3 Bits Of Intelligence

Twenty million people in the United States are doing yoga. What makes so many people do yoga, and why is it so effective? Yoga is so effective because it is done in the body. 

If we look at the brain’s purpose, we can understand that the brain’s agenda is to keep us safe. So everything we react to the mind asks automatically, “Is this safe?” or “Is this not safe?” This mechanism is essential to stay alive. However, when the brain is in charge, that means that the rest of the body is not in charge. It is important to understand because other parts of us actually feel and intuit the world. 

• The Heart

Sometimes the heart takes charge, and we operate from there instead of the brain. The heart is compassionate, open, and vulnerable. So, if we were to make decisions that involved the heart, it would be very different than the decisions that involve the brain. 

Certain yoga postures like chest opening, backbends, and prayer mudra bring your attention to the heart’s responses. Imagine waking up in the morning and practicing one or two heart-centered yoga poses like Mountain Pose with Prayer Mudra and Cobra Pose. Listen to your body by breathing and reflecting as you practice these heart-centered poses, and you will gain a meaningful drive for the start of your day. 

• Gut Center

Located in the lower belly area, the place where we digest food. Not only do we digest food here, but we also digest situations. It is where we get gut responses. We say as a culture, “trust your gut” or “go with your gut.” Our gut does have the intuitive ability. It contains an extensive group of neurons, chemicals, and hormones that let us know when we are stressed, hungry, happy, and more. If we were to always react from our center, it would be very different than reacting from our brain. 

Yoga postures call for control of the whole body and cause you to activate and rely on your center area quite often. Plank pose and Chaturanga pose are great to harness your gut power and overcome whatever life decides to you during the day. 

• Legs

Our legs are often taken for granted, but they are what “ground us” in many different ways. They are what ground us into the earth. 

Standing yoga postures ground you directly, maybe more so than we initially understood. The Warrior Pose Series helps you stay balanced and centered as well as flexible and strong. 

In summary, that is what yoga does; it brings us into our body so that our brain is not the only place within us that is in charge. Yoga puts you back in charge and gives you the tools to heal yourself and make healthy life choices. You don’t need somebody else to you because yoga gives you the tool to do the work yourself.