Blackstone Country Club’s Guide to Beginning Yoga After 40

It’s never too late to get in shape. Unfortunately, as you get older, it may be tough to find the time to start a new fitness regime. If you’re looking for a gentle way to improve your health that still makes sense, you may want to look into yoga. Beginning yoga after 40 is easier than you may think, and it’s actually a very popular choice for many. Taking the time to practice this ancient art has many incredible benefits, not the least of which is the way you’ll feel after you take a few classes.

Beginning yoga after 40

Yoga is incredibly popular, but it’s definitely misunderstood by many who haven’t practiced the exercise form before. There are dozens of different styles and types of classes, many of which mix physical, mental, and spiritual elements in order to better serve the individuals who practice yoga. As you begin your journey towards mastering the concepts, you may want to learn a bit more about the benefits yoga can bring to you – and how you can get the most out of your choice to join a yoga class. When thinking about yoga, it’s important to focus not just of the immediate physical benefits, but also the ways in which it can change your life.

beginning yoga after 40

Physical benefits

As you might imagine, yoga has many physical benefits. It’s a fantastic way for you to gain more flexibility and build up your muscle tone. It’s also a very good (and often gentle) exercise for participants to work on being able to protect themselves from injuries in other sports. If you already golf, for example, practicing yoga can help to limber you up and avoid throwing out your back during a long day on the course.

Yoga’s other health benefits are also quite impressive. Yoga helps with metabolism and weight control, as well as improving circulation. All of these benefits are absolutely vital for those over forty, as they improve one’s quality of life and help individuals to boost their energy levels significantly. If it’s important to you that you continue to stay active, yoga is absolutely something you need to consider. It definitely provides a robust suite of physical benefits that is hard to get in any other single group of exercises. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by the way your body changes after starting a yoga class at the Blackstone Country Club Clubhouse.

beginning yoga after 40

Mental benefits

The benefits of yoga are more than physical. Most people who practice do report some very real mental benefits as well. These benefits differ from person to person, of course, but they can make major changes in the way that your mind works.

Perhaps the most common mental benefit of yoga is an increased ability to deal with stress. Stress has physical components as well as mental, of course, and yoga allows participants to work on both. Taking the time to go through the poses and allow your body to work itself out can be a great way to reduce your stress levels while allowing you to get in shape.

Yoga’s meditative component also plays a huge role in mental health. Being able to stop and concentrate – and to let go – will change the way you think and the way that you process your emotions. If you are willing to put in the time to really learn how to meditate, you’ll notice that you are better able to identify your own emotions and pay attention to the world around you. It’s hard to overstate how beneficial this can be.

beginning yoga after 40

Knowing what you want

If you’re going to start practicing yoga – or undertake any change in your fitness regimen – it’s a good idea to start by figuring out why you’re pursuing this particular type of exercise. It’s not just that there are many types of yoga, but rather that the way you practice yoga will bring about certain results. Stop for a moment and think about why you might want to take a yoga class before you get started.

If you’re looking for purely physical results, for example, you may want to look for a class that largely concentrates on the physical aspects of yoga. These classes will often make use of more physically-demanding poses and may take place in an environment that puts more stress on your body, such as a hot yoga studio.

If mental health is your goal, you may want to look into a class that places more of an emphasis on mindfulness and meditation. Some yoga classes tend to focus heavily on the spiritual aspect of yoga, incorporating many of the teachings that define the subject as well as the physical activities. No matter what you choose, though, there is a very good chance that you’ll be able to find the class you need.

beginning yoga after 40

Taking it slow

There may be a tendency among many to assume that yoga is just a gentle series of stretches into which you can jump into blindly. The truth is that yoga can be incredibly physically taxing, even if you are already a very physically fit person. As such, one of the most important things you can do when starting yoga after you turn forty is to take things slow and be aware of the fact that you are very much a beginner when it comes to this type of exercise.

This does mean that you will need to start with a beginner’s class, even if you consider yourself relatively limber. Not only will this give you a good idea of how yoga works, but it will also help you to figure out the limits of your own body. One of the worst ways to participate in yoga is to do too much too fast, as this will cut down on the physical benefits and completely eliminate any mental benefits of going to class.

Don’t be embarrassed to start from the beginning. If you can take it slow and concentrate on the benefits of yoga, you’ll learn much more.

There’s really no wrong time to start learning about yoga. Whether you are looking to get purely physical benefits, or you want to take more ownership of your emotional state, there are classes available for you. Yoga classes are just one of the many types of fitness amenities offered by Blackstone Country Club, with plenty of participants who have gone through the same journey as you are now going through. If you are interested in learning more about yoga classes or the other opportunities provided by the country club, don’t delay – contact Blackstone Country Club for a tour today.

See What's Happening in Northpointe at Vistancia