Why aging bodies need yoga for strength training

And why yoga gives you so much more than just physical strength

If you are over 50, you might be inundated with messages about the importance of strength training to maintain muscle and bones. Because we lose muscle and bone at a faster rate than in our younger years, this is good advice. But the idea of going to the gym and picking up heavy things, might not be your jam.

While weight lifting is a great way to build strength, it’s not the only way. Yoga builds strength using the body’s weight and resistance to gravity. Plus, yoga also builds mobility and balance while strengthening. Win-win-win, since we need all three.

When I was 23 and started practicing yoga, I had no idea that I would still be practicing at age 54. I just knew that the more I practiced, the better I felt. Originally I did weight training and running on alternating days with my yoga practice. However, on my yoga days, I found I was too sore to truly enjoy my practice.

Yoga gave me so much more than strength. I found increased mobility, better balance, and a calm that I had never experienced before. I decided to give up weights and running (which I hated), and focus exclusively on my yoga practice (which I loved). 30+ years later I am still practicing and learning from all the wonderful lessons that I gain on the mat.

Learning to “human”

As humans, we are multidimensional beings. We move, think, and feel. It’s just as important to work on the inside as it is to work on the outside. This is one of the strengths of practicing yoga. You get to work on the body while also working on the mind.

One of my co-workers was amazed to hear that I used to be steeped in anxiety. She said she couldn’t imagine me worrying about anything because of the calm that I exude. Decades of practicing yoga and meditation and learning about myself has brought me to this place of ease. I know that the only thing I can control is me, so worry has no place in my life.

Anxiety happens when we focus on things that are outside of our control. While worrying feels like you are doing something, all you are doing is spinning your wheels.

Yoga teaches you to be in this moment. In the present moment, you can slow your breath and move your body. This calms anxiety because you are focusing on what you can actually control. The mindful movements of yoga bring the mind into the present, leaving you feeling relaxed and grounded, stepping away from the spin of anxiety.

Functional strength training

Functional strength is strength that you cultivate through multiple planes of movement. Weight training often isolates one muscle group at a time, but that’s not how we move. Our daily movements are multi-directional and require the use of muscle groups, rather than isolated muscles. While we mostly move in the Sagittal plane (forward and backward), we also move rotationally and sometimes side to side.

Think about what your body does when you get out of a car:

• You twist to face from forward to out of the car.
• Your legs move sideways to swing onto the ground.
• You stand up.

Something that you don’t even think about moves you through multiple planes. Functional strength gives you the ability to move through all of these planes with ease by strengthening multiple directions at once.

Through an entire yoga practice, you’ll move forward, backward, laterally (side to side) and you’ll twist. Building strength, using your own body weight, prepares you for life’s movements. No machines necessary.

Strengthening the mind, body, and spirit

Yoga builds physical strength in the upper body, lower body, and core muscles, of course, but yoga also builds mental strength. When you are holding a pose, like Warrior 2 or Utkatasana, many times the mind gives up before the body.

When you hold these poses, you notice your thoughts instead of reacting to them. Instead of giving up as soon as your muscles start to fatigue, you can decide to rest or observe the sensation of fatigue. You get to decide “when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em” by learning to stay calm under stress. Practicing challenging poses is a low stakes stress situation that prepares you for actual stressful situations off the mat.

That’s why we practice.

What you practice on the mat you take with you off the mat to use in your life. If you’ve practiced breathing when challenged on the mat, you’ll have access to that breath when you are challenged in your life. Strength on the mat = strength off the mat, both mentally and physically.

Coming in June

I’m so excited to announce Sun Salutations for the Summer Solstice! This program is for all levels of yoga practitioners, from newbies to experienced yogis. During each 15 minute class you’ll learn 2-3 poses. I’ll go over alignment, how to breathe, and how to connect your breath to your movement. On the Summer Solstice, we’ll connect all of the poses that you learned into one seamless flow of Sun Salutations to celebrate the longest day of the year.

Click the button below for more information or to sign up!