Does Yoga Really Help the Body, and Should You Incorporate it Into Your Routine?

What exactly does yoga do for the body and spirit, and can it be beneficial for you to add to your routine?

While yoga has been in practice for decades, in the last ten years, it has become increasingly popular as a modern practice to support both physical health and spiritual health in tandem. So what exactly does yoga do for the body and spirit, and can it be beneficial for you to add to your routine? We’ll break down our thoughts below.

What is Yoga?

Yoga, which actually stands for the word “union”, is an ancient Eastern practice that focuses on the physical body and spiritual mental health. Yoga typically incorporates breathing technique, stretching, postural alignment, relaxation and meditation, all with the goal of uniting the body and mind to be better in sync. There are several different branches and styles of yoga that vary in their primary focus.

How Does Yoga Help The Body?

With yoga, comes the unique focus of uniting the mind and body to work together and help promote relaxation, increased focus, control breathing and body strengthening. There are several benefits studied through the practice of yoga which can include:

• Pain Management

• Mobility and Function Improvement

• Stress Reduction

• Improving Posture (spine)

• Improving Balance & Flexibility

• Promoting Wellbeing

What Conditions Can Yoga Help With?

• Chronic Pain

• Joint Pain

• Arthritis

• Headaches

• Fatigue

• Limited Mobility

Can a Combined Treatment Approach be Beneficial?

Depending on the condition, Physical Therapy is often the first treatment recommended for most of the conditions listed above.  A Doctor of Physical Therapy can evaluate your specific injury and give you the full picture of what is causing the condition and how to treat it without doing further damage. While physical therapy should always be the main treatment approach, combining physical therapy with other modalities such as massage therapy, acupuncture and yoga, can be extremely beneficial to the patient. Incorporating Yoga into your daily routine or treatment is a personal decision, but has been shown to help aid in both your physical and spiritual wellbeing. 

If you are interested in trying a yoga session or local yoga class, we recommend speaking with your Physical Therapist first to make sure you're physically prepared.  For consultations or questions regarding our Doctors of Physical Therapy at Sarrica PT in Brooklyn and Manhattan, please reach out to us at 347-560-6920.