Benefits of Teen Yoga

Photo by Надя Кисільова on Unsplash

Research from the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics shows that teens can benefit from yoga as much as adults. After a ten-week study, researchers found that high school students who participated in yoga scored better on psychological tests screening for anxiety, depression, and mood imbalances than the teens who did not. They also reported fewer negative emotions. 

Physical Benefits

Many top athletes regularly practice yoga so it is just as useful for the competitive teen lacrosse player as for the teen who isn’t so keen on sports. Some of the benefits include:

·      builds strength

·      increases flexibility and mobility

·      lengthens muscles

·      enhances coordination and balance

·      builds core stability

·      improves posture after a day hunched over a desk or smartphone

Emotional Benefits

Emotional intelligence is very powerful to learn at an early age. Using the breath, yoga enables you to remain present and connect to your deeper emotions to understand your feelings and begin to process them. Yoga encourages self-love and self-acceptance; learn to love yourself and appreciate the body for what it is and what it can do, rather than what it looks like. It builds compassion for the self which then expands to compassion for others.

Mental Benefits

Yoga can help with the stress and anxiety of exams, placement tests, writing papers and all of the other pressures that plague teens. Yoga’s mental benefits are quite well documented, and teens who practice yoga show more positive moods, less anxiety and depression, and better relaxation techniques. Breath work and meditation are invaluable tools to cope with stress.

Educational Benefits

Teens have many distractions – from what they’re going to wear to the football game on Friday night, to the drama of who-likes-who – and these can impact learning. Yoga helps us mentally focus on the task at hand. By practicing being present on the mat, teens can more fully concentrate on the present moment when off the mat.

Social Benefits

The word “Yoga” means union in Sanskrit. By understanding that we are all part of one, teens may learn to accept each other more fully, no matter the clique, social interests or popularity ranking. Yoga is non-judgmental. The more we practice, the more acceptance and less judgement we’ll have in our daily lives. And we become more compassionate for each other.