Benefits
The physical aspect of what is called yoga in recent years, the asanas, has been much popularized in the West. Physically, the practice of asanas is considered to:
- improve flexibility
- improve strength
- improve balance
- reduce stress and anxiety
- reduce symptoms of lower back pain
- be beneficial for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- increase energy and decrease fatigue
- shorten labor and improve birth outcomes
- improve physical health and quality of life measures in the elderly
- improve diabetes management
- reduce sleep disturbances
- reduce hypertension
The emphasis on the physical benefits of yoga, attributed to practice of the asanas, has de-emphasized the other traditional purposes of yoga which are to facilitate the flow of prana (vital energy) and to aid in balancing the koshas (sheaths) of the physical and metaphysical body.
Read more about this topic: Asana
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