The Truth About Yoga: 5 Myths That Need to be Debunked

Before you catch hold of your yoga guide for dummies, try and delve deeper into the subject. You will be surprised when you learn the numerous ways it can contribute to your body's well-being - right from dealing with stress to tackling weight gain. Now, let's move on to busting some yoga myths!

I can't even touch my toe, yoga is for the flexible and agile, not me: Yoga is a combination of strength, flexibility and balance. You are required to open up your muscles, push yourself further to build on your flexibility, use your strength to hold the posture and balance it. Yoga helps in fortifying all these areas. Slowly, gradually and eventually you will feel more flexible. Not everybody is flexible to begin with, but we all have key areas with the help of which we certainly can move forward and achieve greater and better results.

Yoga can be tailor-made and customised as per a person's requirement and physical capacity. There are asanas for everyone. From yoga for kids, older people, beginners to yoga postures for pregnant women, its practice benefits one and all.

Yoga is great for flexibility but not for weight loss: It should be kept in mind that yoga is a slow and peaceful practice of getting your body, mind and soul in harmony. It aims at working on multiple areas including spiritual, physical and mental. Different asanas challenge and gruel your body and their repetitive practice slowly and eventual sculpts your body to perfection.

Yoga is bad for injuries or chronic body aches: According to the U.S National Centre for Complementary and Integrative Health, "Recent studies in people with chronic low-back pain suggest that a carefully adapted set of yoga poses may help reduce pain and improve various functions (the ability to walk and move). Studies also suggest that practicing yoga (as well as other forms of regular exercise) might have other health benefits such as reducing heart rate and blood pressure, and may also help relieve anxiety and depression.

You won't benefit from shorter sessions: World Health Organisation recommends 150 minutes of physical activity in a week for adults ageing between 18-64 years. It can be a combination of high and moderate intensity exercises or 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity 5 times a week. If you don't have an hour or so at a stretch to devote for the practice, span out your sessions into smaller classes throughout the week. Every single session alters your body in a good way, be it a grueling hour-long class or a shorter and peaceful 20 minute session. Even ten minutes of Surya Namaskar every morning will show you great results.

Yoga is an early morning thing: If you feel that yoga is best practiced - and should only be practiced - early morning or in the evening then let me tell you, you can pull out mats right now, wherever you are and break into your posture right away! Yoga is about discipline. Disciplining your body and bringing it in sync with your mind and soul. It has nothing to do with restricting your body or limiting yourself to a routine.