In Yoga diaryIn the Archives series, we share a curated collection of articles originally published in back issues dating back to 1975. These stories offer a glimpse into how yoga has been interpreted, written about, and practiced over the years. This article first appeared in Yoga journal in 2017. You can find more of our archives here.
You finally get to your mat. As you begin to slow your breathing and discover the familiar forms of poses, you can feel the emotional relief. You may also feel the nagging thoughts about that email you didn’t return and the thoughts about that meeting you’re still reliving. Or maybe by the time you get to Warrior I you’ve already written half a shopping list. You have checked out of your practice. Again.
Yoga can be defined as bringing together body, mind and consciousness – a complete experience of the present moment. When you are in your body and lost in your breath, you experience that oneness that keeps you coming back to your practice. But when your mind wanders, yoga isn’t really happening.
So how do you stay in the present moment? Yes, it’s an ongoing practice, although trying something new is a pretty surefire strategy to keep you focused. It can be as daring as taking a handstand workshop or as peaceful as exploring yin yoga or yoga nidra. Doctors, neuroscientists, and yoga teachers say going beyond your tried-and-true yoga practice can have big benefits for your brain, body, and mood—and there’s plenty of scientific research to back that up.
How changing your yoga practice can change your life
A surprising number of neurological changes occur when you leave the familiar behind.
1. It keeps your brain young
You’ve probably heard of learning a new language or a new musical instrument forms new connections in the brain. Figuring out how to get into an arm balance or transition from one pose to the next in a new way also boosts your memory, concentration, and creativity by creating new neural pathways, or thought patterns, in the brain.
Psychotherapist and vinyasa teacher Coral Brown compares neural pathways with samskarasor the impressions of our past actions – positive or negative – as described in yoga philosophy. These repetitive actions shape our habits and perceptions of the world and literally form grooves, or neuropathies, in the brain. She suggests keeping the brain plastic by creating positive samskaras by trying new poses, sequences, teachers and styles.
Loren Fishman, an experienced Iyengar practitioner and physician from Manhattan, agrees. He explains that learning yoga improves hand-eye coordination, thickens the cerebral cortex (the higher brain that controls language, perception, creativity and planning) and changes the way we perceive the world. Each new position requires us to coordinate muscles differently, and our brains must adapt in the same way.
It all comes back to perception. “You have that sense of what everyone is constantly trying to capture: liberation, enlightenment, a new world, a rebirth,” says Fishman. “A new yoga pose almost inevitably opens a new door. It takes you to a place you’ve never been before.”
2. It makes you more resilient to stress
A demanding boss, an unhappy customer, a screaming child, and heavy traffic can cause your heart rate, stress hormones, and anxiety to rise. Yet neuroscientists claim that this is possible train your brain to better cope with stressful situations by putting yourself in a controlled environment, such as a yoga studio, and expanding your comfort zone.
Brown explains that learning new yoga poses or yoga styles is a form of modern biofeedback. If you consistently do the same thing, new things are likely to be experienced as stressful. Your world is shrinking – and so is your brain.
“The more adept we are at experiencing new practices, people and places, the better we can manage stress,” says Brown. “The less likely we are to overdose on the adrenal glands and the more likely we are to get a serotonin boost.”
“Suppose you’re balancing in an awkward and new position,” says Mithu Storonia doctor, brain researcher and yoga teacher. “Your mind is racing and you think, ‘Oh, I’m going to fall out’ or ‘I can’t hold this anymore.’ You force yourself to use your prefrontal cortex to suppress your emotional reactivity.”
Storoni explains that early yoga is described in the Samkhya Around 400 BCE, emphasis was placed on freeing the mind from emotions as a way to experience transcendence. This training will leave you better equipped to handle stress outside your yoga practice without overreacting.
3. You can discover (or rediscover) something you love
“Many teachers and students suffer from ‘being in a rut’ syndrome,” says Brown. You can’t know if you like something until you try it, and that means giving yourself the chance to try something.
Brown says that rediscovering something you like can have a similar effect to trying something for the first time. Having initially followed Iyengar Yoga before moving to Jivamukti and Vinyasa, she appreciates returning to Iyengar classes every now and then to refresh her attunement.
Above all, Brown suggests letting your own inner guide take you to undiscovered places and embracing the beginner’s mind. “We turn to inspiration outside of ourselves, like Instagram or social media, and that’s what we try to do. Instead of using an external locus of control, use your own internal wisdom and memory. Be the yoga detective by studying different yoga asanas and reading different styles of yoga philosophies.”
4. It gets you in the zone
You know the experience of being in the zone. Whether you’re trying a new recipe, solving a problem, or balancing in Ardha Chandrasana, time seems to stand still, your mind goes blank, and you get lost in the seeming effortlessness of your experience. That is the peak performance that state psychologists call ‘flow’. It is a form of yoga, or union, and studies show that it increases creativity, productivity and happiness.
But flow doesn’t happen when we’re bored.
Trying new things requires us to step out of autopilot and focus, which makes finding that flow state easier. “We need a challenge,” says Storoni. “Most of us are guilty of stagnation.” She explains that when practicing the same sequence, the challenge should be self-generated by asking yourself to focus on your alignment or not rush through the pose.
But novelty offers a built-in opportunity for challenge. The trick is that the challenge should not be so great that you become afraid of it. You want it to remain sparkling and seductive.
5. It makes you happier
Remember that elation you first felt balancing in Bakasana? Or the happy surprise you experience when you flow through a new series with your favorite teacher? It shows learning stimulates brain connections that make us happy.
Storoni explains that acquiring a new skill strengthens the neural pathways that release feel-good neurotransmitters, including serotonin and dopamine. This can lead to feelings of joy and even euphoria, which are further enhanced by the endorphins that peak during exercise.
At the other end of the spectrum, in depression or early dementia, the prefrontal cortex stops growing in complexity, meaning fewer feel-good chemicals are released.
“The brain is a plastic organ,” says Storoni. “It’s always growing. It’s always changing. Learning stimulates the connections and networks within so it can thrive and feel happy.”
This article has been updated. Originally published on January 2, 2017.
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