For many of us today focus and concentration aren’t difficult by virtue of necessity, for others however, it is an unbearable task.
Ancient and modern day yogis taught yoga as a way to gain focus and become one with yourself and the universe. Being grounded is goal of many westerners because it is illusive.
But, lets look at the basis for the problem.
Occupations, family, avocations, addiction to multi-tasking, goal achievement, and cultural pressures are among the reasons that people in the west suffer from the lack of a focused and grounded mentality.
Yoga offers a solution that few exercise programs can. Performed in a class or in your living room, yoga’s meditative quality allows your level of focus and concentration to heighten and strengthen with each session.
Our brain functions at four levels of brainwave cycle per second activity:
1. Beta: Fully active, alert, thinking and engaged with your life at that moment.
2. Alpha: A much slower rate of cycles per second, that dreamy state just before you fall asleep, the creative and thoughtful level.
3. Theta: Deep sleep, some activity, but nothing constructive.
4. Delta: Unconscious sleep, very little activity.
Performing yoga enables you to decrease your brain’s activity from Beta to Alpha, to focus on the pose and your breath. The Alpha state by it’s very nature is quiet, calm and concentrative. Your body reacts to the poses more efficiently; stretching properly and slowly revealing your inner grounded self for confidence and strength.
In the end, isn’t that what we are all after? To discover our inner self, to become focused, to calm the chaos, gain overall strength, balance and poise.
Concentration and focus are just two of the benefits of yoga that come quickly to the dedicated novice and will deepen for the seasoned veteran. You will notice the advantages of a calm and focused mind in virtually everything you do at work, at home or at play.
Concentration is a benefit of yoga that transcends all areas of life from: sports, relationships, work, hobbies, study and spirituality. It allows you to focus on one thing at a time and achieve excellence in that one activity. Without concentration your mind wanders to other demands in your life.
Focus is part of concentration being a narrow pattern of thought on just one item, but it can still be a very flexible and creative experience. If you are focusing on a project and you need new ideas to make it different and exciting, focusing on the variables involved allows you to brainstorm with yourself or others with fascinating results.
Yoga gives you an avenue to this type of brain activity by forcing you to slow down and concentrate on the movements, your breathing and your thoughts. Taking what you learn in this area and applying it to the rest of your life will have astounding results that you will be very pleased with.
Give yoga a try; it may be just what you are looking for.
Keith Edwin Renninson is co-owner, along with Jeffrey Forman, of Golden Years Videos, LLC a production company dedicated to offering exercise videos for individuals over 50, or of any age who are rehabilitating from an accident or illness.
Renninson is an avid exercise and yoga enthusiast. Now in his late 50’s, he still races bicycles and regularly skis the black diamond runs in Colorado where he lives. For many years, a bona fide gym rat, Renninson still loves to lift free weights and use exercise machines.
You can contact Renninson or read more about his company and the videos they have available at: http://www.goldenyearsvideos.com