Yoga is arguably one of the most creative sports. Therefore, this sport has been developed using a variety of unique media such as goat yoga, beer yoga, to flying yoga. However, there is one type of yoga that is actually the “mother” of all, namely hatha yoga.
Movement on hatha yoga is carried out slowly with the aim of training the strength and flexibility of the body. At the same time, you will also practice focus by doing relaxation and practicing mindfulness or full awareness of what is happening to yourself.
More about hatha yoga
As mentioned above, hatha yoga is the basis of all types of yoga. Hatha yoga is the term for all yoga exercises that combine asanas (poses), pranayama (breathing), and meditation.
Movements made in this type of yoga are basic movements and in a slow tempo. So, hatha yoga is suitable for beginners.
Although referred to as the basis of yoga, hatha yoga actually only appeared in the 11th century. Meanwhile, yoga itself has been discovered since more or less 2000 years ago. The term hatha yoga became popular in the 1960s in the United States.
Hatha yoga is becoming popular because many people feel the benefits of this sport both in terms of physical and mental health. To what extent are the benefits?
The benefits of doing hatha yoga
There are various benefits that you can get from Hatha yoga, including:
- Reduces stress
Doing one session of hatha yoga for 90 minutes, has been proven to help reduce stress. If you do it regularly, the benefits will be increasingly felt.
- Relieves symptoms of depression
Routinely undergoing hatha yoga for up to 12 sessions, can significantly reduce anxiety and depression.
- Train the flexibility of muscles and joints
This exercise can also make your body more flexible. Research shows, routinely undergoing hatha yoga will increase the flexibility of the spine and thigh muscles.
- Make sleep more quality
Yoga can also increase sleep duration and make quality sleep. Some groups of individuals such as pregnant women, the elderly, or cancer patients are also greatly helped by the benefits of yoga on this one.
- Relieves symptoms of menopause
Symptoms of menopause, both physical and psychological, can be alleviated by doing yoga regularly.
- Good for sufferers of multiple sclerosis
Hatha yoga is considered to provide short-term benefits for people with multiple sclerosis (an autoimmune disease that attacks the brain, spinal cord, and eye nerves). Because, doing yoga can reduce fatigue and improve mood.
- Relieves pain
It’s been a long time, yoga is believed to help reduce body aches, such as back pain and neck pain.
What will be taught in the Hatha Yoga class?
In the hatha yoga class, the exercises will be focused on controlling breathing and posture. In addition, you will also be trained to have good core strength.
Hatha yoga has hundreds of movements and poses. Some of his famous movements include the downward facing dog (adho mukha svanasana) and standing forward bend (uttanasana).
Typically, classes that teach the hatha yoga movement do not specifically mention “hatha”. If the class only says yoga classes without any frills, usually what is taught is hatha yoga, as the basis of various yoga movements.
One class session usually lasts for 45-90 minutes. Beginning with light warm-ups like breathing exercises, the class will continue by teaching basic yoga poses, and end with a meditation session.
- Breathing exercises
Breathing exercises in the initial session of hatha yoga are generally intended so that you can focus on breathing. This is the basis of many yoga exercises. So throughout the session, the instructor will continue to remind you to focus on breathing techniques.
- Yoga poses
There are many yoga poses that the instructor will teach during the session. For beginners, the movements to be taught are generally still simple, then slowly move up to more difficult levels.
The instructor can also teach modification poses, to match the level of difficulty you are living.
- Meditation
At the end of the session, you will be invited to meditate briefly. When doing this meditation, the instructor may ask you to be in the supine position, and cover you with a blanket. However, that is only one way of meditation. Other ways can also be done, depending on the instructor in the class.
For those of you who have never taken a yoga class, hatha yoga can be an option to start learning. That way, you can get many benefits for physical health and mind.