Yoga As a Stress Management Technique - Free Essay Example

Abstract Over the course of more than 5,000 years, Yoga has transformed into many different styles while greatly influencing many religions and philosophies. Yoga masters such as Patanjali, Krishnamacharya, B.K.S. lyengar, T.K.V. Desikarchar, and Pattabhi Jois have taken its original form and developed numerous versions from it such as Vinyasa Flow, Hatha Yoga, Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, and Bikram Yoga. All types of yoga encompass the same values such as sacrificing ego and focusing on ones spirituality through their body and breath, but each of them emphasize a certain aspect more than others. The practice has traveled from India to Western countries, changing lifestyles for the better. It reaps so many benefits, such as increased health, happiness, strength, and flexibility. This practice has elongated lives because of its stress relieving techniques and gathered a following like no other. It can be practiced by every individual, regardless of age, fitness level, and health level. Through its positive, spiritual-focused poses, mantras, and rituals, yoga can help every individual get closer to reaching enlightenment. Yoga Defined Yoga is a type of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual exercise that utilizes breathing techniques, meditation, and mental imagery to promote better mental and physical health. It can also be thought of as a way to control the activities of the mind in a peaceful and beneficial manner. Yoga can be found in many cultures, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Western culture, and more. Usually, yoga is practiced on a regular schedule, ranging from a couple times a months to multiple sessions every day. Yoga strengthens not only parts of your body such as your muscles or circulatory system, but also builds mental fortitude and helps to deal with stressful everyday life (Brown, 2003). History Yoga has been around for more than 5,000 years. Some researchers believe that it may have even been created up to 10,000 years ago. Its history comes from many obscure places, but the main origins humankind has discovered it is through sacred texts. Early writings on yoga were written on very delicate palm leaves, so much of it got destroyed or damaged throughout the years. Yogas history can be divided into four significant periods of innovation, practice, and maturation (Singleton Mallinson, 2017). During the pre-classical yoga period, it was developed by the Indus-Sarasvati civilization in Northern India, more than 5,000 years ago. In one of the oldest discovered collections of texts containing yoga called the Rig Veda, songs, mantras, and rituals were written out to be used by the Brahmans who were the Vedic priests. Throughout the years, yoga was gradually altered by the Brahmans and Rishis, the mystic seers. They documented their practices in the Upanishads, a collections of text containing over 200 scriptures. These texts incorporated the principle of ritual sacrifice from the Vedas and teachings of the sacrifice of ego through knowledge, action, and wisdom (Singleton Mallinson, 2017). During the Classical Yoga time period, yoga became a combination of different ideas, beliefs, and techniques that actually conflicted each other. Classical yoga became known as Raja Yoga throughout time and was defined by Patanjalis Yoga-S? »tras. He laid out a path of yoga by splitting it amongst eight different stages toward reaching Samadhi, or enlightenment. Due to this structure he created, Patanjali become known as one of the fathers of yoga and greatly impacted many styles of contemporary yoga (Meet Indias 10 most renowned yoga gurus, 2015). After a few centuries passed, the Post-Classical Yoga period came around. Many yoga masters gradually altered the original yoga practice by focusing it more on rejuvenating the body and prolonging the practitioners life. They believed through physical activity, the yoga practitioner would be able to reach enlightenment more quickly. This technique became known as Tantra yoga. Physical-spiritual connections became a very popular yoga activity because of Tantra Yoga, which eventually led to the development of Yoga in the West, Hatha Yoga (Singleton Mallinson, 2017). The current time period society is in is called the Modern Period. Through the 1800s and early 1900s, yoga masters among the colonists began to travel to the West. Throughout their journey, they gathered many followers and spread their beliefs. Yoga initially started in the Parliament of Religions in Chicago in the West. Swami Vivekananda amazed the attendees with his lectures on the relationship among yoga and religion. He further explained its philosophy, benefits, and different poses. He ended up publishing more than 200 books on yoga, and founded nine ashrams and an immense amount of yoga centers throughout the world. During the 1920s, Hatha Yoga became very popular in India. The first Hatha Yoga school was opened in Mysore in 1924, and the Divine Life Society was founded a couple years later by Krishnamacharya. This society brought yoga practitioners together and produced three key students that would later promote Hatha Yoga around the world. These students were named B.K.S. ly engar, T.K.V. Desikarchar, and Pattabhi Jois (Meet Indias 10 most renowned yoga gurus, 2015). B.K. S. lyengar brought light to yoga abroad. Throughout his life, he struggled with diseases that made him physically and mentally weak. Seeking recovery, he turned to yoga and redefined what is now known as ?Iyengar Yoga. Supposedly, he could perform a yoga pose called the sirsasana, which is the headstand pose, for half an hour. As for Pattabhi Jois, he created Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga from Hatha Yoga. He based it off the ancient text called ?Yoga Korunta. Many celebrity practitioners, such as Madonna, Sting, and Gwyneth