The effects of Yoga have been the topic of many blog articles and many guys in 2018/2019 actually do agree that doing Yoga would be generally good for them. But let’s have a closer look at what research science has to say about Yoga and also when you can expect the effects to kick in. If you want to try Yoga for yourself without going to a Studio you can start your training here for free at home.
Mobility
Let’s start with the most obvious one: When do I get more flexible? This study looked at the effects of bi-weekly Yoga sessions on men. It found that doing Yoga 5 times over the course of ten weeks already significantly increased mobility and athletic performance. Well doing Yoga every second week is a bit… let’s say, careful. From our experience, a really stiff guy can bend over to touch his toes after 3 weeks with 4-5 sessions of 30 minutes each per week.
Anyways, this article showed that if you do Yoga twice a week for 8 weeks you are most likely going to gain between 10cm and 33cm of additional forward bend length during the sit and reach test. The areas that usually gain most flexibility through Yoga are shoulders, hamstrings, and lower back.
Mental focus
Here is one thing that younger generations understanding better than any others before them: If you want to have a strong mind, you’ll have to work a bit for it. Period. This article found that already 20 minutes of Yoga will increase mental focus and is in this manner even more effective than other physical activities. The best news: you’ll start to see the effect even after your first session.
Control of the body
Yoga puts you in a position where you learn to better control your body – kinda like a Ninja. Even your breath, “During yoga practice, one consistently and consciously over-rides the stimuli to respiratory centers, thus acquiring control over the respiration.” The effect of the study was significant after 6 weeks– Pallav Sengupta in this paper.
Increased strength
Yoga is the perfect addition to any Gym or Crossfit Athlete since it not only reduces the risk of injuries but also increases deadlift performance (see this study). The Yoga group in the study had an increased performance of 13.1% (lifted weight compared to the control group) by training 24 times in 8 weeks.
Decreased heart rate
Do you know what allows you to not break under pressure and stay cool while talking in front of thousands of people? Yes, it’s a low resting heart rate. The shoulder stand, especially, has proven to be the most efficient posture to achieve this effect according to this paper. The effect was measured when participants practiced the exercise twice a day for two weeks.
Summing it up:
Yoga is so amazing because you will feel the effect right from the start and in various physical dimensions. Also, it meets the current Zeitgeist because it effectively combines physical and mental training and prepares us for a world of short rest periods and fragmented days with many demanding tasks. If you feel it’s time to step up your game you can start doing Yoga with us here at SkillYoga. See you on the mat.
