles. Your shoulders and trunk are likely to benefit the most.

• You age better with yoga – Some forms of yoga require more vigour than the others. These forms help to improve your muscle tone and lend strength to your body. But even they require less vigour and instead focus on precise alignment and fewer movements. These yoga exercises impart endurance and strength to your body. This becomes particularly important as you age.

• Yoga good for mental as well as physical wellbeing – The goal of yoga exercise and workout is to help you develop a healthy, harmonious and holistic life. It can make your body stronger and has a calming effect on the mind. These exercises reduce muscle and joint pain, speed up your metabolism and improve posture. Yoga also detoxifies your body and alleviates tension and stress. A single one hour Yoga workout has the potential to burn up to 350 calories. This makes it the ideal weight loss treatment.

Yoga products

You can buy a complete range of yoga equipment to add to the comfort and convenience of your workout. Yoga mats, for instance, offer greater stability and allow you to define your individual space during a group session. It is also provides cushion to your body. Yoga belts help you get the right posture because it provides the ideal amount of pressure at the right places, without straining a muscle. Yoga blocks help you in achieving precise alignment in different postures and are necessary to complement your workout.