Paltrow, practice this type of yoga. Lastly, T.K.V. Desikachar lectured in the United States about how yoga heals. He also made it known that yoga can benefit every single individual, regardless of age and physical fitness, and can be tailored to the needs of the practitioner (Meet Indias 10 most renowned yoga gurus, 2015). In 1947, the first yoga studio to have the greatest impact on Western civilization opened in Hollywood by Infra Devi. Hatha yoga was taught there, thus attracting many Westerners and Indian teachers. They learned from her studio and spread their philosophies and practices throughout various countries. Since this time, Hatha Yoga has branched into several different styles, stressing certain aspects of its original style, but still containing the same philosophies (Singleton Mallinson, 2017). Yoga Related to Stress Management It is nearly impossible to lead a stress-free life in this day and age. Constant obligations, due dates, and other incessant intrusions in life are always waiting to cause more and more stress. Yoga can be a great relief to those that could use a way to cope with these stressors. While yoga has countless benefits, managing stress plays a large role in its uses. The most common type of yoga used for managing stress is Hatha yoga. Hatha is a very common style of yoga that can be beneficial not only for beginners, but also for masters of yoga. Hatha yoga takes advantage of slow movements and pacing, calming breathing techniques, and deep meditation. While most think of yoga as a sit down type of experience, it can be done at any time, even in public, while still being beneficial to both the body and the mind. Simply utilizing calming breathing exercises throughout the day, whenever of acute stressors arise, can dramatically help the body respond in a healthy way and allow the day to con tinue on with ease. This is known as instant yoga, and it can be very appealing to people who do not want to commit to a full session of yoga that could last upwards of 30-minutes (Yoga: Fight stress and find serenity, 2018). Yoga Styles The many styles of yoga have various applications as well as techniques, most of which are not even even known by the general public as yoga. By far, the most popular style of yoga is Vinyasa Flow, which utilizes fast-paced and fluid movement. This type of yoga encompasses a very broad range of other yoga types, such as Power yoga and Ashtanga yoga, as these both involve fast and flowing movements. Power yoga is a usually a more challenging and intense style of Vinyasa yoga, and can be quite the workout. While Vinyasa yoga is still a beneficial exercise, Power yoga takes the physical aspect to another level. The movements are much faster, and the emphasis is placed more on strength and building muscle. Ashtanga yoga, the other subset of Vinyasa yoga, is almost like one exact version of yoga. It follows the exact same movements and poses in the exact same order every time, so no matter where you are in the world, Ashtanga yoga is a constant. This is a very good type of yoga for measur ing progress, whether it be overall mood, or just how comfortable someone is with yoga in general (McCrary, 2013). Hatha yoga is the second most popular type of yoga, and is much slower paced and deliberate than Vinyasa yoga. Hatha yoga is more of a relaxation and meditation type of experience. Each pose is taken one at a time, and a much larger period of time is spent on each pose compared to Vinyasa yoga. As far as the physical aspects go, Hatha yoga is focused more on stretching than muscle development or strength. Iyengar yoga is a subset of Hatha yoga that is very similar to Ashtanga yoga. It follows a routine set of poses, but the order can vary not just from geographical location, but also from session to session. Iyengar yoga is much more focused on the attention to detail of each movement and switch of position, as well as the timing of breathing (McCrary, 2013). Restorative yoga is another popular type of yoga that revolves around stretching and movements or poses. Restorative yoga is meant to do just that, restore. It is a very calming and tranquil experience that is meant to rejuvenate the mind, body, and spirit. Similar to Iyengar yoga, Restorative yoga is very relaxing and gives a deep sense of peace. The big difference between Restorative yoga and other types of yoga is the immense amounts of time spent on each pose, some even lasting as long as 10 minutes per position. Restorative yoga also utilizes a lot of neutral positions, sometimes incorporating pillows, and is not physically demanding. The purpose of Restorative yoga is to improve your your physical relaxation as well as serve as a type of meditation to remove stress and tension from your body (McCrary, 2013). Another type of relaxed yoga is Yin yoga. Yin yoga is very similar to Restorative yoga, but instead of focusing on relaxing, Yin yoga is more about the stretching of ligaments and joints. It is also a great choice to gain, as well as maintain, flexibility. This type of yoga can be very beneficial for older people, as the body tends to become more brittle with age. Flexibility is vital to maintain during aging, especially to avoid injury (McCrary, 2013). Another type of yoga that may not be as popular, but is very unique, is Bikram yoga, otherwise known as Hot yoga. While the name may be interpreted as more of a sexy yoga, it is actually quite the opposite. Hot yoga literally means hot, as the rooms in which they are performed can be set upwards of 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and usually generate a great amount of sweat. Hot yoga generally is not as regulated as other types of yoga, but it is absolutely necessary to hydrate well in advance of attending a class in preparation for sweating for the duration (McCrary, 2013). Yoga Poses Yoga poses vary greatly depending on level of experience. Beginners start off