Manage Your Stress Through Yoga
Practiced for over 5,000 years, yoga is a profound and popular form of exercise, with nearly 11 million Americans practicing it. It is taught around the world in many different forms.
What the Research Shows
Studies at the University of NC Hospitals and Duke University show yoga reduces stress and provides significant improvements for those with illnesses such as arthritis, back pain, cancer, diabetes, and epilepsy. The Center for Integrative Medicine of Thomas Jefferson University found that a single one hour session of yoga lowered cortisol in participants with no previous yoga experience, and the effect was still measurable seven days later.
Yoga’s stress benefits come from a real biochemical response: it decreases the hormones produced by the adrenal glands in reaction to stress and lowers levels of dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine, the neurotransmitters tied to a feeling of calm.
The Benefits of Yoga
Whatever form of yoga you enjoy, there are enormous benefits to your body, mind, and spirit. Yoga:
- Increases flexibility through stretching
- Improves posture
- Promotes better breathing
- Massages all internal organs of the body
- Increases lubrication of tendons, joints, and ligaments
- Flushes toxins out of the body
- Tones muscles
- Provides a deep sense of relaxation
Key Takeaways
- A single yoga session can measurably lower cortisol, with effects still present a week later.
- The stress relief is biochemical, not just perceived: yoga lowers the hormones your body produces under stress.
- You do not need previous experience or a specific skill level to see the benefits.
I have been practicing yoga for over 20 years, and I find it makes a tremendous difference to my energy, flexibility, and strength. If you are managing a demanding schedule, yoga is one of the more efficient stress management strategies available: the research shows real impact from a single session, not months of practice. Try it as a new form of exercise and stress relief, and treat it as one piece of a broader plan to prevent burnout before it takes hold.