Yoga practice in times of the Covid-19

The growing trend of a healthy lifestyle involves physical and mental health and people began to take care of their fitness which is a clear indication that they are attending various types of classes offered by clubs, gyms and wellness centers.  One of the forms of activity that is increasingly appealing and appearing on the offer of such places is yoga. 

The situation in the world and the announcement of the global COVID-19 pandemic led to the fact that many such places are closed and people could only exercise at home.  Though some of the fitness centers are opening now with a bit of caution but yoga is still such an undemanding form of activity that you can easily continue practicing it without leaving your home.

Yoga has been put on the list by the UNESCO committee cultural heritage.  Yoga also has a lot of health benefits. It helps in maintaining high posture and strengthens muscles, improves the work of the heart, improves the work of the respiratory system as well affects mental health.  The psychological value of yoga is lowering stress level, turnover in the fleet with depression or anxiety.  Yoga meditation also helps people in their inner realization, leads to experiences of the state of freedom and discover nature. 

Yoga is practiced not only by young people but also mature people, regardless of gender or social position or professed religion.

Health is an important concept.  WHO emphasizes that if you want to understand what health is, you should look at it much more broadly, because it is not only an antonym of disease but the mental state of a person, their relations with other people and the environment. 

Health can be distinguished in four ways:

1. Physical health -the proper functioning of the body and its systems and organs;
2. Mental health and health within it: - mental - the ability to think clearly and logically, - emotional health - the ability to recognize feelings and express them appropriately; ability to cope with stress, tension, depression and anxiety;
3. Social health - the ability to maintain proper relationships with other people and fulfil social roles;
4. Spiritual health - in some people it is related to religious beliefs and practices, in some it is related to maintaining inner peace.

The greatest influence on our health is the lifestyle which shapes human health by following:

• Diet
• Physical activity
• The ability to cope with stressful situations and
• Adequate sleep

The obvious question does arise what is the benefit of yoga practice during the coronavirus pandemic and the related lockdown?  it is found that the various forms of practice yoga are conducted online according to the most popular and used tools and technologies like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.  

BENEFITS OF YOGA PRACTICE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Asanas yoga poses can be divided into several categories: standing, sitting, forward and backwards bends, twists, inverted, lying and balance positions, and they all matter in the prevention and correction of body posture defects, especially in school-age children.

Prevents diseases such as asthma or chronic bronchitis.

Breathing exercises, the circumference and capacity of the chest can be increased, which means that with one inhalation, more air gets into the chest, thus improving the breathing capacity of the body.

It offers psychological benefits.  The practice of asanas improves one’s mood and introduces one to a state of well-being.

By learning to calm down thoughts and a restless mind, you can be happier and live longer.

Regular yoga practice improves coordination, reaction time, memory and even IQ.

It helps in treating depressive symptoms.

It can be able to relieve tension and lower the cortisol levels that usually rise under stress.

During a pandemic, it is important not to give in to stress or feelings of anxiety when people find themselves in extremely unique situations. Yoga has a positive effect on people suffering from anxiety and reduces the level of stress. All the anxiety associated with the epidemic can lead people who are less manageable with stress to depression. Yoga is recommended as an antidote to stress.

Yoga improves well-being and mood, which is worsened by the global situation caused by the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yoga practice, above all, makes the vital capacity of the lungs increase, and the blood is better oxygenated, which improves the functioning of the immune system.

Pranayama benefits to calm the mind, which leads to its increased sharpness and efficiency.

When a pandemic situation is very stressful and makes people anxious, it is important to find inner peace.  The practice of yoga leads to a deeper understanding of one’s nature and an increase in self-awareness which is important to learn to be more patient and forgiveness. 

Primarily, yoga can be practiced without leaving home, alone, without any special requirements, equipment, clothes or additional costs. It is extremely easy nowadays because the Internet allows you to do exercises online.

Many teachers or instructors conduct such classes through live broadcasts on their profiles on social media, e.g. on Instagram, Facebook or via webinars using e.g. the Zoom application. Yoga can also be practiced using applications installed on the phone or using the popular YouTube website.

In the era of the coronavirus pandemic, everyone is exposed to more stress related to caring for their health and the health of their loved ones, losing a job, increased responsibilities, more time spent at home, lack of exercise or omnipresent restrictions that prevent normal functioning in society. 

The situation is completely new, as is well known, physical activity promotes good health, improves mood and reduces the level of anxiety.  In that midst, yoga comes as a rescue as one of the forms of physical activity, which helps in breathing and meditation.  It impetus a positive effect on the physical and mental condition of a person. 

The most vulnerable to the virus are the elderly, seriously ill and easily stressed people.  Practicing yoga or even in online gives relaxation and breathing exercises, introduces the participant to a state of well-being, and also maintains the immune and respiratory systems in good condition.

No doubt, yoga practice during the coronavirus pandemic gives immense benefits to the people.  The quality of online yoga practice, which has become an alternative to sports and stationary activities. 

In toto, by practicing yoga – improves posture, strengthens the muscles, increase flexibility, reduces anxiety, reduces the amount of body fat, improves metabolism, put in a good mood, cheer, improves the heart rate, soothes the mind, helps to combat depression, improves concentration and increase chest circumference and capacity.