with the more basic poses, while consistently working to the intermediate level, and eventually conquering the advanced poses. It is important for people who are new to yoga to begin with poses such as downward facing dog and childs pose. Downward facing dog begins on all fours. Next, the toes are tucked under as the body rises from the knees onto the feet, keeping the palms of the hands flat on the floor. As this pose is held, it impacts the whole body, making it stronger and more flexible. Similar to downward facing dog, childs pose also beings on all fours. The knees and feet are brought together as the butt is brought back toward the feet. The arms are extended forward as the head comes to rest on the floor. This pose is important for stretching the back, calves, and ankles while relaxing and calming the mind (Martin, 2015). After a variety of beginner poses are mastered, the intermediate level poses can be incorporated into ones yoga practice. The intermediate level poses take the beginner poses to the next level, preparing the body for accomplishing advanced poses in the future. Two common intermediate poses are the boat pose and the crane pose. Boat pose begins with sitting on the floor, with the legs extended forward. The knees are then bent and straightened again, with the thighs angles approximately 45 degrees from the floor. The arms are brought up to be parallel to the legs. This pose strengthens ones core muscles but mainly focuses on strengthening the hip flexors (Brown, 2003). The crow pose is a commonly known yoga pose. It begins in a squatting position. The inner thighs come to the sides of the torso, and the shins reach the armpits. Next, the person begins leaning forward, shifting weight off the feet and onto the hands and arms. As people become more comfortable in this pose, they can incorporate straightening the arms, fully conquering the crow pose. This pose practices balance and upper body strength (Brown, 2003). With a firm understanding of a wide range of both beginner and intermediate poses, advanced poses can then be added to ones yoga practices. These poses are complex and take much practice and patience to accomplish. They require a great amount of flexibility, balance, and focus. Advanced yoga poses can cause risk of injury if done incorrectly, so it is necessary to master all beginner and intermediate poses to ensure of a firm foundation while also increasing strength. Each yoga pose, regardless of the level, has a positive impact on the mind and body when it is performed correctly. Yoga poses build upon one another, leading to a full mastery of the practice of yoga and an overall healthier, more relaxed lifestyle (Summers, 2015). Benefits Everyday stress takes a toll on the human body. Many techniques exist to assist with alleviating stress in an attempt to prevent the negative impacts of it. Yoga is a well known technique primarily used to relax and create harmony between the mind and body. There are countless benefits associated with the practice of yoga, both physical and mental. Yoga typically includes meditation, breathing exercises, and various poses that impact the muscles. A few of the physical benefits that yoga has on the body are increased flexibility and increased muscle strength and tone. As yoga is done consistently in peoples lives, they will begin to see the physical changes in their body. Additionally, they will notice their energy levels improving as well as a healthier cardiovascular system. Yoga can also lead to weight loss and a better metabolism. As the body grows stronger, it will become less injury prone and athletic activities will be much easier and more enjoyable. If someone were suffering from chronic pain, insomnia, or high blood pressure, yoga also has the capabilities to improve each of these ailments (Heriza, 2004). Practicing yoga does not only improve the body physically, it also has great mental health benefits. One of the greatest benefits of yoga is stress management. Through practicing yoga, coping mechanisms such as breathing techniques and meditation can be developed. The mind can come to reach a state of calmness which can lead to a sense of clarity. As the mind grows calm and clear, concentration skills become sharper and it grows increasingly easier to center attention. In addition, body awareness can be heightened as people see their strength improve through personal accomplishments (Heriza, 2004). Yoga has the power to heal both the mind and body. Conclusion For centuries, yoga has been changing the way people live their lives. It has grown throughout the years, with poses being developed as people learned how their bodies were capable of moving. Yoga is a technique that can be practiced by all ages and all levels of experience. With the wide varieties of yoga styles available, it is possible for everyone to find a yoga practice that suits their liking and physical capabilities. Once a compatible yoga style is discovered, the life changing benefits that yoga has to offer will be experienced. References Brown, C. (2003). The Yoga Bible. F+W Media. Heriza, N. (2004). Dr. yoga: A complete guide to the medical benefits of yoga. PenguinTarcher. Martin, C. (2015). Yoga for beginners: Simple yoga poses to calm your mind and strengthen your body. Althea Press. McCrary, M. (2013). Pick your yoga practice: Exploring and understanding different styles of yoga. New World Library. Meet Indias 10 most renowned yoga gurus. (2015, June 18). Retrieved from https://www.rediff.com/news/report/pix-meet-indias-10-most-renowned-yoga-gurus/20150618.htm. Singleton, M., Mallinson, J. (2017). Roots of yoga. Penguin Classics. Summers, O. (2015). Yoga: The advanced lessons: 30 challenging yoga poses to take your yoga practice to a whole new level. CreateSpace Publishing. Yoga: Fight stress and find serenity. (2018, October 04). Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/yoga/art-20044733.