by Debbie Todd

Created on: November 02, 2009

I have been practising Yoga for more than twenty years and have found it to be the most important tool I use in maintaining a healthy mind and body. After attending weekly classes for a couple of years, I found that I had changed my posture and the way I move and do things. I would naturally do breathing exercises while walking - I would always use the best posture in my everyday life. My back was straighter and my shoulders were pulled back, my chin parallel with the floor, just as I had learnt in my classes. Being able to carry myself in this way gave me more confidence as well as making sure that most of my daily movements have a beneficial effect on my body rather than putting strain on it.

The breathing techniques I have learned have made my natural breathing much slower and deeper and I have learned to naturally combine my breathing with my movements which has had a lasting effect on my long term health.

Once I had been learning Yoga for a few years, not only did I start doing everything in a Yoga way, but I also felt that I had learned enough to safely practise a little at home on a daily basis and this has had an enormous effect on my health and on my Yoga practice. I try to maintain a routine of practising 10 - 15 minutes of Yoga postures a day. I try not to be too strict with myself about it as I want to avoid it becoming a chore that I feel I must do. If, for any reason, I don't feel like doing it, or it I don't have time, I don't feel guilty or beat myself up over this - I take quite a relaxed attitude towards it. I find that, with this attitude, I am more likely to do the practice on a daily basis. However tired I feel, I always feel energised after my ten minute session and am always glad that I made the effort. Practising for ten minutes a day in this way has actually helped me to make more progress in developing my yoga postures than attending a two hour class once a week. At the age of 51, I am healthier and more supple than I ever was in my teens and twenties!

Over the past few years I have learned one of my most important lessons in Yoga - that is to accept what I can and cannot do and to relax into postures, rather than try to force my body to get into positions it is not ready for. This has been the hardest thing for me to learn as I am quite stubborn and tend to do everything with a vengeance. I always put total effort into something which can be counterproductive for Yoga.

I have also attended some whole-day classes, both in posture and in meditation techniques. This has been very helpful to me and, although Yoga can be quite dynamic and tiring, I have found that I am able to pace myself so that I can keep going throughout the day.

Another huge benefit of learning Yoga that can have a lasting effect on one's long-term health is learning to relax. At the end of a session, some time will be dedicated to lying down and relaxing to allow the benefits of the postures held to take place. You learn how to relax in a very deep and complete way which can be used in order to make sure that you are totally relaxed when you go to sleep at night and can also be used to overcome insomnia. Even if you cannot actually get to sleep at night, by knowing how to make sure that your body is totally relaxed, you can at least gain the benefit of proper rest.

If you only have the time to practise one discipline to benefit your overall long-term health, I would highly recommend that it be Yoga.

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