For the past 5,000 years, yoga, which originated in India, has been practiced by people around the world. Yoga offers benefits by enabling a person to develop flexibility, strength and balance, which are all key factors in a person’s long-term health. The goal of yoga is to attain spiritual insight and tranquility.
“I do yoga twice a week for an hour,” junior Angella Fults said. “It’s good for your body and mind. Body because you have more energy and mind because you feel good and confident about yourself. Honestly, I just like the feeling of being in shape.”
Many models and actresses confess that yoga is a key part of their workout regime. Victoria’s Secret Angel Miranda Kerr has practiced yoga for over 10 years, as well as throughout her pregnancy, and believes that yoga allows a person to meditate and reflect on what is truly important in life.
“I am inspired by Miranda Kerr,” Fults said. “I think she’s beautiful and fit.”
Even though many people think that yoga could be harmful towards teenager’s bodies because of the many injuries and strains caused by inexperienced yoga instructors, it is actually very beneficial for teenagers. It teaches teens techniques to cope with issues they are faced with, such as insecurities about their bodies, stressful schedules, uncertainty about their beliefs and the pressure to fit in. Over the years, yoga has proved to be an outlet for teens, in which they can switch off, forget their problems and focus entirely on their bodies and breath. Many studies show that people who do yoga when they are younger face fewer health related issues when they are older.
“I think having a healthy lifestyle will be important 30 or 40 years from now because later on you might not have all the flexibility or metabolism as you do when you are a teen,” Fults said.
When deciding to start practicing yoga, there are many different types to choose from. Each type of yoga consists of the same basic poses, but puts the emphasis on different parts of the body. Hatha is a style of yoga that is very slow-paced and is a good introduction to basic yoga poses. Vinyasa is a more vigorous style of yoga that consists of a series of poses called sun salutations. Ashtanga is a very intense style of yoga that is physically demanding because of the constant movement from one pose to the next. Iyengar is mainly concerned with body alignment, so it involves holding poses for long periods of time. It also involves the use of props such as yoga blankets, blocks and straps.
“I do Iyengar yoga because it gives me good posture which I think will be important in the future,” junior Sarah Page said.
There are many other factors that contribute to reaching a good level of overall long-term health, such as cardio workouts and a good diet.
“I go to the gym and run three miles every other day,” Fults said. “I am not on a diet, but I just make sure that my plate has a lot of color because the more color food has, the healthier it is.”
Despite what most people think, yoga does more than just help with weight loss.
“I do yoga because I want to stay fit and feel good,” junior Christine Fares said. “Also, I believe that being healthy now will be important in the future because it will prevent from diseases and other health related problems.”
